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The next day, Duke Jurnova and his party departed from the minor lord’s residence earlier than planned.
The provincial capital was already quite close, therefore, a later departure time had been scheduled. However, townspeople had been gathering steadily around the minor lord’s residence since morning. Wondering what was happening, it turned out to be people hoping to catch a glimpse of the duke and his sister. Fearing the unexpected crowd might surround them and prevent the carriage from moving, they decided to depart early.

*(Did…did I go too far)*

Ekaterina was sweating profusely inside. Who would have thought simply waving her hand would lead to this.

Even after being showered with clearly mistaken cheers yesterday, she still believed it was just a wave. Perhaps her romantic misfortune was being applied in a peculiar way. Just as honesty isn’t always a virtue, application isn’t always a good thing either. This might be an example of that.
And Aleksei, too, didn’t understand the meaning behind the mistaken cheers. He firmly believed they were expressions of congratulations for him, the new Duke, and his sister, who had regained her position as the Duke’s daughter. In a way, these siblings are really cut from the same cloth.

Knight Commander Rozen bowed to Ekaterina with a composed smile.

“Have no worries, my lady. The knights will protect you both without fail. Moreover, the subjects hold Your Grace and my lady in the deepest affection. If you could grace the remainder of our journey with the same magnanimous smile as yesterday, everyone would be deeply moved by your kindness. Please enter Jurnova Castle amidst the cheers of the people.”

…What is it? Rozen seems to have this air of resignation about him.
I don’t quite understand it, but Novak had a similar vibe before we left too. But everyone getting excited isn’t a bad thing, right?
Alright, I’ll do my best for Onii-sama again today!

.

And so, Ekaterina smiles and waves again today.
Surprisingly, all those smiles didn’t make her face freeze up; rather, it’s enjoyable. That’s probably because all the people gathering are giving her joyful smiles as well. Returning a smile for a smile is easy.
Plus, Aleksei seemed to be enjoying himself in his own cool way. That was probably because Ekaterina kept spotting people of interest in the crowd and calling out to Aleksei, trying to entertain him.

However, more than her effort to entertain him, Aleksei was having fun because her dear sister was clearly having fun herself.

After passing through the minor lord’s town, the ancient road, paved by the old Astra Empire, led only toward the provincial capital, with a few villages scattered along the way.
Approaching those villages, they were surprised to find people already waiting. There were no phones or email in this world, and yet word had clearly spread far and wide. The power of word-of-mouth is incredible.
And then, the provincial capital came into view ahead on the road.

.

The provincial capital of the Jurnova Duchy was also called the Northern Capital. It was the largest city in the northern part of the empire, encompassing not only the duchy but other territories as well. Its position was akin to Sapporo relative to Tokyo.
While smaller than the Imperial Capital, it was still one of the major cities in this world. It shared a similar atmosphere to the Imperial Capital yet possessed a distinct beauty of its own.
This Northern Capital is the castle town of the Jurnova ducal family.

Like the Imperial Capital, the cities of the Empire are not clearly separated from the outside by outer walls or the like. Such cities apparently existed during the war-torn founding period, but thankfully, with the current era of peace and stability, the Northern Capital, like the Imperial Capital, continues to expand.
That said, a line marking the city’s boundary does exist.

“We are stepping onto the capital.”

As Aleksei pointed this out, the remnants of a gate came into view out of the corner of Ekaterina’s eye—reminiscent of Paris’s Arc de Triomphe, though smaller and older, with an air of venerable history.
As if responding to Aleksei’s words, a knightly musician sounded a horn. It was a melody announcing the lord’s return.
People had been lining both sides of the road to greet the procession even before this, but the moment the horn echoed, crowds poured out from nearby houses. More people. Even more people.

Whoa, this is a whole ordeal!
No wonder—the population here is different from the villages along the way.

The ever-growing crowd stared at the carriage carrying the siblings with shining eyes. When Ekaterina waved, they waved back or shouted cheers. Using the equivalent of Japan’s “banzai”… nah, let’s just call it ‘banzai’ for simplicity. The sound of “banzai” echoed all around.
That, and cheers of “Welcome home.”

—Right. We’re back home, huh.
Whether it’s because I regained my past life’s memories in the Imperial Capital, or because I’ve been secluded even in this life after leaving the villa and know almost nothing of the provincial capital, I find myself looking at the scenery with a sense of novelty. But even now, both for Onii-sama and I, this is our true hometown.

Ekaterina met Aleksei’s gaze beside her and smiled.

“Welcome home, Onii-sama.”

Aleksei widened his neon-blue eyes and returned the smile.

“I’m home. —And welcome back, Ekaterina.”

Taking his sister’s hand, Aleksei enveloped it with both of his.

“This is your city, my queen’s city. All who dwell here shall kneel before you. Those who refuse to obey, I shall remove. Without fail.”
“Onii-sama, though my strength is small, I too wish to join my effort with yours. Those who defy you, I shall punish them myself.”
“I see. How reassuring.”

Aleksei chuckled, his voice tinged with mischief as he spoke the latter part.

“Then let us go. To purge the demons from this den of evil.”

.

And then, ahead of the carriage, the main residence, Jurnova Castle, came into view.
It reminded her vaguely of a building she’d seen in a travel brochure from her past life. She couldn’t quite recall, but it might have been Stockholm Palace in Sweden. Unlike the Imperial Palace, it wasn’t a fairy-tale castle with numerous spires, but it was an elegant and solid structure.

Damn boy it’s huge!
Well, not all of it is for living, though. It handles administrative functions like a prefectural office, headquarters functions for a general trading company, guesthouse functions for receiving dignitaries, and various other roles besides.
Even so, this is my home.
It might even become a World Heritage Site someday.
Actually, will UNESCO ever be established in this world?

The procession advanced through the cheers of the subjects, just as the Knight Commander had said. The cries of “Long live!” were deafening.
The gates of Jurnova Castle stood wide open.
Within, another contingent of knights stood lined up on either side of the gate.
As the horn player sounded the horn once more, the knights raised their swords and let out a mighty battle cry.

Welcomed by the cheers of the people and the knights’ battle cry, the siblings entered Jurnova Castle.