“It is. And one month… the timing is suspicious, too.”

Sienna nodded and took a spoonful of the yogurt. A sweet fragrance of apricots along with sweet and sour taste filled her mouth.

“Ahh, this is really good!”

“I’m glad it suits your taste.”

Carl watched happily as Sienna ate.

“Even if it’s so good, why don’t you have some soup first? You might lose your appetite if you have the dessert first.”

“It’s okay, it’s only a few spoonfuls.”

Sienna finished her yogurt in no time. Then she tasted the soup.

“Oh! The stew is amazing too. Really rich. The meat is tender. Carl, you should eat too. This owner isn’t too bad at cooking!”

Carl laughed at Sienna’s praises and lifted his fork.

After they had finished dining, they went to look around the market. It was to check if there was actually a supply issue with sugar.

Turns out, just as the storeowner said, sugar supply was cut off for a long time. When asked for the reason, even the merchants had no idea what was causing the issue. They all said that the sugar suppliers didn’t have sugar right now.

“We should go back to the palace and find out what’s going on.”

At Carl’s words, Sienna pointed to one store and added.

“That’s the Green Merchants Association. How about we ask there? Since it’s an issue in the market, wouldn’t the association have better information behind it?”

“You’re right. Let’s stop by since we’re already here.”

There were sacks in front of the store full of grains. After the wheat shortage incident, the Green Merchants became the new supplier of grain in the market.

There were many people who looked like merchants hanging out in front of the store. The two entered through the narrow entrance.

Since it was located right in the middle of the capital, it was full of crowds. Through them, Carl and Sienna could see Aunt Kelly’s foster child, Jane. Her luscious brown hair was tied up and she was working hard among the merchants.

“She must be busy.”

“Let’s wait a little bit.”

Carl and Sienna didn’t want to interrupt Jane, so they stood at a corner of the store until she was finished.

“Please check the wheat status in the southern part of the country and, as I told you before, make sure if there is any land at a reasonable price because we need to secure a warehouse on the way up from the southern part.”

Only after she gave orders one by one did the merchants leave their seats. Only then did Jane realize that Sienna and Carl had come and became surprised at the unexpected appearance of the two. But she soon regained her composure and bowed to Sienna and Carl lightly.

“It’s been a long time. Why don’t you come inside and have a seat?”

She led the two to a quiet place, conscious of the merchants going in and out of the shop. The walls there, located in the basement, were full of papers and a table was placed in the middle. It was like a place to keep important documents that should not go outside.

Jane greeted Carl and Sienna politely as soon as she led the two underground.

“Your Majesty the Emperor and Her Majesty the Empress. How have you been?”

“You don’t have to be polite, we came out quietly.”

At Carl’s words, Jane said with a soft smile.

“It’s underground, so you don’t have to worry about the sound leaking out.”

Carl and Sienna sat on a chair at the table, guided by Jane.

“Jane, you look like the real boss of the store. I heard from Aunt Kelly that the size of the store has grown since you started working.”

“It’s all thanks to Your Majesty, after the issue with the Southern Merchants. We’ve been able to take control of the grain market, which has enabled us to grow rapidly.”

“Hey, why is that thanks to me? It’s all Lady Jane’s ability.”

Sienna was amazed at Jane’s performance. Of course, the Green Merchants were growing several times larger than they were in the past, even though it grew extraordinarily in the past before her return, too.

“I’m here to ask you something.”

Jane answered Carl calmly.

“Yes, please ask anything. I will answer anything I can.”

“While we were shopping today we heard that it became very difficult to get sugar.”

Jane opened her mouth after much consideration at Sienna’s words.

“I was wondering if I should report it.”

She said she found out about two weeks ago that sugar was not being released in the market. Although the items mainly handled by the Green Merchants were precious metals and grains, they recognized the situation of sugar supply and demand faster than anyone else, as the Green Merchants were keen on the information.

“At first, I sent someone to see if there was a problem with the storage of sugarcane. The storage of sugarcane that comes in twice a month was empty. So I checked the ship’s departure because I thought there might be a problem with the ship. Every time the ship was supposed to leave, it made the exact departure, and it came back safely on time.”

“If the ship had set sail on time…maybe there was something else on the ship that wasn’t sugar cane.”

“We haven’t been able to confirm exactly what’s coming in. Security around ships and warehouses has been tightened recently. But we found something interesting.”

“What is it?”

“I checked the ship’s route and found it docked at the shore of the Ferrer Territory for a day before it arrived at Heintree Port near the capital. In the case of the Ferrer’s port, the water is not deep enough for the ship to anchor, so a large ship can’t reach it, but it is enough to transfer materials.”

“If the warehouse at the harbor of Heintree was empty, they would have dropped it off at the Ferrer’s port. I’m sure it’s not sugar cane.”

“…”

The air in the room became heavy. Carl and Sienna exchanged glances with many meanings.

*

Sienna went on her overdue outing to meet the children of the temple, but it was not a pleasant day. She was living through a time of darkness.

“They will have to have an uprising. It’s just a matter of timing.”

At Carl’s calm words, Sienna was troubled. She thought it would help a little bit if Carl knew about the situation in which Arya revolted in the past.

“Arya… no, when Count Ferrer revolts, wouldn’t he be aiming for the imperial banquet hall? The nobles at the imperial banquet are not allowed to carry weapons, so they will be able to get rid of the nobles who have not joined hands with them.”

Carl answered Sienna positively.

“That could be a good tactic. Arya and Bluebell can be involved in the preparation, so they can hide the weapons in the banquet hall in advance, disguise the knights as servants, and plant them in the banquet hall.”

Sienna swept down her arm with goosebumps. Years after her return, she got goosebumps when she thought of the scene of the terrible slaughter, full of blood at that time. There was also a fear that the child in her could not survive the scene.

When Carl saw Sienna, with a serious face, he smiled and said, “Don’t worry too much. I’ve already expected this and I’m fully prepared. First of all, I’ve got rid of a large number of the spies that Arya planted, and all the imperial knights are under my control. If Arya and Ferrer are preparing something, we can easily subdue it.”

At Carl’s words, Sienna tried to shake off her anxious feelings and nodded.

“It won’t be good for the child for me to be anxious, so I’ll take it easy. If it’s going to happen, it’s going to happen anyway…”

If they were not prepared, it would be dangerous, but Carl was already preparing, knowing that they are going to rebel. It still won’t be easy.

“By the way, I think Sharillo is really nice.”

“…what do you mean all of a sudden?”

“The doctor says sometimes it’s hard for the mother to eat because of her child. Mothers can feel nauseous, dizzy or lethargic, but he doesn’t seem to bother you.”

As Carl brought up Sharillo with an affectionate attitude, Sienna, who became instantly tender-hearted, replied with a smile.

“That’s true. I didn’t even have morning sickness. I heard that if you have severe morning sickness, you vomit even when you drink water. I’m worried I’m eating too much, let alone morning sickness. I eat nonstop.”

“It’s good to eat well.”

“It’s not just good! I might end up eating all the food in the imperial palace.”

Sienna was still munching on snacks that Hain had brought. She hadn’t had a pause in the last few days. At this rate, she even thought that she might eat up all the food in the imperial family.

“Don’t worry, not only all the food of the Imperial City but even if you eat the Imperial City itself. No, it’s okay to eat the whole empire. If that’s not enough, I will conquer another country so that you won’t be hungry.”

At Carl’s words, Sienna imagined herself eating up the Imperial City and the Empire.