Was it a hint, a threat that we were never again to see lands where men take the lives of their fellows for these bits of crystallised carbon? CHAPTER XII DISASTER Strangely enough, from that day onwards our circumstances seemed to improve all round. If we had seen ourselves encircled in mystery, and detected vague menaces in what we had heard, now it became increasingly apparent that for some reason or other we were looked on more favourably by the people of the valley. That atmosphere of suspicion, which I had come to feel no less than Poyning, was melting away. We had several audiences with the "King," as we found ourselves dropping into the way of calling Philipson, and though he said little to us of the inner politics of the city, we gathered he was steadily consolidating his position and winning over the disaffected party of Kalliphanes. He even told us one day that he thought he could now count on the unanimous support of the Nine Shadows, and considerably startled us by mentioning that Kalliboas was one of that sinister secret body. The names of the rest I never learned, though it is likely I saw and spoke to all before the end of my sojourn in Hellas. Towards his old comrades, in private at least, Philipson's manner was always as affable and unpretending as if the great change had not come; yet I couldn't help noticing as time went on that he was sinking deeper and deeper into the austere spirit of this land and leaving off one by one his old traits of an adventurer with a dim future. Also, behind all his friendliness, there seemed to peep out a shadow of anxiety for us; and though he never betrayed the fact in words, I felt he was hoping that we, like himself and his Chinese servants, should gradually throw down roots here and lose our desire to return to the outer world. The notion appalled me, yet I couldn't doubt it had entered the mind of Saunders Philipson. Everything that could be done to attract us towards this land was being done; we were given more splendid quarters, our servants were increased, we were presented to all the highest nobles--and, as I noticed with alarm, to their daughters; during one week of festival, when there were dramatic and musical performances and banquets and exhibitions of dancing and Olympian games, we took our place among the first of the land; and generally we were advanced to a state little short of princely ourselves.