Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing - Chapter 282

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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’s Healing Journey – Episode 282

“Well then, shall we head back? Grandfather will be worried.”
“Yes. Let’s do that.”

The two rose from their seats and stood side by side, taking hold of a Warp Scroll.
Ricshel murmured as he watched his older brother shouldering a burden far larger than he’d anticipated.

“Still, it was good we came this far. I’ve learned your secret in a place that holds meaning.”
“Ah, now that you mention it—what is this place anyway? Why did you want to come here?”
“You didn’t know?”

Ricshel looked at Lion with an expression of surprise.
He’d always assumed that his older brother could divine ten insights from a single clue, so he naturally thought Lion would have already grasped everything about this place—where it was, what it meant.

‘So he overlooked even that…….’

A small joy rose up within him alongside a pang of guilt.
It was because he could feel how deeply his brother protected him and worried for him.

‘I must do better by him.’

Ricshel answered the question while methodically laying out his grand plan to deal with Patrick.

“This is a villa where Mother took Father and fled for love, against Patrick’s wishes.”

He’d learned of it while gathering various pieces of information on his own.
Of course, at first it had simply been a place he’d meant to remember as somewhere to take a vacation with his brother someday…….
He never imagined it would become a monument to rebellion.

‘What’s broken…….’

What was he to do about a disaster that had already occurred?
Patrick would be somewhat sorrowful, but truthfully, this time Ricshel felt no shame in his actions.

‘Why did you hide this from me, then.’

Having finished justifying himself, Ricshel took the scroll from Lion’s hands, who stood staring blankly ahead.

“A building that’s already broken won’t come back. Let’s go, brother.”
“Wait—”

Before Lion could say another word, Ricshel tore the Warp Scroll apart.

“Why are you only telling me now!!”

Lion cried out in haste as he caught a final glimpse of the door frame, now crooked and sagging on its hinges.

Whoosh!

The two arrived at the Estate.
Upon returning, Lion seized Ricshel by the arm.
His hands trembled so violently that they shook like leaves in the wind.

“Your blood sugar must be low. Your hands are shaking.”
“It’s not the blood sugar making them shake…….”
“Then what is it?”
“Well, I mean to say…….”

Lion let out a deep sigh at his younger brother’s stubborn refusal to acknowledge his own wrongdoing.

“It was our parents’ first home together, wasn’t it?”
“Yes, sir.”
“The first property they ever bought……”

A place where they’d loved each other fiercely, where meaning itself resided in its very existence. Don’t you understand that?
Before the Possession, when Lion had been an ordinary citizen, he felt tears prickling at the corners of his eyes.
Because he knew all too well how sweet the dream of owning a home could be.

‘And if it’s a place Grandfather left behind……’

Lara. In other words, a place he’d kept to remember their mother.
Whether then or now, Grandfather cherished and loved his only child deeply.
The moment Lion began to sink into sentiment.

‘Does he really not know anything at all?’

Ricshel was rather taken aback.
He’d believed his older brother had more conversations with Patrick than he did.
Of course, he saw Patrick more frequently, but that was purely for business matters.
Which was why, naturally……

‘I thought they’d discussed our parents quite extensively.’

Apparently not.
Now he finally understood why he’d gone to such lengths to extract information from Jack.

‘Perhaps the conversations he’s had with Patrick were only ever about business matters.’

His older brother may have been far lonelier than he’d realized.
Lion always seemed to live happily, but through eyes already thoroughly clouded by affection, Ricshel saw something else entirely.
So in the moment he was about to clear up this small misunderstanding.

“You’re here.”

Patrick himself came to greet them both.
Then he cleared his throat and looked at the two of them.
He felt he owed Ricshel an apology, and was trying to soften the atmosphere as much as possible……

“……Why do you both look like that?”

His grandsons’ condition was far from good.
One had his clothes torn and singed as if he’d been struck by a ball of flame, while the other’s already disheveled hair was jaggedly cropped in uneven tufts sticking out every which way.
They were grimy on top of it all.
Though he’d raised only one child, Patrick had raised quite the rambunctious one, and he could tell at a glance what had happened here.
This was……

“Heh.”

A fight.
A real one, too.

“Ah…… Grandfather. I think I can explain this……”
“Explain? The one who just boasted about bringing his brother here came and got into a brawl with him, and you think an explanation is necessary?”

Just as Patrick was loading his lecture.

“Sir.”

Ricshel opened his mouth.

“I heard everything. The things you never told me.”
……

Patrick’s lips sealed shut just as he was about to scold them both.
Patrick looked to Lion to confirm the truth, and seeing his eldest grandson nod with his eyes squeezed tight, he exhaled deeply.
This was clearly not a moment for scolding them over their quarrel.
And…….

‘Well, I did prepare something.’

The custom-made parfait that had come from thoroughly cajoling the head chef turned out to be quite excellent.
Of course, Alex had collapsed under the excessive workload, but he intended to give the boy a very generous bonus, so that would be fine.

“Have you eaten?”
“Not yet.”
“I see. Then we ought to take care of that first.”

Patrick led the way toward the kitchen.
And the two of them trailed after him.
They looked precisely like grandsons who had caused trouble and were now carefully watching for their grandfather’s reaction.

“What are you planning to do about it.”
“About what?”
“That villa.”
“If you ask, I’ll tell you honestly. If you don’t, I’ll quietly restore it to its original state.”
……That’s a good idea. I’ll help.”

The two of them huddled into conversation on a different matter.

“Keep quiet in the corridors.”

Patrick hadn’t caught the exact details of their discussion, but recognizing that the two were conspiring about something, he issued the threat anyway.

‘What on earth happened to these two?’

Even as worry gnawed at him over trust with Ricshel, he had not received any report on the whereabouts of his youngest grandson.
Of course he was terribly concerned, but having once made a serious blunder when raising his only daughter, Lara, he could exercise restraint.
Patrick recalled a fragmentary moment from the past.

“Dad, seriously!!”
“Oh—Your Grace. Good evening……!”

He had anxiously followed her with Location Tracking Magic, only to discover it was his only daughter’s secret date. Did he need to explain how that felt?
And if his daughter was pinning her lover against the wall with considerable vigor, about to do something…….
Leaving aside the fury that boiled up inside him, he hadn’t been able to exchange a single word with Lara for nearly two weeks after that incident.
She was a gentle, beautiful, and good-hearted daughter.
But she had also inherited the temperament of House Asteri.

‘Just thinking about it then…….’

It was enough to draw a sigh from him unbidden.
So Patrick decided to fill their bellies first before asking any of his many questions.

“Eat first.”

Fortunately, both of them ate quietly.
Something had clearly happened, for they both consumed more than they normally would.
And even…….

“Try some of this too.”
“Yes, sir. I do think you should eat more meat yourself.”

Their bond seemed deeper than usual.
……Yes. That ought to be enough.
It wasn’t fair to hide so much from his youngest grandson while expecting to know everything himself.
Patrick made up his mind not to ask about what had happened today.
And then.

“Young Masters, did you enjoy your meal?”

Alex, having recovered enough of his strength, laid the groundwork for the parfait that awaited Lion and Patrick.

“Yeah. It was delicious. My appetite’s been especially good today.”
“I’m so glad! Then I should prepare dessert for you. Master Patrick.”
“Hmm?”

At the mention of Patrick’s name, Lion and Ricshel’s eyes widened in unison, and understanding dawned.

‘Could it be…….’
‘The reason Master Patrick was so quiet…….’
‘Was he preparing something all along?’

“Wow. I’ve been craving dessert all day. Haven’t you?”
“Yes, indeed. I’m truly eager to see what it will be.”

The words sounded like they’d been recited from a textbook, yet Patrick’s shoulders straightened.

“Haha. Young Masters, do not be alarmed! Today’s dessert is, in fact…….”

Clap, clap.

At Alex’s two handclaps, other servants entered bearing enormous platters and dishes, which they arranged across the table anew.
In perfect synchrony, they lifted the lids.

“Oh!”

Colorful ice cream sat in neat rounds, piled like profiteroles, accompanied by expertly prepared fruit, nuts, cookie crumbs, and rich golden honey.
Lion recognized it at once.
This was…….

‘A topping parfait!’

But had Grandfather made this with magic himself?

“Master Patrick has crafted a special parfait using the power of Magic. Please enjoy it with your choice of flavors and toppings. Then……!”

Alex smoothly concluded his brief explanation and departed the dining room with the other servants.
His parting gesture—a glance of encouragement toward Patrick reading “Do your best!”—was a nice touch.
It seemed he and Patrick had grown quite close through making the parfait.

“……I’m not certain the taste will be satisfactory, but go ahead and try it.”
“I will. Thank you, Master Patrick.”

Patrick swallowed dryly.
He couldn’t understand why he felt so nervous.
Still, he had poured his heart into preparing it, knowing it would go into his grandsons’ mouths.
He’d even tasted it himself.
It wasn’t bad.
The chef herself also earned high praise.
But….

‘This is nerve-wracking.’

Patrick watched his grandchildren spoon the ice cream into their mouths.
Each of them assembled their own parfait with their chosen toppings, then lifted a single spoonful to their lips.
The cold ice cream melted on their tongues, and with it, the frost that had hung over the gathering seemed to thaw away as well.
Conversation flowed naturally between them, and Patrick was able to offer Ricshel a proper apology.

“I apologize for seeing you as nothing but a child.”
“It’s all right. I did cause trouble, after all.”

It was a genuinely heartwarming scene.
The only one who seemed anxious was Lion.
Whether or not Ricshel noticed his unease, he opened his mouth to speak.
Ricshel glanced at Lion for a moment, then began.

“There was indeed some friction between myself and my brother, which resulted in certain damages.”
“I imagine so.”

Ricshel’s magical prowess was no small matter, and if Lion properly wielded his Spirit Summoning, he could unleash tremendous power.
Such was the nature of a Spirit King.
So material losses were inevitable.

“There’s no issue with that. Surely House Asteri can manage a loss of that magnitude.”

What truly mattered was that no one had been hurt—that deserved considerable credit.
But then….

“That’s odd. Even an unused villa should have servants keeping watch.”
“Ah. We made sure to go somewhere that no servants would visit, just to be safe.”
“Somewhere no one goes? Where exactly?”

Surely not….?
Patrick’s hand, holding the ice cream, froze mid-motion.
Lion was about to cut Ricshel off when—

“Yes. It was the mountain lodge that belonged to our mother. I suspect it will take at least a year to repair it.”

Ricshel answered with brazen composure, then turned to regard them both.
It was a subtle form of retribution.
Of course, revenge was not all it contained.

“And when the lodge was damaged, the Protective Magic that had been keeping you from entering was also dispelled. Once it’s rebuilt, shall we all visit together?”

Now Lion, grasping at least some of what had transpired, let out a small sound of admiration.

“…Oh. You clever bastard.”
“I learned it from you, after all.”
“….”

He’s learned well, hasn’t he…..
Well then. I’ve nothing to say. Yes.

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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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