In a short time he reached the royal pavilion, and demanded admittance. The Vizier Horam, who was there in waiting, heard, as he supposed, the voice of his female slave, and went out to bring her before the Sultan.
"My slave," said Horam, as he saw the disguised enchanter, "hast thou succeeded? and is Tasnar, the foe of the Faithful, dead?"
"Bring me before the Sultan," said the pretended slave, "that my lord may first behold the head of his foe."
The Vizier then led the disguised enchanter into the pavilion, where the Sultan Misnar, being warned of her coming, was seated on his throne.
As the enchanter approached, he held a dagger in one hand, which was covered by a long sleeve, and in the other he bore the fictitious head. And now the pretended female was about to ascend the steps of the throne, when the Vizier commanded her first to fall prostrate before the Sultan.
The sham slave did as she was ordered; and the Vizier, seeing her prostrate, fell upon her, and slew her with his sabre.
"What hast thou done, wretched Vizier?" said the Sultan. "Has envy thus rashly stirred thee up against my faithful slave, that----"
The Sultan would probably have continued his invective against his Vizier much longer, had he not beheld the corpse of the dead enchanter change its appearance, and found that Horam, by the sudden destruction of Tasnar, had but just preserved his own life.
At the sight of this transformation, Misnar descended from his throne, and closely embraced his Vizier Horam.
"O Horam, forgive my impetuous temper!" said the Sultan: "how have I blamed my friend for doing that which alone could have saved my life! But by what means did my faithful Vizier become acquainted with the disguise of this wicked enchanter, or how did he discover himself to thy watchful eye?"
"Lord of my heart," answered Horam, "when I carried my poor female slave through the camp (whose death we have unhappily caused by our fraud), I bade her, when she returned and saw me, first repeat these words in my ear: 'Allah is Lord of heaven, Mahomet is His Prophet, and Misnar is His vicegerent upon earth.' And this precaution I took, fearful less Tasnar, discovering our design, should invent this method of revenge. Wherefore, when the pretended slave was brought before me, and she repeated not the words that I had taught her, I was assured that it was the enchanter in disguise, and waited till, by prostrating himself before my lord, he gave me an opportunity of destroying the life of the chief of thine enemies."