Chapter 177: Chapter 175: Kumara Varma Is Here... Accept Now... This Is Royal Proposal...

(A/N):

Drop a meme here that you find funny. Or reflects your mood.

Guys I hope you put more comments and power stones... Which will encourage me...

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Princess Indhumati was just about to ask another question.

A question she genuinely wanted answered.

How could someone’s family abandon them simply because they lacked talent in combat?

To her, it sounded unnecessarily cruel.

She had seen many warriors.

Many scholars.

Many artists.

Not everyone excelled at the same thing.

Before she could voice her thoughts, however, a loud voice suddenly interrupted the conversation.

"Princess Indhumati!"

The princess visibly flinched.

Several of her maids exchanged knowing looks.

The smile on some of their faces immediately vanished.

A familiar figure was approaching.

None other than Kumara Varma.

The younger brother of Queen Mrinalini Devi.

And unfortunately for everyone involved...

A man possessing confidence vastly greater than his actual abilities.

Kumara Varma strode through the crowd with his chest puffed out.

He walked like a conquering hero returning from a hundred victories.

The reality, unfortunately, was considerably less impressive.

His skill with weapons was poor.

His skill in combat was even worse.

The royal instructors had nearly gone bald trying to teach him.

The kingdom’s martial guru had eventually surrendered.

Not because Kumara lacked enthusiasm.

Quite the opposite.

The man loved talking about combat.

The problem was that talking about combat and actually fighting were two very different things.

Still...

Nobody had the heart to tell him that.

Especially because Kumara genuinely believed he was a great warrior.

The queen indulged him.

The king tolerated him.

The servants encouraged him.

And Princess Indhumati endured him.

Mostly because arguing with him required more energy than simply agreeing.

Unfortunately, Kumara Varma had another habit.

Whenever the princess was involved in something...

He somehow appeared.

Like an overly enthusiastic hunting dog that had caught a scent.

The moment he heard she was visiting the market, he had started searching for her.

And now he had found her.

More importantly...

He had overheard part of the conversation.

Specifically the part where Devara supposedly lacked talent in combat.

The moment Kumara heard that story, a brilliant idea had exploded inside his head.

Or at least what he considered brilliant.

In his mind, this was the perfect opportunity.

If he could generously guide this poor abandoned merchant...

If he could demonstrate his great martial wisdom...

If he could impress everyone present...

Especially Princess Indhumati...

Then surely she would be moved by his greatness.

The plan was flawless.

At least according to him.

He had actually spent the last few moments mentally congratulating himself.

’Excellent thinking, Kumara.’

’Truly magnificent.’

’Only a genius could devise such a strategy.’

Having thoroughly praised himself, he finally returned his attention to reality.

All eyes were now on him.

Exactly as he wanted.

Kumara cleared his throat dramatically.

Then cleared it again.

Louder.

And struck what he believed was a heroic pose.

Princess Indhumati immediately closed her eyes.

She already knew where this was going.

"...."

Meanwhile, Devara simply watched with amusement.

Kumara marched forward until he stood directly before him.

Then stopped.

The first thing he noticed was that the merchant was taller than him.

Significantly taller.

Kumara did not appreciate this.

Still...

He bravely ignored such minor inconveniences.

Then he began examining Devara.

He circled him once.

Then twice.

Like a royal inspector evaluating livestock.

The crowd watched in confusion.

Suddenly Kumara grabbed Devara’s arm.

And squeezed.

The moment his fingers touched the muscle beneath the merchant’s sleeve, his eyes widened slightly.

’What in the world?’

The arm felt like stone.

Not ordinary stone.

The kind of stone used to build fortresses.

Undeterred, Kumara immediately grabbed the shoulder.

Same result.

Then the forearm.

Same result.

Then the other arm.

Again.

The man felt less like a merchant and more like a statue carved from granite.

For a brief second, doubt entered Kumara’s mind.

"...."

Then his pride immediately strangled it.

No.

Impossible.

He was Kumara Varma.

A martial genius.

Clearly this merchant simply had... unusual merchant muscles.

Yes.

That was definitely the explanation.

Having convinced himself, Kumara nodded seriously.

Then turned toward the gathered audience.

Especially Princess Indhumati.

He folded his hands behind his back.

Lifted his chin.

And declared loudly,

"Hmm."

The crowd waited.

Kumara pointed dramatically at Devara.

"Everything is soft."

Silence.

"...."

"...."

"...."

Shakuni nearly bit through his tongue.

The princess stared.

The maids stared.

Even Sage Veenadhara stared.

Soft?

Several villagers who had accidentally bumped into Devara before looked deeply confused.

Kumara continued regardless.

"Like a flower."

The silence somehow became worse.

Shakuni immediately turned away.

His shoulders began shaking. Hearing it coming from a man’s mouth regarding a another man completely wrong and weird.

The minister was dangerously close to laughing.

Meanwhile, Kumara continued his inspection.

"You clearly require extensive training."

He nodded wisely.

-Nod!

"Years of it."

At this point even Devara was struggling.

The king had fought warriors capable of splitting boulders.

Yet now he was apparently being diagnosed as physically weak by a man who couldn’t properly hold a sword.

Kumara pointed heroically toward himself.

Fortunately for him, he didn’t notice the expressions around him.

"Do not worry!"

His voice echoed across the market.

"I, Kumara Varma, shall personally train you."

Princess Indhumati covered her face with her hand.

One of her friends immediately looked away to hide her laughter.

The maids were suffering greatly.

Kumara remained blissfully unaware.

"I shall transform you into a mighty warrior!"

He puffed out his chest.

"Then you may return to your family with pride!"

Shakuni finally lost the battle.

A suspicious coughing fit suddenly attacked him.

-Cough!

Violently.

Very violently.

Sage Veenadhara was staring at Kumara as though trying to determine whether this was bravery or complete madness.

He still hadn’t reached a conclusion.

Meanwhile, Devara looked at the enthusiastic nobleman standing before him.

Then at Princess Indhumati, who looked like she wanted the earth to swallow her whole.

"...."

Then back at Kumara.

And for some reason...

Devara found himself genuinely curious about what would happen next.

Kumara Varma, having successfully declared himself Devara’s future martial instructor, seemed to grow more confident with every passing second.

In fact, the more people looked at him, the stronger his confidence became.

Which was both impressive and deeply concerning.

He folded his arms across his chest and began speaking as though he were delivering a lecture to future generations.

"You are fortunate."

Devara blinked.

"I am?"

"Extremely fortunate."

Kumara nodded satisfied.

"Do you know how many people dream of receiving guidance from me?"

Devara wisely chose not to answer.

The crowd wisely chose not to answer.

Even the birds sitting on nearby rooftops chose not to answer.

"...."

"...."

"...."

Unfortunately, Kumara interpreted the silence as awe.

"Countless."

He declared proudly.

"Absolutely countless."

Princess Indhumati slowly turned her face away.

One of her friends immediately covered her mouth.

Another was pretending to be very interested in a nearby flower stall.

The maids had entered survival mode.

Meanwhile, Kumara continued his heroic speech.

"When I was young..."

Shakuni nearly laughed he is human too how much longer can he control it.

The man wasn’t even old.

"...the royal instructors often spoke of my talent."

That was technically true.

Mostly phrases like:

"Please hold the sword correctly."

"No, that is the wrong end."

"Stop hitting yourself."

But those details were conveniently omitted.

Kumara continued.

"Through dedication, discipline, and hard work, I became the warrior you see before you."

Devara looked him up and down.

The urge to ask which warrior was becoming increasingly difficult to suppress.

Still, he maintained a polite smile.

A merchant’s smile.

The kind that said I respect your opinion while actually meaning please stop talking.

Eventually, Devara decided to make another attempt.

A gentle attempt. The safest kind.

"Young master."

Kumara immediately straightened.

He liked being called that.

"I truly appreciate your concern."

Kumara nodded proudly.

"As you should."

"But..."

Devara rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

"I don’t really need martial training."

The nobleman blinked.

Devara continued.

"I am quite happy being a merchant."

He gestured toward the stall.

"I sell goods."

"I travel."

"I eat good food."

He glanced toward Shakuni.

"Sometimes."

The minister rolled his eyes.

Devara smiled.

"My life is simple."

"And honestly, I like it."

Several villagers nodded.

It sounded perfectly reasonable.

A peaceful life wasn’t a bad thing.

Unfortunately, Kumara Varma had already imagined himself dramatically training Devara while Princess Indhumati watched in admiration.

He wasn’t about to abandon such a glorious opportunity.

"No."

The nobleman shook his head firmly.

"No?"

Devara repeated.

"No."

Kumara pointed dramatically at him.

"You simply lack confidence."

The merchant stared at him with dead eyes.

The crowd stared.

"...."

"...."

"...."

Kumara nodded as though he had uncovered a great mystery.

"Yes."

"That must be it."

Princess Indhumati quietly whispered to one of her companions.

"He has already convinced himself."

The companion nodded.

"He always does."

Meanwhile, Kumara continued.

"You have accepted defeat before even trying."

Devara attempted once more.

"Actually, I-"

"You must believe in yourself."

"I do."

"You do not."

"I really do."

"You clearly don’t."

At this point, even Sage Veenadhara looked impressed.

Not by Kumara’s logic.

By his ability to ignore everything another person said.

It was a remarkable talent.

Eventually, Devara sighed.

Perhaps this would simply run its course.

"...."

Then Kumara suddenly snapped his fingers.

His eyes lit up.

An idea had struck him.

A terrible idea.

The kind of idea that only seemed brilliant to the person who thought of it.

Princess Indhumati immediately became nervous.

She recognized that expression.

Every disaster in Kumara’s life had begun with that expression.

The nobleman stepped forward.

A smug smile appeared on his face.

"You are trying to refuse because you are shy."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

Devara briefly wondered if Pushpasura would be easier to deal with.

Then Kumara lifted his chin.

The smugness somehow increased.

"As a merchant, you are a subject of this kingdom while visiting our lands."

Devara felt danger approaching.

The princess felt danger approaching.

Shakuni felt danger approaching.

Only Kumara remained blissfully unaware.

The nobleman pointed at himself proudly.

"I am a member of the royal family."

The smile widened.

"So..."

His voice became dramatic.

"I shall make it a royal order."

The marketplace suddenly became very quiet.

Several nearby villagers stopped talking.

A merchant carrying cloth froze.

A child eating sweets paused mid-bite.

Even Sage Veenadhara raised an eyebrow.

Devara slowly blinked.

Kumara pointed heroically.

"I order you to accept my training."

A collective silence descended.

Then Kumara crossed his arms.

The victorious smirk returned.

"There."

"Now you cannot refuse."

He looked immensely pleased with himself.

As though he had trapped the merchant using flawless strategy.

The princess closed her eyes.

The queen’s younger brother had just used royal authority...

To force a random merchant into martial arts lessons.

Somewhere in the heavens, the gods were probably watching this with confusion.

Meanwhile, Shakuni’s face had become a masterpiece bitting his lips tyring harder with red face and nerves can be visible as he was on the verge.

The minister was fighting for his life.

Not against an enemy.

Against laughter.

Because standing before Kumara Varma...

Was not merely a merchant.

Not merely a traveler.

Not merely a skilled warrior.

But an actual king.

A king who was currently being ordered by another kingdom’s noble to attend combat classes.

The absurdity was so great that Shakuni could physically feel it.

Meanwhile, Devara simply stared at Kumara.

Then looked toward Princess Indhumati.

The princess looked mortified.

Then he looked back at Kumara.

The nobleman stood proudly.

Waiting for gratitude.

Waiting for admiration.

Waiting for applause.

Instead, Devara rubbed his forehead and released a long sigh.

-Sigh!

A very long sigh.

"...."

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(Author note:)

I hope you guys give me your opinion and idea’s.

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