"Read," said the duke.
As the last word left Herbeck's lips, she slipped from her father's arms and looked with pity at the chancellor.
"What do you think of this, Hildegarde?"
"Why, father, I think it is the very best thing in the world," dryly.
"An insult like this?" The duke grew rigid. "You accept it calmly, in this fashion?"
"Shall I weep and tear my hair over a boy I have never seen? No, thank you. I was about to make known to you this very evening that I had reconsidered the offer. I shall never marry his majesty."
"A fine time!" The duke's hand trembled. "Why, in God's name, did you not refuse when the overtures were first made? The truth, Herbeck, the whole truth; for there is something more than this."
Herbeck, in few words and without evasion, explained the situation.
"Your Highness, the regent is really not to blame, for his majesty had given him free rein in the matter; and his royal highness, working as I have been for the best interests of the two countries, never dreamed that the king would rebel. All my heart and all my mind have been working toward this end, toward a greater peace and prosperity. The king has been generous enough to leave the publicity in our hands; that is to say, he agrees to accept the humiliation of being rejected by her serene highness."
"That is very generous of him!" said the duke sarcastically. "Send for Ducwitz."