Empire of India: Rise of the Ruthless Prince

It was early morning in the capital city of Hampi. The air was crisp and cool. The sun wasn't up. The darkness was awaiting the sun's arrival on the horizon to fade. The Palace staff was waking up to do their chores in the morning.

Meanwhile, in the training arena. Sounds of wooden swords clashing swiftly and precisely could be heard. It was a spar between Harsha and Viswa.

Harsha didn't really have much time to spar due to his Emperor duties but he made time twice a week to spar with Viswa, his butler.

Viswa was the only person that could realistically spar with him. The rest of the palace guards were to weak compared to him. So it was useless to train with them to increase his skill. Viswa, on the other hand, was trained under him and was very talented compared to the others.

Harsha skill would only improve from fighting stronger opponents and Viswa was the perfect candidate for this. He had been constantly keeping up with his training and catching up to his sword arts. His talent was exceptional; his swordsmanship relied on his body flexibility a lot more than Harsha's precise and calculated style.

It was good practice for Harsha to spar with him.

"That's enough for today." Harsha said, taking a deep breath after defeating Viswa in the spar.

"Yes, Your Majesty," replied Viswa, huffing with a flushed expression.

He steadily improved for the past few months, training rigorously with the Emperor. He wanted to still grow stronger but he understood that the physical strength wasn't the pinnacle. Viswa studied a lot during his free time from duties. He learned a lot of new things that he might need in his job.

He learned basic medicine, the identification of poisonous plants and improving his overall planning to do his job efficiently. He was partially responsible for the planning process of the annexure of the Qutb sultanate. He was also managing the paper production and scale productions in the Empire.

It had to be controlled to a certain extent to ensure its adoption would be smooth among the various merchants.

"Go freshen up. I need the reports of the annexures and other things going on in the Empire." Harsha said, turning on his heel to leave to take a bath before he began his day.

Viswa nodded and went to freshen up.

After a while. He reached the Emperor's study room with a bunch of documents and letters from the Royal Commander. He was responsible for the communication during the annexure. It was told by the Emperor to only report the urgent news to him.

"Here are the reports of the annexure. I have compiled all the events by date in the paper." Viswa handed a paper with the compiled results. "I still have the letters, if Your Majesty wants to cross-check the content."

Harsha grabbed the paper and read it. "It's fine. I trust your ability."

"So, Marathas captured 4 territories, including Daman. We gifted them three of them." Harsha scratched his head. "Hmm…It's not a complete loss. We shouldn't have given away Thalner."

"Why is that? Your Majesty?"

Harsha glanced up and put down the document. "The region of Mandu just has a small strip of land to go through without violation of borders."

"It's easier for the enemies to isolate the region. If, in any case, Marathas or Yadavas turn against us."

Viswa nodded. "The execution of the Qutb sultan's family was successful. Unfortunately, the Crown Prince of the Sultanate couldn't be located even by the Yamaduts."

"Hmmm. That is quite concerning. If he managed not to be detected by Yamaduts. He must be pretty skilled."

Viswa shook his head. "About that, Yamaduts reported he is weak."

"You suspect something wrong?"

"It is very likely. I am sure Rakhtasura must have noticed it as well." Viswa said. "They are currently putting some manpower into the search."

'Did someone else interfere in the war apart from us?'

Harsha thought.

'There seem to be none from the reports.'

After looking through some more reports, he didn't find any traces of interference from anyone.

'Yamaduts might be mistaken. Only time will tell us the truth now.'

He sighed inwardly.

"What about the Marathas? How are they faring?" Asked Harsha.

"They would need a lot of time to recoup their troops and resources." Viswa began. "This war taxed not only their manpower but their wealth and commanders. They lost the king also."

Harsha leaned back into his chair with a thoughtful look. The loss of the king meant they lost a pillar of their kingdom. It would be huge unless the crown prince of the Marathas doesn't step up to take proper reign of the kingdom.

It would just mean doom for the Marathas.

"What about the prince?" Is he capable or just like one in the Kasim Sultanate?"

"He is capable. Reports suggest he is stronger than his late father. We can expect the Marathas to stay afloat." Viswa said in a single breath.

"Well... unless he isn't a complete dimwit. It's fine." Harsha sighed.

"But, Your Majesty." Viswa's said with a concerned voice.

Harsha raised his brow. "What now?"

"I am worried about the retaliation from the Portuguese." Viswa said, looking at the report. "General Barnabas isn't going to take this lying down."

"They spent a fortune fortifying Daman. They won't just lose it without a proper fight."

Harsha chuckled. "There is a solution for everyone's problem. Don't you worry."

"Can the Marathas defend a full-on conquest from the Portuguese?" Viswa asked with a thoughtful look.

The Portuguese were just superior in terms of artillery, soldiers, and commander. They had vast experience battling in different fields. The Marathas can't really defend against a prepared Portuguese army.

"The Portuguese won't be able to attack. I have a plan in mind!"

"What? Your Majesty. I have been receiving reports from Goa. They already sent ships to Malacca and are going to prepare for a full takeover."

Harsha smiled. "Send an alliance invitation to Marathas."

Viswa was taken aback. "Your Majesty, we can't make them our enemy right now."

His worry was valid as it would just hamper the trade of the Empire because they can't control the oceans due to a lack of a proper navy. They didn't have ships to monitor their coastline; all they had was some old ships with some crude artillery. That won't be sufficient to protect their vast coastline.

"We won't fight the Portuguese." He smiled. "It will be the Dutch."

"Dutch?" Viswa looked puzzled for a moment.

The tensions were high between the Dutch and Portuguese at this point in time due to the oncoming Iberian union. Although it was later in the timeline, here it seems to be hastened. Harsha found out the tensions were high between the Dutch and Portuguese from the reports from the Indian Ocean and Lanka territories.

Spy reports suggest they were not on amicable terms and were constantly trying to sabotage each other at a moment's notice. The Dutch disliked the Spanish and the iberian union that would bring the kingdom of Portugal and Spain together, pissed off the Dutch. It would make the Portuguese foreign bases a target for the Dutch.

"There are tensions between the two. We can use that against them." Harsha began. "The Dutch won't leave any opportunity to sabotage the Portuguese."

"How do we do that? It will just piss them off more." Viswa asked with a dark smile. He didn't like the arrogant attitude of the Portuguese either. This seemed like a sound plan. He wanted to go through with it.

"Rumors!!"

"Ah…." Viswa's mind raced with thoughts.

Harsha smiled as he saw Viswa in deep thought. He knew that Viswa would understand his ambitions easily.

Viswa's face lit up. "I think I have a plan for it."

Harsha didn't bother to listen to the plan. He will just ask Rakhtasura to help Viswa out. He wanted Viswa to stand on his own and learn from his mistakes.

"Do what you feel is the best." Harsha smiled.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

The alliance with the Marathas and the rumors would be spread under the strict eye of Viswa. It was going to be a complete wipeout of the Portuguese influence in the subcontinent.

"What's next?"

"There has been a lot of crime going around the Empire," Viswa reported. "And the inefficient system of the sarpanches is very corrupt, as the criminals would just buy out the witnesses."

The Empire's judicial framework was nonexistent. The crimes were usually solved by the sarpanch of the village and a higher authority in the cities. It was easy to bribe the way of the crime for wealthy individuals. The victims had no choice but to just bear with the injustice.

The lack of police systems and personnel made it worse, as there was no one to defend the poor man or victims if the criminals retaliate.

"This is going to be a huge problem. I have some plans for this."

Harsha looked serious. He had to make a new judicial framework for the Empire and a robust police system. He needed to plan for the future as well. This would be a pivotal moment in the Empire's law and order path. It would strengthen the loyalty of the people towards the Empire.

This needed to be extensively researched for this era and implemented with strict regulations. He needed lawyers to represent normal people as well. He had to train them with resources and the law of the land.

"Call in the royal council meeting. This is going to be the main agenda."