“Hey, Kairav!”
Karuna caught up with him in the corridor.
He turned, his expression neutral.
“Is it true? You got inducted as a Royal Bounty Hunter?”
Kairav paused.
“Who told you that?”
She smirked.
“So, it’s true. The whole university is talking.”
A flicker of annoyance crossed his face.
“You’re strange,” she added lightly.
“People chase attention and end up looking like idiots. You don’t even try—and still end up in the spotlight.”
He offered no response.
During class, an instructor announced that Guru Sariputta was absent due to urgent royal duty.
The room emptied quickly.
Kairav remained behind for a while before finally rising to leave for the library.
“Hey—wait.”
Karuna followed him again.
“You have to tell me your secret.”
He stopped and glanced back.
“Excuse me?”
“How did you get in? Our classmate, Prince Nikash Garuda of the Garuda Clan, tried and didn’t make it. But you did.”
Kairav exhaled quietly.
“Sendrav summoned me. Asked if I was willing. Then made me fight him.”
Karuna froze.
“You stood against Chief Sendrav… and walked out alive?”
The shock in her eyes was unmistakable.
Kairav gave a faint shrug.
“He showed mercy.”
Silence settled between them.
He turned to leave.
“Kairav…”
He stopped.
“I don’t care what people say,” she said quietly.
“Or where you’re from. You’re clear… here.”
She tapped her chest.
“Just don’t get dragged into something you can’t handle. People here aren’t simple.”
Kairav looked at her, steady and intent.
“This world doesn’t wait for you to be ready,” he said, his voice low and even.
“You choose… and you carry the cost.”
“Remember what the Royal Security Chief said.”
Karuna remembered Sendrav’s words from their first day, delivered from the podium before the entire university.
The words echoed in her mind.
She studied Kairav with growing unease.
There was no hesitation in him.
Only direction.
Not bravado.
Decision.
And somehow, that unsettled her more.
Kairav turned and walked away.
After archery practice, Samarth approached her.
“You were off today,” he observed.
“That’s not like you. Archery is your domain.”
Karuna came from a tribal clan renowned for producing exceptional archers.
Her skill with a bow was not something she took lightly. Read this novel at g.com for the best experience.
She didn’t deny his observation.
“You were right about Kairav,” she admitted.
“He’s not bad, but… something’s hidden.”
Samarth’s lips curved faintly.
“Tell me.”
She did.
The fight with Sendrav.
Kairav’s induction.
Everything she had learned.
Samarth listened without interrupting.
He showed no outward reaction, but his stillness lasted a moment too long.
The revelation had unsettled him.
“Scouting for bounty hunters happens,” he said at last.
“But this early… his induction is unusual.”
A brief pause.
Something tightened in his jaw before disappearing as quickly as it came.
Karuna watched him carefully.
“I don’t think he’s a bad person.”
“I hope you’re right,” Samarth replied, his tone calm and measured.
“But hope isn’t strategy.”
He reached for her hand, turning her palm upward before enclosing it between his own.
“You’re doing well. Stay within what we discussed.”
His hand rose.
His fingers brushed against her cheek, lingering a moment longer than necessary.
“I’ll keep you safe.”
Karuna hesitated.
Then she nodded.
“Yani and the others must be waiting.”
“I’m heading home too. Let me walk with you.”
She nodded again.
Samarth released her hand and composed himself, as though nothing unusual had happened.
By the time they reached the university entrance, Yani and the others noticed them walking together.
“Teach her arithmetic properly,” Samarth called out with a light laugh.
“She’ll fail the unit test.”
“Yani, tell him to stop,” Karuna protested.
Yani barely glanced at her brother.
“Ignore him.”
Karuna relaxed.
Then they spotted Kairav approaching.
Yani’s eyes lit up.
“Hide.”
Before Karuna could ask what she meant, Seth pulled her aside.
Kairav slowed.
He had sensed the movement.
“Congratulations, Mr. Royal Bounty Hunter.”
He turned.
Yani stepped out with a smile.
Kairav inclined his head.
“Thank you, Princess.”
“Just ‘thank you’?” she teased.
“You owe us a treat.”
“Us?”
Seth, Arun, Megh, and Karuna stepped out from their hiding places, offering awkward waves.
Yani tilted her head. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
“Well?”
Kairav paused.
Then he gave a small nod.
“Alright.”
The tavern buzzed with laughter, clinking mugs, and easy conversation.
Kairav sat among them, his posture slightly stiff.
He took a sip and deliberately loosened his shoulders, trying to settle into the atmosphere.
It didn’t quite work.
But he stayed.
Yani leaned forward.
“If you need help with blood weapons, I can make them for you. I learned from my uncle.”
“Thank you, Princess,” Kairav replied.
“I appreciate it.”
Yani frowned.
“Drop the ‘Princess.’ It’s Yani.”
A brief pause.
“…Yani.”
“Understood.”
Arun raised his mug.
“Come on. We’re friends now.”
The word lingered in Kairav’s mind.
Friends.
Unfamiliar.
Not unpleasant.
A faint smile touched his lips.
Seth leaned forward.
“Need gear? Leatherwork, weapon straps—I’ve got you. Not free, of course.”
He grinned.
“But fair.”
Megh laughed and slipped an arm around Karuna’s shoulder, the gesture easy and familiar.
“For gossip and rumours, we’re your people.”
Karuna leaned into her, smiling.
“Social butterflies,” Seth added.
The table erupted in laughter.
Kairav watched them.
The way they fit together so effortlessly.
The ease with which they teased, laughed, and made space for one another.
The warmth reached him…
But it didn’t quite land.
It wasn’t wrong.
Just distant.
He stayed anyway.
After the meal, Kairav went to settle the bill.
The manager handed him a folded note.
He opened it.
Midnight.
Old fountain.
His master.
Kairav’s eyes narrowed slightly.
He had been summoned.
Behind him, the tavern continued to roar with laughter—bright, careless, alive.
For a moment, it felt very far away.