Reborn as a Mind-Reading Empress
Chapter 28: It was Love at First Sight

Chapter 28: It was Love at First Sight

"I merely do not wish to see my lord get hurt and suffer," Alwin bit his lip as he seemed to stop himself from saying more. Raymond gently rubbed Alwin’s shoulder and smiled.

’Let me take it from here,’ was clear on Raymond’s face since Alwin was becoming emotional.

The mage nodded. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened his eyes again, he looked calmer and took a sip of his tea.

Arabella copied him to calm her nerves and try to flush out her wavering thoughts.

"I understand it is hard to believe. But I have been with His Majesty for so long and yet, three days ago was the first time I saw him smile. His Majesty smiled upon seeing you arrive to see him off. I have never seen his eyes brighten up like that before," Raymond smiled as he thought about it.

And as Arabella gazed into the Prime Minister’s eyes, she had a glimpse of a close-up view of Ferdinand that she didn’t see when she just arrived to see him off because she was distracted by the knights’ reactions.

Ferdinand’s cold eyes lit up and softened for an instant when he spotted her. Raymond was near Ferdinand so he could see it clearly.

However, when Ferdinand reached Arabella, his eyes were back to how they usually were. Even the smile on his lips was gone and he was back to his poker face.

But Arabella recalled his eyes did shine again when she told him she came to see him off. He even kissed her as if he was truly happy about it.

But wasn’t he just showing off to fool everyone that they were truly a couple now even if they were not?

Why else would he act so sweet in front of everyone? He even said he would miss her.

Just recalling how embarrassing it was made Arabella’s face heat up. She flinched when Raymond smiled brightly when he noticed.

[Who would have thought I would one day witness His Majesty kiss a lady? I did tell him to be affectionate but he must be feeling so much that his body knew exactly what to do even when he doesn’t.]

’Right! It was this person’s fault. He went and gave Ferdinand some weird advice, didn’t he?’ she glared at Raymond who chuckled lightly.

’Ah, yes. That’s it. Why else would Ferdinand be acting like that? Or was it because he was still young and could act as shamelessly as he pleased?’ she assured herself to stop feeling embarrassed about it in front of Alwin and Raymond.

"He was also worried about Your Majesty’s health so he fixed your coat. He never once cared about a woman getting cold before. His Majesty had always been one who didn’t care about anything. He was bored with life so he always goes to the battlefield looking for someone who could end what he believes was his boring life [or at least make him sleep], but after meeting you for the first time, he changed so much," Raymond added.

[It was rather fun seeing His Majesty care about his appearance for the first time after he heard the then Princess Arabella was in a relationship with Prince Andrew who was famed for his looks. I have never seen him stare at himself in the mirror for a long time in self-doubt. He even asked if Andrew was a better man than he was, for the Princess to run away with the Prince.]

Arabella gulped when she had a glimpse of what Raymond was thinking about.

From Raymond’s recollection, she saw Ferdinand staring at himself in the mirror and fixing his clothes even though it was already fine. He asked his butler for another set of clothes.

In the next scene, Alwin was also there and Ferdinand was looking at Andrew’s portrait.

"Be honest, is this prince so much better than me?" Ferdinand asked them with a deadly expression on his face. And of course, Alwin and Raymond replied that he was so much better than Andrew.

"Then am I just not good enough?" Ferdinand uncharacteristically asked and Alwin had a shocked face. Alwin and Raymond said all sorts of things to reassure their Emperor.

’Would Ferdinand really doubt himself this much?!’ Arabella had never seen Ferdinand doubt himself before. He had always been a self-confident man in her eyes. She wouldn’t have believed this if she did not see it from Raymond’s thoughts.

However, she was trying to get them to think a divorce between her and Ferdinand was best so she still denied it.

"Isn’t it because everyone is pressuring him to have an heir? He had to treat me well since I would have to be the mother of his child."

Arabella was also stubborn. She keeps clinging to what she knew and had experienced in her past life even when she keeps telling herself to stop.

But then again, how could she just believe everything they were telling her?

She once believed everything she was told and it didn’t do her any good. If not for the ability she had now, she would have concluded they were just trying to make her think better of Ferdinand.

Further, Ferdinand caring about his appearance doesn’t necessarily mean he loved her.

Didn’t he just want to look presentable?

Doesn’t everyone take care of their appearance?

Society demands it, especially for someone of his position. Even some of the commoners she had met cared about appearances.

In her previous life, she never saw Ferdinand not looking presentable. He maintained his appearance well since he was the Emperor.

His butlers were there to take good care of him as well so he didn’t really have to worry about it.

And Ferdinand doubting himself was hard to believe, but doesn’t that make him just like everyone else?

Doesn’t everyone doubt their self once in a while?

It just meant Ferdinand was indeed human no matter how invincible he looked.

"It’s true that the ministers are pestering His Majesty for an heir but it was his choice to get married to you. Children are indeed necessary to maintain the bloodline but it wasn’t the only reason His Majesty wanted you. He cherishes you much more than you think, Your Majesty," Raymond explained.

But should she believe it after what she experienced as Ferdinand’s wife in her past life?

Was visiting her only once a month when she was pregnant and not visiting her again after she gave birth cherishing her? Is that the extent of Ferdinand cherishing someone?

Ferdinand liking her physically wasn’t new either. She knew he desired her body. He was a man after all, and she was his wife. It was normal for him to want to sleep with her. But it doesn’t mean he liked her to the extent that he loved her.

It was just physical attraction. But she didn’t know the difference before.

She once mistook his warm touch and kisses, his need to satisfy his urges, his lust, as love.

Arabella understood that lusting for the person accompanied romantic love.

After all, she fell for Ferdinand once and pined for him. She missed him so much including his touch and kisses and the sensual steamy nights with him.

But Ferdinand ignored her after he satisfied the ministers. In their twenty-two years of marriage, they were only truly husband and wife for a few months.

Just the thought of believing Ferdinand loves her again was so terrifying. She didn’t want to fall for him ever again.

To long for him so much to the point of forgetting herself...

To miss him so much that it hurt...

To love him so much only to be betrayed again...

She didn’t want to experience all of these again.

NO.

Arabella could never love him again with her memories of the past knowing he mercilessly had his own son poisoned.

How could she when she still clearly remembers the feeling of holding the cold hard corpse of her only child?

The memory made her feel sad and bitter once again. She missed her son so much.

’I want to see him soon.’

Arabella bit her lip to stop herself from saying anything from her past life. She took several sips of her tea to distract herself.

Only when she was sure she had calmed did she speak again.

"Why would His Majesty fancy me? We have never even met each other before my family received his marriage proposal."

It was one of the things that puzzled her.

Why did Ferdinand ask for her hand all of a sudden? He could have married a princess from the stronger kingdoms in Eliora. But he married her instead.

It was why she surmised he had heard of her reputation as the prettiest in Eliora and wanted to make her his wife like a trophy he could display for the other monarchs to see. She concluded that he felt entitled to get her because he was the strongest.

After all, she heard there was even a duel about who would get to marry her and Ferdinand won all of it before he proposed to her.

"You have met him before, Your Majesty. And it was love at first sight for His Majesty," Raymond smiled with warmth in his eyes.

Arabella frowned, "I don’t recall ever meeting him before our official engagement."

She was sure she met Ferdinand for the first time when their engagement was made official. If they met before that, she would remember since Ferdinand was striking and scary.

"Do you recognize this, Your Majesty?" Alwin asked and Arabella gasped when his appearance suddenly changed to someone who looked familiar to her.

"Sir Elmir?!" she gawked at Alwin who suddenly looks like a knight she had met years ago.

Elmir was a knight who saved her life when she was sixteen. She could still remember it since it was one of the most traumatic experiences she ever had.

It was the first time she ever had an encounter with monsters that she once thought did not exist.

Two years ago, Arabella attended the yearly assembly of the Council of Eliora with her parents.

When it was over, she had to go home first with some knights as her guards since her parents had to travel to another kingdom to join another event.

However, Arabella and her knights were attacked by monsters when they stopped at the foot of a mountain to rest.

Most of her knights were injured. Even her maid passed out since she protected Arabella from the impact when the carriage suddenly stopped and hit her head hard.

The knights concluded the others should escape with her so they made her ride the fastest horse they had with one of her knights.

However, as they were about head to the nearest town’s direction, they were blocked by another monster.

Her knights protected her and they were all severely injured as more monsters came and surrounded them.