“How do you know?” I questioned, and he chuckled slightly.
“So you think I’m too busy to know where, what, and how my brothers are doing?” he replied, and I bit my lip.
“But it’s more dangerous than we think,” I asserted, and he nodded.
“Tell me everything,” he urged, playing with the princess’s little fingers as she yawned, sleeping again.
“Bhai-sa, they have something called cannons, and we won’t be able to fight them with just soldiers,” I said when Abhinandan suddenly caught our attention.
“Rudra,” he called, walking toward us, and sat beside Bhai-sa.
“Come, Abhi, we have something to discuss,” Rudra Bhai-sa said, and he smiled, looking at the princess.
“Aw, our little niece is enjoying her sunbath,” he said, touching her fingers before looking back at Rudra Bhai-sa.
“Well, I’m quite aware of it,” he said, and Bhai-sa nodded.
“So what do you suggest, Agastya?” he asked, his tone a little serious, and I inhaled deeply.
“We should prevent them from coming this way across the mountains. No contacts, no war, no problem,” I said, and Ranvijay Bhai-sa added.
“I agree with that. Why don’t we stop them from invading in the first place so their powers weaken before they enter?” he suggested, and Abhinandan asked.
“How will we do that exactly?” he asked.
I inhaled sharply and began,“The first state near the mountains is Mehrangarh, which is already compromised as they are helping them out. The first kingdom they would come across is Pratapgarh, and we cannot overlook that Pratapgarh is under the watch of a subedar39, not a king. It would be easy for them to take that; it could become a weak point for us. Because if one falls, two wouldn’t be much of an effort. We cannot let them win even one,” I paused momentarily.
“We should keep an army on standby in Pratapgarh. Even if our plan fails, that would be the first point of contact for the fight. Plus, no women and children stay in Pratapgarh, so it will be safer to lead a fight from there,” I added, and Rudra Bhai-sa agreed.
“But, Agastya, moving heavy troops could alert Mehrangarh. Plus, Princess Rashmika and their army chief are in Suryagarh now,” he cautioned.
Suddenly, Abhinandan interrupted.“Well, that’s a good thing. We can keep them busy, and at least Mahabaleshgarh should start moving the troops. Also, no one would suspect anything because both kingdoms are under my rule, and I could easily say that we’re renovating that kingdom,” he concluded, and Ranvijay Bhai-sa nodded.
“Exactly, and we should not move our soldiers because they have cannons, and we cannot place all our army in front of them in plain sight. The more we attack at small intervals, the better. They will get tired; this way, we can see how much gunpowder they have left to blast,” he said, and I immediately interrupted.
“They have a lot, Bhai-sa. And by a lot, I mean a lot. Mehrangarh has been buying yellow sand from Songarh for the past four years and has taken most of it. Mehrangarh is rich in other minerals as well. They have over a hundred cannons in their possession, so you can guess how much they have,” I informed him, and Rudra Bhai-sa inhaled deeply.
Suddenly, my attention was drawn to Suman bringing breakfast to the table, and I realised I had lost my mind before; I had lost my sanity right then.
“Ranaji, breakfast, shall I serve?” she asked, and I inhaled deeply, trying to clench my fingers tightly.
“Suman,” we noticed Bhabhi-sa walking in, and she turned to look at her.
“Leave it; Reva will do it. You come with me,” she instructed, and Bhabhi-sa glanced at me momentarily.
A hint of apology appeared on her face, and I watched Suman silently walk away.
“That’s okay, Bhabhi-sa, I’ll serve,” I said, watching her leave with Suman.
“So, we should plan something to stop them before they enter,” Abhinandan suggested. That’s when something struck my mind.
“Bhai-sa, let me lead,” I said, looking at Rudra Bhai-sa.
He stared at me for a moment and nodded.
“Since you figured this out, you lead,” he replied, and I stood up from the couch.
“Then Mahabaleshgarh will keep the army on standby, and I’ll be the head commander,” I declared, and they all stood up too.
