Following the grand assembly, the young monarch Kay Khosrow withdrew to his palace halls alongside the elephant-bodied champion Rostam, surrounded by the realm's esteemed priests, wise counselors, and noble warlords. There, in the quiet dignity of his court, Kay Khosrow unburdened his heavy heart. He spoke of Afrasiab's boundless cruelties, of the torment his own youth had known, and of the tragic martyrdom of his noble father Siyavash. With deep sorrow, he recounted the indignities suffered by his chaste mother Farangis and how he himself had been hidden away among humble mountain shepherds, his imperial lineage and name unknown to all. Turning his gaze to Rostam, the king declared that Tus had been dispatched with the vanguard, and soon he and Rostam would march together to hem in the wicked and crush the heads of their enemies beneath stones. Hearing this, Rostam bade the king set aside his grief, assuring him that Fortune would bend to his rightful will.
Meanwhile, the vast host of Iran pressed forward march by march until they came upon a crucial crossroads. To one hand lay a parched, desolate desert devoid of water; to the other lay the lush route of Charm, passing beneath the shadow of the fortress of Kalat. The army halted its war elephants and stilled its kettledrums, awaiting the arrival of Commander Tus to dictate their path. When Tus arrived, he conferred with the elder champion Gudarz, rejecting the desert passage: even if the desert winds blew with the scent of musk, a single day’s fierce march would leave the troops desperate for water and respite. Tus argued that it was far better to advance toward Kalat and Charm, where flowing streams and fertile lands bounded both left and right. He recalled traveling that very path in years past alongside Gazhdaham, finding little hardship save for minor ascents and descents. Gudarz cautiously reminded him that King Kay Khosrow had appointed him leader of the host under strict directives, warning that defying royal counsel or inflicting hardship upon the troops could bring bad omen and anger the sovereign. Yet Tus dismissed his concerns with arrogant ease, claiming the king’s heart would not grow bitter. Overruled by Tus's stubborn authority, the captains offered no further opposition, and by Tus's sole command, the elephants and war horns turned down the fateful road of Charm toward Kalat.