Trash of the Count’s Family - Chapter 75

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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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“The Jungle?”

Choi Han questioned the unexpected word, but Kale didn’t answer and simply moved forward. He walked across Hoik Village.

Hoik Village was quiet, save for the gravestones scattered here and there.

“Young Master, an umbrella.”

A light drizzle fell. The Rainforest—a forest where rain fell more often than not. I accepted the umbrella from my butler and headed toward the edge of the small village. Hans and a few others followed behind me.
A few members of the group, led by Hans, followed behind.

Here it is.

The Path of No Return. Its only entrance appeared at the edge of the Village. Whether because of the drizzle and overcast sky, the path leading into the Forest looked dark and gloomy.

A stone monument engraved with the words “A Path of No Return” stood at the entrance.

“Hmm.”

But I kept my gaze on the scene before the monument.
But Kale Heniatus kept his gaze fixed on the landscape before the monument.

I met the eyes of an elderly man among them. His gaze was hollow.
Kale Heniatus’s eyes met those of an elderly man among them. The old man’s eyes were hollow.

“…don’t go.”

The Elderly Man spoke thus to Kale Heniatus and turned his body away from the gravestone he had been leaning against, gazing endlessly toward the Forest. Kale Heniatus quietly watched him.

“Lord Kale.”

Rosalind approached and called out to Kale Heniatus. She gazed with sorrowful eyes not only at the Elderly Man but also at the people standing guard in front of the entrance as if in prayer. At that moment, Kale Heniatus stepped forward.

“Elderly Man, be careful not to catch a cold in this rain.”

Kale left an umbrella next to the Elderly Man, who was getting rained on without a raincoat, and then beckoned to Hans with his finger.

“Master Kale?”
“Take an umbrella.”
“What about me?”
“Share with Vicross.”

Vicross and Hans’s eyes met. Vicross’s gaze darkened. Hans pressed his lips together and offered the umbrella to me, but I had no need for it.

“Let’s share one.”

Rosalind’s umbrella stretched over my head.

“Thank you. Let’s go.”

I offered my thanks without emotion and turned from the entrance. The group followed behind me, and the villagers at the entrance watched us depart before turning their gaze back toward the forest.

“Hans.”
“Yes, Master Kale.”
“Find us an inn. There are many inns here, but there probably aren’t any good ones, so just get whatever’s available.”

Despite its small size, Hoik Village had an abundance of inns. And the inns in Hoik Village were as shabby as they were cheap. Those who came seeking their families wouldn’t have much coin to spare.

“Why do so many people venture into that rainforest?”

As soon as we entered the inn Hans had chosen, Choi Han posed the question, and I settled into a seat in the first-floor dining area to answer.

“They enter seeking hope.”
“Hope?”
“There’s a legend about The Path of No Return.”

Despite its notorious reputation, one or two people still ventured into that rainforest. Even when the Elderly Man tried to stop them, it made no difference.

“A Dragon lives on The Path of No Return.”

-What nonsense, human? There’s no Dragon here! The only Dragon anywhere near you is me!

Raon, who had been quietly invisible, cried out indignantly.
I know. I know there’s no Dragon here. I’ve read this book.

“That Dragon grants a wish to any human who finds its lair. Whether it’s becoming wealthy, curing an incurable disease, or bringing happiness to someone—it grants anything.”

—A Dragon cannot do this. Dragons are great and powerful, but they are not gods! What nonsense is this!

Raon’s complaint was justified. Yet legends had a way of stirring the hearts of desperate people.

“That legend is drawing people in, isn’t it?”

I could see Choi Han’s face contort in a rare display of displeasure. He must have found it distasteful. His gentle nature made the sight of the Elderly Man and this village’s condition weigh heavily upon him.

“Then wouldn’t it be easier to just clear this entire forest?”

So he uttered something brutal without hesitation. I pretended not to hear it.
Of course, fire would spread through this forest. That’s why by the end of Volume 4, the Five Mysteries of the Western Continent become the Four Mysteries.

“If we just set it ablaze, everything would burn away. Wouldn’t that work?”

My voice reached Choi Han as he grew increasingly radical.

“We just need to expose the legend as false. Then there’s no reason for anyone to enter it.”

At that moment, Vicross entered the Inn with a sigh.

“We’ve arrived.”

Several people appeared behind him.

“Young Master! Hilsman has arrived!”
“Young Master, we’re here!”

The Wolf Tribe children and Hilsman burst into the Inn, all of them filthy. Vicross pulled on white gloves at the sight of their grimy state.

“Young Master.”

Rak, who entered last, approached me. He held out a magical pouch, but I blocked it with my hand and spoke to the group that had just arrived.

“You’ve all worked hard. Get some proper rest.”

Smiles bloomed on everyone’s faces. Only then did I extend my hand to Rak. He carefully handed over the magical pouch, and I spoke to him.

“Everything inside this is part of our deal, so it’s mine?”
“Yes.”

The answer came without a shred of hesitation. Even knowing what ancient power meant, Rak showed not the slightest greed for the items.
Kale opened the magical pouch and examined its contents before announcing to the group.

“I’m going into that forest.”

-What?
Meow?
“Pardon?”
“What!”

“…Why?”

Contrary to his expectations, Kale found himself facing violent reactions. Choi Han twisted his face and let out a sigh.

“Kale, really…”

Rosalind stared at him with wide eyes, while the Cats tapped the table repeatedly. The Dragon, meanwhile, was resolute.

-I’m coming too. Listen well, weak human. Don’t you dare leave me behind. This is a warning. If I get angry, this forest won’t last five minutes.

Hearing Raon’s chilling warning, Kale could see Hilsman’s eyes wavering one last time.

“Um, Young Master. Are you speaking of The Path of No Return? Everyone who enters there gets lost—”
“Who says?”

Kale murmured in a voice so quiet the innkeeper at the distant counter couldn’t possibly hear.

“Not me.”

His hand stretched across the table. On and Hong sat some distance apart. Kale reached between them, his fingers brushing against the cloaked Dragon crouching in invisibility.

Kale stroked Raon’s back and that of another presence—On—as he spoke.

“As long as I have these two, I’ll be fine.”

On’s eyes widened as she looked at Kale. Meeting her gaze, Kale whispered.

“On, do you know why The Path of No Return is so dangerous?”
“I don’t know.”
“Mist.”

A flicker of intrigue danced across On’s eyes.
Kale Heniatus had been somewhat surprised when he met On. Hong felt the same way.
Pure-blooded Cats. Each possessed their own unique traits. Among them, poison was exceedingly rare. But what was even rarer was mist.
If I had to choose the most exceptional being among them, I would pick On over Raon. To this girl who could command mist, I revealed the Rainforest’s secret.

“That Rainforest is completely shrouded in mist.”

And I told Raon.

“Certain components within the mist confuse both people and mana. That’s why even ordinary magic becomes difficult. It’s a force incomparably stronger than a mana disruption device.”

A forest blanketed in thick mist.

“That’s why traversing the ground is so hard.”

That’s why I only needed On and Raon. These precious, rare beings that were so difficult to encounter—they made it possible for me to devise a plan to face the Jungle Queen head-on.

“With you two, I can do anything in there.”

On’s tail swayed gently, and Raon’s wings fluttered, creating a small breeze across the table.

* * *

Early morning. I stood before the entrance to the Rainforest. Of course, the cat On was nestled in my arms. By my orders, none of my companions had come to see me off today.

“Enter and you’ll die… never escape.”

The Elderly Man from yesterday seemed to have stayed up all night at the entrance, muttering weakly beside the tombstone. Someone close to this Elderly Man must have also been captivated by the legend and entered the Forest with a desperate heart.

“Old man, I’ll shatter that legend and come back, so just wait and see.”

Mist. The mist enveloped me.
It was fog. The fog enveloped him.

“It seems I’ll need to use as much power as my front paws to cast magic, human. I’d have to be at least at my level.”
“As expected of Raon, truly remarkable.”
“That’s right. I am great. But what is the Jungle Queen’s wish?”

Raon, who had received a rough explanation last night, asked Kale Heniatus, and Kale answered naturally.

“To extinguish the fire in the jungle.”
“Fire?”

The Jungle Queen. Ritana.
The true ruler who commanded the Southern Territory, vaster than the Empire itself.

‘She’s an upgraded version of Tunka.’

She never showed weakness before the strong, yet was infinitely fragile against the weak.
The reason such a person had come secretly to this forest was born from a heart desperate to meet even a Dragon, grasping at straws.

Rather than explain to Raon and On, who tilted their heads in confusion, Kale said something else. His expression was grave and serious.

“From today on, I’m a good person.”
“Why are you suddenly introducing yourself?”

Raon stared at me as if bewildered. On looked at me the same way, as if questioning why I would state something so obvious. Kale Heniatus was momentarily at a loss for words, but soon spoke to On.

“On, a path.”
“Yes.”

On’s eyes sparkled as she moved her front paws. Following that movement, the mist receded a certain distance from Kale Heniatus and his group.

“This mist is strange. It’s really not just mist. It’s like mist laced with poison.”

As Kale listened to On speak with her heightened curiosity, he ventured deeper into the fog where visibility ahead was poor. The mist remained even as rain fell. Kale shook off the rainwater from his raincoat.

“Can you see a path through the mist?”
“I can see it!”

Kale Heniatus followed the path On showed him, heading deeper into the forest. His figure seemed peaceful, as if he were merely taking a stroll.

“It would be nice to meet her today.”

Kale hoped to meet Jungle Queen Ritana before the day ended. And then night fell.

* * *

The woman who had earned the title of Jungle Queen. Ritana gazed out from the cave.
Thick darkness blanketed everything, and only the sound of rain could be heard.

“I’m sorry.”

“Your Majesty, it’s not your fault!”
“Commander, it isn’t!”

Though her five subordinates who had come with her denied her apology, their gaunt and weathered appearance forced Ritana to offer a bitter smile.

A week had already passed since they entered this Path of No Return. Though there were no monsters and no enemies, the mist-shrouded forest revealed nothing, and their provisions dwindled with each passing day.
The forest’s unique plants could not be consumed recklessly, so they had endured on a single meal per day for the past week.

Ritana understood what fear had gripped her subordinates.

‘We might die like this.’

For warriors, for those who fought and struggled, there was nothing more terrible than dying without being able to do anything.

‘Why did I… so carelessly.’

For the first time, Ritana felt anger at a decision she had made.

That accursed fire. She had been forced to come here because of that flame burning in one corner of the jungle, never spreading, never diminishing.

She touched the glass vial in her bosom. Inside it, a small flame flickered.

‘If all else fails, I’ll burn through and carve a path.’

Damaging the forest was undesirable, but it could not compare to the lives of her subordinates and those waiting for her. She surveyed her surroundings. A cave she had discovered by chance. Tonight, they would have to spend it here.

Ritana steeled her dulling mind and resolved that she would need to make a decision soon.

It was then.

Crackle.

“Hmm?”

Ritana grasped her spear.
A sound of movement echoed from outside the cave.

Crackle, crackle.
Patter, patter.
The sound of rain and footsteps.

Someone was approaching.

The eyes of Ritana and her subordinates gathered near the campfire grew sharp and alert.

Crackle.

The sound drew closer.
Soon a shadow fell across the cave, illuminated by the firelight.

Whoosh—

“Who are you?”

A subordinate’s spear point leveled at the newcomer’s throat.

“Well, you see…”

A soft, common continental tongue emerged. The firelight gradually revealed the face of the one who had entered.

“I saw the light and thought I might find shelter for the night.”

A red-haired man with an awkward smile, glancing at the leveled spear point.
Despite his striking appearance, his expression radiated an innate kindness as he swallowed hard, his eyes fixed on the spear’s tip, and spoke with careful deliberation.

“If it’s not too much trouble, might I warm myself by your fire for the night?”
Meow.

A cat in his arms trembled pitifully, drenched from the rain, and the man trembled as well.

“My raincoat tore, and I got caught in the rain. It’s so cold.”

A torn raincoat, a pitiful-looking man, and a cat.
The Jungle Queen, Ritana. She remained cautious, yet opened her mouth to speak.

“Bring him a blanket.”

They had touched the queen’s heart—the one who had been taught that the weak must be protected.
The red-haired man, Kale, trembled as he stepped into Ritana’s group.

-Weak human, be careful of catching a cold. But why do you have a different expression than usual? Are you in much pain?

Raon’s voice resonated in Kale’s mind—magic woven with only the strength of his front paws. Yet he concealed his schemes, accepting the blanket with a gentle smile and courteous demeanor.

“Thank you.”

He appeared like a well-raised noble heir—no ruffian, but a model student of propriety.
The cat On looked at Kale with bewilderment.

Kale was gradually laying the groundwork.

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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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