Reborn as a Mind-Reading Empress

They agreed to meet later in her room once their work for today was complete.

Once Ferdinand was gone, Arabella began doing some paperwork. It was always better to work on the documents as soon as possible to prevent it from piling up even more.

Arabella had just completed a pile when there was a knock on her door.

"Your Majesty, we came to report."

It was her maids.

"Yes, come in."

Only when she replied did they finally enter. All five of them were here and Blanca looked the most energetic-looking among them. She was so enthusiastic since she was new. Likewise, she was excited to be doing something different after sleeping for several hundred years.

Meanwhile, Carla, Eunice, Irene, and Aletha were showing signs of exhaustion since they had to choose gifts from so many items that were given to Arabella.

"How was it? Were you able to choose gifts for Lobelius Palace?" Arabella inquired and eyed all of them.

Just from the expression on their faces, she could tell the answer.

"Yes, Your Majesty. Aletha guided us with everyone’s preferences. And we chose the best and freshest produce from everything that was sent."

"That’s good. May I see the list," she could see them holding three scrolls.

Eunice opened the first scroll and handed it to her. It was a list of all the gifts for Lobelius Palace. There were lots of fresh produce and ingredients, fabric of the best quality made from various territories in Valeria, and gifts for her siblings.

Arabella read the first scroll and was satisfied with everything they added.

Aletha then opened and handed her the next scroll. It was a list of gifts for Elder Satara. There were a lot of herbs in it since Elder Satara liked herbs. There were also various kinds of seeds since the Elder loved farming. She liked cultivating various kinds of plants.

When Arabella was a child, Elder Satara said that flowers and trees were homes for fairies and other kinds of mysterious beings.

Now that Arabella thought about it, it was Elder Satara’s fault that she liked elves the most.

The Elder told Arabella a lot of stories about all kinds of beings but the former told her about elves the most. Thus, as a child, Arabella became interested in elves who were so mysterious and divine; so she asked for a lot of storybooks about them.

’Should I ask for some of Alwin’s flower plants from Estrella?’

Arabella wondered if such a flower would grow in Lobelius. However, she concluded that they might not since both Ferdinand and Alwin had repeatedly mentioned that the mana levels in Estrella were so much higher than the outside world.

A flower that had been raised in such an environment might only wilt in Lobelius so she decided against it.

’Maybe, I could just ask for some picked flowers from Alwin’s flower garden in the Magic Tower. He wouldn’t be so stingy with just a bouquet, right?’

Arabella glanced in Alwin’s direction who was sitting on the balcony. He was invisible due to his barrier so her maids did not notice him there.

"Should we close the windows?" Carla inquired when they noticed Arabella glancing at the balcony.

"No, it’s alright. I just recalled something," Arabella smiled. "Well done on choosing these. May I see the last list?"

"Your Majesty, I tried stopping them but they kept insisting we choose a lot of gifts for my family too," Aletha said looking embarrassed as she tried to stop Irene from handing the other scroll, and saying that there was no need to include the third.

Irene still handed Arabella the last scroll though. When Arabella checked it, it was a list of gifts for Aletha’s family.

"Your Majesty, I believe those gifts are too much," Aletha said.

"No, this is good. Well done choosing these gifts," Arabella smiled at her four other maids who were the ones who chose the gifts for Aletha’s family.

She had instructed them to choose gifts for Aletha’s family too since she knew that Aletha would be too humble and embarrassed to choose for them even if she told her to.

[What if they think Her Majesty is favoring me too much just because I was her maid from Lobelius? Her relationship with her maids here and their families might begin to get strained.]

Aletha was worried that it might have a negative effect on Arabella.

"No need to fret Aletha, since I will also let them choose gifts for their families. I have received too many gifts and I won’t be able to use up all of those anyway," Arabella assured Aletha.

"Tomorrow, while I am attending court sessions for a whole day again, you should choose gifts for your families as well," Arabella said to her other maids.

"Thank you very much, Your Majesty!" the three beamed.

Blanca was unsure how to react since she had no family.

"You should choose something you’d like, Blanca," Arabella added.

"Yes, Your Majesty. Thank you for your generosity," Blanca smiled and bowed in thanks as she recalled that she saw things that she liked.

"See? Just accept the gifts," Carla teased Aletha.

[I see. Her Majesty knows too.]

Aletha was relieved when Arabella told everyone to choose gifts for everyone’s families as well. With everyone treated fairly, Aletha could accept everything without worries.

"Right. Thank you, for your generosity, Your Majesty," Aletha then thanked Arabella too.

"You are all welcome. Consider it my thanks to all of you for always taking good care of me," Arabella smiled at them. "Oh, and Aletha, you don’t have to report tomorrow. Rest tonight and pack some of your things tomorrow. You would be able to stay in Lobelius for a week. We might depart tomorrow afternoon after the court sessions."

[Her Majesty is working too hard that I don’t want to leave her even for a week. But this might be my only chance to get a vacation. We might get much busier later.]

"Yes, Your Majesty. Thank you."

Aletha decided to rest for now and visit her family so she could focus on their tasks once they get busier.

"Since I will be in the throne room for a whole day again, the four of you can spend that time choosing what you would like and what to send to your families from the gifts," Arabella instructed her other maids.

"Yes, Your Majesty."