his sword, and cut him in two. And he dried his sword, and went on
his way, as before. But behold the lion followed him, and played
about him, as though it had been a greyhound that he had reared.

They proceeded thus throughout the day, until the evening. And when
it was time for Owain to take his rest, he dismounted, and turned his
horse loose in a flat and wooded meadow. And he struck fire, and
when the fire was kindled, the lion brought him fuel enough to last
for three nights. And the lion disappeared. And presently the lion
returned, bearing a fine large roebuck. And he threw it down before
Owain, who went towards the fire with it.

And Owain took the roebuck, and skinned it, and placed collops of its
flesh upon skewers, around the fire. The rest of the buck he gave to
the lion to devour. While he was doing this, he heard a deep sigh
near him, and a second, and a third. And Owain called out to know
whether the sigh he heard proceeded from a mortal; and he received
answer that it did. "Who art thou?" said Owain. "Truly," said the
voice, "I am Luned, the handmaiden of the Countess of the Fountain."
"And what dost thou here?" said Owain. "I am imprisoned," said she,
"on account of the knight who came from Arthur's Court, and married
the Countess. And he stayed a short time with her, but he afterwards
departed for the Court of Arthur, and has not returned since. And he
was the friend I loved best in the world. And two of the pages in
the Countess's chamber traduced him, and called him a deceiver. And
I told them that they two were not a match for him alone. So they
imprisoned me in the stone vault, and said that I should be put to
death, unless he came himself to deliver me, by a certain day; and
that is no further off than the day after to-morrow. And I have no
one to send to seek him for me. And his name is Owain the son of