After the class ended...
Kunwar raised his head from his seat, wearing that crooked smile again —"Shrey Thakur, come to my cabin."
Shrey was startled for a moment. His face tensed briefly, but then he nodded gently.
A little later, Shrey stood at the door of Kunwar's cabin."May I come in, sir?" — he asked in a soft voice.
"Yes, please," — Kunwar gestured him in with a smile.
"You called for me, sir?" — Shrey asked formally, still standing near the door.
"Oh come on, don't be so formal," — Kunwar leaned back in his chair,"We're friends… you can just say 'Abhyavat' or even 'Kunwar'."
"But you're my professor…" — Shrey replied calmly.
Kunwar nodded and stepped a little closer — "I've heard you're the topper of your class…"
"Yes, sir…" — Shrey answered, avoiding his gaze. His heart was pounding. This man's aura was strange — intimidating, unsettling.
A strange anxiety began to crawl over him.
Kunwar noticed his nervousness and said in a casual tone,"Relax, Shrey… I just wanted to talk a bit…"
Shrey stood there, but in his mind, he wanted to run far, far away.
Kunwar sat back in his chair comfortably and said —"I need a little help, Shrey… I have some theories that need to be documented. And to be honest, I'm a 'Kunwar' — I barely get time. Writing it all down myself is difficult. If you don't mind, could you do it for me?"
Shrey was momentarily stunned."But sir, I…" — he was about to speak when Kunwar interrupted —
"Look, it'll help you too in your studies. You'll learn a lot of new things. And you know… opportunities like this don't come often."
Shrey looked into his eyes. He wasn't wrong… working on a professor's thesis wasn't an everyday opportunity.
"If you're not comfortable, that's okay…" — Kunwar played his final card.
"I'll do it, sir…" — Shrey agreed.
"Good…" — Kunwar's smile deepened."But for that, you'll need to come to my place. I manage all my work from home."
"But… your place?" — there was hesitation in Shrey's voice.
"Is there a problem?" — Kunwar asked, staring at him.
"No sir, just… your family?"
"There's no one at my place… except me and the silence," — Kunwar answered with a smile.
Shrey silently lowered his head. "Alright, let me know the time… I'll come…" — he said quietly.
Kunwar just nodded and gestured him to leave.Shrey bowed slightly and quickly exited the cabin. Staying another moment in there felt unbearable. As soon as he stepped out, he was gasping for breath.
After college, Shrey reached the address Kunwar had given. Before leaving, he had informed Pranay, just in case he got late and needed to be picked up.
Now he stood before Kunwar's grand villa. Tall gates, a silent atmosphere, and an eerie stillness within — it all made him uncomfortable.What shocked him most was that the Crown Prince of Udaipur's home had no bodyguards.
"Such high status… yet so little security?" — he thought and shook his head as he walked ahead.
As soon as he stepped inside, suddenly terrifying barks echoed around him.He turned toward the sound — some large, wild-looking dogs were charging at him — so massive and ferocious, their jaws looked capable of tearing someone apart in a second.
Shrey's eyes widened with fear. He ran forward in panic. The dogs were chasing him, and the gate had shut automatically behind him. There was no way out. He started running in circles around the garden. His breath grew heavier, his body soaked in sweat, but he couldn't stop.
Up above, Kunwar stood silently on the balcony, watching it all unfold with a wicked smile on his face.
Shrey was gasping badly. His entire body was drenched in sweat, yet he kept running. The terrifying growls behind him were getting closer — and then, he stumbled and crashed to the ground. He clenched his jaw in pain and tried to get up, but couldn't.
That's when he noticed — the barking had stopped.
He turned slightly to look — Kunwar was standing behind him. And all those feral dogs were now standing still in place — like someone had tamed them with a single gesture.
"Sir…" — Shrey barely managed to speak.
Kunwar turned to him and said with a faint smile,"What's this state of yours, Shrey?"
"Thanks to you, sir… I was just walking in, and they attacked me…" — Shrey groaned.
"Oh…" Kunwar said casually,"They're my trained dogs… they attack any stranger they see… and they do kill and eat too."
Shrey stared at him in horror — "Kill and eat someone?"And Kunwar said it like it was an everyday affair.
Shrey tried to stand but winced in pain again. His knees, elbows were scraped, his back was injured, and one ankle had twisted badly. The pain was clearly visible on his face, yet he tried to compose himself.
"Need help?" Kunwar offered his hand.
Shrey had no choice but to take it. He couldn't handle himself alone in that moment.
Kunwar helped him up and started leading him inside. While walking, he gave a small signal to the dogs — they suddenly started barking loudly.
"Woof-woof-woof!!"
Shrey screamed and crashed into the door in fear, hands instinctively covering his head.
"Are you okay, cutie pie…?"Kunwar asked, stroking his head — still wearing that sinister smile.
"I… I'm fine, sir…"Shrey barely managed, though the pain was so intense he couldn't even keep his eyes fully open.
Kunwar gently placed him on the sofa and called out to a servant —"Get the first aid box for him…"
The servant quickly left to get it.
Kunwar glanced at Shrey — who was clearly suffering, lips tightly pressed, breathing erratic.There was a strange gleam in Kunwar's eyes — he secretly took a picture of Shrey on his phone, sitting helplessly on the sofa, without Shrey even realizing in his pain.
Meanwhile, Prakhar was at his laptop, checking the security system. The screen showed several camera feeds and running codes.Suddenly, his phone vibrated — "Kuvar" flashed on the screen.
Prakhar ignored the call without a second glance and kept working.
A few moments later, a message beeped.He was about to ignore it too, but the notification read —"Cutie Pie 😘"
His eyes were immediately drawn to it.
He opened the message —
"What's the matter, darling… don't you care about your cutie pie…?"Attached was a photo — of Shrey.
Sitting on a sofa, face twisted in pain, eyes half-closed… and his condition clearly showing that something terribly wrong had happened.
Prakhar's eyes locked onto the photo.