As luck would have it, Lady Ceres and her group had just finished dealing with that small force of foreign race invaders and returned to Crystal Capital…
The moment they disbanded, they heard commotion coming from the city gate not far away.
Before she could even ask what was going on, a scout from the Hive ran up to Ileya.
“Lady! The Marquis… Marquis Groset and the others are back!”
“Huh?” Lady Ceres was slightly taken aback.
Following the normal procedure, half a day before the old man’s return, a messenger would ride ahead at full speed to notify the city.
By then, Mother would surely come out of the Castle to greet her husband.
But now… they had returned without any notice at all.
After a brief moment of surprise, Ileya understood.
Knowing her father’s personality, he probably couldn’t be bothered with formalities. Once he got within a day’s ride of Crystal Capital, he’d just take his two sons and race back on horseback.
At that thought, Ileya let out a helpless little chuckle.
“Come on, let’s go check the city gate.”
The city gate area was absolutely bustling right now.
Many citizens of Crystal Capital, upon hearing that the Marquis was returning, rushed to the city gate in a frenzy to catch a glimpse.
There were also plenty of idle refugees joining in on the commotion.
After all, in times like these, the return of a leader gave ordinary folks a greater sense of security.
“W-woah… there are so many people? Was the gate area always this crowded?” Shire stared at the cheering, layered crowds of Crystal Capital citizens around them.
Besides, they had abandoned the carriage and rushed ahead on horseback. They hadn’t notified anyone, right?
Why were there so many commoners lining the streets to welcome them..?
“Didn’t you see it at the city gate earlier?” Unlike his younger brother’s surprise, Oz’s expression was perfectly calm.
“I saw it back at the gate—those long lines of commoners waiting to enter the city… and along the way, those abandoned, even destroyed villages.”
“So… most of the people standing along the streets aren’t actually city citizens. They’re refugees who fled into the city.”
“And no one told them to come welcome us deliberately. It’s just that… the city gate was already crowded with this many people to begin with.”
“Though it looks like things are a bit better than I expected…” Oz observed the refugees who were watching the excitement and cheering along with the other citizens.
These refugees looked a bit disheveled, like they hadn’t bathed in a long time.
But most of them seemed fairly healthy—none of that gaunt, malnourished look…
And there was no one wearing discontent, resentment, or looking to stir up trouble…
It seemed like their basic needs for shelter and food were being met?
Mother probably arranged that, didn’t she?
Oz slowly nodded. This was the importance of having a capable partner at home.
He’d have to find a woman as capable as Mother for himself one day.
Lost in such thoughts, Oz seemed to drift off, imagining his future wife.
And seeing his older brother straighten his posture… Shire instinctively sat up straighter too.
He didn’t have as many thoughts as his brother. He just felt… being welcomed by crowds like this really was quite nice~
It felt like all eyes were on you~
“Hey! Lady Ceres is here!”
“Lady Ceres just cleared out another group of foreign race earlier!”
“That’s right! My husband was saved by Lady Ceres and her group… thank you, Lady Ceres!”
“Long live Lady Ceres!”
Whoosh!!
In an instant, the crowd that had been welcoming the Marquis surged toward the rear!
Huh?
Not just Shire—even Marquis Groset and Oz were momentarily stunned, watching the crowd rush forward!
Lady Ceres?
In this city, the only one who could be called “Lady” like that… surely not what they were thinking?
“Hey! Um, who exactly is this ‘Lady’ you’re all talking about??” Shire couldn’t contain himself and grabbed a passing citizen.
The man was clearly a refugee, there just for the spectacle, not even knowing who they were supposed to be welcoming.
Now that he’d been grabbed, he looked at the person sitting atop the tall horse with a strange expression… a girl dressed in men’s clothing?
Noble ladies these days all liked wearing men’s clothes, huh… They sure know how to have fun.
“Um… you don’t know Lady Ceres? She’s Lady Ileya…” the refugee answered honestly, despite his confusion.
So it really was Ileya… Wait, Ileya?!
Shire first nodded to himself internally, but the next second his eyes went wide as he stared at the refugee.
Though he rarely left the house, he’d heard rumors about his little sister’s infamous reputation.
The title “Bloodblossom Demon” had completely overshadowed “Pearl of the Eastern Capital.” Even when he was in the Royal Capital, people talked about it.
Don’t ask how he knew. There was no way he was… being invited to tea parties by those noble ladies!!
Even if he were invited, he wouldn’t go!!
“It seems… our little sister has accomplished quite a bit while we were away…” Oz watched the somewhat fervent commoners, caught snippets of what they were saying, and raised an eyebrow.
“Yaya.” Groset, unlike his two sons, didn’t overthink it.
He figured it was perfectly normal for people to adore his adorable daughter.
Ileya hadn’t expected this either.
The reputation she’d been building, combined with her recent efforts clearing out small foreign race groups to train the others…
Had caused her prestige to accumulate and explode far faster than she’d anticipated!
She’d originally thought… this kind of reaction would only come after the foreign race war…
But she had indeed overestimated the commoners’ sense of security and underestimated the impact of her deeds and public speeches.
Empty words before had meant nothing.
But after clearing several small foreign race groups, commanding mercenaries in battle, and rescuing refugees…
It was like someone had actually struck gold at a legendary treasure site.
The pent-up prestige erupted all at once, and the people spontaneously elevated Lady Ceres to the position of “Guardian Deity!”
And amid the crowd’s cheers…
Ileya, for the first time since awakening her past life memories, came face to face with… her old man and her two half-baked brothers.
For a moment, neither side said a word.
Ileya was stunned. Seeing her father and brothers before her, many memories she’d never recalled before came flooding into the young woman’s mind.
She couldn’t process them all at once.
But at this moment, in the eyes of Marquis Groset and her two brothers…
She was completely different from before.
The Yaya they remembered was a somewhat willful, naive, and not-quite-honest young girl.
But now…
The young woman standing before them had those same crimson eyes as theirs, yet they were filled with calm composure, tinged with a faint hint of contemplation.
There were dried bloodstains on her hem and chest area… which made her whole presence feel somewhat cold as she stood there.
“Ahem… um, little sis…” Oz was the first to speak, clearing his throat and looking at his little sister.
“Hm? Big brother…” Ileya snapped back to reality at Oz’s voice… and as she looked up, she saw the three men on horseback…
All staring at her like they’d seen a ghost.
Huh? What’s going on… did I say something wrong…
“You… what did you just call me?” Oz spoke, somewhat dazed and stiff, his expression slightly stirred.
“B-big…” Ileya instinctively started to speak, but then shifted her tone mid-sentence.
“…Big fool!”
She almost forgot—she’d never called them “big brother” or “father” before. What she just said must have sounded absolutely terrifying to them!
Better to stick with how they used to interact… ease things over a little~
“Ah? Oh… yeah.” Oz was briefly stunned, then chuckled and scratched the back of his head.
That’s right… this was his little sister’s style.
Though, wasn’t his old nickname “Blockhead”? Why was it “Big Fool” now?
Ileya clearly realized this too, but she acted completely unconcerned, turning to look at her cheap old man.
“You… still know to come back, old man?”
She said this, then crossed her arms and tilted her head slightly.
“Mm… have you been listening to your mother while we were away?”
Groseet seemed entirely unbothered by his daughter calling him “old man.” He just kept a stern face and asked as gently as he could.
This old… father… was just like that.
He might genuinely be cold to outsiders, but when faced with his daughter, he clearly wanted to dote on her, yet had no idea how to express his feelings.
The only person he ever acted like a normal human being around was probably Mother.
“Hmph! I’m not like you two, disappearing for half a year and leaving Mother alone at home…”
Ileya curled her lips, and her words instantly made all three men in front of her lower their heads.
Harsh… was she being too harsh?
Even though… she was just acting according to her old personality…
“I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.” And the next second, Groset leaped down from his horse and directly pulled…
Ileya into an embrace.
A faint scent, like pine wood, lingered around the young woman’s nose. Unlike Mother’s gentle yet suffocating hug.
Father’s shoulders were broad, as if hiding behind them would shield her from all danger.
So this… is what a father’s love feels like?
It’s been so… so long since she’d felt it…
Her nose tingled, and the corners of her eyes grew moist. At this moment, Ileya seemed to shed all her schemes and masks, wanting nothing more than to act like a child…
Hold her father and cry her heart out.
She’d been doing pretty smoothly on this journey—she hadn’t even faced any real hardship. Was it because of the original fate’s obstacles?
Or… because of her past life’s…
Ileya didn’t know. But there was no way the great Lady Ceres was going to cry like a child in public!!
Hmph! She shoved her father away, rubbing her reddened eyes and mumbling.
“Get lost… you old pervert…”
Old… old pervert…
The Uncrowned King of the East, Kingdom Marquis, Iceberg of a handsome man, number one on the Eastern Capital women’s survey for “most marriageable man,” who had charmed countless maidens in his youth and still carried his charm undiminished—Groset instantly froze solid on the spot!
Being called an old pervert by his daughter… had he really reached that age?
He instinctively touched the top of his head.
He wasn’t bald yet.
For the first time, Groset felt like he was having a midlife crisis.
Ignoring the old man frozen in place, Ileya looked up again at the one person still on horseback—a cute fellow who wanted to say something but seemed too shy, his face flushed bright red.
“Yo, second sister!”
“Gah!!” Shire was instantly shattered by Ileya’s words, his ruby-like eyes staring intently at his little sister.
Hmm, that’s right.
From her memories, this homebody second brother of hers… had the best relationship with her.
Though… “best” was a bit of a tricky term, honestly.