*

Although she handed over the preparation for Bluebells debut banquet to Arya, Sienna was not free. The work inside the Imperial City was under Siennas jurisdiction, so there were many things to care about. In particular, she was looking through the records of Empress Arya, whether it be objects or people, to prevent Arya from doing anything stupid, but she hasnt found anything noticeable yet.

Are you going to keep thinking about something else?

Sienna, lost in thought, managed to come to her senses at the call of Hain.

Sorry.

Hain said with a deep sigh.

Youre not thinking about the banquet, are you?

No, Im not.

Thats enough. You need to focus though. Youre going to wear this dress to the debut party. You have to pay more attention than anything.

At Hains words, Sienna nodded. As Bluebell was the main focus of this banquet, Carl will enter the banquet with her. Then Sienna would enter the banquet hall alone as she did before.

Sienna wont shirk her position as she used to. Rather, she planned to show her presence as an empress in front of influential figures in the empire.

To do that, as Hain said, she had to choose a dress with more care than ever before. Even if what was seen was not everything, it was necessary to establish authority by what was seen.

Sienna carefully examined each of the clothes brought by the tailor. However, there were no clothes that caught her eye.

Um

As she struggled, one-eyed tailor Gerald said, holding a navy and red dress.

How about this? Its the first fabric to be brought into Leipsden. Its a little bit thicker than other dresses, but its going to catch anyones with its smooth gloss and vivid colors.

As he said, the fabric looked special. In particular, Sienna noticed a navy blue color that could highlight her red hair without being tacky.

I like the cloth. If that fabric remains, can I place an order for a different design?

At Siennas words, Gerald bowed his head deeply and said, Anything is possible. The banquet is just around the corner, but I will stay up all night to complete the empresss dress.

Simply change the fancy decorations on the chest. For your information, having to reduce the waist too much like a corset doesnt suit my taste

Then how about a design that reveals a lot of breasts and shoulders? If its navy, I think its better to reveal your nice fair skin!

When Sienna looked worried about Hains opinion, Gerald added.

I think the head maids opinion makes sense. Its a good idea to dig deep into the necklines of your dress and wear fancy necklaces if you want to reduce the decoration.

Okay. Itd be better to embroider the bottom of the dress with silver thread and decorate it with pearls.

Thatd be nice. Itll look like a night sky with countless stars.

The tailor left the guest room, saying, I should get back quickly and complete the dress.

I just got a dress tailored, and I feel like Ive done something big.

Sienna sat down on the sofa and said, Hain said cautiously, handing her a glass of Aroni juice.

Remember you told me to keep an eye on Shaylin before.

Sienna recalled the day when she happened to find bruises on Shaylins back.

Yes. Did you find out?

Thats

Hain stopped as if it was difficult to say whatever that was on her mind easily.

Tell me. What is it?

I dont know the exact reason why Shaylin is depressed, but one of my maids said she had seen her go in and out of the palace of Empress Arya.

In the palace of Empress Arya?

Yes. Theres no reason for Shaylin to go there.

Siennas expression grew fierce. She didnt have a clue as to how the evil Arya was bothering the small and tender Shaylin.

It was obvious without having to look into it in detail. Shaylin must have accidentally made a mistake with Arya, and it was clear that Arya was bothering Shaylin for a long time. Otherwise, such scars could not have remained on her body.

It wasnt that Sienna didnt think that Arya might have been trying to steal her information by beating and threatening her, but it wasnt usually the way Arya did her work. Maybe if she took her family hostage and threatened them or coaxed them with money, it would be more believable.

Will you let me know if Shaylin is taken again to the palace of the Empress?

Yes, I will.

Sienna vowed that she would never let Arya get her own way, no matter what the reasons Empress Arya was harassing Shaylin.

*

Carl didnt like the fact that his supporters, Ferrers, joined hands with the remnants of Empress Arya and pressed him as they wanted. For now, there was no justification, so he was just watching it.

Is the replacement of the knights in the imperial court going well?

Kissinger answered Carls question in a trustworthy voice.

Yes, were taking it as slow as possible so that it doesnt slip outside.

Since the Mutu competition held by Valore, a large number of internal knights have been replaced. After the competition, there were some knights who quit because of their bad self-esteem, and there were many who didnt want to quit but had to because they couldnt meet the minimum requirements made by Valore.

Carl was filling the empty spots with his own people, being careful not to make it too public.

Until now, most of Carls powers have been outside. He was supported by military and local aristocrats across the border and throughout the empire. However, it was not gaining ground in the capital.

Because of this, even though he became the emperor, he could not regain all of the imperial power. The imperial power that has weakened during the reign of Emperor Rodbius, Carls own father, and Emperor Valore, was not an easy task that took a short time to recover.

But Carl has slowly been preparing to find his rights. The effort to fill the royal knights with his own people was part of that plan.

Come to think of it, Emperor Valore has done a great job. During that short term of the office, he held a martial arts competition to root out the corruption within the imperial order and pave the way for a reshuffle. To be honest, when Emperor Valore was crowned, I thought he would spend his time doing nothing because he was a puppet king of Empress Arya. I cant believe he was thinking that

Said Pavenik, who was working next to him.

Carl grinned at Paveniks words. He was sure it wasnt Valore who came up with the idea. While preparing for Bluebells wedding, Sienna accidentally slipped what she did.

Sienna thought Carl had shared a deep brotherly love with Valore. She even thought that if it werent for the emperors position, Carl and Valore would have been quite plausible brothers. However, the real reason that Carl did not reject Valore was because he knew that Valore did not have what it took to be an emperor.

Unlike Arya, Valore posed no threat to Carl. Thats why Carl let Valore play brother in front of him. Until he got greedy of his own

So you should pick a banquet suit this afternoon. Shall I call the tailor here? Or will you go directly to the Imperial Palace where the tailor will be?

Asked Pavenik as if it had suddenly come to mind.

When Carl looked at him with a look of What do you mean by banquet suit? Pavenik sighed.

Youre not forgetting about the Second Empresss debut banquet, are you?

I didnt forget. I just didnt care.

Thats what it usually means by forgetting. Should I call in a tailor?

Okay. Tell the tailor to prepare it according to what the empress is wearing. Then just make the measurements like the clothes I have worn before.

Yes. First of all, well have to find out what the Second Empress will be wearing.

What do you mean by that?

Its the Second Empresss debut banquet, so of course you should dress in line with her. Youre not going to wear the same costume as the First Empress, are you? Thats not right. Youre going to be entering the banquet with the Second Empress

At Paveniks words, Carl rose from his seat with an angry look on his face.

Lets go directly to the palace.

Youre not trying to do anything stupid, are you? Dont forget why you had to marry the Second Empress!

Carl slammed the door in annoyance and left the office. When he left, Pavenik, who had a playful face until then, sighed and stretched his shoulders.

Phew.

Kissinger patted him on the shoulder at his sigh. Because of Kissinger, who was so big, Pavenik looked like a little boy.

Dont overdo it.

I dont want to do this either. I know His Majesty has his heart for the First Empress, but dont you know that he hasnt got all the imperial powers back yet? Even if we dont like it, we have to watch out for Count Ferrer for a while. Thats what is good for the Emperor.

Only

Pavenik said annoyingly to Kissinger, who spoke maturely as if he knew everything.

Just let His Majesty do as he pleases, as his heart leads.

But

Kissinger shook his head and said, I know youre working for His Majesty. But he is not the one to follow paths, he is the one who makes it. Even if you take a tough approach, if thats what His Majesty wants, we have no choice but to follow.

Kissinger said and went outside to assist Carl. Pavenik looked at the door and said with a deeper sigh.

Well, as if I didnt know that already. But I just want him to take a path that doesnt smell like blood.

Paveniks face was darkened with agony.