The closely fitting steel chain armour, in which he had ridden out, now hung in large folds upon his powerful frame.

The long mustache, which usually curled so arrogantly upwards, now drooped damp and limp over his mouth and chin, and his long reddish hair fell in dishevelled locks around his bloated face.

His blue eyes, which usually sparkled so brightly, now looked dull and bleared, and there were white spots on his copper-coloured cheeks.
Since Countess Cordula gave him the insulting message to his wife he had undergone more than he usually experienced in the course of years.
"An accursed night!" he had exclaimed, in reply to the housekeeper's question concerning the cause of his disordered appearance.
Els, too, was startled by his looks and the hoarse sound of his voice.
Nay, she even drew back from him, for his wandering glance made her fear that he was intoxicated.
Only a short time before, it is true, he had scarcely been able to stand erect, but the terrible news which had assailed him had quickly sobered him.
He had come at this unwontedly early hour to enquire whether the Ortliebs had heard anything of his brother-in-law Wolff.

There was not a word of allusion to the broken betrothal.
In return for the promise that she would let the Eysvogels know as soon as she received any tidings of her lover, which Els gave unasked, Siebenburg, who had always treated her repellently or indifferently, thanked her so humbly that she was surprised.

She did not know how to interpret it; nay, she anticipated nothing good when, with urgent cordiality, he entreated her to forget the unpleasant events of the preceding night, which she must attribute to a sudden fit of anger on Herr Casper's part.