Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing — Chapter 233
Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing — Chapter 233
The Second Prince was having his breakfast, savoring a moment of peace amid the bleakness.
Seizing control of the imperial court—where he did not have a single ally—was not easy, even to maintain the pretense.
Even the meal before him could at any moment be laced with a lethal poison.
Yet despite that, the Second Prince cleaned his plate without leaving a single scrap.
It was partly a statement: no matter what schemes you lot cook up, I remain standing. But more than that…
‘If I eat a solid meal, I won’t get nagged.’
A soft, amused breath escaped him.
Kyle wiped his mouth with a napkin as he finished the meal, a smile furtively tugging at his lips.
The reason for his laughter was, naturally, the anonymous benefactor who was on his way here right then… no, Lion Asteri.
The man who, despite being extremely reluctant to grow close because of Kyle’s station, could never quite abandon his softhearted concern and would slip in to cook a “meal” with his own hands.
-You eat well.
…Truth be told, he had been rather embarrassed when he first heard that praise.
It had distinctly felt like being treated as a child.
But living in this bleak place, he found himself missing those words.
And that wasn’t all.
The man was also the peculiar and deeply appreciated benefactor who had resolved the curse that had afflicted him since the very beginning.
As a result of that, so much had happened that the balance of power had tipped.
First and foremost, the removal of his greatest weakness had played a decisive role.
Kyle did not consider his illegitimate birth a weakness.
Hadn’t he been formally recognized as the Second Prince one way or another?
But the horrendous pain of the curse that followed him like a shadow had been both a shackle and a vulnerability.
When the First Prince’s “spite” had cursed him a second time…
‘I have to admit it honestly. It was critical.’
The First Prince had likely cast that curse out of simple malice, but from Kyle’s perspective, it had been a crisis that could have toppled all his grand endeavors.
If he had not happened to meet Lion Asteri during that period.
And if that man had not taken pity on him, he might well have been crumbling by then.
Or he might have long since become fertilizer in the flower beds of the First Prince’s Palace or the Empress’s Palace.
In any case, Lion Asteri lifting the curse was so monumental an act that the Second Prince owed him a debt that would take a lifetime to repay.
‘So I thought he would ask for something at least.’
Up until the very moment the Second Prince invited him to the imperial palace, Lion Asteri had not initiated a single personal message.
Instead, Jack had been the first to contact him, crowing about having thoroughly fleeced someone.
At this point, stripping away all the rhetoric about politics and profit, he simply wanted to see the man’s face at least once.
Yet the man had told him not to visit.
So what other choice was there?
“I had no choice but to invite him.”
Kyle savored the tea set before him, murmuring lazily as he laid his plans.
Once Lion Asteri arrived at the imperial court, he intended to accommodate him as much as possible.
Showing him the special plants cultivated exclusively within the court seemed promising, and since Lion appeared fond of beasts, giving him a tour of the exotic animals sent as tribute from all over would likely be a good way to earn points.
Thus Kyle had been indulging in an uncharacteristically leisurely and rather peaceful flight of fancy, when…
sensing the presence of the person he had been awaiting, he slowly turned his gaze in that direction.
At the end of that gaze, an all-too-familiar face revealed itself.
Terus Sol Ionis.
The Empire’s First Prince, and his half-brother who had been confined to quarters for his reckless antics.
An added bonus: he was also the idiotic brute who had spitefully cast the curse on him.
“It’s been a while. Brother.”
“Wh-why are you here?”
“It isn’t a place I may not come, is it.”
Kyle swatted the tired remark right back with a smile, gesturing with his hand toward the seat of lesser honor.
“You must be hungry. Please, have a seat.”
“…”
Perhaps completely incapable of tolerating even the lightest provocation, Terus’s face flushed crimson.
He had apparently never dreamed he would be seated in the secondary seat inside the First Prince’s own palace.
Kyle, seated in the seat of honor, tilted his head.
“Is there a problem?”
“…N-no. Nothing.”
The First Prince swallowed his fury.
While he had been confined, he had vaguely heard that much had changed.
His father, the Emperor, had—for reasons unknown—begun granting that accursed bastard’s requests, leaving the imperial attendants directionless and pulled every which way.
In other words…
unacceptable though it was, that bastard now stood closer to the position of Crown Prince.
‘…No. It’s fine. I can endure this.’
Terus tamped down his habitual hot temper, muttering to himself.
Hadn’t his mother, the Empress, said as much?
Everyone faces adversity, and there are certainly those who stumble and fall.
“However, that shall not be the case for a prince. Trust in your mother.”
She had said those very words.
His mother was not one to speak nonsense.
And every word she uttered, she invariably kept.
He trusted she had a very fine stratagem.
Thinking that, he felt he could bear this much adversity.
Besides, was the curse he had placed on that bastard’s body not still hale and whole?
‘I should have placed a stronger curse.’
Merely watching him cough up blood and waste away was not satisfying enough.
The First Prince ground his teeth, chewing over every scrap of curse-related knowledge that rose in his mind, one by one.
‘Hmph, I will repay this humiliation tenfold.’
Regaining a calmer countenance than before, Terus took his seat at the side.
Of course, Kyle was no happier about this company than his brother was.
By nature, Kyle did not relieve stress by tormenting others.
Doing so brought less benefit than training or meditation ever would.
“I do not know whether you have been informed, so I will speak plainly. From today, people from the Houses of Asteri and Bydantis are arriving on business related to the Emperor’s Birthday celebration.”
Before the First Prince could tack on a single word, Kyle delivered the rest.
“Therefore, stay as quiet as a dead mouse. Brother.”
“Wha—!”
The First Prince, who had been trying to keep his composure moments ago, immediately snapped.
“Who are you to issue me such an order?”
“It would cut much deeper coming from the Emperor’s own lips, would it not?”
“You wretch!”
The First Prince snatched the tableware set before him and hurled it at Kyle.
Under ordinary circumstances, not a single piece should have touched him…
Slice!
To his astonishment, today was different.
A sharp dinner knife had grazed Kyle’s cheek!
A thin red line split the Second Prince’s cheek, and soon a trickle of crimson blood ran down.
Witnessing the sight, the First Prince barely restrained a burst of triumphant laughter.
‘Just as I thought—for all your swagger, you’re in poor shape, aren’t you?’
Yes. This was a cursed wretch, after all.
Walking around at all must be the best he could manage!
“I have no counsel to hear from you. Get out of my sight.”
“Hmm.”
Even the First Prince’s imperious bellow drew only an indifferent response from Kyle.
He merely ran a fingertip along his cheek to gauge the wound.
‘This much should be enough to draw attention.’
It had all been within the bounds that Kyle had intended to provoke.
Was the Imperial Prince not astoundingly simple-minded?
Had he been born a commoner, he would surely have been thrashed and driven out ages ago for his character.
Kyle bent down, picked up the knife that had flown past him, and straightened up, approaching the First Prince seated at the subordinate seat.
Then—thunk.
He drove the dinner knife vertically into the finely grained, sturdy tabletop.
“Eek.”
The First Prince stifled a shriek at the sight of the knife embedded to the hilt a mere half-finger’s width from his own hand.
“I return this to you. You’ll need it if you’re to eat. Now, if you’ll excuse me.”
Unlike some people, I am busy.
Having achieved his objective, Kyle immediately departed the First Prince’s Palace.
He had procured a wound, and he had delivered his warning.
Any emergency measure that might arise from this could be fully prepared for.
The utterly cowardly First Prince would probably dare attempt nothing at all.
So that meant…
‘I need only to keep the Empress properly in check.’
Having swiftly dealt with the troublesome small fry, Kyle went directly to the gate where the carriage would arrive.
The weather was remarkably fine today.
* * *
And just as Kyle had expected, the moment Lion stepped down from the carriage and saw Kyle’s face, his mouth fell helplessly open.
“Greetings, Your Highness.”
“All three of you have had a long journey.”
“Not at all. However…”
Given the setting, instead of Lion who merely stood blinking, Rickshel addressed Kyle, his gaze fixed steadily on the Second Prince’s cheek.
Considering the depth of the wound and the Second Prince’s skill level, it was a wound that could never have been inflicted in normal circumstances.
Yet the trajectory did not match the angle of a self-inflicted cut either.
‘Currently, the only person within the imperial household capable of such a thing is…’
Only the First Prince.
And as the First Prince was confined to his quarters, he would at most be able to move around inside the First Prince’s Palace.
Which meant.
‘He deliberately took a hit and came to us.’
The reason was likely to draw his brother’s attention.
Having grasped the entire sequence of events, Rickshel merely narrowed his eyes and said nothing further.
Marquis Bydantis, deeply versed in swordsmanship, wore an expression no different from Rickshel’s.
Even under their heated scrutiny, the Second Prince shamelessly opened his mouth.
“I had a minor accident during the meal. I was in a rush to get here and couldn’t have it treated.”
“It should not take long to treat it.”
“I could not keep my guests waiting.”
“…”
Rickshel judged that the Second Prince’s rhetoric had improved considerably in their time apart.
But pressing the point further here would…
A furtive glance.
…needlessly worry his elder brother.
There were too many watching eyes as well.
It would be better to move inside where there were fewer eyes and continue the conversa—
“I apologize for asking the moment you arrive, but could you first inspect the condition of the hunting grounds where the birthday festivities will be held?”
“Pardon?”
“It would be even better if Marquis Bydantis could also accompany them.”
“…”
This wretch. He was making the request in a crowded place specifically so he could not refuse.
Frankly, Rickshel wanted to say no right this instant, but…
‘It is reasonable.’
While they went to inspect the hunting grounds, it would allow them to personally confirm whether anything nearby could threaten his brother or themselves.
“And I have a personal matter on which I wish to seek Sir Lion’s advice.”
“Sounds good.”
“Brother.”
It was Lion who granted consent before Rickshel could.
Under ordinary circumstances, he would have grumbled that the man was piling work onto his little brother the moment they arrived, but the environment here was a little different.
On the surface, it was quiet and peaceful, but beneath, it was surely no different from a battlefield.
‘And among the people here, I’m the one with the highest probability of being targeted.’
If that was the case, he was better off going inside with the Second Prince instead.
…He had no idea what the man would ask, but since the fellow seemed to want to see him, he probably wouldn’t pose anything too excessive.
Having made his judgment, Lion nodded toward Rickshel as if to say it was fine.
“Better to get our tasks done quickly and go back. Don’t you think?”
“A valid point.”
“…Yes. That is correct.”
In the end, Marquis Bydantis and Rickshel had to depart for the hunting grounds practically the instant they arrived, as the Second Prince had dictated.
Of course, they did not forget to glance back over their shoulders, their eyes warning the Second Prince.
A warning that they would not stand idly by if he did anything foolish.
‘Well, now.’
I’m a proper villain and no mistake.
Nonetheless, the Second Prince did not concede defeat, waving at the departing duo.
Victory belonged to the one who struck first.
“Then let us go inside.”