Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing - Chapter 82

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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 Can Wait — I’ll Just Heal | Chapter 82

Just as Lion had predicted, Clarentia wasn’t sleeping.

‘Exhausted.’

A Swordmaster’s body shouldn’t be this fragile, yet a terrible fatigue had seized her with uncanny intensity.
So whenever there was nothing to do, she crawled into bed.
Only this room. Only this bed could offer her the solace she needed.

‘Maybe not even that.’

When she thought about it, that wasn’t quite right either.
How many assassination attempts had she endured in this very room?
Blades would fly while she lay prone; fires would suddenly erupt. It happened often enough.
Back then, the terror of those moments had been suffocating. But now they were simply things that had passed.
She held no great regret.
Even if she could return to that time, there was nothing she could have done.

‘Because I didn’t wield a blade.’

She had simply lived under protection.
She had made no effort to defend, so it was only fitting that she could not.
That conviction had not wavered.
Clarentia felt as though the plush bed were a deep and sticky marsh.
The sensation of sinking into it…… wasn’t unpleasant.
She thought that even if she were to sink deeper and never escape, that would be all right too.
It wasn’t true death, after all. A brief respite—why not?
If she could help it, she didn’t want to open her eyes to any disturbance.
If she didn’t do even this, she felt she truly wouldn’t endure.
Just for a moment, let her sink into stillness the way others slipped into sleep.
Always. She spent the hours lost in such thoughts.
But then…….

“Mm, that smells delicious.”

A sound emerged from Bydentis Marquess’s Private Room—a sound that should never have been heard.
Clarentia’s fingers twitched involuntarily.
Lion Asterix.
His voice, belonging to someone whose true nature remained a mystery, rang clearly through the chamber.

Crackle! Clink!

Moreover, a continuous rustling sound followed—the noise of him moving about.

‘Is he trying to wake me?’

Was he doing something reckless because she hadn’t indulged him?
That seemed possible, or so she’d thought…….
But apparently not.
Without opening her eyes, she could sense it through her aura.
He was quite busy—with something of his own.
It gently scraped at Clarentia’s nerves, trying to pull her back from the grip of apathy.

‘What on earth is he planning to do?’

She had known all along that Lion had breached her room.
She couldn’t have failed to notice.
Though she’d made it seem otherwise, Clarentia’s senses had remained sharp all the while; that alertness let her see and hear everything.

“Our lady… I mean, the Family Head. What are we to do?”
“Even so, if we lose heart, the Family Head will grieve. Let us do our best.”
“Yes, Jesper. I trust you!”

Such were the sorts of things being said.
She had known for some time that Jesper and the servants were concerned about her.
So it was likely the work of the servants, she thought.
Though it seemed to cross a line, Clarentia decided to let it pass.
She understood how deeply they followed her.

‘In any case, if I don’t respond, they’ll grow weary on their own and give up.’

No matter who Lion Asteris was, how would he manage if met with silence?
And yet….
At some point, a sweet aroma began to drift to the tip of her nose!

‘What is this….’

Clarentia focused her senses on the smell.
A slight bitterness, a savory aroma with the subtle richness of nuts.
And the sweetness that tickled her nose was….

‘Chocolate?’

So Lion Asteris was melting chocolate in the master’s sleeping chamber.
Even for someone as emotionally worn as Clarentia, this was rather absurd.
One would ordinarily ignore something that departed from good sense—but this had shattered all convention entirely, hadn’t it?
And was it harmful?
Well, it wasn’t.
……Which left her uncertain what to do.

‘Should I simply let it be.’

If it posed no threat, why should she intervene?
But to leave it alone….
It troubled her deeply.
This room had always been quiet.
Not a sound disturbed it—her own sanctuary.
Because she understood this, the servants never lingered long in her chamber.
Only the butler Jesper, perhaps.
In any case, since becoming a Marquess, no one had entered her room and behaved this way before.
And what were his intentions, not waking her or calling out to her?

‘But…… how did he melt the chocolate?’

To melt chocolate required fire….
So he had kindled a flame within the chamber?
She hadn’t sensed heat, but if he hadn’t used fire, how else could he have melted it?

‘That’s right. Fire is dangerous.’

Curiously, arson had been more perilous than assassination attempts.
Even fleeing the flames, the smoke had seeped into her lungs and stolen her breath.
Honestly, it was a memory she would rather forget.

‘Using danger as a pretext to send him away—that should work.’

That way she could at least preserve the quiet, austere peace of this morning.
Clarentia resolved this inwardly, then slowly lifted her heavy eyelids and rose from her bed.
And when she looked toward where Lion was…….
There was no fire……?

‘Did he bring melted chocolate?’

But the chocolate scent had only arrived after Lion entered the room.
A small pang of disappointment bloomed in her chest.

‘My excuse to send him away has vanished.’

What’s more, Clarentia had already gotten up.
In that case, she ought to sit by the table to properly receive the guest.
It was, after all, the duty of a Family Head to receive visitors with courtesy.
As her thoughts turned in that direction——

“You’re welcome to rest longer.”

Lion spoke without even glancing her way.
It was as though he’d read her mind.

“…….”
“There’s no need to sit at the table.”

Clarentia held her silence, then lowered herself back onto the bed.
She couldn’t fathom his reason, but since the guest had given her leave, there was no harm in it.

“…….”

It was a strange feeling.
Her eyes wouldn’t close easily because of it.
Clarentia stared blankly at the ceiling.
The familiar pattern of the plaster, which she’d seen countless times, felt unusually comforting today.
And also…….
The clattering sounds of Lion doing something didn’t grate on her nerves once she’d opened her eyes.
Rather, mingled with the rich chocolate aroma, it created an oddly pleasant sensation.
Her eyelids grew heavy and began to drift closed.
The tension in her body gradually loosened, and her pressed lips parted slightly.
And…….
…….
…….

‘……Oh!’

Clarentia’s eyes snapped open in alarm.
She’d fallen asleep.

‘This can’t be right.’

Clarentia bolted upright at once and checked the time.
The sun had already climbed high, casting warm light through the crisp air.

“……This is troublesome.”

To wake at such an hour.
This wouldn’t do.
There were mountains of duties awaiting her as Family Head…….

‘What is Jesper doing?’

If Jesper had come upstairs, she surely would have sensed his presence and woken.
But why didn’t she come back up?
Clarentia, unusually flustered, suddenly remembered Lion’s presence and turned her head.
And Lion was…….
Still sitting in that same spot, leisurely reading a book.

“You’re awake.”

Lion only then lifted his gaze from the page and looked at Clarentia.

“What are you—”

His shameless demeanor left her speechless.
Anyone watching would have thought this was Lion Asterius’s room and that she was the one committing an indiscretion.

“I’ve been waiting. Come, sit down.”
“What exactly did you do?”

Clarentia furrowed her brow as she asked.
Yes. He must have done something.
There was no other way she could have fallen into such a deep sleep so suddenly.

“I’ve done nothing.”
…….
“What power could I possibly have?”

That much was true.
That suspicious attendant was nowhere to be seen either.
Clarentia stood awkwardly for a long moment, staring hard at Lion, then moved very slowly and cautiously to sit in the chair across from him.

…….

She continued to regard him with eyes full of suspicion.

‘Like a stray cat.’

Guarded, stiff, and withdrawn—exactly like the street cats she’d seen during her commutes.
Of course, it felt a bit rude to compare a person to a wild creature, but the resemblance was unmistakable.

‘In times like this, it’s best to let them relax on their own.’

Lion ignored Clarentia’s watchful gaze and, with Nature’s help, began to melt the chocolate whose surface had begun to harden.

“Would you warm the milk for me?”
“Chirp-.”

Nature grumbled reluctantly but opened its beak and produced a low, gentle flame.
Warm enough that even touching it by hand felt pleasantly tepid.
Tiny bubbles began to form delicately at the rim of the container holding the milk, and a fresh, nutty aroma wafted up.
A sign it was warming nicely.
Lion stirred the chocolate gently with a spoon, melting it thoroughly until it thickened to the right consistency.
Watching his unhurried movements, Clarentia lowered her gaze to observe Nature.
She’d thought it was merely a pet bird.

“Is it a magical beast?”
“No.”
“Then how is a bird using flame?”
“My pet is simply gifted.”
“Chirp.”

Nature spread its wings wide with evident pride.
Even so, it was less than the width of a hand.

“…….”

Clarentia started to ask something at the sight, but held back.
She’d never been particularly talkative to begin with, and over the past few years what little conversational ability remained had all but vanished.
And besides—what more could she say when watching a chick breathe flame and use it to melt chocolate?

“If only we had marshmallow, this would be perfect.”

Lion stirred the melted chocolate and milk together slowly, murmuring as if it were a shame.
A fluffy marshmallow floating atop the hot chocolate would look lovely, and its soft, sweet flavor would bring out the best in the drink.

‘Now that I think about it, I believe someone mentioned that Mellowgrass grows on the Snow Mountain of House Bydentis.’

It was a flower that bore fruit resembling marshmallow.
If time permitted, I’d have to gather some later.

“Here you are.”

Lion poured a richly brewed hot chocolate into a cup and handed it over.

“Were you drinking this earlier as well?”
“I was waiting so we could have it together.”

Now that he mentioned it, there were two cups.
Thinking it unlikely to be poisoned, Clarentia took the cup and cradled it between both hands.
Whether from the flame’s rising temperature or simply the natural warmth, the cup holding the hot chocolate radiated a pleasant heat.

‘Tea time, then.’

How long had it been?
She couldn’t quite remember.
Clarentia didn’t drink immediately; instead, she gazed out the window.
A sharp wind was blowing, and bare branches swayed with it.
Yet the sky remained cloudless and clear, and the sun was warm.

‘Reluctant as I am to admit it, my body feels refreshed.’

In truth, she couldn’t recall the last time she’d slept properly.
Perhaps for that reason, her limbs had grown slack and languid.
It was the first leisure she’d known since becoming Family Head.
With her tension finally easing, Clarentia slowly sipped the hot chocolate.
The thick, lustrous liquid coated her tongue with a rich, dense warmth.

“……!”

She’d expected it to be overwhelmingly sweet, but it was far more bitter than anticipated.
Yet strangely, that bitterness awakened her palate.
Her sensitized tongue detected the abundant fat and the subtle sweetness woven through it.
The thick hot chocolate, too viscous to be called merely a liquid, melted once more in her mouth before sliding down her throat and disappearing.

‘This is, surprisingly…… not unpleasant.’

Before she knew it, Clarentia had become utterly absorbed in the hot chocolate.

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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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