Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 290

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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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Sir Rex, the Cat Tribe Knight. He knew almost nothing about administration or politics.

“…A land of magic and alchemy—”

So only a vague picture formed in his mind, and the precise details escaped him.

“What do you mean by that, sir?”
“It’s simple.”

Of course, it was anything but a simple matter. Yet Kale Heniatus thought of it simply.

“Magic and alchemy share many similarities. If people and excellent infrastructure converge there, even a small city would wield tremendous power.”

I heard Raon’s voice, cloaked in invisibility.

-Human! Will Rosalind get a house? Let’s build one for our gold Dragon grandfather too!

Kale Heniatus dismissed it lightly. Later, he would come to regret that.
Raon had been sincere.

“Young master, why would that benefit the Empire and Roan?”
“For the first twenty years, to stabilize the city, both the Roan Royal Court and the Mogur Empire will mutually agree to appoint the Market Master.”

The Market Master. The most clearly defined position in the city.

“So you’re saying that ultimately, the Roan Kingdom will recommend the Market Master and rule for twenty years, aren’t you?”

Sir Rex was certain that even if Kale Heniatus spoke of mutual agreement between Roan and Mogur, the Empire’s will would be absent. Kale Heniatus nodded and added.

“Exactly. For twenty years, a Roan citizen will serve as Market Master.”

Which meant Roan territory for twenty years.

“After that, true autonomy as a free city will be guaranteed gradually according to the citizens’ wishes. This will be documented and proclaimed across the Western Continent.”

Sir Rex’s expression became subtle, as if he couldn’t believe those words.

“Just ask for land instead.”

That voice carried an edge to it.

“You’re saying it’s just a proposal in words, but essentially asking for land instead of putting me on the throne, aren’t you?”
“What.”

I crossed my legs and leaned back against the chair.

“Roan has the power to do it.”

But soon I shook my head.

“However, if that happens, the Empire will disappear.”
“…What do you mean?”
“The Jungle, Wipper, Caro. Would these three kingdoms simply leave the Empire’s lands alone? They’d either try to seize them through contracts like Roan, or through war.”

Sir Rex fell silent.
The resentment these nations harbored toward the Empire far exceeded what they felt toward Roan.
Sir Rex had already heard everything the Mad Priestess Kage had to say about what the Empire had done on the Western Continent.

“…Then you truly intend to rule for only twenty years and turn it into a ‘Free City’?”
“Yes.”

The answer was clear.

“That’s the only way other nations will accept it.”

Moreover, that’s the only way the Magic Tower and the Alchemy Tower would want to move to the Free City.

“Because our Roan intends to provide all the infrastructure and spare no expense in advancing magic and alchemy.”

If Roan only helped while the newly formed ‘Free City’ was establishing itself, and if we poured money into it, who could object?

“In fact, wouldn’t everyone call us fools if we said we’d withdraw after pouring in money for twenty years?”
“…Who would believe such a declaration?”
“Probably other nations would demand a Death God oath?”
“…Are you willing to do that?”
“Yes.”

Lex was truly at a loss for words.
But Kale Heniatus was not finished.

“Furthermore, since we will establish a free city together with the Mogur Empire, Roan will become their ally. That’s why we’ll make efforts to mediate disputes with other nations.”

Lex wondered if his ears were functioning properly upon hearing that the rising star of the current Western Continent would become a steadfast shield for the declining Mogur Empire.

“Moreover, we will provide funding to support the revival of alchemy, including the Alchemy Tower of the Empire.”

Ha!
Lex was astounded.
Without realizing it, he spoke his true thoughts aloud.

“What does Roan have left? Aren’t you just giving everything away?”

At that moment, Raon’s voice echoed in Kale Heniatus’s mind.

-No! Cat Tribe Knight! The human and the Crown Prince aren’t giving everything away! I saw them both laughing!

Of course, Kale Heniatus ignored that voice.

“Why would there be nothing left?”
“Well, building a city—and one that requires expensive magic and alchemy—requires substantial funds. Where would the profit be?”

Kale Heniatus answered leisurely, shaking his head.

“It’s fine. We have plenty of money.”

Now Lex had no capacity left to be astounded.

Yet Roan truly did have abundant wealth.
The funds received from aiding the Caro Kingdom. Additionally, there would be substantial payments from the defeated Northern Three Kingdoms. Moreover, Roan was preparing to establish a trade agreement regarding food supplies with the Norland Kingdom in the north.
Never before had there been so much money, and even more was expected to arrive.

“…I simply cannot fathom it. Why does Roan make such a proposal?”

Ceding Imperial territory was a bitter truth. However, the compensation gained in return was truly immense.
Moreover, it was neither a war that spilled blood nor a humiliating treaty.
It was a transaction—something given for something received.
That was why Sir Rex could not comprehend Roan and Kale Heniatus.

Yet in this moment, Kale Heniatus recalled a conversation he had shared with the Crown Prince in the Canyon of Death.
One of the conversations they’d had in the tent flashed through his mind.

‘I want a larger Roan.’

My lips parted.
I could not reveal all the facts to others.

“First, we will gain strength.”

I recalled the words Rosalind had uttered like a hollow laugh after the battle at Maple Castle.

‘Young master, my former teacher once said that the Empire is a place where everything is above average.’

Kale Heniatus, Crown Prince Alberu, and the Roan Kingdom all knew this. Alberu’s voice echoed through my mind.

‘Kale Heniatus, I want alchemy.’

The first thing to be gained was alchemy.

“Second, we will gain people.”

Toward the Free City, toward the new Magic Tower and Alchemy Tower, people from the Western Continent would flow in endlessly.
Though I did not tell Sir Rex, the Roan Kingdom planned to establish a foundation as one of the Free City’s infrastructure projects.
We would provide support to anyone on the Western Continent who wished to learn but lacked the means.
Whether they later remained in the Free City, returned to their homelands, or came to the Roan Kingdom mattered not.

But they would not forget Roan.
The mages and alchemists who would grow over the next twenty years would remember Roan—the only kingdom that had provided them a foundation and support.

“Third is control.”
“Ah.”

Even Sir Rex grasped this quickly.

‘For the next twenty years, controlling the Magic Tower and the Alchemy Tower would mean Roan Kingdom controlled them.’

The Magic Tower in Wipper Kingdom, the Alchemy Tower in Mogur Empire.
Both had committed countless atrocities. Roan would seek to manage them under the pretext of their past sins, regardless of whether they held the position of Market Master.

And this third reason was the greatest driving force behind my pursuit of the Free City.

The Magic Tower where Rosalind resided and the new Alchemy Tower had a high probability of abstaining from wrongdoing. But they were organizations wielding technology and power. No one could predict what would happen in twenty years.
Peace could only be maintained if there existed a force to check them.

Sir Rex recalled the two powers that would take root in the Free City.
The new Magic Tower would inevitably be led by Roan’s people, and the Alchemy Tower would be centered around the Drunken Alchemist Ray Stecker.

‘Ray Stecker is ultimately Kale Heniatus’s man—Roan’s man.’

Sir Rex’s eyes wavered increasingly.

“…Even if you withdraw your hand in twenty years, the Free City will ultimately fall under Roan’s greatest influence.”

I smiled and spoke calmly.

“Conquest isn’t the only way to expand territory.”

For twenty years, Roan’s territory would temporarily expand.
What Roan truly desired during that time was three things.

Power, people, and control.

“The Northern Kingdoms and the Jungle also possess vast lands.”

The Northern Three Kingdoms and the Jungle held territory above average compared to other kingdoms. The Jungle especially possessed land several times greater than the Empire’s.

“Yet no one fears or respects them. The Empire, however, was different.”

Those who feared and respected the Empire existed throughout the Western Continent.

“That was because they possessed great power, had many people connected to them, and served as the control tower.”

That was how the Empire had been until now.
That was how the Empire had been in the past.

Sir Rex contemplated the future.
A different name surfaced where the Empire’s position once stood.

Roan.
Those two syllables kept returning to his mind.

For twenty years, the goal had never been about expanding territory.
What Roan would achieve in twenty years.

That flowed from Kale Heniatus’s lips.

“We will expand our influence.”

Power extending across the Western Continent.
That was another name for politics.
An invisible yet undeniably formidable force.

“Roan will possess great power, people connected to Roan will exist throughout the Continent, and we will gain the ability to control two powerful factions.”

In twenty years, just as Rosalind’s mentor had once assessed the Empire, people would come to evaluate the Roan Kingdom in the same manner.

“That is the greater Roan we desire.”

Then naturally, Roan, situated in the eastern part of the Continent, would become an empire.
The Land of Stone would wield power as formidable as its solidity and the history it had endured through countless ages.
The name of Roan would expand in the hearts and minds of all people across the Continent.

People throughout the Western Continent who feared and revered Roan coming into existence.
That was precisely what it meant for Roan’s territory to expand.

‘And the benefits of the Free City aren’t merely external.’

Once the Free City emerged, Roan’s technology and culture in the surrounding areas would experience explosive growth.
This would become the foundation for elevating the quality of life and the consciousness of the kingdom’s people.
Roan possessed no obstacles to hinder this.

‘The Empire isn’t like the Roan Kingdom with a state religion.’

Religion was free here. Moreover, it was a kingdom where diverse races gathered, beginning with the Tiger Tribe and Dark Elves.
Countless things would grow through explosive fusion.

‘All of that is only possible without war.’

At least twenty years of peace was necessary.

Kale Heniatus watched Sir Rex slowly open his mouth. The Cat Tribe Knight, seeing the unwavering conviction in his counterpart’s eyes, spoke slowly.

“I envy you.”

Just imagining it, the Roan Kingdom’s brilliant growth came into view.

“Why? Does the Mogur Empire seem impossible?”

Sir Rex slowly lowered his head. He gazed at his own scarred hands as he spoke.

“…Starting with the Sun God Church’s terrorism and corruption, the ugly truths of the Alchemy Tower and the imperial family will soon be revealed. The Alchemy Tower will crumble, and the Empire will lose its strength.”

Rex slowly reached out and took the proposal that Kale Heniatus had offered.

“Of course, if we accept the Roan Kingdom’s proposal, we will gain a ‘new Sun God Church’ and ‘new alchemy.'”

With a new Sun God Church, the Empire’s people would find peace of mind.
With Roan’s assistance, we would maintain alchemy and gain the means to prevent foreign invasion.

But that wasn’t the problem.
Rex twisted his expression and opened his mouth.

“When the Alchemy Tower and the Empire’s atrocities are revealed, can the Empire’s people still love my country? Can they take pride in it?”

Would the Empire still exist in the hearts of its people, stripped of the imperial family, alchemy, and religion?

“It must feel like the very ground beneath their feet is disappearing.”

Rex believed that a homeland wasn’t made by mere land or a name.

My nation.
My homeland.
This proud land where I was born and raised.
I thought that was my foundation.

Did the Empire’s hollow-hearted people even possess the strength to cultivate such a foundation?

Sir Rex could not know the answer.
Kale Heniatus’s expression as he gazed upon the bowed knight was enigmatic. He was currently astonished by him.

‘Better than I expected.’

He understood what truly mattered.
Alongside the satisfaction of having given him books to study, I realized that perhaps because he harbored such thoughts, he had been capable of such actions.

So Kale Heniatus spoke to the Knight, who had bowed his head.

“I see the real thing before my eyes.”
“…Pardon?”

Sir Rex slowly lifted his head. Before him were eyes devoid of gentle smiles but brimming with conviction.

“The real thing, I mean. The real thing.”
“The real thing?”
“Yes.”

Kale Heniatus spoke as if tossing the words away.

“The Empire’s true pride.”

Sir Rex drew in a breath without realizing it. His voice reached him then.

“You lot risked your lives.”

There was vengeance involved, but ultimately it began as an attempt to correct what was wrong.
An action to reveal the truth.

“Isn’t that Mogur?”

Lex’s breath caught in his throat.
I smiled at his reaction. I had drawn Sir Lex into this affair specifically to inform the Empire’s citizens of our deeds.

Screech—
I rose from my seated chair. Sir Lex regarded me with conflicted eyes, and I pointed to the proposal he held in his hands.

“You’re free to refuse the proposal. That’s precisely why it’s a proposal and not a demand—”

Bang, bang, bang!
A loud sound suddenly erupted.
I glanced toward the second-floor entrance door.

Bang, bang, bang!

Someone was pounding on the door with force.

“What—what is this?”

Sir Lex startled and stood up. Then another voice rang out.

“Young Master! It’s Bilos!”

Bilos, the illegitimate son of the Flynn Merchant Guild.
His breathless voice reached us—urgent and strained.

What’s this about?
I approached the door and grasped the handle.
That was when it happened.

—Human, human! A message came from the Crown Prince!

A message left in the video communication device.
Upon hearing that Crown Prince Alberu had left it, my hand froze mid-turn of the handle.

“Young Master!”

But I opened the door nonetheless.
Bilos, who had rushed over breathlessly, spoke to me without even catching his breath.

“My lord, the Crown Prince and the Sub-Tower Master of the Alchemy Tower are heading to the Western Border!”

Kale Heniatus’s face brightened.
But it crumpled immediately, like wet tissue paper.

-Human, they’re saying ‘the Crown Prince requested support’!

Raon’s voice echoed in my mind.

-It says ‘Kale Heniatus, we’re looking for you’! Isn’t the Crown Prince looking for you, human?

Damn it.

“What is this now?”

Kale Heniatus’s face crumpled.

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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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