Chapter 364 - 362: Alakshmi Here To Bring Disaster?...

(A/N):

Drop a meme here that you find funny. Or reflects your mood.

Guys I hope you put more comments and power stones... Which will encourage me...

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While Devara and Alakshmi stood facing one another, the immediate tension between them gradually began to settle, but the same could not be said for everyone else in the arena.

All around the gathering, quiet whispers began to spread.

At first they were barely audible, exchanged between gods, sages, kings and divine attendants who kept their voices low enough that they believed neither Devara nor Alakshmi would hear them.

But as more people began noticing that Alakshmi had actually decided to remain, the whispers multiplied.

"Alakshmi is here..."

"At the wedding..."

"Do you think that is a good sign?"

"What do you mean, a good sign? Her presence is never considered a good omen."

"Keep your voice down."

"What if something happens?"

"Something always happens when she appears."

Several of the guests exchanged uneasy looks.

The citizens did not understand why the divine guests had suddenly become so tense, but they could see that something was wrong.

The atmosphere that had returned to normal after Devara’s apology was once again filled with nervous glances.

A few gods stood together, speaking quietly among themselves.

"She has come all the way to Trivenivrata," one whispered.

"And she has decided to stay," another replied.

"That is what concerns me."

"What do you think will happen?"

The answer came in an even lower voice.

"Who knows? Misfortune follows wherever she goes."

Another divine guest frowned.

"Do not speak of her as though she deliberately causes every disaster."

"I did not say she causes them. I said her presence is associated with them."

"Either way, this is a wedding. What kind of catastrophe could possibly occur now?"

A sage standing nearby quietly muttered,

"You should not ask that question aloud."

The others turned toward him.

The sage looked toward Alakshmi.

"Because the moment you ask what could go wrong, fate sometimes seems to take it as a challenge."

That earned several uncomfortable looks.

Even some of the gods were beginning to wonder whether they should remain.

Parvati noticed the whispers and glanced toward the gathering with a faint frown.

She clearly disliked the way everyone was speaking about Alakshmi as though she were a walking disaster rather than a divine being standing among her own family.

Shiva remained silent, his eyes calmly observing the guests.

Vishnu also heard the whispers.

His expression became slightly more serious.

Lakshmi heard them too.

For a moment, pain crossed her face.

She knew exactly what those whispers meant.

She had heard versions of them countless times.

Alakshmi’s name was often spoken with fear, suspicion or discomfort.

People associated her with poverty, discord, loss and misfortune, and whenever something unfortunate happened in her vicinity, her presence was blamed whether she had anything to do with it or not.

Lakshmi glanced toward her elder sister.

Alakshmi had heard the whispers as well.

She stood quietly near the edge of the gathering, her expression unreadable.

But her eyes had lowered.

For a moment, she looked less like the intimidating goddess who had entered the arena and more like someone who had become painfully accustomed to hearing people speak about her when they thought she was not listening.

Devara noticed as his eyes narrowed slightly.

He looked around at the people whispering and then back at his aunt.

Something about the situation bothered him.

She had come to his wedding because she had felt excluded.

She had confronted Lakshmi because she had not been invited.

He had apologized.

She had accepted.

And now, even after all that, people were already discussing what disaster her presence might bring.

Devara slowly exhaled.

His fingers tightened around the divine plate his mother had given him.

He had a feeling that his wedding had just acquired another unexpected responsibility.

Not protecting his kingdom from an enemy.

Not fighting an asura.

But making sure that a member of his own family was not treated like an unwanted omen simply because of who she was.

Devara’s expression slowly changed as the whispers continued.

He had initially tried to ignore them.

After all, people were nervous, and he could understand why the sudden arrival of an unfamiliar goddess, especially one carrying such a complicated reputation, would make the atmosphere uneasy.

But the more he listened, the more clearly the words reached his ears.

He could hear every whisper.

Every fearful question.

Every careless remark about what kind of disaster would follow simply because Alakshmi had entered the arena.

His eyes gradually moved toward the crowd.

The people whispering among themselves did not realize that Devara could hear them perfectly.

Some were looking toward Alakshmi with fear, others were discussing whether her presence would bring poverty or discord to Trivenivrata, while a few were already wondering what catastrophe might happen next.

Devara’s jaw tightened.

His gaze shifted toward Alakshmi.

She was standing quietly, clearly aware of what people were saying, but she did not respond. Perhaps she had heard such words so many times that she had simply learned to endure them.

That was what irritated Devara the most.

She had come to his wedding.

She had confronted his mother because she felt forgotten.

He had apologized to her because he genuinely believed that he had made a mistake.

And she had accepted.

Yet now the same people who had gathered to celebrate his wedding were treating his aunt as though her very presence were a curse.

A low sound escaped Devara’s throat.

It was barely audible at first.

A deep growl.

Those standing closest to him immediately turned.

Yami looked toward him.

Indhumati noticed the change in his expression.

Lakshmi’s eyes widened slightly.

She knew that sound.

So did Vishnu.

So did Shiva.

Devara’s shoulders rose as he drew a slow breath.

The growl became deeper.

It was no longer the sound of an irritated man.

Something ancient stirred within him.

Something that belonged to the template he carried.

The power of Narasimha.

Then Devara opened his mouth.

And roared.

ROOOOOAAAAAARRRRRR!

The sound exploded across the arena.

It was not merely a loud roar.

It was the roar of a divine lion.

The roar of Lord Narasimha.

The sound carried such overwhelming force that the very air seemed to shatter around it.

A tremendous shockwave erupted outward from Devara, sweeping across the entire arena and racing toward the heavens.

The dark clouds that had gathered above Trivenivrata were struck by the expanding wave.

They scattered instantly.

The enormous mass of storm clouds that had covered the sky moments earlier was torn apart and pushed in every direction, revealing the brilliant sunlight beyond them.

The banners around the arena snapped violently in the shockwave.

Flames bent.

Dust rose from the ground.

Clothing and hair were thrown backward by the sudden force.

And then...

Silence. Absolute silence.

Not a single whisper remained.

The entire crowd had frozen.

The gods stood still.

The kings and sages stared toward Devara.

Even those who had been murmuring only moments earlier were now completely silent.

Devara slowly lowered his head.

His eyes remained fixed upon the crowd.

He did not need to shout again.

The message had already been delivered.

His voice, when it finally came, was calm.

"If you are afraid of my aunt, then keep that fear to yourselves."

Nobody moved.

"She is a guest in my kingdom,"

Devara continued, his gaze travelling across the arena. "

More importantly, she is my mother’s elder sister and therefore my family. She came here because she was hurt that she had not been invited. I apologized to her for that mistake, and she accepted my apology."

His expression hardened.

"So stop speaking about her as though she is some disaster waiting to happen."

The crowd remained silent.

Devara’s gaze softened slightly.

"You came here to celebrate my wedding. Then celebrate it. Eat, speak, laugh and enjoy yourselves. But do not insult a member of my family simply because you are afraid of what her presence might mean."

His eyes briefly moved toward Alakshmi.

She was staring at him.

For perhaps the first time since she had entered the arena, there was no anger in her expression.

She looked genuinely surprised.

Devara then looked back toward the crowd.

"And if something unfortunate happens today, do not immediately blame her for it. Misfortune is a part of life. It does not need a goddess standing nearby for it to exist."

The words settled over the arena.

Nobody dared whisper again.

Behind Devara, Shiva’s eyes held a faint glimmer of approval.

Vishnu remained silent, but the small smile appearing at the corner of his lips was enough for Lakshmi to notice.

Lakshmi herself looked at her son with an expression that mixed relief and emotion.

She had wanted to protect her elder sister from the crowd.

Instead, her son had stepped forward and done it himself.

Alakshmi continued looking at Devara.

Her eyes eventually lowered.

A very faint smile appeared upon her lips.

Perhaps, for the first time in a very long time, someone had stood before a crowd and spoken about her without fear.

And strangely enough, it was her nephew who had done it.

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(Author note:)

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