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

”We’ve been watching her for three days now. Are your doubts still growing?”

Malverna stood behind a tree, glancing at Nolan beside her.

Nolan gave a slight nod.

”That’s right. My doubts have only gotten stronger. There’s a ninety percent chance Melina is a decoy,” he chuckled, folding his arms across his chest. ”There’s no point in waiting any longer. We’d better head back.”

Malverna nodded. The two were about to leave when hurried footsteps echoed in the distance.

”Holy One, danger! Run, quickly!”

An old man pounded on Melina’s door.

Melina, who was preparing breakfast, was startled by the loud knocking. She hurried over and opened the door.

The old man’s eyes lit up. He immediately grabbed her arm.

”Holy One, you have to leave now! The royal forces have sent troops to take you away!” he cried in panic.

Melina was caught off guard by his words. At the same time, she felt uncomfortable with him grabbing her arm, so she gently pulled it free.

The old man realized his mistake and quickly apologized.

”I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

Melina shook her head.

”It’s okay. Tell me, what’s really going on?”

The old man was about to answer when the sound of galloping horses came from the distance.

His expression froze, and his heart started pounding.

He slowly turned around and saw hundreds of mounted soldiers charging straight toward them at full speed.

”It’s all over! You’re too late, Holy One!”

The old man panicked even more and hurriedly ran away.

Seeing him run off, Melina tried to stop him, but it was already too late.

The group of soldiers soon came to a stop in front of her house.

A man with golden hair dismounted from his horse. He wore gray armor, stood tall with an imposing presence, and had a handsome face.

But Melina wasn’t the least bit charmed by him. She could see the cold, piercing look in his eyes.

”Are you Melina Erlest? The one with healing powers?” he asked bluntly.

Melina gave a stiff nod.

”Yes, that’s me. Who are you? And why have you come?”

”I am Thomas. I’ve come to take you to the Great Kingdom of Horland. Come willingly, or you’ll regret it,” he said, his voice carrying an unmistakable threat.

”The Great Kingdom of Horland?” Melina asked in surprise.

The Great Kingdom of Horland was the strongest human kingdom on the continent. Even the kingdom she lived in didn’t dare provoke them.

They controlled nearly a quarter of the Western Continent, which was equivalent to half of humanity’s territory on the continent.

Even though she lived in a remote area, that didn’t mean Melina knew nothing about them.

She never expected such a powerful kingdom to come looking for her, let alone try to take her by force.

Melina suppressed the fear in her heart and replied politely, ”I’m sorry, but I can’t go with you. This is my home, and there are still many people here who need me. I—”

Before she could finish, Thomas cut her off coldly.

”Do you think I care?”

”Huh?” Melina gasped.

Thomas glanced around with undisguised disgust.

”Let me tell you something. I’m absolutely disgusted that I have to set foot in this slum. It’s unbelievable that humans can actually live in a place like this.”

His expression grew even colder.

”If it weren’t for His Majesty’s orders, I wouldn’t have come here. Enough talking. Come with me to the Great Kingdom of Horland. If you refuse, I’ll burn this entire village to the ground, people included.”

His eyes gleamed with menace.

”Or do you want this place to become a sea of corpses?”

Melina took a few steps back, her face pale with fear.

Cold sweat beaded on her skin. She was certain the man standing before her would carry out his threat if she refused.

But she didn’t want to leave this village. She also had no idea what fate awaited her in the Great Kingdom of Horland.

Melina had heard countless stories about the kingdom’s cruelty from merchants and the people who came to her for treatment.

It was said that they looked down on every human kingdom outside their territory—not only the royal families but even the common people.

They were incredibly arrogant and often caused trouble wherever they went.

On top of that, they were a conquering nation. This year alone, they had already conquered two kingdoms along their border.

But because of their overwhelming power, no one dared to stop them.

Their might rivaled that of the Great Velmora Empire on the Central Continent and the Holy Valtanir Empire on the Southern Continent.

”I... I...”

Melina tried to speak, but the words caught in her throat.

In the end, her fear for the lives of the innocent outweighed her fear for her own fate.

”All right... I’ll go with you.”

As the words left her mouth, her body went limp, as if all her strength had drained away.

Thomas nodded in satisfaction.

”A wise decision. If you’d taken even a minute longer, I would’ve ordered my soldiers to burn this place to the ground,” he said with a cold chuckle.

Melina shivered and lowered her head. Even though this was their first meeting, she was terrified of Thomas.

”Can you ride a horse?” he asked.

Melina shook her head.

”I-I... can’t.”

”Tch! Useless country bumpkin,” he sneered.

He turned to one of his soldiers and ordered him to take Melina along.

”Remember, don’t let her get hurt. His Majesty needs her power. If you fail to carry out my orders, you know what will happen.”

His icy glare made the soldier tremble with fear.

He quickly bowed and replied, ”I’ll carry out your orders perfectly!”

Thomas said nothing else and mounted his horse.

The soldier dismounted and walked toward Melina.

”Come with me.”

Melina could only nod helplessly and walk toward him.

But then...

”Yo, what’s going on here? An outright kidnapping? Isn’t that against the law?”

A casual voice suddenly came from ahead of them.

Thomas, Melina, and the soldiers were startled. They instinctively turned toward the voice and saw Nolan approaching with Malverna by his side.

Melina froze in surprise.

”You... the guy from before? Why are you still here?” she exclaimed.

She didn’t know Nolan’s name because he had never introduced himself.

She had assumed Nolan had already left. But it turned out he was still here, and Melina had no idea why.

Thomas frowned.

”You know him?”

Melina realized her mistake and quickly pleaded, ”Don’t hurt them! They... they’re my patients.”

”Your patients?” Thomas raised an eyebrow.

He looked at Nolan and Malverna, who appeared perfectly healthy—not at all like patients.

They were neatly dressed, making it clear they weren’t commoners, let alone from the lower class.

Besides, the man had black hair. That was a trait found only among people from the Eastern Continent.

”Even people from the Eastern Continent come all the way here. It seems you’ve become famous beyond the Western Continent,” Thomas said mockingly.

Melina’s face turned pale. But she didn’t dare say a word and could only lower her head.

”So...” Thomas shifted his gaze to Nolan and Malverna. ”What are people from the Eastern Continent doing here? Are you trying to stop me?”

Nolan smiled casually, one hand tucked into his pocket.

”And if I am... what’s your problem?”