The Broken Bond

Price To Pay

- Are the collections over?

Yudhishthira looked down at the city below. From here, from one of the highest balconies of the palace, a majestic view opened up. The whole of Hastinapur lay before him at a glance. Yudhishthira's gaze followed the lines of houses and streets, those he knew and those he did not know.

-Almost, uncle. We leave for Varnavrata the day after tomorrow.

Vidura sighed heavily. Yudhishthira understood his concern and was not annoyed by his unwillingness to come to terms with his decision.

Purochana's invitation was indeed strange and deceitful: Yudhishthira asked several people and all of them said that his father Pandu never went to Varnavrata in his youth. Perhaps, of course, it was only a desire to win the favor of the crown prince, but Yudhishthira sensed that he should be careful.

However, he was not going to give up the trip. Yudhishthira was too tired of the enmity, more worthy of a squabble between brother farmers over an extra piece of land than royal sons. He needed a breath of fresh air and time to remember... why he had once fallen in love with Hastinapur.

They stood in silence. Vidura clearly did not want to repeat the arguments already voiced, but he was not ready to accept either. Yudhishthira heard his protest ring silently in the air.

“I would like to know what awaits you in Varnavrata,” Vidura muttered, still unable to restrain himself.

- Pooja. Food. Honorable greetings and the palace built by Purochana. Meeting with Arjuna,” Yudhishthira tried to joke, but the look that Vidura gave him was venomously skeptical, not cheerful. "Don't worry so much, uncle. And I'm sure if there was something going on, we'd already know about it.”

“Do you really hope that Duryodhana would honestly inform you of his intentions, son?”

“I'm sure even Duryodhana can remember honor. But actually I think we would have learned everything from Anga-raj. Even if he didn't say anything.”

Vidura frowned more, and Yudhishthira realized that he was wrong to mention Karna. But his thoughts returned to his older brother too often, and now they took shape in words almost by themselves.

“You rely on Anga-raj? He is devoted to Duryodhana.”

Vidura did not even try to hide his doubts.

Yudhishthira paused, his thoughts returning to a recent conversation with his brother, which he started on purpose, preparing for the trip. Karna's intemperance and mood swings were still difficult for him, but at the same time they were useful. Any feelings were instantly reflected on the face of the elder brother, and if Duryodhana arranged some dishonorable conspiracy, Karna could not hide this. However, casually abandoned mentions of Varnavrata did not evoke any response in Karna, which means that most likely there was no conspiracy.

Or Karna didn't know about him.

Could he not know if Duryodhana was up to something really serious? It was difficult for Yudhishthira to appreciate, as almost always when it came to Duryodhana, whose restless mind generated ideas that were completely unpredictable in their absurdity and cunning. In the case of a conspiracy, it would be very foolish not to send a man who is not afraid of Arjuna's arrows into battle, as well as to keep this man in the dark about future events: one who does not know what is required of him will easily make a mistake. But Duryodhana probably noticed the honesty of the new comrade-in-arms, and therefore could decide to devote him to plans only at the last moment.

“I rely on the honesty of Anga-raj,” said Yudhishthira after a long pause. “He's not the sort of person who can stab you in the back unexpectedly, even if he wants to. Don't you agree, uncle?