Page:Sienkiewicz - The knights of the cross.djvu/90

66 till a see should be vacant, hoping to receive it from the hands of his kindly lord. In fact he was not deceived; meanwhile he was endeavoring to win the king's heart with pleasant jests. But the former inclination towards the Knights of the Cross had remained with him, and even then, at the court of Yagello, though not looked upon too favorably by knights and dignitaries, he sought the society of Lichtenstein, and was glad to sit next him at table.

Zbyshko, standing behind Princess Anna's chair, found himself so near the Knight of the Cross that he could touch him with his hand. In fact his hands began to itch immediately and to move; but that was involuntary, for he restrained his impulsiveness, and did not permit himself any erratic thought. Still he could not refrain from casting occasional glances that were somewhat greedy at Lichtenstein's flax-colored head, which was growing bald behind, at his neck, his shoulders, and his arms, wishing to estimate at once whether he would have much work were he to meet him either in battle or in single combat. It seemed to him that he would not have overmuch, for, though the shoulder-blades of the knight were rather powerful in outline, under his closely fitting garment of thin gray cloth, he was still a skeleton in comparison with Povala, or Pashko Zlodye, or the two renowned Sulimchiks, or Kron of Koziglove, and many other knights sitting at the king's table.

On them indeed Zbyshko looked with admiration and envy, but his main attention was turned toward the king, who, casting glances on all sides, gathered in, from moment to moment, his hair behind his ears, as if made impatient by this, that the meal had not begun yet. His glance rested for the twinkle of an eye on Zbyshko also, and then the young knight experienced the feeling of a certain fear; and at the thought that surely he would have to stand before the angry face of the king a terrible alarm mastered him. At first he thought, it is true, of the responsibility and the punishment which might fall on him, for up to that moment all this had seemed to him distant, indefinite, hence not worthy of thought.

But the German did not divine that the knight who had attacked him insolently on the road was so near. The meal began. They brought in caudle, so strongly seasoned with eggs, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and saffron, that the odor went through the entire hall. At the same time the jester,