seven o’clock
When they had sat chatting for half-an-hour , the Baron developed the object of his visit , which was to endeavour to obtain the pleasure of his Grace 's company at dinner , to taste some wild boar and try some tokay . The Duke , who longed again for action , accepted the invitation ; and then they parted . Our hero was quite surprised at the feverish anxiety with which he awaited the hour of union . He thought that seven o'clock would never come . He had no appetite at breakfast , and after that he rode , but luncheon was a blank . In the midst of the operation , he found himself in a brown study , calculating chances . All day long his imagination had been playing hazard , or _ rouge et noir _ .