"Haha...Seems like brother Prayag is also with us. Brother Ajatshtaru, what do you think we should do now?" The Shakya King asked with a visible excitment on his face.
In these hours of dispersion and darkness he needed someone or something that can motivate his will, motivation that someone has courage enough to fight or try to kill a crown prince of ancient clan, motivation that he was not the only one who tried to kill a crown prince, motivation that his friends are also willing to do the same even after knowing and seeing the consequences he faced when he tried to kill a crown prince.
When he heard the news he felt like he had seen bright a sun at the dark tunnel in which he was going through, at the time his excitement and courage for revenge is at the highest level. It is not important that whole world is opposing, what important is that your friends are willing to stand for you. The excitement was so strong that he even wanted to run to Prayag King and brag about the friendship they had.
"Why do you ask brother Shubalaraja? I think what Prayag King did was a courageous move but it was as much dangerous too. Seems like he hadn't heard the news about your circumstances. Or he wouldn't have dared to do that."
"Brother Ajatshtaru, how can you say that, brother Prayag is my friend, he must have heard rumors of my circumstances so he must decided to do that to show me his support."
After hearing the reply of the Kashi King, King Shubalaraja face turned ugly, he was refusing to believe that what Prayag King did was nothing to do with his circumstances. What Prayag King did was like a hope for him, the biggest and the brightest hope, he didn't want to let this hope go away afterall. So he again said,
"Brother Prayag must have did that to show that he refused to bow to those tyrannical ancient clans demands. I think it's a sign from heaven that we should unite together.
Brother Ajatshtaru I think it's time to for us to show those ancient clans that the time has changed and their time had long gone, it's now our time to take control of thr mortal plane.
Brother Ajatshtaru, I think we should send some of our elites to the Prayag Kingdom and kill that bastard Prince once for an all."
With the eyes filled with redness, with a strange smile King Shubalaraja started blabbering those ideas with excitement like a madman. His only wish was to kill those from Kashyapa Clan and he was not going to mind the consequences or whatever tribulation he would be facing in future after he got his revenge.
"King Shubalaraja, you know what you're even saying? You need to calm down first and then think carefully.
The elites with me are here not to start a war with Kashyapa Clan, I have brought them here as contingencies for the Kashyapa forefather, in case if he become aggressive. Do you understand? We are going with an army of elites to free nephew and niece, not to start a war." The Kashi King was feeling sympathetic towards his fellow great clan king. He could somewhat understand that his fellow king and why he's acting like a madman afterall he was going through a pain of loosing his sons then humiliation.
But still he couldn't support in his act of madness, unlike him his brain had crystal clear with the understanding of the strength of an as ancient clan. Declaring a war on them will be nothing less than a suicide. Even if they could gravely injure the strength of an ancient clan with their power but they would be completely destroyed in the process even unable to recover forever but the ancient clan will recover to it's former strength in just a century.
Seeing that the person before him refusing to agree with him, Shakya King felt a slight anger but mostly displeasure. He wanted to call him coward and many other things but his cunning brain was still working so decided to not give voice to his thoughts as the person before him was there to help him. So he had to bear with everything till the revenge.
"So when we are going for the Kashyapa Clan?" The Shakya King suddenly asked.
"We have to wait a bit more. We need to wait and see if Magadha Kingdom is sending someone to support or not." He said while lost in thought and suddenly his lips raised into a curve and he said again,
"Heh... brother Shubalaraja I don't think freeing nephew and niece is going to be that difficult now. If my calculations are correct we most likely would not be facing forefather."
"Huh?"
....
Back in the Kashyapa Clan
Forefather Devarat was still in listening to the narration of the events happened outside the Prayag Kingdom fort. The more he listened the more his expression started darkening, the previously sun soaked brilliant shining face was now burning with anger when he heard that his student was a nick away from death and that a knife even touched and made his neck bleed.
If it was someone else from the Kashyapa Clan, forefather would have just said it as a one of the consequences of battles, this can happen to anyone in a battle. Afterall in pursuit of saving ones life and ones kingdom there's nothing that could not be expected.
But Prince Shantanu was different for him, he was like his son, even more than that. He was the child he had taken care of since his childhood, he was given responsibility of this child by the king when he left and he was his only student. Forefather due to some reasons had never married so he had no children but Prince Shantanu was fulfilling that role of a son for him. He was getting old day by day he needed a son to give him fire when he die and he wished that son to be Prince Shantanu.
Initially when he heard that Prayag King had sent an assassin to assassinate Prince Shantanu, he immediately thought something was not right and didn't jumped to conclusion that Prayag King is at fault but he preferred to listen the whole incident but everything every understanding went south when he heard that his student was so close to death.
With a burning rage, his eyes on his red face look like a burning red sun. The red burning aura forefather was emitting was even making Herik shudder as he felt like he was going to be crushed under the pressure of that aura. He started praying to his guardian god for the calmness of the forefather."Prayag King..."
Herik heard something in a low but a terrifying voice like the king Yama himself calling a sinner for punishment. Herik looked upwards and saw forefather gnashing his teeth, nose twitching again and again and eyes were like a ball of lava. He had always seen a calm and peaceful forefather so seeing him like that was making him feel like he was having some bad nightmare.