Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 306

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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.
Kale Heniatus furrowed his brow at the sensation of someone tapping his cheek.

Tap, tap.
The irritating touch of hands patting his cheek made his mood plummet instantly.

‘I remember losing consciousness, but who is tapping my cheek?’

A sigh escaped him.
Kale drew a deep breath and slowly opened his eyes.
And he froze.

“…What?”
“Kim Rok-soo! You bastard, wake up already!”
“Huh—Jung-soo, what are you doing here—?”

Kale hesitated, his hand moving to his throat.

That voice—
It was Kim Rok-soo’s voice?

And standing before him was Choi Jung-soo, his colleague from when they started. Younger than his last memory of him. That dumb expression was exactly how he’d looked in his twenties.
Kale felt the warmth on his forehead and wiped his cheek. Blood trickled down from his brow.

Lowering his head, he saw his black tactical suit—made from advanced synthetic material—torn in several places, bleeding from the wounds.

“Ah.”

Kale understood when this moment was.
In that instant, Choi Jung-soo hauled him to his feet.

“Hey! Let’s go! The brains of the operation should be in the rear—why are you in the thick of combat? You idiot! Did you think your presence would actually help?”
“Move.”
“What? You bastard, this is not the time to be out of it!”

I know.
This is not the time to be out of it.

Kale pushed himself up and turned around.
And then he saw it.
Despite having rebuilt only a few structures, collapsing buildings and monsters pouring from the black hole in the sky were visible.
The burning sky of Korea came into view.

“Damn it.”

That’s when it hit him.
Back when I first joined this Company. One of the incidents I experienced during my rookie days.

A Grade 1 Alert monster suddenly appeared in Korea’s C-1 District.
The Ability Guild and Hunters who managed and were responsible for that area fled, and ultimately people from this Company were dispatched to hold the line until government personnel arrived.

“…Team Leader.”

Kim Rok-soo—no, Kale—recalled his team leader and seniors from his rookie days. They were focused entirely on defense, trying to block the monster.

Back then, I was weak.
My abilities awakened properly later, but at that time I was just a green recruit.
That’s why I had to run away like that.

“Heh heh—”

Kale naturally realized it.

A dream.
A damn dream at that.
Of all times, to have such a dream after collapsing following the battle with the Empire and Honth.

“Hey! Hurry up! You haven’t even fully awakened your powers! If it weren’t for Hana being my only peer! Ugh!”

Kale remembered the words he had spoken back then as Choi Jung-soo dragged him along, supporting his weight.
Back then, in his twenties, he had said it.

‘I’ll take care of all those damn bastards and quit, then live off my severance pay for the rest of my life.’

It will happen without fail.
The monsters too.
Those Ability Guild bastards who pocketed every benefit under the guise of citizen safety and monster defense, yet fled when it truly mattered.
I’ll sweep them all away.

And live comfortably in a peaceful world.

Kale repeated what he had said back then.

“I’ll eliminate every last one of those damn things and rest. Without fail, I’ll live comfortably.”

The Empire too, the Dark Order as well.
Why were there so many worthless creatures in this world that didn’t even deserve to be called human?

“Why are there so many worse than me?!”

When Kale—when Kim Rok-soo in his twenties had shouted that, I could see Choi Jung-soo looking at me.
Choi Jung-soo spoke.

“Shut up, you bastard. Just take care of yourself!”

Hehehehe.
Kale laughed and tossed the words at his coworker Choi Jung-soo as if throwing them away.

“You do the same.”
“Because I’m better at it than you?”

Kale couldn’t stop laughing at Choi Jung-soo’s response.

Did the competent ones die first?

Irritation surged through Kale. From the moment Choi Jung-soo appeared, from the moment his seniors and former team leader all appeared—this had to be a dream. It made no sense.
After passing thirty, as Kim Rok-soo after becoming team leader, this was a scene he couldn’t even imagine.
Choi Jung-soo spoke.

“Hey! Don’t you know our team leader’s motto?”

Did I know it?
I knew it far too well.

“Living is the greatest thing! You need to carve those words into your heart, you hear me?”

Words etched into my very soul.

“Hey, after we finish everything, the team leader said he’d run a farm. I’m going to have an orchard right next to it.”

Back then, I had criticized Choi Jung-soo for that.

‘How can you say such leisurely things at a time like this?’

To that, Choi Jung-soo had responded with his characteristic dopey laugh.
Just like in this dream now.

“What do you want to do?”

What do I want to do?
I’m unemployed.

Damn it.
As irritation and rage surged through Kale, threatening to burst forth with all the hidden emotions beneath, his fury only intensified further.
He closed his eyes. And he screamed.

“Damn it all! I’m going to destroy everything!”

And then he opened his eyes.
Kale blinked.
The scene had changed.
The crumbling buildings, the company people, the fleeing citizens—none of it was visible anymore.

Instead, something else came into view.
Without realizing it, the corners of Kale’s mouth lifted.

“…A, a human?”

I saw round, teal-blue eyes. I saw trembling front paws, shaking with confusion. Front paws that had stopped mid-motion while trying to place a towel on Kale’s forehead.
Kale thought to himself.

Ah, I finally woke up from the dream.

That was when it happened.

-Quite the bloodbath, isn’t it.

Hm?
A familiar voice reached my ears.

I quickly assessed what lay before me.
First, there was Raon looking flustered, and Vice-Captain Hilsman holding a water basin that had contained towels.

When I turned my head to the side, a small round table came into view.
Saint Jack, Clophe Seka, and Crown Prince Alberu inside a video communication device placed on the table.

-Your sleep-talking is quite impressive.

Alberu’s expression was composed.
Anyone seeing him would have mistaken him for a benevolent grandfather accompanying his grandson on an outing. With that expression, Alberu spoke kindly.

-‘Damn it! I’ll destroy everything!’? Is that what you said?

Ah, so I spoke those words aloud.
I nodded calmly.

“It has been a while, Your Highness. It seems I spoke my true thoughts in my sleep.”

Crown Prince Alberu could not hide his exasperation.
He had already seen the video from Clophe, and heard the situation from Rosalind and Choi Han.
Yet the one who had caused all of it had fainted and now awakened, greeting him as if it had been ages. The Crown Prince, despite the presence of Clophe and the others, blurted out without thinking.

-Destroy everything and then what?

I looked around.
Everything was intact. That was what mattered.
Inside the small barracks.
I answered.

“Become unemployed.”

Silence settled over the room.
Even Clophe shook his head as he looked at Kale.

“It seems you haven’t fully woken from your dreams. After all, Kale, you’re still human. Well, heroes are human too. Hahahaha!”

Vice-Captain Hilsman spoke as if passing the baton.

“He does this from time to time.”

Kale ignored such gazes. Crown Prince Alberu, who knew all of Kale’s long-held desires, smirked with an expression that seemed to say ‘what are you going to do about it?’, but I simply ignored him and opened my mouth.

“Did Choi Han, Merry, and Rosalind go ahead?”

Raon answered.

“That’s right! Those three went to the Jungle first!”

I had made it clear beforehand.
That we needed to go to the Jungle first.
I felt satisfied that the optimal combination had moved ahead. With those three, we would avoid the worst-case scenario.

My gaze turned toward Alberu, visible through the video communication device. Alberu immediately opened his mouth at that look.

-You’ve only been unconscious for three hours now.
“Three hours have already passed.”

Alberu smiled at my words. He could clearly see what I was trying to say.

-This evening, the Breck Kingdom, the Wipper Kingdom, the Roan Kingdom, and the Northern Three Kingdoms will make an announcement.

As expected.
I could confirm that Alberu had already taken action during these urgent three hours.

-That dark magic has appeared in the world once again.

I pushed myself up to sit.
Alberu’s words continued.

-We’re also contacting the Temples. Once they accept that black magic is real, they’ll support us.
“That will take time, won’t it?”
-Yes. The Empire will deny it vehemently. It won’t be easy for the Temple’s forces to intervene immediately. And above all.

Alberu trailed off mid-sentence.
Kale stepped out of bed and planted his feet firmly on the ground, standing upright. Then he adjusted his clothes.

What mattered most right now.
What the Crown Prince had been about to say.
The proclamations from kingdoms about black magic’s reappearance, the destruction of the Crown Prince and the Alchemy Tower, the aid from the Religious Orders. Something more important than all of that.

“I’m heading to the Jungle.”

The place where war was breaking out right now came first.
Alberu’s lips twitched slightly. He had witnessed the miraculous spectacle Kale had created. Moreover, he could easily imagine how much that feat had cost him.

But this battle needed Kale’s power—especially the strength that had destroyed the golem.
The Crown Prince wanted to say something, but uncertain what to do, he merely opened and closed his lips repeatedly. And he could see Kale looking back at him.
Kale asked, tossing the words out casually.

“Is Roan alright?”

Roan, which had chosen not to wage war.
Yet it stood in the midst of conflict. The Crown Prince now had to move to the center of the war.
Because Roan was currently the second strongest power on the Western Continent after the Empire.

Alberu chuckled softly and answered.

-Worry about yourself, you fool.

Kale nodded calmly at those words and gestured to Raon.
Raon immediately unfurled a teleportation magic circle. Saint Jack climbed aboard as well, and Kale snapped his fingers at Hilsman.
Then he spoke to Clophe.

“You know what to do, right?”
“Of course. Herald Chief of Staff and General Tunka already apologized for not being able to see you off.”

Clophe stepped back from the teleportation circle as if it were obvious.

“I’ll handle the cleanup at Maple Castle.”

Kale felt a wave of unease wash over him as he watched Clophe break into a grin. Herrol would certainly be capable of keeping Clophe in check, but Clophe was so unpredictable that I couldn’t help but feel anxious.
That was when it happened.

-By the way, people from all the allied nations will be heading to Maple Castle, so you can worry less about that. They should all arrive within an hour.

Alberu spoke as if casually tossing the words aside.
Kale felt reassured. This was manageable.

Alberu went on to mention several other matters that had been progressing, and Kale made one request of his own.

-Did you think that far ahead?

Alberu responded readily, his tone tinged with admiration.

-I’ll prepare it right away.

Kale was about to flatter Alberu with some well-oiled words of praise for handling everything so smoothly, but—

-Contact me from the Jungle. We’ll talk then.

Click.
The connection cut off.

“Human! The Crown Prince is always the same!”

And so.
I sighed and gestured to Raon to activate the teleportation circle.
Raon scanned my complexion and body carefully, then nodded his head vigorously with a satisfied expression.

“Let’s go!”

Yes, let’s go.
Back to the battlefield once more.

* * *

Kale closed his eyes against the shifting view. A strange sensation swept across his body, and he soon opened them again.
Then he saw it.

“…Raon, where is this?”
“The sky!”

They had moved into the air.
Kale felt the emptiness beneath his feet.

“The clever Rosalind told us to come here!”

Kale posed the same question again at the sight before his eyes.

“Where is this?”

This time, a different answer came.
It was the sky, but which sky exactly?

“Jungle District 8! She told us to come here!”

Not Jungle Zone 7, which the Empire had invaded, but Jungle District 8 beneath it.
Kale heard the voices of Hilsman and Saint Jack following from behind him.

“What in the world! What is that—”
“Oh, merciful heavens.”

But Kale had no time to regard them.
He understood why Rosalind had told them to come here.

“Damned dark mages.”

Various parts of Zone 7 burned with scattered flames.
But what caught Kale’s attention more were the black humanoid golems rising above the jungle’s trees.
Four golems in total.

Standing roughly twenty meters tall, they guarded the four cardinal entrances to Jungle Zone 7 like sentinels.
And above Zone 7’s sky.
Directly above the Royal Palace at the center of Zone 7, a castle-shaped flying object hung suspended, watching over Jungle Zone 7 from its vantage point as if standing guard.

“You’ve arrived?”

Kale caught sight of Rosalind ascending through the air from beneath Jungle District 8.
She soared upward swiftly and took her place beside him, speaking as she did.

“…Currently, we and the Jungle Army have ceased our attacks.”

Kale sensed he understood why they had stopped their assault.
Rosalind spoke with a bitter expression.

“The residents of Jungle Zone 7 are currently being held hostage.”

An entire district’s worth of people had become hostages.
The ordinary jungle dwellers could not possibly escape past the golems blocking all sides and the aerial surveillance of the airships overhead.

“Jungle Zone 7 has transformed into a fortress.”

A fortress with all paths sealed—no one could enter or leave.
Simultaneously, a place akin to hell itself.
That was what Zone 7 had become.

In that moment, Rosalind heard Kale speak with utter composure.

“It is not a fortress. There is a path.”

Kale’s piercing gaze fixed upon Rosalind.
A path existed—somewhere, it surely did.

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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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