If there is one word that can bring a smile to every human's face, then that word would be 'Maurya'. It is believed that the ancestors of the Maurya's were one of the Sage family of the Giants who'd left their continent in search for wisdom. The human world includes the Dynasties named Vindhya and Makara, but only one could be truly called great- the Great Maurya !

***

Imperial Palace, Great Maurya Dynasty, Human Continent.

There was a reason Maurya was called great, and it was because each of their work was ingenous. They did not had to show off their talent, the crowd themselves acknowledged it. Be it the Takshashila, the world's first university, or the Maurya Sword Art which dominated the lands and protected the human race, the word Maurya had always left it's mark on history.

The same was for the imperial palace. The palace was not majestic, nor was it laided with gold and jewels. In fact, the entire palace was made up of simple stones, and looked cold and rough. The reason this palace was special was because it was entirely made of a single stone ! The people of the Maruya had somehow, with their crude and primitive looking tools, had carved out an entire mountain. One cannot spot any joints anywhere on its body, and it left people dumbfounded. This was the spirit of the Maurya !

Inside the palace was a small pond, and near it was a small table and two chairs. One chair was empty while the other was occupied by a middle aged man. The man was a little thin and had short hair, unlike the male natives of this world who liked to keep their hair long. He had depressions under his eyes, which showed that he had not been getting much sleep.

A figure swaggered in style as her long robe fluttered with her each move. Her hair were surprisingly styled and cut to mid-length and were silver in color. He came near the empty chair and rudely collapsed over it. The man seemed to be used to this otherworldly beauty as he kept his eyes on the book. The woman played with the paper in her hand for a while, then turned her head when realized that the man was not going to pay attention to her. Her intelligent and curious eyes glanced over the book's name.

The Art of War.

Finally she sighed. "Haa... This is why you were never popular with the girls."

"But I got you." the man softly said, and the woman gaped and could not reply. If she disagreed, it meant that she was not that beautiful and smart. But if she agreed, it would mean that the man so charming that even she fell for him.

Realizing this, she became irritated and tried to snatched the book from the man's hands. The man seemed to have predicted this, as he moved his hand a little away.

"Got you !" her other hand suddenly came and snatched the book- the first attack was a faint.

The man was a little surprised and raised one of his brows, smirking a little.

"Dear husband, you know that when it comes to a fight, I never lose." the woman said as she fanned her face with the precious book. Her hair below her natural crown flew a little because of the wind.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"I know." the man spoke only two words but the woman did not mind. The man's voice was a little weird; it sounded like an ill person, yet it was strong and firm.

" *sigh* You are no fun ! Why did I marry to you ?" she complained mischievously and passed him the letter.

The man slowly opened the letter and started to read it. He was truly a unique person, because his body hardly moved when he was reading the letter, or even when he was reading the book before. The woman waited for him and continued fanning herself with the precious book.

A few minutes the man finally looked away from the letter and sat still.

*tap tap tap*

His index finger tapped on the armrest occasionally producing tapping noises. His eyebrows were furrowed as he gazed into the air and mumbled.

"....the Gateway Continent.... why did they all go there ?....."

The woman who was previously playful did not disturb him this time and looked at him seriously. Finally he sighed and opened his mouth.

"We will have to wait."

The woman was surprised at his answer. "You are not sure ?"

The man shook his head and gave a short answer. "Too many factors."

At that moment a man and a woman walked over. Both were in civil dressed and wore simple clothing, and were the assistants of the middle aged man. They spotted the woman who was fanning herself and seemed to be used to her antics. The seated man looked at them and nodded.

"Your Majesty, the Cross-City Assault Crossbow prototypes are ready."

The man softly nodded his head- his break time was over. He stood up and and the three began to leave.

"Wait !" the woman stopped them and waved at the two. The two understood something and left.

The woman came near the man and kissed him. Unlike the previous show of weakness, the man this time was energetic as he grabbed the woman's bottom as he kissed her back. His other hand move all over her waist and back and pulled her towards him. Their deep kiss ended only a few minutes later. This time, the weak man who had black holes under his eyes looked quite handsome.

The two looked into each other's eyes, and then the Emperor left his Imperial Queen for work.

*****

Makara Dynasty, Human Continent.

"Hand over your goods and the humans, and you tree b*tches can go."

The voice boomed across the caravan, and the bandit leader made sure that the leaders sitting in the large and luxurious carriages heard him. The Vicious Teeth under him roared and had already marked the guards and mercenaries guarding the caravan as his food.

Shur quickly assessed the situation : There were close to fifty human bandits, and around seven Tiger beast-men who seemed to be their group leaders. Adding to that was the bandit leader who was an elite Tiger beast-man and the Vicious Teeth under him.

There was no response from the three carriages for a while, when suddenly one of the doors opened and three druid figures in armor walked down. These seemed to be figures from the from the Su Clan.

"Kill !" these women wasted no time ordered to kill the bandits. The battlefield was filled with various techniques and people started losing their lives. The bandits were individually strong but were eventually a motley bunch, and could not properly group together in formations to their benefit. The druid disciples made use of their ample Profound Energy and various fireballs and shock-waves were thrown in succession.

Mad Saber and Ananya jumped off the top into the battlefield and chopped a few human bandits. Soon the human bandits realized their strength and kept distance from them, creating an empty circle around them.

"Your opponents are us !"

Two Tiger beast-men sprinted towards them and hacked with their sabers. These sabers seemed old and a little blunt, but the force behind them could still easily chop off their limbs.

Mad Saber waved his heavy sword in response, and the sword and saber created a loud metallic noise. At the same time, Ananya moved her feet a little showing her amazing footwork and stabbed towards the forearm. Her aim was to make the bandit disable.

What a vicious move, the bandit thought as he quickly backed off. Ananya followed him using her movement technique and they engaged again. The three armored druids were engaging the Tiger beast-men group leaders and had suppressed them completely.

The bandit leader had not made his move yet and was watching with his arms crossed. Even the Vicious Teeth under him was watching all of them with a mocking smile, as if it was watching some bugs fighting.

He gradually lowered his hands and patted his mount.

"It's our turn now."

The beast became exited and roared, charging into the bloody battlefield. It clawed a few human mercenaries who came close to it while some were sandwiched between its sharp teeth. The bandit leader was carrying a large blade and each swing would cut down a few people. The leader was merciless and wasn't disturbed even after hearing the shrill cries of the dying young druids. Instead, it seemed as if he enjoyed when these women suffered and wailed in pain.

The armored druids eventually defeated their opponents and surrounded the leader.

"Ha ha !" the leader simply laughed and waved his extremely long blade in a circle. The druids in armors weren't able to get close and with a few swings from the blade their bodies were thrown away.

He looked around, and didn't see any opponents remaining. Then he glanced at the carriage and charged towards it.

He was near the carriage when suddenly he saw someone and stopped his mount. A young female human stood between his way with a sword in her hand. Behind her was another man who held a heavy sword.

"Not yet, pal." Mad Saber said with a smile. Then he paused and added : "My disciple will fight you."