Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing - Chapter 60

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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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Succession to the Heir, or Maybe Just Some Healing – Episode 60

Ahem.
Embrog cleared his throat.
Now it was time to achieve his true purpose.

“If you would permit it, I should also like to present a personal gift.”
“A personal gift?”
“Yes. One moment.”

Embrog gestured to Endairon, who had been waiting behind him.

“The Arch-Mage should be able to perceive spirits, I imagine. The Elder must have arranged it.”
“He did.”

Patrick recalled for a moment the Spirit Arts that the Elder Elf had granted him.

“With that magic, even non-elves such as yourselves will be able to perceive spirits clearly.”
“I already perceive their forms well enough through Mana alone.”
“Haha… I can see them too thanks to Beast Taming, but the clarity is nice all the same.”
“In any case, young master. You never stop complaining about something or other.”

Not that it had been a particularly pleasant memory.

“I can feel them well enough without it.”
“I apologize if I have overstepped.”
“Never mind. So what connection does this creature have to your personal gift?”

At Patrick’s straightforward question, Ricshel, who sat beside him, turned his head.

“Lord of the House.”

This was awkward.
He had informed the Lord, certainly, but given the urgency of his arrival, he hadn’t explained the details.
Specifically, that rather shocking detail about “the young male elf trying to take his brother away”!

‘What exactly did I tell the Lord?’

Probably just that his brother seemed to have aptitude for Spirit Arts.

‘Was that my mistake?’

He had assumed the Lord would grasp the situation from that alone.
If so, surely he wouldn’t be asking such a question…!
Ricshel was thinking he should cut the conversation short now,
but—true to his elven nature—Embrog was faster.
He began speaking as smoothly and swiftly as a running stream.

“I am a high-ranking Spirit Mage who instructs talented practitioners of Spirit Arts within my nation. This one is Endairon, a spirit partner whom I have raised from the lower ranks.”
“…”

Patrick leaned back in his chair and folded his arms.
His expression gave away nothing of what he was thinking.

“As you know, the lands where elves dwell lie quite distant from the human empire.”
“That’s so.”
“Thus, upon arriving here, unfortunately many mid-tier and lower spirits were left behind in the village. But it could not be helped—at that time, we faced an emergency on our end. However…”

At this point, it would be better to show him directly.
Embrog released the waiting Endairon freely.
And then.

[The High-grade Water Spirit Endairon has taken great affection toward you!]

Endairon strode purposefully toward Lion, who had been listening to the conversation in silence.

Thud.

The creature rested its enormous head against his thigh, then tilted its gaze upward with a soft, pleading look.
Just like a large dog hoping for a caress.
Its tail swayed gently back and forth.
It even shot up droplets of water with a bubbling sound, much like a dog whimpering.

“…….”

Lion reached beneath the table and began stroking Endairon’s chin and head without a word.
He’d meant to hold back, but the creature was far larger than expected and far more endearing than he’d anticipated—and the touch was too novel to resist.
Naturally, everyone’s eyes turned in their direction.
Even the elves wore expressions of disbelief.

“It can’t be…….”
“Endairon, of all spirits?”
“How could such a proud being ever do such a thing?!”

In truth, the High-grade Water Spirit Endairon was not a creature of domestic temperament, like a house dog.
It possessed the strength, nobility, and wild nature of a feral wolf.
Above all, it remained utterly indifferent to anyone weaker than itself, bestowing not even a glance upon them.
And yet…….
It was showing affection to Lion Asteri?

“…….”

Even Patrick Asteri appeared taken aback.
Though he’d been briefed, he had never imagined a High-grade Spirit displaying such behavior.
It was something utterly unheard of.
Only Embrog at that moment continued speaking as though he hadn’t seen it at all.

“When I went later to collect those spirits, I found that someone else was already helping the little ones…… Yes. It was Lion Asteri, right here.”
“I see.”
“Were you perhaps aware of it?”
“Aware of what?”
“Why, of such exceptional talent in Spirit Arts!”

By now, Embrog’s face had flushed with fervent excitement.
His words came faster and faster.

“I dare say, Lion Asteri possesses the makings of the greatest Spirit Arts practitioner in history. To a degree that even High Elves cannot hope to match…….”

Still continuing.

“I am certain the result would be the same with any other spirit. Have you ever seen Freanya’s Salamander? No, that creature…….”

More swiftly than anyone, more distinctly than any elf ever could…….

“Enough!”

It was only when Patrick Asteri finally infused his voice with Mana and thundered out a command that Embrog’s paean to Lion came to an end.

‘I let him run on because I wanted to hear a bit of praise for my grandson, but there’s no end to it.’

Patrick understood the situation in full.
He’d heard that Lion, his grandson—precious as the apple of his eye—possessed an exceptional talent for Spirit Arts.
But curious about just how exceptional it was, he’d simply let it be.

‘Of course, if this were a private matter, I’d have left it alone.’

Unfortunately, this was anything but a private affair.

“Ah, well. I confess I became a touch overexcited.”
“…….”
“A touch?”
“Mm-hmm.”

Sip.

Embrog drank his tea with evident satisfaction, and his complexion returned entirely to normal. One might have thought shamelessness itself had been born in a moment precisely like this.

“…….”
“But it troubles me. Why did you not inform us elves of your grandson’s outstanding gifts?”

Humans and elves had long maintained little contact with one another.
The fault lay in the elves’ insular culture.
It wasn’t that relations were poor, not at all.
But above all, this was Patrick—bearing the title “colleague of the Elder.”
Had his grandson possessed such a talent, would the elves truly have done nothing?
The Elder himself would have rolled up his sleeves and begun helping at once.

“…….”

The truth was, he really hadn’t known.
To make excuses: Lion had only been on his feet for about three months since leaving his sickbed.
And in that span, he’d already proven himself gifted at countless things.
The greatest of these was Alchemy itself.
The Hero’s Potion was proof of that.
But there was no way he could reveal such a thing before this elf.
As Patrick remained silent, Embrog let out a low, pitying sigh.

Patrick Asteri.
Colleague of the Elder Elf.
And yet he failed to recognize a treasure of gold standing before his very eyes.

That would have made things considerably easier for him, all things considered.

Patrick of House Asteri found himself at a loss for words.

‘My oversight is my own fault.’

That was how grandfathers were.
You gave and gave, but when you saw what you hadn’t given, you’d wonder why you hadn’t managed it sooner.
You’d regret not noticing a moment earlier.
This was no different.

“Of course, given the circumstances, it’s entirely understandable. In places where humans dwell, spirits are rarely seen. Ahem… but surely a splendid opportunity has presented itself.”
“A splendid opportunity?”
“What if you were to send him abroad to study?”
“To the Land of Elves? You mean my grandson?”
“Yes. Of course, he would receive the highest treatment and lack for nothing. It is my personal gift to him.”

On any other day, Patrick would have refused outright as absurd.
But Embrog’s words from moments before had caught hold of him.
Was he being too cautious, holding back Lion’s path forward?
Wouldn’t Spirit Arts serve better than Alchemy for protecting one’s body?
Such thoughts gnawed at him.
The hesitation was slight, but at least two others had noticed Patrick’s conflict.
Embrog and Ricshel.

‘To think the Master’s rhetoric would shake him so.’

The author’s cunning tongue had surely touched upon something within the household head—that much was clear.
The words were difficult to call outright false.
Yet that didn’t mean the Master had neglected his brother’s talent until now.
Even after the Mana Shock, the Master had spared no effort in supporting his brother.
Unconditional faith and backing.
And generous provision.
He wanted to say there was no need to carry guilt for it…
But any such words now would only backfire.
Then.

“Pardon me for interrupting.”

Lion raised his hand from beneath the table.
The tips of his fingers were wrinkled and damp from petting Endairon, but fortunately no one remarked upon it.

“Yes, Lion. Do you have a question?”
“About studying abroad.”
“Go on.”

Patrick answered rather slowly.

“I thought the person involved should be the one to decide.”
“Ah… yes, you’re right. Of course your thoughts are most important. But you understand, don’t you, that the education there is far superior to here?”
“Of course I don’t doubt Master Embrog’s words. Just as House Asteri is most renowned for magic, it stands to reason that place would be similarly distinguished.”
“Exactly! How remarkably perceptive of you!”

Sharp-witted too!
If Embrog had his way, he would’ve bundled the boy up in a sack and spirited him away on the spot.

“However.”

Lion smiled, as though troubled.
His expression said everything.
It was a refusal.
Embrog’s smile faded gradually away.

“Well, yes. I had anticipated this much.”

In truth, he had been expecting all of this from the start.
Ever since he realized that Lion and the House Asteri were on good terms, he’d been preparing for a losing scenario.
But.
Embrog’s eyes gleamed with sudden intensity.

“Then how about this? I won’t press the matter of studying abroad any further. However, as a first step toward human and elf exchange, why don’t Lion teach his Alchemy to Freanya, and she teach her Spirit Arts to him?”
“An exchange? What do you mean by that, sir?”
“Don’t misunderstand me. It’s called an exchange, but what I’m proposing is simply that you share your techniques with one another on friendly terms.”
“……Eh?”

Freanya’s eyes, watching from a distance, widened dramatically.
There she was, sitting quietly in a crouch, when suddenly an entire pumpkin patch came tumbling in on top of her.
Embrog added further explanation to this proposal.
It was, he said, an excellent approach from both the perspective of cultural exchange and that of preventing Lion’s “secret methods” from being exposed.

[And it will certainly prove a valuable experience for your descendants as well. There will be much for each of you to see and learn from one another.]

Ricshel suddenly recalled the Elder’s voice from that moment.

‘Was he guiding things toward this from the very beginning?’

Of course, if circumstances had shifted, that elf might have whisked his brother away outright—but the Elder had likely thought this far ahead.

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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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