up the steps and the tall old priest stepped towards me
and blessed me in a low voice, and then asked to be shown to his room. I
conducted him myself, leading the way to the apartment with a candle,
and the two others followed, their arms crossed over their chests. Thus
came the learned Father Cefron into my house. Next morning the two other
priests departed in haste, the way they had come, to inform the Lord
Bishop of Lund that the learned Father Cefron was ill and like to die,
which indeed seemed to be true. I sat by his bedside as he lay with his
face to the wall, his shaven head looking dark against the bed-clothes.

"When will he come? When will he come?" he would murmur; then clenching
his hands and turning towards me and sticking both fists out, "I want
the boy," he said; then flinging his face to the wall impatiently. This
kept on for two days, till I sent a messenger to the one of the two
priests whom I had liked most (the fat one), asking who he, "the boy,"
was, and telling him how the learned Father Cefron lay calling for him
and would not be quiet. In eight days there came back my messenger,
saying that he, the boy, would follow on, and would probably be at the
hall to-morrow morning early. So it was. While I was yet in bed I heard
the barking of dogs in the courtyard, and the cracking of whips, and the
voices of the men calling to one another, and the clatter of their
wooden shoes on the stones. I sent word that he should at once be taken
to Father Cefron if so be that Father Cefron was awake; and he went
quickly and I did not see him at all till after noon that day. Then, as
I rose from my meat--the men had already trooped out of the hall, their
dinner over--there entered through the tapestried door a tall,
broad-backed, narrow hipped, slim-limbed, youth, who held his head high,
and bore eyes full of laughter under his wild light hair.

"My Lord Olaf," he said, extending his hand, "I ask your pardon for
coming late to my meat; but good Father Cefron has wanted me with him. I
have been much with him since a child, you know."

I welcomed him as a guest should be welcomed, and called for more meat
to be placed before him and some ale; but the ale he only sipped and I
sent to the back of my cellars for some bottles of Southern wine, which
he liked much better and thanked me for, and which I liked him the less
for liking better than the ale. When we had drank and eaten, we rose,
and taking my arm, he walked wi