After Nalant's party had left, the serfs finally rose to their feet.
"Wow! My lord's carriage is so beautiful!"
"Yeah, how can there be such a beautiful carriage? Especially that castle statue on the roof forged from gold—it's truly the most exquisite work of art I've ever seen in my life!"
"Haha, Koda, you know about art too?"
"Hmph, of course I do. I once saw the carriage of the old king of our Northern Principality. Even the old king's carriage wasn't as luxurious as our lord's..."
Nalant did not hear the discussions and praise from his serfs and subordinates. His carriage drove straight to the foot of the castle.
However, what puzzled him was that Thomas had not come out in advance to welcome him today.
How strange. Could something have happened at the castle?
To Nalant, this was highly unusual.
With Thomas's competence, whenever Nalant returned from a journey in the past, he would have long since brought the servants to wait beneath the castle, laid out a red carpet, and offered auspicious words to congratulate him on his triumphant return.
Yet this time, none of that had happened. Unless Thomas happened to be away from the castle, he would not have made such an oversight.
As for Thomas not knowing he had returned, that was impossible.
With such a huge commotion, the guards on the castle walls would certainly have spotted them early and reported it to him.
With those doubts in mind, Nalant did not get out of the carriage. Instead, he directly ordered the party to head up the gentle slope.
"Welcome home in triumph, my lord!"
"Welcome home in triumph, my lord!" As Nalant's carriage drove up the slope and passed through the gateway, a burst of enthusiastic cheers reached him.
Nalant immediately recognized