Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 108

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Kale observed his surroundings like any ordinary citizen passing through.

“Why are you doing this?”

A robed figure knocked over a chair and shot to his feet. Another robed figure rose and grabbed him.

“Let go, let go!”

The one whose arm was seized suddenly raised his voice. A deep, resonant tone echoed through the space. Kale could almost picture a bewildered middle-aged elf with that dignified voice.
Kale glanced upward at the ceiling.

-Human, I’m spinning around and around!

Raon was apparently spinning in circles above the first-floor restaurant. Kale lowered his gaze to observe the dining area. The delicate, pale hands of what appeared to be an elf trembled slightly.

“…This can’t be!”

The robed figure—one who seemed to have encountered a dragon—moved with hesitant, shuffling steps. His head, pulled low beneath the hood, swayed back and forth as he wandered aimlessly.
Tap. Thud. The bewildered middle-aged elf bumped shoulders with passersby.

“What’s wrong?”
“What?”

Each time, the elf ignored them—or rather, seemed too shocked to respond. Another robed figure trailed behind, continuously apologizing to those they’d collided with.

I was tense.
Don’t come this way.

Kale observed the wandering robed figure from the corner of his eye. Simultaneously, he nudged Hans. It was a signal to the sluggish Hans—who was still conversing with the counter owner—to get back to work.

-Human, how much longer will I keep spinning? I’ll keep going!

Raon’s voice was excited, clearly enjoying the spinning. Kale pretended not to notice the liveliness of the now five-year-old Raon.

‘The Dark Elves had been connected to the Crown Prince, and since we were the only ones who knew of their existence, it was difficult to deny it.’

I needed to hold back as much as possible right now.
The book “Birth of a Hero” had only one line explaining how much elves revered dragons.

【Elves cheered whenever dragons merely flapped their wings.】

There was no need to say more. Compared to elves, Dark Elves would be utterly insignificant. If Raon merely fluttered his wings, the elves would fall backward.
Terrible.

However, Kale Heniatus’s expression gradually hardened.

‘Why is it coming this way?’

Raon wasn’t even here. Kale Heniatus’s heart pounded heavily.
Then, fortunately, a welcome voice reached my ears.

“Young Master!”

Hans, the assistant butler, called out to Kale Heniatus and was able to see his bright smile.

“Yes! Hans!”

Hans had never seen Kale Heniatus welcome him so warmly before. For some reason, it felt unsettling, but he spoke his piece.

“They say the good rooms are only on the third floor and above, so would it be alright-”
“That’s perfect.”

From Kale Heniatus, who uttered a quiet but firm affirmation, his intention to head to that room immediately came across crystal clear. Hans, sensing Kale Heniatus’s pressing atmosphere to finish quickly, immediately turned his head toward the Innkeeper.

“Then shall I give you all the premium rooms on the third floor?”

Once Hans answered, Kale Heniatus could disappear to the third floor.

“Where are you going?”
“Third floor.”

Kale Heniatus was already walking toward the third-floor staircase. Choi Han followed with a puzzled expression. Kale Heniatus’s complexion looked strained, as if he were quite exhausted.

-Human, where are you going, leaving me behind? Your complexion looks bad! Are you sick? Should I go with you?

No, absolutely do not come.
Kale carefully shook his head and finally managed to step onto the staircase leading to the third floor. That was when it happened.

Right behind me.

“Ah, is this mister drunk? Why does he keep bumping into people?”
“My apologies. He’s not usually like this.”

Yes, right behind me.
A faint collision sound and voices drifted from behind Kale’s back. His grip on the stair railing tightened.

‘Why is it coming to me when there’s a spirit around?’

I was puzzled. The spirit should have noticed Raon circling around, so why was it coming here? Could it be that Raon’s scent had rubbed off on me from being together so much?
Kale quickly climbed the stairs.

“Perhaps—”

A deep voice came from right behind me. Goosebumps erupted across my back. Should I turn around? In my mind’s eye, I saw myself surrounded by elves, unable to move forward or back, while Raon was being praised with me crouching beside him. It was a moment of fleeting hesitation.

“Who are you?”
“What is this?”

Choi Han and Ron blocked the path between the approaching robed figure and Kale. Kale’s lips curved upward. Right. They were here.
Kale slowly turned around.

Below the stairs, an elf blocked by Choi Han and Ron came into view.
The elf’s distinctive ears were not visible, but I could see eyes glinting faintly within the hood. Kale looked down at those eyes and opened his mouth.

“What is this about?”

The elf hesitated slightly. Then, the one following behind grabbed the elf’s arm.

“Mister! What on earth are you doing?”

But the face of the elf who had followed also peeked out slightly from within the hood.

‘Insane.’

His striking appearance—the kind that could make everyone around him lose their minds—was utterly irrelevant. What mattered was the Z-shaped scar etched across his eye.

‘Why is he here?’

It was Fendrick, the healer.
The elf renowned as the most beautiful among his kind.

Kale already wanted to go home. His mind had become turbulent.

Who could possibly be the person Fendrick would call “sir” and travel alongside?
In the books, all elves were described as beautiful, making them difficult to distinguish. The Tribal Chief and Fendrick had detailed descriptions, so I could recognize them immediately, but the others were challenging.

The elf who had stopped Kale in his tracks showed no reaction to Fendrick’s actions, instead staring at Kale with bewilderment.

“Y-you—”

The elf spoke to Kale in a trembling voice.

“Do you perhaps believe in mana?”

Kale thought he was asking something about faith. He let out a scoff, his lips curving upward on one side in an amused smile. The middle-aged elf flinched at that casual composure—that contemptuous gaze that regarded everything except itself as beneath notice. It was eerily reminiscent of the Dragon’s own majestic eyes.
The Dragon’s great and terrible gaze.

‘The aura of a dragon drifting through the air.’

A dragon wouldn’t carelessly spiral about. It was clear that this being was deliberately circling its aura around, toying with all the creatures here. A dragon had more than enough power to do so.
If that were the case…

‘The scent of nature emanates most strongly from this person.’

This restaurant held many powerful beings. Yet the scent of nature was something entirely different from mere strength.
The middle-aged elf’s hands began to tremble. Elves were closest to nature among all races save the Dragon itself. Thus, they were dozens of times more sensitive to the power of nature than the Dark Elves.

‘The scent of wind, trees, and water—innate and natural. It’s impossible for a human to emanate this degree of fragrance all at once.’

The middle-aged elf pondered. Even if a human exhausted every ounce of fortune in their entire lifetime, it would be nearly impossible to obtain even one ancient power, let alone possess multiple ones in different attributes.
The primordial power of nature itself, distinct from mana. There was only one being that could contain such power.

A Dragon.
A being so fearsome that even speaking its name aloud felt dangerous.

‘If only the Spirit were here with me now!’

Had the Spirit I left in the Village been at my side, I could have discerned the truth with certainty.
The middle-aged Elf felt a profound sense of regret. Yet he could not simply summon the Spirit away from its work for the Village’s sake.

But here stood a human who possessed multiple ancient powers of different affinities without expending a lifetime’s fortune in luck.
That possessor, Kale Heniatus, answered with unwavering conviction.

“I don’t trust mana.”

Certainly, a nature-affinity Dragon would have answered that it trusts mana. So Kale answered that he does not.
Kale met the Elf’s gaze directly, making his position abundantly clear.
The Elf’s eyes gradually lowered to the ground.

“…I shall proceed according to your wishes.”

Hmm? Something about that answer felt off. Kale found himself bewildered as the Elf bowed respectfully. Proceed? An uneasy feeling washed over him.

But I couldn’t exactly say, ‘I’m not a Dragon,’ or ‘I’m human,’ could I? Kale’s confusion deepened—why was an Elf with a Spirit acting this way?

“Sir, what’s the matter?”
“Nothing serious. We’ll simply continue as we were.”
“Yes? Of course we should, right?”
“Right.”

The middle-aged Elf, who had been conversing with Fendrick, turned to Kale and offered a gentle smile. The Elf was indeed handsome. He spoke to Kale.

“We need only go about our business quietly.”

Why are you saying that to me?
Kale felt utterly dumbfounded. His brow furrowed slightly at the absurdity. In that instant, the Elf flinched and bowed even deeper, his waist bent at a sharp angle.

“I sincerely apologize for disturbing your peaceful journey. From now on, I shall pretend ignorance. I earnestly hope your feelings have not been wounded.”

…This was strange. No matter how I looked at it, this was treatment befitting a Dragon on holiday. Surely a Spirit who had encountered a Dragon would have told me that I was human?
Kale felt uneasy, but for now, he said nothing.

“It seems your business here is concluded. Shall we each go our separate ways?”

Kale turned away, his expression cold and uncompromising. Choi Han and Ron watched the robed figures intently before following Kale’s resolute departure.

-Human, human! Just let me circle around for ten more minutes before I follow! This is fun!

Raon spiraled through the air like a bee, tracing figure-eights in an ever-accelerating pattern. The middle-aged elf grew increasingly uneasy as the dragon’s presence moved faster and faster through the restaurant.

“Sir, what exactly is the reason for this?”
“No matter. Let’s leave at once.”

Fendrick swallowed his frustration with a sigh. He leaned toward the middle-aged elf and whispered quietly.

“Guardian Warrior, are you certain you’re alright?”

Guardian Warrior. The middle-aged elf nodded with a grave expression. It was regrettable, but unavoidable.

“Yes, I’m fine. Let’s go quickly. We must return to the village and lend our strength.”
“Understood.”

Fendrick gazed at the table where his companions sat, his expression hardened. They had ventured into the human realm but gained nothing. They needed to return swiftly and aid in protecting the village.

“I apologize for the delay I’ve caused. Let us hurry.”

At the Guardian Warrior’s words, the elves departed the restaurant and hastened toward Ten Finger Mountain. Ten peaks of varying heights. One of them, where their village stood, was now in peril.

* * *

Several days later, in the early morning, Kale ascended the Third Peak of Ten Finger Mountain, bringing only Raon with him.

“Human! Mountain climbing is wonderful!”

Wonderful, my frozen foot. I wiped the sweat from my brow and unfurled Wind’s Sound as I climbed swiftly toward the summit.

Why were these ten peaks called Ten Finger Mountain? Because their shapes resembled fingers.
That was why the Third and Eighth Peaks were particularly tall—like a human’s middle finger, which is the longest. They were so high they disappeared into the clouds, and snow supposedly never melted there until midsummer.

‘But that peak is melting.’

The final ancient power: ‘Destruction’s Flame’.
Others wouldn’t know yet. In one week, this ancient power would melt half of the Third Peak.

“Human! It’s hot! What is this place?”
“Good grief.”

Kale Heniatus reached the summit with a groan.

“Isn’t this lava? I’ve read about it in books! It’s hotter than that twisted fire in the Jungle! What a strange power!”

Lava appeared before Kale Heniatus and Raon’s eyes. It wasn’t enormous, but it was quite a large lava pit.
Of course, this peak wasn’t a volcano. Yet this lava was melting the mountain. The heat was overwhelming.
However, Kale Heniatus, who possessed both the regeneration of ‘Vitality of the Heart’ and a necklace containing water that commanded fire, was less affected. He gazed toward the center of the churning lava pit.

“Ha!”

I was astounded. A golden pig figurine was spinning round and round.

“Raon.”

I called out to Raon. He turned to look at me, having been absorbed in the strange sight. I could see a magical pouch unfolded before him.

“What is it, human?”
“Hand over the money.”

Raon blinked blankly before handing over the money.
My lips gradually curved upward. For once, I wanted to do something satisfying without causing harm to others.

Throwing money around was the perfect way to relieve stress.

“Ha, hahaha!”

I laughed heartily.

“…Human, why are you like this?”

Raon stepped back. It wasn’t because I was laughing. It was strange to see me laugh like this, yet it looked good. But the other sight was odd.

Clink, clink—
Kale Heniatus scooped a fistful of silver coins from his magic pouch, their crystalline chiming filling the air, and scattered them before me.

“Human! With this money, you could buy skewered chicken! Candied sweet potatoes by the handful! Human, why are you like this? If you have complaints, speak them, human!”
“Hahahaha!”

I paid no attention to Raon’s words. In that moment, a miraculous sight unfolded before me.
Uuuuuung.
With a resonant hum from the inferno, the silver coins did not melt—instead, they adhered to the lava’s surface.

Ancient power left behind by one who had been a greedy, wealthy warrior.
The final, costly ability he had bequeathed.

Indeed, money was meant to be spent lavishly.

“Hahahaha!”

With hearty laughter befitting a great hero, I scattered coins recklessly across my path ahead.
A road of riches, a path of silver, was unfolding before me.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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