“Thithis is….”

Latifa trailed off with an ambiguous smile.

‘Yes. I have to preserve the innocence of a child.’

Eventually, Latifa, deciding on a white lie, spoke with a smile.

“Yes, it’s pretty. But don’t you think the color is too excessive?”

“The beauty of this outfit lies in the harmony of various colors.”

“Haharmony?”

To Latifa, the sketch seemed less harmonious and more like the colors were frantically screaming for help, a sentiment she found fully relatable to the sycophantic ministers back in the empire who had to flatter the emperor.

“Do you like it?”

“Yes.”

“Great! You’re going to wear it!”

“Whwhat?!”

Latifa was startled, but Asti continued in a cheerful tone.

“Even my brother will be surprised by how wonderful the clothes are. I will surprise everyone at Mercatus, and then those girls who tease me for being chubby will see me differently.”

“My God, who teases you, Princess? You’re so cute. In fact, kids usually prefer chubbiness.”

At Latifa’s honest words, Asti snorted in annoyance.

“Hmph! You’re also calling me cute! Eiota said that calling someone cute is what you do when they have no other remarkable qualities. Everyone except my parents and my brother in the Madrasa of the harem points at me for being chubby.”

Princess Asti suddenly sighed with a gloomy face.

‘Why on earth would anyone badmouth this adorable marshmallow?’

Latifa sympathetically held Asti’s hand. However, Asti brightened up with a big smile.

“But my father said so. I’m a more precious being than anyone else, so I shouldn’t care about such people. So, I’m going to earn recognition by making beautiful clothes. I don’t need friends.”

Latifa couldn’t say anything. Behind that bright smile seemed to lurk a tinge of loneliness. Latifa could relate, as she too had been a lonely princess.

“Ah, I need to stop eating candy…. I can’t help it.”

Princess Asti sucked her finger while staring at candies in a clear crystal bowl. She then popped one into her mouth and rolled around on the carpet.

Latifa approached and sat near the irresistibly cute princess.

“Princess, as long as it doesn’t rot your teeth, it’s okay to have one more piece. Sugar helps when you have to think hard, like when designing great clothes.”

“Exactly! Sugar helps me concentrate. Hey, you try one.”

Asti picked a green candy with her plump hand and popped it into Latifa’s mouth.

Behind the thin but strong sugar shell, the taste of tropical fruit burst forth. Latifa opened her eyes wide in genuine admiration.

“It’s delicious! Even better than the candies in the empire!”

“There’s nothing that’s not grand under the blessings of Sakuharum, the deity of sugar cane.”

Asti puffed up her chest proudly and chuckled as she patted Tatskan’s head.

“Yes! When you’re better, let’s go meet my father! I have to thank him for giving you to me. Let’s go together!”

“Huh? I can go? We can leave the harem?”

Latifa hesitated, assuming that the harem, being a male domain, would naturally restrict her movements.

“Huh? Why can’t you? Who said you couldn’t? Women can go about freely here.”

“You thought this was some oldtimey harem, didn’t you? Rookie! Hehehe.”

Tatskan flew above Princess Asti’s head, mocking Latifa.

It felt like a long time had passed since she arrived at the Grand Bazaar, but Latifa still had so much to learn.

The remaining third prince was Shirak, born of the concubine Karina. He was somewhat ambiguously called a prince because he had relinquished his princely title and lived outside the palace.

He claimed to be more skilled in business than state affairs, but the reality was unknown.

After a long absence, Shirak was surrounded by maidens, chatting away.

“Oh my, darling! Where did you get that purple garnet circlet? A lover gave it to you? Oh, you have taste! You better keep that man, okay?”

“Haha, Shirak, you’re something!”

After the joyful male voice and the tinkling laughter of the women were heard, Tarek listlessly entered the prince’s reception room.

However, Tarek didn’t go straight in but leaned against a marble railing, clutching his forehead.

‘Do I really have to do this?’ he seemed to agonize.

But he had no choice.

It was because his mother, Iota, had called him to the palace to meet Shirak, Karina’s son.

Karina, who was currently neutral, would create a big problem if she were to side with Luhan, and Iota had made a fuss about it.

Moreover, Iota was infuriated with Hades and seemed intent on not sending Latifa back.

“You know the big banyan tree next to the wax market, right? The kaimak cheese at the café right next to it is fantastic. No one knows where the honey sprinkled on top comes from, what flower’s honey it is. Darling, that’s the business secret.”

Watching Shirak, who was dressed in a splendid green and gold robe chatting away, Tarek sighed.

They had inherently been incompatible.