He felt so overwhelmed by despair that he thought for an instant of putting an end to his life . ` Can I survive my misfortunes ? ' he cried . ' I fancied I had come to an end of my troubles , and now they are worse than ever . What will become of me ? Never can I discover the place where this monster will hide Rosalie . ' The unhappy youth had determined to let himself die , and indeed his sorrow alone was enough to kill him , when the thought that by means of the cabinets of the years he might find out where the Princess was imprisoned , gave him a little ray of comfort . So he continued to walk on through the forest , and after some hours he arrived at the gate of a temple , guarded by two huge lions . Being invisible , he was able to enter unharmed . In the middle of the temple was an altar , on which lay a book , and behind the altar hung a great curtain . The Prince approached the altar and opened the book , which contained the names of all the lovers in the world : and in it he read that Rosalie had been carried off by the Prince of the Air to an abyss which had no entrance except the one that lay by way of the Fountain of Gold . Now , as the Prince had not the smallest idea where this fountain was to be found , it might be thought that he was not much nearer Rosalie than before . This was not , however , the view taken by the Prince . ` Though every step that I take may perhaps lead me further from her , ' he said to himself , ' I am still thankful to know that she is alive somewhere . ' On leaving the temple the Invisible Prince saw six paths lying before him , each of which led through the wood . He was hesitating which to choose , when he suddenly beheld two people coming towards him , down the track which lay most to his right . They turned out to be the Prince Gnome and his friend , and the sudden desire to get some news of his sister , Princess Argentine , caused the Invisible Prince to follow them and to listen to their conversation . ` Do you think , ' the Prince Gnome was saying , ` do you think that I would not break my chains if I could ? I know that the Princess Argentine will never love me , yet each day I feel her dearer still . And as if this were not enough , I have the horror of feeling that she probably loves another .
So I have resolved XXXXX put myself out of my pain by means of the Golden Fountain .
On So as before behind of than through to towards