The Hidden Extra: The Lazy Prince Refuses to Ascend The Throne Chapter 296: The Savior (2)

"What if I beca the one who could change your fate? Would you accept it?"

Claire stiffened at his words. Her mouth fell open in a wide "O."

"You... What are you saying?" She exclaid in panic, hastily pulling her hand away from Nolan’s.

But Nolan didn’t let go. Instead, his grip tightened, making it impossible for her to break free.

"What I’m saying is serious. I can change your fate and make all your wishes co true," Nolan said solemnly. "If I were just talking nonsense, I wouldn’t be so confident. Now the choice is yours—will you accept it, or not?"

After speaking, Nolan fell silent, letting Claire make her decision. He knew, of course, that this was overwhelming for her.

After all, they had t less than half an hour ago and were still strangers.

Still, Nolan was confident she would accept. Belfor was an ambitious man, and his daughter had surely inherited that trait.

It was just that the suffering Claire had endured had slowly eroded her ambition. Yet, given the chance, Nolan was certain she could beco an extraordinary woman.

Claire lowered her head, uncertain whether to believe him.

What choice should I make? she wondered silently.

She did not know the young man before her, so trusting him imdiately was difficult.

From their previous conversations, however, she could tell that Nolan was smart, educated, and strikingly capable. Even at his young age, he had managed to purchase the Red Obsidian Trading House from his father.

As far as she knew, her father had cherished that trading house, which ant Nolan must have used extraordinary ans to pressure him into selling it.

To be near a man like that was a blessing—even a dream she had never dared to imagine.

Suddenly, she felt the urge to accept his offer, but she quickly restrained herself. This ti, her doubts were no longer about Nolan—they were about herself.

She was just a woman barely forty years old. In so ways, she felt like a leftover, waiting quietly for death.

She had been discarded and despised by many, including the villagers. Did she really deserve such a chance?

If she were honest, the answer would be, of course... no.

Besides, she was a disabled woman. Since birth, she had lost her eyesight. For soone like her, suffering was inevitable.

A wry smile tugged at her lips as she withdrew her hand from his grasp.

"Go ho. I want to be alone," she said weakly, averting her gaze. "I refuse your offer. Don’t ever co again."

Nevertheless, Nolan stayed where he was, a small smile playing on his lips. "Are you sure? How can I go ho with you in such a tearful state?"

Claire was startled. She rubbed her cheeks and the blindfold, feeling the wetness there.

"How... how is this possible? Did I just... cry?"

Her tears fell so freely that they seeped through the blindfold and ran down both cheeks.

No matter how often she wiped them away, they kept coming, filling her with confusion and fear.

Suddenly, Nolan leaned forward and clasped her hands.

Claire’s panic surged, but before she could speak, Nolan broke the silence.

"Do you feel inferior about what has happened to you over the past decades?"

His warm breath, along with the closeness of his voice, sent shivers down Claire’s spine. In her entire life, she had never been this close to a man, let alone touched by one.

It was her first ti, and she felt intensely uncomfortable. Yet, hearing Nolan’s words, she instinctively turned her face away in embarrassnt.

"So, I guessed right, huh?" Nolan smiled faintly. "Didn’t I tell you I could change your fate? Why do you still have doubts?"

He let out a soft sigh. "Humans cannot choose which family they are born into or how they appear. That is the will of the gods, and we, as living beings, must accept it."

"Your condition and your suffering are part of that. If the gods had given you a choice, I’m sure you wouldn’t have wanted to be born as Belfor’s daughter, let alone blind. And yet, here you are—enduring everything patiently, despite the grievances in your heart. Claire Horven, you are a remarkable woman..."

As soon as he spoke the last words, the darkness that had long enveloped Claire began to lift.

That simple complint touched her deepest heart. Since childhood, the only anger and insults she had received ca from her father, who saw her as worthless.

Every day had felt like a frozen tornt, yet Nolan’s words seed to thaw it, and tears ca rushing back without her control.

"Whoaa!" she sobbed, clinging tightly to Nolan. "I did my best, but why didn’t Father ever accept or love ? What did I do wrong? Is it just because I’m blind and don’t et his expectations? I didn’t want this either, but it’s my fate. I want to be loved too!"

Her cries grew louder with each passing second. The sadness she had carried for decades finally poured out.

Nolan made no attempt to offer sweet words or comfort. Years of suppressed grief were not sothing words could simply heal.

If it weren’t for his presence, Claire might have succumbed in the years to co—not from physical wounds, but from the burden slowly consuming her from within.

Five minutes later, her crying had gradually subsided until it disappeared completely. In that mont, Claire realized what she had done and hurriedly pulled away from Nolan.

But Nolan didn’t let her go so easily.

"Let go of ," Claire whispered shyly, trying to push him away.

"Don’t be so stiff. You just embraced and poured out your sorrows—how could I let you go?" Nolan said with a playful smile.

"You..." Claire’s face flushed bright red.

She hadn’t expected the young man before her to flirt so boldly. Didn’t he know she was almost forty?

Shouldn’t young people show respect to their elders?

If Nolan had known what she was thinking, he would have laughed and teased, "You’re not even forty yet, and you’re acting like an adult to —who’s forty-six?"

After a while, Nolan finally released his hold, and Claire let out a relieved sigh.

She pressed her right hand to her chest, feeling her heart race.

What’s happening to ? How could I be so moved by him? She muttered inwardly, embarrassed.

Oblivious to her thoughts, Nolan asked suddenly, "So, what about my offer? Did you accept it?"

Claire’s expression darkened. She bit her lower lip and nodded slowly.

"Yes... I accepted. But I’m a disabled and older woman. Are you really sure you want to... accept ?"

Her voice trembled with sadness and a deep sense of inferiority. Yet Nolan showed no sign of worry.

He extended his hand and pressed his palm against Claire’s blindfold.

"Since I said I would change your fate, that includes restoring the sight you lost at birth."

Whoosh!

A soft purple light flowed from his palm, slowly spreading through Claire’s body.

She felt a warm, unexplainable sensation. Before she could even react, Nolan had withdrawn his hand and removed the blindfold.

"Open your eyes," Nolan said gently.

Claire opened her eyes slowly, and in an instant, an extraordinarily handso face ca into view.

Her eyes widened in surprise. Tentatively, she reached out, touched Nolan’s face, and ran her fingers over it.

"Can I... really see?"