骑士上了巫师的当

战胜发矢胡狄之后，红十字骑士跨上了战马，他与尤娜公主又一同上路前行。这一次，他们小心翼翼地探路，既不左转，也不右拐，终于安全地走出了迷踪林。

但此刻，他们进入了一个更加危险奸诈之敌的领地，甚至比那个歹毒的怪物发矢胡狄还要凶恶。

走了大半天，他们一路风顺，没有遇到新的险情，但危险终于还是来了，他们在一个路口偶然遇见了一个老头。他看上去显得睿智和善。他身穿黑袍，像一个隐士，打着赤脚，有一把灰胡子。同那个年代的普通学者一样，他的皮带上还挂着一本书。他显得很平静忧郁，眼睛盯着地面，一直独行，口中好像在祈祷，其实是为自己的邪恶在唱着领他人倒霉的歌。

他见到骑士一行人，非常谦卑地向他们致意问好。红十字骑士也有礼貌的回礼问候，并向他打听，他知不知道有什么离奇的事发生。

 “啊，我亲爱的孩子！”隐士说：“我一个普通老头，住在一间孤独的小屋，整日无可事事，只为自己的困惑而忧郁，怎么能知道任何战争的消息和世俗的烦事？那些事不是老朽所关心的。但是如果你们想知道一些附近的危险和恶魔，我可以告诉你们，是有那么一个怪人，在这里无恶不作，横行乡里。

骑士答道，“我正是我要问的，如果你将领我到他住的地方，我会好好答谢你。因为这样的怪物能活这么久，简直是我们骑士荣誉的一种耻辱。”

“他的巢穴离这儿很远，在一片荒野之中，”老头回答。 “到那里的人都会面对极大的困难和危险。

尤娜公主开口道：“现在天快黑了，我想你刚打了一仗，一定累了。我们就歇脚休息吧，明天再去开始新的工作。”

 “所言极是，”老人也插嘴道。“ “骑士先生，天色已晚，就请大家到寒舍过夜吧。”

大家都同意这个建议，所以他们跟着这个貌似好人的老头到他家去。

这是一个简陋的小茅舍， 在森林边的一个溪谷畔，远离行人的大路。附近有一个小教堂，从一汪汩汩清泉正涌出一股清澈的小溪。

进了房子，他们既没有期待，也没有看见任何娱乐消遣之物。休息是他们主要的目的，因此他们很满足，因为高贵的心灵永远都是随遇而安的。老头讲了一大堆甜言蜜语，并知道如何讨好他的客人。傍晚就这样愉快地打发了，随后这隐士领上他的客人们到卧室，让他们住宿过夜。

但当他们安静地睡着后，这个老头露出了狰狞面目，实际上，他根本不友善，这一切都是假装的。他的心充满了仇恨、恶意和欺骗。他号称阿欺蒙苟“大巫师”，但他真正的名字是黑婆克你死（伪善）。他知道，只要圣洁（骑士）和真相（尤娜公主）在一起，他就没办法伤害其中任何一个人，所以他下狠心要将他们分开。为此，他取出他所有的魔典，着手计划诡计和魔咒。

他诡计多端，经常能骗过许多比他还精明的人。他还能召唤来许多小妖，为他效力，用来支援他的狐朋狗友与恐吓他的敌人，他还有魔法让他们按他的意愿变化，叫人识不破。

阿欺蒙苟挑了两个最阴毒的魔咒，将其中一个派小妖送给了国王梦呼哧（睡眠），睡眠国的君主。他吩咐小妖带回来一个虚假的噩梦，然后他将噩梦给了正沉睡的骑士。他的狡猾图谋是，骑士第二天早晨醒来时，他不知道这只是一个梦，还以为他在睡梦里看到的一切都是真事。

同时，阿欺蒙苟将另一个小妖打扮成尤娜的模样，不论谁，即使靠得再近，也分辨不出两个人的差别。他知道离间圣洁和真相的唯一途径是通过卑鄙的手段让圣洁相信真相并没有看上去那么好。他也深知除了让红十字骑士亲眼看到，他不可能相信任何有损尤娜公主声誉的事情。因此，他尽了最大的努力和用了最毒的诡计，并对这个计划再三考虑。

现在，大家就请看他的邪恶谋划是多么地成功。

The Knight deceived by the Magician

After his victory over Falsehood, the Red Cross Knight again mounted his steed, and he and the Lady Una went on their way. Keeping carefully to one path, and turning neither to the right hand nor the left, at last they found themselves safely out of the Wood of Error.

But now they were to fall into the power of a more dangerous and treacherous foe than even the hateful monster, Falsehood.

They had travelled a long way, and met with no fresh adventure, when at last they chanced to meet in the road an old man. He looked very wise and good. He was dressed in a long black gown, like a hermit, and had bare feet and a grey beard; he had a book hanging from his belt, as was the custom with scholars in those days. He seemed very quiet and sad, and kept his eyes fixed on the ground, and all the time, as he went along, he seemed to be saying prayers, and lamenting over his own wickedness.

When he saw the travellers he made a very humble salute to them. The Red Cross Knight returned the greeting with all courtesy, and asked him if he knew of any strange adventures that were then taking place.

"Ah, my dear son!" said the hermit, "how should a simple old man, who lives in a lonely cell, and does nothing all day but sorrow for his own faults-how should such a man know any tidings of war or worldly trouble? It is not fitting for me to meddle with such matters. But, if indeed you desire to hear about danger and evil near at hand, I can tell you about a strange man who wastes all the surrounding country."

"That," said the Knight, "is what I chiefly ask about, and I will reward you well if you will guide me to the place where he dwells. For it is a disgrace to knighthood that such a creature should be allowed to live so long."

"His dwelling is far away from here, in the midst of a barren wilderness," answered the old man. "No living person may ever pass it without great danger and difficulty."

"Now," said the Lady Una, "night is drawing near, and I know well that you are wearied with your former fight. Therefore, take rest, and with the new day begin new work."

"You have been well advised, Sir Knight," said the old man. "Day is now spent; therefore take up your abode with me for this night."

The travellers were well content to do this, so they went with the apparently good old man to his home.

It was a little lowly hermitage, down in a dale by the side of a forest, far from the beaten track of travellers. A small chapel was built near, and close by a crystal stream gently welled forth from a never-failing fountain.

Arrived at the house, they neither expected nor found any entertainment; but rest was what they chiefly needed, and they were well satisfied, for the noblest mind is always the best contented. The old man had a good store of pleasing words, and knew well how to fit his talk to suit his visitors. The evening passed pleasantly, and then the hermit conducted his guests to the lodgings where they were to spend the night.

But when they were safely asleep a horrid change came over the old man, for in reality he was not good at all, although he pretended to be so. His heart was full of hatred, malice, and deceit. He called himself Archimago, which means a "Great Magician," but his real name was Hypocrisy. He knew that as long as Holiness and Truth kept together, no great harm could come to either of them; so he determined to do everything in his power to separate them. For this purpose he got out all his books of magic, and set to work to devise cunning schemes and spells. He was so clever and wily that he could deceive people much better and wiser than himself. He also had at his bidding many bad little spirits, who ran about and did his messages; these he used to help his friends and frighten his enemies, and he had the power of making them take any shape he wished.

Choosing out two of the worst of these, he sent one on a message to King Morpheus, who rules over the Land of Sleep. He bade him bring back with him a bad, false dream, which Archimago then carried to the sleeping Knight. So cunningly did he contrive the matter, that when the Knight awoke the next morning he never knew that it had only been a dream, but believed that all the things he had seen in his sleep had really happened.

In the meanwhile, Archimago dressed up the other bad spirit to look like Una, so that at a little distance it was impossible to tell any difference in the two figures. He knew that the only way to part Holiness and Truth was to make Holiness believe by some means that Truth was not as good as she appeared to be. He knew also that the Red Cross Knight would believe nothing against the Lady Una except what he saw with his own eyes. Therefore he laid his plans with the greatest care and guile.

Now we shall see how he succeeded in his wicked endeavour.