ered the king's summons to come before
him.

'You have done what I expected you to do,' said he, 'and now, choose
your reward.'

'Grant me, sire, the hand of the queen, your niece,' replied the young
man, bowing low, 'and I will defend her kingdom against all her
enemies.'

'She could choose no better husband,' said the king, 'and if she
consents I do.' And he turned towards the queen, who had not been
present during the fight, but had just slipped into a seat by his
right hand. Now the queen's eyes were very sharp, and it seemed to her
that the man who stood before her, tall and handsome though he might
be, was different in many slight ways, and in one in particular, from
the man who had fought the tourney. How there could be any trickery
she could not understand, and why the real victor should be willing to
give up his prize to another was still stranger; but something in her
heart warned her to be careful. She answered: 'You may be satisfied,
uncle, but _I_ am not. One more proof I must have; let the two young
men now fight against each other. The man _I_ marry must be the man
who killed the robbers and the giant, and overcame my page.' Geirald's
face grew pale as he heard these words. He knew there was no escape
for him now, though he did not doubt for one moment that Rosald would
keep his compact loyally to the last. But how would it be possible
that even Rosald should deceive the watchful eyes of the king and his
court, and still more those of the young queen whom he felt uneasily
had suspected him from the first?

The tourney was fought, and in spite of Geirald's fears Rosald managed
to hang back to make attacks which were never meant to succeed, and to
allow strokes which he could easily have parried to attain their end.
At length, after a great show of resistance, he fell heavily to the
ground. And as he fell he knew that it was not alone the glory that
was his rightfully which he gave up, but the hand of the queen that
was more precious still.

But Geirald did not even wait to see if he was wounded; he went
straight to the wall where the royal banner waved and claimed the
reward which was now his.

The crowd of watchers turned towards the queen, expecting to see her
stoop and give some token to the victor. Instead, to the surprise of
everyone, she merely smiled gracefully, and said that before she
bestowed her hand one more test must be imposed, but this should be
the last. The final tourney should be