Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing - Chapter 226

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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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Successor or Not, I Just Want to Relax – Chapter 226

Lion reached out to examine the jewel.

[Cosmic Crystal (4-Star Rank)]
-A rare synthetic gem that shines more brilliantly than the stars in the heavens above.
-My goodness, a jewel of this caliber would enchant even someone with no eye for such things whatsoever.
-This item is still unfinished.

The brilliant gem that now lay in his palm was every bit as extraordinary as its appearance suggested.
First, there was the fact that it bore four stars despite being unfinished.

‘I’ve never seen anything like this before.’

4-Star Rank items had begun to emerge from Lion’s hands with some regularity of late.
The first was the Formal Attire Set he’d crafted with Andrea, and more recently there was the Beef Bone Marrow Doenjang Stew.
But a material item reaching 4-Star Rank…

‘Never once.’

Lion swallowed hard, his throat suddenly dry.
If he could use this, something truly remarkable would be born from it.
Though he had no idea what form it might take.

“I should ask for advice first.”

It seemed better to show the crystal to the others and pool their thoughts than to attempt this alone.
Lion reached into the cauldron to retrieve the two remaining gems.

“Hmm?”

He paused, frowning as he discovered something.

“Now that I think about it, it was making quite a noise…”

Lion ran his fingers slowly along the inner surface of the cauldron.
Until now, despite showing some wear and tear from daily use, there had been no visible damage.
But from the recent Alchemy work, scratches had appeared here and there along the interior walls.

“Sigh. It looks like maintenance is due.”

It would be best to schedule that after his visit to the Palace.
With this in mind, Lion exited the Labyrinth and made his way toward the Restaurant.
He intended to fill his belly with a proper meal before moving on to the next task…

“Brother!”

Ricshel spotted Lion’s condition and rushed away from his meal in alarm.

“Ah.”

Only then did Lion register the state he was in.
Nothing was broken or seriously wounded, but the fact remained that he’d fallen from a considerable height, and his appearance was rather deplorable.
He was covered in dirt, and worse yet, bruises were blooming across his body in various places—enough to worry anyone who saw him.
Lion opened his mouth to make an excuse, having only just become aware of the situation.

“That’s severe.”
“…”

Marquis Bydentis’s firm words cut short Lion’s attempt before he could even begin.

“Haha… I know you won’t believe me at first, but would you hear me out?”

Lion pressed on with stubborn determination, trying his best to convince both his brother and the Marquis, but he failed, as expected.

* * *

“Whew.”

Lion wiped his brow with his bandaged hand.
He’d broken into a cold sweat trying to talk Ricshel out of reporting the whole incident to their grandfather.
Fortunately, once Ricshel agreed to undergo treatment quietly, he calmed down.

“Brother, exploration is important, but please do take care of your health.”
“Yeah, yeah. I understand.”

The fact that he’d coughed up blood at the Ester Hotel would have to remain buried forever.

“And on days when you’re not feeling well, please come home early.”
“Right, right. I’ll come back early today and rest properly.”

At last escaping Ricshel’s clutches and having eaten a hearty meal, Lion was able to venture outside.
The first place he visited was Andrea’s shop.

“Young Master…!”

Andrea had greeted him with a radiant smile, expecting to hear that the pigment was finally complete—but the moment she saw his condition, she fell into visible shock.

“What on earth happened to you…!”

Andrea didn’t dare touch his wounds, fluttering about anxiously instead.
As she fussed, she murmured things like “Such a perfect form as the Young Master’s…” and “How could a future Master Craftsman risk chronic illness!” under her breath.

‘Though is it really that perfect?’ Lion thought to himself.

His face was presentable enough, but his body couldn’t quite be called ‘perfect’….
If anything, Barg, who’d been gaining muscle from the brutal training lately, seemed closer to perfection.

“Come now, settle down. Let me explain.”

Lion recounted everything that had happened.
He’d completed the Recipe and executed it faithfully, when—by sheer coincidence—a higher-grade material had appeared instead.

“This is it.”
“Good heavens…!”

Andrea examined the jewel, her mouth falling open slightly.
The brilliant light of the crystal danced and gleamed across her face and eyes.

“So to turn this into a pigment would be a bit…”
“Absolutely not, Young Master!”
“Hmm?”
“Destroy such a beautiful object to make pigment? That simply cannot be done!”

With that, she hastily fetched a sketch pad and began scribbling furiously across it.
Her pace was so fierce that with every stroke, Lion’s bangs were blown about.

Scratch-scratch-scratch!

Then she tore the page from her notebook and handed it to Lion with both hands, respectfully.

“Young Master.”
“Hmm?”
“I happen to know that there are dwarves from Bydentis Territory at Mudu’s Blacksmith’s Forge right now. And if I’m not mistaken, a Master Craftsman in Jewel Crafting is there as well.”
“Ah, yes, that’s right.”
“Show them this gem along with this sketch. I’m certain they’ll have an answer for you.”
…….

Lion accepted the sketch without a word and examined it carefully.
True enough—even by his own reckoning, the gem seemed better suited to become a radiant accessory in its own right than to serve as a pigment base.
But.

“Are you really sure about this?”

Andrea had gone to the trouble of making that pigment and asking him for his help—she must have had some vision for a particular garment in mind.
Moreover, if that pigment had been completed, Andrea might well have achieved even greater renown than she enjoyed now.

“I’m sure. No, I’m more than sure—I’m delighted.”

Andrea exhaled sharply and murmured.

“When this gem is reborn anew, it will surely inspire me far more than the pigment ever could……!”
“Andrea……!”
“Young Master……!”

Crack!

They clapped their hands together in midair, just as they had before.

“I have only one request—when that work is complete, might you not show it to me at least once?”
“First I’ll have to think of an outfit that does this gem justice.”
“Ha ha ha ha!”
“Heh heh heh!”

They laughed like a pair of third-rate villains plotting mischief, then released their hands.

“Well, I should be going.”
“Yes, please do.”

With that brief farewell, they parted ways.

‘Good. I have Andrea’s approval and the sketch now……’

Lion made his way directly to the Blacksmith’s Forge, where he found the dwarves gathered with a crate of beer at their side, debating earnestly about “what makes a true striker,” and there he set the gem down before them with a decisive gesture.

“Th-this is……!”
“What is it? I’ve never seen a gem like this in my life.”

The moment the dwarves laid eyes on the gem, their eyes went wide as saucers.
Then, one after another, they swallowed hard and looked up at Lion.
Whether Lion was the firstborn son of House Asteri had already ceased to matter.
What mattered was whether the owner of this gem would grant them an opportunity.
Nothing else.
And Lion understood this perfectly well…….

“I’m looking for someone who can work this gem.”

He let the words fall with complete indifference.
The moment he finished speaking, it exploded.
That’s the dopamine of the dwarves right there!

“I’ll do it!”
“No, I’ve set as many gems as I have smelted metal!”

Not only Mudu’s family members, but the dwarf craftsmen who had come together from Bydentis Territory each raised their hands and touted their own strengths.

“I’ll leave it to you all to decide who takes it on.”
“Pardon?”
“So wouldn’t the first dwarf to lay hands on it be the one to do it?”

Lion left without resolving the dwarves’ confusion, ending only with the promise that he would return in the evening.
And barely an hour after Lion departed, the dwarves could understand why he had acted that way.
This crystal…… was no ordinary thing!

* * *

That evening.

Thud.

Even the last dwarf, one versed in Jewel Crafting, fell to his knees.

“This can’t be…….”

The dwarf shook his head in despair.
It couldn’t be. It just couldn’t be!

“I understand.”
“I felt the same way…….”

The other dwarves offered their consolation.
They gazed upon the Cosmic Crystal laid before the cutting tool.
That crystal, shining like the stars of the heavens, stubbornly refused to yield to any tool whatsoever.
Not to the cutting implements they had brought with such determination, nor to any equipment in Mudu’s own Blacksmith’s Forge!

“This is impossible!”

At first, they had thought their own hands had grown too dull.
It had been quite some time since they had taken up their craft.
But it was not so.
When another dwarf came and tried to cut the gem, only the tool’s edge dulled while the crystal bore not the slightest mark.

“How is this…….”

As the dwarves’ words began to quaver, Mudu, who had been watching, waved his short arms and opened his mouth.

“Now, now, don’t be so disheartened. That eccentric fellow is just good at making strange things, so that’s…….”
“That’s not it.”
“That’s not it?”

The despairing dwarves slowly lifted their heads.
Then, once more composed, they fitted magnifying glasses and peered into the gem.
And then…… they laughed.
Most brilliantly, at that!

“How could something this extraordinary have come about!”
“My thoughts exactly!”
“The hardest things are always the most beautiful.”
“If we could only polish this—what a magnificent refraction it would show!”

Mudu’s arm, which had been reaching out to comfort him, dropped awkwardly to his side.

‘Right. I should have known.’

He scratched at his head sheepishly.
Of course. That was how they were.
Dwarves weren’t the sort to fall into despair the moment something went wrong.
Rather, they were a people who thrived on challenge, found exhilaration in failure, and pressed forward through despair until they forged something entirely new.

‘I’ve really lost touch.’

He’d forgotten.
So many years away from the Dwarf Village—no wonder this aspect of their culture had slipped his mind.

“Hehehehe. It’s been such a long time since our craftspeople have worn their passion so openly.”

It was Delicate Fingertip, Mudu’s mother.

“Oh, Mother.”
“I was once like that myself.”

Her eyes grew distant with memory as she watched the gems and the dwarves, lost in days long past.
Mudu scratched at his head again, then ventured a gentle suggestion.

“What if you tried your hand at it as well, Mother?”
“Me? Oh, goodness.”
“Yes. Weren’t you quite the accomplished jewel crafter before you married, Mother?”
“Well, I suppose I was, but…”

Delicate Fingertip hesitated.

“I’ve my age to consider, and it’s been so long since I’ve put my hands to work. I doubt I’d be of any use.”
“Even if you don’t succeed, your knowledge will certainly prove invaluable.”
“That’s true.”
“Isn’t there no genius quite like you?”

Just then, the dwarves, still burning with enthusiasm, voiced their agreement with Mudu’s words.

“Come now, come over here.”
“Let’s get you a taste of it, shall we?”

They led Delicate Fingertip over, fitted a magnifying lens to her eyes, and seated her before the gem.

“Well… I suppose I could have a look.”

Delicate Fingertip examined the Crystal, feigning reluctance even as her heart leapt.
Truth be told, she’d been too self-conscious about her age to step forward, though she desperately wanted to.
But she was a dwarf, after all.
As she studied the Crystal with careful, deliberate movements, something kindled in her mind, and she let out a soft gasp of discovery.

“Have you found something, Mother?”
“I’m not certain, but… I think I’ve seen a gem of this form before, in a book.”
“A book, you say…”
“You know, that one written by the Dwarf King.”

Mudu’s expression grew strained at his mother’s words.
A book written by the Dwarf King.
Mudu knew of it too.
Not just Mudu—his children, Gaji and Ipari, would know of it as well.
It was from a fairy tale, after all.

“Oh. That’s quite an interesting story.”

Lion, who had just returned to the Blacksmith’s Forge, lit up with interest, his eyes gleaming.

“Could you tell me more?”

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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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