A shared sacrifice

Inside Hastinapura, the physician was applying herbs to Duryodhana's wounds, while Shakuni, standing beside him, looked at Duryodhana bruised and battered Nan Di with a mixture of emotions in his eyes.

"Uncle, I want revenge!"

"I understand your anger, child. Your father, Dhritarashtra, is also furious about this, but this is not the time. Karna is powerful. He is an ally of Dvaraka and is also colluding with Takshaka from within."

And most importantly, power. This coachman's son is not as easy to deal with as the Pandavas. As you can see, the people of Sweetness City trust him, many kings respect him, and he has a powerful teacher protecting him.

Now is not the time; we should conserve our strength. Besides, you've brought back a great deal of wealth; look at these lovely little trinkets."

Duryodhana's gaze remained cold, his fists clenched, but as he shifted his gaze to the piles of gold filling the room, a smile appeared on Duryodhana lips.

"That's right, with these treasures, who can't we order around?"

Money truly is a cure-all; thinking about future plans Duryodhana body seem painless.

In the forest near Kampilya, Arjuna and the Pandavas had made a vow. Although this vow was extremely dangerous, they had no choice but to acknowledge Draupadi as their master, as it was a divine mandate.

If they acknowledged Draupadi as their mother, they would truly be seen as perverts. He didn't want anyone's first reaction upon hearing his name to be:

Oh, the Pandavas, I know them, those five perverts who recognized Draupadi, a woman less than a month old, as their mother.

Putting aside the distant past, at least they've acknowledged each other as masters. After the ordeal, Arjuna can still see Draupadi normally and consider her his mother. So, if Arjuna were to marry Draupadi later, wouldn't that mean...?

It's too much of a "ha-ren" thing in every sense.

The Sage Vyasa seemed to be at a loss as well. What was worse, he had just performed a prayer, and it seemed that, as Kama had said, the gods were saying: it's not impossible.

You guys are the ones who always find loopholes to exploit.

Sage Vyasa shook his head helplessly, then came to Bai Mo and put his hands together in prayer.

"Great ascetic, please take a look at your Yuga Clock."

"We've reversed the process, albeit in a somewhat bizarre way, but it's a result that takes all factors into account."

The Pandavas: "What are you considering?"

Bai Mo was speechless, while Sage Vyasa looked up at the sky, his eyes seemingly empty.

"My duty is now complete, but great ascetic, you must be careful of the consequences of this. In her previous life, Draupadi made a wish to Shiva to have five husbands. Now that you have ruined that wish, although both parties are willing, Shiva may punish you for it."

That's all I have to say; I should go now.

Watching the Sage Vyasa disappear into the night, Kama curled his lip and said, "Old stubborn man, that's why these immortals cultivate so hard they've messed up their brains. In the end, it'll all come down to the wisdom of me, Lord Kama."

Bai Mo was speechless. This outcome wasn't much better; it was just a different way of tormenting Draupadi. As for their future encounter, that would depend on Draupadi's actions.

The difference between this and the original myth is that Draupadi, who originally lacked both righteousness and power, was not even given the right to refuse in the myth. Moreover, in the myth, Draupadi truly endured all the suffering a woman could experience while Pandavas.

Seeing the helpless expressions on the Pandavas, Krishna hips and said, "I feel that my plan is even better."

Yudhishthira: "That's absolutely unacceptable. We can distinguish between temporary torment and eternal infamy."

The Pandavas are currently treating this matter as a mission sent by God, and therefore have not staged any major protests.

"So, how should we talk to King Drupada about this? He was already unhappy when he saw his daughter being married off to a poor Brahmin, and now..."

Arjuna spoke, and upon hearing this, the others immediately felt that the road ahead was fraught with difficulty.

Kampilya--

King Drupada looked at the five men behind his daughter, rubbed his eyes, and seemed to doubt whether he was seeing things or hallucinating.

"Um... who is Draupadi's husband?"

The crowd looked at each other, and finally Krishna spoke up, "King Drupada, that is the Arjuna I told you about, and the others are the missing Pandavas."

King Drupada's gaze fell upon Arjuna, then upon the four men behind him. Indeed, these were the Pandavas who had avenged Drona and inflicted a crushing defeat upon him.

"Then... what are the other four?"

"It's a free gift," Kama said with a smile, looking like he was enjoying the spectacle even more.

King Drupada felt his blood pressure surge like a flood. He looked at Arjuna, who was indeed an undisputed warrior.

But I only want one!

King Drupada: "Hey, can I return it?"

"This is the will of the gods. To uphold the Dharma, the five sons will become the guardians of Draupadi. This is a sacred act. Moreover, they have all sworn oaths to one another."

Krishna explained from the side, and upon hearing this, King Drupada covered his face with his hands and let out a desperate gasp.

It took King Drupada a long time to finally accept the situation. After reluctantly entertaining the five sons, he asked them what their plans were.

"We plan to find a powerful ally to help us escape the pursuit of Duryodhana and Dhritarashtra, and return to Hastinapura to reclaim everything we have."

"In that case, why don't we come to Sweetness City?"

Bai Mo said to the five sons, and Yudhishthira nodded. Sweetness City was indeed a powerful place. The original plan was to go to Dvaraka or seek the help of the King Drupada. Both sides could provide troops, but Dvaraka had many troubles and Krishna busy. The King Drupada could provide troops, but there was no strong person who could decide the war.

"Do you really have to go?"

Arjuna was somewhat reluctant to go to Karna, but Kunti grasped his hand, her eyes revealing the unwavering resolve of a mother.

And so, the Pandavas and Bai Mo set off together on their journey back to Sweetness City. On the way, a cluster of flames fell from the sky for no apparent reason, and the sun god Surya appeared before Bai Mo, looking very anxious.

"Oh no! The God of Fire tells me that dozens of countries are holding fire sacrifices, all asking for the same thing: that the gods grant them the power to destroy Sweetness City."