Trash of the Count's Family Vol 2. Chapter 506: The Prince and the Father (11)

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Previously on Trash of the Count's Family...

Cale successfully subdues Island 19 and captures Mujeon, a sworn brother of the dead Dragon King. Ebo, the younger brother of General Ferry, is freed and contemplates aligning with Cale. Cale reveals the Third General's plan to use the Council of Seventeen to seize power and proposes to Ferry that they use the plan against the Third General instead.

“......”

General Ferry could not answer easily.

The Council of Seventeen to be held on the great general’s island. The Third General is probably planning to wipe out the great general and every major officer from Island 2 to Island 18 at that time.

Cale Henituse, standing before her, had noticed that and said it.

He wants to turn the Third General’s plan back against him?

General Ferry was not someone who had failed to understand what those words meant.

“......”

That was precisely why she could not readily give an answer.

Cale asked Ferry again.

“General. Do you not like the idea?”

“...How far do you intend to kill?”

“!”

Cale was startled by the question General Ferry suddenly threw at him.

What is she talking about?

Alarmed, he hurried to answer.

He could feel that she was about to misunderstand him badly.

“What do you mean, how far do I intend to kill? I have never thought anything like that!”

Of course, the Third General was one of those Wanderer bastards, so Cale intended to deal with that one.

“I like peace.”

Yes. Of course he did.

“As I told you from the start, General Ferry, I believe we must convene the Council of Seventeen, decide the great general’s successor, and furthermore stop the current chaos and war within the Oceanic Alliance. I believe the Oceanic Alliance as a whole must not suffer any further losses.”

Of course, Cale intended to preserve that strength, turn the Oceanic Alliance into an ally on his side, and make it lend a hand in the future war against the Five Colored Blood hunters.

The opponent those Five Colored Blood bastards will fight in New World has already been decided.

The Absolute God, the first Wanderer, the first Emperor, and the Five Colored Blood Wanderers.

The ones they would fight at the end would be—

This world.

He intended to make all of New World fight those bastards.

The world versus the Five Colored Blood.

“Heh.”

He would crush them with utterly overwhelming numbers!

As Cale imagined it, a laugh slipped out without him realizing.

“......!”

General Ferry’s pupils shook violently, but Cale failed to notice, busy as he was saying something to smooth over his own laughter.

“Ahem. The thought of peace coming to the Oceanic Alliance made me laugh without meaning to.”

“...In any case—”

General Ferry asked carefully, her voice tense.

“You do not wish to see any more internal fighting within the Oceanic Alliance, correct? And you have no intention of killing the great general either.”

“Yes! That is correct!”

General Ferry was not skilled in schemes, but as a gatekeeper, she had faced countless people.

“General, I intend to leave this place once this matter is resolved.”

For that reason, she could at least tell that those eyes were sincere.

Yes. Let us trust him for now.

Otherwise, there was no way forward.

I can no longer endure by remaining neutral.

General Ferry of Island 16 had called herself a gatekeeper and maintained neutrality.

Since she was the only person aside from the great general who possessed the right to convene the Council of Seventeen, everyone had acknowledged her neutrality to some degree.

But now that line had been crossed, and the war was growing fiercer.

The Seventh General and I alone are not enough.

If they were to overturn this board and achieve peace for the Oceanic Alliance—

There are times when one must join hands even with a disaster.

And disasters—

Sometimes make everything clean.

Mist, ghost ship, disaster, master of the sea.

General Ferry lowered her head slightly to the man before her, who had created all those names in such a short span of time, unlike when they had first met.

“I will stand with you.”

Then she added,

“Thank you. I will never forget this debt.”

Island 16 had survived thanks to Cale Henituse and his companions.

“Someday, if you ever need Island 16’s aid, even if that place is not the sea but land, I will come without fail.”

At General Ferry’s upright gaze, Cale smiled and extended his hand.

“I look forward to working with you.”

“Yes. Sir Cale.”

The two clasped hands.

During that brief handshake, Cale judged that choosing Island 16 first and bringing it over had been the right decision.

General Ferry before him was openly and transparently revealing her sincerity.

Young master. If someone on our side cannot take control of the Oceanic Alliance, should we not also have a next-best option?

Those were Ron’s words after gathering intelligence.

They say the great general cherished General Ferry, the Sixteenth General, more than the Seventh General, who is his blood relative. They say that even though General Ferry’s skills were not outstanding, he always said she resembled him the most.

Cale was satisfied.

He had gained an ally with quite a lot of potential.

“Now then, shall we start preparing one thing at a time?”

It looked as though he would once again interfere with those Wanderer bastards’ work and increase his own gains.

“Ron.”

He moved immediately.

No, he had already been moving.

“Young master, I brought them.”

Outside the door, two Wanderers who had been staying at Cotton Candy Castle of the Seven Evils had come to visit.

“Cho, Ryeon.”

Cale welcomed the two and held out his hand.

“Did you bring the item?”

Ryeon, the older sister, handed over the item she had received through Aurora, the demon of the mediator alliance.

“Oh.”

After capturing the Wanderer Mujeon, Cale had immediately contacted the castle of the Seven Evils and told them to receive an item through the Demon World.

“So this is the seal the third Emperor had?”

It was said to be the seal the third Emperor, Dragon King, stamped to signify confirmation when handling Five Colored Blood business.

“They said the Demon King’s side had already seized and stored every item that belonged to the third Emperor, Dragon King.”

A satisfied smile settled around Cale’s lips.

He reached out to Cho, who was standing there hesitantly.

“Hand it over.”

“Uh, yeah.”

Cho hurriedly handed the being he had been holding to Cale as well.

“Follow me.”

Cale led the two of them away.

“We are going to break Mujeon now.”

Mujeon, a Transparent-grade Wanderer.

Cale said he would break him.

The Wanderer siblings Cho and Ryeon followed Cale, hiding the complicated emotions they felt at the thought of a Wanderer of the same grade collapsing.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.

Cale politely knocked on the door.

CREEEAK—

Of course, he did not wait for the other party’s answer.

Without hesitation, he opened the door and stepped inside.

“......!”

Mujeon.

His eyes widened when he saw Cale had returned.

No longer in the cabin, he had been imprisoned deep within the main residence of Shark, the pirate of Island 19. The moment he saw Cale, he had to somehow suppress his violently pounding heart.

Has he come to kill me?

Cale Henituse and his companions truly had not demanded any information from Mujeon.

Rather, they had treated him well.

Is there anything you want to eat?

The one called the Heavenly Demon had said that indifferently.

Why, why are you treating me so well?

At his question, the Heavenly Demon had answered with an ennui-filled face.

Shouldn’t you eat what you want before you die?

As if he were someone going to execute a condemned prisoner, someone going to do a job. At that sincerity, which was far too calm, Mujeon had no choice but to think that they truly intended to kill him.

There is no benefit.

Because the more he thought about it, the more it seemed Cale Henituse would gain far more from killing him than from keeping him alive.

“You, you people—”

At that moment, Mujeon could see the people entering behind Cale.

In truth, he had been afraid to look at Cale and had averted his gaze, which was why he found them first.

“You bastards—!”

Cho and Ryeon.

When rage rose in Mujeon’s eyes at the sight of the two Wanderers—

“Hey, hey.”

Cale cut in.

“They had no choice if they wanted to survive. Even the third Emperor, Dragon King, was captured, so if they wanted to live, they had to come under me, didn’t they?”

“!”

The Wanderer Cho’s pupils shook slightly.

That isn’t true?

He and his older sister Ryeon had not come under Cale because the Dragon King had lost. They had attached themselves to Cale’s side long before that.

Tap.

At the touch of his sister Ryeon’s hand, Cho quietly watched what Cale was doing.

“N-no—”

He had no choice but to do so.

“How— how could—”

Mujeon had looked at Cale because of his voice.

Now, finally seeing Cale properly, Mujeon soon began trembling all over.

What Cale was holding and shaking like a toy.

Eldest Brother’s seal......!

The seal of the third Emperor, Dragon King, was in Cale’s hand.

There was no way Mujeon did not know what that meant.

“You seem to recognize this?”

Cale threw the seal.

Thud.

Roll—

The seal rolled over and stopped when it reached Mujeon’s feet, where he was tied to a chair.

“......”

Mujeon’s pupils shook without pause.

Whine—

Then a sound was heard.

Whine—

At the inexplicably chilling feeling, Mujeon lifted his head.

A small water snake peeking out from behind Cale’s back—

No, no.

That was not a water snake.

It had become so small, and its appearance had also become young, making it hard to recognize.

But Mujeon, who possessed a water-attribute wave individuality—

More than that, Mujeon, who had watched Eldest Brother Dragon King’s power by his side more than anyone else—

“Ah, aaah—”

There was no way he could fail to recognize that being.

“The water dragon—why is the water dragon here!”

The third Emperor, Dragon King.

The water dragon that served as the limbs of the one who ruled the sea.

That water dragon, in a shrunken form, was clinging to Cale Henituse’s back.

“Isn’t it cute?”

Cale stroked the water dragon. As if he were dealing with a pet.

Whine, whimper!

And the water dragon rejoiced at Cale’s touch, acting cute as if trying to look good in front of him.

From the water dragon’s perspective, it wanted to somehow win Cale’s favor and become a complete subordinate.

“......”

The light vanished from Mujeon’s eyes as he watched that scene.

The water dragon behaving like that meant the Dragon King had truly fallen.

Everything Cale Henituse said was true.

He could feel even the last shred of hope disappear.

“Your other sworn brothers are on Island 3, right?”

Mujeon looked at Cale with powerless eyes.

Cale, on the other hand, continued speaking with a bright smile.

“What your brothers are trying to do seems like it will get in my way a bit.”

“......”

Mujeon listened blankly, with no thoughts at all.

He is going to kill me anyway—

Then, suddenly, a thought occurred to him.

Why?

Why had Cale Henituse gone out of his way to come to him, show him all of this, and tell him all of this?

“!”

Light seeped into Mujeon’s eyes.

He hurriedly lifted his head and looked at Cale Henituse.

Grin.

The corners of Cale’s mouth rose.

“You’re smarter than I thought.”

Without realizing it, Mujeon licked his dry lips and opened his mouth.

“Is there a way for me to live?”

After the third Emperor, Dragon King, lost, the Wanderers Cho and Ryeon had betrayed the Five Colored Blood and attached themselves to Cale Henituse.

Cale had shown that to Mujeon.

What could that mean?

“Can you do anything to survive?”

Cale asked.

And Mujeon, the Wanderer who did not want to die yet again, opened his mouth.

“What must I do?”

Cale patted Mujeon’s shoulder.

“I will give you a chance to come under me.”

He pointed at Cho and Ryeon.

“They gave me information on the Five Colored Blood family. That is why I decided to keep them alive.”

That was not true.

Mujeon, you are being deceived!

The Wanderer Cho had something he wanted to say, but he held it in.

Mujeon was someone who had usually looked down on him and his older sister a great deal.

“So you need to do something for me too.”

“What must I do?”

Cale looked down at Mujeon’s desperate face and spoke cheerfully with a smile.

“What you were originally going to do.”

“......!”

Mujeon’s expression hardened instantly.

What I was going to do......?

As he thought, he soon realized the answer.

“Ah.”

After taking control of Island 16, he would convene the Council of Seventeen while pretending to be General Ferry.

Then he would relay all this news to the Third General, his second brother, and help him take control of the Oceanic Alliance at the Council of Seventeen.

“You can do it, right?”

At Cale’s question, Mujeon hesitated for a moment.

Because he realized he might now betray his sworn brothers.

“Do you want to die?”

“I will do it! I will do it immediately!”

But at Cale’s low question, Mujeon had no choice but to answer in haste.

How am I supposed to beat the guy who beat the Dragon King!

It was not as though the first Emperor or second Emperor would come to rescue him.

Mujeon had to choose in order to survive.

Yes. Those bastards betrayed him too, didn’t they?

Cho and Ryeon before his eyes.

There were people who had betrayed first, so there was no reason he could not.

Later, if I get the chance, I can run away and pin everything on those Cho and Ryeon siblings.

Having even prepared a final escape route, Mujeon’s eyes soon shone with hope for the future.

“Good. Those are very good eyes.”

And Cale watched that with satisfaction.

“Now then, shall we begin?”

*****

“Mujeon did his work properly.”

The Third General checked the message delivered through video communication and drew a deep smile.

“The youngest does good work.”

Four sworn brothers, including the Dragon King.

At the third brother’s words, the Third General nodded, feeling satisfied.

Tap. Tap.

As he looked at the video communication orb and tapped his own knee, he seemed quite delighted and cheerful.

“Hmmm~”

He even hummed, then could not contain his excitement and abruptly stood.

“The time will soon come to kill all these tedious sea bastards!”

“It must have been difficult to wait.”

The third brother swallowed as he looked at the back of his second brother, who was heading toward the window.

“Yes. It was difficult. I wanted to just sweep them all away and kill them. I endured quite a lot because of that damned need to preserve our forces.”

Drop, drop.

Water droplets began forming on the window where his second brother stood.

Knowing that the smile on that brother’s face, which seemed delighted, was in truth an expression of extreme excitement before a slaughter unfolded, the third brother quickly spoke.

“Soon everything will be pierced by rain and die.”

“Yes. Yes.”

SHAAAAAA—

Rain suddenly began falling on Island 3.

As he watched that rain, the eyes of the second brother, Wooho, began to shine even more ominously.

“But this is strange.”

Wooho suddenly voiced the thought that had come to him.

One thing that felt especially unpleasant, as if he had bitten down on sand.

“Why has the third Emperor, Eldest Brother, still not contacted us?”

“I wonder. Perhaps something happened in the Demon World?”

The third brother, Soyeon, answered without much thought, then flinched and trembled.

“Third Brother.”

“I-I apologize, Brother!”

The gaze of his second brother Wooho turned toward him. His entire body trembled.

“To say something happened to Eldest Brother. He is the one who rules the sea. There is no way anything could happen to him.”

“Yes, yes! I only meant someone might be bothering Eldest Brother!”

“Ah.”

Wooho nodded.

“That could be. Cale Henituse, that human, seems extremely crafty. But as long as the Demon King is cooperating, Eldest Brother will handle everything smoothly and return.”

A smile settled around Wooho’s lips.

“Most likely, Eldest Brother is delaying his work because he is playing somewhere. Do we not know his nature?”

Wooho spoke with an envious gaze.

“I am certain Eldest Brother is holding one entertaining feast somewhere. I should be there beside him. What a shame.”

The third brother, Soyeon, swallowed.

The entertaining feast Wooho spoke of would mean something covered in horrific, grotesque blood.

“...Will that sort of scene not soon open here as well?”

“That is true.”

A deep smile spread around Wooho’s lips.

Wooho, said to be one of the strongest among Transparent-grade individuals.

Is that truly so?

Soyeon looked at his second brother, who was known that way, and thought.