---
The entire palace hadn’t slept. Neither had she.
Raveera stood alone in the Surya Chowk, the marble courtyard washed in the first breath of dawn. Her crimson veil lay discarded like wilted petals behind her. The red thread still tied around her wrist burned against her skin—a promise or a threat? Even she didn’t know.
> "Ek laal dhaaga... aur meri saari duniya rakh se bhar gayi."
The servants spoke in hushed voices, guards whispered of insults, and ministers argued about honour.
But Raveera? Raveera was silent.
Not because she didn’t have words— but because his words were still echoing inside her:
> "Ikraar se... ya majboori se."
She touched the thread. And the palace shook.
Not physically, no. But in power. In fear. In the realisation that this swayamvar had already ended—before it even began.
---
"Yeh beizzati thi, Raveera!" Rajmata’s voice thundered across the royal hall.
Raveera didn’t flinch. She stood tall, spine straight like the blade of a sword.
"Yaad rahe, tum Rathore ho. Tumhara khoon Rajya ke ghoorav ka pratinidhitva karta hai—na ki kisi jungle se utre raakshas ki aankhon mein kho jaane ke liye."
> “Raakshas… ya Rakh se nikla hua Dev?”
Raveera’s silence had started scaring people more than her rebellion ever could.
---
Meanwhile, far from the palace, in the Shivgarh ruins, he sat on a broken step, a cigarette burning slowly between his fingers.
Aryanveer.
Shadows moved around him like loyal soldiers. He didn’t speak. But his eyes did.
> "Ek rajkumari ko chhuna nahi tha mujhe... uski rooh ko chune aaya tha."
He looked at the sky, the ash grey clouds, the cold wind whispering through cracked walls.
> "Main wapas aaya hoon. Rajya se nahi… uss ikraar se badla lene jo kabhi jhootha tha. Ab waqt hai usse sach karne ka."
He tied the second end of a red thread to his wrist.
---
Back in the Rang Mahal, Raveera stared at her reflection. And for the first time, she saw someone else in the mirror.
Not the Princess. Not the puppet. But a woman. One who was chosen before she could choose.
> "Agar yeh khel hai... toh chalo, shatranj bichaate hain."
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