The year is 1903 of the Kollam Era (1728 CE). Near the town of Padmanabhapuram, which used to be the capital of the state of Travancore in the olden days, there is a place called Charottu with a small palace that exists even today. This is a palace only in name as it is merely a small structure with a kitchen and a simple nalukettu. As the maharajas do not reside here, and because the supervisor of the palace manages its affairs from his house in the style of some present-day officials – who prepare reports of tours and related documents without stirring from their homes – the Charottu palace is in ruins and has become the residence of creatures like bats, rats and snakes. The palace also has the characteristic foul smell that permeates old buildings when they remain closed for a long time. It is surrounded by a wall which has gates to the east and to the south.

About two years after the occurrence of the events described in the previous chapter, a Malayali brahmin is sitting one morning on the porch on the eastern side of the palace. He is between twenty and twenty-five years of age,...