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CHAPTER VII. MITAINE OPENS THE CAMPAIGN.
CHARLEMAGNE, on one occasion, committed an act of imprudence; he promised Mitaine that when she performed any remarkable feat of valour, she should be attached to Roland’s staff as a squire. From that moment she never rested; ambition constantly haunted her, and, without letting any one know her plans, she was always looking out for some opportunity of distinguishing herself. The Fortress of Fear seemed an object worthy of her labour, and the unfortunate issue of the expedition of the four knights induced her to undertake the adventure. “If my friend Croquemitaine lives in the castle, I will find him, and prove I am not afraid of him.”
She set forth early one morning, accompanied by a young page of her acquaintance named Ortez; and when she found herself at what she believed a sufficient distance from the camp to render pursuit impossible, she told her companion to return to the Emperor, and inform him that she had resolved to find the Fortress of Fear.
“Tell him not to be alarmed for me; he shall have no reason to blush for his godchild. I hope before long to remind him of his promise to make me a squire.”
The page endeavoured in vain to dissuade her from her plan; in vain he threatened her with the anger of Charlemagne. “When I return,” said she, “he will gladly embrace me.”