After the bathtub incident with Prince Aditya, Princess Meenakshi found it incredibly difficult to face him. She had come to discuss the precarious matters of her declining empire, but fate had entangled her in a shameful mishap. Filled with anxiety, she too caught a fever, alongside her maid and. She had barely managed to escape the embarrassment by avoiding the night's meeting.

  She had already spent two days avoiding him, wherever she spotted Aditya, terrified that the prince might discover her identity. However, when nothing of note changed, she was relieved, believing the prince had no idea about her involvement in the massage incident. Had it been something different she could have taken it lightly but the incident was so shameful she couldn't muster courage to face it.

  But she was the princess of Vijayanagara, she steeled her resolve, and she prepared herself mentally to finally meet the prince for the purpose of her visit. But something changed when her eyes met his at the exhibition. She was impressed by the way he maturely handled the other delegates, reminiscent of her father, despite being the same age as her.

  The air of superiority and his deftness in manoeuvring critical discussions to his advantage struck a chord within her

  For the first time, she felt impressed with someone who can perhaps keep within her toes. Her heart beat faster, and she couldn't fathom the exact unfamiliar reason behind it. Nevertheless, she remained steadfast in her resolve and awaited their hopeful meeting. When her time came to meet the prince and she entered the tent with her held high as the princess of the Empire but she came in to see something surprising.

  The formidable and gloriously spoken-of prince was now sleeping like a harmless child on the table. It was understandable that he was exhausted and felt pressured. Somehow, seeing him like this made her nervousness disappear. it was now repced by unknown calmness in her heart.

  She couldn't help but giggle as she approached him. Gently pcing her hand on his shoulder, she jolted him awake in surprise.

  Aditya's POV

  Aditya blinked rapidly, trying to shake off the sleepiness. Standing before him was the Vijayanagar representative, a dignified woman seemingly his age, draped in a brightly colored silk saree with intricate gold embroidery. Despite having spotted her before, she felt peculiarly calm yet commanding when confronted alone. However, her gaze reflected kindness and care.

  "My apologies, Prince, for startling you," she said softly, her voice carrying a blend of authority and warmth.

  Aditya straightened up, offering a weary smile. "No need to apologize. I should be the one apologizing for keeping you waiting."

  She inclined her head gracefully. "It's alright, Prince. I am Meenakshi, daughter of Emperor Tiruma Deva Raya of the Vijayanagar Empire. I have heard much about your innovations and even witnessed the impact they had on the battlefield."

  Meeting someone of the same rank, Aditya adjusted his tone while regaining his composure. "The pleasure is mine, Princess. I hope there wasn't much trouble in getting here. So, tell me, Princess, how can we assist you?"

  She replied, "We are interested in purchasing weapons, including rockets if possible, regardless of the price. If we can come to an agreement, we would like to discuss further trade opportunities as well."

  Aditya smirked as he leaned back in his seat. "But Your Highness, our weapon sales are limited to alliance members. Since Vijayanagar isn't part of the alliance, it's difficult to sell you these weapons. However, I remember sending an invitation to join our alliance, which we are still awaiting a response to."

  Her demeanor softened as she replied, "Our emperor has considered your offer of alliance but would like to understand your motivation before committing. Given the distance between our empires, it's hard to trust and make alliances without a common reason."

  Amused by the direct question, Aditya leaned forward, crossing his fingers. "Princess Meenakshi, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. The Dutch aggression clearly indicates their ambition in our Indian subcontinent. They allied with you, then invaded your territory, and did the same with the Bijapur Sultanate. While we believe we can tackle them, sooner or ter, a significant csh will cause substantial damage. I am seeking alliances to settle this mutual enemy. You can consider it Raj Dharma (a king's duty) to help a Hindu empire, being a Hindu empire ourselves."

  She expressed her concern, "And how does Your Highness pn to help us? As far as I know, your emperor has decred no-offensive policy unless provoked first."

  Aditya replied, "If your empire joins our alliance, we will have enough jurisdiction to supply you with arms and other trade materials. Additionally, you can hire our mercenary services for military use, which operate independently of imperial jurisdiction, only restricted by ws within the empire's territories."

  She remarked in a measured tone, "We have been betrayed once, and there is still a chance we could be betrayed again."

  Aditya asked for crification, "Sorry, Princess, can you please expin what you mean?"

  She responded, "If we allow your ambassador to stay in our court, they will be well-informed of our daily matters, posing a threat to our internal security. We fear you might collude with the Gajapati Kingdom to take over our empire when we are significantly weaker."

  Aditya was taken aback. He hadn't anticipated this type of reaction when he was being honest and trying to assist. Before he could respond, she added, "We appreciate your offer and motivation, but before we join, we would like some guarantees. We are aware that as part of your alliance, we are to send our representative as well. However, given the distance from the direct conflict, there is hesitation on our part."

  Aditya contempted her words, leaning forward. "It seems Your Highness has some pre-pnned conditions. State them as you please."

  She smiled and replied confidently, yet her voice remained gentle, "When national matters are at stake, we must be prepared, Prince Aditya. To build trust, I propose to observe your day-to-day official life for one month as a visitor before we join hands in the alliance. I am deeply interested in your culture and would like to know it closely before making a decision. Additionally, I would like your soldiers to conduct mutual training exercises with our Maratha brigade. Since you mentioned Raj Dharma I expect you to provide some discount if we happen to have any future deals."

  Aditya thought hard, scratching his invisible beard from chin. 'This woman is dangerous. She talks straight, and her words are like daggers. If I don't agree, she will use cims of distrust to demand more bizarre conditions. But why does she want to monitor me instead of just staying in the royal court? Should I ask? No, wait... I can also use this chance to monitor her. She won't learn much about me in the official hours. And why does her voice sound familiar?'

  His chain of thoughts was broken as she demanded an answer, "Are you ready for my conditions, Your Highness?"

  Aditya agreed to her condition with his terms. "I can allow you to stay with me during official hours as a visitor, but that doesn't mean intruding on my private life. This arrangement shall start tomorrow, and by the next month, I will be looking forward to your reply. And even in case of discount that will depend on the type of trade we would have ."

  This way, he held the advantage of deciding when to take her along, which she agreed with a smile and it felt quite surprising to him.

  Aditya then asked, "Have we met before by any chance?"

  Meenakshi seemed startled by the question. Aditya noticed her unease and asked, "Is everything alright?"

  She replied, "Perhaps something touched my foot," and ter excused herself, stating that it might have been a lizard. This concern prompted Aditya to escort her from his tent. Feeling exhausted, he returned and soon fell asleep on the table again.

  Few hours ter

  Aditya was jolted awake, but this time it was his trusted friend Bheem, who looked rather grim in his royal guard uniform.

  Aditya asked with a yawn, "What happened? I remember I gave you a mission."

  Bheem replied in a scolding tone, "How long would you sleep, Your Highness? You haven't even had your lunch yet. Everyone was looking for you, and your poor butler had to lie that you were busy with parchments. It's already dusk past evening."

  Aditya stretched his arms and replied, "Stop nagging like an old woman. You have no idea how tense I was. So, tell me, did you have any success?"

  Bheem grinned gleefully, "You bet I did. Out of the ten marked Muslim merchants' houses, we busted two in the fort city. From their houses, we found evidence: parchments of bribery, fort intels, coins with Mughal seals, and a substantial amount of gold in mohur. They had no satisfactory expnations for any of it."

  Aditya stood up, fixed his dress, and took a small polished metallic mirror from table to adjust his appearance. "Did they leak anything?"

  Bheem replied with excitement, "Yes, almost everything. Those lowbrains couldn't handle Ratnakar's hospitality. They mentioned links with imams of renowned madrasas and mosques, not only within the fort but also in the nearby vilges. Ratnakar has already brought them to the dungeons and sent me to inform you here. But how did you figure those merchants were involved in the sabotage?"

  Aditya fixed his hair by looking at his reflection and replied, "Because Mughals like to incite people in the name of religion. This is something I learned from questioning Ansari after he 'donated' his hands for the noble cause."

  Bheem sat down in the nearby chair and excimed, "So hateful, these bastards. But why did it take so long to pick them up?"

  Aditya replied, shifting his gaze from the mirror to his friend, "I didn't want to cause commotion when every delegate was in the fort city. Also, Balwindar took quite some time to locate their houses. Did the others make any scene?"

  Bheem replied, "Of course, but we couldn't find any evidence though."

  Aditya sighed, "Alright, let them be for now. Just keep strict surveilnce. If they try to flee, you know what to do."

  Bheem reassured him, "Don't worry about it." Then he recalled, "I think you should meet a boy in the local infirmary. He was a rebel who almost changed the situation at the front line. He tried to commit suicide twice after learning the truth about the real culprits. He's chained to his bed."

  Aditya pitied the boy and said, "Alright, we will meet him tomorrow when we return Bawal. Let's get something to eat."

  Bheem complied, "As you wish, Your Highness."

  Together, they left the tent and headed towards the factory's guest chamber for dinner. They left pass through soldiers who saluted them on sight. As they entered the guest chamber, the aroma of freshly cooked food greeted them, offering a brief respite from the day's troubles.