Chapter 5 Summary

D'Artagnan goes to meet his first appointment in the out-of-the-way spot chosen by Athos, having no "seconds" to take with him since he knows no one in Paris. Athos is waiting for his seconds to appear, and in the meantime he and d'Artagnan discuss their options. D'Artagnan offers his mother's salve for Athos' shoulder wound and suggests they wait a few days until the shoulder is better for fighting. Athos considers this courteous, but reminds him that if they wait, the cardinal will surely catch wind of the duel and they would be prevented from it. D'Artagnan then offers to let Athos dispose of him at once without waiting for the seconds. Again Athos is impressed by d'Artagnan's courteous but brave attitude, however his seconds are arriving now. Naturally, they are Porthos and Aramis, which surprises d'Artagnan as he has not realized that...