"Whenever thou answerest me, either compelled by Fate or
entrapped by my cunning into so doing, or thereby gratifying thy
vanity and conceit, I leave thee and return to my favourite place
and position in the siras-tree, but when thou shalt remain silent,
confused, and at a loss to reply, either through humility or thereby
confessing thine ignorance, and impotence, and want of
comprehension, then will I allow thee, of mine own free will, to
place me before thine employer. Perhaps I should not say so; it
may sound like bribing thee, but--take my counsel, and mortify thy
pride, and assumption, and arrogance, and haughtiness, as soon as
possible. So shalt thou derive from me a benefit which none but
myself can bestow."

Raja Vikram hearing these rough words, so strange to his royal
ear, winced; then he rejoiced that his heir apparent was not near;
then he looked round at his son Dharma Dhwaj, to see if he was
impertinent enough to be amused by the Baital. But the first glance
showed him the young prince busily employed in pinching and
screwing the monster's legs, so as to make it fit better into the
cloth. Vikram then seized the ends of the waistcloth, twisted them
into a convenient form for handling, stooped, raised the bundle
with a jerk, tossed it over his shoulder, and bidding his son not to
lag behind, set off at a round pace towards the western end of the
cemetery.

The shower had ceased, and, as they gained ground, the weather
greatly improved.

The Vampire asked a few indifferent questions about the wind and