heir bearing that they must needs be princes or ambassadors from some
great monarch. One knight, the fairest and the boldest, is, methinks,
the wondrous hero Siegfried, though never have I seen that mighty
Prince.'

Then, his fierce eyes gleaming, Hagen told the King of the great
treasure Siegfried had won from the Nibelungs. His eyes gleamed with
a greed he could not hide as he told King Gunther of the gold that had
been strewed upon the mountain-side, of the jewels that had sparkled
there, for Hagen was envious of the riches of the great hero.

He told the King, too, how Siegfried had seized the good sword
Balmung, and with it had killed the two little princely dwarfs, their
twelve giants and seven hundred great champions of the neighbouring
country. Of Alberich, too, Hagen told his master, of Alberich from
whom Siegfried had taken the Cloak of Darkness and the Magic Wand, and
who now guarded the hoard for the mighty hero alone.

Never was such a warrior as Siegfried, thought King Gunther, who was
himself neither strong nor brave.

But yet more had Hagen to tell, even how Siegfried had slain a great
dragon and bathed in its blood until his skin grew tough and horny, so
that no sword-thrust could do him any hurt.

But of the linden leaf and of the tiny spot between the hero's
shoulders where he could be smitten as easily as any other knight, of
these things Hagen, knowing nothing, did not speak.

'Let us hasten to receive this young Prince,' said the counsellor, 'as
befits his fame. Let us hasten to gain his good-will lest our country
suffer from his prowess.'

The King was well pleased with the counsel of his uncle Hagen, for as
he gazed at the young hero from the castle window King Gunther loved
him for his strength of limb, for his fair young face, and would fain
welcome him to the land of Burgundy.

'If in truth the knight be Siegfried,' said the King, 'right glad am
I. More bold and peerless a prince have I never seen.'

'Siegfried, if so he be, is the son of a wealthy king,' said Hagen.
'Well pleased would I be to know for what purpose he and his knights
have journeyed to our land.'

'Let us go down and welcome the strangers,' said Gunther. 'If their
errand be peaceful they shall tarry at our court and see how merry the
knights of Burgundy can be.'

With Hagen by his side and followed by his courtiers, Gunther then
walked toward the gates of the castle, which he reached as Siegfried
and his knights