“Th-This is……”

Latifa trailed off with an ambiguous smile.

‘Right. I must protect the child’s innocence.’

Finally deciding to tell a white lie, Latifa smiled and said:

“Yes, it’s pretty. But don’t you think the colors are a bit too much?”

“The harmony of various colors is precisely the charm of this outfit.”

“Ha-Harmony?”

Rather than harmony, the colors in her sketch seemed to be mixing together in a silent scream for help. Latifa could fully empathize with the feelings of courtiers in the empire who flattered the emperor while offering advice.

“Do you like it?”

“Yes.”

“Great! You’ll be wearing it!”

“Huh?!”

Latifa let out a strange sound in surprise. But Asti paid no mind and continued chattering excitedly.

“I’ll make such an amazing outfit that even my elder brother will be surprised, and we’ll astonish everyone at the Mercatus! Then those girls who look down on me for being chubby will see me differently.”

“My goodness, who would make fun of the princess? You’re so adorable. Children actually look better when they’re a bit plump.”

At Latifa’s honest words, Asti snorted angrily.

“Hmph! You call me cute too! Iota said that ‘cute’ is what people say when you don’t have any particular charm or merits! Except for Father and Mother, everyone else, including my elder brother and my friends at the harem’s madrasa (school), points fingers at me for being fat.”

Princess Asti suddenly let out a small sigh and made a gloomy expression.

‘No, what kind of harsh words are they saying to this adorable marshmallow in this country!’

Latifa held Asti’s hand, feeling sorry for her. But Asti smiled brightly again and laughed cheerfully.

“But Father said that I am more precious than anyone else, so I shouldn’t care about such people at all. So I’m going to make pretty clothes and gain recognition for my abilities. That’s why I don’t need friends or anything.”

Somehow, behind that bright smile, there seemed to be a faint hint of loneliness, and Latifa couldn’t say anything.

She could understand the princess’s loneliness a little, as she had also been a solitary imperial princess.

“Mmm. I should stop eating candy… But I can’t stop.”

Princess Asti looked at the fruit-filled candies in a transparent crystal bowl and sucked her finger. Then, looking around, she popped one into her mouth and rolled around on the carpet.

Latifa found the princess so adorable that she smiled broadly and moved closer to sit down.

“Princess, if your teeth don’t rot, it’s okay to eat one more. Actually, when you’re making amazing clothes, you need to use your brain a lot, so eating sweets can be quite helpful.”

“Yes, you’re right! Eating sweets helps with concentration. Here, you eat one too.”

Asti moved her chubby hand to pick up a green candy and popped it into Latifa’s mouth.

Latifa’s eyes widened in pure amazement at the taste of tropical fruit juice bursting behind the thin but hard sugar shell.

“Delicious! It’s even better than the empire’s candy!”

“Under the blessing of Sakuharm (the god of sugarcane), nothing is not great.”

Asti proudly patted her chest like a true royal, then giggled and patted Tatkan’s head.

“Father gave me these candies. That’s right! When you’re fully recovered, let’s go see my father! We should go thank him for giving you to me. Let’s go together then!”

“Huh? I’m going too? Are we allowed to go outside the harem palace?”

Latifa hesitated, thinking that the harem palace would naturally have restrictions on coming and going since it was a women-only area.

“Hm? Why can’t we go out? Who said we can’t? Women are free to move around as they please.”

“She thinks this is some ancient harem from the old days. Birdbrain! Kekeke.”

Tatkan flew around above Asti’s head, mocking Latifa.

It seemed that even though she had been in the Grand Bazaar for quite some time, there was still so much Latifa didn’t know.

**

The current Sultan, Rashid Basili, had three princes, with the first prince Ruhan born to the legitimate queen, and the second prince Tarek born to the concubine Iota.

And the third remaining prince was Shirak, born to the concubine Karina. He was a bit ambiguous to call a prince because he had voluntarily given up his princely position and was living outside the palace.

He said he was more talented in business than in state affairs, but what the truth was, no one really knew.

Shirak, who had entered the palace after a long time, was surrounded by court ladies, chatting away.

“Oh my, darling! Where did you get that purple garnet circlet? Did your lover give it to you? Oh my, he has good taste! Hold onto that man, okay?”

“Kyahaha, Prince Shirak, you’re too much!”

As the cheerful male voice and the women’s laughter were heard, Tarek entered the prince’s reception room weakly.

However, Tarek didn’t go in right away but leaned against the marble railing beside him, holding his forehead.

He looked as if he was agonizing, thinking, ‘Do I really have to do this?’

But he had no choice.

Tarek’s mother, Iota, had called Shirak, Karina’s son, to the palace to meet him.

She had been making a fuss, saying it would be a big problem if Karina, who was currently neutral, were to side with Ruhan.

On top of that, Iota seemed determined not to return Latifa, as she was furious with Hades to the core.

“So you know that big ash tree next to the wax market, right? The kaymak (cheese made from buffalo milk) at the cafe right next to it is amazing. No one knows where the honey they sprinkle on top comes from or what flowers it’s from. Darling, that’s the secret of the business.”

Tarek sighed as he watched Shirak chattering away, dressed in a flashy green and gold-feathered robe.

They were naturally incompatible by nature.

Tarek sighed once, then squared his shoulders and slowly entered the reception room.

“Shirak.”

“We are honored by the presence of Prince Tarek.”

The court ladies who had been chatting with Shirak all stood up at once, knelt, and paid their respects to him.

Shirak slightly nodded his head in an informal greeting, smiling brightly as he looked straight at Tarek.

With light brown hair, Shirak was a man slightly smaller in build than Tarek, but he was the most unique among Rashid’s sons, being naturally light-hearted and good with words.

“Alright, you may leave now.”

“See you next time, darlings.”

As Tarek gestured for the court ladies to leave, Shirak waved lightly to them.

Tarek frowned at the sound of the court ladies giggling and sat down on the sofa with a round handle made of black bull leather and blue-black sandalwood, symbolizing authority.

“My Ignis, my brother Tarek!”

Shirak, seemingly genuinely happy, approached the seat next to Tarek’s sofa and began touching his arm muscles.

“Look at this. I heard you injured your shoulder, but you still have a great balance. See this straight and firm desert man’s spirit? Where, where, has this side grown a bit bigger?”

“Are you crazy?! Who are you touching so casually?!”

As Shirak’s hand slid down towards Tarek’s waist, Tarek angrily pushed him away.

“You’re being too harsh to a brother you haven’t seen in a long time. This is my profession, you know. There are just no good-looking people in the Grand Bazaar!”

Shirak waved his hand coquettishly, but that hand was too large and manly compared to the movement.

“I’m going to be sick.”

“Tarek, you always have too much tension in your shoulders. My goodness, what’s with this drab black robe? Oh, Vestis (goddess of clothing)! Please save his aesthetic sense. Please don’t go around dressed like this!”

Shirak patted Tarek’s robe as if treating it like something dirty.

Even though Tarek’s robe was a high-quality item made of silk worth at least three hundred gold coins, with a subtle pattern woven by tripling the warp and weft, it was far from satisfactory in Shirak’s eyes.

“A man’s clothes only need to cover what needs to be covered.”

“If you’re going to say that, just live on bread and water. Why do you eat meat when it’s all the same food? Aesthetic sense is an instinct even animals possess.”

Shirak pouted angrily.

Tarek took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to punch him in the face.

Shirak seemed to have inherited a strong artistic sense from the blood of the great Makali, who ran a fabric business, and he was currently making a name for himself as a senior technician at the Makali Company’s Artificium (workshop).

And he had liked Tarek quite a bit since childhood, because his body was strong and the most manly, making him the best clothes hanger in the country or something.

“I called you to talk about business.”

At those words, Shirak straightened his posture somewhat.

In the Grand Bazaar, transactions were sacred, so he showed his own form of respect.

“Ah, good. Business. I’ve heard roughly what’s going on. You don’t want to give Prince Ruhan a chance, right?”

“Did you hear from Mother?”

“Iota has been pestering even me to the point of driving me crazy.”

At those words, Tarek rubbed his temples in annoyance.

“And on top of that, you want to deal with Hades’s frau, right? The story I heard from Iota is that you’re going to wear my precious creations that will be showcased at the Mercatus, is that correct?”

“…Yes.”

Tarek sighed and answered.

He didn’t like it, but if his mother Iota said he had to do it, he couldn’t refuse.

“Great! If you wear my creations, what can’t I do for you! There are so few impressive figures these days.”

It was only natural that if a prince of the Grand Bazaar was seen frequently wearing creations from the Makali Company at the Mercatus, where desert tribes from distant regions and foreigners gather, the company’s sales would increase.

Tarek solemnly recited the terms of the deal.

“During the one-month grace period granted by the Sultan, block all contact between Hades, Prince Ruhan, or their faction and Karina, and ensure that the Makali Company does not engage in any transactions with Hades. Anyway, Hades doesn’t have much influence in the fabric market, so it should be fine.”

“Good, good. Our grandfather doesn’t like Hades anyway, so there’s no problem. Shall we write up the contract right away? This feels like such a free meal that I almost feel bad.”

Shirak pulled out a beautiful peacock feather pen with blue and green mixed colors from his bosom, saying this was as easy as pie.

“Tsk. Most men use eagle or owl feathers.”

Tarek clicked his tongue and took out his large eagle feather pen to start writing the contract.

“Hmm. My aesthetic sense doesn’t allow for such things.”

While writing the contract, Shirak suddenly brought up a topic as if he had just remembered.

“By the way, about the mad dog’s frau. I heard she went in as Asti’s doll? That kid, I don’t know why she doesn’t lose weight. Really, later on, the clothes she wears will need ten yards of fabric! Hahaha!”

Shirak laughed loudly as if it was really funny, while Tarek just kept writing the contract with a blank face.

“Still, she’s your half-sister.”

“Asti, that kid. She says she’s only eating yogurt to lose weight, but guess what, she puts five spoons of sugar in it! Ahahaha! It’s really ridiculous! Hades is right about Asti. She really is like a black-haired pig.”

“……”

“That pig princess who looks down on her elder brother, I hear she’s been bothering Father, saying she’ll make prettier clothes than me for this Mercatus? It’s really funny! Ahaha!”

Shirak’s laughter began to echo loudly through the arched corridors of the prince’s palace.