Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 608

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

“Are all my thoughts laid bare?”
-Yeah. I saw everything.

Kale Heniatus closed his eyes briefly at the response from Kim Rok-soo, the original owner of this body.
Then Kim Rok-soo added something more.

-Your past too. All of it. I saw it all.

Kale Heniatus felt Kim Rok-soo’s voice trembling faintly.
Twenty years old.
This Kim Rok-soo was still young and had not yet experienced much.
Yet he had witnessed in Kale Heniatus’s memories the deaths of countless people including Lee Soo-hyuk, and beyond that—the Team Leader Kim Rok-soo who continued living despite it all, and the life of Kale Heniatus that followed.

No matter how emotionless and cold one might be, such memories were far too cruel for a twenty-year-old Kim Rok-soo to bear.

-…You’ve suffered so much.

And this was also what Kim Rok-soo thought as he looked upon Kale Heniatus.

“We need to stop suffering. You, me.”

Everyone else too.
It was Kale Heniatus’s honest sentiment.

In that moment, Choi Jung-soo and Je Ha-jeong beside Kale Heniatus heard his murmured words and their movements halted briefly.
They did not understand why he spoke such words.
Yet hearing such words uttered on this battlefield stirred their hearts with aching emotion.

“Commander—”

Je Ha-jeong called out to Kale Heniatus without thinking.
She could not help but call to him in the face of such a pitiful sight.

But in that moment, Jjangdol’s voice rang out.

-Kale.

A glimmer of light flickered across Kale’s eyes.

The pain had diminished.
It was half of what it had been before.

-The other body over there has its eyes closed, so I can’t see, but the attacks directed at the black sphere surrounding you have stopped.
-Right. The impact being transmitted through the black sphere to your body is gone now!

Destructive Fire added excitedly.
In that moment, Kale understood.

The attacks on the black sphere hadn’t stopped.

‘…Raon!’

Surely Raon’s shield was protecting the black sphere.
And my comrades must be blocking the attacks directed at me inside the black sphere.

They’re doing well.
My comrades are doing exactly as they should.

Vitality flickered across Kale’s eyes.
Approximately one hour and thirty minutes had passed since the current battle began.
If that was the case, dawn would arrive there soon.

“Heh.”

A short laugh escaped from Kale’s lips.
That was when it happened.

-You’re at your limit.

The voice of the Glutton Goddess reached him.
Kale nodded.
Right.
I’m at my limit.

-You can’t pass out.

Separate from the White Star’s assault, if I used more of the Ancient Powers, this body of Kim Rok-soo’s would surely collapse and lose consciousness.
Kale slowly lifted his head.

“You… you’re awake?”

Choi Jung-soo and Je Ha-jeong rushed to support Kale.
Before Kale’s eyes as he raised his head, the battlefield shone brightly with light created by the light abilities of several people.
This space, bright despite the night.

“…Hah.”

Kale breathed slowly and heavily.
Though halved, still within excruciating pain.

“Everyone’s doing well.”

I thought to myself.

My comrades here were also doing well.

-Hey. You can’t die.

The voice of Kim Rok-soo here reached me.
As he said, I couldn’t die.

So let me rest just a little for now.

Everyone mustn’t die.
I mustn’t die either.
I will definitely survive.

I’ve endured this life in order to survive.

I’ll survive and build a small farm, and live a life of leisure.
I’ll achieve all the dreams I’ve wished for.

-Yeah. Let’s rest and talk for a bit.

At the moment the corners of Kale’s mouth lifted at the trembling voice of young Kim Rok-soo.

Crunch, crunch, crunch—.
The trees ceased their movement.

“Hmm!”
“Ah.”

And the people immediately grasped the situation.
In an instant, every head turned toward the watchtower atop the tree.
There, supported by two attendants, stood the commander surveying the battlefield below.

Someone spoke.

“Do not cease your attacks!”

The trees had stopped.
That order meant there was no longer anything to restrain the Yellow-Haired Monster.

“Krraaaagh!”

Crack, crackle.
The Yellow-Haired Monster writhed violently, unleashing a savage cry.
Yet no one complained that the trees no longer held the creature at bay.

“Do not waste the opportunity the commander has created!”
“Attack more before the trees shatter!”

The people now moved with purpose, understanding their roles without needing further orders from Kale.
This was not limited to those engaged in direct combat.

Upon the City Wall, in a spacious area set aside on one side, stood Lee Sung-won.
He was currently recording with his ability.

“Commander Kim Rok-soo’s assault has ceased. However, the trees he cultivated remain intact, and before they shatter, the attack squad launches their offensive based on this advantage.”

Every detail of the battlefield was captured through his voice.
Kim Rok-soo had said:

‘It all must be preserved. For the future.’

Lee Sung-won had no strength left to fight, yet he fought.
He believed that making this recording was a form of fighting.

He shifted his gaze to the side.
Kim Min-jun, who possessed the ability to transmit information, had spread out dozens of radios and was relaying information to various positions.

“Group 7! Group 5 reports they’re initiating close-range combat. Provide rear support!”
-Understood.
“Group 2. Long-range attacks will commence from the three o’clock direction shortly. Keep that in mind.”
-Roger.

Meanwhile, Lee Sung-won’s older sister, Lee Jin-ju, took the documents Kim Min-jun had handed her and rushed into the city.

“Min-jun, I just need to tell them all of this, right?”
“Yes. Please keep the people from panicking.”
“Got it!”

Using her amplification ability, she would relay the updates to those sheltering inside and ease their anxieties.
Everyone was fighting.
Then Lee Sung-won noticed an Ability User speaking to Joo Ho-sik.

“Joo Ho-sik, aren’t you participating in the battle?”

It was a question from someone who had witnessed Joo Ho-sik’s power when they defeated the Blue-Haired Monster previously.
Lee Sung-won could see Joo Ho-sik’s stern expression.
He shook his head, arms crossed.

“I want to fight too, but I can’t go to the battlefield.”

Joo Ho-sik remained beside Grandmother Kim, Kang the Healer, and Jang Man-su.

“With your ability, you could significantly strengthen our attacks, couldn’t you?”

Attack power enhancement through faith.
Such strength would prove quite valuable on this battlefield.

Joo Ho-sik understood this as well.

But today, that wasn’t possible.

“My faith will be devoted to healing today.”

At that moment, a weary voice crackled through Kim Min-jun’s radio, reaching the gathering of healing-type ability users.

-Moving the first batch of wounded.

Everyone’s attention turned toward the radio.
It was Kim Rok-soo’s voice.

-Everyone’s survival is the primary objective.

His voice emanated not only from Kim Min-jun’s radio but from the radios of every squad leader across all units.

-Move the injured comrades to safety.

The survival of the person beside me.
There was no battle harder than that.
Kim Min-jun, who understood this well, listened quietly before opening his mouth.

“Commander—”

But when he couldn’t find the words to continue, Grandmother Kim beside him spoke bluntly.

“Rok-soo. We need to bring you in first.”

Kale brought the radio to his lips, responding to the worry-laden voice coming through it.

“I’m fine.”
-…sigh.

At my words, Grandmother Kim’s sigh came through the radio.

-You need treatment.

When Grandmother urged once more, Kale answered immediately.

“It’s pointless.”

Truly, Kale was in a state where the healing abilities of others were of little use.

The attacks being inflicted on Kale Heniatus’s body over there, combined with the backlash from using the Ancient Powers.
There was simply no way to resolve all of it from this side.
At best, it would only restore some fatigue.

‘So rather than use it on me, it’s more beneficial to use it on the other wounded.’

However, Kale’s words didn’t sound that way to the others.

-It’s pointless.

The moment those words came through the radio, Kang the Healer cried out without thinking.

“What do you mean pointless! There’s no illness that can’t be healed—you have to believe that!”
“That’s right. You must believe.”

As Joo Ho-sik quietly added his words, wounded soldiers were brought in from the front assault unit from various locations.
When the first group of wounded arrived, supported by several comrades.

-Please heal the others before me.

The commander’s voice reached everyone.

-I’m fine.

For a moment, silence descended upon the City Wall.

-Then I’ll end the transmission.

And Kale’s radio communication cut off.
After a brief few seconds of silence, a rough voice came through.

“Damn it all.”

It was Joo Ho-sik.
The man who always calmly proclaimed his faith, who seemed somehow serene, now vented his rage with a composed expression.

“Let’s see how far we can push this—until we collapse.”

Joo Ho-sik pointed to the wounded.

“Everyone, lie down.”

Kang the Healer rolled up his sleeves, and Grandmother Kim led the other healers toward the wounded.
Joo Ho-sik spoke to the injured.

“You will all recover. You will all be fine. Do you understand?”

The wounded fell silent under Joo Ho-sik’s piercing gaze. Regardless, he turned to address the two elderly healers.

“Grandmother, Grandfather—hold onto that faith. No, everyone here must hold onto that faith.”

The belief that all the wounded would recover.
The conviction that everyone would survive.

Joo Ho-sik carelessly unbuttoned the white jacket he wore and tossed it into the corner.

“Because then my faith will wield tremendous power.”

An aura bloomed from his scarred body.
He clasped his hands together and cried out.

“I believe!”

He believed.
That all of them would survive.
The reason was simple.
It was not because he trusted Grandmother Kim’s or Kang the Healer’s abilities.

Kim Rok-soo.
That commander’s actions and words.
The earnest heart contained within them.
That alone had become his most steadfast conviction and faith.

And though Joo Ho-sik did not yet realize it, that faith was as unwavering and intense as any truth he had ever believed in.
Like the aura surging ever more powerfully from his body, his strength was amplifying.
His ability erupted with greater force than at any moment before.

And this phenomenon was not his alone.

Just as Lee Soo-hyuk had grown to the point of cutting through sound itself.
Just as Joo Ho-sik’s conviction had become more resolute than ever.
Just as Kim Min-jun continued to push against his limits, crafting more radios in this very moment, refusing to accept defeat.
Just as Grandmother Kim, Kang the Healer, and others poured their healing abilities into everyone with desperate urgency.

Throughout the battlefield, people’s abilities trembled and surged as they collided with their limits, threatening to explode.

Thud.
In that moment, the hand gripping the radio fell limply to the ground.
Choi Jung-soo was startled and asked carefully, yet urgently.

“Are you really okay?”

Instead of answering, he heard Kale’s final murmur.

“…This should be enough.”

At the weak voice, Choi Jung-soo opened his mouth with a face on the verge of tears.

“Yes! This is enough!”

Thanks to Kim Rok-soo holding the monster in place, I had severed its eyes and fangs.
At last, an effective blow had landed, and the atmosphere of the battlefield shifted.

Though the Tree no longer moved, the people fought desperately to seize the opportunity their commander had created.

Yet it could not be viewed as entirely favorable.
The moment the Tree stopped.

Crack! Snap!
“Krraaahhh—!”

The Yellow-Haired Monster thrashed with even greater violence, shattering tree roots and branches in its wake.
It was a display so fierce that none dared approach.

Choi Jung-soo’s face contorted at the sight, but then he witnessed another scene and his grimace softened.

He was smiling.
He could see Kale smiling.

“…They will grow from this point forward.”
“What?”

I observed the shifted atmosphere among my people and thought to myself.

This was enough. This was sufficient.
Now, finally, the gears were beginning to turn, one after another.

“If the hunter is weaker than the prey.”

Countless hunters were awakening.

“Then one need only strengthen the hunters.”

The unranked monsters that grew ever stronger.
How had humanity ultimately survived them and built civilization?
It was because they had grown through that very crisis.

Humans learn, strive, and grow.
And they survive.
And then, at last.
They unite their strength and hunt the monsters.

“By the time morning arrives.”

Despite the brutal battlefield around me, I took in the brightly lit surroundings—strange for the dead of night.

Once Kale Heniatus and his companions safely made it through their day.
Then this place’s morning.

“The hunters’ counterattack will begin.”

* * *

-Crown Prince, are you alright?
“Ugh!”

Alberu tightened his grip on the white spear, Tae-rang, in his hand.
His palm tingled with the strain.
Raon’s voice reached him once more.

-Your Highness! Can we proceed with Phase 2 now?

And dawn had arrived at this place.

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