It was a straightforward morning conversation.

I sat down with Louise.

The table was filled with untouched food.

Fresh fruits and milk, freshly baked bread and bacon, cheese. Various kinds of jam. And butter too.

‘Just like a hotel breakfast.’

Sometimes, mornings like this weren’t bad at all.

I haven’t seen a Western-style table setting in a while, and my appetite returned.

As I was spreading strawberry jam on the bread, Kasha sat down next to me.

Now that everyone was here, I ignored him and took a big bite of the bread.

‘Hmm, crispy, sweet!’

Plus, a slight tartness. It was a very well-made jam.

‘Made it…’

As I spread apricot jam on a new slice of bread, I got lost in thought.

Although various ingredients were brought using preservation magic, I still couldn’t decide what to make.

‘It’s today already. But, well, it’s not like I’m setting up an ancestral ritual table, so I’ll figure something out.’

Since it was just one dish, I thought I could make something quickly.
That’s when my mind was rolling along so simply.

“Eilin.”

“Yes?”

Evan was looking at me.

Nodding at the face that seemed to have something to say, Evan hesitated before responding.

“There won’t be a party in the morning.”

“Really?”

“Then can we go to where we used to live during our free time?”

It seemed like he wanted to check if my curiosity was intact.

“Yes, but we have to prepare for the party, so we can’t stay long.”

“I’ll just take a quick look and come back.”

“I want to go too! Let’s go, Eilin!”

“Shall we all go together?”

Naturally, my gaze turned to Kashar.

He grinned and wiped the crumbs from my mouth.

“Thanks for the offer, but I have things to attend to.”

Mikhail approached behind him.

After receiving a report from Mikhail, he stood up from his seat.

“Enjoy your meal.”

Kashar greeted me.

He didn’t touch anything in the morning.

“Eilin, your face suddenly turned red!”

“Well, it’s suddenly hot!”

“It’s winter now.”

“Oh, the heating here is good!”

I fanned myself and avoided Louis’s gaze.

The noisy morning meal came to an end.

Even the twins and Michael. We headed to the cold palace by carriage.

“Can’t we just walk?”

“Taking the carriage is faster, idiot.”

“Don’t call Evan an idiot, Kashar.”

“He doesn’t know because he’s my brother.”

The chirping of chicks continued today too.

Staring out of the empty window while listening to the chirping sounds, I widened my eyes.

‘Oh, that person…’

I noticed the one standing in the rose garden.

‘Isn’t that the court painter of the imperial palace?’

The attire he wore was adorned with the pattern of the imperial palace, unique to the court painter.

‘But what is he carrying?’

Behind the court painter, workers were carrying a pallet.

I felt like I needed to check something.

“Michael, can you go with the kids? I have something to attend to.”

“Yes? It’s okay for me, but…”

‘Why all of a sudden?’ was written on Michael’s face.

When I knocked twice on the carriage wall, the coachman stopped talking.

“Then I’ll ask you a favor!”

As soon as I got off the carriage, I saw the back of the workers.

I quickly followed them.

“Is this one certain?”

“Yes. It’s fertilizer imported from the Shiryas Kingdom.”

The one carrying the pallet whispered to the court painter.

‘Fertilizer?’

It was an unexpected word.

But I didn’t show any surprise.

The person closest to the emperor is the court painter.

What he mentions will never be ordinary.

“The fertilizer we used before was also imported from Shiryas! But the flowers withered again! How many times has it been now, huh!”

As the court painter’s tension increased, the workers bowed.

‘If it’s about flowers, it makes sense.’
Moon Pierce was the flower most cherished by Empress Bibiana and served as the medium through which the Emperor longed for her.

As Yaino became the empress, the first thing she did was to completely redesign the Moon Pierce garden in the empress’s palace.

‘She said it was unavoidable because of the fire.’

However, it was clear that it was removed because it bothered her.

Therefore, currently, the only places where Moon Pierce grows in the palace are Kashar’s residence and the imperial palace.

‘But why is it withering?’

Upon hearing the story, it seemed like it had been planted several times, but it kept withering.

“We’ve spent a fortune on fertilizers this time, so there should be results.”

“Whether it will work or not is uncertain.”

The workers grumbled as they moved the fertilizer to the imperial palace.

Due to the knights surrounding the palace, they couldn’t enter directly.

Instead, I waited for the workers to come out.

Whether they only brought fertilizer or not, the workers quickly left the imperial palace.

“Really troublesome.”

“Look here, lower your voice!”

A man warned the grumbling worker.

“Well, isn’t it so? Even if we plow the land and pour good fertilizer into the garden, what’s the use if nothing grows?”

“…That’s true.”

“There’s something wrong with the imperial palace garden. If only Moon Pierce is planted, everything withers. It’s not our fault or the fault of the goods… Let’s end this deal.”

The man nodded in agreement with the worker’s thoughts.

“Strange… it’s weird.”

With the man’s muttering, all the workers disappeared.

I stayed alone in that spot, pondering their words.

‘Even if we plow the land, it withers. What on earth is the problem?’

And to top it off, Moon Pierce alone is dying.