"It is true, that my nurses never sang me any lullabies of valiant knights, and thank God, I have never been in a lonely forge in a wood; but even in Constantinople you may hear such tales recited. At the time when I was instructed at the Emperor's court, in all the arts well becoming a serving maiden, there was also an old woman who kept the keys, by name Glycerium, who often said to us: 'Listen ye maidens all, if you should ever serve a princess whose heart is consumed by a secret passion, and who cannot see him whom she loves, then, you must be sly and thoughtful like the waiting-woman Herlindis, when King Rother wooed the daughter of the Emperor Constantine.' And when we were sitting together of an evening in the women's apartment, then, they whispered and chattered, until old Glycerium, related the story of King Rother.
"In the olden times there was an Emperor, also called Constantine, living in his castle on the Bosporus, who had a wondrously beautiful daughter; and people said of her that she was radiant like the evening-star and outshone all other maids like a golden thread amongst silken ones. One fine day there arrived a great ship, out of which landed twelve counts and twelve knights, and they all rode into Constantine's courtyard; one of them, whose name was Lupolt, riding at their head. And all the people of the city marvelled at them, for their garments and mantles were heavy with gold and precious stones, and the horses' saddles rang with little golden bells. These were the messengers of King Rother of Vikingland, and Lupolt jumped down from his saddle, and spoke thus to the Emperor:
"'We are sent out by our king, called Rother, who is the handsomest man, ever born of woman. He is served by the best of heroes, and his court is the constant scene of balls and tournaments and all that heart can desire. But as yet he is unmarried, and his heart feels lonely.
"'You should give him your daughter!'
"Now, Constantine was a hot-tempered man, and throwing the imperial globe fiercely to the ground, he cried: 'Nobody has as yet wooed my daughter, who has not lost his head in the endeavour. How do you dare to insult me in that way? You are all my prisoners.'
"And he had them thrown into a dungeon, into which neither sun nor moon could shine; and they had nothing but bread and water to live on; and there they shed many bitter tears of sorrow.
"When the tidings reached King Rother, his heart was filled with sadness, and he sat on a rock all alone, and would speak to nobody. Then, he formed the resolution of crossing the seas, like a true knight, to succour his faithful messengers; and as he had been warned against the Greeks, and had been told that if a man wanted to attain anything there, he must needs paint and gild truth, he made his knights take an oath, that they would all pretend, that his name was not Rother but Dietrich, and that he had been banished by King Rother, and had come to crave the Greek Emperor's assistance. Thus, they set out in a ship, and Rother took his harp on board with him, for before his twelve ambassadors had weighed anchor, he came to the shore with his harp and played three airs, which they were to remember, saying: 'If ever you should be in distress, and hear these airs, you will know that Rother is near and will help you.'
"It was on Easter-day and the Emperor Constantine had gone on horseback to Hippodrom, when Rother made his entrance. And all the citizens of Constantinople ran out of their houses, for such a sight they had never seen before. Rother had brought his giants along with him. The first was called Asprian, and carried an iron bar which measured six yards in length; the second was called Widolt and was so fierce that they had loaded him with chains, and the third was called Eveningred.
"Besides these, a large member of valiant knights followed him, and twelve carriages loaded with jewels came in the rear, and the whole was such a splendid spectacle, that the Empress said: 'Alas, how stupid we have been, in refusing our daughter to King Rother! What a man he must be, to send such an army of heroes over the seas!'
"King Rother himself, wore a gold breast-plate, and a purple coat, and two rows of beautiful rings on his wrists. And he bent his knee before the Greek Emperor and said: 'I, the Prince Dietrich have been outlawed by a king whose name is Rother, so that all I have ever done in his service, now tells against me. I have come to offer my services to you.'