The words that Eshaan heard, shook him to the core.
"You cannot stay at the Vedha Shala anymore?"
Eshaan repeated the same sentence as he couldn't believe his ears. First he immediately thought of it as another test by Bhaskaracharya but, when he looked at his face, it showed seriousness and, the kind that meant 'it wasn't a test.'
"What?" Eshaan tried to get an explanation but the words came out smaller than he wanted it to.
Bhaskaracharya didn't repeat himself, and instead reached for a folded palm-left sheet that was kept apart from the ledgers, its cord was already loosened, and set it on top of Haridatta's corrected figures. He gestured towards Eshaan,
"Sit down, Eshaan."
Eshaan sat cross-legged without another thought, as he was entirely blank by the odd behaviour of Acharya. Was he being rusticated for something? Will he have to leave before he could achieve whatever he arrived for? Where will he go, back to Pataliputra?
Several questions bombarded Eshaan's mind, he wasn't able to think straight anymore. "Two things arrived for me today," Bhaskaracharya started, which got Eshaan out of his thoughts.
"I want you to understand that I didn't plan for this to happen, and I wouldn't have chosen it this way if I had a choice in it at all." He tapped the folded sheet first. "This is from Acharya Kripa."
Something grumbled in Eshaan's stomach as it tightened at the mention of a familiar name. He had tried contacting Acharya Kripa for so long but, he didn't write back, but now, of all times?
"He wrote back?" Eshaan blurted.
"He did, though not to you." Bhaskaracharya's mouth was a flat line. "I wrote to him myself, some weeks ago, after King Vindhyavarman took an interest in you." He continued, "I wrote to him because I had already begun to worry, and I couldn't comprehend if my worries were real or just care."
Eshaan stared at him, "You wrote to him about me, that too weeks ago. Why?"
"Because a mentor who is doesn't consider the possibilities and dangers in the path of his pupil, cannot be considered a mentor at all."
"And, I decided to take your first mentor's advice into consideration before reaching a conclusion."
Bhaskaracharya kept explaining, his words reaching Eshaan which increased the respect he had for Acharya. "You arrived here unannounced, passed the most difficult tests I prepared for you, your attention to detail is second to none, and now the king also has his eyes on you. Eshaan, I have taught many, clever ones, brilliant ones, even extraordinary ones, but, your growth in so less time, your understanding of everything, made me realise something."
"What?"
"Kripa sent to me before reaching Ujjayini, and he wrote, 'I am coming with a special one that can change the fate of Bharat, and realise the dream of the one who inspired us, the dream of Akhand Bharat.' And now I understand why he wrote what he wrote that day."
"Who inspired both of you?"
"The greatest and most shrewd of the Acharyas, Vishnugupta Kautilya. He who was a king maker, he who taught the world, how to conquer kingdoms with one's mind before conquering it by sword. The author of Arthashastra."
"Chanakya?"
"Yes. And, Acharya Kripa also mentioned about one of his visions, 'A man who wasn't a royalty, sat upon the lion throne, throne of Magadh, throne of Akhand Bharat, and became the Chakravartin."
"Acharya never said a word about his visions, or about all this at all."
"Probably, because you wasn't ready for the bigger purpose that awaits you. This is why, he went to Pataliputra, and roamed around to find the man he saw in his vision."
"And?"
"He met you, and saw something in you that was raw, but domineering."
Eshaan felt silent, and all the events since he met Acharya Kripa was getting replayed in his mind like a movie reel. Bhaskaracharya let the silence done over the room before he added anything further to the conversation. Eshaan was just thinking, and was trying to make head and toe of the information that was thrown at him by his two mentors.
"Wait a minute, you don't believe in visions," Eshaan finally said something. "You have told me yourself, an unverified claim is worth nothing."
"I don't believe in visions," Bhaskaracharya agreed.
"But, I believe in Kripa, and, I have started to believe in you. I have known that man for over twenty years, Eshaan. He doesn't speak carelessly, moreover, he has never been wrong about anything he had predicted. If he tells me he saw something in you, I don't need any other proof than the words of that man. But, over time, everything you did here was the scrap of proof that confirmed his words, and affirmed my belief."
"Then tell me, what does it mean?" Eshaan questioned in a serious tone. "If it's true, any of it then?"
"I don't know."
"I am not a seer, and I certainly have no gift to prophecize a man's future. What I do know is if a boy that men believe has greatness enough to one day sit on the throne of an Empire then, no one in this land will leave the boy alone. And once, a rumour spreads, it travels faster than truth ever does. You know it Eshaan and you have seen it with your own two eyes."
"Anyways," He then reached for the second document, this one was laid apart from Kripa's letter this whole time, its seal caught the last light of the day through the high window.
"This is the other thing that arrived today," Bhaskaracharya announced.
"This is a Raja-Shasana, a royal charter, under King Vindhyavarman's own seal."
Eshaan stared at the document the way a man looks at a snake that he has only just noticed coiled beside his foot. "What does it say?"
"That you are to be brought formally into the king's household. Not as my student any longer, but as a ward of the crown, with tutors and duties of the crown's own choosing." Bhaskaracharya turned the seal so it faced Eshaan fully.
"I don't believe this charter was drafted because of Kripa's vision, Eshaan. I doubt the king has ever heard of it, and I believe that this charter has everything to do with your deeds, and the king has his eyes set on you."
Eshaan sighed heavily as his left hand started caressing his temples and cheeks as a reflex. "This only means that the king is deeply interested in me and, the timing cannot be worse."
"I would be lying if I said that the timing didn't trouble me. I have known King Vindhyavarman since he was a teenager, he is a curious soul. And…"
"And what Acharya, my journey is doomed before it ever began."
"And, he wants to see you grow under his care and guidance."
"What?"
"What did you just say?"
"I said that the king is genuinely impressed with your feats and he would have wished to see you grow under his care."
Eshaan then understood why Bhaskaracharya had told him about Kripa's letter first. It would have been so much simpler, so much cleaner, to hand him the charter alone and let him think about it. But now, he clearly understood that the scales are perfectly balanced, and choosing one path would immediately cripple the fragile balance that was somehow maintained by his two mentors.
Eshaan took a deep breath and announced, "So, I am going to the Palace."
"You are going?" Bhaskaracharya asked, a bit puzzled.
"Yes."
"Do you not understand, it is dangerous for a child to get involved with politics and me and Kripa both believes that this is a not an ideal time for you to get involved with men of power."
Eshaan clearly understood the words of his Acharya and even understood the dangers that come with his decisions after all, he had been with men of power his whole life, though in theory. He clearly understood that his life is changing and will take a major turn after the decision he makes.
"I understand what you mean but,"
"But, what Eshaan?"
"We want you to be safe and that's why Kripa had already told me what to do, the best course of action for you is to leave Ujjayini, and return to your family in Pataliputra."
"Leave Ujjayini?"
"Return to Pataliputra?"
"Acharya, I apologise for my misconduct beforehand but, do you even listening to yourself?"
"I know Eshaan what I am saying. See, you are on the crossroads that might shape your future, the entire land's future, please choose carefully."
"I cannot leave Acharya, what will I do after I return to Pataliputra?"
"Meet your family, live with them, if destiny has something great in store for you, it will come to find you."
Eshaan almost scoffed at the words of Bhaskaracharya, a man of science, logic, and reasoning was suddenly quoting philosophical terms like, 'Destiny'. He was laughing at his own luck, that universe is playing a joke on him right now. His plans, his life, his future, everything felt uncertain now. He had planned to save India from invaders but he never planned to sit on a throne, he planned to protect Nalanda University from collapsing, but he never planned on raising an army and go on conquest of all the India. And, he wanted to learn from Bhaskaracharya only to work on siege engineering and developing technology that would protect India.
"I am no ruler, Acharya. I don't have what it takes to rule, I am more of an advisor, someone who could guide rulers, like Krishna did to Arjuna."
"Krishna…" Bhaskaracharya almost laughed at the mention of the name. "Krishna was born to royalty but, brought up as a cowherd. Yet, he paved the path for his people, saving them from troubles and even establishing and ruling over Dwarka. He was a strategist and yes a charioteer and guide to Arjuna but, he held a far more greater aura than Arjuna himself."
"He had Kshatriya blood in him, and he was a god, revered by everyone."
"Did you ever think, he was someone who was biologically born and brought up on this land?"
"But, he had the knowledge of the past, the present and the future. While, I…"
Eshaan stopped midway in his sentence as he realised a fact. He was someone who had the knowledge of the past when he was in his old life, and in his current life, this knowledge became his present and future. Of course he wasn't a gold like Krishna but, he did have a special power that was broad knowledge with which he could predict the future. Plus he received training from Acharya Kripa, and had successfully worked in secrecy to open the pathway to his second chakra, 'Svadhisthana Chakra'. And he even bore the mark of the peacock-bearer.
"I was so indulged in my academic life that I clearly forgot about the mark, and the secret library beneath Nalanda University." Eshaan thought as memories from his old life came into focus.
"Eshaan, what have you decided?" Bhaskaracharya questioned, demanding an answer.
"I… I…" Eshaan fumbled as he snapped out of his thoughts.
"I will leave the Vedha Shala Acharya." He answered.
A smile crept up on the face of Bhaskaracharya as he came forward and embraced Eshaan as he was proven right. Eshaan was not a kid who wouldn't think of the consequences and take decisions in impulse. He has evolved from an apprentice who arrived at his observatory to a somewhat learned man who would calculate his every move.
"Kripa was right about you. You are meant for greatness, my son." Announced a proud Bhaskaracharya.
Eshaan smiled bitterly before he said something that shook Bhaskarachaya apart the very next moment.
"Acharya, I am not leaving Ujjayini. Not until I attain what I came for."
"What are you saying, Eshaan, what do you mean by this?" Bhaskaracharya's voice boomed for the first time and rang throughout the upper corridor.
A few students who were lingering around the corridor froze immediately at the thought of someone angering Bhaskaracharya. They immediately decide, it was better to remain out of sight until their mentor's anger was calmed.
"I am going to answer the call of King Vindhyavarman, I am not going to run off like a coward."
"I am going to the royal court."
ANNOUNCEMENT - AFTER FIVE MONTHS OF CONSIDERATION, I HAVE FINALLY DECIDED TO TAKE THIS WORK TO THE NEXT STEP AND THAT'S WHY I HAVE SIGNED THE CONTRACT OFFERED BY WEBNOVEL. SOON WE WILL GO PREMIUM.
THERE IS GOING TO BE A MASS RELEASE IN THE COMING WEEK, BUT I PROMISE IT WON'T AFFECT THE QUALITY OF CHAPTERS. I DON'T WANT TO LOCK THE CHAPTERS SO SOON AND SO I WILL TRY MY BEST TO FULFIL THIS PROMISE TO MYSELF.
THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR LOVE AND SUPPORT.