Princess Fighter: Search for the Throne

XXVIII

"So, let me get this straight. What you want to say is, that since the teachers and students are not updating themselves, the wrong answers should be appreciated. I wonder what the Ministry of Law will say about this. I believe that the interns who work in the Ministry of Law in the first level are chosen directly from Gurukul. Wondering if this would hinder their chances for recruitment," Prithvi was brutal in his attack.

Although his tone did not rise even an octave, his words carried enough poison for the shy moderator. The poor man started sweating. He has no objection to offer.

Instead, he cursed himself for having chosen such a question for the quiz.

"Then, should I give half the value to each team?" he asked Prithvi hesitantly.

"Obviously the future of the nation is in danger in the place where its foundation should be laid. When did appeasement take over justice as Chandragarh's motto? I tried to imagine the Queen's reaction when she heard this." came Prithvi's scathing reply.

...****************...

In the pulpit

"How dare that junior interrupt my answer? He thinks he can challenge me??? Although my chosen school was Medicine, I had been studying law since I was ten years old. I can also recite this policy in my sleep," Vindhya was angry while Gauri tried to calm her down.

"What do you think, Yash? Whose answer is correct?" Gauri asked hesitantly.

Yash doesn't care about the right answer. Vindhya collapsed during the human pyramid game and she panicked. Taking her all the way to the dispensary, she finds no time to tell Mriga.

But as soon as Vindhya regained consciousness, she asked him to rest and ran back to the hall only to find Mriga laughing and standing near the big burly man, who was holding a torch for her.

Is he blind? Why is he so friendly with her? Can he not see his admiration? Or worse, does he see it and want more of it?

Before he could walk towards her to pull her away, Vindhya's friend had run over and said that all the groups had already registered for the quiz.

He had told him that if they wanted to participate, then it should be done immediately at Vindhya's request because he knew the moderator well. Vindhya had also reached the hall by then.

Yash was about to refuse but then he saw Mriga's name go up on the board with the two men. Apparently, he was too rushed to participate so he could not wait for him to return. As a result, he said yes.

Sitting across from him and playing from different teams, his heart burned every time he celebrated with the two men. The tall man had had a whispering conversation with him during the contest and it made Yash even more angry.

"Points are awarded to teams seeking to study new amendments to the law and are, therefore, correct about the Enemy Property Act as it applies today" the moderator announced and the quiz resumed.

With this confidence boost, the four of them advanced and won the second round by a huge margin. The other teams have played cautiously afterwards to avoid bringing any further negative value to themselves.

Unfortunately, the points are still not enough to outperform the first-team tally but Mriga is not concerned about it. They have recovered from last place to finish second and a wise percentage increase is the biggest in their case.

In fact, the only thing that mattered to Mriga was that his team managed to beat Yash's team.

"It definitely needs celebration" exclaimed Vandit after they stepped off the podium.

Ishani shook her head eagerly in agreement. Abhirath stared at their faces speculatively.

Aren't they looking at each other differently now from when they first met a few hours ago? But then he shook his head as if he wanted to clear his mind.

"It seems like I've been reading too much into every situation lately. Just because I like someone, I keep thinking that everyone likes him too" he scolded himself in silence.

"Uh, I'm so tired. I woke up very early to prepare for the archery match. It's been a long day for me" Mriga said apologizing.

Ishani's face fell down and she said, "I know. Let's do this another day."

Vandit looked like he wanted to protest but held back at the last moment. Abhirath who watched this game of emotions intently, intervened.

"I think we did a good job during the quiz and it needs to be celebrated. Why don't we do this? Since Mriga and I have been up since dawn, why don't we have two get-togethers? Vandit, maybe you and uh.. Ishani can do a little today on behalf of everyone and we can all go to lunch next week, hmm?" he spoke to the group.

Mriga turned to look at him in confusion. What's he trying to do?

But before he could speak his mind out loud, Vandit jumped up and declared that it was a good idea.

Mriga doesn't understand what's wrong with the two boys at the moment, but she is more worried about her friend getting caught up in a situation with a person she barely knows. But he was shocked!!

"I. That's it, I don't mind. You're right, the celebration has to be done today. Mriga, uh, you sure you can't come?" Ishani asked a little shyly.

Mriga's mouth was open. Eyes down, cheeks reddened, shy smile, this girl? Ishani possessed?

...----------------...

Abhirath can actually see the confused gears working in Mriga's mind as she tries to make sense of what's going on around her. He decided to intervene before he messed things up.

"So, it's decided then. Mriga and I are going back to the dorm now to sleep. You two should eat enough today to make up for our share as well. We're going to do the next celebration soon" Abhirath said and nearly dragged Mriga out of there.

"Can you explain to me what just happened? And why are you pulling me so in such a hurry? My arm was almost out of its socket," Mriga said in annoyance as she removed her hand from her forearm.

He flicked his knuckles to his forehead and said, "How can you be so blunt all the time? Don't tell me you're blind to the look of admiration that the two of them kept doing during the quiz. They really want to spend more time together and you almost ruin it for them. Poor vandit. He looks sad when you even refuse to accept the idea of celebrating. I mean, even my heart hurts in his name but you ... "

Although his words were firm, his voice was warm and pampering. He couldn't help but find his stupidity charming as well.

"Huh? Whahuh? You mean Ishani and Vandit? Ishani and Vanditku? Didn't they just meet?" he looked at her with no understanding.

Abhirath thought that she was really cute at the time and had a strong desire to kiss her forehead. She controlled herself and decided to ruffle her hair instead.

"Thanks to your long-running chess tournament, they spent quality time together. I think that's where they're tied" he shrugged.

"Now if I have answered all your questions, can we go back? I was dying of hunger and wanted to eat at the foodhall before going to bed. I suggest you do the same," he said.

"It really looks comfortable. Brother, if you're done with your post quiz discussion, can I get my girlfriend back?" a cold voice interrupted their conversation.

Mriga turned to look at the pouting Yash in front of her. However, the girls from his team were invisible.

Abhirath knew that he had borrowed time until now with Mriga. Realizing that he had no right to hold her back, he quietly moved away from her. Strengthening his heart, he raised his hand to say goodbye to her.

But his hand stopped in midair and his lips curved upwards at the next words.

"Sorry, Yash. The 'post quiz' discussion is still ongoing. I think you and I will meet again later. Abhirath, can we go to the foodhall? I just realized that I was also very hungry," she did not give any of them time to react and left.

Abhirath was surprised but happy to follow him without a word. Right now, she couldn't be bothered about the reason she behaved this way with her boyfriend as long as he spent time with her, alone.

Yash stood there for a few uncertain moments before leaving sulking.

"Why do I have to be the one to make amends at all times? Who does she think she is - the Queen? If she can get angry, I can too," with that thought, she turned to return to her dorm.

Vindhya, who had been agitated ever since Yash said goodbye to her and walked towards the hick, let herself smile triumphantly.

The irritation eventually turns into hatred. How dare he think of putting the girl on the same team as her. An inspiration had struck him when the pyramid contest was announced.

He had told Gauri to ask one of their friends to pull his name from their team for a quiz and register Yash's name instead.

After which, he left and bumped into his teammate who had fallen on purpose, then pretended to faint.

He knew that he had to give an explanation later for Gauri, but he was sure the girl would follow his instructions until the end for now.

The strategy paid off. Vindhya is proud of her ability to predict and predict human behavior. His psychology teacher always praised him for his intelligence.

A misunderstanding has arisen between the new love bird and Vindhya intends to keep the fire burning.

...****************...

The same night

Mriga is trying to balance the weight of the book in her hands, which she needs to return to the library. He brought Ishani and her books at the same time as her best friend had not returned until now from 'celebrated lunch'.

It was still difficult for him to digest about the togetherness of Ishani and Vandit. In fact, up to an hour ago he still believed that perhaps Abhirath had overread the situation.

But now when it seemed that their lunch would last until dinner, he had no choice but to accept that reality.

"But instead of feeling happy for my friend, I was a little depressed. Am I jealous of Vandit for taking my best friend? No, no. no way," he murmured to himself as he walked out of the dorm.

The next moment half of the books were taken from his hands.

"Ap...what are you doing?" Yash had taken the books out of his hands.

"Help you," with that, he stepped in with her.

Mriga did not refuse or say anything after that, nor did he, along the way.

Dropping the books with the librarian, Mriga finally turned to look at him and said, "Thank you for the help."

He sounded polite and distant. With a small nod, he stepped aside to pass through it.

"Sorry, I'm acting like a donkey this afternoon. I can't handle your closeness to that guy. I'm jealous" Yash said without further ado.

Mriga's eyes widened to resemble a cup and her face burned in front of her blunt confession. He looked up to see his eyes blazing with intensity.

He took a moment to calm himself down and then said, "Sama-sama."

Yash's face was shrouded in confusion for a split second before his intent realized it. Their identical grin was enough to relieve any lingering heartache.

Yash did not say it out loud, but to me, his most endearing quality was not to hold a grudge for too long.

As someone who grew up in the shadow of this cruel and unforgiving woman, he deeply appreciated Mriga's special nature.

"I have the biggest gossip of the year" she leaned over and whispered to him as they walked out of the library.

He raised his eyebrows at the sentence and said, "Will you share it with me as we walk towards the dining room. I'm sure they're serving you your favorite tonight - hot cauldron milk."

He nodded his head vigorously and began to give an exaggerated version of the incident between Ishani and Vandit.

"I'll find out that something was being cooked between them before, but I was troubled by our quarrel," he said between gulps of warm liquid.

"Well, I'm glad that there's one fewer guy competing for your attention. All of a sudden, I think wherever I turn, there's one or the other lurking around you. Do you know how stressful that is? someone who has just entered a romantic relationship for the first time?" He said those words, only half joking.

"Haa..look who's talking? Why do you feel like you're saying something in my name? This is exactly how I feel," she replied.

Wiping the wrong drop of milk from the corner of his mouth with his thumb, he permeated the affection swirling around them at this moment. He wanted to tell her that none of those people were important.

In his eyes, no one came close to touching his heart, forgetting to find space in it.

He is all he needs!

Vindhya, who almost never came to the foodhall, has agreed to join Gauri for afternoon tea to use the opportunity to provide an explanation at her previous request.

It was a pity that in that very long room, the two people he saw first were Mriga and Yash. What a possibility it happened!!

By the way, they looked at each other, it seemed like everything was already fine in their world. It's okay, I enjoy a good challenge.

...****************...

Queen's Palace

Ujjwala Devi sits in the official room of Rani Samyulta along with the other zilla heads. Today is the last official meeting between the Queen and the head of the zilla this year, held in early winter.

Although he had met his sworn enemy several times in the past, especially after becoming the leader of the zilla for the South, he had met his nemesis, but that acute bitter feeling always reappeared whenever Ujjwala saw the unworthy woman sitting on the throne.

But this time, Ujjwala came riding a horse of high success.

His hard work paid off and his team has developed a new method of home planning. Engineers in South Zilla have devised a blueprint that considers wind direction, the effects of sunlight, and weather changes before building a new home.

The blueprint is different for different zones of the country, given the geography of the region. The purpose of this exercise is to reduce the use of man-made resources and maximize natural resources.

For example, the use of lamps and oils will be greatly reduced if the house is positioned in such a way as to ensure that sunlight continues to penetrate at least some parts of the house for a long time during the day. Also, the house remains roomy and cool due to the cross ventilation offered by the recommended window position.

The materials that will be used to make the house have been proposed according to the different weather conditions that zillas faces.

Coastal areas such as the Western zilla need thatched roofs to protect from unrelenting rain, while the Northern zilla needs provisions to protect against extreme heat and cold during the turn of the season.

For the past hour, Samyukta and his ministers have been very engrossed in the presentation made by the top aide Ujjwala who has worked with him on the project.

Ujjwala has personally ordered several houses to be made in his zilla on a war footing in recent months to examine whether the theory translates well in the practical world or not.

Ever since he became the head of the zilla, Ujjwala's goal has been to win the best zilla award. The award not only brought recognition for himself and zilla, but also the many economic benefits that accompanied the award, including tax breaks for a set period of time.

The North zilla heads have won it successfully over the past few years due to their constant innovation.

Suppressing a triumphant smile, he stole a glance at the Northern zilla's head that was frowning at the moment.