Princess Fighter: Search for the Throne

Chapter 75: Day One (Part 2)

Himprayag

Shaurya was shocked for a moment by his sudden presence before his face was covered with a small smile hiding his true emotions. Ahilya had an inexplicable desire to remove the grin from her face.

He did not know but something about him irritated him and made him curious at the same time. He had never fought with Gayatri like when they had fought the night before.

It's all because of him.

Gayatri only told him that she made mountains out of nothing. While he was annoyed with Gayatri for hiding an important fact about her, he did not expect that the latter would turn around and accuse him of being interested in Bela's son at the first meeting itself.

Ahilya was offended by the accusation and strongly denied it. The women parted bitterly and no one had tried to make up since last night. Under normal circumstances, Ahilya would chase after him or call him, but this time he held back.

"You've asked me what my important attributes are. I'm thinking of showing it to you instead of talking about it. I'm good at survival, whatever it takes," came Shaurya's clapping answer to the question Ahilya asked as he entered the room.

Ahilya looked at him charmingly.

"Tell Bela that I'm ready to listen to her proposal. As for you, make sure you cover that thin body well. We don't want Chandragarh to accuse us of persecuting his people" he said in a reckless tone before walking out.

Shaurya looked at his backward back. He was the one who went under the snow but he seemed to be exhibiting strange behavior. If he didn't know better, he would think that he was being embarrassed by her!

As per the information he collected during those three days, he found out about his fondness for the fairer sex than men. This was told to him by the same person who told him about Gayatri's childhood dream.

As Shaurya recalled, he suddenly realized that the informant had been found very easily by him, as if he was waiting for Shaurya to come looking for him.

"Is this what the minister does? If so, is he a friend or an enemy?" he was staring pensively.

.

Arena, Chandragarh

"Is he the person you were talking about?" Abhirath asked Yash who nodded in response.

A burly girl had just entered the show area with her horse. Her name is Vaishali and she has a very similar background to the current queen.

An orphan, he has been identified as an accomplished student because of his always superior grades. He had already been promoted to the two classes ahead and was seen as someone with great potential.

Yash's research shows that he is antithetical to Vindhya's flamboyant personality but no less dangerous as an opponent.

Vaishali bowed in front of the judges before starting the action. Within seconds, the entire crowd stood looking at the brave action of the girl with her horse.

Had Mriga seen it, she would have remembered her mother who was also able to perform acrobatics similar to her horse. By the time the girl's appearance ended, everyone was cheering her on. They just found a new favorite.

The stomach of the capital Chandragarh has an unofficial gambling network. It was a popular way for people in different walks of life to entertain themselves, but sometimes it was also a means of understanding the pulse of the city.

As expected, there was a betting pool going on about the next QIT and Prithvi asked his two men to keep an eye on the names of where the bets were placed. It is not only a good way to understand people's preferences but also to know what qualities they want to see in their leaders.

As Vaishali walked out of the arena, Abhirath looked at Yash and said,

"In this round, we will have an element of surprise on our side that will hopefully lead us to qualification unless the second half throws a curling ball at us. But looking at the competitors, I feel that we should train harder for the upcoming rounds."

Yash smiled slightly and replied,

"You know him just like I do. He did his best when pushed into a corner. Having a strong opponent is a good thing, as long as we can figure out what we are up against. As for the second level, I think we will be notified of the details before the day ends. I wonder if this is a double or group round activity. In a discussion with my mother, she told me that this was the first time the specifics of the tournament were kept secret until the last minute. Apparently, one of the queen's motives was to know the participants' reactions when facing the shortest possible preparation time."

Abhirath did not refute his words and looked towards the arena while pensive.

.

A few hours later

"Are you ready?" Yash asked Mriga in a neutral voice.

Chiranjeev stood behind him, pressing with his fingertips on his shoulders and neck. He shook his head while smiling.

Abhirath came and handed over his equipment,

"I just deleted everything again. I don't think there should be any problem."

Mriga asked Chiranjeev to stop his service. He took a step to the side and made eye contact with the three of them. Then he bowed to them as a sign of respect and walked away with his bag.

Vandit and Nirbhay were already on the field with the items they needed for his acting.

It was show time!

.

Mriga gripped the instrument wrapped in cloth tightly in her hand and closed her eyes,

"Ma, I'll try my best to show you what I've learned from you."

He heard his name announced and stepped out. Vandit and Nirbhay had already gone to the area behind the judges to make the necessary arrangements first.

Mriga directed his gaze across the arena and then looked at the people sitting there. It's already dusk.

Not only the noise, but also the energy level of the place seemed to have dropped drastically. He intended to appear first and then speak.

But looking at the scene in front of him, he decided to reverse the order.

He cleared his throat and raised his voice several octaves higher than usual.

"Greet everyone! I'm Mrignayani. I'm here to present a summary of what I've learned from my first teacher, my mama," he said as he removed the cloth covering the weapon in his hand.

He raised it high enough for everyone to see,

"This is the prototype armament I've made from scratch. I humbly believe that it can appeal to our armed forces. This weapon is based on the same science as catapults. Therefore, I will let you see the difference in the effect of catapults, rather than talking about them."

Hearing his words, the crowd that had been lazing around sat down and leaned forward to see what he was going to do.

Meanwhile, the boys had finished arranging and brandishing the thumbs from their respective positions.

The amphitheater was surrounded by tall, lush trees with its branches dangling down. Vandits had run to both sides of the semicircle and tied each bag to the lowest hanging branches on either side, totalling five.

At the same time, Nirbhay went and placed human-sized clay prints on both sides of the pulpit where the judges sat. Mriga came and took his position right in the middle of the stage.

He was aware of the ticking time but still needed a precious few seconds to take a calming breath.

At this moment, he was happy that the longitudinal shadows of the night made one unable to see his nervousness. The absence of rumors was also a helpful element, making him just concentrate on his task.

"Before I begin, may I trouble the judges to check the robustness of the two clay models?"

He waited until some of them left and saw a sturdy and sturdy structure before nodding his head and sitting back down.

Mriga took out six shiny marble-sized metal balls from his kurta pocket. He pulled the trigger back and inserted the metal balls into the arrow slit.

His weapon was a modified version of his mother's crossbow that he used in Himprayag, recently.

Before people realized what was going on, a rain of rose petals greeted them from above.

As people began clapping and laughing at the now-empty bags hanging on the branches, Mriga refilled her arrows and tilted her trigger again, this time aiming at the clay figurines.

The metal ball made no sound as it struck the two statues quickly. But the jurors stood up to survey the damage caused by the metal shots. The audience also stood up, trying to see the condition of the clay model.

"May I once again trouble the judges to gently touch the heads of the clay statues?" ask Mriga to the jury.

A middle-aged man sitting at the end of the judging panel got up and pushed the statue's face away, only to leap back when a large lump of clay fell to the ground. It's the same for the others. Mriga each directed three shots at the statue's neck.

Amidst the cheers and applause of the people, Prithvi, who saw the instrument and the use of Mriga for the first time as well, raised his head back and laughed as well. She really is his senior daughter.

Mriga let go of the tense breath she had been holding unconsciously for the past few minutes. The two boys came and stood beside him.

They were a mile wide.

Mriga started working on this design when she was about six years old. It began by copying his mother's work and slowly became his favorite project.

Even at this moment, he could see himself paying attention to his mother's careful movements as he forged the tool carefully with a mixture of wood and metal.

Mriga's first prototype was made purely of wood and could only hold one marble. He was satisfied with his creation until he joined the Admin department.

During that time, he was informed of the submission of the project at the end of the year which would be an important element of his performance appraisal.

He had thought of using this weapon and started working to make a better and functional model of the original design.

Even at that moment, he was thinking of using marbles to execute a punch.

He never thought that he would present it at the QIT competition.

But when he returns from school this time with Shaurya, it is his mother who urges him to finish making his weapon with the thought that it will be useful in the future for a greater cause.

He also asked her to practice using it. It was then that Mriga asked his mother to help him get the sheet metal formed into the balls.

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

The mother-son duo are already working on their weapons, Bela preparing for the Himprayag event, and Mriga for QIT.

Surprisingly, they both started their projects initially for academic purposes without either of them knowing that this would be an important instrument of their success in the near future.

Mriga bowed to the audience and took a step back to get off the performance area.

"Wait a minute. We want you to explain a little bit about the function of the weapon before you leave. I'm sure the audience wants to know that, too" one of the judges said.

There was actually a message from the queen asking the judge to do so.

Mriga beamed and replied,

"I am happy. As I mentioned earlier, this instrument uses the same principles as catapults. The original adaptation was done by my mother who developed an arrow that produced arrows. My version, which you see here, shoots metal pellets that can be very effective. The speed and accuracy of the target increases with its use in close combat versus arrows. In addition, it can be used discreetly because the opponent will not see it coming at night. I'm still working to increase the speed of its release. I believe that the damage rate will increase significantly if the speed can be increased just a little."

With that, he pulled the instrument and put it together with a smooth motion to show them how it had been assembled. During the entire process, his body language was very confident and relaxed.

There were strong murmurs in the tents that housed the other contestants. No one has been asked to step down by the judges until now, except this one. Also, none of the participants presented anything that might have practical application.

Until recently, Mriga was an unknown entity, but as she walked back to the containment area, she could feel a sea of gazes at him, some hostile, some curious, some impressed.

"Begging the army commander stationed in the capital to take a look at this instrument. Also, start with a thorough background check on this girl, along with the other names I have listed today," the queen instructed her team before getting up from there.

The three boys grinned broadly as Mriga entered the designated area.

"Should we start packing now?" Vandit did not ask anyone, arrogantly.

He felt the pressure of standing in the arena while Mriga looked cool like a cucumber.

Abhirath came forward at that moment and hugged Mriga with a bear hug, despite the many eyes that were watching them. Mriga stiffened for a moment but then relaxed in a soothing warmth.

He could feel his spine weakening as tension seeped out from him. He let Abhirath's broad and powerful hand support him at that moment. Just for those few seconds, he could close his eyes and empty his mind.

Contrary to her appearance out there, she was extremely nervous and prayed that her hands would not tremble when she took aim. All the training with his mother in the early hours and late nights has helped him to identify his target in the twilight in today's arena.

"Ahem, if you guys are done, can we move? This is not the time to celebrate but strategize. The next stage guidelines have been announced," Chiranjeev said, leaving others chuckling.

Yash, who clenched his fists tightly, forced himself to relax. He leaned over and started to collect the items and put them in the trunk. Without him noticing, there was a calm wound visible on his face.

.

Gouruk

The five of them sat on the floor in a circular formation in the reception area of the Admin section after a boisterous reunion with Saraswati's tired face. He had delayed his arrival from the Southern zilla and had not made it to the tournament in time.

So, he was told about it excessively by Vandit.

Yash excused himself as they arrived at the Gurukul gate. He told them that he would meet them the next day before they left for the place.

"I believe tomorrow will be a difficult day. I didn't think it would be as smooth and easy as it looked on paper" Chiranjeev's voice rang out in the room.

"Uh huh, this is my cue to leave you all behind. As part of Guruji's team overseeing the competition, I shouldn't take part in such discussions" Saraswati said, rising from her seat.

As soon as he left, Abhirath spread a scroll of instructions on the floor and everyone leaned forward to look at him.

It sounds like this -

Second Stage First Details:

- Participants are allowed to choose one of the partners for this dual event.

- The venue will be informed on the morning of the event.

- Participants must report at the entrance gate of Gurukul with members of his sharp team at 4 am.

- It is forbidden to bring personal items.

Duration – All day

"Am I the only one who thinks that the information is a little sketchy? They have not said what kind of contest it is. Will there be a hand-to-hand battle? Why aren't we allowed to carry any equipment or weapons?" Nirbhay asked, looking at everyone's faces.

"For now, the most important thing is to decide who will go with Mriga?" Chiranjeev.

The four pairs of eyes swung towards Mriga who had a calm face at the moment. He had a nervous day and did not want to worry about anything now, which would happen tomorrow anyway.

"Abhirath, will you be my partner for this event?" he raised his gaze and asked her in a neutral voice.