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

Chapter 689: Extraordinary Profits From Extortion

After a ten-minute wait, Alex finally returned with a grim expression.

”His Majesty has... approved it,” he said in a heavy voice.

The expressions of Elina, Seira, Sylvia, and the soldiers shifted instantly. Only Nolan remained calm, as if he had already expected this outcome.

”Alright. Now hand me the check.”

Nolan held out his left hand, his blunt attitude almost infuriating.

Alex gritted his teeth. He pulled a check from his pocket and wrote down the amount: five hundred million.

After signing it, he reluctantly handed it to Nolan.

Nolan took the check and examined it carefully.

Seira and Elina leaned in as well, scanning the details. After confirming that nothing was wrong, Nolan folded the check, clasped Elina’s and Seira’s hands, and stepped back three paces.

”You may take the ten thousand soldiers.”

Alex snorted coldly. With the help of the soldiers he had brought, he began untying Erkan’s men, including Erkan himself.

”Erkan, are you alright?” Alex asked anxiously as he untied his restraints.

Erkan shook his head. ”I’m fine. Thank you for saving me and my troops.”

”It’s nothing. This was a mission His Majesty entrusted to me.”

Alex let out a quiet sigh and helped him to his feet.

”How are things in the capital? Has the chaos been resolved?”

”Huh?” Alex looked startled. ”How do you know about that?”

Erkan was about to answer, but the words caught in his throat.

He suddenly clutched his head in pain. ”What’s happening? Why does it feel like my memory is starting to... fade?”

The contents of the letter—and the identity of its sender—were slowly slipping away.

Erkan tried to hold onto them, but strangely, he couldn’t.

Alex noticed the strange behavior and assumed it was nothing more than a temporary reaction to trauma.

Erkan was an experienced war general. Being defeated by Nolan and Elina must have dealt him a crushing blow, leaving behind a lingering shock.

Once everything was settled, Sylvia opened a portal dozens of meters wide. The troops stepped inside one after another, vanishing from sight.

Only Sylvia and Alex remained, with Erkan standing by Alex’s side.

Alex shot Nolan a hateful glare and warned, ”I hope you make it back to where you came from safely, Nolan Lorian.”

Nolan gave a faint smirk. ”Thanks for the well-wishes.”

The corner of Alex’s mouth twitched, but he said nothing more. He immediately stepped into the portal.

Sylvia also glanced at Nolan, but she didn’t utter a single word.

After she disappeared, the portal vanished as well.

”Finally, it’s over...” Seira exhaled in relief and rested her head against Nolan’s arm. ”You were really courting death, Nolan. If the Tower Master had attacked us, wouldn’t we all have died?”

Nolan rolled his eyes. ”That’s impossible. With Elina’s guard here, there’s no way she’d do that unless she wanted to die. Am I right?”

He shot Malverna a playful glance.

Malverna snorted coldly and vanished on the spot.

Seira still looked uneasy and whispered, ”Aren’t you afraid she’ll hit you, Nolan?”

She knew Nolan had a talent for provoking people. Not everyone could tolerate his attitude.

What she feared was that Malverna might actually attack him. If that happened, there would be nothing Seira could do to stop her.

”Thanks for your concern, but that’ll never happen. Trust me,” Nolan reassured her.

Seira pursed her lips and didn’t say anything more.

”Brother,” Elina called out worriedly. ”What if the check he gave is fake? Won’t you lose out?”

Checks could be forged, and there had been plenty of incidents like that.

Nolan shook his head. ”That’s impossible. The checks used by most royal families and nobles are linked to the Blue Moon Trading House—specifically the Silver Dragon Bank. Any forgery would ruin their credibility, especially when it comes to taking out loans. I’m sure Gulvar isn’t foolish enough to destroy the Lyren family’s reputation in the eyes of the Blue Moon Trading House.”

Although the Blue Moon Trading House’s influence had not yet spread across the entire continent, the financial system it had created—or more precisely, the one Nolan had devised—had already been adopted by many kingdoms and empires.

One of those systems was the use of checks for withdrawing large sums of money.

Of course, as a condition for using it, every kingdom and empire had to establish a Silver Dragon Bank branch. That requirement was accepted by all nations that wished to implement the system.

Not to mention, the Silver Dragon Bank often offered loans with lower interest rates than most trading houses within each kingdom and empire.

That tempting offer benefited many noble and royal families.

However, Nolan enforced strict rules through a credit system. Only those who paid on time and proved themselves trustworthy could qualify for those low-interest loans.

Unbeknownst to most, the Lyren family was one of the Silver Dragon Bank’s largest clients. Because of that, Nolan wasn’t worried Alex would try to cheat him.

Reputation was more valuable than anything else.

Elina said nothing more. She trusted her brother completely.

”Alright, everyone...” Nolan stretched his stiff body. ”Let’s head back.”

...

”Hah... it seems the assassins failed.”

Inside the luxurious yet dimly lit room, Karakh let out a quiet sigh. He stared at the report in his right hand, where a single word was stamped at the top: Failure.

At the bottom were two images—a man and a woman: Nolan and Seira.

”That man is far more cunning than I expected. It’s possible he already knows I’m the one behind this,” Karakh chuckled, tossing the document onto the table.

The bounty hunt targeting Nolan and Seira had been arranged by him, meant to erase them completely.

Many assassins had accepted the job. Every single one had failed.

Karakh wasn’t particularly surprised. Nolan wasn’t an ordinary man—if anything, he was the most dangerous and cunning person Karakh had ever encountered.

In the eyes of most people, Nolan was nothing more than a worthless, good-for-nothing prince.

Yet no one suspected that he possessed a level of cunning even his father, Gulvar, had failed to recognize.

”But it’s fine.” Karakh slowly rose to his feet. ”I doubt he’ll seek revenge against me. Now he’ll return to his empire, and the plan we’ve both set in motion is already eighty percent complete. Only the final part remains—and that will take time.”

The chaos in the capital had subsided, exactly as he had expected.

However, beneath that calm surface, rage continued to simmer, ready to erupt at any moment.

And once it did, his father’s position as king would be shaken to its core.

That would be Karakh’s moment to seize the throne.

”Everything’s going too smoothly... it almost feels like a dream,” he whispered, a wide grin spreading across his face.