Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 319

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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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The Crown Prince isn’t visible in the Capital?
Kale Heniatus gestured toward Bilos with his chin as he spoke.

“Go ahead and explain.”

Until now, there hadn’t been an opportunity to gather information about the Empire. This was the right moment to hear the full picture.

* * *

“…So, in short.”

Sitting on the sofa in the room Bilos had guided me to, I listened to everything he had to say, and the current situation of the Empire took shape in my mind. I summed it up in a single phrase.

“The Capital is currently under information control.”

I brushed back my brown hair, tinged with magic.

“Yes, Young Master. That’s why not only I, but Imperial soldiers disguised as merchants are currently surveilling outside the homes of Capital merchants.”

Bilos recalled the Flynn Merchant Guild building and his own residence known to the outside world—not this secret mansion.
In front of those places, Imperial soldiers and those presumed to be knights were currently keeping watch.

I recalled Bilos’s explanation from moments before.

‘Moreover, the military forces at all the City Gates coming and going from the Imperial Capital have been reinforced.’

The true purpose of reinforcing the City Gate forces was information control, but to ordinary citizens, it appeared merely as heightened vigilance in preparation for war.

“As for foreign merchants, it seems quite a few have already been taken in.”

Bilos swallowed hard and opened his mouth, meeting my indifferent gaze.

“The video communication channels not owned by the Imperial family or noble houses have been confiscated by the Empire. The Flynn Merchant Guild has also had its official video communication channels seized.”
“…But there should still be video communication channels that you secretly own, right?”
“Yes, of course there should be. I suspect that a few of us, including myself, currently know about the situation outside the Capital.”

I voiced the most crucial point embedded in Bilos’s words.

City Gate lockdown.
Merchant Guild restrictions.
Communication crystal confiscation.

The consequences of it all.

“The citizens of the Imperial Capital seem quite unaware of the current war situation.”

Bilos nodded with a grave expression.

“Yes.”

He continued shortly after.

“And those who do know are afraid to speak of it.”
“Because they might be arrested?”
“Precisely.”

Kale spoke while thinking of Crown Prince Adin.

“As expected, trash remains trash.”

Bilos hesitated at Kale’s irritated tone. Tasha, standing nearby, interjected into their conversation.

“Then the citizens of the Imperial Capital know nothing at all right now?”

Bilos nodded toward Tasha.

“Yes. The Imperial Family has only announced that the war will be prolonged.”

He recalled the situation in the Capital.

A prolonged war.
At those words, the citizens gathered throughout the Capital day after day, hoping the Empire would prevail and praying that the Crown Prince would save the Empire.

“…The vast majority of people remain ignorant of the Empire’s defeat, the Crown Prince and nobles’ escape, and the emergence of dark magic.”

Bilos continued speaking while cautiously observing Kale’s expression.

“That’s why Sir Rex, Frigia, and I decided to focus on understanding the situation rather than hastily revealing the truth.”

It would have been disastrous if someone had carelessly spoken and gotten captured.
Wasn’t Kale already missing?

“Then what do you mean the Crown Prince is missing?”

Bilos turned his head toward the source of the voice.
Choi Han, whose hair had changed to brown, was staring at him.

Ahem.
Bilos cleared his throat and opened his mouth again.

“As you know, I have connections related to the supply of Imperial military goods.”

The group nodded.
Thanks to that, hadn’t they been able to determine when and at what scale the Crown Prince would advance into Wipper?

“Through those connections, I was able to discover several things.”

Bilos extended one finger.

“First, after the Crown Prince’s group fled following the Wipper campaign, the amount of supplies entering the Imperial Palace suddenly increased.”

Choi Han responded to this statement.

“So you’re saying the Imperial Palace suddenly had more ‘mouths’ to feed.”
“Exactly.”

Bilos watched as Choi Han laid out his thoughts in a matter-of-fact tone.

“That would mean the nobility, mages, knights, and other leaders who fled with the Crown Prince are likely still residing within the Imperial Palace.”

…Sharp mind, indeed.
Bilos nodded in agreement with Choi Han’s words and continued.

“Second, the amount of supplies directed toward the Crown Prince’s residence or the Imperial family remained the same compared to before the Crown Prince’s military campaign.”

The items entering the Imperial Palace had increased, but those exclusively for the Crown Prince and Imperial Family remained unchanged.
Choi Han’s brow furrowed.

“That alone doesn’t prove the Crown Prince isn’t in the Capital.”

He continued,

“Rather, given that the leadership appears to be hiding within the Imperial Palace, it seems more likely that the Crown Prince is also concealed there with them.”

Bilos nodded and opened his mouth.

“I thought the same. However, Choi Han.”
“…Yes.”
“You said you wounded the Crown Prince, correct?”
“…That is true, but.”

The final piece of information flowed from Bilos’s lips.

“Third, the Imperial physician disappeared after leaving the Imperial Palace.”

The Imperial physician.
Choi Han’s expression shifted at those words.
Bilos spoke rapidly.

“After learning from the information broker that the Imperial physician and his disciples had left the Imperial Palace, Sir Rex, Frigia, and I along with our subordinates attempted to track down the physician’s whereabouts.”

The night Saint Jack departed for Wipper’s Battlefield where Kale was stationed.
Bilos had secretly followed the physician as he left the Imperial Palace.

“Of course, given our limited abilities, we had to maintain considerable distance during our pursuit. Because of that, we couldn’t observe everything.”

Bilos recalled the area outside the Capital Castle.

“As the final trace, we found only the last footprints and carriage wheel marks of those presumed to be the physician and his disciples outside the Northern Gate of Capital.”

Choi Han and Tasha’s expressions twisted.

The Crown Prince had sustained considerable injuries.
And the Empire’s greatest healer had headed north, away from the Capital.

“That’s why two of Frigia’s subordinates are currently moving north, following the carriage tracks. I’ve also assigned one of my mages to accompany them, and we’re checking for information regularly.”

Tasha opened her mouth.

“…You must have faced many constraints within the Capital, yet you’ve handled it well.”

It was Bilos’s side that had processed matters with as much flexibility as possible.
Even as Tasha praised Bilos for it, she bit her lip.

“Then the Crown Prince went north, didn’t he?”

Circumstantially, the probability of him being in the North was high.
But she hesitated before speaking.

“…I don’t think so.”

The intuition built over hundreds of years spoke to her.
As she lifted her head, recalling that instinct, her eyes met Choi Han’s. Tasha’s mouth opened as she felt he shared the same thought.

“I believe the Crown Prince is here.”

The Capital.
The Crown Prince is in this place.

That’s what her instinct told her.
In that moment, the one who had been silent spoke.

“Bilos.”
“Yes, Young Master.”

The corners of Kale’s mouth rose.

“I was wondering something.”
“Yes?”

As the heavy atmosphere suddenly lightened at Kale’s behavior, Bilos paused and looked at him. Regardless, Kale simply spoke what was on his mind.

“I’ve been curious about something for a while. Do you know what it is?”
“…I’m not sure, sir?”

Kale Heniatus had a genuine question on his mind.
Especially after witnessing the golem and the dead mana bomb from the Jungle—a thought that had grown deeper since then.

‘To accumulate this much dead mana, how many people must have died in the Alchemy Tower?’

A question that swept through him, transcending mere anger.

“The Alchemy Tower forcibly enslaved people from the slums within the Empire and foreigners, didn’t they?”
“That’s correct, Young Master.”

The Empire and the merchant guilds beneath it had attempted to enslave the residents of the Geyler Duchy Family’s fiefdom in the Roan Kingdom and send them as test subjects to the Alchemy Tower.
If that were the case, then all those enslaved people—

“How did they enter the Capital?”

Through the City Gate openly into the Alchemy Tower?
Or by teleportation magic?
So many of them?
Over more than a decade?
And.

Though I hate to say it.

“How did they hide the corpses?”

Choi Han and Tasha shot to their feet. Saint Jack clasped his trembling hands together.

“…Surely you don’t mean—”

Bilos couldn’t finish his sentence.
The thought crossing their minds flowed from Kale’s lips.

“Don’t you think there might be a secret passage outside the Capital?”

He recalled the video communication he’d had with Crown Prince Adin.
Only the black wall and Adin’s face were visible, but his complexion seemed perfectly fine.

Even though Choi Han’s blade had cut near his heart.

“The Crown Prince must be receiving treatment in the safest place available to him. So then, where would that be?”

The one who had remained silent until now finally spoke.

“The Alchemy Tower.”

It was Merry.
Kale Heniatus nodded at her words and added his own thought.

“That would be where the Tower Master is.”

Kale rose from his seat and issued an order to Bilos.

“The Northern Gate of Capital. Guide us to that place where the last traces were found.”

Bilos met Kale’s cold gaze and stood up as well. Kale’s voice reached his ears.

“Have Frigia’s subordinates carefully continue pursuing the carriage.”

Kale recalled Adin, the man who treasured his own life above all else.
Would such a man truly abandon the place where his influence was greatest?

A man obsessed with controlling everything would leave his own inner sanctum unguarded?
What if someone else seized it?
And leave the Tower unattended as well?

“That carriage is likely to be empty.”

Rather, the carriage was probably a deception.
Bait cast out hoping to catch foreigners like Bilos who existed within the Empire Capital.

Of course, Kale’s reasoning could be wrong.

“Observe from as great a distance as possible.”
“Is… is that so?”

It was at that very moment when Bilos hesitantly spoke.

Beep beep beep beep—

Bilos’s communication crystal suddenly crackled with urgency.
He hastily tried to summon the Mage who had been waiting outside the room.
But before he could step out.

Click!
Platinum-hued mana wrapped around the communication crystal with a sharp sound, and the connection established immediately.
Frigia’s face materialized before him.

-Young Master! You’ve arrived!

Frigia.
The Assassin who had carved a rabbit resembling a hellhound, and who now led an Information Organization under Ron’s command for Kale’s benefit.
She spoke with an urgent expression.

-I’m not sure if you’ve heard, but our subordinates have discovered a carriage.
“And?”
-…The carriage contains only ordinary Soldiers dressed as healers. There is no sign of the Imperial Physician, according to reports.

She continued her hasty report.

-Furthermore, our subordinates have been discovered by Soldiers and Knights and are currently in retreat.

Bilos muttered to himself.

“…Was it truly a disguise? A trap?”

Kale spoke to Frigia.

“Do you think they’ll be able to escape safely? Otherwise, I’ll send reinforcements.”
-They don’t seem likely to be caught. Bilos’s Mage is with them as well. If danger arises, we’re prepared to send additional support from our side.

Tap. Tap. Tap.
Kale drummed his fingers against the table where the communication crystal rested. His mouth opened shortly after.

“They’re in the Slums right now?”
-Yes.
“I’ll send Vice-Captain Hilsman and Saint Jack there. Have them coordinate with Hana. And—”

Kale spoke as he watched Choi Han, Merry, and Tasha rise from their seats.

“Tell Sir Rex to send reinforcements to our location. Also, gather every single video recording device we have and bring them here.”
-Yes, understood!

The video communication channel cut off.
As silence settled for a moment, someone spoke up.
It was Choi Han.

He looked at Kale and asked.

“To the Alchemy Tower.”

Sir Rex, the Cat Tribe Knight.
And the video recording devices.

Sir Rex, who remembered the interior somewhat from his experience escaping the Alchemy Tower as a child.
And video devices capable of recording any scene.
Not just one, but multiple.

Choi Han saw the picture Kale wanted and asked him about it.

“You’re planning to infiltrate the Alchemy Tower?”

Kale nodded.
Choi Han asked one more thing.

“What will you do with the video recording devices?”

Kale’s mouth opened.

“What else? Scatter them covertly throughout the Capital.”

Kale recalled the golem and Honth from the Wipper War.

The vast destructive power despite detonating in an open field outside the castle.
Power enough to obliterate Jungle Zone 7 entirely.

The Empire Capital.
A battle breaking out within the Capital itself, where entry and exit were strictly controlled?
A place where golems and dead mana bombs were all gathered together?

Should we only fight near the Alchemy Tower?

Kale Heniatus spoke to his companions, who were watching him intently.

“We need to escape, don’t we?”

We had to warn the Empire Capital’s citizens of the danger and help them evacuate the capital.

“…It could become the most terrible battle imaginable.”

Something worse than a Golem might emerge.
We had to assume the worst in any scenario.

“So while we march toward the Alchemy Tower, we have something else we must do simultaneously.”

We couldn’t allow the Crown Prince, who valued human lives so lightly, to take hostages again.

“We destroy the City Wall and City Gate. And we aid the evacuation.”

Everyone must be able to escape.
Through the collapsed City Gate and City Wall, everyone must be able to witness both my battle with the Crown Prince.
That’s what we need to create.

‘Of course, there’s much to prepare before that.’

Kale mentally catalogued everything that needed to be done.
A way to end this overwhelmingly while minimizing casualties. My mind never ceased working.

Choi Han watched this, closed his eyes, then opened them and nodded.
The way Kale considered the lives of the Empire’s citizens was so characteristic of him.

“Understood.”

At that moment, Bilos carefully opened his mouth.

“Young Master, if that’s the case, how can we discover that secret passage?”

Kale glanced subtly to one side. The person receiving his gaze shook their head with a sigh.

“Sigh, being too great is a problem too.”

Erhafen rose from his seat with a smooth motion.

-Human! I’m here too!

Raon shouted excitedly inside my mind.
I tossed a command at Bilos, who was staring at me.

“Guide us north, outside the City Gate for now.”

Crown Prince Adin.
Where could he be hiding?

If discovered, from that moment on, he would slowly lose everything without even realizing it.

A smile played at the corners of my lips as I became the seeker.

-Human! It’s been so long since you smiled like that!
“What a troublesome lot.”

I ignored the dragons’ interjections.

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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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