Trash of the Count's Family Book 2: Chapter 378: I'm sure it was not enough (3)
Previously on Trash of the Count's Family...
<I'm certain that was insufficient (3)>
Rumble-
The firmament let out a thunderous roar.
Clang, crash!
The detonations persisted without cessation.
“Pick up the pace, quickly!”
“Stop shoving! Remain composed!”
The terrified shrieks of those fleeing the stadium...
“Issue the command for the entirety of the Capital Defense force to mobilize!”
“The Cooperative Alliance! Apprehend the members of the Cooperative Alliance immediately!”
“Dispatch missives requesting aid to every martial artist faction!”
The administrators strained to maintain their composure and act with utmost efficiency.
“Inform the administrators that we shall provide assistance! There is no turning back now!”
“Send word to the Sky Sword instantly! We must notify them!”
“Those Cooperative Alliance lunatics! We shall face a torrent of blood instead of a proper succession!”
The martial artists from various factions began to operate with heightened coordination.
Although the stadium remained in disarray, individuals now moved with a determined clarity of purpose.
Some grasped the underlying cause.
“…That must be the cloud’s influence.”
Hyun Seong of the Snow Flower Sect was among them.
The crimson cloud manifested by Kim Hae-Yi…
The dark red light radiating from that cloud afforded the people a unique opportunity to act.
“…….”
She shifted her gaze.
The Sword Ghost, Pao Seo Tae, and numerous other veterans...
“Your Majesty!”
“…….”
There stood Queen Tamahi, steadfast in her refusal to retreat despite the frantic pleas of her subordinates.
Those who had dedicated their existence to the martial arts could not avert their eyes from their destination.
Kim Hae-Yi.
Those who shivered upon witnessing his dark red cloud—
“What on earth is that—”
Hyun Seong’s eyes gradually drifted toward the arena.
“What sort of blade is that—?”
Her vision was ensnared by the weapon of the newcomer, leaving her momentarily paralyzed.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Queen Tamahi felt the rhythmic thumping of her own heart.
She had been truly captivated upon first seeing that crimson cloud. Watching her subjects rally their strength beneath it, she realized he was a figure of consequence for the Lan Kingdom’s future, be he foe or ally.
‘That blade—’
But the instant she caught sight of that specific weapon…
Her heart pulsed with the instincts of a martial artist.
‘Such absolute clarity.’
Queen Tamahi.
Her blade had become synonymous with her existence.
She had spent a lifetime contemplating the zenith of martial arts through her training.
Baaaaang!
Bang!
The sword continued to erupt in deafening noise as it collided with the white filaments.
Yet, a singular realization struck her as she observed that sword.
“…It is a black blade.”
Oooooo– oooooo–
A low resonance hummed, and a black aura surged violently.
It brought to mind a star-dusted night sky, shimmering with a terrifying, profound darkness.
Another distinct black aura spiraled vengefully around the tip of his weapon.
Slash!
The dark blade severed the white thread once more.
“Indeed—”
It was a sword, in every sense of the word.
The Queen discerned this instantly, having once stood as the most formidable power in the Lan Kingdom.
‘He lacks formal discipline.’
No, looking at his fundamental stance… he likely acquired sword arts in his youth, but—
‘Beyond that base, he forged everything in the fires of true combat.’
She was certain this man had wielded his blade amidst soul-crushing conflict.
Simply to cleave…
Simply to parry…
Simply to endure—
“To endure—”
There was an unspeakable desperation etched into this sword craft.
If I fail to swing this blade—
I shall be consumed.
Everything I hold dear will be stripped away.
‘Precisely.’
That remained the fundamental reason for humanity to take up the steel.
Ignoring trivialities like prestige or influence—
The original purpose must surely have been survival.
Could there exist a more honest motive for the sword than that?
“…I had been neglecting that truth.”
Queen Tamahi had overlooked it.
Nay.
She had never possessed the need.
Born to the former King, she had not taken up her blade for survival; she had pursued it to master martial perfection.
Perhaps that served as the reason why…
‘I cannot—’
She found herself unable to look away from this simplistic yet brutal display of power.
And her heart continued its wild, frantic beating.
If beholding Kim Hae-Yi forced her to consider the kingdom’s destiny…
Watching this man’s blade ignited a primal urge to compete.
‘Yet—’
Despite this, the Queen found her attention drifting toward another figure for some inexplicable reason.
‘Who is that individual?’
The masked man standing between Kim Hae-Yi and the red-haired swordsman.
Who could he be?
Kim Hae-Yi had closed his eyes, drifting into calm meditation as if placing total trust in this stranger.
Ruuuumble-
He was likely the one dictating the cloud’s movement above.
Furthermore, the red-haired swordsman exhibited total relaxation the moment he caught sight of this masked man.
‘Who is he?’
…For some bizarre reason, she suspected he was the mastermind.
Rather than retreating, Tamahi placed a firm grip on her own pommel, focusing intensely upon the stage.
She stood prepared to engage at a moment’s notice.
Watching this trio made her restless for conflict.
Baaaaang!
Another thunderous explosion took place.
Chhh-
Choi Han was forced backward.
The sheer impact of the white thread had propelled him across the arena.
“!”
Yet, So Hee’s pupils wavered.
Slash.
Another white thread had been severed.
This was one that hadn’t even been scorched by the Heavenly Demon's crimson radiance.
“How—”
She struggled to process the reality.
“How could another seed manifest?”
When a unique power is first unearthed, before it takes its definitive form…
That embryonic seed stage…
Another seed, alongside Kim Hae-Yi, had emerged.
Furthermore—
“…This is perilous.”
Even at a mere seed level, it possessed the force to effortlessly dispel So Hee’s white threads.
This rogue was even more dangerous than Kim Hae-Yi.
‘Did such a wanderer truly exist?’
Before she could ponder it further—
Tatap!
So Hee lacked the luxury of time.
Choi Han launched himself off the floor, charging toward So Hee once more.
“Damn it!”
So Hee moved both hands in a blur.
White filaments erupted from her palms.
“Expand.”
The moment the command left her lips, they bifurcated into dozens of strands, hurtling toward Choi Han.
Choi Han raised his blade.
‘A wanderer.’
His mind was empty save for that single thought.
The white filaments closing in...
Slash.
He sliced through the first.
Slash.
He cut through the next.
He lunged forward.
However, Choi Han could not intercept every one of the dozens of incoming strands.
Bang!
Baaaaang!
Bang, bang!
Several struck the earth around him or blocked the path ahead.
They erupted with white luminescence.
It appeared she was constructing some form of domain again.
Choi Han likely resembled prey stumbling into a spider’s snare.
However, no such thought crossed Choi Han’s mind.
‘Wanderer—’
His focus remained solely tethered to So Hee.
He could afford that luxury right now.
The Heavenly Demon.
Alberu.
Cale.
These three individuals were handling the burdens Choi Han usually shouldered alone.
Alberu facilitated the civilians' escape.
The Heavenly Demon prepared the theater for their combat.
Furthermore, Cale stood behind him, prepared to intervene should Choi Han find himself in dire straits.
Today, he was free to simply wage war.
Choi Han understood the sincerity behind their actions to grant him this freedom.
Choi Jung Gun and the wanderer…
Choi Han and Choi Jung Gun…
They endured such trouble to facilitate this moment because they understood the ties binding the three of them.
At the very least, Choi Han felt certain that was the motive.
Cale, who in the past would have stepped in, claiming his methods were the most efficient and direct, remained silent today.
He likely opted for a more strenuous path for the benefit of the Heavenly Demon and Choi Han.
Slash.
That was the reason Choi Han charged forward without a shred of hesitation.
He felt no trepidation regarding his rear.
‘Forwards!’
I only need to keep looking forward.
How magnificent was this?
When he first took up the sword to fend off monsters, he had to fear not only his front but even the very earth beneath his feet.
But now—
‘I only need to walk my chosen path.’
Choi Han’s thoughts verged on losing control, not from a desire for vengeance, but from an overwhelming surge of gratitude.
And he opted not to suppress it.
Boom. Boom.
The faster his heart hammered…
Slash!
Slash, slash-
He sliced through the white threads with increasing speed.
Choi Han avoided looking at his own blade.
But he felt it keenly.
‘It has expanded.’
The black aura that usually clung faintly to his sword now towered over it.
It was sharper, clearer.
‘This strength swells the more confidence I possess in my path.’
The Heavenly Demon’s aura developed with explosive ferocity.
The foundation of this power lay in the realization of the Heavenly Demon, currently experiencing a new world, that his devotion to the Demon Cult remained his highest priority.
It surely stemmed from his sudden clarity regarding the path he was destined to walk.
Boom. Boom.
He could perceive it vividly now.
Yes. It was visible.
The white threads.
Whenever his black aura brushed against them—
‘A path manifests.’
Once he cleared the obstruction in his way, the route he was meant to travel revealed itself.
It was distinct from the force Team Leader Lee Soo Hyuk used to cleave through everything, or what Beacrox was learning.
‘Ah.’
Choi Han gasped, kicking off the ground.
Tatap!
He soared into the air.
Bang!
A white thread speared the ground.
Yet, Choi Han vaulted over it effortlessly and surged forward once again.
He held the vision of a roadmap.
“You insolent whelp!”
Having cleared dozens—
“Expand!”
The threads now branched into hundreds of individual strands.
Screeeeech-
The white brilliance radiating from So Hee amplified.
The entire vicinity of Choi Han was turning white, blanketed in a sticky web.
Oooooo– oooooo–
The aura of Choi Han’s sword began to roar with a quieter, more focused intensity, starkly contrasting its violent exterior.
Hundreds of white strings impaled the ground like a deluge of rain.
If one were to wonder if a human could outrun a downpour without covering—
Slash.
Choi Han’s black aura cleaved through the filaments and lunged forward.
He did not squander strength unnecessarily.
He utilized only the minimal amount needed to advance.
Ooooo—
Similar to cries growing more frequent…
The silhouette of the yong began to fade.
The brilliant black aura as well…
The dark presence…
Every aspect was receding in scale.
Ooooo–
Before long, only the concentrated black aura wrapped around his held sword remained visible.
Alberu unconsciously ceased his movement, observing with quiet intensity.
A white storm battered them from above.
A figure cloaked in black, Choi Han, took a resolute step forward into the rain.
He appeared—
“...Like a predatory beast.”
Precisely.
He moved like a wild apex animal.
A predator that had identified its meal and initiated its strike within the storm.
The beast’s movements required no excess.
It felt no need to perform.
It only—
“It only needs to secure its kill.”
“Ah.”
Alberu let out a soft exclamation.
‘Indeed. That is it. Choi Han has always fought in this manner.’
Although Choi Han possessed a savage, black yong surrounding him…
He was never the type to enjoy a fight for the sake of showmanship.
This observation, which Alberu retrieved from his memory, was a reality Choi Han had long understood.
After all, his inception had been a struggle for survival in the Forest of Darkness.
There was never an audience there to perform for.
In truth, even after he gathered strength—
‘There existed even less incentive to display it.’
The monsters of the Forest of Darkness recognized his potency and gave him a wide berth.
Choi Han hoisted his blade.
Slash.
He cut through another segment of the ‘white rain.’
Choi Han heard Cale’s voice behind him.
“Correct. That is precisely how frightened prey behaves.”
A subtle smirk graced Choi Han’s face.
Forward.
Choi Han, focused exclusively on his target, fixed his gaze upon So Hee.
“You bastard! How dare you!”
So Hee released hundreds of white threads.
Her eyes were wide with a mix of astonishment and primal fear.
In order to elude a predator…
Prey would flee…
Or it would exaggerate its own power in the vain hope that the beast would recoil.
As for the predator, it would simply aim for the kill.
A calm, peaceful voice escaped Choi Han’s lips.
“Oh, I have made it.”
Choi Han, who had looked like a mere speck in So Hee’s panicking eyes, now loomed as large as a mountain.
He had, in reality, grown vast.
“……!”
A predatory beast knows the exact moment to unleash its power.
It would be foolish to hoard strength when the prey stood defenseless before it.
Screeeeech-
That dreadful and chilling scream, tinged with sheer despair…
The sound abruptly cut off.
Well, it was not strictly accurate to say the sound had vanished.
“Ah.”
“Huh-”
However, he was so consumed by the target in his sights that he became deaf to everything else.
The massive black yong erupted from Choi Han's frame.
– Not quite yet.
Cale heard the Super Rock’s voice ring out.
– That is not yet an ancient power.
The Super Rock’s tone was trembling.
Observing the Heavenly Demon had allowed the Super Rock to realize that these aura domains were fundamentally seeds of ancient power.
– But for this degree of potency, Choi Han, this child, truly,
The Super Rock remarked, laced with genuine awe.
– He is truly terrifying.
The dark presence that had been faint now surged, as if detonating alongside his aura.
The shimmering black yong was significantly clearer than it had been previously.
Yet it continued to snap its jaws in raw, unhidden fury.
It hurled itself toward Choi Han’s blade.
“Damn it!”
So Hee pulled a massive strand of white thread before her like a bulwark.
Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiip—!
The black yong shredded the white thread with its razor-sharp fangs, and Choi Han’s blade, driven by his own resolve—
It plowed forward, tearing through the web of thread.
Finally, he reached his destination.
Slash.
He cut directly through her.
“Aaaaaaah-!”
So Hee’s piercing shriek echoed across the arena.
She collapsed, covering her ruined eyes with both hands.
Crimson fluid dripped steadily between her fingers.
This wanderer, whose eyes had turned milky white while she unleashed her light…
The core of that power had been revealed.
—
Translator’s Note: Choi Han utilized Slash! It was critically effective at causing blindness!
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