Arslan Senki: Legend of the Twins

18. The Royal Maiden's Maiden Battle

Bahman sat alone by his desk inside his bed chamber. For the umpteenth time, he stared down at the letter from Vahriz with troubled face. He realized the contents of that letter must not be read by another, and so he decided to hide it.

Once he made sure it was perfectly hidden, he exited the room and went to the dining hall to have lunch with Asa, Kishward, and Kishward's family. Upon entering, he was soon greeted by Asa. He usually would smile back awkwardly, but this time, he managed to reply her greetings with a genuine smile. It was because he felt slightly relieved knowing his secret would be safe.

Asa was a bit surprised. After all, she recalled Bahman had stopped giving her that kind of smile for a while now. Not only her, it seemed Kishward and Bahar had also noticed it. Seeing his smile, they reacted by smiling in relief, although they remained unaware of the reason.

However, their smiles quickly faded when two soldiers hastily entered the room and knelt by the door. "Sir! We have an urgent report!"

"What is it? Has the prince been found?" Kishward demanded.

"No, Sir... it's not from the west." The first soldier soldier stated and the other one continued for him, "It's from the east. A Sindhuran army has crossed Kaveri River and is invading our territory!"

Immediately, the people present in the room tensed. "Now, of all times?"

"They know our condition and took advantage of it, eh..." Asa murmured to herself as Kishward asked the soldiers again, "How large is their force?"

"We believe the horsemen and foot soldiers number as many as five thousand, Sir!"

"Are there any war elephants?"

"None, Sir." As they answered, Kishward had stood up from his seat, strapping his twin blade to his back.

"Alright, then they aren't serious," he remarked, "Lord Bahman, allow me to handle this matter."

"Then I'm counting on you, Kishward." Bahman nodded.

Kishward nodded back and said to Asa, "Hime-sama, please wait here. We're gonna return with good news..."

"Nope," Asa replied immediately, shocking everyone in the room especially Kishward. She then continued with stern face, "Kishward, take me with you. To the battlefield, it is!"

"Hime-sama?" Nasrine and Bahar looked at her in disbelief while Kishward displayed an equally stern face to the princess. Meanwhile, Bahman only watched the scene unfolding before him in silence.

"Are you aware of your own request, Hime-sama?"

"I am. I'm also fully aware of the danger I will encounter should I go to the battlefield."

"I see," Kishward simply commented. He took a glance at Bahman, who was still silent before staring deep into Asa's sharp eyes again, "Give me one good reason why I should I bring you along, Hime-sama."

Asa didn't take more than two seconds to respond him firmly. "Because I'm a Parsian and the princess of Pars. It's my duty to protect my country!"

There wasn't any change of expression on Kishward's face. He only continued to exchange glares with Asa.

"That's a very good and reasonable reason, but I still don't approve it."

"Why?!"

"Protecting the country is not your duty. It is mine, as a Marzban of Pars. To add, battlefield is not a place for you."

"It's not you who decide that!" Asa yelled stubbornly, "I don't want to hide behind my people's suffering and turn a blind eye from them. I want to take their suffering as mine and for that I will also fight for them! Please understand, Kishward"