1 Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2 How Arthur Performed the Miracle of the Sword and Discovered His Birthright When back at the anvil, which was still unguarded, Sir Kay unwrapped the sword from the cloak. He set its point upon the anvil's iron and pushed with all of his

第二章亚瑟如何施展剑的奇迹，并发现了他与生俱来的权利。当他回到还无人看守的铁砧旁时，凯爵士把剑从斗篷里打开。 他把它的尖放在铁砧上，用他的全部力气推着

strength. But to no avail. After a few minutes, and after he had turned almost purple from the effort, he gave up. "Father," he confessed. "No man may perform this miracle." "Could I try?" Arthur asked. "By what right?" said Ector. "By the right that I drew that sword out in the first place, for my brother," Arthur said. He was not bragging, only stating a fact. He was still innocent, you see, with no understanding of the contest or of its meaning. He did not know why his father looked at him so strangely now. "Are you angry with me?" he asked. Sir Ector told his younger son that he wasn't angry and asked his older son to hand the sword over. Both father and eldest son watched as Arthur hopped upon the marble block and easily pushed the sword back in. Then he pulled it out and pushed it in again,

的力量。但无济于事。 过了几分钟，他的脸都快涨紫了，他放弃了。 “父亲，”他坦白道。“没有人可以创造这个奇迹。” “我能试试吗？”亚瑟问。 “凭什么权利？” “凭良心说，我当初是为了我哥哥才拔出剑的。”阿瑟说。 他不是在吹牛，只是在陈述事实。 你看，他仍然很天真，不明白这场竞赛或它的意义。 他不知道父亲现在为什么这么奇怪地看着他。 “你生我的气吗？”他问。 埃克托爵士告诉他的小儿子，他并不生气，并要求他的大儿子交出剑。 父亲和大儿子都看着亚瑟跳上大理石，轻松地把剑插了进去。 然后他把它拔了出来，又插了进去，

performing the miracle twice. Sir Ector gasped and kneeled. He clasped his hands together as though praying. "Father," Arthur cried, dropping the sword and running over. "I am not your father," Sir Ector said. And Arthur's face fell. Sir Kay's face had fallen, too, but his at the thought that his brother, instead of him, might actually be king. Sir Ector cleared his throat and began to tell a story. The story had started eighteen years ago, he explained. The Wizard Merlin and the knight Ulfius had brought him a baby. They had not told him what baby it was, only that he must name that child Arthur and raise him as if he were his own. This he had done. Sir Ector had never guessed who Arthur's father might be, he said. But today it seemed quite clear. Surely no other baby but UtherPendragon's could have performed such a

创造两次奇迹。 埃克托爵士喘着气跪了下来。 他双手合十，好像在祈祷。 “爸爸。”阿瑟叫道，扔下剑跑了过来。 “我不是你父亲，”埃克托爵士说。 阿瑟的脸沉了下来。凯爵士的脸也沉了下来，但他想到他的哥哥，而不是他，可能真的是国王。 埃克托爵士清了清嗓子，开始讲故事。 他解释说，这个故事是从18年前开始的。 巫师梅林和骑士乌尔菲斯给他带来了一个婴儿。 他们没有告诉他那是什么孩子，只告诉他必须给这个孩子起名叫亚瑟，把他当作自己的孩子来抚养。 他这样做了。他说，埃克托爵士万万没想到亚瑟的父亲是谁。 但今天似乎很清楚。 除了乌瑟·彭德拉根的孩子，肯定没有别的孩子能做到这样

miracle. Arthur was the true king. "Why are you crying, my child?" he asked Arthur. "I am crying because I feel as though I have lost you," Arthur replied. "And because I would rather have you as my father than be king." At that moment, as if by magic, two men appeared. It was the wizard Merlin and the knight Ulfius themselves. "I have seen all that has happened today in the surface of my magical looking glass," Merlin explained. "I have been waiting for it to happen for eighteen long years." Taking Arthur's hand in his own, Merlin told Arthur what his future held in store for him. "You will be the greatest and most famous king who ever lived," he said. "You will have many excellent knights gathered around you. The world will talk of your deeds and adventures until the end of time."

奇迹。亚瑟才是真正的国王。 “你为什么哭，我的孩子？”他问阿瑟。 “我哭是因为我觉得好像失去了你。”阿瑟回答。 “因为我宁愿你做我的父亲，也不愿做我的国王。” 就在这时，像变魔术一样，出现了两个人。 是巫师梅林和骑士乌尔菲斯。 梅林解释说：“在我神奇的镜子表面，我看到了今天发生的一切。” “我等这一天的到来已经等了整整十八年了。” 梅林握着亚瑟的手，告诉亚瑟他的未来在等着他。 “你将成为有史以来最伟大、最著名的国王，”他说。 “你会有许多优秀的骑士聚集在你身边。 世界将谈论你的事迹和冒险，直到时间的尽头。”

"Will you promise me something?" Sir Ector asked the boy, suddenly no longer his son. "Of course," Arthur replied. "When you are king of Britain, will you give your brother Kay a position in your kingdom?" "Of course," Arthur repeated, "but only if you will be my father forever." Arthur sealed this exchange of promises with a kiss upon his father's forehead and also upon both cheeks. Both men would keep their promises. And this is how Arthur first discovered he was king. Listen to learn how the world discovered it as well. By Christmas morning, the day of the

“你能答应我一件事吗？”埃克托爵士问那个突然不再是他儿子的男孩。 “当然。”阿瑟回答。 你作了英国王以后，愿意让你哥哥加伊在你的国里掌权吗？”“当然，”阿瑟重复道，“但前提是你永远是我的父亲。” 阿瑟在父亲的额头和双颊上吻了一下，以此作为交换承诺的记号。 两人都会信守承诺。 亚瑟王就是这样发现自己是国王的。 听听世界是如何发现它的。 到了圣诞节的早晨，那天

contest, thousands of people had arrived to watch the challenge of the sword. A platform had been built around the cube of marble, and a fancy throne had been set out for the Archbishop. The rules said that, at least in the first round, only those with a natural right to compete should do so. Nineteen kings and sixteen dukes immediately stepped forward, including Kings Pellionore, Lot, Urien, Leodegrance, and Ryence. Each of them tried, some of them several times, but all of them failed. This made them feel angry and embarrassed. The audience was surprised, too. If these great men could not accomplish this task, they wondered, who could? "You have been tricked by Merlin!" the kings and dukes told the Archbishop. "This task is impossible. Merlin has played a trick to make fun of us all! In your wisdom, you must choose a new king from one of us.

比赛时，成千上万的人前来观看挑战剑。 方正大理石周围搭建了一个平台，为大主教准备了一个华丽的宝座。 规则规定，至少在第一轮中，只有那些具有自然竞争权利的人才应该这样做。 19位国王和16位公爵立即走上前来，其中包括佩利奥诺国王、洛特国王、乌连国王、利奥德格朗斯国王和伦斯国王。 他们每个人都试了，有些人试了好几次，但都失败了。 这让他们感到愤怒和尴尬。 观众也很惊讶。 他们想知道，如果这些伟人都不能完成这项任务，还有谁能呢？ “你被梅林骗了！”国王和公爵们告诉大主教。 “这个任务不可能完成。梅林耍了个把戏来取笑我们大家！以你的智慧，你必须从我们中间选出一位新国王。