"Oh," said he with a sneer, "honour is not much esteemed in these days!"
"My father has always taught me to look on it as the most important thing in the world."
"A clear proof that he is a stranger to Paris. However, I will not press you. It will ill-suit my purpose to imprison D'Arçy—he is too useful as a conspirator," he added with a chuckle.
I started in surprise at the mention of D'Arçy's name, and the Cardinal smiled.
"At present," he said kindly, "your sword will be of more service to me than your brains. Evidently you are not at home with our Parisian ways. Come, let me give you a lesson on the question and answer principle. How came I to be on my guard? My spies, as it happened, were ignorant of the conspiracy."
"Then one of the plotters betrayed his comrades."
"Precisely. Price—a thousand crowns. Next, how did De Retz discover that the plot was known?"
"That is more difficult to answer. I thought at first he himself was the traitor."
"A shrewd guess. Why did you alter your opinion?"
"Because De Retz cannot be in need of a thousand crowns."