Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 13

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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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Chapter 4. Outside

“You don’t seem nervous.”

I answered my father, Count Derth, with a slight smile instead of words.
My complexion had noticeably improved over the past few days. It couldn’t have been otherwise.

‘Because I wasn’t beaten.’

It had rained in the Heniatus Territory until yesterday. According to the book’s narrative, that meant I should have been beaten so badly on a rainy day that dust would rise from the ground. Of course, I hadn’t been beaten yesterday.

And now I was sleeping soundly. I could always feel the unbreakable shield wrapped around my heart. The thought that even if I made a poor impression on fellows like Ron or Vicross, I could survive at least once—this brightened my spirit considerably.

“Father.”

I gazed at the unusually lavish breakfast table and asked.

“The attendants have increased again. I asked you to reduce them.”

I had told my father to reduce the servants who would attend to me and the servants who would handle chores. I said Hans and Ron were sufficient. Of course, Hans had turned pale, but the moment I mentioned going with the cat, he packed his belongings without hesitation.

“Ah, well, about that.”

Derth drew out his words unusually. Then another voice interjected into our conversation.

“I did.”

The Countess, Viollan.
She sat with her hair neatly pinned as always, her gaze fixed on her plate. She bore a striking resemblance to my second brother, Basen. The way she wore a stern expression and never met my eyes was identical.

“If you go with so few attendants and our household appears lacking, that won’t do.”

Her voice was flat and indifferent. Yet Viollan lifted her gaze to look at me and added dispassionately.

“…I’m not saying you’re lacking.”
“I understand that much.”

At my response, Viollan paused briefly, then resumed eating and spoke again.

“People, especially the nobility, are far too concerned with appearances.”

Countess Viollan. I studied her quietly.
I’d heard she was the eldest daughter of an impoverished baronial house who once dreamed of becoming a Merchant Guild leader. Back then, her eyes opened to the luxury goods trade targeting the nobility, and under that influence, she came to the Heniatus Territory and fell deeply in love with the art of sculpture. After that, she met Count Derth, fell in love, and now lives as a central pillar of the territory’s cultural endeavors.

From what I could see, Viollan possessed a strong pride in her own life and held great dignity for the household in which she lived.

She continued speaking without the slightest change in expression, fully aware that I was simply staring at her in silence.

“Art is not mere appearance—only human trash would fail to understand that—ahem.”

Having worked in the commercial world, her speech was somewhat rough.

“In any case, many people believe that appearances represent everything.”

Thus, she was telling me to bring many attendants with me. Her intention was to ensure I wouldn’t be judged poorly for bringing too few retainers.

Naturally, I too wanted to bring many servants with me.

‘How comfortable and wonderful that would be.’

By now, I found it inconvenient to change clothes without at least one attendant. It had only been about a week, yet I couldn’t abandon that comfort.

But looming before my future was a mad black dragon.

What if I failed to release the Radiant Dragon beforehand? When it went mad and rampaged, people would surely die. Though I cared little for the fate of others, I had no desire to witness death unfold before my eyes. And I refused to bear responsibility for those who would be injured in that catastrophe.

Responsibility was a heavy burden. Having borne the weight of my own life alone since childhood, I understood that responsibility tied to human lives was the most terrifying and heavy of all.
Thus, I opened my mouth.

“Art is a mirror of the heart.”

Viollan lifted her gaze from the plate and looked at me. For the first time in a while, our eyes met.

“…You understand.”
“Yes, I do.”

Over the past few days, I had wandered throughout the territory gathering everything necessary for my four-day journey to the Capital. I recited to Viollan one of the things I had witnessed during those travels.

“Sculpture is not about carving what the eye can see. It is about creating what dwells within the heart.”

This time, Kale Heniatus continued his meal while gazing at his plate, and Viollan watched him intently.

“It was written on the exhibition hall’s placard, wasn’t it?”

An exhibition hall for up-and-coming sculptors within the territory. The placard displayed at its entrance—Viollan had carved those letters herself.

“…Very well, do as you wish. I shall reduce the number of attendants. In exchange, the carriage and everything else shall be of the finest quality. Our Heniatus people must maintain such standards.”
“Understood. Please arrange for the most expensive option.”
“Indeed. A carriage so splendid that your backside won’t ache even traveling stone roads.”
“Excellent.”

Kale, focused on his plate, could not see it, but a faint smile bloomed and faded at the corners of Viollan’s lips. Count Derth, observing this scene, cleared his throat and suppressed the corners of his mouth that threatened to rise, then posed a question to Kale.

“Have you reviewed the documents Hans prepared regarding the temperaments of the young nobles from each household you’ll be meeting?”

Derth had obtained brief profile documents on the major noble families using the Lord’s Castle’s intelligence division and the Information Guild, then passed them to Kale.

“Yes, they were quite entertaining.”

It was likely information obtained at considerable expense. Though each entry contained only three lines or fewer of summary, intelligence on nobility was rare and costly.

“There are narrow-minded individuals. Foolish people, intelligent and terrifying ones, those consumed by the desire for authority—all manner of people, really.”

Of course, there were also those foolishly virtuous. Stubborn types existed, and so did reckless ones.

“So you’ve read the document I provided. Ahem, in any case, you may do as you please. But Kale.”
“Yes.”
“I’ve heard a peculiar rumor.”

Kale’s shoulders trembled ever so slightly.

“The Man-Eating Tree—that black tree—it has apparently changed. It has become a tree bearing white, fresh green leaves. Grass now grows in that place where nothing would flourish before.”

In just four days, the most dramatic transformation had occurred at the summit of the Slums—where only the black tree had stood. The tree, now white and verdant after I had resolved its resentment, appeared not merely mysterious but sacred.

“Quite an intriguing rumor, wouldn’t you say?”
“Indeed. A most intriguing rumor.”

Since I had no intention of revealing the ancient power yet, I pretended not to notice.
Count Derth, as the lord, could not possibly be unaware that I visited the Slums. He would not know about the ancient power, but he would certainly suspect that something had occurred involving me and the tree.

“Yes. It’s merely a trivial rumor. But when undertaking any task, one must pay attention to rumors. There is nothing more fearsome than people’s eyes and mouths. Of course, within this territory, our family members are trustworthy.”
“I will remember that.”

I found myself thinking that if I lived only within this territory, life would be remarkably comfortable. How wonderful it would be to return from the Capital soon and spend the remainder of my days in leisurely contentment.

The farewell breakfast for my departure to the Capital had concluded. After receiving parting words from the Count and Countess, who claimed to be too busy with their duties to see me off, my gaze met that of my younger siblings, who stood awkwardly nearby.

“What is it?”

At my indifferent question, my second brother Basen merely nodded his head. My younger sister Lily approached hesitantly. Seven years old. She was the youngest, with an age gap of a full eleven years between us.

“Please have a safe journey.”
“Yes. You take care of yourself too.”

Lily’s shoulders trembled visibly before she nodded.

“Yes!”

Then she gazed at me quietly. Observing that look, I asked indifferently.

“Would you like me to bring you back a gift?”
“Really?”

As I suspected. She wanted a gift. Watching Lily’s face display a mixture of surprise, wonder, and joy, I nodded.

“Yes. Tell me what you want.”
“A sword.”
“…What?”
“Please bring me back a sword.”

A seven-year-old wanting a sword? Bewilderment crossed my face when Basen spoke to me.

“Lily’s current dream is to become a swordmaster, brother.”
“Is that so?”

I examined Lily seriously. It was true that the people of this household possessed long limbs and excellent physical proportions. Though Lily was only seven, she was taller than her peers, and with proper effort, she would certainly have the potential to become a capable swordmaster.

“Well, a sword suits you too.”

Lily’s eyes gleamed with delight.

“I’ll buy you an expensive one.”

Instead of a verbal response, Lily lowered her head shyly, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. Unaware of this, Kale turned to his fifteen-year-old younger sibling, who was staring at him intently, and asked.

“…Should I buy something for you too?”
“A fountain pen.”
“Understood.”

Only after settling on the gift list did breakfast finally come to an end.

* * *

As I arrived at the carriage that would carry me to the Capital after departing the Main Residence, my expression grew peculiar.

‘This is strange.’

I turned to the person standing beside me and asked.

“Why do those two have better accommodations than I do?”

I gazed at the expensive, plush cushion placed beside my seat and the two cats greeting me from atop it.

“Young master, surely our cats must travel comfortably, yes? They are such small and delicate creatures.”

Hans spoke as he placed specially made jerky for the cats into the carriage. Both my expression and Ron’s, who rarely showed emotion, grew sour.

‘He wouldn’t be like this if he’d seen them create mist and spray poison.’

Three days ago, I had taken the cat-form Mana Beasts On and Hong to a secluded corner of the garden where no one could see us and asked them.

“What can you two do?”

In response to my question, On in cat form created mist, while Hong sprayed her blood slightly, dispersing poison into the air. Of course, On knew how to control the poisonous mist so that I wouldn’t die. And she said the poison she dispersed was merely paralytic toxin at this stage.

“You two are quite capable, aren’t you?”

At my praise, On and Hong beamed with satisfaction as they spoke.

“We were able to escape thanks to the poisonous fog!”
“We’re actually pretty good at this!”

From that point on, On and Hong were able to eat delicious food throughout the day in abundance. Hans naturally welcomed this development.

“Young master, I shall sit with the coachman on the driver’s seat.”
“Very well.”

Ron climbed onto the driver’s seat, and I moved to board my own carriage. That was when Choi Han approached.

“Kale.”

Choi Han refused to call me “young master” or “sir,” insisting instead on addressing me simply by name.

“What is it?”
“Do I not need to guard you from within the same carriage?”

My expression twisted into something resembling the sourness of an unripe persimmon.

“…There’s no need.”

Was there really any necessity to go that far?
My expression answered for me, and Choi Han simply nodded without further comment. Watching him, my eyes narrowed with suspicion.

‘Something is off.’

Choi Han’s gaze was still not clear. Anger and a thirst for vengeance still seemed to fill his heart. When I had informed him yesterday that I’d sent someone from the Lord’s Castle to Harris Village, he had clearly expressed his hatred.

Yet the atmosphere was somehow different. It was not the despair of ‘the world does not wish for my happiness! All my precious people have been slain!’ So that was what felt strange.

‘His recovery is remarkably swift.’

It was like the Choi Han from early in the story, when I traveled with Vicross, Rosalind, and Rak—one who carried a blade in his heart yet remained composed. It wasn’t necessarily bad, so I let it pass, but something felt subtly off. Then it happened.

“It seems your place is not here.”

The Vice-Captain of the territory’s Knights Order, who could be said to be leading this journey, approached and glared at Choi Han with those words. The Vice-Captain looked him over from head to toe, then let out a scornful laugh.

‘Of course. A creature like this wouldn’t be absent from our territory.’

Kale clicked his tongue.

Choi Han had deliberately concealed his swordsmanship skills beneath an ordinary veneer.
Yet the problem lay in the fact that he was the first guest Kale had ever brought to the Count’s Mansion, and that Lord Derth had treated him as an important visitor.
Moreover, now that Choi Han had taken on the role of Kale’s escort, it seemed that certain individuals had begun to regard him with suspicion and wariness.
While they refrained from openly tormenting him on account of his status as Kale’s guest, the methods of covert harassment were boundless.

‘Young master, it appears that Choi Han may not be fitting in well with the knights who will accompany us on this escort mission.’
‘Is that so?’
‘Yes, sir. It seems the Vice-Captain is at the center of it.’
‘I understand. Hans, just pay it no mind.’

Recalling the report Hans had given me, I gazed at the Vice-Captain—not at Choi Han—with eyes full of sympathy.

‘Before long, he’ll be thinking, “Ah, I see now—I must have buried my ability to judge people not underground, but far deeper still.”‘

As long as he didn’t end up getting beaten to a pulp, that would be fortunate enough.
I chose not to intervene between the two of them.
Once the Vice-Captain witnessed the full extent of Choi Han’s abilities, he wouldn’t sleep a wink afterward. Fear would rob him of slumber.

“Confucius, shall we leave now?”

When the vice-captain asked, Cale answered as he closed the carriage door.

“Uh, let’s go.”

15 soldiers, 5 knights, 1 special escort. Cale’s group, consisting of ordinary people, headed to the capital.
Of course, as was typical of journeys in a fantasy world, the voyage proved far from smooth.

No one in Henitus territory could touch Cale’s carriage. Although it did not carry a flag representing the family, the carriage had a golden turtle, the symbol of the Henitus family, engraved on it. It was a symbol of the Henitus family’s love for wealth and longevity.

But the moment he left the territory, Cale felt it.

‘As expected, it definitely comes out.’

While crossing the mountain on a fairly tight schedule, dozens of people appeared in the valley.

“If you want to cross this mountain, pay the toll!”
“Pay the toll if you want to cross this mountain!”

That’s right. It was a bandit.
Bandits. That’s what they were.

“Don’t they see the family mark on my carriage?”
“Do you think they can’t see the family crest on my carriage?”
“Apparently not.”

Cale nodded at Hong’s words. He wasn’t afraid of bandits or anything. It had to be that way.
I nodded at Hong’s assessment. I wasn’t frightened of mere bandits. I couldn’t afford to be.

“Master, I think we should take a break and then go. There are a lot of rabbits here.”

rabbit. Cale’s eyes trembled slightly. Ron said, ‘Ah!’ and added with a kind smile.

“Ah, this rabbit is different from the rabbit I was trying to catch for you. Of course, other people will catch those rabbits, not me.”

A man scarier than a bandit was guarding Kale. He measured the time by listening to the sounds of bandits running away and screaming outside the carriage.

“A day and a half?”

If you go just a day and a half further, there is a place nearby where wild dragons are raised. It was faster than the schedule in the book. It was rewarding to come as quickly as possible without stopping.

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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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