Looking at Arohi with utter contempt, he spat out, "I see it all now, Arohi. You couldn't find a place in your own kingdom because of your mother's tyranny, so you came here luring for property to establish your dominance. But I never dreamed in my wildest nightmares that your character could fall this low."
Arohi felt as if her heart was being ripped apart. She wailed, "Aditya, you level such a foul allegation against me? You didn't believe me even for a second?"
Aditya roared, "There is nothing left to believe! Either you stay in this palace, or I do. Get out of here!"
Wiping her tears, Arohi steeled herself. In a steady, cold voice, she said, "Fine, Aditya. You stay in your palace. I am leaving. But remember, I will return with proof of my innocence. On that day, when you all learn the truth and want to take me back as your Royal Bride—remember that Arohi will not return. Once I cross this threshold, I will never return to this tarnished love of yours."
With her head held high, Arohi walked out of the palace. But outside, it was pitch black. Where would she go? She couldn't face her uncle's house, and the forest was full of predatory beasts. Walking aimlessly, she sat beneath a massive tree beside a quiet, flowing river. A boat was tied to the ghat. For a moment, she thought of boarding it and drifting far away.
But then, a stubborn resolve took hold. "No! If I flee to another kingdom, how will I gather proof? All the conspiracies happened inside this palace; I must stay here."
She began to connect the dots. The disappearance of the maid Nila, the gruesome murder of Ratna, the sudden excess of spices in the food—it all started the day Shilajit took the Minister's post. Arohi remembered seeing a handsome stranger enter Shilajit's room. Was that the man beside her last night?
Immediately, she scolded herself, "Shame on me! Have I gone mad? Uncle Shilajit helped me find my necklace; he acted so kind. Is it right to suspect him? Am I overthinking?" But a voice from the corner of her mind whispered—whatever happened, the unrest in the palace began only after the Minister's arrival.
Arohi decided she would find proof that very night. she asked an elderly village subject for a black shawl. She said, "Mother, it is very cold; will you give me this shawl?" Wrapping herself in the darkness of the cloth, she vanished into the night.
Since childhood, Arohi had been skilled at climbing trees and navigating difficult paths. Using that skill, she scaled the palace boundary wall and crouched beneath the Minister's window. She knew Shilajit hadn't returned to his room yet. She waited for him to arrive, hoping a secret truth would spill from his own mouth.
As she blended into the shadows, Arohi could hear nothing but the frantic thumping of her own heart. She knew if she were caught today, there would be no mercy. But to reclaim her honor, she had to listen to the hiss of this black cobra.
The night was silent. Arohi sat as still as stone under the window. Suddenly, heavy footsteps echoed inside the room. Shilajit entered and loudly bolted the door. Arohi sharpened her ears.
A moment later, a devilish laughter erupted from within. Shilajit pulled a bottle of liquor from under the bed and poured it into a glass. After a gulp, he began to mutter to himself, "What a genius you are, Shilajit! In one stroke, you've banished that nuisance Arohi from the palace! By throwing mud on her character, Aditya and the King kicked her out like a dog. You are unmatched!"
Outside, beneath the window, it felt as if the sky had fallen on Arohi's head. She couldn't believe her own ears. Her beloved Uncle Shilajit was such a massive traitor?
Shilajit began to dance in a drunken stupor, saying, "Arohi is gone; now I'll kick that Aditya out too. He's like a piece of straw; one flick and he'll fly away. Then only the King and Queen Mother will remain—two old fools. I'll finish the King with poison, and the Queen Mother will go mad with grief. All of Junagarh will belong to me and my daughter!" With that, he collapsed onto the bed and began to snore loudly.
Arohi sobbed quietly. But she knew this was no time for tears. This monster had to be stopped. From poisoning the food to murdering Ratna—it was all his doing. But where was the proof?
Suddenly, Arohi remembered the Magic Mirror, the one she had used to save Aditya from Dracula's curse once before. But the mirror was far away, with her mother. Walking there would take two days. By then, Shilajit would have destroyed everything. Then she remembered the Magic Shoes, a gift from a doe to Aditya. Wearing those shoes, one could cover miles in an instant.
Arohi braved the palace again. Entering Aditya's room, she saw him weeping inconsolably. Arohi desperately wanted to hug him and say, "It's all a lie," but she restrained herself. As she was slipping out with the shoes, she ran into the King.
The King thundered, "Who are you? How did you enter the palace at this hour, evading the guards?"
Arohi disguised her voice and said hoarsely, "Maharaja, I am a simple village subject. I have injured my leg badly and couldn't find a healer. I came hoping for some pain ointment."
The King, being a kind man, said, "A girl alone at this hour? Very well, take this ointment. Go safely."
Taking the ointment, Arohi hurried outside and put on the Magic Shoes. At the speed of the wind, she reached her mother's palace. Her mother was deep in sleep; no one even realized Arohi had come. She quickly took the Magic Mirror and returned to Junagarh.
In a secluded corner of the forest, Arohi held the mirror before her. Tears streamed down her face. In a trembling voice, she said, "Oh, Magic Mirror, you brought my Aditya back from the clutches of the God of Death. Today, there is danger again. How do I unmask this demon Shilajit before the King? Show me the way. How do I save Junagarh from this venomous serpent?"
The mirror slowly began to glow with a strange blue light. Arohi waited breathlessly for the mirror's answer..