Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing - Chapter 281

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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 Heal — Episode 281

He never imagined he’d find himself pouring everything he had into a sparring match against a child.
Lion sighed at his own disgust with himself, then shuffled awkwardly toward Ricshel.

“Come now. Let’s both calm down.”
“Squeeee!”

Lion gathered up Nature, whose fury had yet to subside.
And then—

Peck! Peck-peck-peck!

“Ow, ow, ow.”

Nature pecked sharply at his fingers with her beak.
Though the pecking wasn’t hard enough to draw blood, Lion worried the contamination might spread, so he dodged her attacks by juggling Nature from hand to hand, keeping her moving.

“I appreciate you trying to protect me, but that was a bit much.”
“Hmph.”
“I know, I know. Ricshel crossed the line first, but what else would drive him to it?”
“…….”

Nature’s relentless beak attacks began to ease.
It was her way of saying he had a point.

“Anyway, thank you.”

Lion smiled awkwardly and tucked Nature into his bag.
Whatever the reason, she’d been trying to protect him, hadn’t she?

‘Even though it wore her out.’

This was only the second time Nature had revealed her true form.
The first time had been when Lion examined the old bottle.

‘Back then she couldn’t hold on and fell asleep.’

Now that Lion’s Mana and Spirit Summoning proficiency had risen to a certain level, it seemed she wouldn’t collapse into sleep immediately.

He glanced sideways.

Peeking into the bag, he saw that unlike before—when she’d been in a rage—Nature had sunk down and was now drowsing peacefully, her head bobbing gently.

‘Overprotective as always.’

But Lion thought he might have done the same thing, had he been in her position.

“Rest well.”

Lion draped a handkerchief over Nature so she could sleep peacefully, then closed the bag.
Well, Nature was taken care of now.

“Ricshel’s the problem.”

Lion regarded his younger brother with a heavy heart.
Whether he’d lost consciousness from Mana exhaustion or was so shaken by the bitter taste of defeat that he lay completely still, Lion couldn’t tell.

“This is bad. The party’s coming up soon.”

True, Ricshel was in better condition than Lion, but he too had taken quite a beating—far more than usual.
Especially so!

“Oof.”

Lion caught sight of a wound on Ricshel’s cheek—the opposite side of his own—and pulled out a Potion Bottle.
He’d prepared it as a standby remedy, never imagining he’d actually need it like this.

‘At least the healing works fast.’

From what he could tell, there didn’t appear to be any internal injuries.
If that was the case, then rest was the priority—but…

“Mm. Guess we should head inside there, then.”

The Mountain Lodge was left in ruins, and entering it didn’t sit well with him—yet if he returned in this state, he had no doubt his grandfather would clutch his chest and collapse.
And besides…

‘Even though I won, I should probably give him some kind of explanation.’

Not that he’d gone into the match intending to win—he’d been prepared to lose or draw—but what was done was done.

“Hup.”

Lion barely managed to hoist Ricshel onto his back.
Though Ricshel’s feet dragged along the ground, Lion could make his way into the room through sheer determination.
He laid his brother down on the least damaged bed he could find, then used a clean towel from his pack and some purified water to hastily wipe away the worst of the grime, making his sibling look somewhat less disheveled.

“Get some rest.”

Lion spoke the words to his sleeping brother and rose to his feet.
He wasn’t planning to go far—it was just that the collapsed wall was letting in a chill that he found rather bothersome.

‘I should find a blanket.’

A thick blanket would be necessary to keep his brother from catching cold.
And…

‘On top of everything else, losing to me is going to be quite a shock to him.’

Lion himself felt oddly unsettled despite winning—how much worse must it be for Ricshel!
Especially when he’d been called a genius since childhood.

‘What do I even say when he wakes up?’

He’d have to start with a proper apology.
Lion opened the door and carefully navigated around the debris into another room.
And fortunately, he managed to discover a somewhat worn but wonderfully warm blanket!

“Oh, this is actually quite fine quality?”

Perhaps that was because, worn as it was, it came from a Villa purchased by House Asteri.
Lion examined the blanket with an expert’s eye, almost unconsciously.
And then…

[Blanket of Memories (★)]
-A blanket that carries the scent of someone you long for.
-With the weight of years upon it, it seems to hold an even more tender warmth.

“Hm?”

Someone you missed?
Had Lion or Ricshel ever been to this place in the past?
Or was it perhaps that grandfather’s cherished memory from childhood—this very location?
Though curiosity stirred, there was no need to unravel it now.
Lion took the blanket and returned to the room where Ricshel was sleeping.
The door, its hinges loosened by the impact of their sparring, creaked open.

“Ah!”

The moment his eyes met Ricshel’s standing in the doorway, he cried out.
What the—you startled me!

“I thought you had returned to the Estate, sir.”

‘That phrasing is a bit odd, brother.’
‘You could’ve just said I went back to the house.’
Still, this was Lion’s moment to yield.

“You looked so cold, I went to fetch a blanket. But how’s your body—any pain?”
“I’m fine, sir. Nothing to report save that my Mana is entirely depleted.”
“That’s a relief, brother.”
“It’s only thanks to your mercy that I stand here at all, sir.”

There’s still something firmly stuck in his misunderstanding, Lion sensed.
Victory had come through Nature’s wrath, not through overwhelming skill—yet here Ricshel stood, crediting him with magnanimity.

“…Why don’t we head inside for a bit? You should rest.”

Lion deliberately steered away from the subject, half-dragging the statue-stiff Ricshel indoors and settling him on the bed, then draping the blanket over him.

“……”

And then a silence descended—truly pitiless and keen.

Whhhh.

Wind swept in from outside, its call cutting and cold.
It felt even more frigid than Dragnas Grand Duke’s Residence itself.
Just as Lion was about to say something—anything—to dispel the chill.

“I apologize, sir.”

Ricshel began kneeling, slowly and deliberately.

‘Of course, the initial strength of his attack did catch me off guard.’

Lion had thought it rather excessive at the time.
But that was forgotten now.
Because whether he’d intended it or not…he’d won.
His brother lay defeated.

“Why apologize so much?”

And if anything, it was Lion who owed the apology.
All things considered—all he’d concealed—wasn’t that true?
But Ricshel, unmoved by his words, murmured to himself alone.
The shock ran deeper than Lion had thought.
So Lion chose silence, and listened.

“It seems I have fallen short of your expectations.”

Ricshel was, in truth, beside himself.
There was some daze at the shock of defeat itself, but the deeper wound lay elsewhere.
He could no longer stand at his brother’s side.
Defeat.
And such a thorough one at that.

‘My training was insufficient.’

Yes. Behind the pretense of lessons in succession and protecting his brother, had he not conducted himself more as an heir to House Asteri than as the head of a renowned magical lineage?
Business. Politics. The greater good.
He had neglected to hone his true strength because of such distractions.
There was no one to blame.
The Grand Duke bore all of it while saving the world itself.
And his brother, too…….

‘Perhaps he simply chose his path.’

So there was no room for excuses, only a deepening sense of guilt.
Through his own stubbornness, he had stolen precious time from his brother.

“I should have devoted myself more thoroughly, yet I grew complacent.”
“…….”
“And so I challenged him in an insufficient state, and failed to prove myself worthy of standing at his side.”
“…….”
“Worse still, I have wasted his precious time, and this is a debt that no mere apology can settle.”

Lion, listening to Ricshel’s lengthy contrition, began to understand several things.
Chief among them was why his brother had suddenly changed his demeanor.

‘He thought this was a test……!’

Lion winced inwardly several times.
Of course—his brother, who had lived his whole life as the model student, was reading between the lines even now.
And that misunderstanding had compounded, leading him to these conclusions.

‘And I actually went and defeated him.’

With thoughts like that weighing on him, Lion could only guess at the depth of the blow.
All he could do was sigh, again and again.

“I came all this way deliberately, thinking I would provoke you…….”

Lion raised a hand to cut off the continuing stream of words.

“Ricshel.”
“Yes, brother.”
“Then you’re not going to ask me anything?”
“That would be…… the right thing to do.”

His tightly closed mouth twisted faintly in pain.
Yes. His heart wanted something else, but he couldn’t protest any further.

‘Poor kid.’

At least there was this mercy: Ricshel’s dejection had put him in exactly the right state for Lion to explain some of what had been hidden.

‘If I tell him, the misunderstanding will clear.’

Of course, he wouldn’t escape some criticism for his involvement with the Contamination.
But it was better than running away like that.
Lion smiled at ease as he watched his dispirited younger brother.

“Is that so? Then I won’t ask about this either.”

He raised his hand.
Before Ricshel could answer,
he removed his Gloves.
A blackened hand, consumed by Contamination, was revealed before Ricshel’s eyes.
The hand reflected in his violet eyes was perhaps even darker than those irises themselves.
His eyelids lifted wide, and his face drained of color.
Before the shock could deepen, Lion added an explanation.

“It’s not progressing, so don’t worry. Grandfather seems to have found a way.”
“…….”
“I keep it covered because it’s unsightly, so don’t fret about it.”

Lion put his Gloves back on and patted Ricshel’s head gently.

“I’ll tell you everything.”

Lion began to speak in a measured, quieter tone than usual, explaining various matters to Ricshel piece by piece.
How his hand came to be that way, what had happened within the Great Barrier.
And even why he had taken such actions there.
Even the tale of the Hero.

‘He couldn’t bring himself to mention Story Mode.’

That he could recognize the Hero’s belongings and had to gather them.
And that the Hero who saved the world was inside the Great Barrier.

“……I see.”

Ricshel’s lips trembled slightly from the shock.
It was far from ordinary.
It was natural to be overwhelmed.
Even Lion had only discovered these things after considerable effort.

“Truth is, I’m still not sure if I should be telling you this. Not because you lack the qualification, but because you’re still young.”
“…….”
“Still, problems arose precisely because I didn’t tell you, so I’ve decided it’s better to explain now. I’m sorry it took so long to make up my mind.”
“No, not at all.”

Multiple emotions welled up within him.
Concern, relief, a hint of resentment, and joy. All of them coexisted.
And there was one thing that became clear.
He understood what he could do right now.

“So in exchange, you made such a promise with Jack.”
“That’s right. But well, things will work out one way or another, won’t they?”

Lion shrugged as if unconcerned.
Compared to the extraordinary tale he’d just told, that was merely a minor affair.

“……I understand. Brother.”

Fortunately, his younger brother too seemed to be coming to terms with the truth, however difficult it was.

‘I need to teach them a lesson.’

Of course, Ricshel didn’t see it that way at all……!

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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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