At last the blast of a horn from outside, challenge and counter-challenge, and the wicket to the court-yard is swung open; for this house, being in a part of the city where the walls are somewhat weak, is a little fortress in itself, and is very carefully guarded.  The old man’s face brightened at the sound of the new comers, and he went toward the entrance of the house where he was met by two young knights fully armed, and a maiden.  ‘Thank God you are come,’ he says; but stops when he sees her face, which is quite pale, almost wild with some sorrow.  ‘The saints!  Cissela, what is it?’ he says.  ’Father, Eric will tell you.’  Then suddenly a clang, for Eric has thrown on the ground a richly-jewelled sword, sheathed, and sets his foot on it, crunching the pearls on the sheath; then says, flinging up his head,—­’There, father, the enemy is in the land; may that happen to every one of them! but for my part I have accounted for two already.’  ’Son Eric, son Eric, you talk for ever about yourself; quick, tell me about Cissela instead:  if you go on boasting and talking always about yourself, you will come to no good end, son, after all.’  But as he says this, he smiles nevertheless, and his eye glistens.

’Well, father, listen—­such a strange thing she tells us, not to be believed, if she did not tell us herself; the enemy has suddenly got generous, one of them at least, which is something of a disappointment to me—­ah! pardon, about my self again; and that is about myself too.  Well, father, what am I to do?—­But Cissela, she wandered some way from her maidens, when—­ah! but I never could tell a story properly, let her tell it herself; here, Cissela!—­well, well, I see she is better employed, talking namely, how should I know what! with Siur in the window-seat yonder—­but she told us that, as she wandered almost by herself, she presently heard shouts and saw many of the enemy’s knights riding quickly towards her; whereat she knelt only and prayed to God, who was very gracious to her; for when, as she thought, something dreadful was about to happen, the chief of the knights (a very noble-looking man, she said) rescued her, and, after he had gazed earnestly into her face, told her she might go back again to her own home, and her maids with her, if only she would tell him where she dwelt and her name; and withal he sent three knights to escort her some way toward the city; then he turned and rode away with all his knights but those three, who, when they knew that he had quite gone, she says, began to talk horribly, saying things whereof in her terror she understood the import only:  then, before worse came to pass came I and slew two, as I said, and the other ran away ’lustily with a good courage’; and that is the sword of one of the slain knights, or, as one might rather call them, rascally caitiffs.’

The old man’s thoughts seemed to have gone wandering after his son had finished; for he said nothing for some time, but at last spoke dejectedly: