Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 475

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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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Alberu immediately sat down on the sofa across from Kale Heniatus and opened his mouth.

“Didn’t you say the probability of the White Star coming to Roan was nearly zero?”

Of course, Alberu had already prepared for the situation where the White Star might come and was in the midst of establishing additional defensive measures.
However, what he wanted to ask now was not whether the White Star would come or not.

“Kale Heniatus. What on earth happened?”

The massive explosion that had occurred in the desert.
And Kale’s group, who despite their disheveled appearance, now occupied his bedroom looking perfectly fine.
Finally, the disappeared White Star.
He was curious about the truth behind all of it.

“Well, you see…”

Kale wondered how to explain this situation. However, since he had to provide an explanation to Alberu, he scratched his head and began to speak.

“First, I’ll tell you exactly what happened.”

Despite his perplexed demeanor, his tone was resolute, and Alberu nodded with a stern expression.
At the same time, he observed the group.

Tasha and the other Dark Elves were nowhere to be seen. Judging from Kale’s composed attitude, they didn’t seem to be injured—they appeared to have gone elsewhere.

‘Choi Han looks fine, Vicross looks fine, the children and the Necromancer all seem well.’

Everyone appeared to be in good condition.

‘But why do they all have such strange expressions?’

Yet the expressions on everyone’s faces were uniformly odd.
It was a peculiar expression difficult to describe—showing neither the pain of defeat nor the joy of victory. Only the red Cat Tribe child wagged his tail while munching on cookies.

—Your Highness, this is delicious!

Though invisible, the great and adorable Dragon seemed acceptable as well.
Alberu studied Kale Heniatus, sensing the peculiar atmosphere in the room.

“Your Highness.”
“…Yes.”

Kale Heniatus’s unusually solemn demeanor made Alberu tense as well.

“Speak freely.”
“…My original plan followed a similar direction to the operation I mentioned before. It was to make the White Star mistake the ‘fake Underground City’ created by the Dark Elves for a place with the power of earth.”

Kale Heniatus had intended to lure the White Star to the fake Underground City and orchestrate a scene where he would seize the power of earth before him.

Though I had already obtained the power of earth in the Roan Kingdom, this method was chosen because staging such a scene in the desert would prevent the White Star from invading the Northwestern Region of Roun Kingdom to search for the power of earth.

Of course, that was not all.

“Simultaneously, I intended to inflict a certain degree of damage upon the White Star and his faction, even if it meant collapsing the Underground Cavern.”

This was already something Alberu knew.

“And then?”

He asked Kale Heniatus, and soon received his answer.

“…I failed.”

At Kale Heniatus’s words spoken with a dejected expression, Alberu fell silent for several seconds before opening his mouth.

“It’s fine. You can’t always succeed.”

Alberu slightly furrowed his brows at the sight of Kale Heniatus remaining silent even to his words. Kale Heniatus dragged both hands across his face.
This was the first time Alberu had seen Kale Heniatus like this. The man who was always confident or carefree displaying such a state was truly unpleasant to witness.

“What you’ve accomplished thus far is already extraordinary enough. And all that matters is that you returned alive. Don’t you remember what I said? If things seem impossible, return to the Roan Kingdom.”
“…I remember.”

Kale Heniatus answered with a serious expression that he remembered, then pressed his lips firmly shut once more.
Alberu suddenly realized that this fellow had only recently come of age.

‘A man who’s always succeeded—no wonder he’s frustrated and angry at this failure.’

Only now did he realize that the strange atmosphere in the room stemmed from everyone watching Kale Heniatus’s reaction.
Then Alberu suddenly voiced a thought that had occurred to him.

“But according to what I’ve heard, a corpse was discovered in the desert.”
“Not on our side, sir. It was the White Star Faction.”
“Is that so? Then it’s not a complete failure.”

Alberu spoke with exaggerated emphasis to console Kale Heniatus, who looked grave.

“If the White Star Faction suffered casualties, then you’ve damaged them according to your plan, haven’t you? That alone should be enough.”
“That’s not the problem.”

Hm?
Alberu stopped his consolation at Kale Heniatus’s firm shake of the head.

Was there another issue?

“Your Highness.”
“Yes. Don’t be so formal. Speak freely. Call me brother.”

He spoke with genuine warmth.
But Kale Heniatus proceeded as if he hadn’t heard a single word of that kindness.
It was then that Alberu should have realized the strange atmosphere in this room wasn’t caused by the situation he’d imagined.

“I didn’t deceive the White Star at all.”
“What? What do you mean?”
“Didn’t I tell you earlier that I had an original plan?”
“You did.”

No matter how much Kale Heniatus reconsidered it, the encounter with the White Star he’d just experienced made no sense.

“The thing is, the White Star saw through the Underground City being ‘fake’ immediately.”

Alberu’s expression hardened.

“…That means your entire plan became useless, doesn’t it?”
“Exactly. Because of that, the White Star now knows there’s no power he was seeking in the Land of Death, and he’ll come to the Northwestern Region of Roan Kingdom as his final lead.”

Ah.
Only then did Alberu understand the situation.

“So that’s why you said the White Star would soon invade the Roan Kingdom.”
“Yes, that’s correct. However…”
“Go on.”

There was more to say?
Alberu wanted to immediately devise more detailed defensive plans against the White Star’s invasion, but he had to hear what Kale Heniatus had to say first.
He waited with grave anticipation for Kale’s next words. Soon, Kale opened his mouth.

“But I was deceived as well.”

Hm?

“…What do you mean by that?”

A question mark appeared on Alberu’s face.

“No, Your Highness. To be precise, it wasn’t that I deceived anyone.”

Even now, thinking about it left Kale Heniatus exasperated.

“That White Star fool deceived himself without doing anything on my part.”
“Huh?”
“I didn’t do anything, you see?”
“…What are you talking about?”

Alberu’s face grew increasingly contorted at this incomprehensible explanation.

“So according to what you’re saying, you had no intention of deceiving anyone and took no deceptive action, yet the White Star deceived himself on his own?”
“Exactly. Precisely correct. As expected of the brilliant Star of Roan.”
“Cut the flattery.”

Alberu’s irritation was beginning to mount.

“What is it? What did the White Star deceive himself about?”

The moment he spoke those words, he felt the atmosphere in the room shift once more into something strange.
Kale Heniatus, Choi Han, and Vicross were naturally affected, as were the cat-human On and the usually cheerful Hong, all wearing quite discomfited expressions.

-Crown Prince, the White Star seems to have lost his mind.

Even the cute Dragon had uttered harsh words.

-But Crown Prince! Why do your lips twitch every time I speak to you?

Ahem.
Alberu was a cute Dragon, but also a great one, so he quickly composed his expression.
However, that composure soon crumbled.

“Your Majesty, regarding the White Star. I have been pursuing him for quite a long time—several hundred years, in fact—possessing various people one after another. Now that all my preparations are complete, I thought to finally reveal myself before him and attempt to stop him.”

Blink, blink.
Alberu’s long eyelashes fluttered twice.
Then his mouth opened.

“What nonsense is this?”

For a moment, the words Kale had spoken failed to properly register in his mind. He stammered out what he had heard.

“So you’re saying the White Star knows that you’ve been alive for hundreds of years through possession, and that you’re trying to kill him, something like that?”
“Yes. He seemed to have reached that conclusion all on his own.”

Sigh!
Alberu let out an exasperated breath.

“What kind of ridiculous fool—”

He stopped himself from uttering words directed at the White Star and clamped his mouth shut. Only then did Alberu grasp the true nature of the discomfited expressions worn by Choi Han, Vicross, On, and Hong.
Alberu’s own expression became similar.
He looked Kale up and down before opening his mouth. His tone was distinctly unenthusiastic.

“…You… don’t really look like someone who’s been possessing bodies for several hundred years…”

You? The White Star really made such a foolish mistake just by looking at you?
Alberu’s expression conveyed exactly that sentiment.

Kale found himself in a foul mood the moment he saw that expression.

‘What’s wrong with me?’

He couldn’t fathom why the White Star had harbored such a misconception, but facing that reaction now stirred something bitter within him.
Yet he had to acknowledge what deserved acknowledgment. To avoid such misconceptions like the White Star did, one needed the clarity to examine oneself dispassionately.
Kale spoke with calculated composure.

“That’s right. I suppose I just look like an idle layabout to you.”

Though that wasn’t quite accurate.
Alberu swallowed the rebuttal that threatened to burst forth. To anyone’s eyes, Kale was clearly no idle layabout, yet here he was, constantly harping on about being unemployed. It was becoming rather pitiful to witness.

‘I’ll have to make him experience unemployment later.’

Out of sheer pity, it seemed only right to let him taste the sweetness of idleness at least once.
Alberu reaffirmed his resolve regarding his pitiful adoptive brother’s dream and opened his mouth.

“…You’re not, are you?”

He asked on the off chance.

‘If I’m being honest, the White Star’s misconception does hold some merit.’

The Achievements Kale had accomplished were far too monumental to dismiss as mere coincidence. Yet Alberu knew facets of Kale that the White Star did not.

‘Would someone who had been possessing bodies for hundreds of years to stop the White Star truly keep precious people close to him?’

The circle of people around Kale grew ever larger with each passing day.
And Kale Heniatus was the sort who would unhesitatingly stake his own life to protect them.

For someone who had spent centuries charging forward with a single goal—the annihilation of the White Star—Kale displayed a tenderness and warmth that seemed incongruous, struggling earnestly to make his present life as peaceful as possible.

Was he not the sort who clung desperately to wealth for the sake of his retirement dream of unemployment?

‘And what does it matter if he’s a possessor?’

To be honest, Alberu Crossman cared about Kale Heniatus as he was now—the Kale Heniatus from two years ago, whom he barely knew and who was infamous as a debauchee, held little interest for him.
If possession were true, it would be a great sorrow for House Heniatus, but it mattered little to Alberu.
Cold as it might seem, that was Alberu’s honest heart.

Alberu waited quietly for Kale’s response.

“Your Highness.”
“Yes.”

Kale opened his mouth to respond to Alberu’s unspoken question—’It’s not you, is it?’

“…Surely you don’t believe that absurd delusion of the White Star’s, do you?”

Are you also falling for such nonsensical delusions, Your Highness?
Kale’s eyes spoke those words, and his irreverent, crooked gaze made Alberu’s expression crumple.

“No. Not at all.”
“I thought so.”

Kale flashed a sly smile.
Yet his true thoughts remained calm, carefully observing his surroundings.

‘There’s no need to know all the truth.’

The White Star was wrong about everything, but they had guessed correctly about one thing—the ‘possessed one’—yet Kale had no intention of revealing that single truth to anyone except Raon and Choi Han.

‘Truth isn’t always a good thing, after all.’

Kale’s gaze turned toward the Dragon Hybrid sitting far off in the corner of the room. But soon he had to look away.

“So what do you plan to do going forward?”

Alberu watched as Kale, without answering his question, carefully pulled out several communication orbs.

“These are communication orbs that Erhafen just sent me.”

Erhafen, uncertain of what might happen, chose to remain in Dubori Territory rather than come to the Royal Palace, and had magically transmitted the communication orbs and video storage orbs that Merry’s skeletal monsters had brought to Kale.

“Based on the contents of this communication crystal, it appears the White Star has returned to the Eastern Continent.”
“Well, that’s a relief at least. It means he’s not coming directly to Roan.”
“That’s true. However…”
“Another ‘however’?”

As Alberu’s face crumpled once more, I checked the closed bedroom door and asked Raon to activate the recording crystal.

“Let’s see it first.”

Whirrrr—
With a soft hum, an image materialized above the storage device, and the conversation between the White Star and Sayehr unfolded before Alberu’s eyes.

-…I should visit the Gate of the Demon Realm.
-…The one they prepared over there…
-The one who received power from another world…

Amid the cacophony of the collapsing Underground City, the conversation between the White Star and Sayehr continued, and with each word, Alberu’s expression hardened further.

-…I need to identify Kale Heniatus more urgently than I need to worry about this meager amount of dead mana smoke.

When the White Star’s words finally ended and silence descended upon the screen, Alberu stared at me with a rigid expression.

“…Kale Heniatus, why did they mention the Gate of the Demon Realm, and what is this ‘over there’ they speak of?”

The corners of my mouth lifted.
As expected of an intelligent person—he grasped the critical point immediately.

“Your Highness, I require records regarding the Gate of the Demon Realm. Particularly ancient ones. And currently, several Dark Elves have gone north.”
“…North?”
“Yes. The oldest living sage in existence resides there.”

The oldest living sage.
That was the World Tree.

I had been meaning to meet the World Tree anyway.
Before I went myself, I had asked Tasha to go first to the World Tree Elf Village and relay my message to the World Tree.
Even if Dark Elves and Elves didn’t get along particularly well, they would treat her kindly since she came from me.

Alberu swallowed hard, committing my words to memory.

‘Over there.’

The word “over there”—how the White Star had expressed it when mentioning the Gate of the Demon Realm.
That phrase kept forcing unwanted imaginings upon me.

‘…Surely not?’

Then, I heard Kale Heniatus’s voice.

“Your Majesty.”
“What is it?”
“Does the Crossman Royal Family possess ancient records? Or perhaps records concerning the founding of the Crossman Royal Family?”
“…Why would you search for such a thing?”
“Your Majesty.”

In the Roan Kingdom, there were only three places where stone served as a symbol.
Among the noble families, there were the Heniatus Family and the Sten Family.

And the final place was ‘Roun’.
The kingdom itself.

Marble and granite.
A radiant sun rising between two cliffs.

The emblem depicted on the banner that still fluttered at the highest point of the Royal Palace.
It was the symbol of the Crossman Royal Family and of Roun itself.

The Crossman Royal Family, said to have received the protection of the Sun God.
Could that too be merely an unbelievable legend?

Kale Heniatus spoke to me without emotion.

“I believe it will be necessary, Your Majesty.”

Tap. Tap. Tap.
I drummed my index finger against the armrest of the sofa for a long while.
Tap!
Finally, my index finger stilled, and my lips parted.

“I’ve prepared all the materials you’ll need.”
“Thank you.”

I rose from my seat immediately upon hearing that response.

“I don’t know where the White Star is, but since they said they need to investigate and learn something from ‘that side,’ they won’t come to the Roan Kingdom right away.”
“Right.”

Alberu also stood up from his seat, following my lead.
I continued my report while observing him.

“The Mercenary King, who has returned to the Western Continent, will send scouts near the White Star’s Second Secret Base. They’ll observe the White Star’s movements and the base’s activities as thoroughly as possible, and I’ll report any changes to Roan immediately.”
“Understood.”
“And if the White Star invades the Roan Kingdom, please contact me right away. I’ll come.”

Alberu gazed at me silently as I spoke, then opened his mouth.

“Got it. Seems like you have a lot of places to go?”

I lifted the corners of my mouth into a smile.

“Yes. Quite a few.”
“Go on then. I’ll have the materials ready quickly, so come back soon.”
“Yes.”

Soon, my companions gathered around me after preparing themselves.
Raon approached and asked.

“Human! Where are we going?”
“Are we going to where Aunt Tasha is? To meet the Sage?”

Alberu followed with a question, and I turned my head.
Our eyes met—the Dragon Hybrid’s and mine.

“There’s another Sage besides the one in the North.”

One who lived through the end of the Ancient Age and the beginning of the era that followed.
The Dragon Lord Sherit.

“I’m going to meet that person.”

The Dragon Hybrid stared at Kale Heniatus with trembling eyes. Kale spoke without emotion.

“Raon. Let’s go to your Black Castle.”
“Oh! You mean our home?”

The Black Castle situated within the Dark Forest.

“Great! Let’s go quickly!”

Kale Heniatus gazed at the Dragon Hybrid, whose complexion suggested death could come at any moment, then closed his eyes.
Soon, accompanied by brilliant light, his body was transported toward the Dark Forest.

“Welcome.”

When he opened his eyes, Lord Sherit stood before him in the hall of the Black Castle, her smile radiant.

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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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