Earlier it could have annoyed me, but now everything was in good hands and swimming right along.

The king had reminded me several times, of late, that the postponement I had asked for, four years before, had about run out now.

It was a hint that I ought to be starting out to seek adventures and get up a reputation of a size to make me worthy of the honor of breaking a lance with Sir Sagramor, who was still out grailing, but was being hunted for by various relief expeditions, and might be found any year, now.

So you see I was expecting this interruption; it did not take me by surprise..