"'You are wrong,' said the glittering stranger; 'not Humayd, but Abdemon, who in a former life were favored by our lord, Suleiman Baalshem, who promised you his daughter, Neferte. But that promise, as you know, Suleiman could not keep, on account of Allah's wrath at his impiety. But Allah, the Merciful, the Compassionate, has relented; and on the 14th of Nisan, the first full moon of spring, you must take Neferte, who in this life is the lady Azizah, the niece of our lord the Shareef, to the Valley of Djinn, and there perform the ritual which will lift the curse from her life. And then Suleiman's promise to you in an earlier life can be fulfilled. Finally, there is a great treasure which Suleiman left awaiting this day; one third of it is yours, and the rest is for the pious Shareef.' "Then there came an intolerable brightness which blinded me; and when I could again see, the Presence had vanished. I sought my instructor the holy Zantut; and behold, we are here," concluded Humayd. "So there is also a treasure?" queried the Shareef. "Even so, _saidi_. Just as Humayd has said." "What of the seal?" asked the Shareef. Humayd drew from a small pouch suspended at his throat a leaden seal. "The seal of Suleiman Baalshem," admitted the Shareef. "And then, Ishtitad!" he commanded. "Testify!" "_La illaha illa allah_," intoned Humayd. "_Wa Muhammad er-rasul allahi._" "At least we have a true believer this time," reflected the Shareef. Then, to his son: "Was I not right in imprisoning the infidel you brought before me?" "Not entirely," protested Sayyid Absál. "The _kaffir_ is a great swordsman, even as the prophecy said. And one of these men is a liar, for one of the leaden seals must be false." "My lord," interposed Zantut, "is it not more likely that a true believer should have the seal of Suleiman Baalshem than an unbeliever?" "That goes without saying," agreed the Shareef. "But," protested Sayyid Absál, "who are we to know what is acceptable to Allah, and to whom he would entrust the seal of Suleiman? Is this fellow Humayd a fighting man? Let him meet my six best retainers in a side street," challenged Sayyid Absál, "and if he can prove himself in that way, I will agree." "Son," reproved the Shareef, "it seems to me that you have no more to agree than to disagree." "Well," retorted Sayyid Absál, "and has this pious Zantut by any chance dazzled you with his tale of great treasure? The tradition speaks of the promise of Suleiman, and the health of our cousin, Azizah, and not of chests of treasure." "My lord," interrupted Zantut, "is it not also possible that this infidel impostor said nothing about the treasure so that he could keep it all for himself?" "Even so," assented the Shareef. "Now by Allah and by my beard!" thundered Sayyid Absál. "The issue is evaded! What of the stout swordsman of the tradition?" "Humayd," replied Zantut, "is a great swordsman, even if he has not distinguished himself in street brawling in Tekrit."