The next morning, Emperor Sundara Chozha summoned his beloved daughter to his presence. He ordered all attendants, nurses, and physicians to withdraw far from his chamber. Seating Kundavai beside him, he lovingly stroked her back. Kundavai sensed that her father was struggling to express what he wished to say.

“Father! Are you angry with me?” she asked.

Tears glimmered in Sundara Chozhar’s eyes.

“Why, my dear, should I be angry with you?” he replied.

“For coming to Thanjavur against your command, of course!”

“Yes; you should not have come here against my orders. This Thanjavur palace is not fit for young women to reside in. You yourself must have realized that after last night’s incident.”

“Which incident are you referring to, Father?”

“I am speaking of that woman from Kodumbalur fainting. How is she now?”

“She is perfectly well today, Father! Even in Pazhayarai, she often loses consciousness like this. She recovers completely after a short while.”

“Did you ask her, dear? Did she say she saw or heard anything unusual in the palace last night?”

After thinking for a moment, Kundavai replied, “Yes, Father! When we all went to the Durga temple, she tried to go alone to the upper floor. There, she said she heard someone weeping in great sorrow. That frightened her, she said.”

“I thought as much. Do you understand now, child? There are spirits haunting this palace. You must not stay here. You must leave at once!” declared Sundara Chozhar.

As he spoke, Kundavai noticed his body trembling and his eyes staring wildly into some distant void. “Father! If that is so, why should you alone remain here? Why should Mother stay here? Let us all go to Pazhayarai! Coming here has not even improved your health, has it?” she asked.

The Emperor, with a smile tinged in sorrow, replied, “Will my body ever recover now? I have no such hope left in me.”

“Why should you lose hope like that, Father? The physician at Pazhayarai says he can cure you.”

“I have heard that, trusting his words, you have even sent someone to Lanka to fetch herbs! My dear, that shows the depth of your affection for me.”

“Is it wrong for a daughter to love her father, Father?”

“There is nothing wrong in that. To have a daughter with such devotion is my good fortune. There is nothing wrong in sending someone to bring herbs from Lanka either. But even if the herbs come from Lanka, or from the island of Java, or even if nectar itself descends from the heavens, my body will not be cured in this lifetime…”

“Oh no! Please do not say such things!” the princess cried.

“You have come here against my orders, child! Yet, I am truly glad for it. I have long wished to open my heart and tell you the truth one day. Now the time has come. Listen! If it were a bodily ailment, medicines and herbs might cure it. But my illness is not of the body; what remedy is there for a troubled mind?”

“Father, what unsolvable sorrow could trouble you, the Emperor who rules the three worlds?”

“You too speak in the fanciful exaggerations of poets, child! I am not the Emperor who rules the three worlds; nor do I rule the whole earth. My kingdom is but a small corner of this world. Even the burden of this, I am unable to bear…”

“Why should you bear it, Father? Are there not those fit to shoulder the weight of the kingdom? You have two sons, both as brave as lion cubs, heroes among heroes. They can bear any burden…”

“My daughter! It is only when I think of that, my heart shudders within me. Both your brothers are unparalleled warriors. Just as I raised you as the apple of my eye, so too did I cherish them. Yet, I doubt whether entrusting this kingdom to them would truly be an act of goodness. Would you have me hand over to them, along with the realm, a great and terrible curse as well?”

“What curse could possibly afflict this kingdom? Sibi, who gave his own flesh for a dove, and Manu Needhi Cholan, who sacrificed his son for a calf—these are our ancestors. Karikala Valavan and Perunarkilli ruled this land. The valiant Vijayalaya Cholan, who bore ninety-six wounds upon his body, sat upon this very throne. Aditya Cholan, who built a hundred and eight temples along the banks of the Kaveri, and Parantaka, who gilded the temple at Chidambaram and made it the Golden Hall, expanded this realm. This is the righteous empire ruled by Kandaraditya, who realized that love is Shiva, and in whose reign love and divinity dwelled together. What curse could ever befall such a kingdom? Father! You are gripped by some illusion of the mind! If you were to leave this Tanjavur fort…”

“You do not know what would happen the very moment I leave this place! Do you think I remain in this prison that is the Tanjai fort, having left beautiful Pazhayarai, for my own happiness? Kundavai, it is only because I am here that this ancient Chola kingdom is preserved from utter ruin. Think of what happened last night while the play was being performed! I was watching everything from the terrace beneath the moonlight. I even considered stopping the play midway…”

“Father! What is this? The play was wonderful! My heart swelled with pride at the glory of the Chola clan! Why did you wish to stop it? What part of the performance displeased you?”

“The play itself was flawless, my child! I found no fault in it. I speak of the behavior of those who watched it. Did you not notice the rival cries raised by the Kodumbalur faction and the Pazhuvettaraiyar faction?”

“I noticed, Father!”

“Even while I am here, they dare to behave so! Imagine what would happen if I were not! The moment I leave Tanjavur, strife will erupt