Princess Fighter: Search for the Throne

LXVIII

Capital city, Chandragarh

"Greetings to Rani Samyukta. My father sends his hope for your good health and the prosperity of Chandragarh, "Mithilesh is a model of humility as she stands before queen Chandragarh.

He was well aware of Chandragarh's influence in the region. Although Saptsindhu is a stronger state in terms of military power, both geographically and economically, Chandragarh has all the advantages in its favor.

Chandragarh's presence has managed to rein in Sapsindhu's ambitions over the past few decades, otherwise small countries would have been attacked by big bullies long ago.

Due to its unique governance structure and community-friendly policies, Chandragarh's per capita income is quite high compared to other countries.

Also, since the educational programs were run and sponsored by the royal palace, everyone had received basic knowledge and skills. That makes the population of Chandragarh an asset both at home and abroad.

When Mithilesh became king, he would adapt many of these policies. For now, he needed to convince the plain-looking queen of his proposal.

He may look simple on the surface but is known to be no less than his peers in terms of shrewdness and foresight.

It was not as easy to get him to agree to his plan as it was with king Vayuprastha. Mithilesh had chosen to come here first instead of going to Sapsindhu.

It seems he did it because of geographical convenience. Vayuprastha was the furthest from Himprayag, and then came Chandragarh and finally Sapsindhu, who were his next-door neighbors.

But Mithilesh chose to come here because he was well aware that King Amrendra would approve of his plan once he learned that Chandragarh had agreed to it.

First, Sapsindhu's ambitions were not hidden from anyone in the region. But more importantly, King Amrendra could not tolerate being abandoned by Rani Samyukta even in the smallest of things.

This means if Mithilesh manages to get the queen to leave, she will have the throne of Himprayag waiting for her when she returns.

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

Vayuprastas

Raji Shaligram was still upset by the deal with prince Himprayag and yelled at everyone from then on.

Princess Kritika was relaxing in the beautiful room that had been allocated for her in the palace. He had just been told that a new set of rooms had been arranged for him outside the palace, so he had to move out immediately. He, of course, had heard it through its source before the news reached him officially. But he had no intention of moving!

Although it had only been weeks since Kritika had entered the palace, she had begun to build her network within the walls of this place. He just loves the atmosphere of Vayuprastha. A pure capitalist kingdom, has its evil but it will take greed over male chauvinism every day.

No man in Vayuprastha has the habit of hitting the chest to prove their superiority in front of others.

Over the past year, he had seen the faces of many Sapsindhu men while fleeing from the royal guard. These ordinary people were not much different from his tyrant father or his absent brother.

The sense of superiority that flowed in their blood had nothing to do with their social status, their wealth or lack, or their level of education. It's just a sense of entitlement!

He had sworn to himself that he would die rather than bow down to any man for the next time.

Although king Vayuprastha was middle-aged and not very handsome, he had decided to look at him. He wanted to turn his business partnership into something stronger, enough for him to get protection from his father's scolding.

Even though he had yet to flex his strength, he knew that someday, he would send his troops to take him away from this place.

No one can protect her except for the title. He had tried to find out everything he could about the king from sources in the palace but the information was not very constructive.

She had many queens and concubines, each more beautiful than the other. For her to stand out, she must be useful enough for him beyond a pretty face or just a business partner.

It was purely a coincidence that he found out about the signing of his deal with the prince of Himprayag. And that made him think. Maybe he could use this as an opportunity!

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

Himprayag

Bela shared her observations and experiences over the past few days of living in Himprayag with Shaurya.

"I'm not sure how I can impress the princess, Guruji," he started slowly.

On his questioning gaze, he continued, "From what I understand, they have great military capabilities and he himself is the best of all. My warrior skills are not qualified to be worthy even to enter their lair. How could I do that? leave impressions?"

Bela smiled looking at her insecure face. This was the first time he had seen her so uncertain.

He began, "Why do you assume that you have to show your physical strength. There are many ways to attract a woman. Didn't you know that intelligence and quick thinking can fascinate a person faster than shooting on target? And if I'm not mistaken, you seem pretty good at using your silver tongue. Don't worry, you have to have confidence in yourself and more than that, trust the senior who asked you to take on this task ."

Shaurya looked at her with a shy expression and nodded.

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

Himprayag

"Remember, this stage is very important to us and we cannot go back empty-handed. The princess was close and dependent on her close help, Gayatri. We need both of them to look at us well" Bela said holding some sort of underlying meaning.

But Shaurya did not ponder it for long and said straightforwardly, "I have no intention of using immoral means because they have a tendency to come back and bite you. Give me three days before I present myself to the royal court. I want to try something."

"Time is not a luxury for us and I know you are aware of it. Send me a message when you're ready," saying so, Bela started walking towards the sleeping bear.

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

At midnight, Sapsindhu

Prince Mahendra walked into his father's room and knelt in front of him. The king looked at his son's bowed head and lifted him from the shoulder.

For the first time, his eyes felt damp.

He tightened his grip on his forearm and said, "Vijayi bhav".

After a moment of solemn service, the king stepped away and asked in a rude voice, "Is everything ready? Preparation is done?"

Mahendra nodded his head and replied, "I myself have checked everything twice."

King Amrendra warned him, "Then, check for a third time. Do it this time as if you knew there was a gap. Discover the. Fix it."

Mahendra knew that his father's words were a reflection of his concerns, but he did not let impatience flow across his face. He nodded his head respectfully and assured her that he would do what was necessary.

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

Gurukull, Chandragarh

Prithvi finished researching the map that Chiranjeev had drawn and had just submitted.

"Since this moment, you will be the one responsible for testing the skills of the other four people. Make sure you judge them as hard as a soldier defending the snore of the ground where he stands" Prithvi told him.

The younger man allowed himself a small smile after receiving validation for his appearance.

On a respectful nod of Chiranjeev, Prithvi continued, "How is Mrignayani prepared? What is your objective view of that?"

"He has come a long way since he first submitted his nomination to the competition. There was no doubt that he worked hard for it and gave his best, but I felt.." he paused, as if unsure if he should continue speaking .

Hearing Prithvi's encouraging roar, he said, "I don't think that he did it for the right reasons. I do not confess to knowing his thoughts or I do not denounce his motives but I feel that the spirit of which one should desire a certain thing, is lost in him. For example, if he was disqualified in the first half itself, he wouldn't mind too much."

There was complete silence in the room. The two sit in the cottage where Chiranjeev and three other boys live during an internship with Shaurya, outside of gurukul.

As silence stretched across the room, Chiranjeev wondered if he was speaking inappropriately. Prithvi who was pensive a few minutes ago, smiled at him now.

"I'm glad you shared your point of view with me. As you said, we have no insight into one's mind. But I think as the architect of this particular competition, I think the one who will succeed here is someone who is not very attached to the final goal. We are not looking for someone who needs to show his passion for the throne but who can show that he has the right tools to be worthy of that throne. To look at it pragmatically, being a queen is also a job, perhaps the toughest in the country but, keep the job. And roughly speaking, we need to hire someone with the best skills. Their attachment or lack thereof to a position is not a requirement or qualification" he explained.

Chiranjeev was once again surprised by his teacher's point of view. It seemed like he had seen the entire picture from the wrong end.

He bowed deeply and said, "Thank you for sharing this thought with me. I'll try and make sure that the battery gives Mrignayani the right help, for the next."

Prithvi patted his shoulder and left from there.

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

Gouruk

Mriga's exhausted. He had just finished a hand-to-hand combat session with Abhirath. It was not her strong outfit and the brutal truth had been seen throughout the session.

"K..Why are we doing this? If I had clearly mentioned in my form that I was trained in archery, why would they test my fighting skills?" he asked with a gasping voice.

"If I were the architect of the exam, I would definitely want to test someone in an area that was outside of their comfort zone. Why do I need to check your strength? QIT will not participate in the competition. He needs to adapt himself to new challenges at all times. So, you need to train your mind and body to adapt to the idea of constant change. Do you understand?" he explained patiently.

Mriga sat on the ground with her legs crossed and folded her arms in the form of formal greetings.

"Please accept my salute, Master. I have chosen you as my spiritual teacher for the rest of my life. Keep guiding me," he said mischievously.

Abhirath crouched down in front of him and replied very seriously, "I have no interest in becoming your spiritual teacher. But if you're willing to be around me for the rest of your life, then we can explore options for that."

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

Gurukull, Chandragarh

Mriga's tired brain tried to understand her mysterious words and she looked at him with narrowed eyes.

"What choice? Do I need to contribute to that? Let me tell you that the pestle belongs to a family where the scientist continues to reinvest everything he produces for his research and the police officer can barely meet the household expenses. Are you still interested in the association?" he asked, tongue on cheek.

He counted slowly, waiting for Abhirath's pouting face to appear. But, to his disappointment, he smiled instead. His centile smile and closeness in such an environment had triggered something inside him.

"What if I say that I'm interested in acquiring their biggest asset? Considering the possibility of you perceiving the statement at once close to zero, let me explain it clearly for you. I'm interested in YOU. L like you. Not as a teacher, a mentor, an enemy, or any absurd title you might imagine in your strangely wired head. I want to be your lover, and your friend for as long as I live, "he looks calm and composed, almost as if he is discussing Chandragarh's map, not his feelings.

Mriga's face resembled a shadow card at this time. White, at first startled, then black with anger, and finally pink, mostly out of shame mixed with confusion. He did open his mouth a few times but other than resembling a dead fish, he had no other reaction.

"Breathe and let it sink in. I won't bring up this topic again anytime before the competition ends. God knows that you barely have enough brain power to get through an upcoming event. Don't want to overload too much. Lefs go. I think we're done for the night, "with it he stretched out his hand to pull it.

His brain was working hard right now as his recklessness of action sank within him. Without letting her realize that she was panicking from the inside, she wanted to get away from the situation quickly.

Mriga received his outstretched arm and pulled it down with all her might. Unaware, Abhirath fell to the ground, face down.

Now, he had moved away from that place and saw him banging his chin onto the muddy surface in satisfaction.

He stood up and rubbed his hands happily.

Watching the clueless expression on his face was a priceless moment.

"Why?" he could only ask her that, as she sat down and carefully fingered her chin.

But even when he asked that question, he gave a mental slap to himself. What nonsense is he spouting?

He had absolutely no plans to say any of this tonight. Confessing to Mriga was a monumental moment in his life and even when he thought about it early, he would start pounding.

It was an event that required careful planning and a lot of practice. She wants to express her burning love for him in a eloquent but measured way.

But it happened tonight of his own volition and he seems to have messed it up, completely.

Had she doubted her appalling appearance until now, Mriga's reaction explained it for her. He's upset with her.

Good job Abhirath!

Mriga scowled almost identical to hers and said, "Is that an expression or an insult? Don't you know how to ask a girl out? the same breath as confessing your feelings about me?"

Waita minute! Whahuh?

Abhirath stood up slowly and cleared the mud from his clothes and face.

"So you're angry because I didn't say it right?" Her heart that had been busy scolding him, started racing uncomfortably, as she asked him this question.

'Oh my God! What did I just tell him? What's wrong with my mouth? I should have kept my mouth shut, Mriga tried to control her messed up mind.

"Better not clear. Let's get out of here, right now," she tried to get away from him by shrugging her shoulders.

Without any warning, Abhirath gripped his shoulder and pushed him against the sturdy wall of the Admin department that stood a few meters behind his back.

But before his back landed on the wall, his hands wrapped around his body to minimize the sudden impact on his body due to his thrust. It was an instinctive reaction and he didn't even notice it himself.

"Ap...what are you doing?" he asked as the lack of ruthlessness in the previous second evaporated from his face.

Abhirath closed the distance between them and placed his free arm on the wall, next to his shoulder. The air around them stopped. Otherwise, there was no reason for the two of them to feel tightness in their chest. No one can breathe properly!

"So, you mean to say that if I ask again, this time correctly, will you agree?" his words came out with a thin whisper, sounding needy.

Is something wrong with him? In his entire life, he had never sounded like this. He had tried to sound indifferent but failed.

His heart was pounding, creating a cavity in his chest, not allowing a calmer version of himself to handle this uncharted terrain.

He wanted his trembling legs to remain silent so that he would not fall even without hearing the answer, humiliating himself even further.

Mriga, who had tried to bluff by speaking rashly a minute ago, also lost her composure. This unexpected recognition and closeness was truly puzzling. He doesn't know how to react.

He moved his eyes everywhere except to see his face, which was only a few inches away from his face.

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

*Vijayi bhav - Be a winner