Empire of India: Rise of the Ruthless Prince

Lokendra Deva was returning from the Empire to the Royal Palace of Gajapathis. He was leading a delegation to the Empire.

He was pretty surprised by the scale of the celebrations for the coronation ceremony.

There were various high-profile people for the ceremony, including many European merchants and delegates.

'Even the Venetians were there.' He thought as he gazed at the forest from his carriage.

Lokendra was right all along about his opinion of not isolating Harsha. The kingdom would suffer due to a lack of vision from his father, always taking decisions emotionally.

'What should I do to save the kingdom at this stage? It is clear something is going to happen soon.' His thoughts raced.

The Gajapathis had their lionshare of problems as well. The incursions from the Kasim Sultanate were increasing, and Lokendra couldn't trust his senile father to take care of the kingdom with his emotionally impulsive character.

He was still in a precarious situation; all the nobles didn't really support him despite being the crown prince. He had reduced support in the political sphere. It was clear the nobles wanted him to become their puppet and rule behind his back and exploit the citizens of the kingdom.

'That prime minister needs to go first! I need to take the throne fast or else things might escalate with the Empire, which I would want to avoid.'

Lokendra's reasoning to avoid a head-on confrontation was simple as day.

'I can't fight that monster.'

The minute he laid his eyes on the New Emperor of Vijayanagara, his instincts screamed for him to run away. He was a minute in front of him. Harsha was younger and should have been less experienced than him.

But his demeanor said otherwise. There wasn't a hint of nervousness or anxiety in his posture. He stood confidently and took the throne.

"He was even scarier than his father when I met him." He muttered.

It was upsetting that the delegation's damage control effects were not enough to quell the situation with Harsha. It was clear that they dipped their fingers too deep into trouble this time.

Unlike Krishna Deva Raya, who went soft on his father for funding the Shekhar family. The conversation with Harsha made it clear that he wouldn't be lenient like that.

He vaguely remembers his audience with Harsha.

"Greetings, Your Majesty. I congratulate you on taking your rightful place." Lokendra greeted Harsha with a bright smile.

"Sit down, Prince. Let's have a nice chat." He said.

He didn't refer to him as his uncle; it was pretty much clear that he didn't intend to acknowledge the Gajapathis as his maternal family.

After a while of back and forth,

"Unfortunately, your demands cannot be fulfilled by us, Prince."

"I see," Lokendra looked dejected at the response.

"Send regards to the king. Tell him to take care of his health. There might be a high chance he might fall from the stairs due to old age." Harsha said with a bright grin plastered across his face.

The warning was clear. If the king tries to meddle with the internal affairs again, the result wouldn't be pretty for Gajapathis.

"I will definitely tell him that." He responded with a curt bow and left the room.

The sound of the Royal Palace gate opening jolted him awake from his thoughts.

He waved at his guard to come close.

"Tell them to gather for a meeting. I need to take serious measures right now." He whispered to the guard.

"Understood, Your Highness."

Lokendra reached the Royal Palace and went to report the results to his father.

Pratapendra was seated in his study room, going through documents slowly. He was reluctant to give his son the throne at this age. He wanted to enjoy the power till he died, and he also had his personal vendatta with Krishna Deva Raya.

"Come in." He ordered as he heard a knock on his door.

"Hoo.. You are back."

"Yes, Father."

He presented the report to his father, who slowly read through the report in silence.

"What the hell is this? Huh! I told you to fix it, and you didn't do anything right!!" He screamed at Lokendra in anger. His face twisted as he kept screaming at him.

"You are useless!!"

"Damn it, you can't even convince that Vermin!"

"How are you going to lead the kingdom?"

He threw the report at Lokendra, who stood expressionless. He was pretty fed up with this attitude of his father, but he had to bide his time for his plan to complete.

Lokendra didn't want to burst out in anger and ruin his plans like his father; throughout the years he had learned to control his emotions after observing his father's emotional rampage, harming the citizens and kingdom as a whole.

Despite knowing that his father wouldn't like the contents of the report, he presented them without changing anything to try to show him the reality that he had plunged the kingdom into.

'Wish he would finally realize his mistakes and step down voluntarily.' He thought.

Pratapendra was still his father despite his problems. He still had some hope left that he would return to his senses.

"You ungrateful bastard! How can you not solve a simple problem?"

He continued to yell at him.

"The prime minister was right. You are not fit to rule the kingdom."

The moment those words fell out of Pratapendra's mouth. The whole room went cold. The expression on Lokendra's face changed drastically. He didn't say anything; Pratapendra could feel the bloodlust seeping through his skin from his son.

He was frozen in place, but seconds later his expression went back to normal.

Pratapendra sighed deeply with a hint of relief.

"You may leave. Don't disappoint me again."

Lokendra left with his fist clenched in anger.

The prime minister was an influential figure in the kingdom and had the support of many nobles. He was a thorn in the way to the throne. It was because of him that Lokendra was suffering this fate.

The Prime minister was the source of all the problems in the kingdom.

"Just you wait!! You bastard minister. I will definitely send you to hell in the most painful way possible."