Are you sure that your settings on the mount & Ekos are the same or at least approximately after (polar) alignment?
Please check after (polar) alignment:
- Location correct set in mount & Kstars ?
- Time concurrent/synced in mount & Kstars ?
- Coordinates parallel in mount & Kstars ?
If that is the case, turn your mount 30° east or west away from the pole and do a plate solve.
As I correctly interpret your problem, it seems to me that it is not so much a guiding error, but rather a misalignment.