Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing — Chapter 265
Lion leaped into the pit the instant Petrick finished speaking.
‘That’s quite a height.’
If he hadn’t had that experience of falling from the sky not long ago, he might have been quite frightened.
Or he would have landed inelegantly with a thud.
Fortunately, this time.
Tap.
He was able to land lightly on the ground thanks to Nature’s wind.
“Phew.”
“Peep, peep.”
Lion gave Nature a light high-five and then looked around.
To anyone else, it was pitch-black darkness, but to Lion’s eyes, it was a little different.
‘This is…’
Lion observed the thing spread out before him.
He could see something tangled like a net.
It looked like a giant spiderweb or an old net.
“If I had to say… it’s a plant.”
It was a plant visibly pulsating.
He couldn’t tell if it was in the process of absorbing nutrients or expelling them, but it was moving continuously at a constant rate.
Like veins connected to a heart.
And…
‘So this is what was shining here.’
So this was why the whole ground was glowing.
It wasn’t good that its range was considerable…
‘But it being harvestable is good news.’
Lion didn’t move immediately but carefully examined the plant.
Realistically, he couldn’t harvest the whole enormous thing.
‘Grandfather has his own physical limits, after all.’
He hadn’t simply lifted the ground.
He must have considered its compatibility with the Great Barrier and cast an illusion spell at the same time to hide it from the old castle.
If so… time was quite pressing.
‘Let’s check it out first.’
Lion took the dagger from his bosom and cut off part of the stem.
After he struck the tough stem a few times…
Shrrrk!
Sap sprayed out and the fine roots fell away.
“Ugh.”
Lion stared at the dark, murky sap on his robe.
It seemed to be the type that sprayed its fluids as a final desperate act.
If he had been bare-skinned, it would have been quite a disaster.
Sssss…
With a chilling sound, the contamination was purified.
The problem was that, perhaps because it wasn’t perfectly purified, not only the robe but also the dagger’s blade was corroded.
‘The dagger Mudu made for me, just like that?’
That wasn’t all.
Crumble-
The piece of stem he had forcibly torn off rotted and crumbled in his hand.
‘As for the part it was torn from…’
A new root had already grown out.
Its regenerative power was quite remarkable.
Moreover, tapping it a few times with the dagger told him something:
it was now made of longer and thicker fibers than before.
“Meaning I don’t have many chances.”
It was one of those moments where he thought he might have to just pull out the whole thing.
“So it’s coming down to this. Fine. Very well…”
Lion smiled.
He had expected it wouldn’t be easy.
Hadn’t he even gotten this far thanks to his grandfather’s help?
If so, he had to finish this quickly too.
“First, I need a few supplies.”
Lion rummaged through his inventory and took out various items.
First, an axe that could cut through this tough plant in one swing.
He hadn’t used it normally because it was quite heavy,
but now nothing else would do.
And… the staff of House Asteri.
‘Honestly, it’s a bit of a burden.’
After all, if he used it once here, there would only be one use left.
Even worse, it would break and disappear right after.
And if he used the enhancement magic carelessly and ended up seeing things he shouldn’t again, like last time…
‘That would be a pretty big problem.’
But—
This wasn’t the time to be picky.
And if, by any chance, he suddenly shifted into Story Mode, he could trust Tiamatrak to watch his back, so it was fine.
Lion immediately grabbed the staff and closed his eyes.
[Self-Enhancement Magic is used.]
[Due to the effect of the current weapon, Self-Enhancement Magic rises by two levels!]
Up to here, it was the same as before.
But—
[You possess Mana Circles exceeding your current limit.]
[Will you use them?]
‘Ah.’
It meant whether he would even use Tiamatrak’s Circle.
‘If I use it now…’
It would be on a whole different level than when he had the First Circle.
Both the level of power and the strain.
However.
‘This is probably my last chance.’
For a while.
No, maybe for quite a long time, he wouldn’t be able to come to the Great Barrier.
Isn’t it a little strange for the Temple to leave early just because of one rumor?
Of course, it was a check on him.
‘I’ll use it.’
As Lion internally agreed to the question, the Mana Circles sleeping near his heart began to move all at once.
[This may place a great burden on the caster. Please be careful.]
Along with the final notification.
Thump.
A change took place in Lion’s body.
‘…’
Truly, at the bizarre sensation, Lion opened his eyes without realizing it.
Then, things he had never been able to see came into view.
Things he would never have seen in his lifetime—everything—became visible.
‘No, this wasn’t…’
It was more accurate to say he perceived them.
They were not entering his brain through the cornea and retina; instead, he perceived their essence through all five senses.
And that wasn’t something accomplished simply by enhancing the eyes.
Perhaps powerful self-enhancement magic strengthened the body itself in a suitable direction.
If so…
‘It means I’m safe for now.’
He wouldn’t collapse or lose consciousness immediately.
Of course, it was drawing on his future stamina.
‘Well, it was similar during overtime work.’
Lion lightly pulled the axe he had planted in the ground and walked towards one location.
The whole place flashed with a golden light, but now he could see it clearly.
There was a slightly more special and distinct light, in an ambiguous place, neither the center nor the edge of the land.
“Nature. Can you clear the dirt around here?”
“Peeeep.”
Fortunately, controlling Nature also had no issues.
Nature immediately and neatly shook off the dirt from the area Lion designated.
The more dirt was shaken off and the thing inside was revealed, the more the plant writhed and gathered around it.
As if to hide it, to protect it.
Perhaps as if trying not to let its host be taken away.
And at last.
Shriek!
The thing that had merely regenerated even when its flesh was torn shot up sharply towards Lion.
But—
Splash!
Lion’s splash of Holy Water was just a little faster.
To be precise, it was more like he shoved it in, bottle and all.
With the sound of something evaporating, the plant’s movement halted for a moment.
‘Now.’
Lion immediately swung the axe down on the plant’s weak point.
Crrrack!
The chilling scream-like sound of thick wood breaking pierced his heightened hearing.
Maybe it was the plant’s defense mechanism.
At the same time, black sap burst out and splattered onto his robe and face.
The sticky liquid clinging to his cheek dripped down.
Lion stomped on the plant with his foot and wrenched the axe free.
And swung it down again.
Right now, the best plan was to suppress his personal feelings and move as swiftly as possible.
‘Good. I see it.’
The target within the black interior of the plant.
Lion held the plant open with the axe for support and thrust his hand inside without hesitation.
The robe he was wearing instantly turned pitch-black.
Even Lion’s gloves, which had been fine even when held to fire, became dark and murky.
Also, the sensation of putting his hand in wasn’t pleasant at all…
‘Found it.’
Lion muttered to himself, careful to keep the liquid flowing down his face from entering his mouth, and grabbed the object.
And pulled. Pulled hard.
But—
Jolt.
“…!”
It wouldn’t come out.
No, he was being sucked in further.
It felt as if something on the other side of this abyss was pulling it to keep it from being taken.
It was a last desperate struggle, but Lion couldn’t give up here either.
‘I should have taken out more Holy Water.’
No, if he had, it would have hidden it completely so that he wouldn’t even be able to strike it with the axe.
‘Or he would need divine power so strong it couldn’t make a sound.’
In the meantime, his hand was pulled in past the wrist, up to the elbow.
The contamination penetrated the robe and touched the gap between the glove and the shirt.
“Lion!”
From far away, he heard his grandfather’s shout.
-Lion. Switch with me now.
-What you want is to pull that thing out right now.
-Or let me help too!
“I appreciate it, but…”
Your job is to transport me, so I’m afraid you’ll have to wait a bit.
If we switch now, we might face a real crisis when things are truly urgent.
‘…It’s already kind of a crisis, though.’
Haha.
Lion muttered as he spat out the liquid that had gotten into his mouth.
There were still methods that existed…
‘But calling Elvia was…’
The place was dangerous too, and the probability of not achieving the objective was high.
Elvia preferred watching interesting things, but before that, she prioritized her own safety above all.
Likely, the clue I was holding onto now would shatter to pieces.
Lion immediately thought of the next method.
Lion glanced at the notification floating at the edge of his vision.
[If you wish, you can walk the Path of the Priest at any time.]
The Path of the Priest.
Accepting Anyatras’s suggestion.
Since he had likely received God’s direct summons, he probably wouldn’t use ordinary divine power.
But—
‘Hiss, still, this isn’t it.’
Lion immediately shook his head.
The risk was considerable.
In that case… there was one last method.
‘The Spirit Sword Fragment.’
An item that could save his life once.
If he used it, he could probably instantly resolve the contamination of ‘this thing’ in his hand too.
Just as he made up his mind and was about to release his power.
A small, tiny, and opaque palm touched his forearm.
-You…!!
At the same time, Tiamatrak’s horrified voice was heard.
It was Grand Duke’s Son.
Lion looked at Grand Duke’s Son’s hand.
He had been semi-transparent because he was a soul, but now he was even more blurred.
He must have consumed a lot to force his way into this place.
He was nothing but a soul, so the price was probably…
“You really don’t listen, do you!”
Lion gritted his teeth and applied force to his hand again.
The crybaby Grand Duke’s Son flinched and trembled at Lion’s scolding, but as if insisting stubbornly, he pulled on Lion’s arm together with his bracken-like hands.
Then surprisingly, just like with Tiamatrak, a sensation was felt, and.
-…!
Though very small, a voice was also heard.
It was a voice far too young to come from a ghost.
That voice kept calling out for something.
-Father, Father!
He didn’t know if other words were omitted, or if only this word was heard due to a strong wish.
But one thing was certain.
Grand Duke’s Son kept shouting toward something inside this black liquid.
If so…
‘So this clump of contamination trying to pull me in is the Grand Duke?’
He had expected it to some extent based on the location, but he couldn’t believe it.
Lion’s eyes were quite accurate right now.
It meant he could perceive everything.
That meant, the Grand Duke’s soul was currently…
It meant it was damaged beyond recovery.
Maybe it would be better to just annihilate it.
Surely Grand Duke’s Son would know this.
Even so, Grand Duke’s Son kept calling out.
Father. Father.
Dad.
That the biological father who killed him had actually loved him the most and cherished him—very strongly.
He believed it without a doubt.
Was it because of that intense wish?
The force pulling Lion loosened, just for a moment, ever so slightly.