The Knights of the Cross, or, Krzyzacy: Historical RomanceSienkiewicz, Henryk
History
The Knights of the Cross, or, Krzyzacy: Historical Romance
Sienkiewicz, Henryk
Poland -- History -- Jagellons, 1386-1572 -- Fiction; Teutonic Knights -- History -- Fiction
"Such is the custom; you must not resist."
"Even if he had kissed both your hands," said Macko, "it would not be
enough for all that you have brought us."
"What have you brought?" asked Zbyszko, looking around the court-yard;
but he did not see anything except the black horse tied to the post.
"The wagons have not come yet; but they will soon be here," answered
Jagienka.
Macko began to enumerate what she had brought; but when he mentioned the
two beds, Zbyszko said:
"I am satisfied to sleep on the urus' skin; but I thank you because you
thought about me also."
"It was not I; it was _Tatulo_," answered the girl, blushing. "If you
prefer to sleep on the skin, you can do it."
"I prefer to sleep on what I can. Sometimes after a battle, I slept with
a dead Krzyzak instead of a pillow under my head."
"You do not mean to tell me that you have ever killed a Krzyzak? I am
sure you have not."
Zbyszko, instead of answering, began to laugh. But Macko exclaimed:
"For heaven's sake, girl, you do not know him yet! He has never done
anything else, but kill the Germans. He can fight with an axe, a spear or
with any weapon; and when he sees a German from afar, one must tie him
with a rope, or else he will rush against him. In Krakow he wanted to
kill the envoy, Lichtenstein, and for that he barely escaped execution.
Such a man! I will tell you also about the two Fryzes, from whom we took
their retinues and so much rich booty, that one could redeem Bogdaniec
with half of it."
Here Macko began to tell about his duel with the Fryzjans; also about
other adventures which had happened to them, and about the deeds they had
performed. How they had fought from behind the walls and in the open
fields, with the greatest knights living in foreign lands; how they had
fought Germans, Frenchmen, Englishmen and Burgundians. He also told her
what they had seen! They had seen German castles of red brick, Lithuanian
wooden _grodzce_[74] and churches, more beautiful than one could see
around Bogdaniec; also large cities and the dreadful wilderness in which
during the nights Lithuanian gods cried, and many different, marvelous
things; and everywhere, in any fight, Zbyszko was victorious, so that
even the greatest knights were astonished at him.
Jagienka, who was sitting on the log beside Macko, listened with open
mouth to that narrative, tossing her head and looking at the young knight
with increasing admiration and amazement. Finally when Macko was through,
she sighed and said:
"I am sorry I was not born a boy!"
But Zbyszko, who during the narration had been looking at her
attentively, evidently was thinking about something else, because he
suddenly said:
"What a beautiful girl you are now!"
Jagienka answered, half in displeasure and half in sadness:
"You have seen many more beautiful than I am."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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