nce the travellers reached the end of
the wood. Before them was the city, glowing red in the rays of the
setting sun.

CHAPTER IX

THE KNIGHT RETURNS TO THE CITY

Now all this time the lady Bertalda had been very unhappy because of
the knight's long absence. Indeed, she had no sooner sent Huldbrand
forth into the haunted forest than she began to wish that she had kept
him by her side. As day after day passed and he did not return, she
grew fearful lest he had lost his way and perished in the mazes of the
wood. When a little later she heard of the floods that had made the
country around impassable, she wellnigh lost all hope of his return.

In spite of this, however, she begged the knights who had taken part
in the tournament to go in search of Huldbrand, but this they were
unwilling to do.

As for the knight's own servants, they would not leave the city
without their master, yet neither would they follow him into the
dreaded forest. They lingered on at an inn of the city, lamenting his
absence, but doing nought to bring him back.

It was now, when there seemed but little hope of his return, that
Huldbrand, to the surprise of every one, appeared in the city,
bringing with him a wife of wondrous beauty, as well as Father
Heilman, the priest who had married them.

Huldbrand's servants rejoiced to see their young master alive and
well. And the town folk, who had heard of his disappearance, were glad
that the light-hearted knight, who had always treated them with
courtesy, had suffered no harm in his adventure.

But the lady Bertalda, though she was glad that the knight had
returned, was sad when she saw that he had not come back alone. She
herself had loved him, and had hoped that, if ever he should return,
he would claim her as his bride.

Yet though Bertalda was sad, she was a wise maiden, and she received
Undine kindly, thinking that she was a princess whom Huldbrand had
rescued from a wicked wizard. For the true story of the beautiful
Undine was known to none, save to the knight alone.

As for Undine, she no sooner saw Bertalda than she loved her, and
begged her to stay in the city until she and her husband left it.
Nay, more, she even asked the maiden to promise to go with them when
they set out for the castle of Ringstetten, which stood on the banks
of the river Danube, and Bertalda was well pleased with this request.

One evening they three together walked up and down in the public
square. In t