#80 Capital (1)
Some time had passed since they returned from Sullis.
The weather had grown warmer, melting the thick snow and leaving the roads muddy.
A few plants that grew well even in the cold were already impatiently sprouting.
Seeing the fresh green shoots made it clear that winter was coming to an end.
One day, when spring felt closer than winter—
Brrr!
A guest arrived on a white horse.
The appearance of a group of knights in silver armor threw Bellicordo Castle into alert.
Sasha, looking out from the window, saw the uninvited visitors.
Among the dozen or so men, a large banner fluttered.
On the bright yellow flag, the face of a lion with a golden mane was embroidered.
At that sight, she immediately knew who they were.
“The only ones who can embroider a roaring lion on a flag are the Imperial Family…”
That meant they were the Imperial Knights.
“What could the Imperial Knights want?”
Sasha quickly grabbed her coat and went downstairs.
Dmitri was already there to greet them as they came through the open castle gates.
If the Imperial Knights came in person, it had to be something related to the Grand Duke of Volkov.
But contrary to her expectations, they weren’t here for him.
“Pavel Volkov.”
The Imperial Knights all looked past Dmitri to Pavel.
“This is a message from His Majesty the Emperor.”
The letter they handed over said that, since the heir had come of age, he would be granted a title.
There was no reason to refuse, so Pavel would have to go to the capital to receive it.
They had only just returned from Sullis, and now they would have to leave again—
And this time, the journey would be many times longer and harder.
At least in Sullis, they had enjoyed the hot springs and returned within a day, so there had been no travel fatigue.
For the investiture ceremony, Pavel, Sasha, the Grand Duke of Volkov, and a unit of knights for escort would travel together.
All told, about twenty people would be making the trip.
From the Volkov territory in the north to the capital, Kalita, near the southern border, it would take a full two weeks on horseback.
If they reached a nearby village, they could rest comfortably, but if their schedule slipped, they’d have to camp outdoors—a grueling journey.
Many were worried about Sasha, who had never done this before.
“Will you be alright? It will be difficult—you don’t have to come along,” Dmitri said with concern.
Sasha immediately shook her head.
Of course, she wasn’t exactly thrilled.
The hard road was one thing, but traveling together meant she couldn’t avoid Pavel.
Still, not going was out of the question.
What wife skipped her husband’s investiture ceremony?
It would damage Pavel’s honor and spread rumors of marital discord across the Empire—
And from there, endless gossip would follow.
‘There’s no way I can skip it.’
With a calm smile to reassure them, Sasha said,
“Don’t worry. I understand your concerns, but I won’t be a burden.”
Her composed, confident answer made Dmitri study her silently for a moment.
Sasha didn’t avoid the sharp gaze of the Grand Duke, meeting it steadily.
Finally, Dmitri sighed.
“I’m not saying you’ll be a burden. Even new knights find this road difficult at first, so I was trying to spare you hardship. But if you insist, fine—come along.”
They couldn’t delay after receiving the Emperor’s message.
Preparations began the day they received the letter, and within a week, they set out from Bellicordo Castle.
“I’ll be back. Take care of yourselves until then,” Sasha told those staying behind.
“My lady, even in Kalita, don’t rely too much on the safety there. Always be careful,” someone urged.
“I understand.”
“Oh dear, I won’t sleep a wink from worrying,” Olga said with a sigh, stepping back at last.
Then Ivan and Yelena stepped forward.
“Don’t worry about things here. We’ll work day and night.”
“Yes, Ivan and I will cover your share too, so enjoy yourself in Kalita!”
After farewells matching each person’s personality, Sasha kept waving from the carriage window until the castle was just a dot in the distance.
“We’re really leaving now,” Nina, seated across from her, said excitedly.
Nina, Sasha’s personal maid, was openly thrilled for her first trip outside Bellicordo.
“This is your first time leaving the castle, right?”
“Yes! I’m so excited, Sasha.”
“Good. I hope it will be a pleasant journey.”
“Hehe. That would be wonderful.”
Dreamily gazing out the window, Nina kept chattering—
But her voice grew quieter and quieter.
Traveling on unpaved roads for weeks brought several problems.
First, motion sickness—
…which they handled with medicine.
‘In my past life, I was a famous doctor. Of course I made an effective remedy in advance.’
Thanks to that, both Sasha and Nina could ride without discomfort.
The second problem—
Rattle, rattle!
The carriage jolted hard on the uneven roads.
“My lady! Are you alright?” Nikolai, remembering his sore backside from Sullis, poked his head in to ask.
Sasha silently showed him the thick cushion under her.
“Ah…”
The thick padding solved that problem.
The real issue that silenced Nina was the third problem—
Boredom.
At first, the scenery was interesting, but once they left inhabited villages, it was the same view over and over.
With nothing new to see outside and conversation running out, the coach grew quiet.
Before long, Nina was dozing, and Sasha adjusted her position to let her sleep comfortably.
But the hardest part people had warned about was camping outdoors.
“We’ll have to spend the night here,” the Grand Duke said.
Until yesterday, they had stayed in small villages, but today they couldn’t get past a mountain slope.
“Prepare to make camp.”
The knights moved quickly at his command.
They found flat ground for the twenty of them, tied the horses, and began setting up tents.
Sasha tried to help—
But before she could roll up her sleeves, Pavel, Andrei, Nikolai, Igor, and even the Grand Duke stopped her.
“I can help too,” she protested.
“These jobs are for strong men like us. Please rest in the carriage and come out when dinner’s ready,” Nikolai said smoothly.
Andrei, silent until now, added,
“You can eat here in comfort. No need to sit outside where it’s cold and full of bugs.”
“But—”
“Rest, Sasha,” Pavel cut in.
She paused, then sighed softly.
“Alright.”
“Haha, just leave it to us! You too, little lady—stay with her,” Nikolai told Nina.
“M-me?”
“Yes.”
He escorted both of them to the carriage.
“…Sheesh.”
Sasha gave up and watched the three men at work.
But—
“Why can’t they do this properly?”
Pfft, pfft.
“Huh? Why isn’t this working?”
Nikolai, despite his boasting, couldn’t light the fire.
Thud, thud.
Andrei and Pavel were hammering the tent stakes into the wrong places.
“Hm?”
“Guess that’s not right.”
They pulled them out, puzzled, then tried again.
“…Good grief.”
Unable to watch any longer, Sasha stood.
“Move.”
She took the flint from Nikolai—
Click, click!
She struck a spark on the first try, making him gape.
“Wow! How did you do that, my lady?”
“Like this.”
Click, click!
Again, she lit it easily, flicking her wrist just right.
“You really can do everything,” Nikolai muttered.
Sasha just shrugged.
Lighting fires with flint was something she’d done in more than half of her twenty-two past lives.
Since advanced civilizations with science or magic were rare, fire-making was a basic survival skill.
‘This is why experience matters.’
And her skills didn’t stop there.
“Alright, you two, step aside.”
She moved Pavel and Andrei out of the way and quickly assembled the tent.
The two of them just watched blankly until she said,
“Hold this for me.”
Finally, they helped.
Clack, clack.
Compared to the men, Sasha worked with speed and efficiency—
And even prepared dinner.
It wasn’t anything fancy—ingredients and tools were limited—
But she still made the best possible meal.
The delicious smell and appetizing look made mouths water.
“Wow…”
The three men accepted their bowls of soup in silence.
…And they ate in silence too.
After bragging that she could rest and leave it to them, they’d made her do everything.
Andrei was always quiet, and Pavel didn’t talk much either—
But seeing even Nikolai subdued, eating quietly, was almost funny.
Sasha barely managed to hide her smile.
