All the arguments Greif had
formerly used with so much force remained unshaken, and he felt that
there could be but one way of placing himself and Hilda beyond their
reach. Had Hilda never existed, he would have determined to live in
retirement, and to allow his race to be extinguished in his own person,
rather than perpetuate the memory of such deeds. As it was, he had
given up the thought, for the love of her, and he knew that there was
happiness in store for him. In order to accept it, however, he must be
no longer Greifenstein.
It was strange that each of the three in turn, Rex, the baroness, and
lastly, Hilda herself, should have suggested the advisability of his
taking the name of Sigmundskron in place of his own. Clearly, it was
the only course open to him, but it was a curious coincidence that they
should all have had the same thought. On the whole he was ready to
follow their advice, but as he drew near to his destination he realised
that it must be the first point settled. He did not exactly know how to
formulate his request, for he had never known anybody who had asked
another for his name. He almost wished that Hilda could manage it for
him, which was a proof that he had not yet altogether recovered his
strength.
He was glad that Rex had not come, after all. It was one of those
errands which he preferred to accomplish alone. Moreover, for some
reason which he could not guess, Rex seemed to avoid the Sigmundskrons
as much as he could.
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