Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing - Chapter 214

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Successor or Not, I Just Want to Heal — Episode 214

After Ur Hil and Barg’s truth game in the dead of night came to an end.
A small change occurred at the Asteri Family Estate.
Namely, the youngest had newly joined the Knight Order.

“This is Ur Hil, joining as a newcomer.”
……

Of course, neither his manner of speech nor his stature—nor even his skill—made him the youngest, yet he unfailingly called Barg “senior” without fail.
The problem was that he did not extend the same courtesy to anyone else.
But fortunately, the Knight Order welcomed this peculiar genealogy breaker bear beast-human with genuine enthusiasm.

“Strange—why isn’t there any resistance?”

When Lion, speaking with Ricshel, asked the question with obvious puzzlement, Ricshel shook his head and replied.

“Because he is strong, sir.”

He then relayed some of the contents from the report the Knight Commander had submitted.

—The bear tears people apart.
—If he’s that strong, it’ll help us all improve our skills!

……I see.

In other words, gaining a strong opponent regardless of age or rank to spar with was simply welcome.
The Asteri Knight Order’s atmosphere being somewhat freer than other places likely helped them accept it smoothly.

“And they were all pleased that Barg now has a beast-human he can rely on. Apparently, they’d all been quietly worried.”
“That’s a relief.”

Thus, Ur Hil’s situation was resolved quickly.
Of course, Lion also fulfilled the “condition” that had been arranged beforehand.
That being to make something sweet.

“This is……”
“If you’ve come to the Asteri Family Estate, you should definitely try this first.”

It was hotteok.
With nuts and that sweetness, it seemed perfect.
The texture was different from the Bait Gangjeong he’d tried at first.

“……! Splendid. I look forward to your service for some time.”
“The pleasure is mine.”

Thus, Ur Hil truly settled into the House Asteri.
It was only much later that his tribesmen came looking for him.
That is to say, it was after he’d already moved out of the quarters and neatly built himself a private cabin.

“I never expected he’d stay this long.”

It was such a perfect settlement that Lion would say such a thing at some point.

* * *

And time passed until the day Bydentis came to the Asteri Territory.

“The carriage has reached the nearby village, so he should arrive soon.”
“It’ll take about a day.”

I should start making some preparations then.
The House will handle most of the arrangements, but I’ve just heard some good news.

‘Mudu’s parents are coming too.’

Through the consideration of Bydentis, Mudu’s family would be accompanying us as ‘Technicians’ to the House.

I was planning to stop by the Blacksmith briefly to let Mudu know about it.
Of course, that wasn’t all I’d prepared.

“Elvia, is ‘that’ going according to plan?”
“Yes. I’m taking every precaution.”

Elvia smiled with evident delight.

‘Good.’

Freyanya’s return was taking longer than I’d expected.
Perhaps she was settling her affairs.
In any case, I’d been worried that one of Elvia’s sources of joy might disappear because of the delay, so her renewed cheer was a relief.

‘Besides, I’m pleased about it too.’

What could be the cause of such satisfaction?
Well, naturally it was for the sake of my younger brother’s successful… relationship-building. Not romance. Friendship.

‘Still, I ought to help.’

Obviously, if I made my intentions too obvious, both of them would feel awkward about it.
So the plan I’d devised was this:

‘Making the everyday more extraordinary.’

Though I called it a plan, it wasn’t particularly grand.
Ricshel—with his face, his abilities, he lacked nothing!
Except.

‘One thing.’

His aesthetic sense was just ‘slightly’ lacking.
As a result, he didn’t dress up much.
While it’s true that less is sometimes better than more, his wardrobe was quite plain for a Successor of a Marquis’s House.

‘Frugality has its virtues, though…’

House Asteri’s wealth wouldn’t be dented by such minor indulgences.
And…

‘It’s a waste of a face like that.’

It wasn’t just because he was my brother—Ricshel objectively possessed considerable beauty.

“His features all make their own statement, yet they harmonize so perfectly!”
“When he got that scar on his face during training last time, my heart just ached for him…!”
“The Patriarch was said to be quite handsome in his youth too, and I’d say he passed on those genes splendidly!”
“And that aura of his…! Oh my!”

Among countless praises, I’d selected just a few, and even that was more than enough.
Even without any embellishment, she radiates that much—if she actually put some effort into it?

‘This could be serious business.’

Thinking about what would truly make such a face shine even brighter, there was really only one answer.
Clothes.
I would have wanted to make them myself, but…….

‘If I did that, the conversation would veer off in a completely different direction.’

He was such a special case in the family, after all.
So this time, I decided to ask Andrea for help.
Fortunately, perhaps because of the bond we’d built, Andrea got to work at once, and she said the clothes would be finished by today.

‘And it seemed like she was preparing something else too.’

Since it wasn’t finished yet, she didn’t tell me about the rest.
She only smiled with that cryptic expression, “Heh heh heh……!” in a way that suggested she knew something.
……In any case, I should stop by while I’m heading out to meet Mudu.

‘Beyond that, there’s honestly not much I can do.’

I’d like to push things along enthusiastically, but neither of them enjoys that sort of thing.
It would be best if they simply talked as they pleased, found common ground, and grew closer naturally.
What I was grateful for was that Ricshel and Bydentis seemed to share similar interests.

‘Well…… it’s about work, though.’

Still, the fact that a marquis from a Swordsmanship-Named House and the successor of a Magic-Named House could maintain a flowing conversation struck me as quite remarkable.

“Grandfather gave you a particularly short leave, didn’t he?”
“Yes. When you presented the plan, he gladly arranged a day off for me.”
“Ricshel thinks the reason is that Bydentis paid a visit and other matters piled up.”
“That’s correct.”
“Good.”

If I’d given him a day off for no reason, Ricshel would have suspected it immediately.
The moment he felt it wasn’t justified, he would slip right back into work mode—so Grandfather had carefully provided a plausible excuse.

……

During this exchange, Elvia regarded Lion with a soft, steady gaze.

“What is it?”
“A question has occurred to me. May I ask?”

Lion nodded, and Elvia asked directly without hesitation.

“Are you planning to have the two of them marry?”

Lion laughed despite himself and waved his hand dismissively.

“Ha, that’s not something I can will into existence…… but.”

Lion lined the two of them up in his mind and murmured thoughtfully.

“Honestly, wouldn’t they suit each other? They’re both kind.”
……
“They’re capable, they have sufficient means. And I don’t think either of them would abandon their responsibilities for love. They’re about the same age too.”
“Hmm, I see.”

Elvia watched the puppy muttering to himself with passionate fervor, and inwardly shook her head.

‘He really has no idea.’

The very notion of pairing her only brother with a decent woman was certainly admirable, but Ricshel and Bydentis—
By Elvia’s reckoning, they harbored scarcely a shred of affection for each other.
At most, they’d regard each other as business partners with a modicum of compatibility, and their respective positions remained abundantly clear.
Politically speaking, a marriage between the head of the Magic-Named House and the head of the Swordsmanship-Named House would be welcomed by none.

‘They’d feel threatened.’

Even now, plenty harbored resentment that Patrick, as Marquis, stood above the Emperor—how much worse if the Swordsmanship-Named House joined forces with them? No one could stop that.
So wouldn’t the puppy’s plan become useless?

‘Perhaps.’

Despite all his predictions falling wide of the mark, the puppy’s imaginings came remarkably close to truth.
And the reason was—

‘They both like our puppy more than they like each other.’

So they could enter into a Contract Marriage for Lion’s sake.
Without batting an eye, either.

‘He’d object if he knew that fact.’

Well, by the end of this visit, the truth of their bond would certainly be laid bare.
There was no way the sharp-witted puppy would fail to sense the atmosphere.
Elvia contented herself with anticipating the expression he’d wear in that moment.

‘Peaceful days won’t last much longer anyway.’

Without revealing the certain truth she’d heard from Patrick, Elvia brought Lion his overcoat.

“If you’re going ahead with the plan, you ought to begin preparing soon.”
“It’s come to that already?”

Lion launched into explanations—with dozens of reasons attached—about “why Bydentis and Ricshel suit each other” and “at least, I wish they could become friends,” before catching himself and grabbing his overcoat.
Love or friendship—either way, to play that bridge between them, he’d need to move with purpose!
Before Bydentis arrived.

“Then I’ll be off.”
“Yes. Please, take care. Safe travels.”

* * *

At that very moment.

……
“Is that the person…… that, isn’t it?”
“I think…… that might be them……”

In the marketplace, now alive with activity once more, people murmured as they glimpsed someone.
There stood a figure so slender they might seem diminished at first glance, motionless in the center of the square.

……

The thick garments they wore would have been unusual for the Asteri Territory, and the conspicuous sword at their hip marked them unmistakably as foreign.
A Robe with a hood suggested an attempt at concealment, but with the hood down, their face was inevitably exposed.

“It’s hot.”

An enigmatic stranger.
No—Clarentia Bydentis muttered to herself.
Upon reaching the Asteri Territory, she had determined that running there directly was faster and more efficient than taking a carriage.
Besides, she wanted to see how the people here lived.

‘They’re all smiling.’

There was indeed a vitality here that stood in sharp contrast to the Bydentis Territory, which was known as a Swordsmanship-Named House.
Clarentia concluded the source of that difference lay in a ‘convenient life.’

‘The Magical Tools…….’

One could say it befitted a village of the Magic-Named House—the standard of living was extraordinary.
Though Magical Tools that could be called essentials had reached the Bydentis Territory as well.

‘I never imagined it would be like this.’

She had visited once for Lion Asteri’s Coming-of-Age Ceremony, but at that time the place had not yet been fully developed, so she had not thought to observe such a way of living.

‘No—if it weren’t for him.’

Perhaps she would never have thought to examine things at all.
She would have merely protected and maintained the status quo.

‘And that end would have been…….’

Slow decline, undoubtedly.
So this time, she had steeled her resolve.

‘I will see it with my own eyes.’

Clarentia’s strength was her swift execution.
Her weakness, too, was her swift execution.
Before the Butler who had accompanied her could stop her, she leapt straight from the carriage.

“Oh, good heavens!”

She ignored the Butler’s cry of alarm, as always.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————