Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 146

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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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At Kale’s response, Witira and his group froze. Witira, startled, approached Kale.

“Young master, you’re going to capsize it?”

Rosalind fell into contemplation, as if examining the practicality of Kale’s words. Then Choi Han opened his mouth blankly.

“Lord Kale, you’re really going to capsize it?”

Kale responded with reluctance to his companions’ shocked reactions, save for Raon, who suddenly broke into a grin.

“No. Well, it’s just…”

His calm voice resonated through the forest.

“I thought that if we shake the ship, they might depart from this world more easily. It would be convenient if they just went to the afterlife on their own without us having to lift a finger, wouldn’t it?”

At his matter-of-fact words, the Tiger Tribe warriors standing behind the sorcerer flinched slightly and stared at Kale.
Though they had heard beforehand from Witira, they were already on edge because of the Dragon laughing behind Kale, and now they stared at him even more intently.

Kale offered an awkward smile at the sorcerer’s widened eyes and the piercing gazes of the Tiger Tribe warriors. Then a familiar voice reached his ears from behind.

“Ho.”

It was Ron’s exclamation of admiration.

“Young master, this sorcerer truly seems to possess remarkable spiritual power. They’ve even divined your thoughts, and haven’t you grown into who you are now after living as a reckless rogue?”

Hm?

“Why are you suddenly bringing up being a rogue?”

Kale looked at Ron with a puzzled expression. Ron responded with a pleased smile.

“A man living a new life. Doesn’t that mean you’ve transformed from living as a rogue into the young master you are now?”

Kale flinched.
A man living a new life. That wasn’t what that phrase meant at all.
But Kale couldn’t refute Ron’s interpretation. That was when it happened.

“…Was there ever a time when Young Master Kale was a ruffian?”
“That couldn’t be. Young Master is not a ruffian.”

A startled Witira followed, and then Merry’s mechanical response. Merry still spoke mechanically, but her words tumbled out in rapid succession before she stood there blankly.
Sword Master Hana regarded Kale with an enigmatic gaze.

Kale answered the eyes fixed upon him.

“I’m not exactly not a ruffian even now.”

Wasn’t I still enough of a ruffian right now?
For the sake of a comfortable future, I seem to be causing all sorts of incidents. And I’ve committed quite a bit of fraud too.
That’s what Kale thought.

Snort.
Kale could see Witira snort with laughter at his answer. She responded to him with a knowing look in her eyes.

“So you meant you’re still a true ruffian. I understand now.”

…What did that even mean?
Kale couldn’t fathom at which point Witira had reached her conclusion to react that way. But seeing the black hood Merry wore nod, it seemed Merry had also come to understand.

That was when Choi Han spoke with steady conviction.

“All of your past actions were merely an act, Young Master Kale. You lived peacefully, and only after establishing your own will did you begin to move.”

What kind of absurd nonsense was this?
Kale stared at Choi Han with an exasperated expression. Choi Han continued with a pleased smile.

“Even if you’re too embarrassed to admit it, we all understand.”

Good grief.
Kale was truly at a loss for words. That was when Rosalind, who had been quiet, opened her mouth.

“In fact, Young Master Kale being a ruffian was a somewhat well-known fact in aristocratic society. I believed it too, but after actually meeting Young Master Kale, I came to realize that you were hiding your true self.”

Witira marveled at Rosalind’s words, while Merry continued nodding beneath her black hood.

Kale found himself at a loss for words.
He wanted to say that his true nature was nothing more than a nobleman’s son dreaming of idleness, but he suspected they would interpret it strangely regardless.

Just then, Kale felt a sharp sting on his right cheek and turned his head.

Sword Master Hana.
She was gazing at him with eyes that suggested she was looking at something utterly wicked. Her piercing gaze brought him an unexpected sense of comfort.

With a calmer mind, Kale turned his attention to the shaman. She continued to stare at him, her eyes revealing only the whites.

‘Eerie.’

Certainly eerie. She didn’t seem like a sorcerer—more like a mudang, a spiritual medium.
Curiosity stirred within Kale.
Does she know who I am?
His mouth opened.

“Who am I?”

At Kale’s sudden question, his companions looked at him with bewilderment. Was there anyone here who didn’t know who Kale was?

But Kale waited for the Tiger Tribe shaman’s answer. The shaman’s lips parted.

“All I’ve heard is what was mentioned just now.”
“…I see.”

Kale nodded with a hint of disappointment at the shaman’s words. But the shaman wasn’t finished.

“Also.”
“…There’s more?”

Curiosity flickered in Kale’s eyes, and he gazed at the shaman with heightened anticipation.

“A man with crimson hair will bring our people a new home, they said.”
“That’s incorrect.”

Kale responded immediately to the shaman’s words.

‘A new foothold, they say. Of course, if I were to draw in the Tiger Tribe to face the Northern 3 Nations’ knights, it would certainly be formidable.’

Kale shook his head—a gesture of self-reproach for entertaining such pointless thoughts.
The shaman’s voice reached his ears.
By then, the shaman had closed his eyes once more.

“My apologies for the late introduction. I am Gashan, a shaman representing the Tiger Tribe, and it is an honor to meet such distinguished individuals from the Western Continent, including the Dragon.”

Shaman Gashan gestured toward the wooden building.

“Shall we continue our discussion inside?”
“Very well.”

As Kale headed toward the wooden building, he recalled the map of Hice Island.

Hice Island 9.
Hice—the name given to fifteen large and small islands clustered together.
On Hyce Island 2 and 12, both the Whale Tribe and Tiger Tribe were currently gathered and waiting.

* * *

Kale was soaring through the sky. Cloaked in invisibility, he appeared as nothing but empty air, yet he opened his mouth to speak.

“Are those the ones?”
“Yes, Young Master.”

Hearing Witira’s voice, Kale gazed downward.

In the midst of the vast sea, dozens of vessels large and small cut across the waters.
Even the smaller ships were of medium size compared to the larger ones.

Kale’s brow furrowed slightly.
He opened his mouth again.

“There are more than I expected.”

And there were many who could answer his question.
Kale was flying and cloaked through Raon’s power, while Witira was flying and cloaked through Rosalind’s power.
The last was the sorcerer Gashan.
Kale glanced to the side. The only being not cloaked—a raven. Gashan remained on Hice Island 9, but had created the raven to accompany the group.

A voice flowed through the raven.

“They appear more numerous than expected, but the strong ones are concentrated in five ships at the center. It’s estimated that Dark’s Combat Unit 1 will be on those five ships. Unit 1 supposedly has twenty members.”

Twenty. Unlike other units, Unit 1 had notably fewer members.
Witira spoke next.

“We’re currently maintaining surveillance through sea creatures. They’ll likely reach the Hice Island cluster within five days.”

Kale recalled what Ron had told him.

‘Young Master, I’ve fought Dark from the Eastern Continent. They’re from the underworld—specialized in combat and murder rather than concealment or assassination.’
‘And quite a few of them possess unique abilities.’
‘Even lower-ranked combat personnel serving Unit 1 members would be stronger than regular mercenary guild operatives.’

Gazing at dozens of ships, Kale spoke his honest assessment.

“They’ll be formidable.”

The enemy’s fighting strength was greater than anticipated.

“Hmm.”

Kale pondered with his arms crossed.
Ten Whale Tribe members and roughly twenty Tiger Tribe members.
And his own group.

Gashan’s voice came through.

“If all of our Tiger Tribe had survived, this situation wouldn’t have arisen at all. Truly lamentable.”

Kale could hear how the Tiger Tribe had faced the brink of extinction.

‘Tigers don’t live in packs.’

The Tiger Tribe did not live in groups either. The Eastern Continent, uniquely abundant with mountains, saw each family dwelling upon a single peak, scattered across the entire landmass.
Dark hunted them down one by one, and each time, hundreds of them—organized into five squads—would descend upon their prey.

As Gashan explained this, he spoke.

‘One day, nature itself spoke to me. It commanded me to gather the Tiger Tribe. At that moment, a messenger arrived, sent by a dying Tiger Tribe member, and I grasped the situation.’

The Tiger Tribe, who had lived like immortals confined to their mountains, remained ignorant of continental affairs, and scattered as they were, they knew nothing of their own kinsmen’s circumstances.

Thus, of the two hundred Tiger Tribe members, only twenty survived, and they all gathered to come to Hice Island.

Therefore, among the twenty Tiger Tribe members, only approximately fifteen could engage at full strength.

“Hmm.”

Witira’s voice reached Kale, who remained deep in thought.

“My lord, I fear our forces may suffer considerable losses, won’t they?”

The word “defeat” never left her lips.

No matter how few in number, they were the Whale Tribe and the Tiger Tribe. Defeat was unthinkable. Yet with the enemy numbering in the hundreds, she worried about the magnitude of casualties.
Witira spoke with a troubled expression.

“Perhaps we should have sought aid from the other kingdoms.”

The Whale Tribe had not brought all their forces either. Whale King Siceller and several others were monitoring the situation in the Northern 3 Nations and making their own preparations.
Witira murmured in a voice tinged with concern.

“We cannot afford to lose strength here.”

Then, Kale’s lips parted.

“Natural disasters are the most terrifying, aren’t they?”
“Pardon?”

Kale gazed down at the ships as he spoke.

“What if dozens of whirlpools suddenly formed in the sea through which they must pass?”

Whiiiing.
A small whirlpool no larger than a palm materialized in empty space.
It was the Wind’s Sound, created upon the transparent Kale’s palm.

A calm voice resonated through the air.

“When they discover the whirlpool, they’ll be startled and try to avoid it. That’s when they’ll see the islands. Fifteen Hice Islands stretching in a line. Then they’ll head toward those islands, won’t they?”

Kale spoke, envisioning five days hence.

“In the meantime, several ships crewed by sailors lacking the ability to evade the whirlpool will be swept up and wrecked. They’ll fall into the sea. Once they’re in the sea, they’ll be virtually powerless.”

Witira gazed down at the ships floating upon the water. Kale’s voice continued.

“And if I plant whirlpools between the fifteen Hice Islands as well, the ships will naturally cluster around a few specific islands to avoid them.”

Rosalind, Witira, and Gashan listened intently without uttering a word.

“What do you think?”

Witira’s lips curved upward.

The Hice Islands where the ships would land would host the Tiger Tribe and Kale’s group. And the wrecked ships would encounter the Whale Tribe and the whales.

Witira stared at the tiny whirlpool suspended in the void. The ships below wouldn’t be able to see this small wind current yet.

She opened her mouth.
But someone spoke faster than she could.

“Human, let’s do it!”

It was Raon.
As Raon flapped his wings, Kale felt wind blow across his face.

“I’ve grown stronger now that I’ve learned from Grandpa Gold Dragon! Let’s capsize all the ships!”

Kale reflected.
Dragons truly were terrifying creatures.

How could anyone suggest causing a natural disaster with such an innocent smile?

Kale opened his mouth as he gazed upon dozens of ships.

“Then let’s do it when we approach the Central Island in five days.”

The Hice Island archipelago clustered densely together relative to the vast expanse of sea surrounding it.
When the Dark crawled onto the islands, hell would unfold.
Each island would welcome them with its own unique torment.

Even if they escaped that hell and reached the sea, they would ultimately face the Whale Tribe—another hell unto itself.
Imagining that sight, Kale’s expression twisted into a grimace.

‘How ghastly.’

It would hardly be a pleasant spectacle to witness.
At that moment, Gashan’s voice reached his ears.

“In five days, we shall finally have our revenge.”

But for the Whale Tribe, the Tiger Tribe, and the false Saint Hana, those five days would be the moment they exacted vengeance upon the Dark—the very force that had delivered hell upon them.

“Let’s return.”

Kale turned away from the dozens of ships and swiftly headed toward Hice Island 9. His thoughts churned.

‘This will be exhausting.’

It seemed he would need to push Vitality of the Heart to its absolute limit and wield the ancient power once more.

After this, I’ll rest until spring arrives.
Kale made a firm resolution to himself alone.

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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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