"Karna?"
Arjuna remained still for a few moments after the word escaped his lips.
He realized almost immediately that he had spoken too loudly, and his eyes instinctively moved toward the potter and the two visitors, but neither seemed to have noticed him.
He lowered his gaze, placed the handful of sand he was holding back onto the pile and slowly stood up.
He did not want to walk directly toward Karna, nor did he want to make any sudden movement that might draw attention.
Instead, he walked toward his brother with the same unhurried manner he had been using while working, then sat beside him with his back turned toward Karna's side of the courtyard. The movement appeared ordinary enough.
Only Sahadeva noticed the tension in his shoulders.
Arjuna leaned slightly toward him and spoke under his breath. "Sahadeva, that is Karna."
Sahadeva immediately turned his head a fraction, surprise flashing across his face before he quickly controlled it.
He lowered his voice. "Brother Arjuna, what should we do? Do you think he recognized us and came here?"
Arjuna remained silent for a few breaths.
His eyes stayed fixed on the ground before him, but his mind was already moving rapidly.
"It can be a coincidence too," he whispered. "We should not assume anything yet."
Sahadeva looked at him for another moment before lowering his head. Neither brother spoke again. For now, the safest thing was to continue working as though nothing had happened.
Meanwhile, the potter had finally recovered from his surprise and looked toward Karna with a mixture of nervousness and eagerness.
The gold coin remained in his hand.
"All right, Mahodaya. We will finish it in time. What kind of vase do you want? Is there any special requirement? The size, shape and such?"
Karna nodded and began explaining. "I want a tall ceremonial vase, but not the usual rounded shape. The body should have eight sides. Each section should curve upward like a partially opened lotus petal, and the eight sections should meet at the mouth so that the rim itself resembles a lotus."
The potter listened carefully, his expression becoming more serious with every word.
Karna continued without rushing him. "The surface should have fine raised relief work. I want the Sun, lotus flowers, trees, animals, and birds. The central design should show Suryadev in his seven-horsed chariot. The artwork should continue around all eight sides, so there should not be one particular front. Wherever the vase is turned, the design should continue naturally. The base should be broad and sturdy, with lotus motifs around it. The entire vessel should have a rich reddish-brown polished finish, with subtle gold detailing."
The potter simply stared at him for two seconds.
Karna waited.
Indraverma looked from Karna to the potter and then back again.
The potter finally let out a small breath and nodded slowly. "It is quite detailed. No wonder you asked for fifteen days."
Karna smiled faintly. "Can you do it?"
The man immediately straightened. "Yes. I can."
Then, after a brief pause, he added, "But can you tell me again?"
Karna did not seem annoyed.
He repeated the description, this time more slowly, allowing the potter to concentrate on each part.
The man listened with his head slightly bowed, occasionally repeating a word under his breath so he would remember it.
When Karna finished, he nodded. "All right. I understand it now."
Indraverma could not help smiling. "Brother-in-law, your description is quite complex. I do not think even I could remember all those details after a day or two."
The potter immediately spoke up, perhaps afraid that the comment might make his prospective customer doubt him. "It can be done, Mahodaya. Do not worry. I will remember."
Karna looked at him calmly. "Do not worry. Tomorrow, I will bring you a painting of the vase with clear descriptions written beside the important details. It will make the work easier for you later, even if you forget something because of other problems."
The potter's expression relaxed considerably. "Thank you, Mahodaya."
Karna nodded. "Then it is settled. We will come tomorrow again with the proper design on a scroll."
He did not stay longer.
There was no reason to make the potter uncomfortable by standing around while he worked, and Karna still had several things to see in Kampilya before returning to the palace.
He and Indraverma left the backyard the same way they had entered it, while behind them the potter began examining the gold coin again and his wife quietly returned to the work that had been interrupted.
Karna walked through the crowded streets for some time afterward, observing the city as he had been doing since his arrival.
The preparations for the Swayamvara were visible everywhere.
Merchants had increased their prices because of the sudden influx of visitors, craftsmen were working almost without pause, soldiers were maintaining order around important roads and the royal compound had become busier with every passing day.
Karna took note of small things without making a show of it. He had always preferred seeing a city through its ordinary streets rather than only through its palace. A kingdom could look magnificent from a throne and still be suffering somewhere beyond the walls.
By the time he returned to the palace, the sun had begun its slow descent, and the heat of the day had softened.
Karna had barely finished changing his clothes when he decided to visit Draupadi.
He made his way toward her chambers and found one of her maids outside.
The girl immediately bowed. "Maharaj, the princess is busy with her drawing."
Karna raised an eyebrow. "Drawing?"
The maid nodded. "Yes, Maharaj."
Karna's curiosity was immediately awakened.
Draupadi had been spending considerable time preparing for the Swayamvara, but he had not known that she was drawing anything. He looked toward the closed doorway and then back at the maid. "Do not tell her that I have come."
The maid hesitated, clearly unsure whether she should allow such a thing, but Karna had already opened the door and stepped inside.
He did not consider it particularly serious. Draupadi was his ritual sister, and he had entered her chambers many times without ceremony. Besides, he wanted to surprise her.
Instead, he was the one who received the surprise.
He took only a few steps into the chamber before he saw the painting.
Draupadi stood some distance away with her back partially turned toward him, and in front of her was a large unfinished drawing spread across a surface.
Karna stopped. He could not see every detail from where he stood, but the figure was unmistakably that of a man.
Something about the posture immediately caught his attention. The man was holding a bow. Karna's curiosity deepened. He had no idea what Draupadi was drawing, and for a moment he simply watched her without saying anything.
Then he called softly, "Draupadi."
She nearly jumped.
The princess turned around so quickly that the brush in her hand almost slipped.
Her eyes widened when she saw him standing there. "Brother Karna, you... you did not even inform me beforehand before entering."
She glanced toward the doorway and then back at him, a faint embarrassment appearing on her face. "It is bad to enter a girl's room without permission, you know."
Karna chuckled. "I know. I only wanted to surprise you." His gaze moved toward the painting again. "But I did not expect you to surprise me instead. Who is that you are drawing?"
Draupadi immediately moved.
She stepped in front of the painting, almost instinctively blocking it from his view.
"No one."
Karna looked at her.
Then he looked at the portion of the painting still visible around her.
"Sister, I certainly know that it is not me or Dhrishtadyumna. Neither of us would like to grow a beard, and certainly not that long."
Draupadi's expression became increasingly uncomfortable, while Karna continued in the same light tone. "But I certainly see a bow there." He paused, studying her face rather than the painting. "Have you taken a liking to one of the suitors coming to the Swayamvara, sister?"
Draupadi did not answer.
Karna's smile softened. "If you have, you can tell me. I promise I will not tell anyone."
She finally looked directly at him.
"You promise?"
"I promise."
"You will not tell anyone?"
"I will not."
"And you will not berate me either?"
Karna's expression changed slightly. The teasing disappeared. He understood that this was not merely curiosity anymore. She was genuinely afraid of being judged.
"I promise," he said again.
Draupadi watched him for a few moments, searching his face for any sign that he was merely saying what she wanted to hear. She found none. Slowly, she stepped aside.
Karna looked at the painting.
His expression changed.
It was not a prince.
It was not a king.
It was a young Brahmin.
A familiar young Brahmin.
Karna stared at the painted face, and for a moment the chamber seemed strangely quiet around him.
He remembered the potter's backyard from earlier that day. The young man separating stones from the sand. The neat hair. The carefully maintained beard. The physical strength hidden beneath simple Brahmin clothing.
The sudden recognition in his eyes.
And now Karna saw the same face on Draupadi's scroll.
Except here, the young man held the silver bow that had been prepared for the Swayamvara.
Karna did not speak immediately.
His eyes remained on the painting.
'So that is who she was drawing.'