Trash of the Count's Family

NEW NOVEL: First and foremost, I'm delighted to announce that our long-time veteran translator littleshanks has finally launched his new novel, Rise!  Rise is a novel about the esports scene in Shanghai, the competitive gaming capital of China. It follows the story of Lin Feng, a boy who has just moved to the city for his last year of high school. He's a passionate gamer and dreams of being the best professional League of Legends player in the world. The twist? He almost achieved his dream, but failed at the...

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It was a funny story.

It was back when Kim Rok Soo was looking up information on the unranked monsters and their appearances and recording everything that he found.

There was something eye-catching regarding this destruction of the original central shelters and the monster attacks prior to the appearance of the first unranked monster.

‘It was the appearance of the taster monsters.’

From Grade 3 to Grade 2…

And again from Grade 2 to Grade 1…

The taster monsters appeared at each switch between grades.

Cale couldn't forget the word, ‘taster.’

It remained on his mind even without using his record ability.

The first taster monsters.

The Grade 1 taster monsters that appeared during the shift from Grade 3 to Grade 2 monsters were what had destroyed Kim Rok Soo's first central shelter.

Many people had died.

‘It was difficult to fight against even one Grade 1 monster during this time.’

People didn't know how to use their abilities properly yet.

They didn't have enough information.

Kim Rok Soo had seen the people die by these taster monsters as he ran away.

That was why he didn't like them being called tasters.

But the scary part was…

‘They really were tasters.’

The upcoming Grade 1 monsters’ attack and the invasion of the unranked monster in the near future.

These were definitely tasters in comparison to those two incidents.

They needed to overcome it.

They needed to do it without taking much damage.

Cale opened his mouth to speak.

“The overall situation is that the monsters will attack by their grade, but as I mentioned before, there are some special moments in between.”
“Hey, Rok Soo.”

Jang Man Soo and Choi Han who was carrying him on his back walked over to Cale.

“You worked hard, mister.”
“No, I should be okay again after resting an hour or two.”
“I understand. Please get some rest.”

The shield would be usable again in two hours.

Jang Man Soo hesitated for a moment before starting to speak.

“…Will we be able to defeat the Grade 1 monsters? Especially when there will be 7 of them?”

Everybody around Cale suddenly became quiet.

Seven Grade 1 monsters.

That number made everybody feel as if they would suffocate.

A fierce battle was continuing on the roof as that was going on.

“Keep dropping things!”
“Keep it up!”
“Use a little more of your psychokinesis!”

The people on the roof ledge were throwing everything they had, including weak attacks, toward the Grade 3 monsters trying to climb over the wall of fallen monsters and debris.

That was why they could not tell these people.

They couldn’t know that seven Grade 1 monsters would soon appear.

They would lose their will to fight.

Even Jang Man Soo was this scared.

It was at that moment.

“It’s possible.”

Someone other than Cale had responded.

It was Park Jin Tae.

He was looking at Choi Han who was carrying Jang Man Soo with a piercing gaze.

“We can manage to deal with seven of them.”

Smile.

Park Jin Tae smiled toward Choi Han who was looking at him.

Cale started to speak at that moment.

“Choi Han will not be participating this time.”
“…What?”

Park Jin Tae and the others all opened their eyes in shock.

“How can we do it without this bastard-”
“Night.”

Park Jin Tae shut up after hearing Cale say one word.

“You remember what I said, right?”

Night.

“The moment the sun goes down… The moment the sunset completely disappears…”

The moment that darkness falls over the world…

“The monsters will go crazy. They will become much more violent than before and their attack strength will multiply by 1.5 times.”

That was why night was the first crucial moment.

“The Grade 2 and Grade 3 monsters will attack together.”

Kim Rok Soo who had run away with the crumbling central shelter behind him remembered that night clearly.

He had crawled into a gap between some building debris and watched while keeping quiet.

He had seen how the night was turned into hell by those crazed monsters.

Numerous humans had died.

That night was brutal for the humans who could not gather together and had to split up because the central shelter crumbled down.

“Choi Han needs to stay out of this battle for us to be able to survive the night.”

Cale and Choi Han would not be able to get any sleep during the night.

“This punk needs to get some rest right now.”
“…Then-”

Park Jin Tae bit down on his lips. He barely managed to ask.

“Then how will we fight them?”

Park Jin Tae was certain.

“I'm sure you already have the answer.”

He should know how to kill seven Grade 1 monsters.

It was at that moment.

“Leader-nim!”

He heard Lee Chul Min's voice.

Everybody looked toward Lee Chul Min who was standing on the ledge and pointing somewhere.

“The Grade 2 monsters are starting to get closer!”

The Grade 3 monsters around the building were doing everything they could to get inside the building and kill the humans.

But the Grade 3 monsters in the distance that had not gotten close yet were slowly moving away.

It was as if there was a baton pass.

“…They’re making way for the Grade 2 monsters.”

As Park Jin Tae mentioned, the Grade 3 monsters were moving back as the Grade 2 monsters got closer.

More Grade 2 monsters were starting to appear.

A completely different type of pressure than the Grade 3 monsters was starting to overwhelm the people.

Tick tock.

Cale looked at the watch.

It was past 2 pm already.

It would be 3 pm soon enough.

The taster Grade 1 monsters would appear at 3 pm.

“A, and-”

Lee Chul Min’s voice was shaking.

From within the Grade 3 and Grade 2 monsters that were similar in height…

There were oddly tall monsters appearing here and there.

“T, they appeared!”

The others shouted along with Lee Chul Min.

“Gasp! G, Grade 1……!”

The people on the southern ledge slowly started to move back.

They recognized the Grade 1 monsters.

Park Jin Tae started to mumble.

“I'm relieved. At least the Grade 1 monsters are all coming from one direction.”

The seven monsters would appear from the south.

Only three were visible right now.

A monster with a snake head, a monster that seemed to be a mix of a lion and a tiger, and a skeleton-like monster.

They were all very different monsters.

Park Jin Tae observed the monsters as he started to speak.

“Kim Rok Soo, you said that seven of those bastards would come attacking from the south at 3 pm?”
“I did.”

His voice was extremely calm.

Park Jin Tae became annoyed at his calmness and looked toward Kim Rok Soo.

“Hmm?”

He then flinched.

“Hey, you-”

It was because Kim Rok Soo was looking somewhere else and smiling.

The others who looked toward Cale as Park Jin Tae did flinched.

Cale started to speak at that moment.

“I told you I had foresight, right?”

Foresight.

Everybody shut up after hearing that word.

They had to feel the greatness of Kim Rok Soo's foresight ability. They recalled how Kim Rok Soo had been right about everything until now.

“Choi Han will not fight.”

There wasn't even the slightest of openings in his stern voice.

‘Do we need to take care of it on our own?’

Park Jin Tae started to frown.

He knew Kim Rok Soo must have a way for them to defeat them on their own, but he was worried.

He heard Kim Rok Soo's parched voice at that moment.

“But there are others who will fight with us.”

‘What?’

Park Jin Tae's eyes opened wide.

However, Cale was still looking to the north as he put a hand on Lee Jin Joo's shoulder.

“Noona.”
“Hmm, hmm?”
“Repeat what I say loud enough so that it can reach that building.”

Cale was pointing to a building to the north.

It was a pretty tall building that was barely standing up as half of it was broken.

‘Hmm?’

Park Jin Tae could see human-like figures where Cale was pointing.

‘Two people?’

He could see two people.

‘This bastard, perhaps?’

Were these the people who would fight with them?

Park Jin Tae got chills and looked toward Cale, but Cale was just telling Lee Jin Joo what to say.

“Stop peeking glances while running away. Come here if you want to survive.”

Cale recalled a conversation in his mind even as he told Jin Joo what to say.

‘Team leader-nim, team leader-nim! Are you not going to wake up?’

When he had to face his despair while under Elisneh the First's illusion in the Molden Kingdom…

Of the two people who had appeared in his illusion…

One of them was Jung So Hoon.

‘…Should I make a cup ramen?’

The rookie Jung So Hoon had asked if he had wanted some ramen.

And the other person…

‘Team leader-nim! Is this the time to be eating ramen? Are you eating one too because that punk is eating one?’

Assistant Leader Kim Min Ah.

She was one of the vanguard members for Cale’s attack team.

She was married and had a cute daughter named Bae Eun Soo.

Cale recalled a conversation he had with Kim Min Ah while he was Team leader Kim Rok Soo.

‘…You were there?’
‘Yes, sir. I was running away, saw that place, and ran away again. I'm more shocked that you were from there. You managed to survive even without any abilities at that time.’

She had mentioned that she had visited the central shelter where Cale had been.

In fact, she was there on the day the central shelter crumbled.

‘Around what time?’
‘Probably around 2 pm or 3 pm on the first day? The taster Grade 1 monsters appeared not too long after I got there.’

The corners of Cale’s lips started to go up.

She had said the following.

‘I was with the punk who would become my husband at that time. I dragged him around. Ahahahaha!’

Cale called out toward the two people who were in that building up north and looking toward them.

“Kim Min Ah, Bae Puh Rum. Come join us here.”

Cale looked toward Lee Jin Joo.

“Noona, are you not going to say it?”
“Huh?”

Lee Jin Joo blinked in shock before starting to speak.

“Do you know them?”
“No, I don’t.”
“…Then?”
“Didn't I tell you I have the power of foresight? The two of them are strong.”

Park Jin Tae quietly mumbled at that moment.

“That crazy foresight ability.”

Cale completely ignored him and looked at Lee Jin Joo.

Lee Jin Joo snapped out of it and started to speak.

{Stop peeking glances while running away. Come here if you want to survive.}

The two people's bodies shifted significantly at that moment.

They seemed to be shocked.

Lee Jin Joo watched their reaction as she continued to speak.

{Kim Min Ah, Bae Puh Rum. Come join us here.}

Cale started to speak again.

“Bae Puh Rum. Fly over.”

{Bae Puh Rum. Fly over.}

Park Jin Tae walked over to Cale after Lee Jin Joo said that.

“Hey! He’s an ability user who can fly?”

This was his first time hearing about such an ability.

“Yes, sir. Look over there.”

Cale motioned to the northern building with his chin.

“He’s flying over.”
“…Ho.”

A man was flying with a woman on his back as Cale had mentioned.

He could see the woman pointing to this side and shouting something.

‘This crazy Kim Rok Soo!’

Park Jin Tae couldn’t help but be astonished while looking at him.

He was thinking that Kim Rok Soo was scary.

The ability to fly?

The ability to tell the strength of their opponent?

Kim Rok Soo had an ability that was much scarier than either of those kinds of abilities.

“Hey!”

The woman who was on the man’s back pointed to where Cale was standing.

She then started to speak.

“Who the hell are you guys?! How do you know who we are?”

Wave wave.

Cale motioned to them as if telling them to hurry up and get here.

Bae Puh Rum and Kim Min Ah chatted with each other for a bit before getting closer to the roof.

Cale started to speak at that moment.

“Kim Min Ah.”
“Who are you and how do you know my name-”
“We’ll heal your brother’s injuries.”
“…What?”

Both Kim Min Ah and Bae Puh Rum looked toward Cale in shock.

“Your older brother is in that building over there. He’s in a terrible state right now because of the large injury on his side.”

Cale recalled how Kim Min Ah had looked sad in the past.

‘I fought with my brother there. He told me to leave him behind and fly away with Bae Puh Rum.’

Kim Min Ah had tried her best to smile.

‘But I stayed with him until the end. I was relieved I got to spend my brother’s last moments with him.’

She had then added on in a joking tone.

‘Of course, Bae Puh Rum had to work his ass off to carry me and run away after that.’

Cale put a hand on Grandma Kim's shoulder.

"We will heal your brother’s external injury. In return, I hope that the two of you can fight with us at this shelter.”

Grandma Kim placed her wrinkled hand on Cale’s hand.

Cale felt the warmth of her hand as he continued to speak.

“Then the two of you, and Kim Min Ah, your brother as well… All of you will survive.”

Kim Min Ah and Bae Puh Rum were high school students at this time.

The two of them were silent.

Bae Puh Rum started to speak at that moment.

“Hey, Min Ah. Should I go bring big bro over?”

Kim Min Ah started to speak.

“Let me down first.”

Bae Puh Rum and Kim Min Ah landed on the roof.

Lee Chul Min shouted at that moment.

“Seven of them! All seven of them have appeared!”

The people who were standing on the ledge lowered their hands and looked toward Cale.

It was okay for them to do that.

“…The monsters are retreating.”

The Grade 3 monsters were retreating.

They moved farther back than where the Grade 2 monsters were standing. They looked like actors moving off stage after the first act was completed.

Boom.

A Grade 1 monster with a Bear’s body and purple tiger stripes stomped and shook the ground.

Just one monster moving forward felt as if tens of Grade 3 monsters were moving toward them.

This was the impact of a Grade 1 monster coming close.

“Kim Min Ah.”

Cale opened his mouth to speak.

“Your brother has the message ability right?”

Cale walked past Kim Min Ah as her eyes opened wide.

He then stood at the door heading down from the roof and pointed to some people.

“Park Jin Tae, Kim Min Ah, Lee Chul Min, Bae Puh Rum. The four of you will fight with me.”

Park Jin asked in shock.

“Y, you're fighting too?”

He looked at Kim Rok Soo’s feeble body.

Cale confidently responded while looking at this gaze.

“Yes, sir. I am fighting as well.”

Cale pointed to himself with his finger.

“Park Jin Tae, Kim Min Ah, Lee Chul Min, and Bae Puh Rum will each take care of one monster.”

That was a total of four monsters.

“And I'll take care of three of them.”

The corners of Cale’s lips started to go up.

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