Project Necro is an official initiative by Re:Library.

The next morning, the party set out from the minor lord’s residence.

Though sleep-deprived, the minor lord was in high spirits, standing tall as he saw the nobles off. His elderly wife looked worried, yet she too seemed to be filled with a sense of pride.
This was because, regarding last night’s commotion, he had received heartfelt apologies from Ekaterina and Flora, along with praise for his loyalty in rushing to their aid so quickly, and words of gratitude from Aleksei as well. Furthermore, His Imperial Highness Prince Mikhail had praised the subjects of Jurnova as deeply loyal and wonderful, leaving him choked with tears of emotion.
He was a man who had once served as a personal attendant to her grandfather, Sergei. He wiped away his tears, saying that he was simply glad that nothing happened to Lord Sergei’s grandchildren. Ekaterina profusely apologized to them in her heart.

And so, the Demon Dragon King’s visit was completely concealed.

.

After that, they made their way back without incident, and the party headed for the imperial capital aboard the high-speed vessel Lapidus, sailing down the Cernov River.

The Lapidus made its return journey even more smoothly than the upstream trip.
In the confined environment of the ship, where they didn’t have to worry so much about the eyes of others, Ekaterina, Mikhail, and Flora relaxed a little more than before and enjoyed the journey. Aleksei was his usual self, but he was smiling at the sight of his cheerful younger sister.

Ekaterina often invited Flora to join her on the deck, where they spent time gazing at the riverbank and singing together. The crew of the speedboat listened with pleasure to the beautiful singing voices of the lovely girls.
However, some of them tilted their heads in confusion, as the song was unfamiliar to them.

And no wonder—the song was actually a global hit from her past life, with lyrics translated into Imperial by Ekaterina herself. It was the theme song of an animated film featuring an ice castle, which had also been a massive worldwide hit.
Actually, ever since Ekaterina translated the theme song of the “Project Something-or-Other” a while back, she’d gotten into the habit of occasionally translating songs from her past life. It was her secret, private hobby. But this particular song was the quintessential heroine’s anthem. She’d been wanting Flora to sing it for a while, and this time, faced with such a perfect opportunity, she simply couldn’t resist the impulse.

Not only is her voice as beautiful, Flora sings just as well. Just as you’d expect from the heroine.
Since Ekaterina was in the choir club in her past life, she has knowledge about the proper posture for singing, how to open her throat, and how to hit the right notes. She has a reputation for her pitch accuracy and would routinely score in the 90s on karaoke scoring systems. That said, she didn’t have the kind of radiant voice that would get her chosen for a solo.
Flora, without a doubt, has a radiant voice suitable for a solo.

Come to think of it, Ekaterina thought, I’d once considered taking up horseback riding or vocal lessons to build up my stamina.
She managed to persuade Aleksei to let her take horseback riding lessons, but since she needed a custom-made saddle and, of course, a horse and an arena, it wasn’t something she could do every day while she was a student. Singing, on the other hand, only required her body, and since she’d loved it in her past life, trying it out like this was indeed fun.
And so, Ekaterina decided to ask Aleksei once again if she could take voice lessons.

Of course, Aleksei gave his permission immediately.

“I’ll arrange for a good teacher who’s worthy of you. Your singing voice is beautiful—paradise is wherever your voice resonates, whether on earth or in heaven. You are truly my songbird. My only worry is that if you become any more wonderful, you might be invited to the Garden of the God of Music and never return.”
“Oh, Onii-sama…”

Your siscon filter is in full swing again today!

“Lady Flora has a much more lovely singing voice than I do.”
“Miss Flora’s singing voice is wonderful, too. Still, yours is the only song that melts my soul.”

Even his soul is equipped with a siscon filter. Just as I’d expect from Onii-sama.

But when it comes to equipping my soul with a brocon filter, I’ve got a proven track record!
I’m not sure if I should be bragging about that, though!

Despite not entirely sure about it herself, Ekaterina still found herself puffing out her chest.

.

On another occasion, Ekaterina spent her time reading and writing letters. Even those moments felt like a mini-vacation, spent at the elegant table and chairs set up on the deck of the fast ship, with the breeze blowing across the river’s surface.

“Is that the letter delivered by the fast horse you received before boarding the ship?”

Asked by Mikhail, who had come to sit beside her, Ekaterina nodded.

“Yes, it’s from a lady I befriended in my estate.”

The sender was Zoya the widow. She wrote to say that after she hinted she had some of the Forest Folk’s wooden tableware on hand, she had been flooded with inquiries. It seemed that Prince Mikhail’s praise of Jurnova’s traditions had truly struck a chord with the territory’s upper class. The letter was filled with enthusiastic words, expressing her conviction that the items could be sold at a price that would be profitable even as individual pieces, not just as sets, and asking to be entrusted with their sales.

“She’s associated with the leading trading house in Jurnova. Seems like she is able to do good business, all thanks to you, Lord Mikhail.”
“Is that regarding the fairy fruit you gave out after the hunting tournament?”

He had hit the nail on the head, and Ekaterina’s eyes widened.
Mikhail was smiling mischievously. It seemed he had seen right through Ekaterina’s intentions from the start and had praised her accordingly.

“As expected of you—you really do understand.”

When Ekaterina unironically praised him, Mikhail’s gaze drifted off into the distance.

“My mother does it a lot, you see…”

I see.
Empress Magdalena, a member of the Jursein family—which owns the Empire’s largest trading port—and a skilled promoter of the Empire’s trade, apparently makes full use of her son for product promotions.
I think I understand why she does it, a little.

“I’m thinking of selling those wooden bowls used to serve the fruit. They’re made by an ethnic minority living in the Jurnova Forest. They have such a unique, wonderful sense of style… I hope to provide them with an income and pave a path for them to live as themselves, no matter how the world changes in the future.”

After saying that, Ekaterina wondered if it was something she shouldn’t have told a sixteen-year-old boy, but then decided it was fine.
After all, Prince Mikhail isn’t just any sixteen-year-old.

Mikhail gazed at Ekaterina with a serious expression and murmured.

“It seems to me you can see far into the distance.”

No, that’s not it… I just have memories from my past life…
Please don’t make it sound so cool. I was just a corporate slave in my late twenties.

“I-I mean, isn’t it natural for anyone to anticipate what the future holds?”

Ekaterina laughed, “Hohoho~,” and Mikhail smiled brightly and said, “You’re right.”
It’s actually kind of scary how he knows when to pull back.

.

“Speaking of the hunting tournament, I heard that Aleksei is going to give you the silver antlers from the moose he bagged,”

Said Mikhail. Ekaterina’s face lit up with a smile, and she nodded.

“Yes, that’s right. He said if I polish and craft them, he’ll let me display them in my room.”

They say that when polished, the silver antlers turn a magnificent silvery white.
In Europe in her previous life, displaying deer antlers usually meant mounting the head, but in the Imperial Court, taxidermy was not particularly favored. Hearing that only the antlers would be displayed, Ekaterina felt relieved and decided to accept them with pleasure.

“I wonder if you’d take the golden horns from my great horned auroch as well. I’d like to give them to you.”

Hearing this, Ekaterina’s eyes widened.
She thought for a moment, then shook her head firmly.

“They are a precious item. If you are going to give them away, there must be someone more deserving than I. Please present it to Her Imperial Majesty the Empress; she will surely be delighted.”

Her child has grown so fine that he can bag such a magnificent trophy. Any mother would surely be overjoyed.

“I see…”

Mikhail showed a look of disappointment that was unusually obvious for him, but he nodded immediately.

“Then I’ll tell Mother that you told me to give it to her.”
“Oh, my!”

Suddenly, Ekaterina’s delicate eyebrows shot up.

“You mustn’t! You mustn’t tell your mother that the gift was someone else’s idea! You must absolutely tell her it was your own idea!”

What was on Ekaterina’s mind was a friend from her past life who had married young and become a mother. When she had run into her by chance—having heard she was swamped with childcare—and they’d chatted, her friend had shown her something with a beaming face, saying, “My child gave me this!” It was what appeared to be a portrait of her.

*“He came up with it all on his own and gave it to me~. He’s started thinking like that all by himself before I knew it! I was so happy, but it also made me feel a little sad, thinking, ‘He’s going to grow up so fast…’”*

It was such a rapid-fire monologue that she couldn’t even interject with, “Isn’t that melancholy a bit premature?”
In any case, a gift must not be the result of someone else’s suggestion. It should be something he came up with on his own, a token of his gratitude.

“Aah, okay, I understand…”
“You absolutely have to do it.”

The prince is very mature, but he doesn’t seem to understand those subtle nuances of human emotion. A girl with a younger brother once got all huffed and puffed, saying, “Boys are just slow to develop that kind of emotional maturity,” and I guess she might be right.
But seeing a side of him that was, for once, typical of a high school boy, This Onee-san felt relieved in a way, yeah.

Right when he thought she suddenly snapped at him, Ekaterina now nodded contentedly to herself for some reason, and Mikhail could only smile wryly.

“I’ll take good care of my mother.”
“……”

Ekaterina suddenly recalled how, before leaving the estate, she and her brother had visited the Jurnova family mausoleum to pay their respects.

.

And then, the fast ship arrived at the imperial capital’s pier.
After thanking the captain and the crew for their hospitality, the group disembarked from the fast ship.

The long summer vacation was almost over.
Promising to meet at the academy, they each boarded their waiting carriages—the one for Flora had been arranged by the Jurnova family—and waved goodbye to one another.

They would meet again at the start of the new semester.