Geraint, son of Erbin
part 17
And at the usual hour they went to sleep. And at the beginning of the night Enid slept a little; and at midnight she arose, and placed all Geraint's armour together, so that it might be ready to put on. And although fearful of her errand, she came to the side of Geraint's bed; and she spoke to him softly and gently, saying, "My Lord, arise, and clothe thyself, for these were the words of the Earl
to me, and his intention concerning me."
So she told Geraint all that had passed. And although he was wroth with her, he took warning, and clothed himself. And she lighted a candle, that he might have light to do so.
"Leave there the candle," said he, "and desire the man of the house to come here."
Then she went, and the man of the house came to him.
"Dost thou know how much I owe thee?" asked Geraint. "I think thou owest but little."
"Take the eleven horses and the eleven suits of armour."
"Heaven reward thee, Lord," said he, "but I spent not the value of one suit of armour upon thee."
"For that reason," said he, " thou wilt be the richer. And now, wilt thou come to guide me out of the town?"
"I will, gladly," said he, "and in which direction dost thou intend to go?"
"I wish to leave the town by a different way from that by which I entered it."
So the man of the lodgings accompanied him as far as he desired. Then he bade the maiden to go on before him; and she did so, and went straight forward, and his host returned home. And he had only just reached his house, when, behold, the greatest tumult approached that was ever heard. And when he looked out, he saw fourscore knights in complete armour around the house, with the Earl Dwrm at their head.
"Where is the knight that was here?" said the Earl.
"By thy hand," said he, "he went hence some time ago."
"Wherefore, villain," said he, "didst thou let him go without informing me?"
"My Lord, thou didst not command me to do so, else would I not have allowed him to depart."
"What way dost thou think that he took?"
"I know not, except that he went along the high road."
And they turned their horses' heads that way, and seeing the tracks of the horses upon the high road, they followed. And when the maiden beheld the dawning of the day, she looked behind her, and saw vast clouds of dust coming nearer and nearer to her. And thereupon she became uneasy, and she thought that it was the Earl and his host coming after them. And thereupon she beheld a knight appearing through the mist.
"By my faith," said she, "though he should slay me, it were better for me to receive my death at his hands, than to see him killed without warning him. My Lord," she said to him, "seest thou yonder man hastening after thee, and many others with him?"
"I do see him," said he; "and in despite of all my orders, I see that thou wilt never keep silence."
Then he turned upon the knight, and with the first thrust he threw him down under his horse's feet. And as long as there remained one of the fourscore knights, he overthrew every one of them at the first onset. And from the weakest to the strongest, they all attacked him one after the other, except the Earl: and last of all the Earl came against him also. And he broke his lance, and then he broke a second. But Geraint turned upon him, and struck him with his lance upon the centre of his shield, so that by that single thrust the shield was split, and all his armour broken, and he himself was brought over his horse's crupper to the ground, and was in peril of his life. And Geraint drew near to him; and at the noise of the trampling of his horse the Earl revived.
"Mercy, Lord," said he to Geraint.
And Geraint granted him mercy. But through the hardness of the ground where they had fallen, and the violence of the stroke which they had received, there was not a single knight amongst them that escaped without receiving a fall, mortally severe, and grievously painful, and desperately wounding, from the hand of Geraint. And Geraint journeyed along the high road that was before him, and the maiden went on first; and near them they beheld a valley which was the fairest ever seen, and which had a large river running through it; and there was a bridge over the river, and the high road led to the bridge. And above the bridge upon the opposite side of the river, they beheld a fortified town, the fairest ever seen.
And as they approached the bridge, Geraint saw coming towards him from a thick copse a man mounted upon a large and lofty steed, even of pace and spirited though tractable.
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Pwyll