The Hidden Extra: The Lazy Prince Refuses to Ascend The Throne Chapter 644 Settling the Score With Meliodas (1)

Nolan lounged by the bedside in complete relaxation, silently flipping open a book to read.

The chamber stayed shrouded in gloom, as the magical circuits fueling the palace lights remained offline.

Furthermore, Meliodas's grip on the royal palace persisted, meaning the predicament would drag on for a good while longer.

Nolan's eyes wandered over to the bed. There lay his sister, eyes shut tight. Her breaths came faint but even.

'Why the hold-up?' he pondered. 'I've mended her injuries, and the token I handed her preserved her life… Is trauma what's afflicting her?'

His forehead creased deeply from the notion.

Trauma struck far deeper than mere physical hurts. It ravaged the soul, demanding far beyond basic healing arts.

While Nolan mulled over methods to aid his sister's mending, a soft whimper slipped from Seira's mouth.

Her lids quivered before parting gradually, unveiling her stunning eyes.

Nolan exhaled a hushed breath of relief. Rising, he perched on the bed's edge and murmured tenderly, "Are you alright?"

He softly caressed her brow. Briefly, Seira's face turned vacant as she gazed at Nolan's features.

Suddenly, tears gathered at the edges of her eyes. Her right hand rose, stretching toward Nolan's cheek.

"You… you're alive. I believed you perished in that mishap. Thank the heavens…"

Nolan went rigid. "Mishap? What are you talking about?"

Seira held back her immediate reply. She wept briefly before whispering, "I just endured a nightmare. In it, you met with disaster. Your form was twisted horribly… yet your face stayed whole. Crowds surrounded you, clad in unfamiliar garb. But…"

She gnawed her lower lip, brushed away her tears, and fixed Nolan with a sorrowful, trembling gaze.

"Near your remains burned a black box. Its inferno blazed so fiercely that the heat scorched everything nearby. Terror gripped me… I dreaded losing you so much. But praise be, it was merely a dream. You sit here with me now."

"Near your remains burned a black box. Its inferno blazed so fiercely that the heat scorched everything nearby. Terror gripped me… I dreaded losing you so much. But praise be, it was merely a dream. You sit here with me now."

A gentle smile gradually lit up her lovely visage as her words ended.

Yet Nolan stayed frozen upon hearing her tale. His pulse raced furiously, breaths growing uneven.

His eyes bulged wide, raw dread shining through.

"A mishap, huh? A blazing black box?"

Icy sweat beaded on his brow as a recollection surged forth.

'Was that from my previous life's crash?'

Nothing else could account for his sister's vision.

In that fateful crash, Nolan had perished. His spirit wandered briefly before some enigmatic pull whisked it away, leaving his corpse in the medical ward.

Thus, every instant post-crash etched itself into his memory.

'But how? How could she know of it? Is she perhaps…'

A daring suspicion dawned in his thoughts. Yet instantly, he rejected it with a head shake.

'Impossible… no way. Still, what if she truly is that lady?'

For the first time ever, an all-consuming terror welled up inside Nolan.

Not even confronting a calamity dragon in the heart of the capital had rattled him so.

Now, the dread he deemed absent clawed its way out, icing his very bones.

"Nolan? Why so ashen?" A frail, worried voice sounded before him.

Nolan jolted from his reverie, mustering a rigid grin.

"I'm okay. Your dream just struck me as odd," he answered mildly, then pivoted topics. "Anyway, how did you end up wounded? Those killers?"

Seira strained to rise, but weakness pinned her down. Nolan swiftly propped her up, easing her back against the headboard.

"No. Not them… Aldrian caused my injuries."

Her revelation stunned Nolan. His gaze sharpened fiercely.

"Aldrian? Explain yourself."

Seira dipped her head and started narrating the prior events.

The deeper Nolan delved into her account, the fiercer his fury blazed. Killing intent boiled over, threatening to shred the palace asunder.

Yet he clamped it down fast, drawing a steadying breath to quell the storm.

"Got it," he uttered icily. "Crave vengeance?"

Seira shook her head. "No need. Aldrian's actions made perfect sense, so I hold no grudge."

Though resentment toward Aldrian lingered, Seira clung to reason.

Had roles reversed, she'd have slain him outright, refusing any false piety.

That clash had shattered engagement talks with the royals for good.

No cause remained to linger in the palace.

Nolan peered into her eyes briefly before nodding faintly.

"Understood. Homeward in seven days. Bear with it?"

Seira arched a brow, querying timidly, "More business for you?"

"Indeed. Loose ends to tie. Please endure a bit more."

Seira fell silent, merely nodding.

"I will. For you, anything."

Her left hand extended, tenderly tracing Nolan's cheek.

Nolan's lips curved unwittingly, savoring her gentle caress in quiet bliss.

Then he rose and departed. The door clicked shut, and his smile evaporated, supplanted by a chillingly savage scowl.

"Meliodas… you've gone too far. Don't fault me for what follows."

Whoosh!

His form blurred from view.

***

Meliodas paced the chamber, face twisted in rage and irritation. An hour ticked by without tidings from Arkash.

Per the scheme, Aldrian's demise report should've arrived thirty minutes post-command.

Its absence only stoked his wrath further.

"Trouble afoot… Did the Void Reaver Disc seize Aldrian's form?" His countenance soured at the idea.

The Void Reaver Disc stood as a supreme relic from the Ancient Kingdom of Eron's dawn.

Post Demon Emperor's fall a millennium past, it shunned all successors save Aldrian.

Meliodas once gleaned from dusty tomes that the disc harbored its own awareness.

At times, that sentience could dominate Aldrian, reshaping him utterly.

Perhaps it had seized control and slaughtered his dispatched mercenaries.

"No… pray it hasn't. Else my schemes halt midway," he grumbled, gnawing his thumbnail.

Footfalls resounded from beyond. The door groaned ajar, admitting a ashen-faced Arkash.

"Your… Highness…" he rasped.

Meliodas wheeled toward him, bafflement crossing his visage.

"What's amiss? Mission success?"

Arkash stayed mute. His mouth worked soundlessly, words trapped.

At last, one escaped ere he crumpled earthward.

"Run…"