hree of the Six; and the instructions of Duke Michael
were, that on any attack being made on the outer room, the three were to
defend the door of it so long as they could without risk to themselves.
But, so soon as the door should be in danger of being forced, then
Rupert Hentzau or Detchard (for one of these two was always there)
should leave the others to hold it as long as they could, and himself
pass into the inner room, and, without more ado, kill the King who
lay there, well-treated indeed, but without weapons, and with his arms
confined in fine steel chains, which did not allow him to move his elbow
more than three inches from his side. Thus, before the outer door were
stormed, the King would be dead. And his body? For his body would be
evidence as damning as himself.

"Nay, sir," said Johann, "his Highness has thought of that. While the
two hold the outer room, the one who has killed the King unlocks the
bars in the square window (they turn on a hinge). The window now gives
no light, for its mouth is choked by a great pipe of earthenware; and
this pipe, which is large enough to let pass through it the body of
a man, passes into the moat, coming to an end immediately above the
surface of the water, so that there is no perceptible interval between
water and pipe. The King being dead, his murderer swiftly ties a weight
to the body, and, dragging it to the window, raises it by a pulley (for,
lest the weight should prove too great, Detchard has provided one) till
it is level with the mouth of the pipe. He inserts the feet in the pipe,
and pushes the body down. Silently, without splash or sound, it falls
into the water and thence to the bottom of the moat, which is twenty
feet deep thereabouts. This done, the murderer cries loudly, 'All's
well!' and himself slides down the pipe; and the others, if they can and
the attack is not too hot, run to the inner room and, seeking a moment's
delay, bar the door, and in their turn slide down. And though the King
rises not from the bottom, they rise and swim round to the other side,
where the orders are for men to wait them with ropes, to haul them out,
and horses. And here, if things go ill, the duke will join them and seek
safety by riding; but if all goes well, they will return to the Castle,
and have their enemies in a trap. That, sir, is the plan of his Highness
for the disposal of the King in case of need. But it is not to be used
till the last; for, as we all know, he is no