Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 323

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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 second-largest market in the Capital, located beside the Alchemy Tower.

“What’s going on?”

A Merchant opened his shop later than usual and arranged fruit on his stall, glancing toward the Alchemy Tower as he spoke to the vendor beside him.

“I don’t know the details either.”

The other Merchant shook his head at the question. His gaze, too, was fixed on the entrance of the Alchemy Tower, where unusually large crowds were gathering.

Just then, a man interjected between them.

“Well, you know…”
“Know what?”
“Yes, that thing!”

A sturdily built young man with an affable face opened his mouth.

“Fifteen years ago, the Alchemy Tower took children from the Slums, promising them jobs or training as Alchemists, remember?”
“Ah, yes. That’s right.”

The Merchant recalled a distant memory.
Fifteen years.
An eternity ago.
For them, at least.

“It seems the families of those children have been asking the guards if they can see them.”
“Oh, really? They haven’t been able to meet all this time?”

The Merchant’s eyes widened at this unfamiliar information.
Then the young man—Vice-Captain Hilsman—moistened his lips with his tongue and began speaking with his characteristic sociable gestures.

“Yes, so I heard. You know Honth, right? The Tower Master’s disciple!”
“Of course! Of course! He’s from the Slums himself. The Alchemy Tower is remarkable, and Honth is remarkable too. A truly noble intention with wonderful results.”
“Exactly, right?”

Vice-Captain Hilsman’s mouth began to move with increasing momentum.

“But here’s the thing.”

As the young man’s expression grew grave, not only the merchant but also the passersby nearby turned their attention toward him.

“Honth’s family has only ever seen him from a distance. They’ve never met him up close.”
“…Really? Why on earth?”

The expressions of the two merchants grew peculiar.

“…I didn’t know that. Had no idea.”

At the merchant’s offhand remark, Hilsman nodded excessively.

“Me neither! I didn’t know either, you see? Anyway, there was a reason why all those people went to the Alchemy Tower looking for their families.”
“What reason is that?”

As if to say “don’t even ask,” Hilsman waved his hand dismissively.

“During the war with the Wipper Kingdom, many alchemists went to the battlefield, right? So they were worried and went to see them, just in case.”
“Ah.”

The merchant nodded in understanding.
Now I understood why they’d gone looking. It was certainly a situation anyone could comprehend.

“Indeed, sending family to the battlefield makes one anxious. They probably can’t sleep properly.”

Oh no!
The merchant, having spoken without thinking, flinched and turned away. The expression of the merchant arranging fruit at his stall had darkened considerably.
His younger brother was currently fighting as a soldier in this war against Wipper.

“Ahem, well. But there’s no need to worry too much! Our Empire will win!”

The merchant called out to his colleague, and Hilsman added his words in a subtle tone, as if he’d been waiting for this.

“Of course. Surely the Crown Prince wouldn’t let our people die so meaninglessly?”
“Exactly! That’s absolutely obvious!”

Hilsman turned his gaze away from the merchant who was agreeing with him and surveyed his surroundings.
He wasn’t the only one engaging in such behavior right now.

Kale and Sir Rex’s people, like Vice-Captain Hilsman, were observing their surroundings while engaging in similar conversations throughout the Capital.

‘I can see anxiety and worry written all over their faces.’

The soldiers the Crown Prince had led.
A considerable number of them were Capital residents.

Despite the Capital’s atmosphere appearing peaceful now, they were ultimately in a state of war.

Vice-Captain Hilsman quietly withdrew as he observed the unsettled atmosphere.
The others did the same.
Everyone who had been given orders for the operation moved throughout the Capital like Hilsman, evading the soldiers’ gazes. Their minds were filled with Kale’s words.

‘I plan to spread two videos throughout the Capital.’

Tap-tap. Tap!
The red cat’s footsteps across the rooftops were hurried.

‘The first video will expose the Alchemy Tower’s misdeeds spanning the past fifteen years.’

Most people would be horrified and appalled, while those from the Slums and those enslaved to foreign nations who had lost their families would burn with rage.

‘The second.’

Sir Rex’s gaze fixed upon the Alchemy Tower.

‘A video of the Crown Prince and the Alchemy Tower using the bomb “Honth” to kill their own people.’

The moment that video spread, the Empire’s citizens would erupt in fury.

‘Sir Rex, when that happens, you and the people from the Slums will evacuate the Empire’s citizens outside the Capital.’

This time, you’ll be the one protecting and safeguarding the people.

Kale’s voice echoed in Lex’s ears.
His bloodshot eyes held within them every alley and street of the entire Capital.

I will evacuate everyone without fail.

He made a resolution.

* * *

“People from the Slums came looking for someone this afternoon?”

At Crown Prince Adin’s calm question, the Alchemist reported the afternoon’s incident with visible tension.

“Yes, Your Highness. Since many Alchemists didn’t participate in the Wipper War this time, they were worried their families might have gone there. They came asking for news or whether they could see them if they visited the Alchemy Tower.”
“Suddenly?”

The Alchemist shook his head.

“Not suddenly. A few have come occasionally before. But when Honth’s younger brother stepped forward, it seems everyone followed suit. In the end, there were only about a dozen or so.”
“I see. Monitor the Slums as well.”

At Crown Prince Adin’s command, the Alchemist quickly bowed.

“Right now, I need to eliminate all variables.”

The Crown Prince’s voice was distinctly cold.

“Understood, Your Highness. I will strengthen the Capital’s security by more than threefold today.”

It was surveillance disguised as security.
Crown Prince Adin nodded, and the Alchemist hurriedly left the Terrace room where Adin was staying.

“Your Highness, do you expect something to happen in the Slums?”

At the Royal Physician’s words, Crown Prince Adin shook his head.

“What could they possibly do even if they tried? It’s the same now as it was fifteen years ago. However, I cannot allow baseless rumors to spread throughout the Capital.”

Crown Prince Adin decided he needed to strengthen his control over the Capital a bit more.
He inhaled the dead mana.

“Still bland.”

Admittedly, the taste was far more bland than when despair from others was infused within it.
Crown Prince Adin savored the dead mana, reminiscing about that stimulating flavor from before.

At that very moment, Kale Heniatus found himself in a small forest to the south, some distance from the Imperial Capital.

“Security around the Slums has been strengthened, you say?”
“Yes, Young Master. I learned of it through my subordinates.”

At the response from Frigia, the assassin who had been posing as a sculptor, Kale Heniatus nodded.
He toyed with the object in his hand before tossing out his question casually.

“Is everything prepared?”

His gaze turned toward the darkness of the forest.
Two figures emerged from within that darkness.

The Sun God twins.
Saint Jack and Sword Master Hana.

“I’ve been ready to fight since long ago.”

Hana answered curtly, stroking the blade of her sword. Her eyes gleamed with the thought of slaying her enemies.

“All I need to do is fight with the sword my brother gave me, right?”

The passage written in the dark magic tome. The twins had already learned its contents from Kale Heniatus.
Kale Heniatus’s gaze shifted toward Saint Jack.

“Saint, are you prepared?”

Saint Jack fingered a small orb with a rigid expression. It was one of the image-recording orbs to be scattered throughout the Imperial Capital tomorrow.

Saint Jack lifted his head and surveyed the forest shrouded in darkness around him.
He could see Death God Priest Kaige, Necromancer Mary, and Dark Elf Tasha.

‘Can I truly draw the sword using divine power? Do I have the right to step forward like this?’

The trees that had turned white in Jungle Zone 7 came to mind.
That sight—that was true ‘light’.

Saint Jack extended his hand.

“Give it to me, Your Highness.”

At his resolute voice, the corners of Kale Heniatus’s mouth lifted.

“I’ve been waiting for those words.”

He handed the small, worn hand mirror he held to Saint Jack. Jack accepted it with trembling hands and opened the compact. Then the mirror came into view.
Condemnation.

Those characters were still visible.

The letters were still visible.
The Sun God’s condemnation.

The Sun’s Condemnation.
Gripping the divine artifact, Jack spoke to Kale Heniatus.

“I will surely create a white night.”

At those words, Kale Heniatus was about to respond when he lifted his head.

Whoooosh—

Wind blew.

But it could be sensed.
Invisible, yet it was there in the heavens.
But I could tell.
-Human! Rosalind has arrived!

The airship cloaked in invisibility by the two Dragons hovered directly above the forest.

Two dragons kept an invisible airship hovering directly above the forest.
Kale Heniatus could see black dots suddenly falling from the sky above.

Thud! Thwack! Boom!
The dark figures crashed to the ground with distinct sounds, then pushed themselves upright.
The Dark Elf warriors who had fought in the Jungle.
They bowed their waists to Kale Heniatus, their spirits swirling around them.

Kale Heniatus’s lips parted.

“One day left.”

Just one day remained.

That dawn.
Crown Prince Adin received reports that the Slums were as quiet as usual, that few people passed through, and that they had identified the whereabouts of those who had.

“There was nothing of note, Your Highness.”

Yet they failed to notice the people holding their breath, waiting for this single day to pass.

* * *

“Did you close the window?”
“Just a moment!”

The boy quickly reached toward the window at his mother’s words.
Through the glass, he could see soldiers and knights making their rounds outside.

‘Because of the war, they work even at night to protect us.’

Recalling his mother’s words, the boy gazed quietly at the passing soldiers and knights.

“Cold air is getting in!”
“Oh, yes!”

At the sound of his mother’s voice once more, the boy hastily shut the window.

Creak.
The old window slowly closed.
Late night. The sun had already set, and only the dark sky remained visible at this hour.

Click.
The child’s hand froze mid-motion as he reached to lock the window latch.

“Mom! Mother!”

The child called out, but his voice went unheard.

Weeee— Weeeee—

A piercing wail shattered the night, engulfing the Capital in its shriek.
The mother clutched her frightened child close and finished securing the window latch.
Her eyes trembled with uncertainty.

‘Have enemies breached the walls? Should we flee? What is this sound?’

In the midst of war, her anxiety reached its zenith. Every sense heightened as she strained to comprehend what surrounded her.
Then it came.

-It’s rather amusing to look down from above, isn’t it?

A familiar voice echoed from beyond the window.

“Your Highness! Mom, it’s His Highness!”

Of course.
It was Crown Prince Adin’s voice.

Creak. The window swung open once more.
She gazed upward into the sky.

A colossal flying vessel hung suspended above.
An image materialized across its surface.

“Look! It’s His Highness’s face, Mom!”

In a space where bones towered like mountains, the Crown Prince appeared on the highest terrace, drinking black liquid.
His image unfolded across the sky above the Capital.

At that moment, Sir Rex, now restored to human form, held the communication device in his hand.

-Begin.

It was Kale Heniatus’s voice.
Sir Rex gazed forward. From the Slums, countless people stared at him, clutching orbs, various items, and shields.
His mouth opened.

“Disperse. See you later.”

Those words were the signal.
From the Slums, people began moving into the darkness.

At that moment.

-Begin.

Rosalind turned her head.
She could see the magic circle beginning to glow at the center of the Airship and the ancient dragon Erhafen rising into the air.
She opened her mouth.

“Activate the City Wall destruction magic circle!”

Her voice spread across the night sky, and the entire Airship trembled with surging mana.

And finally.

“Let’s go.”

Kale Heniatus entered the secret passage of the Alchemy Tower from the north of the Imperial Capital.
Where Adin would be.
Raon and Choi Han followed behind him.

A voice came through Kale Heniatus’s communication channel.

-East, West, South—secret passage infiltration commencing.

It was Tasha’s voice.
East, West, South, North. The secret passages of the Alchemy Tower.
Dark Elf warriors led by Tasha were infiltrating the secret passages.

It was time.
Now it began.

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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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