Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing - Chapter 100

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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 Successor Doesn’t Know, But I’m Just Going to Relax – Chapter 100

“Heave.”

Fortunately, Lion never found himself in danger.
The distance from the barracks where the knights lived and the Training Ground to this place was quite far.

“The barley just needs a good soak for a day now.”

Of course, after that he’d still need to change the water a few times and get it sprouting, but for now, the work he could manage was done.

‘Lucky there’s a decent shaded spot here.’

He could have left it indoors, but it was better to keep it near the well in a place like this.
Lion set the basin down in the shade and paused to catch his breath.

‘This side is pretty spacious too.’

Because he’d lived his whole life without paying attention to it, the Asteri Family Estate was far larger than he’d imagined.
The fact that the knight order even had separate quarters was proof enough of that.

‘The benefits are excellent.’

This was the knight order of House Asteri, no less—a renowned magical family.
One might have expected them to look down on Swordsmanship compared to magic.

‘But Grandfather doesn’t concern himself with such things.’

Patrick promoted anyone with skill and loyalty, regardless of gender or rank, and extended them considerable privileges as well.
While he hadn’t built a separate facility like the Magic Tower, he gave over a substantial portion of the estate to the knight order to serve as both barracks and training grounds.
And that was just the beginning.
He not only provided high wages and excellent benefits, but guaranteed the livelihood of any knight’s surviving family if they fell in service to House Asteri.
So naturally, talent flocked here, and the morale of the knight order was sky-high.
Some even said its combat strength surpassed that of the Imperial Knight Order.

‘Though the court keeps quiet about it for the sake of appearances.’

Anyone who mattered surely knew the truth.
There had to be a reason why more people applied to join the knight order than the Imperial ranks.
At any rate.

“Reassuring.”

Lion nodded, glancing toward where the knight order was stationed.
Even if his own risk of attack was relatively low, the same couldn’t be said for Ricshel.
He was likely receiving considerable help without even realizing it.

‘I wish Ricshel had a reliable escort of his own.’

Thinking he’d visit the knight order barracks when he had more time, Lion covered the basin with cloth and left.

“Surely no one would throw it away?”

No, no. How could anyone take it, left out so carefully like this?
Everyone would see it was there for a reason and leave it be.
And it was only soaking for one day anyway, so it should be fine.
…Probably.

* * *

Not long after Lion had set down the barley and left the table.

Crack!

The sharp sound of two wooden swords meeting rang out across the Training Ground.
Two boys barely on the cusp of manhood, surrounded by apprentice knights who cheered them on with unbridled enthusiasm.

“Jake! Give him one good blow!”
“Hey, newcomer! Don’t lose! You can’t lose!”

It was raucous as a band of mercenaries watching a street fight with money on the line—or perhaps like some fight club from the Underworld itself.
For a knight order boasting the finest skills in all of House Asteri, it struck an almost frivolous note.
But look closer, and something was different.
They cheered freely, yet never crossed the line.
They watched the fight with joy, but their eyes drank in every movement of the combatants’ techniques with a sharpness few could match.
These were not the eyes of mere youths playing at spectacle.
And among them all.
Two fighters exchanging blow after blow, already many exchanges deep.

Thud! Crack!

They shifted fluidly between attack and defense, churning up dust across the training ground.
The dull hiss of air rent apart. A wooden sword whistled down from above with crushing force.

Whoosh!

Jake, the apprentice knight, swung his sword.
The cutting sound that rang out was the kind you’d hear from a club wielded by a troll or ogre.

“Hngh!”

His opponent barely managed to block the overhand strike with his own blade.

Scraaape—

His feet scraped backward, driven into the corner of the ground, but it was Jake who found himself shocked.

‘He blocked that?’

He’d put real force behind that strike—genuine weight.
Opponents his own age, even seasoned knights, typically buckled under such an attack.
It had always gone that way.
But this one. This ‘newcomer.’ It didn’t work.

‘A formidable one has arrived.’

But that was all.
The opponent was already on the defensive. There was nowhere left to retreat.
Behind him stood the other apprentice knights watching the bout.
To fall back now would be disqualifying—unfit for a knight.
Jake curled his lips into a grin across the dust-choked Training Ground.
What would he choose?
A shameful counterattack?
Or humble acceptance of defeat?
Either way would sting for the newcomer.
But this defeat was precisely what he needed to taste first when formally entering the Asteri Knight Order.
Just as Jake anticipated victory and raised his sword to strike again.

Pop!

In the swirl of dust, he vanished.

“……!”

Jake’s body dropped instinctively, and he twisted his head away.

Thunk!

The wooden sword plunged deep into the compacted earth and stone of the Training Ground floor.

‘If I hadn’t dodged…….’

No—there was no time to think.
Jake used the momentum of his crouch to spring upright and whipped the air with his blade.

Crack!

“Ugh!”

The boy rocketed out of the dust and tumbled across the ground several times over.
The newcomer hacked and coughed, clearly struck hard in the gut.
The match was decided.
Yet the newcomer wouldn’t accept the outcome—he clawed at the dirt floor with his nails and forced himself to his feet.
In that moment, his teeth bared sharply, and his eyes glinted with a sinister gleam.

“…….”

Jake’s body tensed at the wave of killing intent, and his hand shifted to grip the wooden sword tighter.
The boy snarled, as if ready to strike again.

“Stop.”
“…….”
“Jake’s victory.”

Rickson, the Knight Commander who had been watching their sparring from the rear all this time, finally spoke.

“Hm.”

Jake, who had flinched momentarily, sheathed his wooden sword and approached the boy with a smile.

“You’re quite skilled, aren’t you? Not at all the level of someone who’s just been doing grunt work for the Knight Order till now…….”

The moment their eyes met—just a casual glance—Jake didn’t finish his sentence and drew his wooden sword again.

Boom!

An impact on an entirely different scale crashed through him.
His hand tore open and bled; the wooden sword cracked and threatened to splinter any moment.
If the sword hadn’t fractured, his palm might have been ripped clean off instead of merely split.
How had he launched such an attack without even holding a weapon?
Jake’s eyes snapped wide as he tried to adjust his grip on the cracked sword.
The boy came at him again.

“Enough!”

Rickson’s voice rang out with commanding force, driving the newcomer back.
The Knight Commander positioned himself between them, shielding Jake with a stern expression.

“Barg!”

Grrrrrowl—!

A low, predatory sound echoed across the arena.
Those watching from a distance might have missed it, but Jake heard it clearly—that bone-chilling growl.

“The match is decided! So what do we do now?”
…….

At Rickson’s sharp command, Barg’s breathing deepened.
After several measured breaths, the fierce gleam faded from his eyes, and his clenched fists slowly relaxed.

“Ah…….”

He was coming back to himself.
Barg lifted his lowered head, glancing uncertainly at Captain Rickson and then at Jake standing behind him.
His posture had shifted entirely—where moments ago he’d been all aggression, now his spine curved inward and his shoulders sagged.
A creature rendered suddenly timid.

“I, I…….”

His hands fumbled uncertainly at his sides.
He looked as though he wanted to ask if Jake was all right, but Rickson’s expression left no room for hesitation.

“I’ve lost. I concede.”
“That’s right. This match is yours, Jake.”

Jake grinned and extended his unbandaged hand.

“That was a good fight.”
“Y-yes. Thank you. And I’m sorry…….”

Barg took Jake’s hand in both of his, shaking it gently while his other hand fluttered with concern.

“Your hand…….”
“This? It’s fine. These things happen in a match. Really, don’t worry.”

Jake forced a smile and clapped Barg on the shoulder.

But inside, his mind was racing.

‘That last attack……’

Jake swallowed hard, careful no one would notice.
For a mere newcomer, he was slated to become one of the Asteri Knight Order’s official members soon enough.
But if that final strike had connected……
He would certainly have suffered a serious wound.
No matter how careless he’d been, he hadn’t even seen the attack coming.

‘And that look in his eyes.’

There had been a killing intent so sharp it was almost like watching a beast gather every ounce of its focus before the killing blow.

‘A dangerous one.’

That was Jake’s assessment, though his expression revealed nothing.
Dangerous or not, Barg had joined this order, which made him Jake’s junior now—and he’d have to make the best of it.
They’d have to find a way to get along.

‘Though that’s a separate concern.’

I should ask the commander about this newcomer, Barg, at some point.

“Commander, so I won the lunch wager, right?”

Jake finished the handshake and asked with a loose grin.

“You did.”

Woohoo!

The moment Rickson nodded, applause and cheers erupted across the training ground, which had been quiet only moments before.

“I knew betting on Jake was the right call!”
“Come on! This newcomer seemed different!”
“But still—how could a newcomer beat Jake?”
“So much for this lunch wager. We’re done for.”

That was it.
The purpose of this brutal bout had always been singular.
The lunch wager.
In other words, only those who bet on the winner got to eat a satisfying lunch.
The rest?
Naturally, they went hungry.
This was the true reality of the knight order’s doctrine of practical training.
It was almost a tradition within the order—something done whenever a newcomer arrived.
A training exercise that let them experience defeat firsthand and develop a keener eye for combat.
And those who lost the fight had to…

“Well then, go find your lunch however you can and report back.”

No matter what method they employed, they had to scrounge up a meal and return.
Begging, foraging, whatever it took.

“Phew. Good thing I hid some emergency rations ahead of time.”
“Oh, you too? Me as well.”

The apprentice members with some tenure in this place could find ways to fend for themselves somehow…

“What about me, then?”

The newcomer truly had to find his own way to eat.

“Hang in there.”

Jake patted Barg’s shoulder a few more times before departing abruptly.
The other knights did the same. Even Rickson, the commander, was no exception.
In truth, the rule had been devised to help newcomers familiarize themselves with the layout of House Asteri and get their faces known around.
After all, a newcomer had almost no chance of winning against a veteran in a duel.
Of course, Barg, the timid newcomer who didn’t know this fact, could only look around with a lost expression on his face.
No lunch?
How could such a thing be?

‘How am I supposed to find food here?’

All around was nothing but barren dirt.

Gurgle.

His stomach growled so loudly that it seemed he wouldn’t be able to bear it much longer.
I’ve heard the afternoon training is even more grueling—a serious push for physical endurance.
Which meant…….

‘I need to find something to eat, fast!’

Barg clenched his fists and hurried forward without much thought.
The one stroke of luck was that Barg had brief experience handling odd jobs for the knight order.
His timid nature kept him from growing close to the other servants, but at least he knew where to find food.

‘If that doesn’t work, I’ll have to fill my belly with water…….’

He’d already resigned himself to that worst-case scenario as well.
The rookie apprentice knight Barg shuffled forward in his grimy, unkempt clothes.

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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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