The Hidden Extra: The Lazy Prince Refuses to Ascend The Throne Chapter 861 The Investigation (1)

"Please, have a seat, both of you. I'll get the food ready," the old woman said with a gentle smile.

She then walked toward the kitchen and disappeared from view.

Rafine turned to Nolan. "What do you think?"

Nolan didn't answer immediately. Instead, his gaze swept across the room, carefully examining every corner.

Suddenly, his eyes settled on a chair at the far end of the room. It looked completely ordinary. In fact, parts of it were badly worn and damaged.

However, Nolan knew better than anyone that the chair was the core of the formation surrounding the shop.

"Interesting... very interesting," he muttered with a wide grin. "The mage behind this is a true genius."

An ordinary mage would have chosen something conspicuous as the core of the formation—a large rock, a crystal, or some other eye-catching object.

But the person behind this formation had done the exact opposite.

They chose the most ordinary-looking object as its core, making it nearly impossible to notice. Even a powerful Celestial-level mage could easily be fooled.

Unfortunately for them, the one who had shown up was him—the Singularity of Chaos. No illusion or trick could escape his eyes.

"Don't worry. Everything's under control."

Nolan sat down on the dust-covered chair.

"By the way, drink this."

He handed Rafine a blue potion.

"I'm one hundred percent sure that old woman is planning to slip something into our food. This potion will neutralize any toxins, including whatever she puts in yours."

Rafine accepted it without hesitation. She unscrewed the cap and gulped down the contents in one go.

A cool sensation flowed down her throat before slowly fading away.

Nolan raised an eyebrow at her unquestioning response and joked, "Aren't you afraid it isn't an antidote but a poison? Maybe an aphrodisiac?"

Rafine remained calm as she replied, "You wouldn't do that. I'm sure of it."

Her unwavering confidence caught Nolan by surprise.

"This woman is truly foolish," he chuckled.

In truth, he would never do something that wicked. He had only said it to tease her.

"Go ahead and eat."

The old woman returned with a tray carrying two plates, each with two pieces of bread and a glass of milk.

She placed them on the table and said softly, "I'm sorry if the food isn't very good. This is all I have."

Rafine smiled gently.

"It's okay, Grandma. We're grateful just to have something to fill our stomachs."

Nolan remained silent, his gaze fixed on the two dry pieces of bread in front of him.

To an ordinary person, the bread looked perfectly normal, though a little pale—perhaps because it had started to go stale.

But to Nolan, the bread on both his and Rafine's plates emitted a faint purple glow. Tiny maggots wriggled through every pore of the bread.

"Paralyzing poison, huh? And the bread itself is terrible. The one pulling the strings is truly cruel," he muttered.

He raised his gaze, his eyes sweeping across the room before finally settling on the kitchen.

A strange smile tugged at his lips, but it vanished just as quickly. He then picked up a piece of bread and began to eat.

Seeing him eat, Rafine did the same.

The old woman stood there silently, watching the two of them eat.

What Rafine didn't notice was the cold glint that flashed across the old woman's eyes.

"Eat... Eat! Once you're done, the two of you will become a fortune for me... hehehe..."

Fifteen minutes later, Nolan and Rafine finished their meal.

The old woman stepped forward and cleared away the dirty plates and glasses.

"Was it good?"

Rafine nodded. "It was pretty good. At least my husband and I aren't starving anymore."

The old woman smiled, revealing her uneven teeth.

"Glad to hear that."

She didn't leave after that. Instead, she stood there holding the tray of dirty plates and glasses, as though she were waiting for something.

Seconds passed, yet nothing happened. The old woman's patience was beginning to wear thin.

"What's going on? Why haven't those two shown any signs of passing out yet?" she wondered.

Nolan, who had remained silent until then, looked up and flashed her a grin.

"What's the matter? Are you waiting for the two of us to pass out?"

His words struck the old woman like a bolt of lightning.

"You..."

She was about to speak when an overwhelming pressure suddenly burst from Nolan's body and bore down on her.

She couldn't withstand it. Her legs gave out, and she collapsed to the floor.

Nolan stood up and stretched his stiff body.

"So you used a magic formation to trick everyone outside. Only handsome guys and pretty girls can see the sign that says 'Free Meal' at the entrance. Right?"

He crouched in front of the old woman with a faint smirk.

The old woman trembled. The calm expression she'd managed to keep until now vanished without a trace.

"W-What kind of nonsense are you talking about!? I don't understand any of that!" she cried in panic.

Nolan couldn't be bothered to waste any more words on her. She was nothing more than a pawn. The real culprit was still hiding.

He slowly rose to his feet, his gaze fixed on the kitchen.

"Do you still want to hide like a rat? Everything's already been exposed. Come out now, or I'll tear this place apart."

The room remained silent, as though Nolan were talking to himself.

Seeing that the person still refused to respond, Nolan shifted his gaze to the old woman before him.

A cold glint flashed across his eyes as a knife suddenly appeared in his hand.

"Since you still refuse to show yourself, don't blame me for taking drastic measures."

Just as he was about to strike the old woman, a cold voice echoed from behind him.

"Wait!"

The tip of the knife stopped just a few centimeters from the old woman's face.

She was so terrified that she had wet herself.

Nolan and Rafine naturally turned toward the kitchen as the door slowly creaked open.

A tall, handsome man stepped out with calm, unhurried strides.

He wore a gray cloak that draped all the way to the floor, along with a tall black hat perched atop his head.

A single monocle rested over one eye, giving him the appearance of an antique collector.

"Oh? You finally decided to come out. Were you afraid this woman might get hurt?"

Nolan pressed the tip of his knife slightly into the old woman's skin, causing her to cry out in pain.

"Stop!"

The man immediately rushed at Nolan, trying to shove him away, but Nolan was faster.

Before he could even get close, Nolan drove his foot into the man's stomach, sending him flying across the room. He crashed into several benches before coming to a stop.

"Do you understand your place now?" Nolan said coldly. "Stay where you are. Don't move, or this woman dies."

Rafine swallowed hard at Nolan's ruthless display, but she didn't say a word.

"Ack..."

The man coughed as he clutched his aching stomach.

His eyes blazed with murderous intent as he glared at Nolan.

"Bastard..."