Chapter 14
Lord Spittleworth’s Plan
斯派頭沃斯爵士的陰謀
When the fog cleared at last， it revealed a very different party of men to those who’d arrived at the edge of the marsh an hour earlier。
最終，當迷霧散去，呈現出了一個和一個小時前到達沼澤邊緣的軍隊大相徑庭的軍隊樣子。
Quite apart from their shock at the sudden death of Major Beamish， a few of the Royal Guard were confused by the explanation they’d been given。 Here were the two lords， the king and the hastily promoted Major Roach， all swearing that they’d come face-to-face with a monster that all but the most foolish had dismissed for years as a fairy tale。 Could it really be true that beneath the tightly wrapped cloaks， Beamish’s body bore the tooth and claw marks of the Ickabog？
除了對於比姆世首領突然死亡的震驚之外，還有一部分皇家侍衛對於他們給予的解釋很費解。兩個爵士，國王還有輕率上任的羅池首領都發誓他們面對面的看到了一個怪物，那個怪物就連最蠢的人好多年前就知道那是個幻想的故事。在斗篷下緊緊包裹的比姆世身體上的窟窿是艾卡伯格爪牙的痕跡，這真的是真的嗎？
‘Are you calling me a liar？’ Major Roach growled into the face of a young private。
“你認為我在說謊嗎？”羅池首領對著年輕士兵的臉吼道。
‘Are you calling
the king
a liar？’ barked Lord Flapoon。
“你是說國王在說謊嗎？”菲萊普恩爵士吼道。
The private didn’t dare question the word of the king， so he shook his head。 Captain Goodfellow， who’d been a particular friend of Major Beamish’s， said nothing。 However， there was such an angry and suspicious look on Goodfellow’s face that Roach ordered him to go and pitch the tents on the most solid bit of ground he could find， and be quick about it， because the dangerous fog might yet return。
那個年輕士兵是不敢質疑國王的話的，因此他搖了搖頭。古德佛羅，是首領比姆世曾經的好朋友，他什麼也沒說。但是，當羅池命令他找個最堅硬的地面然後搭建帳篷並且催他必須快點以防迷霧再次來襲時，臉上充滿了憤怒和懷疑。
In spite of the fact that he had a straw mattress， and that blankets were taken from the soldiers to ensure his comfort， King Fred had never spent a more unpleasant night。 He was tired， dirty， wet， and， above all， frightened。
儘管他鋪著稻草墊子和為保證他舒服從士兵那拿的毯子，國王弗雷德從來沒有過比今天更加難受的晚上。他很累，身上很髒而且潮溼，最重要的是，很害怕。
‘What if the Ickabog comes looking for us， Spittleworth？’ the king whispered in the dark。 ‘What if it tracks us by our scent？ It’s already had a taste of poor Beamish。 What if it comes looking for the rest of the body？’
“如果艾卡伯格返回來找我們怎麼辦，斯派頭沃斯？”國王在黑暗中低聲問。“如果它能透過氣味追蹤我們怎麼辦？它已經咬了可憐的比姆世，如果它返回來尋找剩下的屍體怎麼辦？”
Spittleworth attempted to soothe the king。
沃斯試著安慰國王。
‘Do not fear， Your Majesty， Roach has ordered Captain Goodfellow to keep watch outside your tent。 Whoever else gets eaten， you will be the last。’
“不要害怕，陛下，羅池已經命令古德佛羅在帳篷外巡邏。如有任何人被吃，您也會是最後一個。”
It was too dark for the king to see Spittleworth grinning。 Far from wanting to reassure the king， Spittleworth hoped to fan the king’s fears。 His entire plan rested on a king who not only believed in an Ickabog， but who was scared it might leave the marsh to chase him。
由於是晚上因此國王看不到沃斯的狡詐的笑。除了安慰國王之外，沃斯更多的是想嘲弄國王的恐懼。他的整個計劃就是不僅讓國王相信艾卡伯格的存在，而且還讓他（國王）害怕艾卡伯格可能離開沼澤去追逐他。
The following morning， the king’s party set off back to Jeroboam。 Spittleworth had sent a message ahead to tell the Mayor of Jeroboam that there had been a nasty accident at the marsh， so the king didn’t want any trumpets or corks greeting him。 Thus， when the king’s party arrived， the city was silent。
Townsfolk pressing their faces to their windows， or peeking around their doors， were shocked to see the king so dirty and miserable， but not nearly as shocked as they were to see a body wrapped in cloaks， tied to Major Beamish’s steel-grey horse。
第二天早晨，國王的軍隊返程傑若保姆。沃斯早已捎信兒給傑若保姆市長，告訴他在沼澤裡發生了痛苦的意外，因此國王不想要任何的儀仗隊或者老百姓的歡迎。因此當國王的軍隊來到時，整個城市是安靜的。市民們或臉貼著窗戶，或在門縫裡眯著眼看，當他們看到國王是如此的骯髒悲慘非常震驚，但更加震驚的是看到在斗篷裡包裹著的屍體系在了首領比姆世矯健的灰馬上。
When they reached the inn， Spittleworth took the landlord aside。
當他們到達酒店時，沃斯把店主叫到一邊。
‘We require some cold， secure place， perhaps a cellar， where we can store a body for the night， and I shall need to keep the key myself。’
“我們需要一個冷的，安全的地方，比如地窖，在那裡我們可以儲存屍體過夜，並且鑰匙我自己要留著。”
‘What happened， my lord？’ asked the innkeeper， as Roach carried Beamish down the stone steps into the cellar。
“發生了什麼，爵士閣下？”店主問道，當羅池攜著比姆世屍體走在進入地窖的石階上。
‘I shall tell you the truth， my good man， seeing as you have looked after us so well， but it must go no further，’ said Spittleworth in a low， serious voice。 ‘The Ickabog is real and has savagely killed one of our men。 You understand， I’m sure， why this must not be widely broadcast。
“我應該告訴你真相，我的貴人，鑑於你照顧我們是如此的周到。艾卡伯格是真的，它野蠻的殺死了我們的人，我相信你懂得，這事一定不能外傳的原因。”沃斯以一個極低且嚴肅的聲音說道。
There would be instant panic。 The king is returning with all speed to the palace， where he and his advisors – myself， of course， included – will begin work at once on a set of measures to secure our country’s safety。’
“（如果外傳的話）這會引起急速恐慌的。國王正在全速回王宮，在那裡他可以和智囊團們——我當然也在內——開始採取一系列措施來保證我們國家的安全。”
‘The Ickabog？ Real？’ said the landlord， in astonishment and fear。
“艾卡伯格？真的？”店主無比震驚和恐懼的說道。
‘Real and vengeful and vicious，’ said Spittleworth。 ‘But， as I say， this must go no further。 Widespread alarm will benefit nobody。’
“真實且兇殘且報復心重，但正如我說的，一定不能想外傳。多說無益。”沃斯說。
In fact， widespread alarm was precisely what Spittleworth wanted， because it was essential for the next phase of his plan。 Just as he’d expected， the landlord waited only until his guests had gone to bed， then rushed to tell his wife， who ran to tell the neighbours， and by the time the king’s party set off for Kurdsburg the following morning， they left behind them a city where panic was fermenting as busily as the wine。
實際上，廣泛傳播正是沃斯想要的，因為那樣是他下一步計劃的必要條件。正如爵士想的那樣，店主等到賓客們都睡下後就迫不及待的告訴他的妻子，然後妻子告訴了鄰居，等到第二天早晨國王和隊伍向科德斯伯格出發時，給這個城市留下的恐慌如葡萄酒那樣持續發酵著。
Spittleworth sent a message ahead to Kurdsburg， warning the cheesemaking city not to make a fuss of the king either， so it too was dark and silent when the royal party entered its streets。 The faces at the windows were already scared。 It so happened that a merchant from Jeroboam， with an especially fast horse， had carried the rumour about the Ickabog to Kurdsburg an hour previously。
沃斯先前就給科德斯伯格捎過資訊，警告這個乳酪之城切莫做歡迎國王儀式之類的事，因此當國王和軍隊進入城內時，是如此的暗淡安靜。窗戶後的人們都早已嚇壞了。（因為）恰巧有個傑若保姆的商人，在一個小時前，騎著特快馬，帶著艾卡伯格的謠言來到了科德斯伯格。
Once again， Spittleworth requested the use of a cellar for Major Beamish’s body， and once again confided to the landlord that the Ickabog had killed one of the king’s men。 Having seen Beamish’s body safely locked up， Spittleworth went upstairs to bed。
再次，沃斯要求使用地窖用來存放比姆式的屍體，同樣的，向店主吐露了艾卡伯格殺人的秘密。等到比姆式的屍體安全鎖好後，沃斯返回了樓上去了。
He was just rubbing ointment into the blisters on his bottom when he received an urgent summons to go and see the king。 Smirking， Spittleworth pulled on his pantaloons， winked at Flapoon， who was enjoying a cheese and pickle sandwich， picked up his candle and proceeded along the corridor to King Fred’s room。
當他正在在屁股上擦拭著藥膏，沃斯收到了國王的緊急召喚。沃斯穿上褲子，假笑這朝著享受著乳酪和三明治的菲萊普恩眨眼睛，然後沃斯拿上蠟燭沿著走廊向國王的房間走去。
The king was huddled in bed wearing his silk nightcap， and as soon as Spittleworth closed the bedroom door， Fred said：
國王穿著絲綢睡帽蜷縮在床上，沃斯一關上門國王弗裡德就開始說：
‘Spittleworth， I keep hearing whispers about the Ickabog。 The stable boys were talking， and even the maid who just passed by my bedroom door。 Why is this？ How can they know what happened？’
“沃斯，我不斷聽到關於艾卡伯格的竊竊私語。馬棚男孩剛在討論，就連剛經過我臥室的侍女也在討論。怎麼會這樣，他們怎麼知道發生了什麼。”
‘Alas， Your Majesty，’ sighed Spittleworth， ‘I’d hoped to conceal the truth from you until we were safely back at the palace， but I should have known that Your Majesty is too shrewd to be fooled。 Since we left the marsh， sire， the Ickabog has， as Your Majesty feared， become much more aggressive。’
“哎呀，陛下，”沃斯嘆氣道，“我本來希望向您隱藏事實直到我們安全回到王宮，但我早該想到您是如此的精明是不可能被隱瞞的。事情是這樣的，自從我們離開沼澤，正如陛下恐怕的那樣，艾卡伯格變得非常暴躁有攻擊性。”
‘Oh， no！’ whimpered the king。
“噢，不！”國王嗚咽道。
‘I’m afraid so， sire。 But after all， attacking it was bound to make it more dangerous。’
“恐怕如此，畢竟，攻擊它沒來就會使其更加危險。”
‘But who attacked it？’ said Fred。
“誰攻擊它了？”弗裡德說
‘Why， you did， Your Majesty，’ said Spittleworth。 ‘Roach tells me your sword was embedded in the monster’s neck when it ran— I’m sorry， Your Majesty， did you speak？’
“你呀，陛下，”沃斯說。“羅池告訴我您的寶劍就插在那怪物的脖子上——不好意思，陛下您說什麼？”
The king had， in fact， let out a sort of hum， but after a second or two， he shook his head。 He’d considered correcting Spittleworth – he was sure he’d told the story differently – but his horrible experience in the fog sounded much better the way Spittleworth told it now： that he’d stood his ground and fought the Ickabog， rather than simply dropping his sword and running away。
其實，國王嘟囔了一些什麼，但一兩秒過後，他搖了搖腦袋。本來他想改正沃斯——因為國王告訴沃斯的事是不一樣的，但在迷霧中糟糕的經歷用沃斯的話來說聽起來好多了：他與艾卡伯格打鬥的事實就坐實了，而不是僅僅掉了寶劍後逃跑了。
‘But this is awful， Spittleworth，’ whispered the king。 ‘What will become of us all， if the monster has become more ferocious？’
“太糟糕了，沃斯，”國王低聲說。“接下來我們會怎麼樣，如果怪物變得更加殘暴。”
‘Never fear， Your Majesty，’ said Spittleworth， approaching the king’s bed， the candlelight illuminating his long nose and his cruel smile from below。 ‘I intend to make it my life’s work to protect you and the kingdom from the Ickabog。’
“不要害怕，陛下，”沃斯說著，接近國王的床，微弱的燭光映照著沃斯長長的鼻子和冷酷的微笑：“我會用餘生來保護您和這個國家以免艾卡伯格的侵襲。”
‘Th-thank you， Spittleworth。 You are a true friend，’ said the king， deeply moved， and he fumbled to extract a hand from the eiderdown， and clasped that of the cunning lord。
“謝謝，謝謝你，沃斯，你是個真正的朋友。”國王被深深的觸動，他笨手笨腳的從蜷縮的身體裡抽出手，緊緊的握住了狡猾的爵士的手。