They thought Arabella was only here to listen and would let Raymond handle the rest without giving her inputs or whatsoever.
But that was not the case. She was here to act on Ferdinand's behalf so she was then one who would make decisions.
If this was the previous life and she did not know yet about the issues in Valeria, it would indeed be better to watch and learn from Raymond first. But since she already knew what she should do, she was here to do her task.
Moreover, she knew exactly what they would want to hear from her since she could listen to their thoughts.
Ferdinand also knew she was already equipped since she had been working in her office since she began. He had seen her work the past months. If he did not believe she knew what to do, he would not have assigned her here and asked Raymond instead.
