Swayamvar

Part 8

Prithviraj walked outside to the street as soon as it dawned upon him his Nandini might really be Rajkumari Sanyogita not really thinking what he wanted to do about it. Everything added up perfectly. Her facial features, her asking him for his Angavastra to slip inside the mansion unnoticed, and her stepping out at a time when the maids were usually the busiest. There was only one explanation. She was the princess of this very kingdom. He had to confirm that though. But then.. How did it matter if she indeed was the princess? Why was he acting so desperate as if the answer would have direct repercussions in his life? What was wrong with him? He had never been so reckless or impulsive in his life. Now a mere girl had managed to make him restless just like that. It was better  to wait for his spy to get more information. There was no need to rush. He slowed down once he could think rationally about the situation. He turned around to go back to his friends when he heard someone mentioning Maharaj of Ujjain in a shop left to him. That caught his interest. He entered the shop to listen to what they were saying.
"Did you know our Rajkumari is here! I heard she is in the royal residence to welcome the king and his son." the shop keeper was saying to a customer. Prithviraj did not miss the pride with which he took the princess's name. The shopkeeper noticed him and asked what he needed. After pretending to be interested in a few items Prithviraj slowly shifted to the topic he had really come for.
"Does Rajkumari come often to Kashi?" he asked.
The shopkeeper was startled at the stranger's sudden change of topic but replied nonetheless, "Ofcourse. Our Rajkumari loves this city. She personally visits many shops and never forgets to ask about our well being before she leaves. This is the first time though we had no idea that she was in Kashi with her sister in law. Her sister-in-law Yuvrani Menakavathi is Kashi's daughter. Did you know?"
The shop keeper was more than happy to brag about Kashi and its connection to the royalty to this seemingly newbie who had not much knowledge on this great city.

So if she visits Kashi often and also goes around visiting places, what is the need to disguise herself? Maybe she too likes to be left alone once in a while like he did. He came out of the shop and after asking a few passers by, walked towards the much talked about royal residence where the princess supposedly was present at this time. He did not know what he would achieve by going to that place. Being a royal residence it would be heavily guarded. It was not like he could go and ask for a girl called Nandini to appear before him. And most likely there would be no girl called Nandini among them to call in the first place. Yet he could not stop himself. Curiosity was not leaving him alone. The royal residence was in the northern part of the city near the river ghat. Being near the ghat meant there was quite a crowd walking on the streets in front of the residence. It was easier that way, Prithviraj thought. More the crowd, the easier to go unnoticed if he were to scrutinise the surroundings. As expected when he reached the royal residence he could see the entry gate was heavily guarded. More so with the guests being present inside, there would be an increase in security. A small merchant like him would not be allowed anywhere close. He walked past the entry gate trying to be as discrete as possible to look inside. It was a huge mansion bigger than the one next to his rest house but that was about it. There was a small garden in front, and the main door of the mansion stood barely a metre away. It wasn't the large palace complex he had expected. If he really wanted, he could manage to slip inside despite the small size making it difficult to go unnoticed. His friends' help would have made it easier, but he himself was well practised in sneaking in and out of heavily guarded buildings. Most of that practice came from his own palace when he was a child. In his own palace, he knew how the guards were placed and how to move around them. Despite that even now, if he tried, he could get past any security and enter. But did he really need to? It was different when there was a purpose behind it. He couldn't imagine doing something like this for a girl he had met only a few days ago. It was one thing to come this far. Going to such a length was ridiculous. With one last glance, he turned around to return to the resthouse passing by the gate again when he saw a figure walking down the steps towards the gate. He stopped dead forgetting his surroundings. It was Her!. Nandini. No. It was not his Nandini. This was Rajkumari Sanyogita. His guess was right. She was indeed the princess. Her plain cotton lehenga was replaced by an elegant silk one, with exquisite design. Her small maang tika was replaced by a big maata patti made of gold and stones. She wore gold necklaces and earrings too. She no longer looked like the simple girl he had met. She walked slowly, her gaze fixed on the path. There was a gravity about her that Nandini had never shown.  Nandini had been carefree, childlike and relaxed. Yet..she exuded the same quiet, ethereal charm.  However, he could not forget the fact that he had indeed been interacting with the daughter of Maharaj Jayachandra all the while he was capturing the protected guest of his. What a twisted fate it was! To meet and interact with the girl who had helped him grieve for his father under such strange circumstances.
It took him a moment to tear his gaze away from her and notice the person beside her, a prince, most likely Maharaj Bhoja's son. He had met only the king during his expedition, not his son. Is it not a bad thing for us if they form a marriage alliance? Pundir's question floated in his mind. So this was the man she was marrying. Suddenly, anger simmered inside him. His fists clenched as he fought the sudden urge to storm in and drag the man as far away from his Nandini as possible. His? Nandini? What on earth was he thinking? Only then did he realise how naturally he had started referring to her as his whenever he wanted to set apart Nandini from Sanyogita. Sensing a few guards watching him, he slowly stepped away, his eyes still fixed on the two figures now nearing the gate. Thankfully, people were congregating outside the gate when they saw their princess coming out of the mansion so he could walk away without causing suspicion.