Chapter 18: The Marriage

⁠​​​‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​⁠On a wooded height, hidden in the heart of the forests of the Bavarian highlands, stood an ancient hunting castle, the property of the Wildenau family. A steep mountain path led up to it, and at its feet, like a stone sea, stretched the wide, dry bed of a river, a Griess, as it was called in that locality. Only a few persons knew the way; to the careless glance the path seemed wholly impassable.

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