After a while, King Chitrangada arrived with his wife and daughter. Karna and Roshini stood near the window when the king entered.
King Chitrangada smiled as he introduced them. "Karna Mahoday, this is my family." He gestured to the woman beside him, graceful in a maroon sari, and then to the little girl clinging to her mother's hand. "And this is my wife, Queen Chandramudra, and my daughter, Bhanumati."
"And this is Karna, the son of Lord Surya and soon to be King of Dakshina Kalinga. And this is Karna Mahoday's wife, Gandharva Princess Roshini."
Bhanumati, ten years old, eyes wide and curious, looked up at Karna. She tugged her mother's sari once, then asked in a small, innocent voice: "Father… are you really going to lose half of your kingdom?"
The question hung in the air for a second.
King Chitrangada tensed and nervously stared at Karna. Chandramudra's hand tightened on her daughter's shoulder. They were in the presence of a divine prince, a guest, a future neighbor, and the child's words felt a bit impolite to utter.
However, in response, Karna knelt immediately, bringing himself to Bhanumati's height. He smiled warmly and said. "Think of me as your elder brother, Princess Bhanumati. Then, you wouldn't feel like you have lost your land."
Bhanumati stared at him for a moment. Then her face brightened, and she nodded quickly. "Elder brother!"
Karna laughed, soft, surprised, and patted her head lightly.
King Chitrangada was relaxed by Karna's gesture. He looked at Karna with new respect. Not many would react in such a way.
He then cleared his throat, turning serious again. "Karna Mahoday, actually, I wanted to speak about the land. It will take time, a year, perhaps, to divide properly. Soldiers must be reassigned. A new palace must be built for you. The treasury must be split fairly. We will need to…"
Karna raised a hand gently, stopping him. "There is no need for that, Rajan. You heard what my father said. I need no palace. No treasury. I only need the land. I will build the kingdom from scratch. Don't worry about soldiers either; they can stay to protect the people until everything is settled. My grandfather will help me with the rest."
Chitrangada stared at him, surprised, then grateful. "You are sure? It is a large territory. Building from nothing… it will not be that easy."
Karna looked out the window, toward the horizon that was already darkened, "Rajan, everything I have gotten so far, I got it way too easily compared to others. That's why I want to work hard to build the kingdom on my own this time."
He glanced at Roshini.
She smiled back with a nod.
King Chitrangada bowed slightly. "Alright, I will consult the ministers and decide on the boundaries and all.
The next day;
The throne hall of Rajapura, the grand courtroom of Kalinga, felt alive with hushed anticipation that morning.
The king's throne stood at the far end, carved from dark teak and inlaid with ivory, simple yet commanding.
Ministers sat on cushioned seats arranged in neat rows along both sides, some old with gray beards, others younger with sharp eyes, all dressed in silk dhotis and angavastrams.
At the back of the hall, commoners stood quietly, farmers, merchants, village elders, allowed in for this rare public announcement, their faces a mix of curiosity and unease.
King Chitrangada sat on his throne, back straight, hands resting calmly on the armrests.
His voice carried clearly through the hall when he spoke.
"Today, I fulfill a promise made by my father, King Chandravarma, to Lord Surya many decades ago, which was also a topic in the assembly for the past few years. Half of our kingdom, as it stands now, will be given to Karna, son of Suryadev. This land will belong to him, to rule as he sees fit."
A murmur rose at once.
The ministers leaned toward one another, low whispers spreading like ripples on water.
The commoners at the back shifted on their feet, some exchanging surprised glances, others nodding slowly as if they had expected something like this after the divine chariot's arrival days earlier.
Karna sat silently near the throne with his posture straight, face calm, his glowing earrings catching the light. Roshini wasn't present with him, as royal women are expected not to attend the Assembly. They were present in the King's private meeting with the ministers if required.
The Prime Minister, Sheshacharya, an old man with a long white beard and steady eyes, rose from his seat.
He bowed first to the king, then to Karna, before speaking in a voice that carried surprise and respect.
"Maharaj… you are truly blessed to have Lord Surya himself step into our palace. And this young man, his son, who now sits among us. My apologies, Dev Karna. I did not mean to speak out of turn."
Karna shook his head gently at that. He stood for a moment, respectful, then sat again. "I am only a mortal, Sheshacharya ji. Not a deva who can give boons. My birth mother is a human of the Kshatriya caste."
The words settled over the hall like a soft breeze.
The ministers exchanged glances, relief flickering across many faces even without having to question. A half-Kshatriya demi-god, like Bhishma of the Kuru clan, was something they could accept. A son of a god born to a lower caste would have caused endless debate, endless worry about purity and hierarchy. But Kshatriya blood, warrior blood, eased their minds.
Whispers died down. Shoulders relaxed. The commoners at the back nodded, some smiling faintly.
The discussion soon turned to the land itself.
"We cannot give Rajapura," one minister said firmly. "It is our capital, our heart."
Another nodded. "The western plains are fertile, and the river runs through them. But the eastern ghats are rocky. How do we divide fairly?"
A third added, "The treasury must be considered too. Soldiers, granaries, temples… we cannot simply cut the kingdom in half without planning."
Karna listened quietly.
He did not interrupt.
To that, King Chitrangada spoke, "We will discuss the boundaries in a separate meeting."
In the following week, news of the separation of the kingdom reached the public.
At first, the people thought the king had lost another war, whispers spread through markets and villages, voices low with worry.
But then announcers moved through the streets, beating drums, calling out in clear voices: "Listen, listen, and listen! Maharaj Chitrangada's orders. Dakshina Kalinga is being partitioned into a new independent kingdom, from Kandhamal in the north to Vishakanagaram in the south, and Raipura in the west to Puri in the east. The new capital city will be Kanipara, also known as Konarak."
The announcers continued. "Maharaj has permitted those who wish to shift to the other side to begin moving in the following month. The land is given to Karna, the mortal son of Suryadev. He will rule as dharma requires."
The words spread quickly.
In villages near the river, people gathered under banyan trees to talk.
Some smiled, excited at the thought of a new beginning under a divine prince.
Others worried, leaving home, leaving ancestors' graves. But the name "son of Lord Surya" carried weight. The land had been blessed by the Sun God once before. Perhaps it would be blessed again now that his own son has descended to Earth.
When one thinks about it, all of Lord Surya's children were far more accomplished than any other deva's children.
Lord Yama is the god of death.
Lord Shani is the god of karma, the one who is feared by every mortal and even the gods.
Vaivasvata Manu is the current progenitor of mankind.
Yami is Goddess Yamuna, revered by millions of people.
Ashwini Kumaras were the divine physicians of the gods.
There are others, but they were also all in prominent positions. Why would this be son be any normal person?
That kind of logic made many people put their hopes on their new king.
*
During the next few weeks, the mass migration began, although it was mostly from Dakshina Kalinga to Uttara Kalinga, as people are still afraid of changes.
While a few people started to move from Uttara Kalinga to Dakshina Kalinga, who were dissatisfied with his ruling, around 30% of the people moved from Dakshina Kalinga to Uttara Kalinga, as they feared that the new ruler might make things hard for them, making King Chintragada happy inside while acting embarrassed on the outside, to which Karna replied, "It's fine, Rajan. I'm not disappointed with it. I'm happy that two-thirds of the people decided to stay and have faith in me."
One month later, as everyone registered as the citizens of Uttara Kalinga, most of the people in Dakshina Kalinga just followed their routine life as they thought their lives wouldn't change much, no matter who the new king was going to be.
Then, Karna began to travel towards Kanipura, a city in the region of Puri, which was built near the sea, several centuries ago, but it became a Ghost city after the land became cursed and turned into barren lands. People never returned even after Lord Surya blessed it, since more than a century has already passed.
Now, Karna returned to this empty city filled with old ruins along with fifty soldiers. He looked at them and said, "Go and search every corner of this city and make sure no one is living here. If you found anyone alive, bring them and me, and provide them shelter for a while."
A couple of hours later, the soldiers returned empty-handed, and the chief of them said, "Maharaj, we have found no one." Karna glared at him, "Are you sure? I'm going to destroy this city into an empty plot of land with my arrow. You should have been informed about my identity. Then, you should also know who my brothers are, don't you? If I find even a single innocent soul has been harmed because of your carelessness, then I will make sure your current life and afterlife will be spent in hell. I'll ask you again. Are you sure that this city is empty?"
Hearing Karna's warning, the chief of that unit began to hesitate. Karna said, "Go and search every corner. I have all the patience in the world to wait."