Naught happened to tell of, save that once in the afternoon, as they were riding up to the skirts of one of the woods aforesaid, weaponed men came forth from it and drew up across the way; they were a dozen in all, and four were horsed.  Ralph set his hand to his sword, but the minstrel cried out, “Nay, no weapons, no weapons!  Pull out thy let-pass again and show it in thine hand, and then let us on.”

So saying he drew a white kerchief from his hand, and tied it to the end of his riding staff, and so rode trembling by Ralph’s side:  therewith they rode on together towards those men, whom as they drew nearer they heard laughing and jeering at them, though in a tongue that Ralph knew not.

They came so close at last that the waylayers could see the parchment clearly, with the seal thereon, and then they made obeisance to it, as though it were the relic of a saint, and drew off quietly into the wood one by one.  These were big men, and savage-looking, and their armour was utterly uncouth.

The minstrel was loud in his mirth when they were well past these men; but Ralph rode on silently, and was somewhat soberly.

“Fair sir,” quoth the minstrel, “I would wager that I know thy thought.”  “Yea,” said Ralph, “what is it then?” Said the minstrel:  “Thou art thinking what thou shalt do when thou meetest suchlike folk on thy way back; but fear not, for with that same seal thou shalt pass through the land again.”  Said Ralph:  “Yea, something like that, forsooth, was my thought.  But also I was pondering who should be my guide when I leave Utterbol.”  The minstrel looked at him askance; quoth he:  “Thou mayst leave thinking of that awhile.”  Ralph looked hard at him, but could make naught of the look of his face; so he said:  “Why dost thou say that?” Said Morfinn:  “Because I know whither thou art bound, and have been wondering this long while that thou hast asked me not about the way to the well at the world’s end:  since I told thy friend the merchant that I could tell thee somewhat concerning it.  But I suppose thou hast been thinking of something else?”

“Well,” said Ralph, “tell me what thou hast to say of the Well.”  Said Morfinn:  “This will I tell thee first:  that if thou hast any doubt that such a place there is, thou mayst set that aside; for we of Utterness and Utterbol are sure thereof; and of all nations and peoples whereof we know, we deem that we are the nighest thereto.  How sayest thou, is that not already something?” “Yea, verily,” said Ralph.

“Now,” said Morfinn, “the next thing to be said is that we are on the road thereto:  but the third thing again is this, lord, that though few who seek it find it, yet we know that some have failed not of it, besides that lord of Goldburg, of whom I know that thou hast heard.  Furthermore, there dwelleth a sage in the woods not right far from Utterbol, a hermit living by himself; and folk seek to him for divers lore, to be holpen by him in one