Jack Vance Dying Earth 03 Cugel's Saga

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turned away. Cugel, upon finishing his breakfast, went out once more to stroll
across the square. Here he met an individual whom he recognized to be the
pot-boy in the tavern, and Cugel signaled him to a halt.
"You seem an alert and knowledgeable fellow," said Cugel. "May I inquire your
name?"
"I am generally known as 'Zeller'."
"I would guess you to be well-acquainted with the folk of Gundar."
"I consider myself well-informed. Why do you ask?"
"First," said Cugel, "let me ask if you care to turn your knowledge to
profit?"
"Certainly, so long as I evade the attention of the Nolde."
"Very good. I notice a disused booth yonder which should serve our purpose. In
one hour we shall put our enterprise into operation."
Cugel returned to the inn where at his request Maier brought a board, brush
and paint. Cugel composed a sign:
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THE EMINENT SEER CUGEL
COUNSELS, INTERPRETS, PROGNOSTICATES.
ASK! YOU WILL BE ANSWERED!
CONSULTATIONS: THREE TERCES.
Cugel hung the sign above the booth, arranged curtains and waited for
customers. The pot-boy, meanwhile, had inconspicuously secreted himself at the
back.
Almost immediately folk crossing the square halted to read the sign. A
woman of early middle-age presently came forward.
"Three terces is a large sum. What results can you guarantee?"
"None whatever, by the very nature of things. I am a skilled voyant, I have
acquaintance with the arts of magic, but knowledge comes to me from unknown
and uncontrollable sources."
The woman paid over her money. "Three terces is cheap if you can resolve my
worries. My daughter all her life has enjoyed the best of health but now she
ails, and suffers a morose condition. All my remedies are to no avail. What
must I do?"
"A moment, madam, while I meditate." Cugel drew the curtain and leaned back to
where he could hear the pot-boy's whispered remarks, then once again drew
aside the curtains.
"I have made myself one with the cosmos! Knowledge has entered my mind!
Your daughter Dilian is pregnant. For an additional three terces I will supply
the father's name."
"This is a fee I pay with pleasure," declared the woman grimly. She paid,
received the information and marched purposefully away.
Another woman approached, paid three terces, and Cugel addressed himself to
her problem: "My husband assured me that he had put by a canister of gold
coins against the future, but upon his death I could find not so much as a
copper. Where has he hidden the gold?"
Cugel closed the curtains, took counsel with the pot-boy, and again appeared
to the woman. "I have discouraging news for you. Your husband
Finister spent much of his hoarded gold at the tavern. With the rest he
purchased an amethyst brooch for a woman named Varletta."
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The news of Cugel's remarkable abilities spread rapidly and trade was brisk.
Shortly before noon, a large woman, muffled and veiled, approached the booth,
paid three terces, and asked in a high-pitched, if husky, voice: "Read me my
fortune!"
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Cugel drew the curtains and consulted the pot-boy, who was at a loss. "It is
no one I know. I can tell you nothing."
"No matter," said Cugel. "My suspicions are verified." He drew aside the
curtain. "The portents are unclear and I refuse to take your money." Cugel
returned the fee. "I can tell you this much: you are an individual of
domineering character and no great intelligence. Ahead lies what? Honors? A
long voyage by water? Revenge on your enemies? Wealth? The image is distorted;
I may be reading my own future."
The woman tore away her veils and stood revealed as the Nolde Huruska.
"Master Cugel, you are lucky indeed that you returned my money, otherwise I
would have taken you up for deceptive practices. In any event, I deem your
activities mischievous, and contrary to the public interest. Gundar is in an
uproar because of your revelations; there will be no more of them. Take down
your sign, and be happily thankful that you have escaped so easily."
"I will be glad to terminate my enterprise," said Cugel with dignity. "The
work is taxing."
Huruska stalked away in a huff. Cugel divided his earnings with the pot- [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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