The Hidden Extra: The Lazy Prince Refuses to Ascend The Throne - Chapter 446

446: An Accusation from Cassian (1) 446: An Accusation from Cassian (1) Five hundred meters from the imperial palace’s artificial forest, five men in black cloaks gathered and performed a strange dance.

Beneath their feet lay a red, star-shaped magic circle ten meters wide.

Each of the five men stood at one point of the magic circle, continuing to chant unclear songs and spells.

“Hearken to the call of ash and bone.” “By the covenant buried in ancient days.” “I unseal earth and shadow.” “Arise, thou bound by infernal flame.” “Come forth and heed my will.” “O spirit born of night unending.” “Sworn to the abyss without dawn.” “By my blood as the key.” Whoosh!

Suddenly, a bright red light flashed from the center of the circle.

Another man in a black cloak stood in the distance, watching the ritual with a grim expression.

‘It’s still not enough!

We need another evil artifact,’ he muttered coldly.

Snapping his fingers, a black crystal ball appeared in his right hand.

‘This is the Artifact of Nothingness.

The cult leader gave it to me just in case the energy needed to resurrect the Demon Emperor wasn’t enough.

I didn’t expect to have to use it now,’ he muttered irritably.

His original intention was to keep this crystal ball for himself.

Unfortunately, the ritual encountered an obstacle.

Inevitably, he had to use the crystal ball to ensure everything went according to plan.

He walked to the center of the magic circle and placed the black crystal ball upon the altar of worship.

“With this, everything will go according to plan,” he whispered with a slight smirk.

“And Demon Emperor, we will welcome you… hahaha…” … “T-That… what is that?” Outside the evacuation hall, Cassian stared at the reddish-black barrier covering the imperial palace with a fearful gaze.

For some reason, the barrier gave him an uneasy feeling, as if its appearance signaled impending doom.

Within his consciousness, the Demon Emperor Zerathos glanced at the barrier.

A faint smile suddenly spread across his face.

“Don’t worry about that, Cassian.

The most important thing right now is for you to attack Elina.

Now is the time.

Don’t worry-I’ll help you make her the scapegoat.” Cassian’s heart pounded violently.

The moment had finally come, and the excitement made his breathing grow heavy.

“All right, I understand.

Let’s do it,” Cassian said eagerly.

*** “Lyra, are you okay?

And where is Orion?” Ragan asked worriedly.

Lyra nodded, her expression gloomy.

“I’m fine, Your Majesty.

Right now, Orion is fighting two Cardinals from the Gate of the Underworld.” “Two Cardinals from the Gate of the Underworld?” Ragan was stunned.

His face reddened as he growled, “Are those bastards leading this attack?” “Yes, Your Majesty.” Lyra lowered her gaze, her expression depressed.

“Forgive us, Your Majesty.

If only Orion and I-” Before she could finish, Ragan waved his right hand to calm her.

“It’s okay.

Don’t blame yourselves.

No one could have predicted things would turn out like this.

The most important thing now is to keep an eye on the evacuation hall.

There are guests inside who managed to survive.

I don’t want them to get hurt.

Do you understand?” “I understand, Your Majesty,” Lyra replied respectfully.

“Then-” Before Ragan could finish his sentence, footsteps sounded from his right.

He turned and saw his children-Elina, Cedric, Aldric, and Cassian.

Behind them stood the leaders of the noble families, including Orlan, Duke Malvain, and others.

“Why did you come out?” Ragan asked coldly.

“We just want to share the burden with you, Father,” Elina said firmly.

Cedric, who wanted to say the same thing, glanced at Elina with a hint of dissatisfaction.

Ragan’s heart warmed as he looked at Elina and the others with a gentle gaze.

“It’s okay.

You can return to the evacuation hall and wait for the next step.

The members of the Gate of the Underworld are still launching attacks.

If they manage to break through the defenses, the situation will become very dangerous,” Ragan reminded them seriously.

At this moment, only Orion and Lyra were guarding the imperial palace.

However, Orion was fighting two Cardinals, leaving Lyra alone on their side.

If the other Cardinals joined the attack, it would be impossible for them to survive by relying on Lyra alone.

“Don’t worry, Father.

My grandfather is here,” Adalen said proudly.

He pointed at the Singularity of Light behind him.

The figure merely smiled, saying nothing.

Ragan narrowed his eyes and was about to say something but swallowed his words.

Just then, Cassian suddenly stepped forward and bowed before Ragan.

“Father, I want to report something,” he said.

Everyone immediately turned their gaze toward Cassian with curiosity.

However, only Elina looked suspicious, narrowing her eyes.

‘What is he up to?’ she wondered.

“Be careful.

It looks like he’s planning to make you the scapegoat for everything that’s happened,” Malverna’s voice echoed in her mind.

‘Make me the scapegoat?’ Elina was shocked.

“Yes,” Malverna replied.

“Just watch-he’ll slander you with his sweet words.” The mockery in her tone was unmistakable.

Of course, the idea of using Elina as a scapegoat did not come from Cassian himself, but from the demon inside him-Zerathos.

How did she know?

It was simple-she was his master, and she knew him best.

Her disciple was a demon who appeared innocent on the outside but was cruel within.

Considering that he had once overthrown her from the throne of the demon race, such a small and cunning trick could only have come from him.

Moreover, she had lived alongside Nolan for a long time-the most cunning and unpredictable man she had ever met.

Even compared to her disciple, Nolan far surpassed him in strategy and countless other aspects.

‘Then, can you help me?’ Elina asked.

If Cassian relied on the demon inside him to trap her, escaping would be nearly impossible.

Whatever the reason, suspicion would cling to her, and naturally, she didn’t want that to happen.

“Don’t worry.

I’m here to protect you.

I’ll act if the demon inside Cassian makes a move,” Malverna replied casually.

She didn’t dare take it lightly.

If Nolan discovered that his sister was being framed as the mastermind behind this chaos while she did nothing, it was not impossible that she would be killed-and the Empire could be thrown into turmoil by him.

Just imagining it made Malverna shiver.

“Good!

That’s a relief,” Elina sighed.

Meanwhile, Ragan looked at Cassian with curiosity.

“What is it?

What do you want to say?” Cassian straightened up, his expression serious.

Despite the gaze of so many people, he remained completely unfazed.

“Father, I know the cause of this chaos,” he declared.

Everyone’s faces tightened as they exchanged confused glances.

“Who?” Ragan demanded coldly.

Cassian turned to Elina and pointed at her.

“She… is the culprit.”