"And was all this fair to her?" asked Gretchen, coldly.
"To her? I do not understand."
"I mean, was all this fair to my sister?"
"Gretchen," a light piercing the darkness, "has she not written to you?"
"A long time ago. She wanted to see me on an important matter, but I could not change my plans at the time. I shall see her at the palace next week. Ought you not to be with her instead of here?"
"Why should I be with her?"
Gretchen laughed, but the key was false.
"Are you not going to marry her? Surely, it is easy after the King has given his permission. Have you already fallen out of love with her, after all your efforts to make her a Princess? Truly, man is as unstable as sand and water! Ah, but you fooled us all to the top of our bent. You knew from the first that she was a Princess; but you could not find the proofs. Hermann and I were the means to the end. But who shall blame you? Not I! I am very grateful to you for having given to me a sister. And if you fooled me, I returned measure for measure. It is game and quit. Time hung heavy on my hands, and the victory, however short, was amusing."
"I never loved her!" I cried. Where were the words I needed?
"So much the worse for you," disdainfully. "But here comes Hermann to announce your supper."