Princess Fighter: Search for the Throne

LIX

East Zila

Midnight, Forest

"I know that you had an amazing adventure this morning" Ramanujam told Mriga.

He was the first to return after warm-up practice and was still gasping for breath. After hearing his words, his face sank. He had been trying to deal with the incident since the afternoon.

How could Ramanujam have heard of it?

Although his tone was gentle, he was not fooled. This was one thing that was repeatedly told to him and he still managed to mess it up.

"I'm sorry to have brought disgrace to the Admin department and you. I have let you and Guruji Prithvi down" he said in a guilty tone.

To his horror, hot tears threatened to come out of his eyes.

Ramanujam laughed and said, "For such a small girl, you did use big words. What is shameful? Actually, your mentor might be secretly proud of you. In a truest sense, you're a follower of that bastard."

Hearing her puzzling words, Mriga approached her, tears and guilt instantly forgotten.

"You mean Shau... senior Shaurya? Why is he proud of me?" curiosity has filled his voice to the brim.

"Given that he did something very similar, I would say that he would be happy to see someone following in his footsteps. Unless... did he instruct you to do this?" ramanujam asked sharply as the thought crossed his mind.

"Tidaaaak, I swear. It was all my idea. But you mean senior Sha... also did this in the past? Is he interning at the Eastern zilla as well?" she asked.

Now, the others have returned as well. They all knew about him being reprimanded during the day and had decided to be lenient with him.

The task at the border turns out to be useless, with some rich kids trying to cross the zilla with small pockets of 'happiness' with them.

There was nothing Abhirath and Vandit could do but wander around the place and return.

As for the code breakers, Nirbhay and Chiranjeev have been given a long-standing string of codes and deciphers. They should have learned everything before departing from the Eastern zilla.

Overall, neither of the couple had an adventure like Mriga, or rather a misfortune. Black marks on the report card early on are undesirable.

Ever since he came out of Amrapali's office, his morale was low. So, it was shocking to see him grinning wide enough to make his lips crack at this moment.

Ramanujam lowered his voice in cahoots and said, "I'll tell you, but if all of this goes back to your senior, I'll hide each of you."

The boy did not know what was being talked about, but the slightest gossip brought them all closer together.

Although Abhirath and Chiranjeev pretend to be alone, their ears go to great lengths to catch Guruji's spoken words gently.

"Shauryaveer is a smart boy and successfully interns in his twelfth year. Amrapali was his superior back then and purposely gave him the slip on the first task itself," Ramanujam began.

"Wait a minute. You mean senior purposely did it today? Hiding from me at the market?" Mriga's voice held back anger.

Ramanujam's eyebrows shot up as if asking that he still hasn't found the answer?

"You mean that duty is also a test? No intruders to follow?" he asked in a small voice.

He shook his head and replied, "No, no, that part is true but you are too green to be sent on such a mission. Do you not remember that we have told you all that such a task will be given to those who are apprentices with Cakra Suraksha? All of you are still in Gurukul's apprenticeship and were sent here just to observe the path of the spies in Suraksha's Cakra."

"Uh, can we continue Shaurya's sister's story?" The impatient Vandit spoke up.

Ramanujam looked at him and chuckled.

"Where am I? So Shaurya was standing there wondering what to do and the next minute he had the same idea as you. I think this was the first time he discovered his penchant for disguise. He didn't want to walk into the brothel as a student but like an asshole. If I remember correctly, he went and fought with someone on purpose to make them look real. After rolling around in the mud and bruising near the eyes, he had done something similar to what you did today," Ramanujam had a small smile on his face as he recalled the incident.

"And Amrapali Guruji must have been very angry at her when she was with me today," Mriga suddenly felt very proud of herself.

But the next minute, his happiness bubble burst.

"One time is enough. Don't you dare think that this gives you permission to behave like this in the future. I understand the reason behind your actions today, but you need to know that unless you are not equipped to handle the consequences, you will need to know, You cannot take that action because it will harm people and things other than you. Do you understand?" ramanujam said in a firm voice.

Mriga lowered her head and nodded in agreement, reflecting on his words.

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

At midnight, Sapsindhu

Shaurya has been hiccuping* for the past half an hour and it pisses him off.

"What have I eaten that has caused such indigestion?" thought to himself.

But the next minute, he forgot all about it. He could see Ratansingh coming towards him. It seems like there was one person accompanying him.

He must be Ratansingh's handler. No one else was in sight but Shaurya knew that there would be many of them lurking.

He deliberately chose that place, given the outcome of tonight's meeting. There is only one way to reach this place. With a mountain on one side and a deep valley on the other, he chose to stand at the end of a dead-end road.

Tightening the cloth on his waist, he waited quietly until they contacted him.

"Halo Shauryaveer, I've wanted to see you in person for a long time. Your reputation precedes you," the slimy man greeted Shaurya with a grin.

He bowed politely in return and remained silent. The man thought Shaurya would try and lick him, but it seemed that his arrogance had not disappeared!

"So, I heard that you wanted to defect to our side, or should I say, shift your loyalty. Well, I blame you. Real potentials like yours will be treated differently by Sapsindhu. Chandragarh does not know how to recognize and appreciate his people. Nonetheless, losing them is our gain. Now, Ratansingh told me that you have a room full of information for us as a reward for joining the team, "he said in an arrogant voice.

Shaurya looked at him and replied, "Yes. But I hope to give this information to the recruiter and not the handler. What is the guarantee that once you receive the information, you won't kill me instead of accepting me? "

The two men were offended by the implication, even more so because it was true.

Ratansingh started aggressively, "See this, Shaurya. You can't show your attitude here. This isn't Chandragarh and you're no longer the chief pet of recruitment. I would suggest that you trim your wings instead of us cutting them for you. I said that I would get my senior and I did. Now don't start issuing new requirements. After all, your recruitment will depend on my senior recommendations alone. "

Shaurya looked at him with flaming eyes and said, "I love how smoothly 'we' flow out of your mouth. You really have been brought to your adopted country with a lot of spirit. But isn't there a saying - 'once a traitor, always a traitor'. Do you think your Sapsindhu fellows trust you completely? Do you think they'll let you outlive your usefulness?"

"Oye! Are you here to pledge allegiance or make a split between us?" ask the handler in an angry voice.

"You know, just play this game. I don't need your information. I have enough ways to get it. All I want is your head. Catch him," at his shout, several men jumped out of the tree on the mountain.

Shaurya looked at all of them and smirked.

Pulling a machete from his back, he unsheathed it and retreated, creating space between him and the attackers.

"Shaurya, don't be stupid. There's nowhere to run. A few steps back and we don't even have to lift a finger to kill you. Perhaps when you chose to meet here, you did not know that this place was called the Valley of Vultures. I don't need to tell you why. We can still understand," Ratansingh persuaded him.

He hopes to get the information from Shaurya before throwing it away. It was already his nature to try and extract the maximum from a situation and that was the reason why he made such progress in his mediocre existence.

Shaurya, who had retreated far and close to the edge of the valley, lunged forward at lightning speed and decapitated the person closest to him.

With a screech, Ratansingh jumped back and let the attacker attack his compatriot.

Shaurya was surrounded on three sides by Saptsindhu agents and he nimbly managed to stab and injure one on each side before he was overtaken by five others. They pulled the bloody machete from his hand and stabbed his ribs on the left side.

Dragging him, they began to pull him down the path, away from the edge. He let his body limp, dropping his weight on them.

"Bring him to the tree over there. Let him feel the hospitality of Saptsindhu before he goes to the afterlife," said the handler maliciously.

One of the larger men tried to lift him up and lift him to his shoulder. Just then, Shaurya dropped his weight onto the ground. His circular body twisted and crashed into the person's stomach.

Before either of them could realize what was going on, the two of them were thrown into a pitch-black hole in the valley. Ratansingh ran at full speed towards them as soon as he realized Shaurya's intentions.

"Argh! My information," his words were drowned by the cries that resounded loudly in the valley.

The handler was the first to recover.

"Why waste my time!" he shrugged and walked away from the scene.

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

Although the handler had left, Ratansingh stood there pouting, peering down where the two bodies disappeared.

Something's wrong about this. Why did Shaurya come all the way and arrange this complicated thing when he wanted to die?

Is this a way to show his love for the country?

There was no doubt that he was dead, no one could survive this fall, but why?

That doesn't make any sense. He needs to think about this.

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

Himprayag

Bela took two days to make that trip. Crossing the border is not a problem as she travels as a female horseman on her way to participate in an upcoming event on the anniversary of the foundation of the Himprayag army.

Every year, on this day, Himprayag invites people from different countries to come and show off their skills in weaponry, horseback riding, archery among other competitions.

Prithvi had registered the Bela app along with his fake background documents some time ago. A few days ago, his elang had brought a confirmation letter of his participation to his residence which had previously been sent to the address that Prithvi had given by the organizers in Himprayag.

Bela brought her palm to her mouth and then rubbed it to produce warmth in her hand. Winter has just happened in the Northern zilla, but here in Himprayag, the weather is very cold.

Pulling the fur coat closer, he trudged along after crossing the border on the other side. The main center where the event will be held is still far away.

"God, I'm really old. I could feel the cold on my bones," he shuddered.

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

Three days later

Gayatri wore a livery full of the Himprayag emblem embossed on it. The symbol of the country is the rising sun with rays radiating in all directions. In the surrounding area, Himprayag is the first place where the sun rises every morning.

The country worships the Sun, seeking its warmth and brilliance to keep the snowy region in glory.

In front of an audience consisting of participants from all neighboring countries and themselves, Gayatri said, "Welcome to Himprayag, may our hospitality not be diminished. Starting today, we will be holding a three-day event where all of you will get a fair and equal opportunity to showcase your talents. Various categories and their places have been installed on the board next to the registration booth. You will be allowed to check the venue one hour before the event.Safety instructions and contest rules have been given to you. Hope you guys get some tough competition."

His words were greeted with loud cheers. The participants in this event tend to be the best in their field. One reason is the lucrative gift of money that is enough to make a person feel comfortable for most of their life.

As a result, mediocre people did not bother to participate because they were less likely to succeed.

Another reason is that this event is a talent search event for many of these artists. Many people from various countries are wary of the rare potential that could be beneficial to their nation.

Bela only heard about this contest but never participated because of her need to remain humble.

Directing his gaze to the various people wandering around, he found most of them much younger. There is an atmosphere of confidence in the way everyone walks or carries a weapon of their choice.

He tried not to let their body language affect his morals and confidence. It's important that he wins at least one event if not two.

His original plan was to send him only for horse riding events but to increase his chances of winning, he also listed his name on events where showing off one's weapons and his effectiveness was tested against the others.

Thankfully, both shows will take place on the first day itself and she won't have to experience a prolonged heartbeat.

Bela's plan is to balance the possible superior skills of its competitors with its experience and maturity. Adjusting his breath, he walked towards the stables where they were supposed to choose horses for the contest.

A large metal pot is kept outside the cage and the chronological order of people entering is determined by the draw. Everyone should remove a leaf from the pot that reads a number. People murmured, some even complained that they were not allowed to bring their own horses to the contest.

As Bela put her hand to pull the leaf, a burst of blood suddenly fell on her arm. Raising his head sharply, he noticed the screams around him, but his gaze was focused on the thin young lady standing in front of him.

His sword was still frozen in the air while blood dripped from it.

The decapitated head of the man who was watching the draw was lying on the ground. There were hurried steps and the female soldier who had greeted them some time ago, came there with her fleet.

"Princess Ahilya, are you okay? What's going on?" he asked in an urgent voice, paying attention to his surroundings.

"Send his head to his family and tell them they raised a con man. Send someone to catch the person who has a leaf with the number 5 in his hand. He colluded with this man to gain an advantage in the contest. Make sure you cut him off his limbs and bring them to me," Ahilya said in a stern voice.

......................

* There is a story of an old wife in India about someone who hiccups if she is remembered by those closest and dearest.