Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 350

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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 Jungle, the Northern Region, the Central area, the Desert.
All of them were depicted on the ceiling mural.

Only the place where the Roan Kingdom existed—the Northeastern Territory of the continent—was conspicuously absent from the painting.

‘That’s strange.’

Kale distinctly remembered what the Glutton Goddess of the unbreakable shield had said. His memory could never be wrong.

The Heniatus Territory, famous for its marble, renowned for its abundance of stone.
The words spoken by the Glutton Goddess who had died there.

‘I cannot purify.’
‘So I couldn’t purify, and I had to die stained black, eating only. I couldn’t bear to watch the land turn black.’
‘Even if my flesh grows heavy, I don’t think I could give up this taste. It’s so unfair that I died eating dirt!’

In the Slums of the Heniatus Territory, the Glutton Goddess had died, devouring the blackened soil.

“According to the Glutton Goddess’s words, the land of the Heniatus Territory should have turned black as well.”

The Heniatus Territory and the Roan Kingdom—lands that should have turned black like the Jungle and the Northern Region.
Yet those places were not depicted at all on the ceiling mural.

‘Why?’

I could not fathom the reason.

In that moment, a voice other than the Thief’s reached me.
It was the voice of the terrifying Jjangdol.

-Because the current Roan was once the Land of Stone.

In an instant, a flicker of recognition crossed Kale’s eyes.

The Land of Stone.
It was a familiar expression.
A certain person came to mind.

‘Taylor Sten!’

A close friend of the Crazy Priestess Kage, and the master of the Sten Marquis House, which represented the nobility of the Northwestern Region of the Roan Kingdom.
He who had once been an abandoned eldest son.

Kale recalled the time when he had ridden in a carriage with the Crazy Priestess Kage and Taylor Sten, heading to the Roan Kingdom Capital for the first time.

Taylor Sten had spoken to Kale during their conversation.

‘The Roan Kingdom is a land of ‘Stone’.’

It was connected to a certain mythology.
Kale, who had read 【The Birth of a Hero】 up to the fifth volume, was hearing this myth for the first time.

‘If you examine the ancient tales, long before this Roan Kingdom came to exist, this land was filled with stories related to ‘Stone’. Among them, it is said that there was a guardian deity on this land, one as steadfast as that ‘Stone’.’

A guardian deity as solid as stone.

‘A guardian deity that could protect everything against any attack. When darkness descended upon the continent, it was the one who stood foremost to block that darkness.’

At this very moment, Kale’s mind wove together the unmarked Western Continent land in this Black Temple and that mythology.

‘The guardian deity stood firm as stone even when its entire body was shattered. That is how it protected this Northeastern Territory, surrounded by stone, and its people.’

Kale’s lips parted.

“…Was it you?”

And the answer from Cale’s Power came through.

-I died with my entire body shattered.

Kale closed his eyes, then opened them.

“…Damn it.”

He had been told not to sacrifice himself, yet he had sacrificed himself completely and died.
Kale’s insides roiled with fury. Why were there so many ill-fated people scattered about?

He called out the name of a person buried deep within his memories.

“…Taylor Sten.”

He had mentioned this guardian deity of stone before.

‘He’s probably not famous. I only learned about him while researching ancient texts and the Ancient Powers.’

Kale’s face contorted without his realizing it.

“Why couldn’t I remember him?”

He clearly remembered what Taylor Sten had said.

Perhaps Taylor Sten was the most knowledgeable and well-versed person around Kale when it came to the Ancient Powers and ancient mythology.
After all, he had desperately searched for the power to heal his own legs.

‘I need to meet Taylor.’

The tasks I needed to accomplish began organizing themselves in my mind one by one.
Yet there was one question I absolutely had to ask.

A question about the outcome.

“How did you defeat someone so powerful—someone with the sky attribute?”

Uuuung— uuuung—
In that moment, Kale felt the golden spinning top vibrate.

Whiiiii— whiii—
A wind sound that neither the people outside the island nor Kale inside the temple could understand. The winds within Wind Island began to rage with increasing ferocity.

Unaware of this, Kale heard the voice of Cale’s Power.

-Countless individuals bearing the Ancient Powers converged and attacked him. Of course, there were also some Ancient Power holders who stood on his side.

Power against power. A large-scale battle unfolded.

-Most of those who now possess what is called the Ancient Powers fought back then. Tens of thousands of people rushed at him.

We fought and fought again.

-It was a battle that spanned decades. As a result, we died, and he barely died as well. My body was shattered.

Cale’s Power spoke matter-of-factly.

-I want to say we were even since I killed him in the end, but the sacrifice was too great.

It was a battle where everyone died.

-After that, the Ancient Age ended.

Kale could scarcely imagine the decades-long battle that had unfolded in the distant past.
Should his fight with White Star be the same?

Kale thought of the Western Continent.
The people of the Western Continent had already been suffering greatly from multiple wars since the beginning of the year, starting with the war in the Northern Region.
But they would have to fight for decades more?

“Damn, this crazy bastard.”

A curse toward White Star flowed out naturally along with a sigh.
But Kale’s hands clenched with force.

-The past and now are different.

Cale’s Power’s voice reached him.

-Back then, he had gathered all five natural attributes along with the sky attribute.

What?
Kale’s breath caught sharply at the revelation that the ancient one had not possessed only the sky attribute.
Wind, water, fire, earth, wood, and sky—wielding all six, he would have been indistinguishable from nature itself.

‘That would explain how he could stand against so many.’

But soon a peculiar expression settled across Kale’s face.
White Star.
He currently lacked the power of earth.

I heard Cale’s Power speak with amusement in his voice.

-In ancient times, only he and I possessed the power of earth.

Kale realized what White Star was searching for.
His mouth opened.

“So I need to find his power of earth?”

Cale’s Power answered with a low chuckle.

-As expected, you’re sharp.

Then he spoke with determination.

-And you must destroy it.

A difficult path lay ahead.
It was a path that required accomplishing two things simultaneously.

-Also, find and stop that creature called White Star, who possesses the sky attribute.

Those two things were finding and destroying the ‘power of earth’ that the one who sought to become nature in ancient times possessed, and stopping White Star.
Cale’s Power continued speaking about stopping White Star.

-It’s possible because his vessel is incomplete.

White Star possessed multiple Ancient Powers but lacked all five natural attributes, making his vessel imperfect.
It was different from Kale.

-Kale, ‘we’ can seize him. Of course, it might be somewhat difficult and painful.

Kale asked with a slight smile.

“Will my body break?”

Cale’s Power answered with a hearty laugh.
But his voice was sincere.

-I won’t sacrifice anyone this time.

At that response, I finally laughed aloud. But the laughter faded quickly.

-The day I died, White Star crumbled as well.

The day my body shattered.
The day countless comrades perished alongside me.

-In that final battle, there was one boy who survived. The only one among my companions I managed to protect.

A boy who lived only because he stood behind my back.

-You possess a power similar to what that boy held.

A survivor existed?
A power similar to mine?

A single piece of information flickered through my mind.

“…Dragon Slayer?”

A dominating aura. That was all I could think of.
Cale’s Power spoke with a bitter tone.

-Looking back now, it seems that boy became the First Dragon Slayer.

The boy I protected became the First Dragon Slayer.

-I asked that child to protect this land if another with the sky attribute appeared in future generations. To cultivate strong warriors.

Goosebumps erupted across my arms.

The First Dragon Slayer. And the village he built. That village had attracted the continent’s strongest warriors, each seeking their own growth.

Simultaneously, I felt breathless.

“…You know as well as I do. White Star is now the Last Dragon Slayer.”
-How ironic.

Hah.
Kale found himself at a loss for words.
Ancient times. Countless ages had passed since then.
In that span, countless destinies had been overturned.

-That child.

The First Dragon Slayer.

-That child must have certainly established themselves in the Castle of Light, one of the three forbidden places.

The Dragon Slayer’s village was on the Eastern Continent, not the Western Continent?
There was no reason it had to be on the Western Continent anyway.
I let out a dry laugh.

“After Wind Island, is it the Castle of Light?”

The Castle of Light.
I still didn’t know what kind of place it was. But there might be information about the White Star, or the Dragon Slayer and the village, remaining there.

I committed this new information to memory and turned my head toward the task at hand.

Whooooom— whooooom—
The spinning top was vibrating with increasing intensity. I looked down at my free hand, the one not gripping the jar.

Whiiiish— whiiiish—
A small whirlwind spiraled above my palm.
It was the Voice of Wind.

“When I grip this spinning top, can I hear the voices of the wind spirits?”

The Thief’s answer came to me.

-That’s right. But it won’t come through immediately, and it will be quite difficult.
“…Quite difficult, you say?”

Wasn’t it supposed to be something I could just obtain?
Kale’s face contorted.
She spoke as if I just had to go find it, but this is completely different from what she said!
Kale’s lips gradually twisted into a grimace.

However, The Thief remained silent. In that moment, Cale’s Power’s voice rang out.

-The Thief is too scared to speak! Let’s just create a sea of fire! Kahahaha!

…She’s gradually becoming consumed by madness?
Kale ignored Cale’s Power. Then The Thief’s voice came again.

-I never imagined you would end up possessing this.

The Thief, uncharacteristically, rambled as if making excuses.

-Well, it was back then. From my perspective, once I realized that obtaining this spinning top would mean gaining a great ally, I felt the need to test whoever would possess it.

Kale accepted that part, at least.

“So?”

A blunt tone escaped involuntarily.

-So here’s the thing. Ahem, well. I thought the most necessary test would be one of character. But back then, I was somewhat desperate, and I had accumulated so much anger toward the world that I was a bit insane, you see?
“…And?”
-S-so here’s the thing.

Kale felt unease creeping over him more and more.

A character test.
That word alone was ominous enough, but hearing that it was a test created while in a mad state made his skin crawl.

-Well, I thought that someone who experienced the same things I did might live similarly to me, and might use this power for good, you know?
“Stop with the unnecessary explanations.”

Kale asked.

“What is the nature of the test?”
-…I’m sorry. I can’t tell you that. Those are the rules.

His mouth fell open.

“Damn it.”

The Thief said nothing.
But I recalled everything The Thief had told me—her words, her life, the circumstances that had driven her to madness.

That was likely the nature of the test.
I set the urn aside.
My hands swept across my face. The test’s content had become clear.

-We walk with you. Remember that.

The moment I heard Cale’s Power’s voice.
I reached toward the spinning top. The Thief’s voice came to me.

-The moment you grasp the spinning top, the test will begin.

My hand touched the spinning top.

Whoosh!
Golden light flooded my vision. Even so, I gripped the spinning top firmly.

And then my world went dark.
At the same moment, The Thief’s voice reached me—devoid of all emotion. It was not The Thief’s voice dwelling within my body.

“The test begins now.”

The test had commenced.

“The moment you fear most will come to meet you.”

Kale Heniatus.
The moment I feared most.
My face twisted beyond recognition.

Voice of Wind. The owner of that power had lost family, friends, and neighbors, becoming The Thief.
And in the dead mana vault—the trace they left behind—they had placed an artifact forged from their own lives.
A test created by her in a state of madness, pushed to the absolute limit.
I understood it.

But my lips parted without my realizing it.

“Damn it, what kind of character test is this!”

I halted mid-rant.

Hm?
Warmth touched my face, and my eyes inexplicably itched. It was like morning sunlight.

‘Sunlight?’

That was when it happened.
A voice reached my ears.

“My Lord, it is morning.”

My Lord? Who? Me?
I opened my eyes.
The ceiling of my bedroom in the Heniatus Count Estate came into view. I opened my eyes while lying on the bed.

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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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