Empire Ascension: The Rise of the Fated One-Chapter 192: Acharya Raghunath

Inside the prince’s chamber, Aditya was taken aback by the mention of Nalanda, a university destroyed centuries ago. The mere mention of it piqued his curiosity.

"Scholars? Talking about Nalanda? Are you certain?" Aditya asked with curiosity. "Where are they?"

Hari Singh, his butler, responded calmly, addressing each of Aditya’s questions in turn. "Your Highness, judging by their attire, they appear to be Brahmin monks. I was about to send them away, but they insisted on meeting with you specifically regarding Nalanda. They are currently waiting at the entrance of the Grand Hall. Should I summon them in?"

Aditya shook his head. "No, I need to check out myself. If they are real scholars then it will be easier to rope in and if they are thugs I will handle it myself."

Hari Singh, cautiously added , "But Your Highness, there are still other visitors outside, many with strong backing, who claim to have important diplomatic concerns and are seeking your audience. They weren’t scheduled, but they might cause a commotion if kept unanswered.’"

Aditya sighed in frustration. "Hah! Who holds meetings at the dusk? Vinayak, send word that I’m occupied for the next week. They can come again, only if they have appointment regardless of urgency."

Rising swiftly from his seat, he turned to his butler. "Hari Singh, lead the way."

Hari Singh led Aditya through the Grand Hall, paying no mind to the disgruntled visitors who had hoped for an audience with the prince. These individuals, eager for a moment of his time, were left watching as Aditya made his way straight to the entrance, where a group of monks in saffron robes stood waiting patiently. They had large pouches hung on their shoulders ,probably containing goods as a traveller.

A wealthy merchant, unable to contain his scorn, whispered to a companion, "It seems the prince is so disgusted by these beggars that he couldn’t help but deal with them personally."

Another one, chuckling, added, "Serves them right. How shameless must they be to beg within the palace walls? I can’t believe the soldiers even let them in."

A nearby noble, overhearing the conversation, smirked and joined in, "You’d best be careful. If you insult them, they might curse you to lose your fortune.. or worse, your lifetime assets itself... This should be entertaining."

Yet, not everyone shared in the mockery. Some onlookers were impressed by the confident stance of the monks who were talking among themselves and stood at clear distance.

"You have no eye for distinction," one murmured. "Look at their attire. Do they seem like beggars to you?"

Another nodded in agreement. "They must be scholars of some famed gurukul. No wonder the prince is taking the time to meet them personally."

Offended, the first merchant shot back, "If you’re so knowledgeable, then why are you standing here like the rest of us, why you failed to get the appointment?"

Many in the hall were interested in how it would unfold, but they didn’t get much time as the prince’s attendant, Vinayak, took their attention. "Esteemed visitors, the prince is currently occupied and unable to meet with anyone. Please return after a week."

A noble from Gwalior seemed ready to protest, but Vinayak continued firmly, "And be sure to secure an appointment in advance. The prince will not entertain any unscheduled visits, regardless of the urgency."

Those who were powerful couldn’t hide their disgruntled faces, and those who were mere merchants with only backing still held mask of fake smiles as they left.

Amidst the hushed whispers and exit of crowd, Aditya and Hari Singh approached the group of monks. The scholars, who had been quietly conversing amongst themselves, noticed the prince’s arrival and paused.

Aditya offered a respectful greeting with a polite namaste. "Greetings, scholars who are interested in conversing about Nalanda. May I know more about your backgrounds?"

At the front of the group stood an elder, around sixty years of age, with a dignified presence. His eyes held the wisdom of a sage, with undeniable commanding respect in his attitude. The younger monks who accompanied him, numbering around twenty five, stood in respectful silence, awaiting his response.

Acharya Raghunath, surprised by the prince’s approach, replied calmly with a polite namaste, "Certainly, Prince. I am Acharya Raghunath, and we are the descendants of Nalanda. I am here to discuss its revival and the rehabilitation of our university."

Aditya couldn’t believe his ears. The university had been destroyed centuries ago. How could anyone suddenly appear at his door claiming to be a descendant of something that no longer existed? Was it a scam?

He inquired cautiously, "I apologize beforehand, but it’s hard for me to accept anyone as a scholar who claims to be part of an ancient marvel that has been destroyed for many generations." 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

The disciples grew angry at what they perceived as a direct mockery of their revered acharya and demanded that Prince Aditya take back his words or they would leave. However, Acharya Raghunath raised a hand to calm them.

He pointed out, "It’s good to see that the prince is knowledgeable enough to know its existence. My gamble in coming this far has indeed proven correct, as we chose to meet you, Prince. Please, ask me what you wish to know."

Aditya led them to the Grand Hall, which had ample space to accommodate everyone. He listened intently as the scholars shared the heartbreaking story of their ancestors and how they, as descendants of the survivors, came to call themselves the heirs of Nalanda.

The tale was both heartbreaking and bloodboiling as he learned about the true events in detail, surrounding its destruction and how the remnants of Nalanda were still engulfed in forest. They were here in pursuit of reviving the ancient ruins that lay within their empire.

Throughout the conversation, Aditya was impressed by the foresight of these so-called scholars, who had separated from the remaining sect and travelled such a distance to seek aid. However, he couldn’t shake the feeling that their efforts might not benefit the empire. The knowledge they claimed to possess was largely lost, and what remained were only the basic fundamentals, which seemed insufficient for long-term growth.

But not everything was useless as he delved deeper into the topics they offered for discussion. Coming from a modern world, Aditya possessed superior knowledge and was pleasantly surprised to discover that they had at least a core level of understanding equivalent to what a fourth or fifth-grade student would learn in modern world standards.

Their existing knowledge in physical science, geography, trigonometry, and alchemy was remarkable, though still outdated. However, their expertise in Ayurveda and practices of yoga stood out as exceptional.

Suddenly, an idea struck him. He was planning to establish an academy for his company employees, and this could be the perfect opportunity to collaborate with these scholars. If given the chance to learn modern knowledge and conduct research, they could become pioneers in the backward era of the 16th century. He envisioned providing them with a periodic table and training them in specific fields that his artisans could not master. This would make it significantly easier to craft more advanced materials and integrate them into weapon making.

He struck a deal with them to establish the revival of the university as his company’s new academy in Delhi. It would be challenging to maintain and secure the institution if it were located far from the capital in Bengal kingdom. However, they would need to undergo daily training in various courses provided by the prince himself.

Acharya Raghunath was a proud scholar but a smart one. Had it been another person, he might have rejected the idea to study their course with an unknown source, and so was the reaction of his disciples, who bore a pride of distinct knowledgeable descendants of Nalanda and protested outright at the proposal. But Acharya agreed eagerly with a calm smile.

Throughout the conversation, just like the prince, Acharya had gauged the level of knowledge the prince possessed, and he knew that he knew more ahead of his time, which was indeed scary. But that didn’t matter to him, as he believed under him their new university would transcend new heights, regardless of the prince being an incarnation of a Indra (deity) or an Asura (demon) hiding in the flesh of a human.

Oblivious to the acharya’s thoughts, Aditya felt thrilled as he finally had a smart bunch of students who would soon become effective teachers, training his society to move forward. He arranged for their settlement inside the palace with his butler, Hari Singh, before returning to his quarters.

As they were left all alone in the Grand Hall for a while, one of the students asked with disdain, "Acharya, why did you agree to all the conditions of the prince? He didn’t mention that the new academy will be Nalanda, and his audacity to question you despite being so young.. it will be hard to follow what he will provide."

Acharya replied calmly, his voice laced with confidence, "Everything happens for a reason. To ask a question, we must have some sort of idea to discern. You saw him questioning, but I saw him judging."

Suddenly, a pin-drop silence prevailed as they all understood what it meant.