“Huff! Water… water! I need water!”
Anuj shouted loudly. He was lying under a tree beside a lonely road. It was nighttime, darkness all around.
He was traveling through the Northern Plains, heading toward Hastinapur. After staying in Hastinapur for a while, he planned to leave directly for Magadh region.
That was his plan—but how could he have known that he would run into such trouble here?
Trouble in the form of thirst.
Anuj desperately wanted to drink water in this unbearable heat, but unfortunately, there were no canals or ponds nearby. He was on an empty road.
There wasn’t an inn or tavern anywhere in sight. He was completely alone on this path and dying of thirst.
Even though it's not the actual summer season, still for someone like Anuj who spent most of his life in the mountains of Himalayas, the winter of Northern Plains didn't felt anything to him.
To him it is normal, or average temperature. That's why he was feeling kind of hot.
“Huff! Huff! I should’ve brought some water along… damn it!”
Anuj’s journey hadn’t been easy.
After leaving the last inn, several soldiers of the Som Empire stopped him for questioning.
And just his rotten luck—they began questioning him about Varsha. But he couldn’t possibly tell them that he had met Varsha, so he had no choice but to pretend he didn’t know anything.
That wasted an entire day before he finally managed to move forward.
“Good thing I met that merchant; he told me I’d have to bribe those soldiers to get away from them. Tch! Corrupt bastards!”
A large portion of Anuj’s money had gone into those soldiers’ hands. Now he barely had any money left. If he needed more, he would have to earn it.
There are two ways to obtain power in this world: First, become so strong and powerful that no one can defeat you. Second, gain so much wealth that you can make countless strong people stand behind you.
If someone possesses either strength or wealth, they can grasp power in their hands easily.
“Huff! Huff! I… I’ll die like this… I have to do something.”
Just as Anuj said this, he noticed two human silhouettes approaching from afar.
‘...People? Humans?!’
If they were humans, maybe there was a house nearby? And if he asked for help, perhaps they would help him.
While Anuj was still thinking, the two men came closer.
“Oh! Someone’s here?”
“Who are you? What are you doing here so late at night?”
From the way they spoke, they seemed like decent people.
“Huff! Huff! I… I’m Anuj. I’m a traveler… I… I’m thirsty! Do you have anything to drink?!”
Anuj said weakly.
“Ahh! So you’re thirsty. Wait, I should have something to drink.”
“Tch! Tch! New travelers always make this mistake, they don’t carry enough food or water. Good thing you ran into us.”
One of them pulled out a water pouch from his belongings. The moment Anuj saw it, he couldn’t hold himself back.
“Give it here!”
Gulp! Gulp! Gulp!
He drank it all in one go.
“Hey! Hey! Drink slowly! Don’t rush!”
“Tch! Another mistake new travelers make; accepting food or drinks from strangers so carelessly. You should be careful, not everyone is as kind as us.”
Gulp! Gulp! Gulp!
“Ahhh! I feel alive again.”
Anuj smiled, then clasped his hands gratefully and bowed his head,
“Thank you both so much for helping a thirsty man like me. My name is Anuj. It’s my first time in the Northern Plains. Thank you again. I don’t have much to repay you with, but please accept these few coins.”
He extended his hand and offered them his money.
‘?!’
“Th-this is too much! So many coins? We can’t accept this.”
“Y-yes! We helped you sincerely, not with greedy intentions. But thank you.”
They clearly rejected his offer.
Anuj was offering far more than the price of normal water, but still, they refused to take it.
“No! No! There's no way I can do that, my father always used to say that we should repay to the one who helps us. I can't leave you like this for your kindness. Please take these coins...”
Anuj tried repeatedly to make them accept at least something, but the two didn’t agree. In the end, he had no choice but to stop.
“I will never forget your kindness—never. That’s my promise!”
Anuj said sincerely. He couldn’t do anything else.
“Oh! You flattered us with you words, young man...”
“There aren't many good people like you in new generation, sigh... Well whatever, I think we should be going now.”
Anuj clasped his palms once more and thanked then again,
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“Thank you again, I will also go on my way. I hope you may reach your destination safely.”
Just as Anuj took a step to go, one of them asked,
“Ah! Young man, are you sure you can go alone at this hour? I mean if you're new here, then won't it be a problem for you to travel alone?”
The other then added,
“Yes , there are scammers and thieves who loot people and even kill them, you should be careful.”
Anuj chuckled lightly and said,
“Please don't worry, I'm not weak. I'm actually a martial artists, I can defend myself.”
Both of their eyes shot open, they were hesitant too.
“Martial Artist?...”
“You know Martial Arts?...”
Anuj proudly said,
“Yes, I know Martial Arts, my father taught me!”
He was expecting to hear some kind praises, or even admiration in return, but one of them shouted.
“Ahhh! I can’t keep acting like a good guy anymore! This pretending is killing me! You said the poison would kill anyone in two breaths, even if it's a Martial Artist! Why isn’t he dead yet?!”
‘?!’
“Poison?…”
Anuj whispered.
The second man quickly tried to silence the first.
“Shhh! Shhh! Quiet! What are you saying—”
“What am I saying?! Are you trying to cheat me?! Why didn’t YOUR poison work?!”
“Shhh! I told you to stay quiet! Aah! Don’t listen to him, sometimes he acts like a madman!”
“Huh? I’m the mad one? You asshole!”
He shoved the other man to the ground, making him furious as well.
“Hey! I told you to wait a bit! But no, your little balls can’t handle patience?!”
The two of them began fighting each other. Meanwhile, Anuj watched them silently.
‘So… what I drank was poison?’
The thought struck him.
His tongue brushed across his lips. His eyes moved toward their remaining supplies; the pouches looked just like the one he drank from.
Step! Step!
He walked toward their belongings and then...
Gulp! Gulp! Gulp!
He started drinking more of the poison.
Gulp! Gulp! Gulp!
He emptied one pouch, then grabbed another. After the second, the third. Then the fourth. Then the fifth. One after another, he drank sixteen pouches full of poison all by himself.
“Haaa! Delicious! Where do you get such tasty poison?”
‘?!’
The two men, who had been fighting, suddenly froze. They stared at Anuj, then at the empty poison pouches lying beside him.
‘!!!’
‘He… he drank all of it?!’
‘And he’s still alive?!’
They couldn’t believe their eyes.
If only someone could tell them, that poison had no effect on Anuj's body. He has an inbuilt resistance for poisons since birth.
‘So sweet…’
To him, poison tasted like honey, or maybe like drug...
‘Gh-ghost!!!’
The same thought struck both men simultaneously. A ghost, a spirit, a witch—only some supernatural creature could do survive this much poison.
Ttak!... Ttak!... Ttak!...
“Hey! Who’s there?”
‘?!’
A voice came from behind Anuj.
When Anuj turned around, he saw a young man; probably four or five years older than him sitting on a horse.
He held a burning lantern in his hand, which made his face visible even in the darkness.
He had long, thick hair and a sharp, strong jawline that made him look strikingly attractive.
“What are you people doing here so late at night?”
The young man asked.
The moment the two men who had given Anuj poison saw him, they rushed to hide behind his horse in fear.
“Save us!”
“Officer, please save us from this ghost!”
The young man raised an eyebrow.
“Ghost? Where is this ghost?”
They pointed straight at Anuj.
“There! That’s the ghost!”
“He’s not a human, officer! He’s a ghost!”
The young man, whom they had addressed as ‘officer’ looked at Anuj.
‘Him… a ghost?’
He didn’t believe their words.
In his eyes, Anuj looked like a normal person. Nothing strange about him at all.
“Officer?... Oh! So you’re what the people here call a police officer?”
Anuj stepped forward and asked. The young man looked confused and asked,
“You don’t know who I am?... Wait, are you new here?”
“Yes! Yes, you’re right. I’m new here, so I don’t know much about you. I’ve only heard what you police officers do.”
Even though Anuj had spent most of his life in the mountains where officers from the Son Empire rarely appeared he still knew about them because his father had told him.
The young man then pointed the lantern’s light at the two men.
“What nonsense were you both talking about? How does he look like a ghost to yo—Eh? Wait! You two!!!”
He hadn’t seen their faces properly in the dark earlier, but now he did. The two men who had asked for his help were actually murderers, and notorious thugs.
‘Oh shit!’
‘No!!!’
Both men panicked.
They had been so terrified of Anuj earlier that they didn’t even think of what to do. When they saw someone approaching from the front, they begged him for help without thinking.
They tried to take a step back and run away, but…
Tak! Tak! Tak!
‘I-I can’t move!’
‘D-damn it! We’re finished!’
With a few quick strikes to their pressure points, the young man paralyzed them where they stood.
Srinnng!
“At last, the two of you have fallen into my hands. You’ve murdered so many people… I feel like separating your heads from your bodies right now will only be deserving punishment for your crimes...”
He placed his sword against their throats, the cold metal was just centimeters away from their skin. The two thugs began sweating in fear.
Then the young man looked at Anuj and asked,
“Were you attacked by these two as well?”
Anuj thought for a moment and answered,
“Yes! I mean… uh? You could say that. They gave me something poisonous...”
“What? They poisoned you too?!”
The young man exclaimed.
In every previous case involving these two criminals, they had used poison to kill or knock out victims.
He got off his horse and approached Anuj. When he lowered the lantern toward the ground.
‘!!!’
His eyes widened.
‘So many poison pouches?!’
There were many pouches lying on the ground, ones that Anuj had drunk. The same sticky residue from the poison inside them was smeared on the corners of Anuj’s mouth.
‘He… He drank all of these? Alone?!’
It didn’t take long for the young man to understand what had happened.
Suddenly, his expression turned serious. His Internal Energy began radiating outward, he was preparing to fight any second.
‘?!’
“Oh! So you want to fight? Excellent!”
Anuj replied with a grin. He loved fighting, he was ready anytime.
He too released his internal energy outward.
‘?!’
The young man was shocked.
‘His energy… this guy’s cultivation is at the Svadhisthana (Sacral) Chakra!’
This thought struck the young man hard.
Now he became even more cautious. Reaching the Svadhisthana (Sacral) Chakra meant being a Second-Rate Martial Artist.
The young man himself, was a First-Rate Martial Artist, capable of using the Manipura (Solar Plexus) Chakra. But he had only reached this realm a few days ago; so he can't underestimate Anuj.
Both Anuj and the young man were prepared to strike at any moment, but then…
Growl!!!~
‘?!’
Anuj’s stomach growled loudly.
‘‘No… I-I haven’t eaten anything since morning…’’
Anuj muttered slowly.
His exhaustion returned. His eyes began to droop…
‘Is the poison finally affecting him?’
The young man wondered.
Thud!
Anuj collapsed to the ground. He had no strength left. He needed food.
“Hey! Are you alright? Is your health okay?”
The young man asked.
“Huff! I’m f-fine… I-I just need something to eat… Huff! Huff! something to eat…”
Anuj’s eyes were slowly closing.
“Hey! Are you listening? Hello? I’m talking to you!”
There was no response from Anuj.
Seeing this, the young man cautiously approached him.
He examined Anuj for a moment, and once he was sure the boy was unconscious.
Tak! Tak! Tak!
He pressed several pressure points on his back, sealing Anuj’s internal energy flow.
He pulled out a bundle of rope from his clothes and then...
Grip! Grip!
Tied Anuj’s hands tightly behind his back.
“Haa! There… done.”
The young man sighed in relief.
His name was Kartikeya, an investigation officer of an organization called Red Floor, which served as the policing force for the Som Empire.
Anuj seemed suspicious to him. So first, he would take Anuj away from here, treat his condition, and then question him.
‘Let’s hope he’s not a spy from the Crimson Heaven Society…’
Kartikeya lifted Anuj’s unconscious body onto the back of his horse. He also took all the poison filled pouches that were drank by Anuj, for examnation.
He had just mounted the horse when...
“Oh! I almost forgot about you two.”
He looked at the two paralyzed thugs. After thinking for a moment...
Kartikeya removed his sword and...
Slash! Slash!
Sliced off the heads of those two thugs.
Thud!! Splatter!!
Their severed head and headless body dropped down on the soil, the blood spilled everywhere making the soil red.
Kartikeya killed them on the spot.
‘Death is all they deserve.’
Kartikeya then took their expressionless head and tied it using the remaining rope that was left with him on the horse's back.
Ttak! Ttak! Ttak!
And then he finally moved away from there.
Anuj's journey to find, Black Spear King before Sharv does, has now taken an unexpected turn...
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