Princess Fighter: Search for the Throne

LXXIV

Mriga nodded her head and followed Vandit, while continuing her chatter. The tents have a cover that can be opened, like a window, on the back side where they can see the course of the arena.

By the time Mriga got inside the tent, there was already a commotion as the girls jostled to look outside better.

Suddenly a hand came out and pulled her in, forcefully making the girls make room for her.

Yash grinned as the other girls muttered the curse softly.

"I think it's very important for you to see what you're up against" he murmured in his ear before straightening up and focusing outward.

Mriga's eyes noticed the horde of people and the frenzy that seemed to be spreading.

"Yes God! What's he planning?" one of the girls suddenly exclaimed.

"Huh! He was one of the last four challengers to the throne. Do you think he'll sit down and make music out of a bowl of water to display as his skill?" scorn another girl.

The entire room calmed down, as did the audience when they saw Vindhya standing still and a thick black napkin tied around her eyes from her teammates after the opaque cloth was examined by one of the judges.

The judges sitting in front of the arena were shifted to the side as several other Vindhya team members mounted three stands with small circles on them.

"The power of Vindhya is not archery, but sword fighting. What does he want to do with this target board?" Mriga thought to herself.

As if to answer his question, someone came and handed a small bow and arrow spot to Vindhya who was holding a set of arrows.

"Thank you to the stars that I didn't decide to bring my bow to this competition," thought Mriga grimly.

"It seems that he has expanded his skills," muttered Yash in his ear, anxiously.

He had never seen this competence when he lived in his home in South Zilla. Mriga shrugged her shoulders as if to say that it was inevitable.

One of the Vindhya team members took out a small bell and shook it hard, the pole he was aiming at and immediately stood behind the target board. Vindhya, who had prepared with her bow and arrows, fired a shot towards the sound.

The voila!

It hit perfectly in the middle of the target board.

He and the rest of his team followed this twice more before he removed the cloth from his eyes and bowed. The crowd started cheering and clapping loudly over his outstanding performance.

Vindhya flashed a small smile on her lips as she helped her teammates gather equipment before exiting the show area.

"We'd better pack our bags and go home" said the girl who had exclaimed.

Mriga and Yash slipped away from there quietly and stepped out of the tent. Abhirath was walking towards them with a slightly grim expression on his face.

"You are the last contestant of the day" he said as he approached them.

"Oh!" Chiranjeev who was standing at the side until now, let out that voice.

Although there are clearly defined criteria, the competition will ultimately be judged by humans. After a long day of seeing one after another good things, it was a difficult task to leave them mesmerized by the final appearance of the day.

Abhirath held Mriga's shoulder and said, "Listen to me. There must be a comparison. If you leave first, he will be the less fortunate. No need to be discouraged. We just need to beat 45 contestants instead of 90 by the end of this two-stage round and I really think that your skills are more than enough for that. So don't worry if you don't have to."

Mriga thought of something quickly and told Abhirath, "I want you to tell the jury about the change. I'll show you the skills and then talk for a while. I won't exceed the time limit."

The boys looked at each other and then at him.

"Mriga, I understand your intentions. It was a brilliant idea to change the goalposts. But half a minute is too little for you to do any of the things right. In the process, what if your performance is affected because you're worried about the clock ticking?" Chiranjeev was the first to speak up.

Yash and Nirbhay nodded in agreement while Abhirath seemed to consider the pros and cons of his proposal.

But Vandit who spoke sternly, "I agree with the first part of Chirajeev's statement. That's a very brilliant idea. Even though only a tenth of the contestants rose up until now, I can almost guarantee that no one will get away with doing what you want to do. Let's start practicing what you're going to say on stage."

Mriga smiled thanking him. Although they had been behaving normally for the past week, but ever since the explosion at that foodhall, there was a hint of awkwardness between the two. After Vandit's fiery words, the two minions return to their previous friendship.

"I thought this overly cautious boy would try to hold you back. Should we run away from here?" Vandit whispered in his ear mischievously.

He matched his smile with his mischievous smile and held his hand.

"Since the turn is the last, it gives us enough time to go and bite. Mriga will also faint from starvation. See you in a minute," said Vandit and began walking even before the others uttered a single retort.

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

Arena, Chandragarh

Abhirath was about to follow them when Chiranjeev put his hand on his shoulder and stopped him.

"I think we can afford to take a little risk here. I'm pretty sure of Mriga's performance in this round. Also, this is the first stage. He has to believe in his own decision-making more than anything else. Since the possibility for his success is high at this stage, I don't understand why we can't let him do it as he wishes. Receiving validation helps Mriga face impending obstacles with more confidence."

"I'll go and make sure the two of them don't get into trouble" Nirbhay said and turned in the same direction as Mriga and Vandit.

Yash took the scroll out of his pocket and told Abhirath, "Should we go and see another potential competition performance? I want to make a note of their strengths and weaknesses."

"Huh! It makes me have to keep the equipment again. I swear I'll be deaf before the show's over. How many people can talk?" Chiranjeev looked glum as he walked away.

"I'm not sure if I can eat anything. My stomach feels like someone put a blanket and pillow in there. In fact, I can barely breathe" Mriga told Vandit.

He nodded with sympathy and said, "Then, let's make you a fancier orange. The drink can drip through all that linen."

She was making fun of him.

"For someone who has a big event today, you look very relaxed. Lucky!" Vindhya's voice broke their happy quarrel.

She, along with several other girls, was sitting at one of the tables and had a condescending expression on her face. After seeing the actions of the next few girls after him, Vindhya knew that she had already mastered this stage.

"Don't blame him, Vindhya. After seeing your outstanding performance today, I think most people would like to pack their bags and return to campus. And this one looks like a junior, who just joined a race couple months ago," one of the minions said.

“Do you guys know that the chances of getting away from every contestant are fifty percent. That means from every two participants, one will pass to the next stage. I'm sure our friend here will find at least one person to defeat with his abilities," Nirbhay waltzed in and did not speak to anyone in particular.

The way Nirbhay spoke made the girls' expressions become confused. Does he praise Mrignayani or criticize him?

"And you two, when you're done, let's go. We should, ahem, prepare for it," he spoke to Vandit and an amused-looking Mriga.

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

Same time, Himprayag

"Greetings, Princess Ahilya. I came to bring good news. I just received a letter from Chandragarh. Prince Mithilesh's lucrative financial proposal has been rejected by our queen. This is his way of showing his approval of your candidacy. I'm sure you'll hear it officially soon," this is the first thing Bela said to the princess when the latter came to where Bela stood.

As per the instructions given last night, Bela and Shaurya were present to show his ability.

"So, where's your son?" Ahilya asked Bela.

Worse, Gayatri was nowhere to be seen this morning. Bela had never met Ahilya without Gayatri. That's a bad sign. After the surprise visitors last night, Bela and Shaurya have been on a long brainstorming session, wondering how to handle both fronts.

They agree to the fact that Ahilya will not be satisfied until Shaurya is completely humiliated in front of him or proves his worth in his eyes without a doubt. The question is which method to choose.

Shaurya finally convinced him to leave.

"My son is here in this field. He asked me to tell you that this was his way of showing off his skills. He has asked you to find him in the next half hour," Bela lowered her head politely as she said this.

He looked up in trepidation to gauge the princess' reaction. They have bet big with this strategy and Bela really hopes it won't backfire for them.

The shock was clearly visible on Ahilya's face. The ground is a flat surface with snow covering it. Other than behind the wooden fence line, there was nowhere to hide. Does he expect him to play hide-and-seek with him? Did he really find something so stupid?

All he needs to do is surround the field and he will find it. A part of him flared up with his cunning to make such a childish play, but then he thought back to what had happened the night before.

He managed to find something that, according to Gayatri's claims, no one knew. So, can today be a hoax as well?

"Challenge accepted. You become a timekeeper. Ah, and if your son loses, you and he can go back to Chandragarh and ask the queen to send someone else to negotiate on his behalf. Understood?" he said this to Bela haughtily.

Clearing his throat, Bela spoke humbly, "And if he manages to win today, does that mean you will cooperate with us?"

Ahilya's nostrils widened and she snorted before takeoff. Bela saw him stomp his feet, his feet smashing snow under his boots. Now, it's a matter of waiting and watching.

He could do nothing but pray.

Shaurya had never experienced this kind of coldness before in his life. He could not feel his face anymore and thought that if he dared to touch his nose, it would just fall from his face!

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

Himprayag

But he had to endure it for the next half hour for them to succeed!

Shaurya came to the field at 3am with Bela. Since the field was restricted for use by the princess, there were not many people wandering around the place.

Therefore, Shaurya can plan an action like this. He came right next to the wooden fence and using the darkness as a cover, he dug a hole and put some blankets in it along with a small bag of kesar and dried fruits. It will be his bed for the next few hours.

As he dug in, Bela took that time and carved a finger-sized hole from under the fence all the way up to the surface. This would act as a gap through which air could seep into the hole for Shaurya to breathe.

Once they were ready, Shaurya went and lay on a frozen slab of earth and Bela went ahead and reassembled the snow. They have to finish this quickly because the groundmen that come in to level the field usually arrive at 5 o'clock.

Shaurya did not dare to take something too warm inside the mini hole, as it would not affect the upper surface. He simply put the onion under both armpits to help him keep his body temperature warm. Caesarean and dried fruits are also to keep his body from shaking.

By the time Ahilya arrived at 05:30, the entire surface of the ground appeared flat and flat. Shaurya deliberately wanted to dig a hole under the wooden fence located near the entrance gate where Ahilya would enter.

The chances of closely observing the starting place are slightly lower than other fields.

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

05:35

Defend to stop himself from******-**** his hand and keep his view straight, suppressing the anxiety that builds up in him.

Her biggest fear was that she should not die before she could be taken out. Twenty minutes later, Ahilya returned to where Bela had stood all this time.

"Are you sure he's here? Is this a trick?" he asked with a huff.

There was no way he could hide anywhere on this land. He set his eyes all over the place for the umpteenth time.

"Is this ... mean you are ready to admit defeat?"

Bela asked in a soft voice.

"If he's not found in or around this field, then I'll admit!" Ahilya stopped talking as the thought crossed her mind.

"Someone calls the field officer. Tell them to hurry. Bring a shovel and a plow," he shouted frantic instructions to the waiting officers.

Failure is the one thing Ahilya hates the most!

Bela paled! Now this race against time will end with sheer luck. If the princess decided to start from this side, there was no way Shaurya could go undetected before time ran out.

Ahilya seemed to be aware of the time constraints as well. As soon as the four men entered, he told them to spread out from the middle of the ground, two towards the end of the ground, two came to where Bela was standing.

Bela's eyes are now only fixed on the part of time that seems to move very slowly. The cold air and majestic mountains along with the tall pine trees, all seemed to be counting down as well.

"Time's up!" The screams of Bela echoed in the open area, shocking everyone present on the field.

He ran to where Ahilya stood observing the quarry.

"Princess Ahilya, do you agree that Shaurya won this bet?" he asked with a slight tremor in his voice.

Although he needs to get Shaurya out, his first priority is to work. Ahilya looked doubtful but then nodded firmly.

"Thank you! You won't regret it," Bela bowed quickly.

Without caring about anything else, he ran like a mad woman to the one who was digging very close to where Shaurya really was. He took a shovel from her and started to release layers of snow in panic. He has never prayed like this in his entire career as a spy or a cop, as he does now.

If something happened to Shaurya in his watch, he would not be able to forgive himself. He had agreed to this because the stakes were so high, but the thought of the young man lying beneath the frozen surface had been pressing on his heart for the past two hours.

"Please help me," he spoke almost sobbing, as curious guards gathered around him.

At Ahilya's nod, they began to dig in quickly and before long, a body wrapped in dark matter could be seen.

By the time Shaurya's body was dragged out, he had lost consciousness and appeared to have frostbite on his face and other body parts.

Bela brought her finger closer to her nostrils and was very happy to feel her breath there. The men lifted up his body that had been wrapped in a pair of blankets and took him to a nearby resting place.

Bela is too busy worrying about her and misses Ahilya's troubled gaze when the latter calls the royal doctor to see Shaurya.

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

A few hours later

Ahilya came to the room where Shaurya was taken. He hesitated at the door but then did not bother knocking and went straight in. The doctor had told her that Shaurya regained consciousness and despite some superficial injuries, she looked excited.

But he felt a sense of uneasiness, undefined unease and decided to come see him in person.

As he entered the room, Shaurya was sipping a hot drink. The way she held the mug tightly, it seemed like she was seeking warmth from him.

"Do you have to take the trouble to bet?" he asked as a means to announce his arrival.