Chapter 217: Chapter 215: Yami’s Await’s Her Turn... Effect Of War On Commoners...
(A/N):
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Meanwhile...
Far above
Within the radiant realm of
The golden palace of the Sun God shimmered beneath an eternal dawn.
Its magnificent halls were bathed in warm sunlight that never dimmed, while countless celestial lotuses bloomed along streams of liquid light flowing through the divine realm.
Inside one of the palace’s quiet chambers...
Goddess Yami sat alone.
"...."
Before her floated a shimmering screen woven from celestial Maya.
Its surface rippled gently like calm water, displaying everything taking place in Malikavana Village.
Unlike the other gods who watched the battlefield or the gathering Rakshasa army...
Yami’s eyes remained fixed upon only one person.
Devara.
The young king walked through the village with calm authority, personally overseeing the evacuation.
The hidden underground chambers beneath the ancient temple of Lord Vishnu had been opened to the villagers.
Families carrying frightened children descended into the vast shelters.
Large storerooms filled with grain, dried fruits, medicinal herbs, and fresh water had already been unlocked.
Royal soldiers and villagers worked together, carrying additional sacks of rice, wheat, lentils, blankets, and oil lamps into the underground refuge.
No one was turned away.
No one was abandoned.
Devara quietly moved from one group to another, making sure every family had reached safety.
His attention lingered not on nobles...
Nor on warriors...
But on ordinary people.
An elderly couple struggling to walk.
A mother carrying her infant.
Children too frightened to leave their homes.
Everyone received the same calm reassurance.
Yami watched in silence.
Then...
Her eyes softened.
A little girl no older than six suddenly ran through the crowd, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"
"I can’t find
Panic had separated her from her family during the evacuation.
The little girl looked around desperately before accidentally bumping into Devara.
Instead of continuing on his way, he immediately knelt before her.
"What happened?"
Between sobs, the child explained that she had become separated from her mother.
Without the slightest impatience, Devara gently wiped away the tears on her cheeks.
"Don’t cry."
"We’ll find her."
Taking the little girl’s hand, he personally walked through the crowd.
Several anxious minutes later...
A woman came running toward them.
"My daughter!"
The little girl immediately threw herself into her mother’s embrace.
The woman repeatedly thanked Devara, tears of relief flowing freely from her eyes.
As she prepared to leave with her mother, the little girl suddenly turned around.
"Mister..."
She hesitated for a second.
"...are we going to die?"
The entire area grew quiet.
"...."
"...."
"...."
Several villagers unknowingly stopped to hear his answer.
Devara smiled gently.
He crouched once more until he was at the child’s eye level.
"No."
His answer carried absolute certainty.
"You won’t die."
The little girl’s trembling slowly ceased.
"When everything is over..."
He lightly tapped the tip of her nose.
"...you’ll come back outside."
"You’ll play with your friends again."
"You’ll laugh."
"And Malikavana will become noisy again because of children running everywhere."
The little girl blinked.
"Really?"
Devara nodded looking at her innocent eyes.
"I promise."
A bright smile finally appeared on the child’s face.
Holding tightly to her mother’s hand, she disappeared into the shelter.
Yami had watched the entire exchange without looking away.
A faint smile unconsciously appeared on her lips.
"...Only you..."
she murmured softly.
"...could still stop to comfort a child... when a war is standing at your doorstep."
Her gaze remained fixed upon the young king.
Everyone else saw the warrior.
The king.
The disciple of Lord Parashurama.
The slayer of Rakshasas.
The son of Trimurtis.
She...
Saw the man who refused to let fear steal a child’s smile.
For a brief moment, her thoughts wandered elsewhere.
She remembered another conversation.
Lord Vishnu’s calm voice echoed once more within her mind.
"Yami..."
"You, too, have a role to play in this war."
At the time, she had not understood His meaning.
Even now...
She still did not know what destiny awaited her.
She could only trust His words.
A quiet sigh escaped her lips.
"...I only hope... that this time..."
A faint blush appeared upon her cheeks.
"...I can introduce myself properly."
She lowered her eyes.
The memory still embarrassed her.
The first time they had met...
She had concealed her true identity.
Pretending to be nothing more than a fisherman’s daughter.
It had been the easiest way to speak to him without revealing she was a goddess.
"...I practically lied to him."
She laughed softly at herself.
"Not the best beginning..."
Her fingers gently touched the pearl necklace resting around her own neck.
Then she looked back toward the Maya screen.
Devara was still wearing the pearl necklace she had given him all that time ago.
The divine pearls continued to glow faintly against his chest, carrying the blessing she had quietly woven into them before placing them in his hands.
A warmth spread through Yami’s heart.
"He never took it off..."
Her smile became both happy and bittersweet.
"It may have been only my own feelings... but at least..."
"...the gift stayed with the person I wanted it to."
Outside her chamber, Suryaloka remained as radiant as ever.
Yet Goddess Yami’s thoughts never left the mortal world.
They remained with a single king preparing for a war that would decide the fate of Bhuloka.
And though she could not yet stand openly at his side...
She silently prayed that when destiny finally brought them together again...
She would no longer have to hide who she truly was.
Meanwhile...
The evacuation of Malikavana Village continued without pause.
The lively streets that had echoed with music, laughter, and festival celebrations only hours earlier now stood almost deserted.
Merchants had abandoned their stalls.
Children who had once run through the streets were now safely hidden beneath the ancient Temple of Lord Vishnu, where the underground chambers had become a refuge for the villagers.
Royal soldiers moved from house to house, ensuring that no one was left behind.
Walking alone through those quiet streets, Devara let out a faint sigh.
His eyes lingered upon the abandoned decorations still fluttering in the evening breeze.
"So this is war..."
he murmured to himself.
"To some ...it is an opportunity."
"A chance to earn glory."
"A chance to increase one’s influence."
"A chance to carve their name into history."
His gaze shifted toward the frightened villagers disappearing into the underground shelters.
"But for people like them... war is nothing more than someone else’s greed reaching their doorstep."
"They neither sought fame nor desired power."
"They simply wished to celebrate a festival."
"And now... they are forced to abandon their homes."
His expression grew quieter.
"The innocent always pay the highest price."
As he continued walking, raised voices reached his ears from further ahead.
"My sister, you’re worrying far too much!"
"I can fight!"
"I am perfectly capable of joining the battlefield!"
Devara rounded the corner to find Queen Devayani standing with her arms folded, glaring at the man before her.
Facing her was her younger brother, Kumara Varma.
"No."
The Queen’s reply was immediate.
"You are not going anywhere near that battlefield."
Kumara Varma puffed out his chest.
"I am a warrior!"
"You are many things,"
Devayani replied dryly not believing him one bit.
"A warrior is not one of them."
The maids standing nearby hurriedly looked away, trying very hard not to laugh.
Kumara Varma’s face reddened.
"I have courage!"
"Courage?"
Devayani raised an eyebrow.
"The last time you saw a wild boar, you climbed onto a tree and refused to come down until the hunters arrived."
"That boar wasn’t even chasing you!"
"It looked aggressive!"
Her expression remained completely unconvinced.
"And your swordsmanship?"
"It..."
Kumara Varma hesitated seeing his sister bring that topic again.
"...has room for improvement."
"It has room for a miracle,"
Devayani corrected with a dry tone.
"If you set foot on that battlefield, you’ll become a burden to everyone trying to protect you."
Her voice softened.
"I have already lost enough people."
"I will not lose my own brother because of reckless pride."
Kumara Varma lowered his head.
"...."
Though he hated admitting it...
He knew his sister wasn’t wrong.
Just then...
The sound of approaching footsteps caused both of them to look up.
"...."
"...."
"...."
Devara was walking toward them.
The moment Kumara Varma saw him, his face became noticeably awkward.
Memories of the previous days flashed through his mind.
Declaring himself to be Devara’s guru.
Boasting about techniques he barely understood.
Trying to teach a man who was, in reality, King Devaratha of Trivenivrata and the disciple of Lord Parashurama.
The embarrassment alone was enough to make him wish the ground would swallow him whole.
"...Brother Devara..."
he muttered sheepishly.
Devara stopped before him.
Without saying anything, he placed a reassuring hand upon Kumara Varma’s shoulder.
His expression was unusually serious.
"Kumara."
The young noble immediately straightened.
"I have a task that only you can perform."
Kumara Varma blinked hearing his serious tone.
"...Only me?"
Devara nodded as if he was going to entrust something very important.
"The battlefield has enough warriors."
"But there is something far more important."
He gestured toward the Temple of Lord Vishnu, where the women, children, and elderly villagers were being escorted into the underground refuge.
"All of them need someone to protect them."
"If the enemy manages to slip past the battlefield... they will become the first targets."
He looked directly into Kumara Varma’s eyes.
"I need someone brave enough to stand between them and danger."
"I want that person to be you."
For a moment...
Kumara Varma simply stared.
"...."
No one had ever entrusted him with something so important before.
Not because of his title. But because they believed in him.
His eyes slowly began to shine.
"You..."
"...you’re entrusting them to me?"
Devara smiled seeing his brainwashing technique was working.
"I am."
"But only if you are willing."
Kumara Varma drew himself up proudly.
His earlier hesitation vanished completely.
He struck his chest with a clenched fist.
"Leave it to me!"
"I swear upon my honor... No enemy shall lay a finger upon the women, children, or the elderly while Kumara Varma still draws breath!"
"I’ll guard the temple myself!"
Without waiting another second, he turned and hurried toward the Temple of Lord Vishnu, already shouting orders to the soldiers stationed nearby with far more confidence than before.
Watching him disappear, Queen Devayani couldn’t help but smile helplessly.
She knew her brother.
If someone mocked him, he would retreat.
But if someone sincerely trusted him...
He would throw himself into the task with all his heart.
She turned toward Devara and folded her palms gratefully.
"...Thank you."
"You spared his pride... and perhaps his life."
Devara simply smiled.
"Not everyone is meant to stand on the front line."
He looked toward the temple in the distance.
"Protecting those who cannot protect themselves... is no less important than fighting on the battlefield."
Queen Devayani followed his gaze.
"...."
Her worry eased, if only slightly.
With her maids and companions accompanying her, she quietly made her way toward the temple, knowing that for the first time in many years...
Her younger brother had found a duty worthy of his courage, however fragile it had once been.
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(Author note:)
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