Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 433

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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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Kale fell silent.
His mind was more turbulent than ever before.

‘…If the Heniatus Family truly became a Marquis…!’

No, if they became a Duke!
As I pictured a household already flush with wealth, wielding supreme influence over naval forces and bearing the title of Duke and Marquis, it felt as though my carefree life was waving goodbye from some distant, fading dream.

‘Nah, that’s ridiculous.’

Would the nobles of the Roan Kingdom really concentrate wealth, power, and honor upon a family they deemed mad? And how shrewd was Crown Prince Albert Crossman? Even if he trusted Kale implicitly, would he truly extend such power to his entire household?

“Young Master, are you alright?”

At the sound of Witira’s voice calling to me, I turned my head, and she was regarding me with a peculiar expression.
After a moment’s hesitation, she spoke.

“…Young Master, why do you refuse everything?”

Official positions, titles, honor—no matter how many times she observed Kale Heniatus rejecting all of it, it struck her as strange.

“Why, you ask?”

Kale grumbled with a blunt expression.

“That stuff’s a hassle. I’ve got too much to do already.”

Even after dealing with that White Star bastard, there was genuinely so much left to do.
I was already committed to farming once I retired, thanks to the promise I’d made with Team Leader Lee Soo-hyuk.

Was farming ever easy?
Kim Rok-soo had spent his entire life in the city. I was far more accustomed to serving at the Inn of Hope and Adventure on the Eastern Continent.

‘I need to study farming too.’

After going through all the trouble of establishing fields and starting cultivation, I couldn’t afford to be careless. I needed to acquire at least the fundamental knowledge.

‘Won’t the children be watching from the side as well?’

The average nine-year-olds would also watch me farm from the sidelines. But would I farm carelessly? Just scatter seeds and never look at them again?
No matter how little interest I had in the children’s education, that wasn’t it.

As an unemployed man, I would play, eat, rest, sleep, and on top of that, farm as well.
I was worried that farming would leave no time to rest, but I didn’t need any official position or title whatsoever.

Seeing me lost in deep thought, Witira spoke with a sigh.

“…Young Master, stopping the White Star is truly difficult. But you must take care of what you need to take care of.”

Hm?
I sensed something from Witira’s behavior. Her eyes held a certain look—as if she had misunderstood my words and was now gazing at me as though I were a very self-sacrificing person. I opened my mouth to change that perception.

“It’s not about the White Star. I’m talking about the future, not now.”
“The future?”
“Yes. Because I need to farm.”

Right, absolutely. At first, I would start with a small vegetable garden and plant crops that were easy to grow.

“…Farm?”
“Yeah. Once I get rid of the White Star, what else would I have to do? I’d just go to the Dark Forest and live quietly.”

I felt content just imagining it.
The villa built in Harris Village, the Jjangdol Mansion inside the Dark Forest, and Sherit and Raon’s castle. Living peacefully in those magnificent places—wasn’t that the very definition of an idle life?

“…Quietly in the Dark Forest?”
“Yeah. What do you think? Good idea, right?”

I smiled naturally at the thought of my happy future. My gaze drifted far beyond the northern sea.

‘I’ll treat the money coming in from the Eastern Continent inn like a pension and live comfortably. That’s perfect!’

My expression became peaceful.
Witira’s expression, watching me, twisted.
She couldn’t think of anything to say.

The Dark Forest.
What kind of place was it?
It was a realm where the most bizarre and formidable monsters of the Western Continent perpetually dwelled, a place where even the presence of a Dragon demanded constant vigilance.
Was that not precisely why the Heniatus Territory had erected the Great Stone Wall to separate the Dark Forest from its lands?

Moreover, the Heniatus Family had long been known as the guardians protecting the Roan Kingdom from the Dark Forest.
A world after White Star’s demise.
If, as Kale said, there were no wars between kingdoms or races, the world would become largely peaceful.
In such a world, would Prince Kale—

‘…Abandon his title and position entirely, and go to that treacherous Dark Forest to ensure it remains perpetually peaceful?’

No. That was not all.

‘Farm in that treacherous Dark Forest? Transform that land into a place of abundance, a place that would benefit the world? And do it quietly, unknown to others, without seeking wealth or renown?’

Witira felt suffocated by the thought.
Then, a soft murmur reached her ears.

“…It was real.”

At the quiet yet fervent voice, her gaze instinctively turned toward its source. Witira saw Clophe regarding Kale—who stood gazing out at the sea—with a peculiar expression.
Clophe’s hands clenched involuntarily.

‘At last!’

Now Clophe could finally understand a part of Kale Heniatus.

Until now, Clophe had been unable to discern whether Kale was foolish or extraordinarily wise.
At times he behaved with genuine emotion and stupidity, yet at other moments he was a man of cold calculation, manipulating Clophe like a puppet.

But now, Clophe grasped the fundamental reason he had failed to distinguish whether Kale was foolish or wise.

‘He is different from me.’

Kale Heniatus harbored no greed.
Though he claimed to possess great desires, the objects of those desires were not wealth, renown, or power.

An even greater ambition than that.
Clophe possessed an ambition so vast he could scarcely dare imagine it.

‘…An ambition to bring peace to the world!’

Upon hearing that he would abandon everything and farm in the Dark Forest, Clophe could discern Kale Heniatus’s magnificent ambition.

‘He chooses seclusion because he despises becoming a force that threatens the world himself!’

A world where the White Star has vanished.
In such a world, which faction would wield the greatest power? Who would lead that faction?
Who would exert the most influence across the East-West Continent?

All of it was Kale Heniatus.
Could such a shrewd man as Kale Heniatus possibly be unaware of this?

‘He must understand it with absolute clarity.’

That is why Kale Heniatus rejects all power and chooses seclusion for the sake of this world’s peace, to prevent further discord.

‘Yet should the White Star emerge again, or should a force like the Indomitable Alliance that I created arise once more—!’

Kale Heniatus would step forth into the world again.
To achieve this world’s peace—an ambition deemed absolutely impossible, a desire so immense.
This ambition was so colossal that Clophe found himself unable to describe Kale Heniatus as having ambition at all.
It transcended the very concept of ambition itself.

‘…He truly will become a legend.’

A strange fervor enveloped Clophe’s entire being. As doubts dissolved and all the pieces fell into place, a single thought consumed his mind.

‘Kale Heniatus is truly terrifying.’

Clophe Seka had also dreamed of becoming a legend. But that was for himself. Yet a man who walks a path while erasing himself—

‘That is the real deal.’

His gaze shifted from Kale to another.
He saw Choi Han, who was smiling faintly with an expression that seemed to say, ‘There’s nothing to be done about it,’ as he regarded Kale.

‘…Kale Heniatus is surrounded by companions who have withdrawn with him and will follow him to the very end of the world—exceptionally powerful companions.’

Terrifying.
Truly terrifying.
Clophe felt fear and exhilaration simultaneously.

‘I’m on Kale Heniatus’s side too.’

His lips curved upward endlessly.
And he could see another powerful figure who had submitted to Kale.

“Young Master. I sincerely hope your dreams come true.”

Witira suppressed her frustration and spoke gently with a forced smile. Kale tried to respond with a bright grin, but failed.

“I pray that crops will flourish abundantly each year in the fertile, expansive farmland that will be created in the Dark Forest according to your wishes, Young Master.”

Kale’s face crumpled.
What is this whale saying?
Expansive farmland? What nonsense!
Kale opened his mouth to protest. That was when it happened.

Pfft.
Someone’s stifled laugh echoed out.

“It’s just modest farming. Not expansive farmland.”

Choi Han spoke to Witira with a gentle smile, then turned his gaze toward Kale and asked.

“Isn’t that right, Kale?”

Kale saw Choi Han looking at him with sympathetic eyes. Those eyes were exactly like the pitying gazes his companions had given Kim Rok-soo whenever he spouted nonsense.
An uncomfortable feeling stirred within him, but Kale simply nodded in agreement.

“Right. Just modest farming.”
-Human! Are we farming? What are we growing? I’ll water it with magic! Human, Choi Han said we need peppers and beans to make gochujang and doenjang! Let’s grow those first!

The more Kale heard Raon’s excited voice, the more his expression grew gloomy. However, Witira and Clophe, unable to hear that voice, became lost in thought at Kale’s serious expression, while Choi Han struggled to suppress laughter that threatened to burst forth.

Choi Han saw it in Choi Jung-soo’s memories.
At twenty-five, Choi Jung-soo, along with Kim Rok-soo—his peer and friend of the same age—met with the Guild Master of Korea’s Largest Guild, which oversaw Seoul’s A District.
At that moment, the Guild Master extended an offer to Kim Rok-soo.

“Kim Rok-soo, wouldn’t you like to join our guild? I see tremendous talent in you. I’ll give you the best treatment.”
“I’d rather not.”
“…May I ask why?”
“I’m just going to keep working at this company until I retire.”
“What? You’re going to keep working at that company with its pittance of a salary, no prestige, nothing?”
“At least job security is guaranteed there.”
“…You’re telling me you’ll work quietly at such a difficult place until retirement?”
“Not quietly exactly, but well, something like that.”
“Hah!”

The Guild Master shook his head and muttered something like a sigh.

“…What remarkable resolve.”

Kim Rok-soo regarded the Guild Master as if he were a peculiar person.
Choi Han remembered the emotion Choi Jung-soo had felt while watching Kim Rok-soo at that moment.

‘This bastard Kim Rok-soo, doing it again. And that Guild Master will take it literally if he says he wants to retire—why is he imagining things on his own? The team leader and Kim Rok-soo are exactly alike. Sheesh.’

That was the emotion Choi Jung-soo had felt.
Now, watching Kale Heniatus, Witira, and Clophe, Choi Han understood Choi Jung-soo’s sentiment.
Tap. Tap. His hand patted Kale Heniatus’s shoulder.

“What?”

Kale Heniatus looked over with a sullen expression, and Choi Han spoke with a gentle smile.

“I’ll help with the farming.”

…Why is this guy, no—why is Choi Han like this?
Kale Heniatus opened his mouth with exasperation.

“Let’s go to Merry first.”

Soon, Kale Heniatus, Raon, and Choi Han set off toward the Land of Death, one of the Western Continent’s mysteries, escorted by the solemn expression of Witira and the fervent enthusiasm of Clophe.

* * *

Three days later, I stepped onto the teleportation circle, escorted by Rosalind’s warm wishes.

-Human! I’ll follow right behind you! See you in one minute!
“Young master, congratulations! Choi Han and Merry will be coming soon too.”
“…Yes.”

I answered listlessly as the brilliant teleportation light obscured my vision. Through it, I could hear Rosalind’s cheerful voice.

“I’m not sure if you’ll become a Duke or a Marquis, but I hope you get promoted to Duke!”

Damn it.
I closed my eyes tightly and surrendered myself to the teleportation that would carry me to the Heniatus Count Estate in the Roun Kingdom Capital.
Last night, while I was in the midst of preparing schemes against the White Star in the underground city of the Land of Death, I received a call from Count Derth.
It was about the matter I had discussed with the Crown Prince before. Count Derth spoke with a bright smile.

‘Kale, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you in the capital. ‘Can you come?’

Cale said of course he would go.

‘… ‘What if something happens to me while I’m gone?’

There shouldn’t be anything wrong.
There shouldn’t be any problems.

I made my decision as I teleported through the brilliant light.
He made his decision as he teleported away in a bright light.
Splat!

I will definitely achieve one more step closer to becoming unemployed.

* * *

“Brother.”

As the teleportation light faded, Kale Heniatus opened his eyes in a familiar place for the first time in a long while.

“Human! I’m here!”

Kale, hearing Raon’s voice in his mind while observing his surroundings, realized that the Underground Training Ground of the Heniatus Family Capital Residence, where he had stayed when he first came to the Capital, remained unchanged from two years ago until now.

“Welcome back, brother.”

Basen, who had come to greet me, was unchanged despite the long time that had passed.

“Yes, Basen. It’s been a while.”
I heard that Lily, her father, and her mother all came up. Is everyone busy?
Basen was the only one who had come to greet me. No one else was present.

As I fell into momentary distraction.

“Brother.”

My eyes met Basen’s.

“I have truly waited for you for a very long time.”

A figure with a delicate appearance yet stubborn countenance gazed at me with eyes that burned like flames.

‘What’s wrong with him?’
He thought it was a good thing that he was in an underground training room with no one except Basen.

With no one else present in the Underground Training Ground except Basen, I thought this was actually fortunate.

“Basen.”
A month after Vasen came to live in this mansion as a child, I suddenly remembered young Cale Henitus looking at me with a sad face.

A month after Basen came to live in this mansion during his childhood, he suddenly remembered the young Kale Heniatus who had looked at him with a pitiful expression.
‘How could I-’
‘You are a Heniatus. Remember this. Wherever you go, tell everyone your name is Heniatus. Do you understand? Don’t you remember Father’s words? If you’re not an idiot, do as I say. Heniatus blood flows through your veins. Tell everyone that without fail.’

‘Shut up. Do as I say. If you don’t, you can’t live in this house. Do you think the relatives, the branch families, will leave you alone? Are you going to act foolishly?’

Even when I was rampaging like a hooligan, Basen had never turned his blade against me—he had treated me like any other person. Basen knew well that this was the maximum consideration I could offer.

‘You must protect Mother. Even if it’s you….’
Basen opened his mouth as he looked at his older brother who had called him.

Basen opened his mouth as he looked at me, who had called him.

“Yes, hyung.”
A quiet underground training hall. Soon the silence was broken and a voice rang out softly.
Watching him, I slowly opened my mouth. This was the primary reason I had come to the Capital. The first step toward resolving it.

There was more than one voice.
“What if you become a lord?”

“What if you became the lord?”
Bassen and kale.

Basen and I.
“You want me to become a lord? Why?”

“Me? Become lord? Why?”

Both of their pupils trembled violently as they looked at each other.

—Huh? Neither of them wants to be lord? Then should we ask the youngest, Lily, if she wants to? If enemies come, it seems like Lily would smash them all with her greatsword! Basen, you’ll become stronger than weak humans! How dependable!

Raon’s excited voice thundered through my mind.
With the sound of the gym door opening, Cale made eye contact with the youngest child, Lily, who appeared just in time.
Clang.

Even in that instant, Raon’s voice reached me.

—Oh! Human! It’s Lily, the future powerhouse! She’s grown even stronger!
In the midst of his embarrassment, Cale asked Lily, who made eye contact with him, without realizing it.

Caught off guard, I found myself blurting out a question to Lily, whose eyes had just met mine.

“Do you want to become the lord?”

Lily’s mouth fell open in bewilderment. Apparently flustered, she didn’t even greet Basen or me, and simply muttered aloud.

“What is this?”

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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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