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

Elina stood behind her desk. A crystal ball glowed brightly, displaying the avatar of a handsome red-haired man.

”So, did you manage to find their headquarters, Duke Austin?”

Alvaron crossed his arms and shook his head.

”Not yet, Your Highness. The locations Prince Nolan mentioned are all in remote areas—mountains, forests, and places like that. It’s taking time to mobilize the troops. Maybe another two hours, and everything will be ready.”

Elina nodded. ”I understand. That’s fine. I’ll wait for your report.”

”Thank you.” Alvaron let out a sigh of relief. Then his expression turned cold as he continued, ”But, Your Highness, I still can’t believe a large-scale operation like this was happening right under my nose. This is a very serious matter. Thank you for informing me.”

He lowered his head, his expression filled with sincerity.

Every word he said was true. Without the information from Elina and Nolan, he would never have known that such a criminal syndicate was operating within his territory.

If the imperial family had discovered it first, Alvaron could only imagine the punishment he would have faced.

After all, the imperial palace granted the four dukes authority under several conditions.

One of them was ensuring the safety of the people living in their territories.

Besides, kidnapping and slave trading were strictly forbidden in the empire, especially after Ragan came to power.

”You’re welcome, Duke Austin. Actually, it was my brother, Nolan, who discovered it. He’s the one who deserves your thanks,” Elina replied humbly, with no intention of taking credit for someone else’s work.

Alvaron straightened up and chuckled softly.

”Please pass along my thanks to him.”

”I will.” Elina nodded.

The two exchanged a few more words before ending the call.

Elina took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

”A bandit syndicate, huh? I wonder... who’s really behind them?”

The bandits were nothing more than uneducated thugs. There was no way they could have run such a large operation in complete secrecy.

There were two possibilities. First, they were working with nobles from the eastern region. Second, there was a far more powerful force backing them.

Of the two, Elina leaned toward the second possibility. She knew the eastern nobles very well.

Unless they had a death wish and were willing to lose everything they owned, there was no way they would work with bandits.

As she was lost in thought, footsteps echoed from behind her.

”Your Highness, Prince Nolan, Young Lady Rafine, and General Luvistar have returned.”

Elina snapped out of her thoughts, turned around, and gave a slight nod.

”I understand. Thank you.”

After the servant left, Elina immediately headed outside. She wanted to see her brother and find out what he had discovered at the bandits’ hideout.

***

When they arrived at the mansion, Nolan reined in his horse and glanced at Novaria behind him.

”Get down.”

Novaria pursed her lips but said nothing and quickly dismounted.

Nolan got off his horse as well. A moment later, Elina stepped out of the mansion and walked over to him.

”Welcome home, Brother,” she greeted him.

Her gaze occasionally drifted toward Novaria, who stood beside Nolan. She looked utterly miserable—a stark contrast to the proud Novaria Elina had always known.

Even so, Elina didn’t say anything about it.

Nolan gave a slight nod.

”Thank you. Please take Novaria inside. Ask the maids to help her bathe and prepare some clean clothes for her.”

”I understand.”

Elina turned to Novaria.

”Come with me, Sister.”

Novaria felt relieved when she didn’t sense even the slightest hint of hostility from Elina. More importantly, being called ”sister” put her at ease, unlike Nolan, who had addressed her by her name from the very beginning.

She then followed Elina into the mansion.

Rafine climbed down from her horse and walked over to Nolan.

”What should we do with the other prisoners?”

She glanced at the young women, girls, and children sitting behind the soldiers on horseback.

Nolan turned to Luvistar.

”General Luvistar, please take care of them. Give them proper clothes, have the servants help them bathe, then bring them to the living room. I’ll give further instructions afterward.”

Luvistar bowed his head slightly before immediately carrying out the order.

Nolan glanced at Rafine.

”Let’s go.”

Rafine smiled and nodded.

***

In the living room, Nolan sat on the main sofa, while Elina and Rafine sat across from him.

Novaria, now dressed in a red nightgown after taking a bath, sat on the sofa beside him.

Nolan took a sip of his tea, savoring its warmth as it flowed down his throat before speaking.

”I’ve investigated those bandits from top to bottom.”

Elina looked surprised.

”Are you sure? Do you know who’s pulling the strings behind them?”

Nolan nodded.

”They’re a group of bandits working under a mysterious organization called the Black Skull. Their system is rather unusual. They protect and shelter bandit groups across the continent, then order them to kidnap young women, girls, and even children. The victims are handed over to traffickers, who are also members of the organization.”

Everyone’s expressions, including Novaria’s, turned grim. None of them had expected an organization like this to be operating behind a mere bandit group.

Elina, in particular, felt a chill run down her spine. She had already suspected that a powerful force was backing the bandits.

And she had been right. What unsettled her the most was that the organization’s influence reached across the entire continent. It was proof of just how powerful it really was.

”I understand.”

Elina took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

”I’ve already sent the locations of the other bandit hideouts you discovered to Duke Austin. By now, they’re probably launching a large-scale operation to wipe them out.”

”Good.” Nolan nodded in satisfaction. ”We need to capture them as quickly as possible, especially those operating in the eastern region.”

Elina and Rafine nodded in agreement.

A moment later, Rafine frowned slightly before speaking.

”But, Nolan, won’t what we’re doing alert the other bandits in the three main regions? They’ll probably run and hide until things settle down. Wouldn’t that end up working against us?”

Elina shared the same concern. She looked at her brother, curious to hear his answer.

Nolan crossed one leg over the other and leaned back against the sofa.

Resting his cheek on his palm, he replied casually, ”You’re right. Sooner or later, they’ll realize what’s happening. But...”

A faint smile spread across his face.

”What does that have to do with us?”

Elina, Rafine, and Novaria all gasped.

Elina and Rafine, especially, hadn’t expected that answer. Before either of them could say anything, Nolan continued calmly.

”The dukes of each region have their own responsibilities. There’s no need for us to warn them. Besides...”

A chuckle escaped his lips.

”This is the perfect chance to beat Aldric and Cedric to a pulp. What do you think?”