Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing — Chapter 44
Never Mind the Heir, I’ll Focus on Healing — Chapter 44
Lion had no desire to covet Rickshel’s position.
If it became public knowledge that he’d already become the master of the labyrinth, it would be a disaster—and on top of that, to solve the Magic Tower’s potion problem?
‘That would be troublesome.’
It was even more troublesome because it was the kind of issue that could shake Rickshel’s standing.
‘Grandfather wouldn’t want it revealed either.’
What’s more…
‘It literally says Hero’s Potion right there.’
If things went wrong, it could even get linked to the Hero title.
But even so, could he just pretend he hadn’t seen it?
‘I’ll have to come up with a method.’
A method that would let Lion keep his peaceful days and keep the Magic Tower from unveiling its incomplete potion to the world.
“Good heavens, the Hero’s Potion! Would it be all right if I came again soon to examine it?”
“Of course! And once it’s formally approved, the immunity potion will be supplied first to House Asteri, so it would be good to study it in advance.”
“…Thank you so much.”
Of course, that would never happen.
“What thanks? Ahem… If you have nothing to do, come by often. And if you develop an interest in the Magic Tower, then this way…”
“I’ll be going now.”
“Haha! Very well.”
He sharply refused the subtle plan to parachute him into a job at the Magic Tower and went outside.
And Lion’s expression as he stepped outside was deeply displeased.
Still, if there was a silver lining…
It was that a method still remained.
* * *
After returning to the mansion, from that day on, Lion locked himself in his room all day and read books.
He’d stayed in his room before under the guise of resting, but this time everyone noticed the situation was different.
“I’m worried he might be ill.”
“Didn’t the Magic Tower say there was nothing wrong with his health? Maybe something else upset him.”
“To make matters worse, the Family Head is away on business…”
The servants muttered among themselves.
“Brother. Are you not coming out again today?”
“Yeah. I want to be alone today.”
“Even so, it would be good if you at least took a walk outside…”
He even refused Rickshel’s suggestion and stayed buried in the world of books.
Because it resembled the way Lion had looked in the past, everyone in the mansion grew worried.
And that…
included Elvia, who until now had been keeping her distance from Lion.
Elvia slipped out of the darkness and quietly watched the young master.
‘Even to my eyes, there’s definitely nothing magically wrong with him.’
Then why was he doing this?
Lion was curled up beside the terrace, books stacked as high as his own height, reading.
And every single one of those books…
‘Is about potions.’
Had something happened at the Magic Tower?
Now that she thought about it, after returning from the Magic Tower, he had called for her.
Back then, she’d assumed he was calling about the contract and pretended not to notice, and he’d immediately fallen into this state.
For some reason, a corner of her chest ached.
As if, somehow, this was her fault.
“…Haah.”
And on top of that, wasn’t he barely eating and just staring at books?
And what were those sighs?
“Ugh!”
There was clearly something going on.
But he wasn’t telling anyone!
Not even his own brother!
‘This won’t do.’
Elvia made a decision. She prepared a simple bite in the dining hall herself and appeared before Lion once more.
“Young master.”
“…”
“Your health will suffer. I’ve brought some food; please eat while you continue.”
“Haah.”
Lion sighed again and shook his head.
“May I at least ask why you’re behaving this way?”
Lion glanced at Elvia and answered.
“No. It’s fine. I’m just a little down.”
Then what part of it is making you so down, for heaven’s sake…!
As Elvia suppressed her frustration and waited, Lion added in a small murmur.
“Because I can’t bother you just to ease my own feelings.”
“Bother me?”
Only then did Elvia realize what the problem was.
He had thought she didn’t come because it was a bother.
Then that troubled expression was clearly…!
‘He didn’t want to talk about the contract; he wanted to confide his troubles to me?’
And without knowing that, she’d just silently stared at him!
Uncharacteristically flustered, Elvia answered.
“A bother? What utter nonsense… This Elvia simply had a few pressing matters.”
Of course, it was true that she’d been avoiding him because of the contract, but Elvia was skilled at lying.
She was a Witch, after all.
And to soothe a child, one needs to know how to tell a little lie.
“Please, tell me what’s wrong.”
Elvia took the book from Lion’s hands and pressed a sandwich into them instead.
“I can help with anything.”
Lion glanced at Elvia as if he were still hesitating.
‘…I do feel a bit sorry for Elvia, but it’s effective, as expected.’
This was his first hunger strike since coming to this world, and it seemed to be working well for a first attempt.
‘Normally, I would have asked Grandfather right away, but…’
That wasn’t easy.
For the past month, he’d halted all his work because of Lion.
Perhaps because of that, once Lion’s health was definitely restored, his business trips grew frequent.
He’d gone so far as to instruct Lion to consult Elvia in an emergency.
And Lion also thought that in this situation, Elvia was the right person.
“The thing is.”
Lion confided his worries.
When he told her everything he’d seen at the Magic Tower without holding back, Elvia’s expression stiffened slightly.
It truly was a serious problem.
“What do you want to do, young master?”
Elvia asked calmly.
“If there’s a way, I want to stop it.”
“I’m asking about after you find that way, young master.”
“After I find it?”
“Because if it’s you, I assume you’ve already thought of a solution. However, once the matter is resolved, you will certainly become entangled in the incident. I think you need to consider how you wish to handle things then.”
Elvia had not a shred of doubt in Lion Asteri.
She believed that if something happened that could harm the family, he would undoubtedly be the first to step forward.
Lion’s disposition, as she had seen it until now, was exactly like that.
“What if I want to be involved in resolving this as little as possible?”
“In that case, young master, you wouldn’t have called for me in the first place.”
“…”
He had nothing to say because it was true.
Lion let out a sigh.
“Fine. You’re right. I want to resolve this without making a scene.”
“If that happens, all the credit will go to someone else. You will have done something great, young master, yet no one will acknowledge that achievement.”
“I don’t care about that.”
In fact, that was exactly what he wanted.
Wasn’t it?
What Lion aimed for wasn’t worldly success,
but the freedom to live comfortably on a large fortune—
the sort of thoroughly ordinary noble extra from a prestigious family one saw in any novel.
“But what’s tricky is the method to let it quietly pass.”
From Lion’s position, he had no suitable move.
If he stepped forward himself?
The hero’s power would be exposed.
If he didn’t, there would be people who suffered.
Telling Grandfather was the best option, but Grandfather was away on business.
“…”
Elvia, seeing Lion sincerely wish to let it quietly pass, let out a soft little laugh.
How could there be such a good kid?
“Then there is one method. Would you care to hear it?”
“What is it?”
“To do a good deed, you commit a bad act.”
“…”
She didn’t consider it a good deed, but they still had to commit a bad act?
“Tell me first.”
“I will infiltrate the Magic Tower and swap the potion.”
“…Could you explain that in a bit more detail?”
Elvia added more detail.
She would break through the Magic Tower’s security, slightly alter the potion, and leave behind a recipe so they could figure out the application themselves.
It wouldn’t be a recipe on the level of the Hero’s Potion, but it would have no side effects, and since Lion hadn’t made it himself, there was no chance of his identity being discovered.
“Oh…”
So they’d just make a prototype and bolt?
That wasn’t bad, quite a bit better than expected. As long as they arranged it so only Hoffman could recognize it…
‘That’s plausible.’
It was a very unexpected idea coming from Elvia, but he liked it.
However…
“To do that, we’d have to change your contract. Are you okay with that?”
Elvia’s contracted range was the Asteri mansion and its vicinity.
That meant, precisely, the village and Mimir Forest.
Even though the Magic Tower was under the Asteri jurisdiction, it wasn’t covered.
Most likely, that was a provision against emergencies.
If by any chance the Magic Tower fell into the hands of a Witch, it could cause an immense problem, and so it was designed that way.
“You didn’t seem to like discussing the contract.”
Elvia smiled wordlessly.
In truth, Lion was correct.
Just a few months ago, Elvia had wanted to be free.
If she could only find that contract, she’d even wanted to leave.
It had been a very long time since she’d felt freedom.
Though her hatred for humans had faded, those days of freedom remained a memory.
And then, Lion Asteri.
Her young master had found it.
He had surely intended to set her free.
‘Our young master is so full of affection, so unlike someone of House Asteri.’
From childhood until now, that fact had never changed.
So that’s why he had even made a Mental Fatigue Recovery Potion for her.
The problem was that she, Elvia, had grown quite taken with her role as the lady’s maid to Lion Asteri, her adorable puppy.
It was joyful.
This was a new kind of joy.
Watching a child grow, overcome his fear, and connect with his family.
And so a new fear had arisen.
The very freedom she had so desperately longed for had become that new fear.
If anyone who knew Sylvia from that era had seen her, they would have clutched their stomach and mocked her, but she meant it from the heart.
Sylvia—that is, Elvia—didn’t want to leave Lion’s side.
At least, not now.
“Young master, are you going to make that contract disappear entirely?”
“If you want that, I will.”
“And if I don’t want it?”
“Then…”
Lion seemed to hesitate for a moment, then answered straightforwardly.
“Even so, I’ll have to amend the contract. It’s old, so there are too many restrictions.”
“I see. Still, all of those were necessary conditions, I expect?”
“They aren’t necessary anymore. You won’t harm our family, after all.”
“…”
“You weren’t planning to hurt us, were you?”
“No.”
Yes. No.
She had absolutely no such intention.
At some point, Elvia had grown far too attached to House Asteri.
“If it’s possible, I wish to protect it.”
“Right?”
Lion held out the contract.
“But I don’t want to alter too many provisions. Then how about we do it this way.”
Sylvia brushed a finger over the contract.
At that, the letters on the parchment moved on their own, erasing certain contents and adding new ones.
There were no drastic changes, but… there were certainly some that had changed.