ut as they were returning, on
going down the stairs Sigvat's foot slipped, and he fell on his knee;
and when he put out his hands he felt the stairs wet. "I think," said
he, laughing, "the king must have given many of us tottering legs
tonight." When they came into the house in which light was burning the
footboy said, "Have you hurt yourself that you are all over so bloody?"
He replied, "I am not wounded, but something must have happened here."
Thereupon he wakened Thord Folason, who was standard-bearer, and his
bedfellow. They went out with a light, and soon found the blood. They
traced it, and found the corpses, and knew them. They saw also a great
stump of a tree in which clearly a gash had been cut, which, as was
afterwards known, had been done as a stratagem to entice those out
who had been killed. Sigvat and Thord spoke together and agreed it
was highly necessary to let the king know of this without delay. They
immediately sent a lad to the lodging where Hrorek had been. All the men
in it were asleep; but the king was gone. He wakened the men who were in
the house, and told them what had happened. The men arose, and ran out
to the yard where the bodies were; but, however needful it appeared to
be that the king should know it, nobody dared to waken him.

Then said Sigvat to Thord, "What wilt thou rather do, comrade, waken the
king, or tell him the tidings?"

Thord replies, "I do not dare to waken him, and I would rather tell him
the news."

Then said Sigvat, "There is minch of the night still to pass, and before
morning Hrorek may get himself concealed in such a way that it may be
difficult to find him; but as yet he cannot be very far off, for the
bodies are still warm. We must never let the disgrace rest upon us of
concealing this treason from the king. Go thou, up to the lodging, and
wait for me there."

Sigvat then went to the church, and told the bell-ringer to toll for
the souls of the king's court-men, naming the men who were killed.
The-bell-ringer did as he was told. The king awoke at the ringing, sat
up in his bed, and asked if it was already the hours of matins.

Thord replies, "It is worse than that, for there has occurred a very
important affair. Hrorek is fled, and two of the court-men are killed."

The king asked how this had taken place, and Thord told him all he knew.
The king got up immediately, ordered to sound the call for a meeting of
the court, and when the people were assembled he name