Produced by Steven desJardins and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net [Illustration: "You are the visitor I was expecting"] THE INTERNATIONAL ADVENTURE LIBRARY [Illustration] THREE OWLS EDITION 813 BY MAURICE LEBLANC Author of "Arsene Lupin," "The Blonde Lady," "The Hollow Needle," Etc. _Translated by Alexander Teixeira De Mattos_ W. R. CALDWELL & CO. NEW YORK ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, INCLUDING THAT OF TRANSLATION INTO FOREIGN LANGUAGES, INCLUDING THE SCANDINAVIAN COPYRIGHT, 1910, BY MAURICE LEBLANC THE COUNTRY LIFE PRESS, GARDEN CITY, N. Y. TRANSLATOR'S NOTE A zealous reader, collating the translation of this book with the original, would hit upon certain differences. These are due to alterations made, in most case, by the author himself, and, in all cases, with his full approval. A. T. DE M. CHELSEA, England, August, 1910. CONTENTS CONTENTS Translator's Note v I. THE TRAGEDY AT THE PALACE HOTEL 3 II. THE BLUE-EDGED LABEL 31 III. M. LENORMAND OPENS HIS CAMPAIGN 55 IV. PRINCE SERNINE AT WORK 75 V. M. LENORMAND AT WORK 114 VI. M. LENORMAND SUCCUMBS 137 VII. PARBURY-RIBEIRA-ALTENHEIM 162 VIII. THE OLIVE-GREEN FROCK-COAT 192 IX. "SANTÉ PALACE" 219 X. LUPIN'S GREAT SCHEME 254 XI. CHARLEMAGNE 272 XII. THE EMPEROR'S LETTERS 291 XIII. THE SEVEN SCOUNDRELS 324 XIV. THE MAN IN BLACK 352 XV. THE MAP OF EUROPE 379 XVI. ARSÈNE LUPIN'S THREE MURDERS 405 EPILOGUE. THE SUICIDE 434 813 CHAPTER I THE TRAGEDY AT THE PALACE HOTEL Mr. Kesselbach stopped short on the threshold of the sitting-room, took his secretary's arm and, in an anxious voice, whispered: "Chapman, some one has been here again." "Surely not, sir," protested the secretary. "You have just opened the hall-door yourself; and the key never left your pocket while we were lunching in the restaurant." "Chapman, some one has been here again," Mr. Kesselbach repeated. He pointed to a traveling-bag on the mantelpiece. "Look, I can prove it. That bag was shut. It is now open." Chapman protested. "Are you quite sure that you shut it, sir? Besides, the bag contains nothing but odds and ends of no value, articles of dress. . . ."