Reborn as a Mind-Reading Empress
Chapter 758: Who’s Crying?

Chapter 758: Chapter 758: Who’s Crying?

Further, the cause of the lack of flora in Safiro was initially a vast forest fire. Then, the curse that prevented the entire land from supporting greenery and the magic spell to prevent the rains.

But in Sibruh, since the plants might get infected with the disease again or consumed by pests. Hence, they had to focus on eradicating pests and clearing the infected crops completely first.

Likewise, the soil needs time to recover before farming can resume, especially since they do not know yet what caused the disease or how to manage or stop it completely.

Burning the infected plants was a just general solution they knew from past plant diseases they have encountered before.

Ferdinand continued to update Arabella on the situation in Sibruh and its neighboring territories until he interrupted himself.

"But this isn’t why you wanted to speak with me, is it?" he asked, his tone gentle but probing.

[I panicked when Riley arrived and said she wanted to speak with me as soon as possible. I thought something happened to her. I almost returned here immediately but Riley assured me it was something about work.]

"What happened while I was away? Are the household rulers intentionally giving you a hard time?" Ferdinand inquired, ready to intervene if needed.

"No, no. It’s not about the Court Sessions. They treated me well," Arabella clarified quickly, not wanting them to face Ferdinand’s ire unnecessarily.

It’s true that some were wary of her when she first attended the Court Sessions on her own but they were not giving her a hard time.

"I see. That’s good to hear," Ferdinand nodded.

[As they should. If they treated her badly, I’ll have to speak with them.]

Arabella felt grateful that Ferdinand was prepared to stand up for her if necessary.

However, she was nervous of how he would react once she told him she met with Princess Seraphina from Crux which was a kingdom they were about to have war with.

Ferdinand remained silent and eyed her expectantly, waiting for her to tell him what she wanted to talk about.

[Why is she hesitating to speak?]

’Right, the longer I hesitate, the more he would notice. I should just say it and wait to be scolded.’

"Uhm, there’s something important I needed to tell you," Arabella began.

Ferdinand nodded encouragingly, signaling for her to proceed.

[Why does she seem nervous?] He noticed her fidgeting.

Arabella gulped nervously, taking a deep breath before continuing, "There’s something you need to know before the war with Crux begins. I met with Princess Seraphina, the king’s first daughter, and—"

"What?!" Ferdinand’s brows furrowed deeply, his expression darkening. "You met with a Princess from Crux?"

’I knew he would get angry,’ Arabella wanted to make herself smaller.

Arabella felt herself shrinking under Ferdinand’s intense gaze. She had anticipated his anger. She already expected it and prepared herself but it was still making her tense just seeing his reaction.

"Y-yes," Arabella replied in a low voice.

"What? Did you get hurt anywhere?! It’s dangerous to meet with them in the current situation. Why would you meet her? Where did you meet? Why didn’t I hear about this?" Ferdinand’s words tumbled out rapidly, each question laced with concern and frustration.

He was about to rise from his seat to check if she was injured anywhere, so Arabella quickly reassured him, "I’m fine. I’m not hurt anywhere. We met in the Magic Tower with Alwin, Riley, and Rendell guarding me."

"Even so. They could have hidden weapons or poison with them. Who knows if her entourage had an assassin hidden among them? What if there was a magician among them?" Ferdinand’s brows remained furrowed and his voice was louder than how he usually spoke with her.

"It was only Princess Seraphina, her two closest aides, and one guard knight. Alwin ensured everything was safe. And the guests did not try to harm me. They were only there to speak," Arabella explained, hoping to ease his worries.

But Ferdinand was still visibly upset. If they had discussed this before the main course, dinner might have ended prematurely. Just thinking about it made her feel depressed. Thankfully, they had waited until after dessert to broach the topic.

Ferdinand’s intense gaze bore into Arabella as he continued to express his concern, his frustration evident.

"Just being in the same room with them is already too risky. What is safe about that?" he retorted sharply.

Arabella felt a pang of sadness at his harsh tone. "But all security measures were in place. And I could hear their thoughts. We were prepared to leave immediately if there was any hint of danger," she defended herself. "Nothing went wrong. We were cautious and—"

"But what if they had managed something before any of you could react?" Ferdinand cut her off again. "Arabella, how can I be at ease leaving you alone if you put yourself in danger the moment I’m gone?"

"..."

Arabella swallowed hard, a lump forming in her throat. She understood his concern, but the intensity of his anger and his reluctance to hear her out is making her chest hurt. He could at least let her finish talking.

It felt terrible to be scolded like this.

Now, she understood why Alwin didn’t like it.

Moreover, Arabella was already accustomed to Ferdinand’s tenderness and care. They were getting along so well for a while too.

Seeing him like this, so different from the Ferdinand who always spoke gently to her, reminded her of their distant past and their strained relationship. It was a stark contrast to the aloof and silent Ferdinand she had once feared approaching, but it still left her feeling tense.

What would she do if their relationship ends up turning out as it did in the past again?

She was working on preventing that. She was trying to ease his workload so they could be together more often. So why was he so angry?

[I-I made her cry?!!]

’Huh? Who’s crying?’ Arabella was surprised at what she heard from Ferdinand’s thoughts. But just then, she realized her tears were already falling. ’I am?’