e as of a mighty tempest, and
the young man caught a glimpse of a face turned towards him. Almost
blindly he struck, not knowing whether he had killed or only wounded
the rider. But the head rolled off, and was caught in the brown horse's
mouth.

'Jump on my brother, the black horse, and go home as fast as you can,
and I will follow as quickly as I may,' cried the brown horse; and
leaping forward the king alighted on the back of the black horse, but
so near the tail that he almost fell off again. But he stretched out his
arm and clutched wildly at the mane and pulled himself into the saddle.

Before the sky was streaked with red he was at home again, and the queen
was sitting waiting till he arrived, for sleep was far from her eyes.
Glad was she to see him enter, but she said little, only took her harp
and sang softly the songs which he loved, till he went to bed, soothed
and happy.

It was broad day when he woke, and he sprang up saying:

'Now I must go to the Gruagach, to find out if the spells he laid on me
are loose.'

'Have a care,' answered the queen, 'for it is not with a smile as on the
other days that he will greet you. Furiously he will meet you, and will
ask you in his wrath if you have got the sword, and you will reply that
you have got it. Next he will want to know how you got it, and to this
you must say that but for the knob you had not got it at all. Then he
will raise his head to look at the knob, and you must stab him in the
mole which is on the right side of his neck; but take heed, for if you
miss the mole with the point of the sword, then my death and your death
are certain. He is brother to the king of the oak windows, and sure
will he be that the king must be head, or the sword would not be in your
hands.' After that she kissed him, and bade him good speed.

'Didst thou get the sword?' asked the Gruagach, when they met in the
usual place.

'I got the sword.'

'And how didst thou get it?'

'If it had not had a knob on the top, then I had not got it,' answered
the king.

'Give me the sword to look at,' said the Gruagach, peering forward; but
like a flash the king had drawn it from under his nose and pierced the
mole, so that the Gruagach rolled over on the ground.

'Now I shall be at peace,' thought the king. But he was wrong, for when
he reached home he found his servants tied together back to back with
cloths bound round their mouths, so that they could not speak. He
hastened to set