The brothel of Matangpur was immersed in music. The clinking of coins and the sound of laughter could be heard everywhere. The air was intoxicating and every corner smelled of lust.

In a chamber overlooking the royal palace of Matangpur, Menka was sitting in front of the mirror and combing her hair lazily. Surabhi entered the room and saw her smiling at her reflection on the mirror.

Surabhi cleared her throat. Menka turned back and saw her. Surabhi approached her and said,"Everyone is busy. I wanted to talk to someone. So, I came to you. Do you have any problem?" Menka held her hand and said,"Not at all, Mousi." Surabhi took the comb from her hand and started combing her hair. She said,"Your hair is very beautiful." Menka smiled at her and said,"You are much more beautiful than me. Sometimes, I feel jealous of you. I just have this hair with me and you are casting an evil eye on it. Do you want me to go bald?" Both of them had a good laugh.

Surabhi kept the comb aside and started braiding Menka's hair. She said,"When I entered the room, I saw that you were smiling to yourself. Were you dreaming?" Menka smiled. She looked at Surabhi's reflection. Surabhi sighed. She said,"Dreams are usually very beautiful. People should have dreams. But Menka, do not dream too big. Do not trouble yourself with dreams which can never be fulfilled. Such dreams will only bring misery. You are a courtesan and you should dream only of those things which can be achieved by a courtesan." Menka's smile vanished. Surabhi finished braiding her hair. She patted Menka's shoulder and left.

Ajaynagar:

It was a new moon night. The stars were shining in the night sky. A veiled woman was walking in a fast pace. She was continuously looking here and there. She was afraid. "No one should see me.", she thought. Her heart started beating fast as she approached the royal palace. She was walking past a tree when someone caught hold of her and pulled her behind the tree. She was about to scream when the other person placed his hand on her mouth. The woman bit his hand and tried to escape from his hold. The man pulled her by her hand.

He lowered her veil and whispered in her ears,"Devayani...." The woman pushed him lightly and said,"What are you doing here? I was waiting for you near the lake. Why did you not arrive?" He said,"I was late and you decided to return to the palace without meeting me. Rajkumari Devayani, did you really think that I would not come to meet you." Devayani looked at him and raised an eyebrow. She said,"I thought that Maharaj Veerbhadra did not have time for his lover." Veerbhadra cupped her face. He took her hand and placed a kiss on it . He said,"Dear Devayani, the king you are talking about is also your lover. How could I not come to meet you after getting your letter?"

They embraced each other. Devayani said to him,"My brother has decided to marry me off to Rajkumar Vinayak of Matangpur. He has not yet discussed the matter with my father. I do not want to marry him. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Please come and ask for my hand from my father. Otherwise, it will be too late." Veerbhadra caressed her cheek and said,"Do not worry. I will surely come and talk to your father. You need to be patient till then."

Just then, they heard some footsteps. It was a soldier who was patrolling in that area. Devayani panicked. She said to Veerbhadra,"You need to leave now." Veerbhadra nodded his head. He looked at her smiling face before leaving.

Devayani entered the palace through a secret passage. She was walking through the corridors when she collided with someone. Her throat dried up in fear when she saw the person with whom she had collided. It was her brother, Rajkumar Bhaskar.

He was surprised to see her. Devayani smiled nervously and said,"Bhratashree, what are you doing here at this time?" Bhaskar said,"I think that I should ask the same question to you. You were walking here with this veil. What are you doing here? Why are you not in your chamber?" Devayani turned pale. She said,"Bhratashree, can I not have a walk in the corridors? I could not sleep. So, I thought of having a walk here. And this veil....... I veiled myself so that no one recognises me."

Bhaskar did not look convinced. He said to her,"Why did you not want to be recognised? Who is going to harm you in this palace after discovering your identity?" Devayani gasped. However, she composed herself and said,"Look at yourself! You are showering me with questions without any reason. I wanted to avoid that. That is the reason why I had veiled myself. I know that no one is going to harm me." She was about to leave that place when Bhaskar held her arm. He said,"Devayani, do you think that I am not aware of anything. I know it very well what you were doing here. Did you not go to meet your lover?" Devayani was searching for words to gather.

Bhaskar did not wait for her reply. He said,"Who is your lover? Maharaj Veerbhadra, right? Listen to me carefully. His kingdom is smaller than our kingdom. Your marriage will be of no advantage to us. Rajkumar Vinayak is the best husband for you. He hails from a large and powerful kingdom. He is also a close friend of mine. He is the only one you should think about."

Bhaskar released Devayani's arm and walked away. Devayani hurried towards her chamber. Anger took over her mind. She hit the mirror with her hand. The mirror shattered into pieces. Her hand was bleeding. Her maid Chaya rushed into her chamber on hearing the noise. She said to Devayani,"Rajkumari, what are you doing? Please calm down." Chaya made Devayani sit on the bed. She said,"Rajkumari, your hand is bleeding. Let me dress your wound."

Matangpur:

Vinayak was sitting inside his chamber. There was an eerie silence inside the chamber. The silence was broken by the footsteps of a man who had entered his chamber. Vinayak said to him,"Can I trust you?" The man said,"Rajkumar, you can trust me. You will not regret paying the gold to me." Vinayak nodded his head.

He stood up from his place and approached the man. He handed him a bag of gold coins. Vinayak whispered to him,"Yuvraj Rudradev will win the war but he will not return to Matangpur. Did you understand?" The man bowed to him and left the chamber.