Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 386

—————

This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

—————

Having said all he needed to say, Choi Han’s expression showed a sense of relief. A strong passion radiated from him.
And he waited for Kale Heniatus’s response to what he had spoken.

Kale Heniatus opened his mouth to answer.
But a voice cut in before he could speak.

“The clever Choi Han would never say such a thing!”

At Raon’s sudden outburst, both Choi Han and Kale Heniatus’s gazes turned toward the Black Dragon.
Raon shook his head vigorously, then looked at Choi Han with the same intensity he reserved for the Mercenary King Bud, and spoke.

“We’re already fighting together! We’re already together, so why talk about joining forces again! Choi Han! Don’t become like the Mercenary King!”

Kale Heniatus let out a small chuckle and added seriously.

“Choi Han is smarter than that fool Bud.”
“That’s true! The human is indeed clever! Just a tiny bit! Less clever than me!”
“Sure, sure.”

Kale Heniatus stroked the smooth back of Raon’s head.
Then I suddenly realized something.

‘…He’s lost some weight?’

The plump cheeks that had been full before arriving at the Castle of Light were noticeably less round now. My brow furrowed.
Suddenly, Hong’s haggard face, trembling with exhaustion, came to mind. And On, who unlike Hong and Raon, never seemed to gain weight, also crossed my thoughts.
The pathetic figures of the Cat-Human Race and the White Star flashed through my mind.

“…I’ll kill those bastards.”

In that instant, both Choi Han and Raon flinched.

“Raon.”
“What is it, human?”
“Get out the apple pie.”
“Oh! Got it!”

Raon suddenly pulled out an apple pie and held it out to Kale with sparkling eyes. Kale took it.
And he spoke.

“Ah.”
“Ah?”

A piece of apple pie entered Raon’s mouth as he mimicked Kale’s words. With Raon’s mouth closed, the apple pie dangled from his lips.

“Eat.”

Following Kale’s command, Raon grasped the piece of apple pie in his front paws and ate it. Kale watched and murmured.

“…So he’s losing weight now.”

Choi Han, observing, thought to himself.
Who?
Who lost weight?

Choi Han blankly watched as Raon’s already plump cheeks became even puffier from the apple pie stuffed into his mouth.
Then, suddenly, laughter spilled out.

“Haha—”

His heart tickled with warmth.

Indeed, the path he had chosen was right.
Even though he had said they all must fight together against the White Star, what surrounded Choi Han was not despair, loneliness, or pain—only the ordinary everyday life he had always known.

“Human, do you know why Choi Han is laughing alone?”
“I don’t know. Isn’t it me? Well, laughing is good.”
“Right, it is! Laughing is good! Laugh a lot, Choi Han! I take back what I said about you resembling the Mercenary King!”

Choi Han’s laughter grew louder.
Raon, seeing Choi Han laugh so heartily for the first time, widened his eyes and chewed the apple pie.

But Raon soon stopped eating the apple pie and stared blankly at Choi Han.
After laughing for a while, Choi Han spoke.

“I’ve actually lived for over several decades.”

Thud.
The apple pie that had been perched on Raon’s two front paws fell to the ground. Regardless, Choi Han spoke calmly.

“So I am older than Kale Heniatus. Older than Ron.”

Raon’s eyes blinked as he stared at Choi Han.
Choi Han continued speaking, still wearing a faint smile.

“I age very slowly. It seems I will live for an extraordinarily long time.”

I wanted to release this sense of relief that had been building inside me. It felt like now was the right moment.
If it was now, if it was in front of these people, could I not speak of it?
I couldn’t tell them everything, but did I really need to keep it all locked away?

“And I came from a place very, very far away. There is probably no one else in this world who can read the characters in this record.”

I could see Kale Heniatus watching me without any particular change in expression.
He always had that look. His expression would occasionally change when deceiving enemies, but normally his face was always so blank and indifferent.
But whenever something happened to someone in our group, that expression would change urgently.

It was a fact that everyone in the group knew except Kale himself.

It wasn’t just about the group’s problems.
During the war that had continued since early this year, whenever Kale raised his shield with his allies behind him, his expression would fill with emotion and vitality.

I paused to feel the silence around us before speaking again.
My voice was as gentle as my appearance.

“My family and friends are all in that very distant place. I came here at seventeen and have lived alone for decades, countless hours. Of course, that’s not the case anymore.”

Raon still hadn’t picked up the fallen apple pie from the ground. I gave him a slight smile before looking at Kale Heniatus.
I could see Kale’s brow furrow. He seemed to be thinking deeply about something for a long while before his lips finally opened.

“…Choi Han.”
“Yes.”

I answered softly with a smile, but my heart was neither soft nor calm.
Speaking even a part of it brought relief. But a small, faint anxiety also washed over me. Despite having lived for decades, my appearance was as if not even a year had passed.
Would he feel repulsed by that fact?

My mind, which had been at ease until just moments ago, began to grow complicated.
I could see Kale Heniatus’s expression becoming increasingly troubled, as if he sensed my inner turmoil.
Kale Heniatus’s lips parted, hesitation flickering across his face.

“Do you want to be called ‘brother’ like the Crown Prince does? Should I call you that?”
“…Pardon?”
“…Or grandfather? Or perhaps Choi Han, sir?”

The more Kale Heniatus spoke, the more serious his expression became, while mine grew increasingly strange. Eventually, I smiled softly and answered with sincerity.

“Please treat me as you always have.”
“Understood, Choi Han.”

Only then did Kale Heniatus’s expression return to its usual composure.
He turned away from me and handed Raon another slice of apple pie, speaking as he did.

“Eat without dropping food everywhere.”
“…Ah, understood. Yes, human!”

Raon quickly regained his senses and resumed eating the apple pie. Then he approached my side and pulled out another slice from his subspace, offering it to me.

“Choi Han! Eat this!”

I understood Raon’s ways by now.
I smiled willingly, accepted the apple pie, and gently stroked his head.

“I am the great Raon Mir! Trust only in me!”

Everything was as it always was.
Watching myself return to normal so quickly, my heart felt truly at ease.

Kale Heniatus confirmed the comfort settling into my expression and slowly moved forward.

Should I confess as well?

The moment Choi Han spoke about himself, that thought filled my mind.

I had no way of knowing where the original Kale Heniatus had gone.
Whether he had died, or if he had entered Kim Rok-soo’s body instead.
There was no way to know anything.

In such a situation, I couldn’t speak of anything.
Because the Heniatus Count Family and the people there were present.
Sometimes it was better to keep certain truths as a burden carried alone.

I gazed at Choi Han’s relieved expression without hesitation.

Choi Han and I were different.
There was no need to cling to that sense of relief.

In Korea, there was no longer anyone I could call close.

And yet.
The future of Kim Rok-soo, who had been on a long vacation.
The whereabouts of the real Kale Heniatus.
Korea, which had just begun to take shape, and my subordinates.
Large and small guilt, lingering attachments, worries, concerns, and sense of responsibility.

All of it was taking root in my mind and being recorded.
And I chose to bear this burden. Whether that was right or wrong, I couldn’t say, but there were far too many pressing problems before me to dwell on such thoughts now.

The object containing the clues to those problems—the record—was held in my hands.

“Kale, will you be taking the record with you?”
“Yes.”

The first time I visited this village, I had to prepare for a new battle targeting the White Star’s rear, so I had left the record behind just in case.
In truth, it was also to buy time to separate Choi Han from the record and think things through.

I placed the record into my spatial pocket as I spoke.

“Choi Han, explain things to me on the way back.”
“Understood.”

Without further words, we all headed toward the secret passage of the castle we had come from.
This secret passage was faster when going to where Lord Sherit and the rest of the group were waiting.

That was the moment.

“Human! Why are you stopping?”

Kale Heniatus halted mid-stride, motionless.
In his right hand, which had just tucked the record into his subspace pocket, gleamed a golden spinning top.
The corners of his mouth curved upward in an enigmatic smile.

The voice of the Wind Spirit reached my ears.

‘Jackpot! I got the info super fast! Hehehehe!’

It seemed to be one of the Wind Spirits that had been pursuing the White Star’s group, yet it had returned to Kale Heniatus far sooner than expected with its intelligence.
Of course, there was a reason this spirit had returned so quickly.

‘Some of the White Star’s subordinates are standing at the end of this village’s exit passage! Not the White Castle’s secret passage—the real exit passage!’

The exit I had used when leaving the village to strike at the White Star from behind.
Following this exit would lead to a door mounted on the ceiling.
Opening that door revealed a land covered in white granules.

From there, I had moved with utmost discretion to strike at the White Star’s rear.

“…Unnecessarily clever.”

The White Star had not known of the secret passages within the White Castle. But he did know of the village’s original entrance and exit.

‘The White Star told his subordinates as he sent them here! Just in case, keep watch to see if anyone comes out through this exit!’

The White Star had needed to discover which route my group had used to escape, so he had ordered his subordinates to monitor the village’s entrance and exit.

But those subordinates would not be able to open this door—they could only stand guard.
Because only the one who possessed the crown could command all the doors of this village.

And though the White Star had possessed the crown before I took it, he could not use it to enter this village.
Because this village was precious to him.

The Oath of Death, the curse, prevented him from ever setting foot here.
That was why he had ordered his subordinates to keep watch near this door.

‘Just you wait and watch. I’ll see if I go over there.’

I let out a hollow laugh and took another step forward.
Only then did Choi Han and Raon follow behind me.
But the two of them stopped again.

“Oh.”

I stopped mid-stride and blurted out while looking at Choi Han.

“That writing you were reading.”
“…Korean, sir?”

As Choi Han slowly repeated the question, I nodded plainly.

“Yeah, that. Korean. That language doesn’t seem to be interpretable even with Erhafen’s translation magic.”

I tossed it out as if it were nothing.

“Teach me later.”

Ah.
A short exclamation escaped Choi Han’s lips. In his eyes, he saw me speaking.

“It’s difficult now, but later when we return home. Teach me then. By that time, I’ll be unemployed anyway with nothing to do.”

I nodded as if satisfied with my own words.

Right, it’s hard to pretend I don’t know Korean, and it would be nice to learn from Choi Han and use Korean myself. Ah, but I mustn’t let Raon’s name slip out.

It was an excellent plan.

After all, once I deal with the White Star, I’ll be unemployed anyway. The Crown Prince said he’d make me unemployed too.

I trusted Alberu’s words. Of course, whether I believed it or not, I intended to make it happen that way.
Choi Han remained silent for a moment before answering slowly.

“Yes, I will definitely teach you.”
“I’ll learn too! I’m smarter than the weak human, so I learn better.”

Raon flapped his wings enthusiastically as he spoke, but Kale Heniatus shook his head in disagreement.
Choi Han found the sight amusing, letting out a soft chuckle—it was strikingly similar to how Raon had shaken his head just moments before.

“I’ll teach you all of it.”

Choi Jung-gun had never taught Korean to anyone.
But Choi Han was willing to eagerly share his homeland’s language with the family gathered here by his side, and to converse with them in it.

“And at that time, I’ll also tell you about my hometown.”

This was Choi Han’s way.

* * *

“You’re back quickly?”

Bud waved cheerfully from a corner of the castle, a drink in hand.
The two Dragons, Vicross, and Ron welcomed Kale Heniatus, Choi Han, and Raon as they returned to the castle through the secret passage. On and Hong had already rushed to Raon’s side.

“What did you find?”

Ancient Dragon Erhafen approached and posed the question.
The Ancient Dragon’s expression grew slightly puzzled as he observed Raon’s actions.

Whoooosh—

The moment Raon emerged from the passage onto the surface, he pulled out a communication crystal.
The communication crystal, wrapped in black mana, began to glow and establish a connection.
It was a signal being sent from Kale Heniatus’s side.

Kale Heniatus’s voice reached Erhafen as he observed this.

“Yes, we found something significant.”

Something significant?
Erhafen turned his gaze toward Kale Heniatus.

“…What did you find?”

Kale Heniatus looked at Choi Han. Choi Han nodded with a smile on his face.

On the path back to the castle through the secret passage.

‘The records contain clues about two earth-attribute powers.’

Choi Han explained what was written in Choi Jung-gun’s records.
Of course, I remembered every word without a single mistake, but I listened to Choi Han’s explanation calmly.

‘First, the first power is the earth power that you obtained in the Underground Dark Forest. The owner of that power was the Guardian of Stone.’

I shifted my gaze away from Choi Han and looked toward Erhafen.
Choi Han spoke about the second earth power, the earth power that the Ancient White Star had possessed. Of course, that information already existed in my mind.

I recalled a part of Choi Jung-gun’s records.
A record left only in Korean for future generations of Korean outsiders.

【I cannot precisely determine where the White Star’s earth power went. However, I have a suspected location.】

“Human, we’re connected!”

Before I could respond to the Ancient Dragon, the video communication channel connected.
I recalled the location that Choi Jung-gun had suspected.

【The place where earth power is most concentrated across the entire East-West Continent. That is where the final battle unfolded. It was the place where the Guardian of Stone blocked the sky.】

I know that place.

Rowan.

【The White Star’s power must surely exist not far from where Jjangdol’s power resides. Because those two powers resemble each other. Like twins.】

I turned my gaze toward the video communication channel.

-…You- You-

A person with a just-woken face appeared on the screen above the video communication channel, unable to hide their surprise.

“Ah.”

Kale finally realized what he looked like.
The fake blood the Mercenary King had given him. He’d rinsed out his mouth, but from head to toe he was covered in fake blood.

Kale smiled and spoke to the person on the screen.

“I’m not badly hurt. I’m fine.”
-…I’m going crazy.

Crown Prince Albert Crossman’s face crumpled.

—————

This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

—————