Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing - Chapter 222

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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 Can Wait, I’ll Just Relax — Chapter 222

A vast and splendid dining table.
Upon it lay a sumptuous banquet.
The Asteri Territory’s lord’s prized specialties, and even regional dishes from Bydentis Territory, prepared in case the Marquis of Bydentis found the local fare not to his taste!
Never had such delicacies and rarities been assembled.
And the care lavished on each individual dish placed on its plate was beyond measure.
The meat, gently simmered, was so tender it dissolved the moment it touched the tongue, and each ingredient had been cut to precisely matching sizes so nothing caught between the teeth or spoiled the eating.
To exaggerate only slightly, it appeared finer than the Imperial Palace’s own cuisine.
And yet.

…….

Ricshel and Clarentia, the hosts of the gathering, paid it scarcely any mind.
Was it as Lion had hoped—that they remained aware of each other’s presence?
Far from it.
Though trained courtesy kept them facing one another without faltering, the angle of their gazes differed considerably.
Ricshel’s eyes were fixed on a painting beyond Clarentia.
Clarentia was watching a single, infinitesimal speck of dust floating through empty air near Ricshel.

‘My brother is late.’
‘Lion Asteri is late.’

They were thinking much the same thing, albeit…….

…….

To any observer, it was unmistakably a contest of wills, and so the atmosphere in the restaurant had turned decidedly frigid.
Servants watching from a distance whispered to one another.

“They’re not eating again, are they?”
“Yes? Do you think we made a mistake with something?”
“Hmm? No.”

A senior servant with many years of service continued calmly.

“The First Young Master isn’t here.”
“Ah……!”

The other servants nodded in understanding and released relieved sighs.
It made sense, really.
Young Master Ricshel’s devotion to his brother was something even the newest servants understood, and from what was heard, the Marquis of Bydentis held Young Master Lion in equally high regard.
Or perhaps more accurately, eyed him with considerable interest.

“Still, I’m glad it’s not something we did wrong.”
“Right. Right. If we’d made a mistake, Elvia would have stepped in long ago.”
…….

That was true enough.
The servant fell silent and adjusted his uniform needlessly.
Time passed—just barely before the food grew cold.

“Have I kept you waiting long?”

The restaurant door opened, and Lion appeared with an easy smile.

“Not at all. You’ve just arrived.”
“Likewise.”

The moment Lion arrived, the tension in both their faces eased at once, and the frigid atmosphere melted like ice beneath a thaw.
It was as if someone had opened a hearth—the very temperature of the restaurant seemed to climb a few degrees.

“Well, this is fortunate,” Clarentia said with a soft laugh.

Once Lion settled naturally into his seat, the meal finally began.

“The head chef must have taken great care,” Lion observed.
“Indeed. For the past several days, he’s been saying he needed to pour his heart into it—personally selecting and preparing each ingredient,” Ricshel replied.
“It’s certainly more flavorful than usual,” Clarentia added.

Ricshel used Floating Magic to draw a distant dish toward him, settling it onto a plate that he placed before Lion.
Clarentia, meanwhile, carved the meat from the bone with practiced efficiency and passed it across to Lion’s plate.

“Ah, well—thank you. Much appreciated,” Lion said awkwardly.

Before he knew it, Lion’s plate had become a tower of dishes and food.

‘Wait… isn’t this…’

It was precisely the same thing his grandfather used to do for him.
Of course, he understood the kindness and warmth behind such gestures.
Yet somehow, what his grandfather did and what these two were doing felt rather different in spirit.
Unable to bear it any longer, Lion finally spoke up.

“Brother, a word,” Lion said, turning to Ricshel.
“Yes, sir?”
“Isn’t this taking it a bit far?”

Lion gestured toward the delicate tower of food that Ricshel had constructed.

“And the same goes for you, Clarentia.”

Lion began returning the portions to their original plates.

“I appreciate the consideration, but I’m hardly a child, am I?”
“We don’t see you as one,” Ricshel said gently. “The food was simply rather far from your reach. That’s all.”
“You’re on the fragile side—you ought to eat more,” Clarentia added.
“That much I’ll concede,” Lion said quietly.
……

At this final, unexpected harmony between them, Lion felt his head spin slightly, and an inward groan escaped him.

‘This isn’t the kind of synergy I had in mind.’

He’d certainly hoped they would get along well, but he’d never dreamed it would manifest like this.
Thrown off by the unexpected turn, Lion chewed his food steadily while tilting his head in bewilderment.
He’d originally planned to guide their dynamic, to weave their temperaments together skillfully—yet here he was, caught in the reverse situation.
The two of them, working in concert, were…
How should he put it?

‘Babying me…?’

Even for someone like Lion, that thought was enough to make his senses reel.

‘At my age…’

Never mind his appearance—he carried within him the weight of far more years than either of them, layered and accumulated.
The very number of new year’s cakes he’d eaten in his lifetime was different.
At any rate, he needed to change the mood.

“I’m quite capable of eating on my own, so I’d prefer you two carry on your conversation.”
“The broad strokes are settled.”
“……?”

When had it happened?
Today was the first day the Marquis Bydentis had formally come to the estate.

‘Did he really wrap everything up while I was away for those few hours?’

The moment that expression crossed Lion’s face, Marquis Bydentis nodded and transformed the question into certainty.

“Our views aligned well enough that further adjustment proved unnecessary. You needn’t concern yourself with it.”
“Of course. I’ll see to it that you have nothing to worry about.”
“Well then…….”

It was a relief, at least, and something to be grateful for.
And besides, he’d managed to escape that stifling domestic atmosphere.

“So what did you decide on?”

Ricshel dabbed his mouth with his napkin before answering.

“Given that it falls on the Emperor’s Birthday Festival, we’ll take every precaution. House Asteri and House Bydentis will collaborate on it. The Second Imperial Prince will handle everything else—not that I’m pleased about it.”

Daring to summon his brother as though he were some servant to command…….
Honestly, Lion didn’t like this situation one bit.
It felt as though the Second Imperial Prince had orchestrated all of this simply because he wanted to see his brother.

‘That can’t be all there is to it.’

Even if the Second Imperial Prince did hold his brother in high regard, he wasn’t that simple a man.

‘We can’t protect him forever anyway.’

Ricshel understood this too.
Now that his brother had recovered his health, become the master of the Labyrinth, and news of him was spreading far and wide, he couldn’t simply be excluded from the political arena.
In such circumstances, striking first was the best strategy.
The Second Imperial Prince, who was consolidating actual power within the imperial hierarchy.
The Marquis Bydentis, of the renowned Swordsmanship House.
And here, the Asteri Territory, where their Lord steadfastly held his ground.
It was a perfect combination to protect his brother.
There was, however, one source of concern.
And that was…….

“The First Imperial Prince?”
“……!”

Ricshel’s eyes widened in surprise, and Lion gave a slight shrug.

‘Obvious enough.’

No matter how little attention one paid to politics, certain things inevitably caught the eye.
Especially those who went out of their way to stand out—no matter how much one might wish not to look, one couldn’t help but spare them a second glance.
That was exactly what the First Imperial Prince was.
The spitting image of his father, a monument to incompetence, and coddled to the point that he’d grown up oblivious to his own limitations, now throwing his weight around recklessly.
The result being that he’d suffered punishment for the first time in his life, and it had stung.

‘Then it’s obvious.’

Far from losing spirit, his malice would only sharpen.
If he were the type to sink into despair over something like this, all his problems would have been solved long ago.

“Yes. The First Prince’s actions are so far removed from common sense that it’s difficult to predict. All we can infer is…… that he will reach out to you in some form or another.”
“I suppose so.”

It was obvious, really.
Why?

‘He just vents his anger on whoever looks most defenseless.’

There were people like that.
The twisted sort who felt compelled to take out their frustration on others whenever rage boiled up inside them. The kind who couldn’t rest until they’d worked it out on someone else.
The First Prince, whose face had turned from sallow to a sickly yellow, was exactly that type.

-Truly worthy of being the eldest grandson of a renowned house, famous for Magic.

His expression and manner at the Coming-of-Age Ceremony made it clear he wanted nothing more than to humiliate someone he deemed beneath him.

“In any case, since the First Prince might cause trouble, I’ll be more careful.”
“That won’t be necessary.”
“Hm?”
“There’s no need for you to suffer harm because of the First Prince’s tantrum. I simply wanted to give you fair warning that I may need to show you a rather violent side of myself.”
“Is… is that so?”

The Marquis Bydentis nodded, as if in agreement.

‘A rather violent side?’

This was the first time Lion had heard such words from Ricshel.

‘Wait a moment……’

Could it be that the First Prince had tormented Ricshel as well?
It was entirely possible.
Ricshel had rarely set foot in the Imperial Palace since he was young.
It wasn’t inconceivable that the relatively younger First Prince—though older in actual years—had subtly made things difficult for him.

‘Now he’s left me no choice but to ask about this.’

And so.
Lion glanced at Ricshel while placing a piece of Pudding—the dessert, studded with fruit—into his mouth.
He was truly grateful for this kind of protection.

‘But if I let others solve everything for me, it will never truly end.’

Though it was now certain that the Second Prince would become the Crown Prince, the First Prince’s position wasn’t shaking quite so quickly.
The Emperor might be a lost cause, but the Empress still stood firm.
Or more precisely, the central nobility did.
They would do anything to elevate the First Prince if it served their political ambitions.
They weren’t making moves now only because they feared his grandfather.
And even though the tide had turned toward the Second Prince, things were still stable enough to live on.
But.
What if the situation grew worse from here?
He suspected they might manipulate the First Prince into attempting something drastic.

‘And the target would likely be……’

House Asteri, which backed the Second Prince completely.
And among them, that target would fall on the weakest—himself.
Even if family and those around him do their utmost to block them, they won’t be able to stop every dagger that comes flying from somewhere.

“Still, it’s reassuring to have so many people willing to protect me. I can move about without worry.”
“Yes. Please don’t concern yourself.”
“Ha ha ha. Thank you.”

Lion wiped his mouth with a napkin and rose from his seat.

“Well then, I’ll head upstairs. I’ve been running around here and there today, so I’m a bit tired.”
“Pushing yourself too hard isn’t good for your health.”
“Shall I escort you?”
“Ha ha ha. There’s no need for that.”

Lion stood with deliberate briskness and left the room.
The moment the door closed, a cold silence settled over the broad restaurant.

“Still…….”
“Yes. It appears the Young Master is planning something.”

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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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