Chapter 7

Chapter Seven IN WHICH There Is an Unexpected Betrayal Mallory looked down at herself in disgust. "I hate dresses. What happened? Why did I wake up in a glass box?" Jared shook his head. "We're not really sure—I guess the dwarves grabbed you somehow. Do you remember anything?" "I was packing up my things after the match." She shrugged. "Some kid said that you were in trouble."

第七章意外背叛马洛里厌恶地低下头来。 “我讨厌裙子。发生了什么事? 为什么我在一个玻璃盒子里醒来？”杰瑞德摇了摇头。 “我们不太确定——我猜是矮人们不知怎么抓住了你。 你还记得什么吗？”“比赛结束后，我正在收拾东西。” 她耸耸肩。“有个孩子说你有麻烦了。”

"Shhh," Simon said, pointing into the quarry. "Get down." They knelt in the grass and peered over the edge. A horde of goblins poured out of the caves. They skittered and rolled, gnashing their teeth and barking before fanning out and sniffing the air. Behind them was a massive monster with dead branches for hair. It wore the dark, tattered remains of clothes from another time, and big, curving horns rose up from his brow. From the cave entrance the Korting and his dwarven courtiers appeared. Behind them came more goblins, who were pulling a cart filled with

“嘘，”西蒙指着采石场说。 “下来。”他们跪在草地上，从边缘往外看。 一大群半兽人从洞穴里涌了出来。 它们蹦蹦跳跳地打滚，咬牙切齿地叫着，然后散开，嗅着空气。 他们身后是一个巨大的怪物，用枯枝做头发。 它穿着另一个时代的黑色破烂衣服，额头上长着一对弯曲的大角。 从洞口，科廷和他的矮人侍臣们出现了。 在他们后面又来了一些半兽人，他们拉着一辆满载着

shining weapons. With that last group a prisoner stumbled along ahead of them. The prisoner was the size of an adult human, a sack covering the person's head, both wrists and ankles bound with dirty cloth. Something about the person seemed familiar. The goblins pushed the prisoner out into the quarry, poking the figure with sharp sticks, far from where the monster stood. "Who is that?" Mallory whispered, squinting. "I can't see," said Jared. "Why would they need a prisoner?" The Korting cleared his throat nervously as a hush fell over the crowd. "Great Lord Mulgarath, we thank you for the honor of allowing us to serve you." Mulgarath stopped. The ogre's great horned head loomed over the rest of the creatures as he turned back to the dwarves with a sneer.

闪亮的武器。跟着最后一群人，一个囚犯跌跌撞撞地走在他们前面。 囚犯有成年人那么大，头上套着一个麻袋，手腕和脚踝都用脏布绑着。 这个人似乎有些面熟。 半兽人把囚犯推进采石场，用锋利的棍子戳他的身影，离怪物站的地方很远。 “那是谁？”马洛里眯着眼睛小声说。 “我看不见。”杰瑞德说。 “他们为什么需要一个囚犯？”当人群安静下来时，科尔廷紧张地清了清喉咙。 “伟大的马尔加拉斯领主，感谢您赐予我们为您服务的殊荣” Mulgarath停了下来。食人魔带着冷笑转身面对矮人们，他那巨大的角头笼罩着其他生灵。

Jared swallowed hard. Mulgarath. The word had never meant much to him before, but now he was afraid. Even though he knew the monster couldn't see him, he felt those dark eyes sweep over the throng and wanted to duck down lower. "Are these all the weapons I asked for?" Mulgarath's ringing tones echoed through the quarry. He pointed to the cart. "Yes, of course," said the dwarf lord. "A show of our loyalty, our dedication to your new regime. You will find no finer blades, no better craftsmanship. I would stake my life on it!"

杰瑞德使劲咽了口气。Mulgarath。 这个词以前对他来说从来没有什么意义，但现在他害怕了。 尽管他知道怪物看不见他，但他感觉到那双黑眼睛扫视着人群，他想躲得更低一些。 “这些就是我要的武器吗？”马尔加拉斯的铃声在采石场回荡。 他指着那辆大车。“是的，当然。”小矮人国王说。 “展示我们对你们新政权的忠诚和奉献。 你找不到比这更好的刀片，也找不到比这更好的工艺。 我愿意用我的生命来打赌！”

"Would you?" asked the ogre. He drew Jared's fake field guide from a large pocket. "And this— would you also stake your life that this is the book I asked you to obtain?" The dwarf lord hesitated. "I... I did as you asked...." The ogre held up a battered book with a laugh. Jared realized it was the same laugh that the Not- Jared had made in the hallway at school. Jared gasped and Mallory elbowed him hard. "You have been duped, dwarf lord. No matter. I have Arthur Spiderwick's Guide," Mulgarath said. "The final thing I need to begin my reign." The dwarf bowed low. "You are great indeed," the Korting said. "A worthy master." "I may be a worthy master, but I am not at all sure that you make worthy servants." He raised his hand, and his goblins stopped their scuffling and scrabbling. "Kill them!"

“真的吗？”食人魔问。 他从一个大口袋里掏出杰瑞德的假野外指南。 “还有这本书——你愿意拿自己的生命打赌，这就是我要你拿到的那本书吗？”小矮人公爵犹豫了一下。 “我……我照你说的做了....” 食人魔笑着举起一本破旧的书。 贾里德意识到，这和那个不叫贾里德的人在学校走廊里发出的笑声是一样的。 贾里德倒吸了一口冷气，马洛里使劲用胳膊肘打他。 “你被骗了，小矮人大人。 不管。我有《亚瑟·斯派德威克指南》。”马尔加拉斯说。 “这是我开始统治的最后一件事。” 侏儒深深地鞠了一躬。“你真的很棒，”科尔廷说。 “一个值得尊敬的主人。”“我也许是个称职的主人，但我一点也不确定你是不是称职的仆人。” 他举起手，他的半兽人停止了扭打和争夺。 “杀了他们!”

"Kill them!"

“杀了他们!”