"Would you be brave, Loo?" said he.
"Oh, yes," said the child; "and if my sword only cut, I should fear no one."
"I fancy that if these warriors, instead of silk and satin, were made of flesh and blood, you would take to your heels in a trice."
"Not at all!" cried Loo, squatting on his heels. "I am often very bad, and I often get into a fight. Once I pulled a gatekeeper's ear because he would not let me pass, pretending it was too late. While he called for help and held on to his ear, I jumped over the gate. Another time I was chasing a stork, which I had wounded with a stone, when a big dog came at me with his mouth open. I caught him by the neck, and gave him such a squeeze that he ran off yelping; but I was very angry with that dog, all the same, because I lost the stork meantime."
The Prince meditated as he listened to Loo's stories. He remembered that he had often heard of his exploits; they had been reported to him, with the advice to dismiss his youthful follower.
"Would you like to go to the war with me!" said he, suddenly.
"O master," cried Loo, clasping his hands, "I entreat you to take me! I am more supple than a serpent, more agile than a cat; I can slip in anywhere. You shall see that I can make myself useful. Besides, the very first time that I am frightened, you can cut off my head."
"It is a bargain," said the Prince, smiling. "Go, put on a very simple dress of some dark color, and hold yourself ready to accompany me. I shall want you to-night."
Nagato went into his chamber, while Loo, wild with delight, ran off with a bound.
The Prince was about to strike upon a bell to summon his servants, when he thought he heard a faint scratching under the floor. He stopped and listened; the noise was repeated more distinctly. Nagato closed the open panels around the room; then, coming back to that point in the floor where the noise was heard, he lifted the mat, and searched for a knot in the wood, upon which he pressed his finger. A portion of the floor then slid aside, and discovered a staircase, leading down into darkness. A man mounted the last steps, and entered the room. At the first glance the fellow looked like Nagato; he seemed like a rough sketch for the perfect statue realized in the Prince.