Baital started telling King Vikramaditya another story as he walked towards his kingdom. “Long ago, there was a city known as Malaya Desh. Its king was Samarjeet. He was a learned man and a courageous warrior. In his kingdom lived a very wealthy merchant. His name was Chandramani. He had an extremely beautiful and intelligent daughter named Manimala. One day, a courtier sought permission to speak to the King. The King allowed him to speak. So, he said to the King, “Sir, in our kingdom lives a very wealthy merchant called Chandramani. He has a daughter by the name of Manimala. She is beauty par excellence. No one can match her beauty in this kingdom. She is of a marriageable age. I think she will be an apt bride for you. You should marry her.” The King said, “If she is as you describe then I will truly marry her.” Then, the courtier went away.
Manimala
