The Hidden Extra: The Lazy Prince Refuses to Ascend The Throne

”Nolan?” Jisha’s eyes widened.

Jisha’s eyes sparkled when she saw him. She walked toward him with light steps.

”What a coincidence, Nolan!” she greeted, stopping right in front of him. ”How are you? It’s been a long time since we last met, hasn’t it? If I remember correctly, the last time was in the Kingdom of Kaldarion.”

Nolan took a deep breath. His gaze drifted to her ample chest before he muttered, ”Is it just me, or have they gotten even bigger?”

Thud!

Seira elbowed him in the stomach, making him groan in pain.

”W-What the hell—”

Just as he was about to scold Seira, he met her piercing, icy stare.

Nolan immediately fell silent and cleared his throat awkwardly.

”Yeah, it’s been a while. How have you been?”

”I’m fine,” Jisha replied casually. ”By the way…”

She glanced at Seira and Rafine before flashing a mischievous smile.

”Aren’t you going to introduce the two beautiful women beside you? And the little girl in your arms?”

There seemed to be a deeper meaning behind her gaze.

Nolan rolled his eyes and was about to speak when Seira beat him to it.

”Oh, oh, I’m sorry. I haven’t introduced myself yet.”

She pulled Nolan behind her and stood face-to-face with Jisha.

Jisha was indeed shorter—she only came up to Seira’s chest. However, the two assets she possessed could easily rival Seira’s.

”My name is Seira Lorian, and I’m his older sister,” she greeted, lightly tugging at the hem of her skirt. ”Nice to meet you, Jisha of the Tower of Silence.”

Jisha flinched. It was hard to tell whether it was just her imagination, but she could sense a hint of hostility from Seira.

She glanced back and forth between Nolan and Seira, clearly confused.

”Ahem!” Jisha cleared her throat and bowed her head. ”My apologies, Your Highness. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

The two then exchanged a few casual words. However, anyone could sense the awkward atmosphere between them, especially Jisha, who looked visibly uncomfortable.

”Jisha,” Sylvia called calmly.

The conversation between Seira and Jisha came to an immediate halt. Jisha turned toward Sylvia as though she had just seen a savior.

Sylvia and the high-ranking officials of the Tower of Silence stopped in front of Seira, Rafine, and Nolan.

”It’s a pleasure to meet you, Prince Nolan, Princess Seira, and Young Lady Rafine,” Sylvia greeted politely.

”It’s a pleasure to meet you as well, Tower Master,” Seira replied softly.

Rafine also returned the greeting.

Only Nolan remained calm. He looked into Sylvia’s blindfolded eyes before muttering, ”Does she remember that era?”

He had hoped to catch a change in her expression. Unfortunately, Sylvia remained calm and impassive, giving him no clues.

”Did you just arrive?” Sylvia asked curiously.

”That’s right.” Seira nodded and folded her arms across her chest. ”We arrived last night. Some things happened along the way, but they’re a little too embarrassing to talk about.”

Sylvia’s eyebrows rose slightly. However, she was wise enough not to press the matter and changed the subject instead.

After a few minutes, Sylvia brought the conversation to an end.

”We should be going now,” she said.

Seira and Rafine nodded in unison.

Suddenly, Sylvia’s gaze fell on Nolan. Unlike the hostile looks she had directed at him in the past, this time her expression was calm, as though their minor feud had never existed.

”Your Highness,” she called in a calm voice. ”Do you have some time later? There’s something important I’d like to discuss with you.”

Seira and Rafine were taken aback. Even Jisha looked surprised.

She remembered that her Master had always warned her to stay away from Nolan.

According to her, Nolan was not a good person and would only be a bad influence on Jisha.

But now...

Why was her master inviting Nolan to a private meeting later?

”Could it be that Master wants to kill Nolan?”

The moment that thought crossed her mind, a chill ran down her spine.

She was about to stop Nolan when his voice rang out before her.

”Sure. We’ll talk when the opportunity arises.”

Jisha froze. She stared at Nolan and blinked several times.

But the smelly man completely ignored her.

A faint smile appeared on Sylvia’s cold face, though it lasted only for a brief moment.

Without saying another word, Sylvia and her entourage turned and walked away.

Jisha reluctantly followed behind them. However, she had already made up her mind to warn Nolan not to meet her master alone.

After they left, Seira and Rafine shot Nolan suspicious looks.

”So, what was that about? Inviting you to meet her in private?” Seira asked coldly. ”Don’t tell me you’re involved in some forbidden relationship with her.”

Rafine narrowed her eyes, clearly wary and more than a little jealous.

Nolan chuckled and waved a hand dismissively.

”What are you talking about, Sis? How could there possibly be that kind of relationship between us?”

He shrugged before explaining, ”I had a conflict with her in the past. It happened in the Kingdom of Kaldarion when I confronted King Glarvic. As it turned out, Glarvic’s daughter became Sylvia’s new apprentice, and because of how shamelessly I treated him, she ended up disliking me.”

A sigh escaped his lips.

”Maybe she realized that holding onto that hostility serves no purpose, so she wants to make peace with me.”

Seira and Rafine considered his explanation and found it reasonable. The invitation didn’t necessarily mean anything, especially since the one who invited him was Sylvia—a figure said to have reached the pinnacle of power in this world.

Their suspicions gradually faded, but Seira still felt the need to warn him.

”If you’re going to meet her, make sure I come with you, okay? At the very least, I can protect you if something happens.”

”Me too!” Rafine quickly added. ”Take me with you!”

Nolan merely chuckled and nodded.

Soon after, the three of them headed toward Falling Star Academy.

***

”Why hasn’t Father arrived yet? Is he busy?”

Sharon bit her lower lip anxiously. The competition would begin later that afternoon, and Ragan had promised to come.

But so far, she hadn’t received any word of his arrival, which only made her more worried.

After all, this contest meant a lot to her. She wanted to show her father what she could do and earn his recognition.

Just as she was about to contact him through her magical communication device, she heard footsteps approaching.

A student appeared and quickly bowed to her.

”Senior Sharon, there are some guests who wish to see you.”

Sharon was surprised. ”Who?”

”They’re from your empire.”

Sharon’s eyes lit up.

”Hurry and take me there!”

The student nodded and led her to where the guests were waiting.

***

Nolan, Seira, Eira, and Rafine waited calmly in the waiting room.

”I’m curious to see Sharon’s reaction later. She’s definitely going to be surprised,” Seira chuckled.

Rafine smiled. ”That’s possible, Your Highness. I’m curious too.”

As they were chatting, they heard footsteps approaching.

Looking up, they saw Sharon walking toward them with an excited expression. But the moment she recognized them, she froze in surprise.

”You three…” she said, pointing at them in confusion. ”How did you end up here?”