Chapter 2
Rudravishay said, "Your Majesty, everything that is happening is part of my plan."
Hearing this, everyone fell into despair—because the very person whose strategies once offered hope now seemed to be speaking of deception and betrayal.
All the ministers pleaded, "Your Majesty, now only you can deliver justice!"
However, the King of Saurgadh, who had given Rudravishay more power than even a Prime Minister despite him being merely an advisor, had complete faith in his trusted gem. He said, "Advisor Rudravishay, please clarify your strategy—otherwise, people will mistake you for a traitor."
Rudravishay stood up and said,
"Your Majesty, I first want to thank you for standing by me even in these trying times when everyone else considers me a betrayer. As I have already stated, all of this is within my calculated plan."
One of the ministers questioned,
"Great Advisor, what kind of strategy involves letting a foreign army attack our own land? And now, how will we fight this army which is advancing rapidly under the leadership of Prince Virbhadra?"
Rudravishay responded by asking the ministers,
"Do you truly believe that the King of Karavali is so benevolent that he will help us? Especially now, when he has the perfect opportunity to strike us from the south while we are busy fighting Raktanchal in the north? Wouldn't he try to conquer us while we are distracted?"
Turning to the King, Rudravishay continued reassuringly:
"Your Majesty, do not worry. Everything is in place. Before reaching us, Karavali's army must cross the Mahour Hills. I have made sure they never succeed in doing so."
The chief general, now understanding the strategy, added,
"Your Majesty, Advisor Rudravishay has sent a third of our army toward the west and has personally explained everything to them. Now I understand his reasoning."
The Prime Minister asked,
"Doesn't this mean we ourselves invited disaster—and even sent our forces to fight it? With our underprepared army, we are already struggling to hold off Raktanchal. And now you're splitting our forces further to send them against the Karavali army? How is this wise?"
Rudravishay answered,
"Yes, we all know that defeating Raktanchal with our army alone isn't possible. So why not attempt something more coordinated and intelligent? Let us tangle the board in such a way that our enemies can never decipher our moves. We have time until the army from Raktanchal's capital crosses Malankir. We must use that time wisely."
Just as Rudravishay predicted, when Virbhadra advanced with the Karavali army, they had to pass through the Mahour Hills.
From the hidden caves and valleys of the hills, a waiting army ambushed them.
When Prince Virbhadra saw the Karavali army scattering in panic under the sudden attack, a momentary regret flashed in his heart — regret that he had betrayed the warrior's code by resorting to deceit. But in the very next breath, a memory surfaced: how that very general, along with his soldiers, had ambushed Rajendra. Drawing his sword and staring at it, he whispered, "My friend, today your soul shall find peace. I will slay them all and avenge you."
Despite being wounded in battle, he fought valiantly and struck down the general responsible for Rajendra's death.
The Karavali forces, caught completely off guard, were soundly defeated.
But the real surprise was that the attackers didn't harm Prince Virbhadra.
Instead, they took him with them and began marching toward Saurgadh.
When this news reached Saurgadh, anxiety gripped not only the ministers but even the King himself.
The scout reported,
"Your Majesty, the army approaching from Karavali was ambushed and defeated in the Mahour Hills by the forces of Rajgadh. Now, Rajgadh's four-fold army is marching toward us."
Everyone was shocked—
Why had Rajgadh attacked?
The King asked,
"Advisor, you said the attack would come from our forces that you sent west. So why is Rajgadh now involved? Are they also planning to attack us? And it's being said that they didn't harm Prince Virbhadra… has he joined them?"
Clarifying the situation, the advisor said,
"Your Majesty, I never said our army would attack—that was the General. As for the assault, do not worry. Loyalty may change robes, but not its nature. I personally explained the plan to Prince Virbhadra."
He continued,
"We were to first ask Rajgadh for help. If they refused, we would tempt them—by bringing Karavali troops into the Mahour Hills, offering Rajgadh a chance to strike and weaken an enemy army. When this proposal would be placed before their commander, Dhoomant, he would not miss the opportunity to avenge his brother Rajendra's death. That would push him to help us ."
(Rudravishay knew well that Virbhadra would never abandon the pride of being a warrior.He would never stain his character by deceiving the innocent soldiers of Karavali without cause or justification. That's why Rudravishay brought up the name of Rajendra — the same Rajendra who had been struck down by Karavali's army, and that too when he was alone, unarmed, and helpless on the battlefield.There was hardly anyone in the world who hadn't heard the tale of friendship between Virbhadra and Rajendra. Merely mentioning Rajendra's name was enough — for Virbhadra, no boundary would remain unbreakable.)
The chief general asked,
"Then what about the army we sent west? If they didn't attack, where are they going, and what is their target?"
Rudravishay answered calmly,
"Revealing all your cards at once is not called cleverness."
King Krishnaray asked,
"Our trained soldiers are not even present here, and those who remain are mostly men whom we merely dressed in uniforms. Can we defeat Raktanchal's mighty army with them?"
The advisor said,
"Whether our army can withstand them or not, your advisor will always stand firm against them. Do not worry—by the time Raktanchal's reinforcements join their main army, Prince Virbhadra will already be here with help."
Meanwhile, Raktanchal's commander received information from his spies that the help for Saurgadh was not coming from Karavali, but from Rajgadh.
He realized that the secret information he had received earlier was true.
If he had attacked without thinking, defeat would have been certain.
So he ordered the reinforcements from the capital to cross the Malankir River and join the battle.
At the same time, Prince Virbhadra also arrived with allied support.
The war began.
Rudravishay spoke to Rajgadh's commander,
"The battlefield lies within our territory, so we shall fight till the end. But your army will not—because they are fighting someone else's war. That's why I request that your forces show their fury at the beginning. Once they are exhausted and the attack intensifies, our army will step in."
"In this way, your forces will not be wasted in vain. If fate dictates our loss, then let it be ours alone."
The proposal appealed to Rajgadh's commander.
His army and Saurgadh's trained troops stood together against the advancing Raktanchal force.
Both sides suffered heavy losses.
But just before Saurgadh's army was about to lose completely, critical news reached Raktanchal's commander.
A messenger arrived from the capital.
"Commander Dhruvgadh has attacked the capital," he reported.
Hearing this, the commander was shaken.
He had drawn so many troops from the capital to face Saurgadh and Rajgadh's alliance that the capital was left defenseless.
Now he had only one choice:
Keep fighting this battle with the forces he had brought and send the reinforcements back to the capital.
He intensified the assault on Saurgadh, hoping to prevent them from targeting his retreating troops.
When the divisions of Raktanchal's army were returning to the capital, they had not at all anticipated that Dhruvgadh would not only launch a direct assault on the capital, but also lay an ambush near the banks of Malankir.who attacked them exactly when they were crossing the river. Being a hidden ambush, they naturally could not resist it, due to which not only did their morale fall, but they also had to suffer heavy losses.
After falling into this formation, Raktanchal's army becomes disheartened.
Some people say that if our Chief General Kurunesh had been there, neither would we have fallen into this trap nor would our condition be so bad.
Their general says what can we do when the King himself had ordered us to fight under Crown Prince Ranakrit's leadership.
Then others say — but still, do we not know the King's intentions? He is afraid that after achieving so many successes, if General Kurunesh progresses further, the people may refuse to accept Prince Ranakrit as the heir. And the honor Kurunesh holds among the people even surpasses that of the King himself. If he contributes in gaining victory over Saurgadh, then being the King's younger brother and also a capable general, the people would definitely want him to be established as the king of Saurgadh.
That is the reason the King has barred him from participating in this war.
The rest agree and say — yes, our army was not familiar with the prince's policies, and moreover, the prince himself had no experience of war. He was underestimating that Rudravishay whom even our General Kurunesh never took lightly.
But Saurgadh's army, already stretched thin and mostly untrained, lacked the strength to hold back this renewed assault.