He was lying in the room, his eyes closed, but he was not asleep. The internal conflict in his mind was rising. The person he had come to punish was now being punished himself. Yet, he did not want to lessen his suffering by granting him death…
Until now, he had lived his life consumed by the fire of revenge. Punishing his father's murderer had been the sole purpose of his existence. So, was his life's purpose now fulfilled? Who was truly responsible for his father's murder? Sudas? Or the demons who had given him the drugs? But demons had always followed this policy—this policy must have been in place for years.
So, was the first person who established this policy guilty? Or was it the one who created these drugs?
The creator? Who was the real culprit?... The soldier who carried out the murder? Or the iron that was used to forge the sword that had pierced his father's chest? Who was truly to blame? Who? Sudas? The demon? The creator? The soldier? The blacksmith? Who? Who?
Vidhan sat up with a jolt. His body burned with heat, and his head throbbed. He was alone in the room, but the walls felt suffocating. He needed air. He stepped outside.
Evening was fading, and dark clouds still loomed in the sky. Sattu was playing with Raga nearby. Without a word, Vidhan walked away. But Raga noticed him. The dog ran to him, circling his feet, sniffing, and wagging his tail.
"Brother! Where are you going?" Sattu called as he approached. "It's almost night. There's a forest ahead, and it could start raining at any moment."
Vidhan said nothing and kept walking.
Whenever Vidhan was troubled, he would go into the wilderness and sit in solitude for hours. Sattu was familiar with this habit, so he followed him, bringing Raga along.
Soon, they reached the edge of the forest. Sattu hesitated for a moment, glancing at the darkening sky. The thick clouds made the fading light even dimmer. Without another word, he continued after Vidhan.
They walked deep into the forest until Vidhan found a suitable spot and sat beneath a tree. He remained silent for a long time. Sattu waited patiently for him to speak.
"We'll return home tomorrow morning," Vidhan finally said, breaking the silence.
"Return? What do you mean?" Sattu asked, surprised. "Weren't we going to Arthala?"
"I came to Kundar only for Sudas."
"But you promised Roopak that we'd go to Arthala."
"I didn't promise. I just agreed."
"Brother! After hearing Kali's story, didn't you realize how vast this world is? If we have the chance, shouldn't we explore it? Have you forgotten? When we were children, we promised that one day, we would travel the world. We would meet different people… taste new fruits… see distant lands…"
Vidhan remained silent, lost in thought.
Suddenly, the clouds rumbled fiercely, and Raga barked. At first, it seemed like he was just startled by the thunder. But when he continued barking furiously, his eyes darting around, Vidhan and Sattu grew alert and scanned their surroundings.
Vidhan had no weapon.So He quickly broke a thick branch from a tree and signaled to Sattu. Sattu immediately climbed a tree on the right, scanning the area. However, the dense bushes obscured his vision, making it impossible to see what lurked beyond.
The next moment, three figures appeared in front of Vidhan, surrounding him from the left and back. They were draped from head to toe in black cloaks, concealing their entire bodies—even their hands were not visible. The three closed in slowly, tightening their circle around him.
Raga barked furiously, trying to protect himself, but he lacked the courage to approach them. Vidhan stood firm, gripping his stick tightly, his eyes darting swiftly from side to side.
As they moved closer, one of them abruptly jerked off his cloak. The sight sent a shiver down Sattu's spine as he stood perched on a tree branch. The figure looked as though he had been unearthed from a grave. His entire body and face were wrapped in oil-soaked bandages, leaving only his eerie, lifeless eyes exposed. Even what little could be seen of his pupils was unnatural—the black irises had turned white.
Each of them carried sticks wrapped in rags, and small swords and knives hung from their waists. The very next moment, all three attacked Vidhan.
Both sides wielded their sticks like swords, striking fiercely. Raga continued barking, but his presence seemed to have no effect on them. Observing their movements, Vidhan quickly realized they were no ordinary soldiers.
Seizing an opening, Vidhan struck one of them hard on the head with his stick. The impact sent the man reeling, his head spinning. Not wasting a second, Vidhan delivered a powerful kick to his stomach, sending him stumbling backward—right into the tree where Sattu was perched.
The cloaked man collapsed helplessly against the trunk. Seeing this, Raga gained some confidence and ran toward him, barking loudly. The noise was unbearable for the fallen enemy. Gritting his teeth, he pulled out his sword and used the tree trunk for support to stand.
Sattu instinctively reached for his waist, hoping to find a weapon. Instead, his fingers brushed against something wrapped in his dhoti—a spinning Top. Without hesitation, he pulled it out and quickly tied a string around it.
Meanwhile, the cloaked man had regained his footing and was advancing toward Raga, determined to silence the relentless barking.
Sattu had never lost a spinning Top-throwing contest in his life.
As the enemy moved directly beneath his branch, Sattu took aim and hurled the spinning Top at his head with all his strength. It whizzed through the air and struck with brutal force.
The man, already disoriented from Vidhan's earlier blow, could not withstand a second hit. He crumpled to the ground, unconscious.
The moment he fell, Raga's confidence soared. With newfound courage, he lunged at the fallen figure, tugging at his bandages and tearing into them.