V
When Komachi and Arihira had stolen out of the Palace, they ran aimlessly hand in hand to the suburbs. Thence, in order to evade pursuit, they chose unfrequented places. They wandered along all the night through. Sometimes they lost themselves in the densely wooded forest, at other times they stumbled among endless rows of tombstones, until at dawn they found themselves quite exhausted at Arashiyama. There they saw a cottage which was evidently the dwelling of a Buddhist priest living a solitary life of devotion. They dragged their weary footsteps to the door, in order to ask for shelter and a little rest. They knocked, and the door was opened by a young priest, who as soon as he saw them said wonderingly:
"How glad I am to see you, my lord and lady! May I ask what has brought you to such a lonely place?"
The lovers looked at the priest's face, and were surprised and pleased to recognize in him a man
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