“It is true; the world sometimes seems to me to be upside down,” and the baron rubbed a puzzled hand over his head. “I do not yet know how it happened—but in those last days of the war, when everything was falling to pieces, but when we thought ourselves firmly re-established, he suddenly appeared, won over what was left of the army, and in an hour we were fleeing for the frontier.”
“With the crown jewels and the contents of the treasury,” said the countess.
The baron smiled a deprecatory smile.
“The treasury was all but empty, and as for the jewels, they belonged to the king. Besides, their value has been much exaggerated. Most unfortunately. If they had been worth more, my task would be an easier one.”
The countess smiled. It was impossible to be annoyed with the baron.
“Please finish the story,” she said.
The audience was beginning to filter back into its seats for the last act.
“There is but a word more. As I said just now, I am going to place the king back on his throne.”
“Then the jewels are not all sold?”
“Alas—long since!”