After he left Kudandhai town, Vallavareyan went towards the Arisalaru River. As he proceeded towards the Chola kingdom, he couldn't help admiring the beauty of the land. There was greenery everywhere! Green fields, trees, crops, small ponds, beautiful lakes and friendly villagers. No wonder the Chola kingdom was so prosperous!

As he passed by, he saw farmers toiling in their fields while their wives cooked food in homes made of thatched huts. While the people were at work, hens fed on the grains kept outside the huts. Children ran hither and thither engaged in pranks and games while some sat outside and play pallaanguzhi*.

As he passed by, Vallavareyan could smell cooked rice and fried fish. It made his mouth water. In those days most soldiers were non-vegetarians like him.

He also noticed that there were many blacksmiths' shops in the villages he passed, where craftsmen made swords and spears. He also saw several old temples being renovated. On the outskirts of the villages he saw cowherds grazing their cows.

While Vallavareyan was enjoying the picturesque scenery, his inner mind was engaged elsewhere. The image of a beautiful woman appeared in his inner mind!

"Why didn't that woman speak even one sentence to me? What would she have lost if she had? Does she think that I am nobody? Who could she be? Whoever she is, she doesn't seem to know how to behave. That Jodhidar escaped without even telling me who she was. He is clever! Very clever! But he is so very experienced in worldly affairs. He didn't tell me anything new about the future anyway. But he was very careful when it came to political matters. Either he escaped without saying anything or he just played around with words to say something that everybody knew. Anyway he told me that my stars are lucky so - long live Kudandhai Jodhidar!"

Thinking thus Vandiya Devan continued on the road towards Arisalaru. As described earlier, the Arisalaru river remains hidden among a thick grove of trees that grew along the shore, which is why when Vandiya Devan reached Arisalaru he could hear the sound of flowing water but couldn't get a glimpse of the river.

As he rode along he heard faint voices of women talking and laughing combined with the tinkling sounds of bangles and anklets. Vandiya Devan rode slowly looking through the grove of trees wondering from where these sounds came. Then suddenly he heard a shout, "Oh God! Crocodile! Crocodile! Somebody help!"

Vandiya Devan immediately spurred his horse towards the direction of the voice. He rode straight through the small shrubs and dismounted near the shore and made his way through the thick grove of trees and saw the frightened women. To his surprise he also saw that the two women he had met in the Jodhidar's house a little while ago were also there. But that was not all that he saw. He saw that a dangerous crocodile had cornered the women near the trees. They didn't have enough room nor the time to go around the trees and escape the beast. He immediately decided what to do. And we have seen that once Vandiya Devan decides on something he doesn't take much time to implement it. In a split second he took out his spear, aimed and threw it at the crocodile. The spear hit the crocodile on its nose. Immediately he drew his sword and ran towards it.

Then something unexpected happened. The women started laughing. Vandiya Devan stopped in surprise.

"How could these women laugh at such a dangerous hour?" he thought and looked around at the faces of the women. He did not see fear or worry. Instead they were all looking cheerful and mischievous. Next he looked at the crocodile. Instead of making any kind of movement it was lying still. Vandiya Devan couldn't believe that these were the same women who shouted for help a little while ago.

"Girls! Please be quiet," said the woman who had captured Vandiya Devan's imagination.

Vandiya Devan looked at her and back at the crocodile and hesitated. She came towards him and stood between him and the crocodile as if she wanted to protect the crocodile and said, "Ayya**! Thank you for coming to our rescue but you needn't have bothered."

Glossary

* pallaanguzhi - A game that is played with shells
** Ayya - A term of respect used to address men
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