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

”Nolan?” Ragan’s eyes narrowed. ”So it really was that damn kid.”

He had already suspected as much. After all, only Nolan had ever been able to access the Phantom Guard using the token Ragan had once given him, even though it had long since been returned.

”How did he do it?” Ragan asked.

Orion shook his head.

”I don’t know either, Your Highness.” He gave a wry smile before continuing. ”Does Your Majesty remember sending Lyra, Cassiopeia, and the others to keep an eye on Prince Nolan?”

Ragan gave a slight nod.

”I remember.”

”That’s the problem, Your Highness.”

Orion’s expression turned serious.

”Prince Nolan hasn’t left the mansion even once. He’s been staying in Virella, following the same routine every day—walking around town, eating, sleeping, and lazing around. I can’t understand how he managed to pull all of this off without the people watching him noticing a thing.”

Orion could no longer look at Nolan the same way.

In the past, Nolan had achieved countless accomplishments and even earned many rewards from Ragan. Even so, Orion had still underestimated him.

But not anymore.

Nolan had far exceeded anything he had ever imagined.

He even began to suspect that Nolan was a Celestial-level mage.

The thought sounded absurd, almost impossible, but he couldn’t think of any other explanation that made more sense.

Ragan fell silent. Even he had no idea how Nolan had managed to accomplish all of that.

”Could he actually be a mage... and have been hiding his powers all this time?”

The thought sent a chill down Ragan’s spine. A moment later, however, he quickly dismissed it.

When Nolan was born, Ragan had personally asked Orion and several other powerful mages to examine his body.

There had been no signs of magical talent—no mana flow, no unusual reactions, nothing.

Because of that, he was certain Nolan hadn’t been born with the ability to use magic.

”But... how did he do it?”

The more Ragan thought about it, the more confused he became. What troubled him the most was how Nolan had known the exact time Cedric would meet Jakes.

And how had he known Cedric was going to sign the slave trade document?

For the first time in a long while, Ragan felt completely lost. No matter how hard he thought about it, he couldn’t figure out how Nolan had pulled it all off.

Shaking those thoughts from his mind, he waved a hand and ordered, ”Send a letter to Virella. I want Nolan to come see me in three days.”

Orion gave a slight nod.

”As you command, Your Majesty.”

Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly remembered something. His expression grew somber.

”Your Majesty, there is one more matter to report.”

Ragan rubbed his temples before replying coldly, ”Speak.”

Orion paused for a few seconds before continuing. ”The Malvain family scandal has been exposed. It involves nepotism, abuse of power, and price gouging to line their own pockets. The news has spread across the empire, and everyone knows about it.”

The corner of Ragan’s mouth twitched.

The Cedric incident alone had already given him a headache. Now, another crisis just as serious had suddenly appeared.

”It should’ve been impossible for the Malvain family scandal to come to light without another duke interfering. Tell me, is one of the dukes behind this?” he asked coldly.

Because of the balance of power and the restrictions he had put in place, the dukes—such as Duke Malvain and Duke Austin—never dared to confront each other openly.

Now that the Malvain family scandal had been exposed, Ragan naturally suspected the Austin family was the mastermind.

Orion gave an awkward smile. It took him a moment to compose himself.

He cleared his throat before replying in a forced, calm voice.

”The culprit is... Prince Nolan.”

Ragan: ”...”

…

”A letter for you. From Father.”

Elina handed Nolan a letter sealed with golden wax as he lounged casually on the sofa.

Nolan took it and broke the seal.

As he read its contents, a faint smile spread across his handsome face.

”Tsk. That old man is really clever,” he said with a chuckle.

Elina sat on the armrest beside him and asked, ”What’s wrong? Did Father scold you?”

Nolan folded the letter and set it on the table.

”That’s right. He’s furious. Now he’s ordering me to come to the palace in three days.”

Elina’s brows furrowed slightly. She had expected Ragan to react that way, but hearing it confirmed still made her uneasy.

”So, Brother, are you going?”

”Of course not. If I go, he’ll beat me up.”

He shrugged.

Ever since causing that mess, he had no intention of meeting Ragan again. After all, what he’d done was no small matter, and Ragan would definitely punish him.

Nolan wasn’t that stupid.

Elina let out a soft sigh.

”If you don’t go, you’ll only make him even angrier. Are you sure?”

”Of course.”

Nolan stood up and stretched his stiff body.

”Don’t worry. He won’t be able to do anything.”

Hearing the confidence in his voice, Elina simply smiled and said nothing more.

Ever since they were children, her brother had always rebelled against their father.

And every time he did, it always ended with Nolan receiving a harsh punishment.

”All right, don’t worry about it too much.”

He looked at Elina with a meaningful smile.

”In five days, Cedric’s trial will begin. And most likely, Father will also put Duke Malvain on trial.”

He walked over to her and gently cupped her soft, plump cheeks.

”My dear sister, you have to be ready for what’s coming. I’ve already set the stage for you. Whether you can pull through or not is up to you. Got it?”

Elina met her brother’s gaze, and her heart warmed.

She gave him a firm nod.

”I’ll do my best.”

Nolan let out a soft chuckle before gently pinching her cheek.

”I hope you do.”

With that, he turned and walked away, leaving Elina sitting there with a faint smile on her face.

Little did Elina know, the ”stage” Nolan had set for her would eventually lead her into hardships far beyond anything she had imagined.

…

Five days passed quickly. During that time, none of the cities across the empire were ever truly at peace.

News of Cedric’s arrest and the Malvain family scandal spread like wildfire.

Every day, every night, every moment, people couldn’t stop talking about the two cases.

As a result, the imperial palace could no longer remain idle and finally took action. The public was forbidden from discussing either case, and anyone caught doing so would face severe punishment.

Even so, controlling a population of hundreds of millions was far from easy.

Despite the ban, many people continued discussing the cases in secret.

…

The Calvron Forest…

Nolan stood at the center of a magic formation, raising both hands high.

Suddenly, red, blue, black, and purple magic circles appeared before him.

At the same time, the surrounding natural mana was drawn in frantically. The suction was so powerful that the space around him began to distort.

Then, before the eyes of Nolan, Malverna, Arnold, Obsidia, Flugar, Chloe, and Sylvia, a two-meter-tall portal slowly materialized.

The portal spun so rapidly that it looked as though it could collapse at any moment.

Nolan took a deep breath before letting it out slowly. He knew the Two-Worlds Teleportation spell would work.

Even so, seeing it with his own eyes still sent a chill down his spine. After all, the portal before him led to his home world.

He turned to Malverna, Obsidia, Arnold, Chloe, and Sylvia with a smile.

”Well then, I’m off. Take good care of yourselves.”

Their faces were filled with emotions they tried hard to hide.

Malverna looked calm on the outside, but deep down, she was overwhelmed with sadness.

She had never imagined the day would come when she would have to part with Nolan.

Obsidia and Arnold were the calmest of the group. Their souls were connected to Nolan’s, so they knew exactly how strong he was.

That was why neither of them was worried about him.

Meanwhile, Sylvia and Chloe couldn’t hide the sadness on their faces. Chloe, especially, could no longer hold back her tears.

”Be careful, Big Brother! I’ll be waiting for you to come home!” she cried between sobs.

Nolan smiled and gave her a small nod.

He stepped toward the space-time portal, which had begun to tremble violently.

Closing his eyes, he muttered with excitement, ”Earth... here I come!”

----///---

Author’s Note: Before I knew it, another month had passed. Thank you all for your continued support!

Originally, I planned for this month’s arc to focus on Nolan returning to his previous world. However, I’ve decided to postpone that.

The main reason is that I haven’t fully laid the groundwork for the conflicts and challenges Elina will face after Nolan’s departure. I want to develop those plot points properly before moving the story in that direction.

As for the upcoming arc, the spotlight will shift away from Nolan and onto Elina.

She’ll be facing numerous threats, including those from her own siblings, and will have to overcome them on her own.

Stay tune, and once again, thank you!