Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing - Chapter 178

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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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Succession Holder Be Damned, I Just Want to Heal — Episode 178

“No trouble at all. We only just arrived ourselves…….”
“I’ve arrived on time, so I’m not late, brother.”

Before the Second Imperial Prince could answer Lion, Ricshel cut in swiftly.

“Still, Your Highness came first and waited for us.”
“It’s fine. Ricshel and I are quite close, so I wouldn’t consider this discourteous.”

Close?
Lion’s eyes widened as he glanced between them.

‘I had no idea.’

Truthfully, it would have been strange if they weren’t close.
They shared the same goals, and their ages were similar.
Moreover, Ricshel had been supporting the Second Imperial Prince quite extensively.
Yet the thought that they might be close had never crossed his mind.
Even when he spoke with the Second Imperial Prince, there was no sign of it, and his younger brother…….

‘He’d grown a bit sharper because of me.’

He was in no position to ask questions.
Even at the Coming-of-Age Ceremony, Ricshel and the Second Imperial Prince hadn’t exchanged any particular conversation.
Yet they were close?

‘If this had been discovered yesterday, it would’ve been a complete disaster!’

Had he nearly ruined a relationship his younger brother had built?
Though it felt odd to admit it himself, Ricshel’s personal connections were quite limited.
Even counting Grandfather and Lion himself, they could be counted on one hand.
That’s why he’d wanted to cultivate an intimate connection with Marquis Bydentis.
Of course, from a capability standpoint, it wasn’t strictly necessary to build a network at his current level, but if he handled everything alone, wouldn’t he eventually hit a wall?
So he’d thought it would be good to introduce a peer friend…….

‘And he’s been managing it just fine on his own!’

This was genuinely good news!

“…….”

Ricshel, who had never considered himself particularly close to the Second Imperial Prince, simply turned his gaze toward the speaker.

‘What’s he plotting?’

To be clear, neither the Second Imperial Prince nor Ricshel had ever once thought of each other as friends.
A business partner with compatible interests. That was the extent of it.
Yet now the Second Imperial Prince was suddenly acting this way.

‘Could he have figured it out?’

No. There’s no way he could have discerned the identity of the one in disguise as his brother in such a short time.
Not even with the Merchant Consortium’s help.
And if he’d attempted it, House Asteri would have known about it.
So on that front, at least, he could rest easy.

‘Besides…….’

Ricshel turned his gaze back to Lion.
His brother was clearly delighted.
He didn’t know exactly why, but Lion had occasionally offered him advice like “You need to meet many friends to truly understand them”—so perhaps this was connected to that.
If so, he didn’t want to spoil his brother’s wishes.
Ricshel answered with what looked like a natural smile.

“Yes, that’s correct. The Second Imperial Prince and I are quite close.”

Then he stepped forward and embraced Kyle as though genuinely delighted.
Though in reality.

“I don’t know what your scheme is, but keep it reasonable.”
“House Asteri may be timid, but we need to make a mark here, don’t we?”

The words that passed between them held not a trace of friendship—only cold calculation.

A short laugh escaped.

The Merchant Consortium leader couldn’t help but laugh at the sight.

“Indeed. You two are, ahem, clearly a very close pair!”

Having drawn sharp looks from both simultaneously, the Merchant Consortium leader smoothed past their hostility with an easy smile and pressed on.

“But since Lion Asteri and I are meeting for the first time, I would be most grateful for the honor of a proper introduction.”
“Quite right. Please, be seated.”

The Second Imperial Prince immediately separated from Ricshel and invited everyone to sit, and only then did the tense atmosphere settle.

“Ah, I’ll have tea brought. Please, the four of you converse first.”

Willie seized the opportunity to excuse himself and swiftly escaped the situation.
It must have been difficult for him.
Not a single person in this room was easy to deal with.
The Second Imperial Prince. The leader of the Underworld. The heir of House Asteri.
And all of them were…
watching Lion’s movements closely.
Yet Lion himself sat with a perfectly vacant expression.
After Willie left, the Merchant Consortium leader offered a proper greeting.

“I am Jade, the Merchant Consortium leader managing the distribution of goods for this venture. I am greatly honored to meet Lion Asteri, who conceived this hot spring project.”
“Jade.”

It seemed he’d decided against operating openly under the name Jack.
It was a name befitting a Merchant Consortium leader who’d come to command a large enterprise while still young.

“As you can see, I’m called Lion Asteri. And there’s no need to attach such grandiose words as ‘conceived.'”
“Grandiose? Not at all.”

Jack—no, Jade smiled wryly and spoke almost in praise of how important solid initial planning was.
It seemed to be part of playing the role of a Merchant Consortium leader.
Someone articulate, charming, and somehow easygoing—that was the impression he was crafting.
It appeared he wanted to suggest that it was precisely through such talk and skill that he’d caught the eye of the Underworld and earned his post.
Lion nodded along with Jade’s words, offering appropriately agreeable responses.

‘But…’

The way Jade looked at him was rather burdensome.
It was curiosity overflowing, yet carefully held in check.

‘There are parts of him that resemble the Second Imperial Prince.’

In truth, since Lion had already learned the facts about Jade and his legacy, it would have been advantageous for him to maintain an intimate relationship with the boy. But not now.
Not now.

‘I’m surrounded by landmines.’

Across from him sat the Second Imperial Prince, watching his every move, and beside him Ricshel was pressed close. Both were sharp-eyed; one misstep and things could spiral in an unwelcome direction.
Both had keen instincts, and if he wasn’t careful, this could easily veer into dangerous territory.
So for now, he’d simply lean into his reputation as an incompetent elder brother.

“Ha ha ha. You needn’t praise me so highly. Everyone already knows, after all. I’m merely here to dip my toe into your business ventures…….”
“Dip your toe, you say? That’s far too modest.”
“From where I stand, it hardly seems like just dipping a toe in.”
……

What was this? He hadn’t even participated in any conference. Why was everyone going on like this?

“Without this opportunity, I would never have been able to establish my own Merchant Consortium under my command, and if that hadn’t happened, Jade wouldn’t exist in this place at all.”
“Quite true. Moreover, you not only listened to the business proposal but even contributed additional strategic planning. Your insight is truly remarkable.”
“Well, I’m grateful to you all. And Your Highness, the Second Imperial Prince, honors me with such high regard, and I’m most grateful for that, but…….”

At this rate, he’d soon be seen as one of the key figures in the business venture, which felt rather burdensome.
As the saying goes, work begets work, doesn’t it?

‘I should rest at the estate for a while and keep a low profile.’

It seemed Jade would be taking up his duties as the head of the Merchant Consortium, so Lion would likely see him often in the future. That being the case, it would be better to proceed slowly and carefully.
That would serve his purposes far better.

“Right. With your frail constitution, you must have little time to spare for such matters. Are you well now?”
“Yes. I’ve been enjoying rest in Ester lately, so I’m doing well enough. Though ordinarily, overexertion tends to aggravate my condition.”
“I see.”

The Second Imperial Prince fell silent for a moment, thinking, then spoke.

“In that case, I’ll need to visit House Asteri frequently to seek your counsel going forward.”
……What?
“And while I’m at it, I’ll be able to see Ricshel regularly as well.”

As he finished speaking, the Second Imperial Prince gazed at Ricshel and offered the faintest smile.
And Lion——

‘Ah! So that’s it!’

He finally understood the Second Imperial Prince’s true motives.
It had taken him this long to catch on, even as things were already set in motion.
Even with one of the Second Imperial Prince’s Curses lifted, his position within the Imperial Palace remained precarious.
Hadn’t Lion noticed how he could barely eat during the meal?
Of course the man wanted to escape that place. Where else but to the side of the one person he could truly rely on?
His closest friend!

‘And once he starts visiting House Asteri, it’ll be easier for him to meet with Jade as well.’

Neither the Emperor nor the First Imperial Prince would dare send assassins to House Asteri.
If they tried, Grandfather would never let it stand.
So the Second Imperial Prince had simply attached the reason that Lion was brilliant——a convenient justification for his visits.
Moreover, if the Second Imperial Prince was going to be this direct about his intentions, refusing him now would only complicate matters.
But.

“Mm, I’m afraid that would be rather difficult.”

Lion declined the Second Imperial Prince’s request cleanly.

“……Why is that?”

There were plenty of reasons.
First, no matter how close they’d become, if the Second Imperial Prince visited the House Asteri more often, it would only pile more work onto Ricshel’s shoulders.
What had been the point of coming here in the first place?
It was precisely to see what kind of person this boss was, the one constantly forcing Ricshel to work late into the night.
And if he now turned around and allowed this simply because his brother had grown friendly with the Prince?

‘That would undo everything.’

Second, the longer Lion spent in contact with the Second Imperial Prince, the higher the chance his own identity would be exposed.
A Disguise might create Recognition Distortion, but habits—small quirks—would still remain…….

‘And more than that, he cooked for us.’

It had been an entirely different style of meal from what this place offered.
And Lion had no intention of returning to the House Asteri to prepare a dish of that caliber.
He’d be handing the Prince valuable information if he did.
Finally.

‘Even if one Curse remains, he’s healthy now, isn’t he?’

Lion had already extinguished the Second Imperial Prince’s most urgent and pressing problem.
Besides, hadn’t he caught sight of the Prince’s weapons earlier?

‘He’s not someone I need to worry about.’

Especially now that Jade had emerged into the light and was watching his back steadily—the Prince could handle an assassination or anything else that came his way.
So the conclusion was a refusal.
And fortunately, Lion had a perfect excuse for it.

“Grandfather. It’s simply that the patriarch dislikes outside visitors.”

Lion smiled and added to his explanation.

“Even as the eldest of the family, I’m not in a position to go against the patriarch’s wishes. Of course, if you’d like, I could pass this request along to him…….”

If it came to that, the Second Imperial Prince would likely find himself in quite an awkward position.
Informing Marquis Patrick would mean the Second Imperial Prince was coming here on ‘official business,’ after all.

‘If the Second Imperial Prince had been a minor, I might have overlooked it.’

Unfortunately, the only minor in this place was his brother Ricshel.
And in the patriarch’s absence, Ricshel’s guardian was Lion.
Second Imperial Prince.
I’m afraid you’re barred from entry due to labor law violations.

“Indeed. We cannot go against the patriarch’s wishes.”

Ricshel’s eyebrows drooped as if truly disappointed, and he answered with apparent regret, one hand raised to cover his mouth.

“Unfortunately, that is how it stands.”

Before the Second Imperial Prince could respond, the door opened once more, and Willie returned with the other staff members, carrying an elegant tea service.

“It will pale in comparison to what the Imperial Palace and House Asteri can offer, but we’ve brought the finest tea leaves available here in Ester.”

As the chaos erupted anew, Jade, the head of the Merchant Consortium, bit back a laugh and let slip a quiet remark.

“You’ve taken quite the blow.”

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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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