Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing — Chapter 270
“Ugh…”
Several days had passed before Lion opened his eyes again.
I remembered going into the room to stop my nosebleed, but…
‘After that, I have no memory at all.’
Most likely I’d passed out cold right then.
My body had genuinely been in that kind of condition.
Honestly, given my condition, what I truly needed was to rest and recuperate quietly, not to confront the Archbishop.
‘No, he started it first…’
He was the one who picked the fight, wasn’t he?
If it had only been me, fine, but that bastard Archbishop went after Grandfather.
What a piece of work.
Is a man of the cloth allowed to act like that?
Frankly, I hadn’t been able to get properly angry, so a heavy residue of resentment still lingered.
Inwardly cussing out the Archbishop, Lion raised his body, and—
‘Gyaaahk!’
At the excruciating pain, he collapsed back onto the bed with a flump.
With that, the cord-like things attached to his body came loose with a clatter.
‘Cords?’
Now that he thought about it, this wasn’t Dragnas Castle.
Nor was it the carriage, nor the Asteri Mansion.
This place was…
“Your sense of pain is returning now, so it will be extremely painful. Do not move.”
“…Ha ha. Have you been well all this time?”
“…”
Hoffman, who had been reattaching the magic healing tools to Lion’s body, stopped what he was doing and stared at Lion as if dumbfounded.
That gaze practically radiated ‘Is now really the time for you to be worrying about my well-being?’, so Lion had no choice but to force an even more hollow laugh.
“Do not laugh. I am not Lord Petrick.”
“Yes, sir.”
Lion immediately wiped away the laugh and just stared blankly up at the ceiling.
“In my entire life, I have seen our Family Head turn that pale four times.”
Having finished connecting everything, Hoffman checked Lion’s body temperature.
And then—
“And every single cause was you alone.”
Pinch!
“Gyaaah!”
He twisted Lion’s cheek firmly.
The hands of a Magic Tower Lord who always carried a staff and a pen were punishingly harsh.
“After your mana shock ended, I thought I would never have to see that face again, and yet here you are committing an incident like this!”
“Th-That is…”
With his cheek stretched taut and his words garbled, Lion tried to offer a clumsy excuse, but—
“Whatever the reason may be, you must not do such things.”
Hoffman continued in a fierce voice.
“I know what lies in your heart. It must be something you wish to protect. You may even think that sacrificing yourself alone will suffice.”
In practice, thanks to Lion’s talents, things had been getting resolved somehow up until now.
None of House Asteri’s resources had been expended, and not a single finger had been lifted by the direct line, let alone the collateral branches.
“…”
“The Family Head, too, was likely unable to say these words to you. To him, you are a particularly sore point.”
It was true.
There were reasons Grandfather hadn’t resorted to forceful measures.
And Lion, while fully aware of those reasons, had pretended not to notice.
In a way, he had taken advantage of Grandfather’s feelings.
“Of course, you are a sore point to me as well. Every time you have been on the brink of death, I have always been the one to save you.”
Lion gave a small nod.
If someone else had said such things, that would be one matter, but Hoffman was different.
The three mana shocks.
And on top of those, had he not taken responsibility for every minor examination and treatment?
Furthermore…
“To you he may be your grandfather, but to me, he is my idol.”
Grandfather.
No, he was someone who had grown up idolizing the hero Petrick Asteri.
An 8th-Circle Archmage, the Head of Asteri. And the one who brought the War Against the Demons to a conclusion.
Seeing such a man be swayed so helplessly and suffer such heartache over a single Lion, how maddening must that be for Hoffman?
‘If I were him, I’d want to smack me upside the head.’
Of course, there were several mitigating circumstances, but since it was true that this time he had used an especially dangerous method, Lion simply kept his mouth shut.
He had been getting thoroughly scolded for some time when—
“That will be enough.”
“…Family Head.”
The Magic Tower’s lift opened, and Petrick stepped into the room.
“Is Lion’s body all right?”
“It appears his sense of pain has recovered by now, but he absolutely must rest and recuperate for at least several weeks. And…”
Hoffman looked at the back of Lion’s hand.
“The pollution is not spreading any further than this, but it seems best to remove it as swiftly as possible.”
“I see. You have worked hard.”
“Not at all. However…”
Hoffman looked at Petrick.
From his position closest to the Family Head, had he not witnessed firsthand what kind of ordeals the Family Head had endured while Lion lay unconscious?
“Hm?”
At that gaze, Petrick let out a soft snort, raised one corner of his mouth, and patted Hoffman lightly on the shoulder.
“It seems staring up at nothing but the sky has made you rather sentimental.”
“My apologies. I meant no such implication. Then…”
Hoffman hastily inclined his head and yielded his place.
“Truly, so soft-hearted.”
Still, the fact that he had voiced Petrick’s own feelings to his grandson was something to be praised.
“You seem to have had the wits thoroughly knocked out of you. Yes. You were especially scared of Hoffman when you were small, weren’t you?”
Perhaps as a lingering effect of that, Lion was secretly gauging Petrick’s mood.
“Lion.”
“Yes, Grandfather…”
“You are liable to cause even greater trouble in the future, so why do you shrink back at this?”
“…Excuse me?”
Petrick let out a light sigh and sat down on the chair beside the bed.
“I mean that you should not worry too much about what has already happened. Of course, every time you collapse, I feel as though a decade is shaved off my lifespan.”
“I-I’m sorry. Grandfather.”
“Very well. That is precisely the right amount. Do not worry yourself beyond that. And…”
Ahem. Petrick cleared his throat and opened the bag fastened inside his robe.
Inside it were…
“Squeak! Kiyii!”
Pooch cried out as though heartbroken after being separated from its master for so long, while—
“Peep! Peeeepip!”
Nature, who would unquestionably be showering him with profanity-laced nagging had it been human.
“It seems you will need to convalesce here for some time, so I brought them.”
The moment Petrick set the bag down—
“Kiyii!”
Pooch instantly vaulted high into the air and dove straight onto Lion’s stomach!
Oof!
As tenacious little paws pressed firmly into his skin—
“Nghhgh…!!”
Monstrous muscle pain made Lion’s whole body tingle sharply.
The sensation was so much like being electrocuted that it even brought a faint sting of tears to his eyes, but Pooch’s fervent licking erased the tears and left a mess of slobber instead.
“There, now… Pooch. All right. Wait, gah!”
Lion barely managed to move his arm and soothe the excited Pooch.
Around the time the commotion had settled somewhat, Petrick spoke.
“Ever since you trampled him, the Archbishop has been quiet as a mouse.”
“Cough.”
“You must have threatened him over ‘that matter’. Well done, indeed. For a wretch like him, one must come out that strongly before he will even pretend to listen.”
“Ha ha. Ahaha…”
It seemed Grandfather meant to forgive this incident as well.
No—perhaps, because he understood the circumstances best of all, he was covering for me.
“And to Rickshel, I explained that you had entered the Magic Tower to research the toxic plant you discovered at the Great Barrier.”
“Ah.”
“If that child catches on, there will be a great uproar, so do be sure to coordinate your story yourselves.”
“Thank you.”
Lion thought of the repercussions if Rickshel were to learn this fact, and gave a slight shudder.
‘First… he’d wring Licht’s neck.’
Why would the innocent Licht be put through the wringer, you ask?
Rickshel is a considerable efficiency-seeker.
On the premise that he came to know the full situation, if he were to mess with Licht, then both Lion himself and the Temple would, of their own accord, come looking for him.
‘It’s a kind of emergency button.’
In any case, it was a relief that he didn’t know.
“And that pollution… I am sorry, but it seems you will have to bear with it a little longer.”
“That figures.”
Lion understood immediately.
Having applied so much pressure to the Archbishop a few days before, now coming back and asking to have the pollution cured would be a bit much.
It would also be handing the Archbishop an opening.
‘Though I could use Licht.’
Lion examined his hand, turning it this way and that.
It had discolored to a deep black, but it wasn’t rotting, suppurating, or melting.
If left for a long time it might become critical, but for the time being it seemed manageable.
“You have some kind of plan, right?”
“Yes. When the time comes, I shall certainly have it treated. So set your mind at ease.”
“Yes, sir. Ha ha. I’ve just gotten an excuse to make plenty of gloves, so I’m quite happy.”
With a light joke, Lion propped himself up a little and sat.
Even moving this much was all he could manage, so he really did sense he would need to rest for a few weeks.
“Good. Rest quietly until the Emperor’s Birthday.”
Petrick added that, now that things had come to this, living a research life in the Magic Tower would not be a bad thing.
Likely he was worried that as soon as Lion felt halfway alive again, he would bolt right out.
‘Come on now…’
I’d already gotten a thorough earful from Hoffman, so at the very least for this injury I should lie still and do nothing but rest.
But that was unexpected.
“You’re going to send me out for the Emperor’s Birthday?”
“Am I supposed to block you and believe you simply won’t go?”
“…”
He’s grasped an awful lot, hasn’t he?
“Now, it would please me if you would also tell me the information you obtained.”
“Ah, yes.”
While petting Pooch, Lion reported the intelligence he had uncovered within that pollution.
That he had met Grand Duke Dragnas, and that the Grand Duke had been guarding the Hero’s belongings.
And…
“…Inside the barrier, you say.”
“Yes. I heard that he headed inside the Great Barrier.”
Petrick’s expression sank with infinite depth.
“I had not entertained the thought of searching the interior in the slightest.”
There was reason for that.
Even had someone entered, the barrier was something Petrick and the Saintess had created together.
Petrick should at least have been informed that someone had intruded.
Under normal circumstances.
“Could it be that the Former Archbishop lent his assistance?”
“…Yes.”
What on earth could it have been, to make one resort to such a choice in order to hide it?
“Understood. I shall endeavor to gather intelligence on my side as well.”
“Yes. Please do.”
“Thank you.”
“…”
Lion’s eyes went round at Petrick’s words.
‘All I’ve done is frustrate him to death…’
As if he had read that expression, Petrick regarded his occasionally obtuse grandson with fond eyes.
The boy seemed not to realize that merely sharing all these facts was, to Petrick, an enormous boon.
‘Hoffman performed a great service.’
No doubt the dressing-down from a moment ago was not without effect.
“It is nothing.”
It was patently obvious that his grandson, were he made aware of this, would hastily hide it away again, so he decided to let the matter pass.
“Then, while you are in the Magic Tower, do rest thoroughly. As it happens, there seem to be quite a number of people who wish to see you.”
“Oh, really?” “Yes. Those wishing to taste that beverage you made again have formed a line.”
“Ahh.”
Come to think of it, to mages who must immerse themselves in their research, that drink was probably the next best thing to a beverage of the gods.
‘Once my body recovers, maybe I’ll make some.’
And I should bring a cup to Hoffman as well.
While Lion was leisurely forming his plans, Petrick rose from his seat.
It was about time he returned.
Because he had things other than the Great Barrier to prepare for.
“You are going?”
“Yes. Do not get up.”
“Yes, Grandfather.”
Lion sat up on the sickbed and saw Petrick off.
The lift came up, and just as the doors opened—
“Ah.”
As if he had momentarily forgotten, Petrick added offhandedly.
“For your reference, Elvia too is in quite a furious state, so do be sure to appease her on your own.”
“…Pardon me?”
“She was asking why you did not summon her. Ahem… Then, I shall take my leave.”
Petrick promptly boarded the lift and descended.
The lift, a point of pride for the Magic Tower’s technical prowess, plunged to the far bottom in a mere moment…
-Oh.
-You’re in deep trouble. She’s terrifying when she’s angry, you know.
“…Right?”
What should I do?
A cold sweat trickled down Lion.