Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing - Chapter 3

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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, Unknown—So I’ll Just Heal Chapter 3

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Even after sending Silvia away, Lion spent considerable time combing through the Garden.
Before he could execute his plan, he first needed to clear the “Three Stars” Achievement.
Fortunately, thanks to the prestige of being a renowned magical house, medicinal herbs were scattered everywhere—and with an expert’s eye, he was able to procure the remaining two herbs with ease.

[You have obtained White Star Fern!]
[You have obtained Blue Moon Fern!]

[“Three Stars” Achievement completed!]
[You have acquired 20,000 Silling!]

[Congratulations! Gathering Proficiency has reached Apprentice Lv. 5!]
“Yes—now that’s what I’m talking about!”

Lion let out a triumphant cry as he read the messages.
Twenty thousand Silling.
A hundred percent of everything he’d scraped together through tedious work had arrived in one fell swoop!
That alone was enough to make him grin, but the gains didn’t end there.

[Potion Crafting Talent activated.]
-You realize that you can create a special potion by combining three types of herbs.

A recipe for a specific potion had automatically inscribed itself in Lion’s mind!
This was thanks to his Potion Crafting Specialization.

‘The only drawback is the Silling Shop still isn’t open.’

It seemed, as he’d initially guessed, it required one hundred thousand Silling to unlock.
In any case, preparations were complete.
In his room lay the basic alchemy equipment set, arranged just as he’d asked Silvia to provide it.

“So then…”

Should he try some work?
To be safe, he shut the window and drew the curtains, then surveyed the carefully arranged potion bottles in the pitch-black room.
They appeared to be of considerable quality, as befitted items procured by the Asteria Family.
Working like this in the darkness was rather bizarre, but appearances hardly mattered now.

“I should start with a basic potion first.”

His first step toward gaining more footing within the Asteria Family.
It was, quite simply, winning his grandfather’s favor.
Already marked for displeasure—presumably—one or two gestures wouldn’t suffice, but if he showed up empty-handed in this situation, his approval rating would plummet straight through the basement and into the abyss.
At minimum, he needed proof that he hadn’t spent the past month doing nothing, just to keep it from dropping further.
And fortunately, he’d just obtained excellent items and a potion recipe.
Before he used the herb with stars attached!

Rustle.

Lion withdrew the common, low-grade herbs.
Since this would be the first potion he’d ever crafted, he needed to practice before attempting the real work.

‘Just like the “Novice Herbalist” Achievement, gathering had its repetitive grind.’

Then potion crafting likely had similar achievements of its own.
If he kept chasing those achievements, wouldn’t he naturally reach at least Apprentice Level 4?
Unlike within the game, now that reality had become tangible, the difference that Proficiency levels made was far more striking.

‘Even with Gathering, not Potion Crafting, it made a real difference.’

And that was merely the Apprentice rank among all those tiers.
Apprentice was the lowest step in the Proficiency ladder.
Above it came Journeyman, Artisan, and finally the Master rank—accessible only to the top one percent.
Yet even at this lowest rung, the feel in his hands was different, and the damage to the herbs varied.
Then naturally, leveling up had to be the priority.

‘If my prediction is right……’

When he’d pulled herbs a hundred times while Gathering, he’d earned the Novice Herbalist Achievement.
So what would it take for Potion Crafting?

“A hundred potions made, and a hundred potions drunk. That’s all there is to it.”

He had plenty of herbs on hand, and the Potion Crafting Talent to boot.
And to crown it all, an Alchemy Set of quality that exceeded his expectations.
Luxurious equipment indeed for crafting Low-Grade Health Potions.
What was a silver spoon in one’s mouth good for if not this?
Might as well spend freely.

‘It’s not as though the money will be mine anyway.’

Lion gathered his stored herbs into a massive Cauldron.

‘Of course it was Silvia.’

At the mere mention of an Alchemy Set, she’d brought him everything from basic glassware and flasks to all manner of magically treated equipment.
Especially that Cauldron which heated without flame, the Mortar that ground herbs on its own, the Distiller that prevented burning entirely!
Given the ancient script inscribed here and there, she’d clearly retrieved special artifacts from the Family Warehouse.

‘Truly, the silver spoon life.’

To obtain such luxurious items with a single word.
With that thought, Lion stirred the herbs in the Cauldron as if roasting tea leaves, until the herb-leaves dried crisp and golden.
Once a fresh, rich aroma began to drift from the Cauldron, he removed the dried leaves, ground them to powder, mixed the extract with the powder, and fed everything into the Distiller.
Then he reached toward the Distiller and commanded:

“Extract.”

Whoosh!

A faint shimmer bloomed, and translucent liquid streamed out to fill the vial.
And then……

[You have successfully crafted a Low-Grade Health Potion.]

Success!

[Asteria Low-Grade Health Potion]
—Though made through a process simple enough to be classed as mere Processing, your promising Talent combined with excellent materials has allowed it to barely touch the realm of true Alchemy.
—It grants the user a minor increase in physical vitality.

“Equipment really does make all the difference.”

Good items paired with Talent had yielded a respectable result.

Gulp!

Lion drained the Low-Grade Health Potion in one gulp.

[Health partially restored. Current health: 80%]

[Novice Alchemist (1) Achievement — 1/100 until completion]

Just as he’d anticipated, the achievement was progressing nicely as well.

“Ha ha ha. Just you wait, Grandfather!”

Lion made no attempt to hide the manic edge in his laughter as he spent the night methodically crafting potions and drinking them in turn.
As dawn crept slowly across the sky and the count reached one hundred potions crafted and consumed…….

[Novice Alchemist (1) Achievement unlocked!]
[You have acquired 1,000 Silling!]
[Congratulations! Your Alchemy Proficiency has advanced to Apprentice Level 4!]

As expected.
He’d climbed to Apprentice level four.

‘Which means…….’

Lion gazed at the herb marked with a star.
At last he could use that special herb.
And the level four breakthrough had granted him a fine new recipe as well.

— Mental Fatigue Recovery Potion

“Yes. This is what I’ve been waiting for.”

All the while he’d been hunting for herbs, Lion had been pondering the question.
What gift would truly please the old man?
A Mana Potion for a grandfather whose Mana flowed in abundance?
And it hardly seemed fitting to offer a Health Potion when a professional healer-mage stood perpetually on call.
But recovery from fatigue—
A potion that restored mental exhaustion in particular? That was something else entirely.
The old man labored under work every single day.
No matter how formidable his willpower, no matter how he pushed his body to its limit through Mana, surely the weight of office wear on the spirit couldn’t be so different from any other salaryman’s burden.

“Then let’s try it.”

Lion plucked herb leaves that gleamed in different hues one after another.
This recipe differed starkly from everything before.
He added the basic green foliage first, then the red and blue herbs, stirring them gently in the Cauldron.
The scent that rose was leagues apart from before — fresh and bracing, almost crystalline.
His nose, clogged from hours of potion-crafting, suddenly cleared; the dull throb in his temples from fatigue simply melted away.
And beyond that…….

‘Something is different.’

This sensation was identical to the feeling when he’d harvested the starred herb.
His intuition sang, and the Mortar moved with exquisite grace beneath his hands.
That peculiar joy that accompanies the successful unfolding of intention wrapped around his entire body.
Now came the moment to pour the roots into the Cauldron and crush them into the liquid.
And astonishingly, clear viscous liquid began to seep from the roots as heat worked upon them.

Blub-blub-blub!

Remarkably, the liquid inside the Cauldron had begun to glow.
It was like a clear, beautiful day reflected in a stream — a night sky mirrored in still water.

‘So that’s what Mental Fatigue Recovery Potion means?’

Something about it summoned fragments of good memories, making him smile without quite meaning to.

‘In the game, it was just another mundane potion. But now that it’s real, it feels completely different.’

Lion scooped liquid from the Cauldron and poured it in a thin stream into the Distiller.
And then…….

“Extract.”

The word fell from his lips softly, just as it had before.

Flash!

The room ignited with light as if struck by lightning!
The liquid from the Distiller didn’t fall straight into the potion bottle — instead it defied gravity, suspended and floating in the air.
It scattered into fine mist like clouds, filling the entire room.
Droplets hanging densely throughout the space sparkled like starlight in a night sky, their surfaces catching and reflecting the glow.
It was just like that summer night in childhood, sitting in the Rural Pavilion with a gentle breeze caressing his skin, watching the heavens.
The song of crickets, the way wind moved through grass…….
A strange emotion washed over him — the resurfacing of some forgotten memory — and his chest grew still and calm.

‘And I haven’t even drunk it yet. If this is what I feel…….’

The potion seemed far better than he’d anticipated.
The small droplets hovering in the air drew back together, reformed into a single bead of liquid, and flowed into the potion bottle.
The transparent bottle now held a deep blue liquid, clear as an autumn sky.

[You have successfully crafted a Mental Fatigue Recovery Potion (★★)!]
-It allows the drinker to recall happy memories from the past, dispelling mental fatigue.
-It has no effect on those without happy memories.

“A two-star potion?”

A potion that shouldn’t be possible at apprentice level had materialized before him.
It must have been the Potion Crafting Specialization triggering.
‘Even so, this is the kind of potion that shouldn’t appear until around Proficiency Level 8.’
This would more than suffice as a gift for his grandfather.

[Congratulations! Your Alchemy Proficiency has reached Apprentice Level 5!]

The level cap that had been blocking him finally broke through.
At the same time, several new recipes flooded into his mind.

‘Wait — there’s more.’

If Lion’s expectations were correct, then surely…….

Ping!

[You have crafted a potion beyond your current skill level.]
[You have achieved the ‘Potion Fanatic’ Achievement!]
[You have received 25,000 Silling!]
[Your Mana increases permanently by 1.]

[A possibility for creating a Mana Circle has emerged.]
[The talent ‘Mana Allocation’ has been activated.]
[You can control Mana more precisely than others.]

It was exactly what Lion had anticipated.
That Potion Fanatic Achievement.
From what he remembered, high-level life skills in In the World consumed Mana.
People couldn’t ordinarily craft certain items or gather certain materials—that was the established rule.
So when you achieved a difficult Achievement like this, you could earn Mana.

‘Not in huge amounts, admittedly.’

But the fact that he’d obtained it at all was what mattered.
For someone like Lion Asteria, this was a watershed moment.
A body that had never possessed Mana his entire life could finally accept it.
And the Mana Allocation skill he’d bought before but couldn’t unlock—it was finally activated!

“Hah-ha… Ahahaha!”

Lion burst into laughter. Dopamine surged through him like lightning!
And money, no less.
He’d earned actual money!
Sixty-six thousand Silling in total!
His entire fortune had tripled overnight.
At this pace, he’d hit one hundred thousand Silling before long.
Then the Silling Shop would open, and he’d finally be able to spend cash like in the real game!

‘But what would they sell?’

It didn’t seem like they’d just carry over the same items from In the World…….

Ding!

[Your assets exceed 50,000 Silling. Silling Shop preview is now available.]
[Would you like to view it?]

“Of course.”

Lion immediately composed himself and gazed into empty space.

[Preview unlocked.]
[Currently, you may only view item categories.]
[Item descriptions are hidden.]

Lion slowly examined the categories.
Living Goods, Food, and Grooming sections existed, while the rest remained locked.

[Coming Soon]

Those would open when the Silling Shop had its official launch, presumably?

“Let me start with Living Goods.”

Lion selected the Living Goods category.

[Sharp Scissors]
-■■,000 Silling
[Basic Fishing Rod]
-■■,000 Silling (Staff Pick!)
[Old Key]
-■■■,000 Silling

“…….”

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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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