Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 479

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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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“This world might be drenched in blood!”

Sherit gripped her own hair with both hands.

The White Star was problematic enough, but if the Celestial-Demon War broke out, the creatures of this world would endure decades—perhaps even centuries—of anguish.
Among those suffering beings would be the children, including Raon and Kale Heniatus.

“Absolutely! Such a thing must never come to pass!”

Her blazing eyes turned toward Raon.

The small child stood frozen, his mouth agape in shock.

“Um, Sherit—”

Kale Heniatus, too, was flustered in a way unlike himself.
Sherit steeled her resolve as she gazed upon the two startled children.

‘That’s right, I must be the pillar. Whether demons or whatever else—I’ll sever every last neck—!’

Her murderous gaze shifted toward Kale Heniatus.

“Where did the Gate of the Demon Realm open? I’ll slaughter them all from the start—”
“That’s not it.”
“Kill them all—wait?”
“That’s not what’s happening, Sherit.”

Kale Heniatus shook his head vigorously, while Raon tugged at Sherit’s collar and spoke.

“Mom! I don’t think that’s it! You’re overthinking this!”
“He’s right, Sherit. Raon seems to have a point.”

The moment Sherit heard what Kale Heniatus and Raon said, she went rigid.

* * *

Sherit covered her face with both hands. Her entire face burned with embarrassment.

“…So that’s right. The Divine Realm hasn’t sent down any divine revelation.”
“Exactly!”

Raon answered, and Sherit continued with a sigh.

“…So the Gate of the Demon Realm that Kale mentioned is one of the three forbidden places on the Eastern Continent?”
“Exactly!”

Raon nodded vigorously.

“Sigh.”

Sherit sighed and gazed up at the ceiling. She recalled her own behavior from moments ago, crying out about the Heavenly Demon Tournament and making a complete spectacle of herself.

“…Everyone must have been startled because of me.”
“That’s right! We were startled!”
“Yes. We were quite taken aback.”

At the immediate responses from the Young Dragon and a human, Sherit felt her face grow even hotter with embarrassment.

“…When I was alive, there was no such sinkhole in that place, so I genuinely thought they were talking about the actual Gate of the Demon Realm.”

A colossal black hole situated at the point where the glacial region of the Northern Continent begins.
In the past, people said that those who fell into that sinkhole would plunge into a world of death, or alternatively, that they would reach the Demon Realm.
This was because the sinkhole was so vast that its depths were invisible—a chasm the size of a city.

Thus, no city or village existed in its vicinity.
And between that sinkhole and the mountain range that blocked the bitter cold of the glacial region, Dark’s Second Secret Base existed.

“It’s quite similar to the Dragon Slayer Village.”

After hearing this explanation from Kale, Sherit murmured softly. Her voice carried a note of longing.
Kale, observing her, opened his mouth.

“Since it was said to be a sinkhole that existed from the past, I assumed it was a place that had existed since ancient times or when you were alive, Sherit.”

Now that he thought about it, Kale wondered if Jjangdol or the other Ancient Powers would have explained it to him long ago if it were such a place.
After all, hadn’t the Voice of Wind and The Thief explained Wind Island, one of the three forbidden places?

“No. There was nothing like that when I was alive. It was one of the three forbidden places back then too, but the location was different, and it didn’t have that name. The old forbidden places must have disappeared. Well, they had reason to.”
“Is that so?”

She nodded at Kale’s words and opened her mouth again.

“There’s a massive sinkhole the size of a city. And it seems the White Star is doing something there?”
“Yes. And the fact that the place is called the ‘Gate of the Demon Realm’ makes it all the more unsettling.”

Sherit crossed her arms and shook her head.

“If the Demon Realm tries to exert any harmful influence on this world, the Divine Realm will absolutely send revelations to the dragons.”
“To all dragons?”
“Yes.”

Kale recalled Erhafen, who had once firmly told the Elf Healer Fendrick that it wasn’t a demonic invasion.
Kale mentioned this to Sherit.

“Erhafen was right. The White Star is a creature who has been reincarnating in this world for at least a thousand years, preparing to dominate it. If it were connected to the Demon Realm, that period would certainly be long. The Divine Realm didn’t know about it? That’s impossible.”

Sherit was just as resolute as Erhafen.

“What does it feel like when the Divine Realm sends a revelation?”
“They convey messages through dreams, or create an uncanny sensation that compels you to a specific location where the Celestial Gate or Gate of the Demon Realm would be.”

Kale committed her words to memory and asked another question.

“What exactly is the Gate of the Demon Realm?”

Sherit answered casually.

“A gate through which demons pass.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. It’s a passage through which creatures from the Demon Realm, including demons, can cross over. For such a thing to form, tremendous power from the Demon Realm must influence this world.”
“With such tremendous power, dragons and gods couldn’t possibly be unaware.”
“Exactly. Even if done secretly without the dragons knowing, the Divine Realm would detect it. To that extent.”

Sherit’s gaze met Raon’s, whose eyes sparkled with interest in this new story.

“I’m hearing this for the first time! I learn well! That’s why I listen so carefully!”

Sherit gently stroked Raon’s head, her affection for him welling up tenderly within her.

“I am magnificent!”

Raon’s wings fluttered so vigorously that even his tail began to wag.
She watched him with a satisfied gaze, then turned her attention back to Kale, her expression growing serious as she spoke.

“The Gate of the Demon Realm doesn’t open all at once. It carries immense power and quietly probes its surroundings, gradually encroaching on the space to create an enormous passage.”

Sherit explained the role of the dragon who discovered such a gate.

“When dragons receive a revelation and discover such a passage, they pool their strength together to seal or destroy the gate before it fully forms.”

When destruction proved difficult, they would seal it and seek aid from the Divine Realm or the Celestial Race. If the Demon Realm’s power hadn’t fully crossed over yet, they would destroy it outright.

“That’s why the demons despise dragons so much. They think we’re interfering with their plans.”

Sherit let out a soft laugh.

“But from our perspective, the creatures of this world are living their lives just fine. When someone suddenly tries to invade from the Demon Realm or elsewhere and take over, wouldn’t that irritate you? That’s why we cooperate with the Divine Realm and the Celestial Race to protect this place.”

Kale, who had been listening quietly, opened his mouth.

“But why must the dragons go out of their way to close the Gate of the Demon Realm?”

Sherit tilted her head to one side.

“Then who will?”
“Pardon?”
“Human! Just as Mother says, who else would do it? Objectively speaking, dragons are the strongest, so naturally dragons must do it! Who else would?”

With both dragons speaking in such a manner, Kale had nothing to say. Instead, he posed a different question.

“Why does the Divine Realm send revelations? And the Celestial Race? Couldn’t they simply come and handle it themselves?”

Even as he spoke, Kale felt something was off.
Demons, Celestial Races, the Divine Realm—it all felt remarkably surreal to him. Yet his life had already become far too surreal for him to dwell on such feelings anew.
Though to him, it was all perfectly real.

“Ah, well, that’s because the Gate of the Divine Realm is much harder to open. And the Divine Realm itself is rather… complicated to involve. Something about balance, I suppose? Besides, if either the Celestial Race or the Demon Realm were to reveal themselves in this world, it could become a pretext for those two races to wage war against each other here.”

There were many conflicting interests tangled together in this matter.

“Even a dragon with exceptionally selfish and arrogant traits cooperated on this point. Of course, I’ve only heard about it—I’ve never experienced it myself.”

Hmm.
Kale Heniatus stroked his chin thoughtfully, lost in contemplation.

Sherit observed him with a puzzled expression.

It wasn’t the true Gate of the Demon Realm, merely a sinkhole that had appeared at the entrance to the Northern Glacier with the same name.
Of course, whatever the White Star was doing there, it hadn’t actually drawn in the true Demon Realm.

Sherit was certain of that.
Yet Kale Heniatus seemed troubled by something.

“Sherit.”
“Yes?”
“Wouldn’t it be easier for the Demon Realm to come here if there were no dragons?”

What?
Sherit was momentarily at a loss for words.
But soon she nodded.

“…Yes, that’s true.”
“Hmm.”

Kale Heniatus crossed his arms.

‘Something doesn’t add up.’

He spoke again.

“The First Dragon Slayer and you were close friends, weren’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Then why did the First Dragon Slayer choose to become a Dragon Slayer despite having a friend who was a dragon?”

Choi Jung-gun and Sherit were quite close, as evidenced by their memoirs—close enough to exchange secrets with one another.
Sherit opened her mouth with a nostalgic expression as she recalled the past.

“A Dragon Slayer is, simply put, an outsider.”

In that moment, Kale thought of Choi Han.
An outsider. Within the Birth of a Hero, Choi Han had endlessly wrestled with his own identity.

“…I have heard Dragon Slayers referred to as traitors before.”
“Ah. Yes, that too.”

Sherit nodded her head and paused briefly before continuing.

“Well. Simply put, every being that lives in nature has a fixed amount of power allotted to it. The Whale Tribe has the power of the Whale Tribe. Dragons have the power of dragons. Things like that.”

Kale opened his mouth.

“Then a Dragon Slayer refers to one who transcends the power allotted to humans as humans?”

Among humans, there were countless powerful beings worthy of being called superhuman.

“No. That alone is insufficient.”

Yet not all of them became Dragon Slayers.

“The vessel must be vast.”
“The vessel?”
“You know this already. To possess multiple Ancient Powers, the vessel must expand. Dragon Slayers are those whose vessels transcend human limits—beings of immense and unyielding capacity. Generally, a larger vessel means greater strength.”

Kale thought of Choi Han once more.
Choi Han possessed a vessel that was exceptionally vast and resilient.

Then Sherit’s voice continued.

“Well. Truth be told, the name ‘Slayer’ was chosen simply because it sounded impressive.”
“…Pardon?”

What did I just hear?
You named it that way just because it looked cool?
Kale Heniatus’s expression twisted considerably in that moment.
It was an expression that could only be described as irreverent, and Sherit flinched slightly before quickly opening her mouth.

“Ahem. Neran Berow was a clever human.”

That human?
Kale’s expression twisted even further.
However, Sherit continued as if she hadn’t noticed.

“Neran Berow intended to make a human with a large capacity become a Dragon Slayer. That’s why he had the Slayer position passed down. It was his way of binding them.”

Binding them.
The moment I heard those words, something suddenly flashed through my mind.
Could it be—

“…Binding them, you say?”

I recalled the village on the cliff beneath the Castle of Light, enclosed on all sides.

The villagers who, no matter how strong they became, could never become a kingdom’s ruler or reveal their existence to the world as powerful beings.
Binding them.
Binding the strongest and most capable Dragon Slayer among them to that village.

Why?

The answer came to me simultaneously with the question.
In that moment, Sherit’s voice reached my ears.

“It was to prevent another White Star from emerging.”

Hah.
I let out a sigh.
This was not written in the memoirs.

And it was something I could never hear from the Ancient Dragon Erhafen, nor from anyone else.
Only from Lord Sherit. Only she could tell me this story.

“The Ancient White Star possessed such a vast and solid vessel that it was no burden for him to hold the Sky attribute along with all five natural attributes.”
“So Neran Berow passed down the Dragon Slayer position to prevent future individuals with such qualifications from becoming the White Star?”
“Yes. I gathered only the largest-vessel and strongest individuals across the continent to establish the village. Of course, those people are ones I’m grateful for.”

They were those who gathered with pure hearts, wanting to grow stronger to protect the continent.

“In truth, it was more of a preventative measure than restraint. It was to block any foolish notion of pursuing only pure strength and wanting to become the Ancient White Star.”

And there was also the matter of gathering strong individuals in case a new White Star ever emerged, to prevent such an occurrence.
Sherit wore a bitter smile.

“Once you become a Dragon Slayer, you face restraint from dragons.”

The strongest existence on land kept the Slayer in check.
Naturally, that Dragon Slayer’s freedom of movement became restricted.

“And as a Lord, I believed that dragons needed an equal existence. One that would restrain and monitor each other.”

Furthermore, a Dragon Slayer was necessary to prevent certain dragons who believed only they were strong from causing harm to the world.

“So roughly a thousand years ago, the Dragon Slayers and dragons of that era would battle and restrain each other, living as if they were both friends and rivals.”

They got along well.
Truly.
Because they were the only ones who could understand each other.

Sherit recalled those peaceful times. Then, Kale Heniatus’s cold voice reached her ears.

“Then there would have been no reason for them to kill each other.”

At the same time, Raon cried out.

“That’s strange! Grandpa Gold Dragon said Dragon Slayers are beings who grow by devouring dragons!”

Raon recalled something Erhafen had said before.

‘Those bastards grow by devouring dragons.’
‘Especially young dragons—you need to be careful. Their bodies aren’t fully developed and they can’t breathe fire yet. You’re lucky to have someone unfortunate next to you, so you can grow at your leisure.’

Sherit furrowed her brow slightly as she answered him.

“Of course, there were occasionally Dragons and Dragon Slayers who fought each other to the death. But for the most part, the balance has been well maintained.”

In that moment, she had to meet Kale’s cold gaze.

“Lady Sherit. From what I know, the White Star has killed six Dragons.”

Sherit’s eyes widened in an instant. Watching her reaction, Kale recalled the White Star.

He had despised Dragons intensely.
But had he killed Dragons solely for that reason?

And he had tried to make Kale into a Dragon Slayer.
Was that all?
The fake Dragon Slayer Sirem and the Dragon Hybrid existed as failures as well.

“Why?”

Kale muttered softly.

“Why has he been killing Dragons all this time?”

To create a fake Dragon—a Chimera Dragon Hybrid? Was that all?

Surely the White Star had mentioned the Gate of the Demon Realm, saying he would ask ‘them’ about it.
Was the Gate of the Demon Realm merely a sinkhole?

He spoke his thoughts aloud while looking at Sherit and Raon.

“…Something doesn’t add up.”

Kale began voicing one by one the things he had found strange all along.

First.

“Why does the Heavenly attribute require dead mana?”

How could the White Star, a living human, so readily absorb dead mana?
And second.

“Does the White Star despise the Dragon Slayer position, yet seek to create another Dragon Slayer?”

The Dragon Slayer position seemed absolutely essential to the White Star—as a subordinate he could control and manipulate.
And he had slain dragons.

Sherit’s expression grew increasingly rigid.
With each word from Kale, new thoughts crystallized in her mind.

Even as the moment unfolded, Kale continued.

“Third. Why does the White Star conceal the Gate of the Demon Realm—known merely as a sinkhole—and speak as though he receives power from elsewhere?”

Despite Kale’s measured tone, the atmosphere in the Reception Room grew distinctly colder.
Raon, who had been silent, opened his mouth.

“Only a Dragon Slayer can stand against dragons!”

Kale followed, speaking as though addressing himself, laying bare only the facts.

“Demons despise dragons. Should all dragons vanish, demons would find this realm far easier to invade.”

As Sherit heard his words, a vast, immense shadow seemed to fall across her mind.

‘Surely not—’

Her pupils trembled.

The Ancient White Star. The entity that had toppled an entire era.
And now, another White Star bearing that same name in the present age.

Sherit gazed at Kale, her heart seeming to race.

“Demons excel at wielding dead mana, and they delight in injecting dead mana into the living hearts of humans.”

Having spoken the keywords swirling in his mind, Kale posed his final question.

“Sherit. The Sky attribute. Could that truly be an Ancient Power of the Sky attribute?”

Sherit finally voiced what had been weighing on her mind.

“…It seems the White Star and the Demon Realm might be connected.”

Kale Heniatus could not determine whether the Demon Realm had actually set foot in this world or not.
After all, the Gate of the Demon Realm could not deceive the Divine Realm or the Dragon’s eyes.
Moreover, whether the White Star and the Demon Realm had made a contract or a deal remained unknown.

Yet Kale voiced the thought that had formed in his mind.

“A power that fights by absorbing dead mana.”

The Sky attribute Ancient Power. That.

“If the Demon Realm’s power were involved, it would make perfect sense, would it not?”

Sherit’s closed lips parted.

“I need to meet the World Tree immediately.”
“I was thinking the same thing.”

The situation had shifted—the very foundation upon which they had been assessing it had changed.

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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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