Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 135

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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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Tap. Tap. Tap.
The sound of descending stone stairs filled the space. Yet the occasional screams of Sword Master Hana pierced through the group’s ears even more sharply.

“Bin, didn’t you say it was in the early stages?”

Bin answered urgently to Kale’s question.

“Yes. When I received the messenger last night, it was definitely still in the early stages.”

Kale, as well as Queen Ritana, had delivered large quantities of top-tier potions to support Sword Master Hana in holding out as long as possible in the early stages.
Behind Kale, the voice of Dark Elf Tasha reached his ears.

“It’s showing signs of entering the intermediate stage, but it hasn’t reached it yet. Of course, it’s still dangerous.”

Urgency tinged her voice.
As Kale descended underground, he recalled his conversation with Merry. Inside the ship sailing toward the Jungle, he had asked her.

‘You said there was a way?’
‘Yes. If she’s a Sword Master, it’s possible.’
‘…Merry, I don’t just want her to barely cling to life.’
‘I know. She will live.’

Merry’s answer had been resolute.
Kale knew that even if Merry seemed a bit simple-minded, she at least didn’t speak nonsense.

Tap. Tap.
A door appeared below the underground stairs. It stood open.
There was a reason for the screams pouring out.

At the massive entrance to the underground chamber, a servant stood helplessly, neither closing nor opening the door.

“What’s happening?”
“Ah, Bin!”

The servant’s expression brightened noticeably. Kale immediately headed toward the door with Bin. Through the gap of the open door, a corridor and a single room door came into view.

“Aaaaaahhhhh!”

Screams leaked through the gap in the door.
That’s the place.

The Servant reported urgently to Bin.

“The guest has been having seizures for approximately two hours now. The escort is currently inside the room preparing for any emergency that might arise, and I wasn’t sure where to report this.”

Guest. He was referring to Sword Master Hana. Kale could hear Tasha’s admiring sigh.

“…Enduring for two hours straight. That’s incredible patience.”

Kale turned to look at Tasha, but his gaze met the black robe instead.

“She’s barely holding on. We need to go in quickly.”

Kale didn’t respond and turned his gaze away. At the doorway, Bin and the Servant were conversing.

“The seizures are too severe right now, there’s no way to calm her down—”
“Move.”
“…Pardon?”

A figure stepped between the Servant and Bin.
The Servant stumbled back in surprise. An irresistible aura emanated from the man. That man was Kale.

“Young Master.”

Bin called out to Kale and tried to take the lead. But the moment their eyes met, his body froze for an instant.
Kale pushed open the massive door with both hands.

Creak— Bang!
The door swung open with a loud sound, and Kale stepped inside. Naturally, Merry and Tasha followed, along with the two Dragons and Ron.
Bin watched them for a moment before issuing instructions to the Servant.

“Tell His Majesty that an honored guest has arrived.”
“Ah, yes, yes!”

Bin confirmed the Servant’s departure and hurriedly followed after Kale. Kale had already reached the open doorway at the end of the corridor.

Kale stood before the door, treading on the luxurious carpet.

The door stood wide open.
The bright light illuminated the room clearly, and Ron, the servant following behind Kale, furrowed his brow slightly at the sight within.

‘…How horrifying.’

Even to Ron’s eyes, the scene was somewhat gruesome.

“Ugh, ahhhhh!”

A bed came into view.
And upon it lay Sword Master Hana, her limbs writhing in agony.
It was difficult to even recognize her as herself.

“Ahhhhh!”

Black veins bulged across her entire body as if about to burst. Blood streamed from every opening in her face—nose, eyes, ears, every crevice.
Simultaneously, black smoke rose from her body.

“Ah. Ah—”

She screamed with a hoarse voice. Her lips were torn from holding back her cries for so long, bleeding freely, and her eyes were bloodshot crimson.

“Hana, Hana! Please, oh, God!”

At Hana’s bedside, the Saint wept, unable even to pray. He dared not pray, fearing that if he called upon the Sun God’s power, the mana corrupted by the divine force might harm Hana further.

“Please. Hana, just a little more strength! Please!”

The Saint spoke to Hana with desperate urgency. If she could just hold on a little longer, surely a path to survival would emerge.
Dozens of empty high-grade potion bottles lay scattered across the floor.

Two hours ago, Hana had suddenly begun convulsing. No amount of high-grade potion could calm her.

“Ugh, ugh.”

The Saint gazed at the bloodshot eyes turned toward him and wept. His own eyes were stained red as well. He felt as though he were losing his mind.

‘I want to purify her.’

Watching his younger brother exhale black smoke, he was torn between his role as an older brother and his duty as a Saint.
Though he possessed only healing power, as a Saint, he yearned to purify his brother—to erase the dead mana and darkness from this world.

But if he did that, his brother would be erased as well.

Knowing this, he clasped his own hands tightly together. He simply gazed into his brother’s eyes and spoke with desperate urgency.

“Hana, just hold on a little longer! Then!”
“Then everything will be alright.”

A hand landed upon the Saint’s shoulder. In that instant, he understood the truth.
The eyes of his brother, whom he thought were fixed upon him, were actually gazing past his shoulder. The Saint slowly turned his head toward the familiar voice.

It was Kale Heniatus.
He spoke while looking at Hana.

“You’ve endured well. Now endure just a little longer.”

In that moment, the Saint could finally exhale in relief. But the instant he released that breath, a crushing pressure seized his heart.
The Saint’s gaze shifted to what lay behind Kale.

A black robe and a woman.
The moment he perceived these two presences, the Saint’s clasped hands began to tremble violently.

His instinct—the talent bestowed by the Sun God—spoke to him.

‘…A human wielding dead mana. And a Dark Elf.’

He had lived only within the Sun God Church, and these were his greatest enemies. Now they stood before his eyes. Though he was merely a Saint with only healing power, he was seized by an overwhelming compulsion.

‘…I must eliminate them. I must purify them.’

The divine justice granted by his god began to envelop him. The Saint’s eyes took on a crimson hue, burning with a different meaning than before.
That was when it happened.

Crack.

The hand gripping his shoulder tightened with force. At the pain of being seized so brutally that a groan nearly escaped him, the Saint turned his head.
His eyes met Kale’s.

Kale spoke to the Saint.

“They came to save your sister. They risked everything to get here.”

The Saint heard Kale’s calm voice.

“Don’t you want to save Sword Master Hana, your sister?”

The Saint clenched both his hands tightly. He bit his lip and slowly rose from his seat. Then he stepped back. His entire body trembled as he retreated without even glancing toward Merry and Tasha.
He spoke to Kale.

“I can endure it.”

The instinct granted by the Sun God could be endured.
The Saint could see Kale smile for the first time today.

“Hold on.”

After leaving those brief words, Kale immediately instructed Merry and Tasha.

“Begin.”
“Yes.”
“Yes.”

The two beings approached Hana immediately. Kale also drew near the bed and bowed toward Hana, who still gazed at him. Then he leaned close to her ear so she could hear clearly.

“Hana.”

Merry spoke.

‘It’s possible because she’s a Sword Master.’
‘Complete removal is impossible, but with the aura that person possesses, we should be able to fuse dead mana. However, after the fusion, she’ll gain dark attributes and will require continuous management. There may be aftereffects.’
‘But she can live.’
‘I’ll perform that fusion.’

Kale spoke to Hana.

“Raise your aura to its maximum. There will be a force that helps the dead mana and aura fuse together. Follow the path that force creates.”
“Ugh… ugh.”

Hana seemed to want to say something, her lips moving, but black smoke mixed with blood flowed from her mouth. I looked at her and offered one more word.

“Live. Please live.”

In that moment, Hana closed her eyes. Simultaneously, a golden aura began to slowly bloom from her body.

Between Merry’s rolled-up sleeves, black energy rose from her hands, which were covered in scars like a black spider’s web.
Tasha helped Hana sit up, and Merry’s two hands pressed against Hana’s back. Merry’s voice flowed out rapidly.

“Raise your aura following my lead.”

At the same time, the Dark Elf Tasha summoned a black mist that enveloped Hana and Merry.

I stepped back.
There was nothing more for me to do now. The moment Merry rolled up her sleeves, Ron and Bin had already taken the highest-ranked warrior who had been in the room and left, closing the door behind them.
I turned my gaze to one corner of the room.

The Saint stood trembling, looking this way. Erhafen stood beside him with his arms crossed.

-Human, the golden dragon and I will watch over this Saint.

Erhafen and Raon, who didn’t possess the darkness attribute, had nothing to do at the moment.
I was in the same situation, so I walked toward the Saint and stood beside him. I stood on one side of the Saint with Erhafen on the other.

I heard Erhafen’s voice.

“It’s been a while since I’ve seen a proper Necromancer.”

Black energy was gradually filling the room. Since I wasn’t someone who was poisoned by dead mana, I watched without particular interest, but there was one being who wasn’t like that.

“Huff. Huff.”

Saint was breathing heavily. It must be a difficult situation for the Saint of the Sun God Cult. Kale looked at him for a moment, then looked at Erhafen and spoke.

“The first Necromancer born after the death of the Last Necromancer.”
“I see. Remarkable nonetheless. Pulling the dead mana of others like that must be painful for her as well.”

I could see the Saint flinch at Erhafen’s words.
On the ship coming to the Jungle, Tasha had approached me discreetly and spoken.

‘Merry will suffer the most during the fusion process. Even more than that Saint Maiden. But Merry insisted on doing this.’
‘I believe the Lord understands that child’s virtuous heart.’

Kale’s lips parted.

“That Necromancer, Merry—she crossed the Desert of Death with her impoverished parents, became addicted to dead mana, lost her family, and survived alone.”

The Saint’s head slowly turned toward Kale.

“But in her addicted state, the only way to survive was to possess the darkness attribute herself. That’s why she became a Necromancer. And she came here to save Sword Master Hana.”

The Saint heard Kale’s words like thunder. Simultaneously, the voice of the woman in the black robe rang out.

“Hold on! I’m pushing all the dead mana toward myself!”

The scarred hands of the woman in the black robe trembled violently as she cried out. The Dark Elf beside her was channeling black smoke into the woman in the black robe.
The Saint could not tear his gaze from the sight. Then Kale’s voice reached him.

“Saint, Sword Master Hana will also possess the darkness attribute. If she survives.”

Kale said only that much and closed his mouth.
Amidst the tangle of Sword Master Hana’s screams, Merry’s cries, and Tasha’s desperate voice, a small but clear voice touched Kale’s ear.

“…Lord.”

It was the Saint. He spoke to Kale.

“Thank you.”

Kale looked at the Saint. The Saint managed a smile.

“I understand goodness.”

Then, Erhafen’s voice came between Kale and the Saint.

“That is what a Saint is.”

Those words struck the Saint’s heart. He closed both eyes. And he clasped his hands tightly together. His nails dug in and drew blood, but the Saint did not release his hands.

The Saint now understood what took precedence over the justice bestowed by the Sun God.
At that moment, a cool energy swirled around his hands. The Saint opened his eyes. A potion was flowing across his palms.

“Endurance is admirable, but you shouldn’t injure yourself in the process.”

Kale Heniatus was pouring potion over the Saint’s hands. The Saint suppressed the surging emotions within him, lowering his head as he spoke.

“Goodness wasn’t somewhere else after all.”

It was right here. So very close.
The Saint finally believed he had learned what goodness truly was. His heart grew considerably lighter.

Once Kale Heniatus saw that the Saint seemed better, he turned his gaze back toward Hana and Merry. In that moment, Raon’s voice echoed through his mind.
It was a hesitant tone.

-Human, I’m sorry.

What was this sudden apology about? Kale Heniatus’s brow furrowed slightly.

-I thought you were lying when you said you were just treating them while grinning so cunningly. Human, you really are good. You’re a bit strange sometimes, but fundamentally, your heart is pure.

Kale Heniatus ignored those words.

-I misjudged you. But human, that Sword Master will recover, right?

Of course.
Hana must be saved. The false Saint Maiden must live.

The Saint Maiden who had been poisoned by the dead mana bomb yet ultimately overcame that darkness and survived, radiating golden light.
Unlike the Saint Maiden who bore only offensive power, a Saint with healing power alone—true goodness.

How profoundly this would move the hearts of the Sun God Church’s followers.

The Saint and Saint Maiden would become genuine, shaking the very foundations of the Empire.

Merry’s voice could be heard.

“Yes. You just need to create a path with aura like that.”
“Stay strong. You can do this.”

Tasha’s cry followed.

I recalled the promise I had made to Sword Master Hana in the Cave of The Path of No Return. Beyond the Empire, beyond the relationship between the Saint and Saint Maiden—all of it.

‘I will bring someone who can save you, so wait for me.’

I was at least someone who kept the words I spoke.

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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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