Fuck you...Your Majesty!

14

The hunters of the Garo tribe were on their hunting trip when they found a severely injured King Atharva lying on the floor, in a pool of his blood. He was immediately rushed back to the tribe grounds; saving a life was of far greater importance than a playful hunt.

The massive commotion at the hunting party's arrival woke Salil from his sleep. Worried that someone might have injured themselves, Salil rushed out as fast as he could with his four-month belly, with his loyal attendant rushing not very far behind him. People flocked to the scene, and before Salil could even take a look, the healers asked the people to move the injured person to their hut so that they could start with his treatment. He watched as people walked past him, discussing the awful condition of the injured person who had just been brought. These talks perturbed Salil.

Walking into the healer's tent, Salil was hit in the face with the strong smell of medicinal herbs, making him heave. Being pregnant made him sensitive to all kinds of smells. Madhur suggested he return and let the healers handle the case, but Salil was persistent. Something in him told him that he should check on the injured person. And with this stubborn resolve, he took a deep breath and walked in. What lay before him made him cry out in horror.

On the coir cot, amid the ongoing discussions of the tribe's healers and the scent of medicinal remedies, lay an unidentified stranger. This stranger turned out to be King Atharva, grappling with severe injuries and battling for his life. Salil was having a hard time regaining his composure. Had Madhur not been there beside him, he would've already hit the ground.

Seeing that his shocked brother was of no help in the situation but more of a hindrance to the healers, Madhur dragged him away to another hut. Salil needed to calm down, or he would harm himself. He cooed at his beloved brother, rubbing calming circles on his back, hoping it would magically calm down the now-crying pregnant High King of Antharv.

"H-How? H-How did...this happen, Madhur?" Sobbed Salil, hugging Madhur's waist like a child afraid to get lost. Madhur, on the other hand, could only reply to the question with some encouraging and comforting words like, 'King Atharva will surely be fine.' or 'It's going to be alright.'

Chief guard Rudra, on the other hand, immediately left to personally deliver the information to the Kaverian royal family about King Atharva's condition. King Samartha was the first to arrive, along with a team of the best royal physicians from the kingdom of Kaveri. But Salil was the first person he checked on. He knew how much his brother loved the bastard King of Antharv. He knew seeing his beloved fighting for his life would break him.

The scene inside his beloved brother's hut broke his heart more than he had expected. His brave little brother, who didn't shed a tear of grief no matter how much wrong had been done to him in the past, was now sobbing like an inconsolable child, with a piece of scarf clutched tightly in his hand, pressed close to his heart. It wasn't long before King Samartha recognized the scarf; the royal insignia of Antharv made it easy.

"Shh... It is all going to be okay. Your bastard of a husband still has debts to pay... to you... to his child and to the kingdom of Kaveri for hurting their beloved Prince," said Samartha, caressing Salil's head, earning a smack and a small smile in return from his previously sobbing brother. King Samartha was never much of a precant, but at this moment, prayer after prayer flew from his heart like a frightened bird. He truly wished for the foolish Antharvian king to survive.

It was in the wee hours of the morning when some of the royal physicians finally left the healer's hut to inform the royal family of the injured king's condition.

"Your Majesty, the Almighty has answered your prayers. King Atharva is out of danger."

It was like hearing these words renewed Salil's lost vigour. Wiping his tear-streaked face, he quickly waddled towards the door. It didn't take a genius to guess what he was doing. But King Samartha stopped him even before he could take a step out of his hut.

"Stop. Right now is not the right time to visit him. It is better if you visit him tomorrow after you are well rested."

"But-"

"No buts. Let Madhur bring some fruits for you to have. Sleep for the night. And only then will I let you visit your beloved husband."

Salil, although begrudgingly, followed King Samartha's command. He knew what his brother said was out of love and care.

                                                                                            *******

"You sure are one big bastard, King Atharva. You pretend to not care about my brother when he's right in front of you, and the moment you lose him, you go crazy and decide to profess your undying love for him to the world," said a tired Samartha, sitting by the sleeping King Atharva's bedside. He was here to guard this moron of a king he hated with passion for the sake of his beloved brother.

It was really hard for him to understand their love. They loved each other. They would burn the world to bones and ashes for each other, but why were they so blind to see the love that had blossomed between them?

It wasn't like Samartha was clueless about his brother's life in the kingdom of Antharv. He had his ways. He knew of the initial contempt that the king held towards his brother, the ways his brother changed himself to please the idiotic king of Antharv, and how the contempt in Atharva's heart gradually changed to love. But maybe the king was too late to love his brother.

He didn't expect Salil to ask for his help in faking his death to run away from the kingdom of Antharv, but he still sheds tears every night in memory of the life that he left behind and the love that he left behind. Neither did he expect Atharva to behave the way he did—the tears he shed, the way he blamed no one but himself for the mishap, the way he punished the conspirators, the way he cried and begged on the burnt ground of the accident for supposedly dead Salil to accept him, to forgive him, and to take his own life.

The entire situation was chaotic—a colossal mess. Now, all he could wish for was for the Antharvian fool of a king to awaken and attempt to rectify the tangled circumstances.

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