Reborn as a Mind-Reading Empress
Chapter 70: Count Rowell

Chapter 70: Count Rowell

"Greetings to Her Imperial Majesty, the Empress," both mother and daughter said and made even the boy bow.

’They recognized me?!!’ Arabella glanced at her companions and they just sighed.

[Has her Majesty finally calmed down?]

[I knew this would happen.]

[How can she not know everyone in the Empire, no, probably everyone in Eliora knows her face. She’s famed to be the dream of every man, young or old, and the envy of women of all ages.]

’Ah, right. How could I forget?’

This was exactly why she would be found immediately if she ever ran away from Ferdinand. She didn’t know before and idiotically eloped with Andrew and he was also famed for his looks.

"Please forgive our rudeness. And thank you very much for saving our lives, Your Majesty," the mother held both of her children’s heads so they would keep bowing. "Please punish me as you wish, but please spare my children. Please allow me to take their punishment instead."

’What a loving mother. I wish I could see Fermin soon. But it will be about a year before I can get pregnant.’

"It’s alright. You won’t be punished. All of you may rise. Please sit comfortably as you have just been healed. Do not strain yourselves or the effort of my companion would go to waste."

[She wouldn’t take my children as payment for the tribute, right? I heard she was from Lobelius so she must be kinder than the people from the Empire. She won’t harm my children, right? After all, she asked her magician to heal us.]

’Huh? Just what do they think of the people of the Empire? Oh, right. They just got beaten up for the tribute. Of course, they would think of Valeria in a bad light if this had been happening to them for a while.’

Even the boy who thought she was an angel when he just woke up was now trembling in fear along with her older sister and mother.

’Those bastards. Did they say that it was Ferdinand, us from the Imperial Palace, who were the ones requiring them to pay for the tribute? All of them can be executed for using the Imperial Family’s name.’

"You won’t be punished as long as you answer all my questions honestly," Arabella said and they flinched. She still had to gather information first though. It may be useful for them to be able to convict those men and their master.

"Yes, Your Majesty, we will answer to the best of our knowledge," the mother bowed again.

From the mother’s thoughts, she learned that her name was Marie. Marie used to be a maid for nobles so she knew how to behave around one.

[What is she doing? What if the collectors return?]

Alwin was internally complaining but he made a chair for her to sit on anyway.

Rendell stood by the door while Alwin and Raymond remained standing on either side of her.

"First of all, how long until those men who went to the count’s residence leave?"

Marie told her that the collectors won’t leave until they had their fill. They went to the Count’s place to have a feast. Once they are full and rested, they would leave.

’They are the count’s people?’ Arabella’s confused now.

"Why did they beat you up?" she asked and the mother tensed.

"I . . . Because I didn’t have money to pay for the tribute. Please forgive me, Your Majesty. I truly wanted to pay the tribute but I wasn’t able to get my salary yet. They usually come at the end of the month but the collectors came two weeks earlier than usual."

"So they whipped you because you cannot pay for the tribute?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"And what’s this tribute for?" she asked and the mother looked up at her and blinked repeatedly.

"For the Empire, Your Majesty."

"Raymond, does the Empire collect tribute from the common people?" Arabella asked.

"We collect tribute from every conquered territory in exchange for protecting them from the time they become a part of Valeria, Your Majesty. But we have NEVER collected the tribute directly from the people themselves. We get the tribute from a percentage of the taxes already paid by the people to the territory’s head. We never torture or extort the people either nor force them to pay. This is not Valeria’s doing," Raymond denied it all in his explanation, fearing that she might misunderstand.

"As you have heard, Valeria does not collect tribute from the people directly," Arabella smiled at Marie.

[She asked for their sake? Ah, right. I heard she had been reading a lot when she just stayed in her room. She must have familiarized herself with the laws of the Empire before she asked to begin working.] Raymond nodded in approval.

"T-then, who are those men collecting tribute from us every month?" the mother blinked repeatedly with obvious frustration.

[Does this mean we have been fooled?! Those men were not from the Empire?!]

"I would also like to know that. Who were the men on horseback who came here earlier?"

"Ah, that’s our lord, Count Clement Rowell, and his butler."

"That’s the Count himself?" Arabella tilted her head. She was not familiar with all of Prudencia’s nobility.

"Yes, Your Majesty. They usually wait at the residence but they probably saw a lot of us getting whipped so they intervened. Our lord promised to pay for the tribute of everyone who was not able to pay so the collectors finally stopped."

’Oh, so the count is on their side. I’m relieved this wasn’t his doing.’

Marie said she once worked at the Count’s residence but due to the financial crisis, Count Rowell let go of most of his workers in the palace and only left a few since he was all alone anyway and he can no longer afford to keep a lot of workers. Two of his sons were all in the capital of Prudencia while the other two were assigned at the borders.

Still, Marie goes to the Count’s residence every now and then when they need extra hands so she was still updated with the goings.