Chapter 1059: The Japanese and the Rugby Match
14th April 1688
The capital of Vishalanagari, Indrapuri (Sydney)
The waves of the Pacific Ocean crashed into the shores of Indrapuri with great majesty, lapping one after another. Due to the turbulent tide, the travel of the smaller ships had been stopped, and a level three caution had been raised for the larger ships.
The winds were strong, and the rain, although not as strong as the ones back in the mainland, was also quite heavy.
However, oddly enough, none of the people at the port were surprised by the weather. They acted as if it did not bother them at all. Whakarongo Potatau, the manager of the Royal Challengers Parivartanpura, was completely surprised by this.
When they left Parivartanpura a week ago, the weather had been warm, bright, and pleasantly calm, with soft sunshine and clear skies that made the whole journey feel easy and cheerful. But just as they arrived in Indrapuri, everything changed: the skies darkened, the rain began to fall, and strong winds swept through the streets. "No wonder Mr Malya recommended taking a carriage," he muttered with a sigh, brushing the rain from his shoulders as he stepped inside. He took off his damp coat, hung it neatly on the hanger beside the row of wet shoes, and quietly entered the restaurant.
"Sir, is the weather usually this bad?" he asked the middle-aged gentleman who was serving hot tea and coffee to the customers.
The middle-aged man put on a cordial smile and looked up toward the sound, but he was immediately shocked. He had seen people with tattoos, but never people who had them throughout the face, and that too, tattoos with such ferocity.
"Are you a Naga, sir?"
Whakarongo Potatau was not surprised by the question. He had been mistaken for the Nagas several times since he set foot in Indrapuri. "No, I’m a Maori, from the Ngapuhi tribe."
The middle-aged man was momentarily confused as the names didn’t ring a bell in his mind, but after remembering that the Naga Boys would be competing against the people called Maoris, his face suddenly lit up. "Oh, I’m sorry, sir. I haven’t seen a Maori before. But sir, if you don’t mind me asking, are you here for the rugby match?"
Whakarongo Potatau was surprised. He was not even wearing the uniform given by Mr Malia. How did this guy get to know? He looked at the middle-aged man with suspicion. "Why do you ask?"
Looking at the wary expression, the middle-aged man immediately realised that he might have been right, so, unable to hide the excitement on his face, he smiled, placed the plate on the table, and directly sat in front of Whakarongo Potatau. "For no reason, sir, aren’t our Naga Boys playing against the Maori? So I asked."
"Since we don’t get Maori people around here very often, I guessed that you are here to watch the game."
The wariness of Whakarongo Potatau reduced a little, but at the same time, he was impressed. "I’m not here to watch the game, but your guess is close enough. I’m the manager of Royal Challengers Parivartanpura."
The middle-aged man was immediately stunned. Words didn’t come out of his mouth for a long time until finally, he suppressed his emotions and voiced his thoughts with gritted teeth. "In that case, welcome to Indrapuri, sir, and I wish you good luck for the game, because you are going to need it, since we are going to win."
Whakarongo Potatau immediately felt amused and shook his head, "I’m afraid we will disappoint you, but forget about the game for a moment. You haven’t told me yet, is the weather in this kingdom always like this?"
"Oh, that, yes. It happens every year in Phalguna, Chaitra, Vaishakha, and Shravana."
"It doesn’t rain in Jyeshtha and Ashadha?"
"No, it doesn’t."
"That’s weird."
"Indeed."
Just then, both their attention was attracted by a group of people who had just entered the restaurant. They wore round circular hats which looked to be made up of bamboo, like the kind they had never seen before. Also, their dress was extremely unique. It was similar to the Chinese but at the same time distinctly different.
What was even more unique was that one of them held a sheathed sword in his hand, a sword somewhat similar to the legendary Rakta Astram of the emperor of the empire, which no one has ever seen but has heard the legends about, but at the same time, distinctly different.
The man who was carrying the sword looked around the restaurant with a piercing gaze, and after noticing that all the tables were occupied and only one table had two people sitting at it, he slowly came forward.
Whakarongo Potatau felt a dangerous breath from this man. Being a hunter in his youth, he had a keen sense of danger, and his heart was practically beating out of his chest right now, and he sorely wished he had his axe with him.
But to his surprise, the sturdy man who came before him was suddenly pushed away, and a lean young man with a scholarly temperament joined his hands in a namascara with a deep bow.
"Apologies, sir, but could we please occupy the remaining seats?"
Whakarongo Potatau came back to his senses and motioned with his hands, "Please."
The middle-aged man who was trying to find out more about the rival team sadly realised that it was time to work, so he left the seat, politely took the orders, and left to get the beverages.
Whakarongo Potatau kept staring at the new people, and they kept staring at him as well, both of them seeing people of their kind for the first time ever, and the mutual curiosity made them start a conversation.
Whakarongo Potatau finally got to know that these people were from a kingdom called Nippon, which was apparently on the eastern coast of the Ming Empire. They were apparently on a tour.
The person called Tokugawa Tenobu asked quite a lot about him as well, but since most of them were basic questions, he did not mind and happily answered them. In such a way, time slowly passed, and even the rain began to weaken.
Whakarongo Potatau, after inviting Tokugawa and his people to the match, bid farewell to them and left. Although his original intention of understanding Vishala Nagri was not fulfilled, he got to meet some interesting people and got to hold the sharpest sword he had ever seen. Even thinking about it made his heart palpitate.
---
The postponed rugby match, which had been delayed due to the kings of both kingdoms setting off to the mainland for an emergency, finally kicked off.
The energy from the crowd of 20,000 people was electrifying. Excited voices merged into a single roaring wave that rolled across the stands, shaking the very ground beneath their feet. The newly cleared-out field on the outskirts of Indra Nagari shimmered under the bright afternoon sun, its fresh grass still damp from the morning dew. Flags of both kingdoms fluttered in the wind, vendors shouted over the noise, selling drinks and snacks, and children climbed onto railings just to catch a glimpse of their heroes. For the first time, the field welcomed a professional rugby game, and the people of Indra Nagari could feel history unfolding right before their eyes.
King Narasimha Nayak and King Lachit Borphukan were sitting right next to each other, smiling and talking about the past as well as what they experienced when they went back to the mainland.
As for captains like Rangiwhenua Te Aho from the Royal Challengers and Shesha Kakshaka from the Super Kings, their hands were shivering with both nervousness and excitement.
The ball was finally in the air, and after various passes, it reached the fly-half of the Royal Challengers. Rangiwhenua Te Aho, who was the fly-half, observed the field, made various calculations in his mind, and in a split second, he saw a gap and threw the ball to the winger. The winger, catching the ball, who, like a race bike in traffic, cut through the opposition in the gaps, making it impossible for the forwards, centre links, and fullbacks of the Super Kings to stop him.
Before anyone could even realise what had happened, Reihana Kauri, the winger, dived into the goal, and excitement broke out.
Rangiwhenua Te Aho, who was on the other end of the court, ran forward with a huge grin and immediately jumped on Reihana Kauri. Teammates all around them, not caring about being from different tribes, lifted Reihana Kauri up and threw him in the air.
However, all around them was disappointment. The players of the Super Kings looked annoyed, but the will to fight and the anger in their eyes only began to intensify.
As for the audience, the yellow flags were dropped, and people began to scold.
When the ball got into play once again, people finally quieted down and intensely watched the match.
Amidst the crowd, a group of unsuspecting Japanese looked at the game with interest.
Tokugawa Tenobu sat still without any expression, completely different from the people around him, but anyone who knew him could tell that he was observing everything with curiosity.
Just then, Matsudaira Sadanobu, the person with the sword, voiced his dissatisfaction. "Tokugawa, why are we even here? Didn’t the emperor say that we have to learn and observe from the Bharatiya Empire? Why are we in this remote kingdom?"
"That person we met a few days ago, as soon as he looked at my sword, he acted as if he saw some divine weapon, and that alone shows how backwards this place is."
"Heeding my suggestion, we should have gone directly to the Bharatiya Empire and seen what this empire is about."
Tokugawa, who was sitting as still as water, finally had a reaction. He turned his head and looked at Matsudaira with some dissatisfaction. "The Bharatiya Empire is strong and mighty enough to even make the current Ming Emperor bow his head."
"When the minister from the Bharatiya Empire came to our kingdom, the dog shogun had no choice but to sell Yonaguni for a cheap price," "And what did the Bharatiyas use to deter the dog shogun? It was nothing but a single ship."
"As far as I know, that single warship is already outdated, and there are thousands more."
"Matsudaira Sadanobu, I’m warning you right now, this is a behemoth. We are facing a behemoth far from comprehension. We have to be cautious and take one step at a time."
" Also, how dare you look down on this kingdom?"
" Have you noticed the roads? Do you think they are rocks? No. They are something else. They are all lined perfectly, as if they were made with a ruler and cut like clay."
" Same for the houses. They are as strong as rock, but the whole city is made of such houses."
" Did you not notice the weapons the police are carrying? None of them have a sword. Instead, they hold long metal tubes in their hands, which are called guns. They are used by the elite army of the Ming Empire, and now, in this so-called ’backward kingdom’ in your mouth, every single police officer carries one."
"Did you not look at that massive ship at the port? Do you think any nation can build it?"
As Tokugawa spoke, he got louder and louder. His face became so furious that Matsudaira Sadanobu could not even raise his head anymore. Fortunately, the Super Kings gained the upper hand, and the roar of the crowd covered up their quarrel.
The game continued and went for a break.
Unfortunately, Tokugawa was not done yet. "Did you see those iron rods laid down?"
"Why do you think that is?"
"According to what I heard, a metal beast runs on it. Although I haven’t met any people who actually saw it, they all swear that such a thing is already put into operation back in the mainland."
"Not only that, people swear that such iron beasts roam on the streets, taking people from one place to another. Such beasts plough their fields without the use of oxen or horses."
"But... but... that is all legends, right?" Matsudaira Sadanobu felt like he had to say something, so in a mosquito-like voice, he spoke out.
" Idiot. One person can try to fool us, and maybe ten, but ever since we got to this kingdom, I have asked over hundreds of people, and all of them, even if they did not see it with their eyes, swear the legends to be true. Is this something we can take lightly? Not to mention, have you not seen those metal chariots written by people on the roads?"
" It looks simple, but do you think it is easy to build?"
" Is it... is it not?"
Tokugawa clenched his fist as he felt it itching for a fight, but fortunately, he was sane enough to remember who he was facing and looked at a man who sat quietly next to him.
" Ogata, explain to this muscle head."
" Ugh..." ’Why me?!’ Ogata Korin cursed. Still, he bit the bullet and spoke out, "It’s almost impossible, sir. The cycle looks simple, but in order for that to work, it requires extremely high-precision balls called bearings. I managed to learn about this from a mechanic. He said that the bearings are all uniform in their sizes, and they are all so small that each of them would require the best craftsman in our kingdom to smelt it by hand."
Tokugawa took over, "You hear that? We can’t even make the bicycle you ignored after a few glances without all the best craftsmen in the kingdom coming together, and now you have the gall to look down on this kingdom?"
"Remember, Matsudaira Sadanobu, be humble. The emperor has placed a lot of hope on you. Don’t let him down."
Matsudaira remained completely silent. Whether he was convinced or not, no one could tell. The match had ended, and it was time to present the awards to the local heroes, the Super Kings. But what happened next erased all doubt from his mind. A low rumble travelled through the ground beneath his feet. Glancing to his right, he saw, in the distance, on the steel tracks where people had claimed a "metal beast" would run, that very beast materializing before his eyes.
It moved without horses or elephants. Smoke poured from its sides like a living demon, black and curling into the air. The metal giant dragged several carriages behind it, each glinting under the sun, and yet it ran smoothly, powerfully, effortlessly. Matsudaira’s mouth fell open. The image seared itself into his memory, and he was far from alone. The crowd watched in awe, clapping and cheering at the incredible sight. Even the two kings, as if anticipating this moment, smiled knowingly, their eyes sparkling with pride, for the railway now linked the kingdoms of Vishala Nagari and Reshmi Vardhan.
If he had harboured any doubts before, they were completely shattered now. He was convinced.