"It will be dark before we arrive." "What is your plan?" "I shall tell you on the way. Time presses. Come, come, be quick!" "Forward, march! Oh, I forgot--the jacket!" "What jacket?" "The one that I must put on for buffoonery--besides it is a prudent measure; the turned-down hood will conceal whatever defect there may be at the jointure of the fur between my neck and my head. The hood will also partially cover my bear face--mayhap the Franks have sharper eyes than those two blockheads of slaves. Let us first complete the disguise." While the lover of the bishopess spoke, Karadeucq pulled a rolled-up jacket out of his wallet; the false bear put it on; it reached back and down to his hind legs, and being pulled well over his head, left only his nozzle exposed to view, while the wide sleeves almost reached down to his clawy paws. The black fur of the belly and thighs remained wholly uncovered. Nothing could be imagined more grotesque than the bear in his costume. By the faith of a Vagre! the animal could not choose but furnish subject for laughter to the guests of Neroweg, especially after the copious libations of their supper. "Now, Karadeucq, I shall conceal my poniard in one of the folds of the jacket--by the way, it is the very Saxon knife that I picked up as I fled from the defile of Allange. I picked it up on the field of battle. You can see on the hilt of the arm the two Gallic words--'_Friendship_,' '_Community_'--graven in the iron. 'Friendship'--that is a good omen. Friendship, as well as Love, leads me to the burg. Blood and massacre! I shall free at one blow both my friend and my sweetheart!" "Come, come! O, Ronan! O, Loysik! I shall save you both--or we shall die together! Come, forward, my brave companion." CHAPTER VII. IN THE ERGASTULA. When, more than five hundred years ago, the Romans conquered and owned, though they could not subjugate, Gaul they constructed their _ergastulas_--slave pens--of solid, lasting material. There they locked up their chained Gallic slaves at night. Such a cave was an adjunct also to the old Roman camp on which now stood the burg of Neroweg. The bricks and cement were still so closely joined that they jointly constituted a body more solid than marble itself. Hardly could men, equipped with all the necessary implements for boring, and working from dawn to dusk, succeed in effecting an opening through the wall of this prison. The opening of the vault was barred by enormous rods of iron. Without, a strong body of Franks, armed with axes, were keeping ceaseless watch; some were lying on the ground, others walked up and down. From time to time these watchmen cast a wistful glance towards the burg, which lay about five hundred paces from them. The principal building, however, was hidden from their view by the gables of the barns and stables that adjoined the seigniorial mansion from that side.