eight o'clock
Saint-Aignan asked him . Whereupon Manicamp , dreamy and absent as usual , answered , thinking that some one was asking him about De Guiche , `` Thank you , the comte is a little better . '' And he continued on his way until he reached the antechamber where D'Artagnan was , and whom he asked to explain how it was the king looked , as he thought , so bewildered ; to which D'Artagnan replied that he was quite mistaken ; that the king , on the contrary , was as lively and merry as he could possibly be . In the midst of all this , eight o'clock struck . It was usual for the king to take his breakfast at this hour , for the code of etiquette prescribed that the king should always be hungry at eight o'clock . His breakfast was laid upon a small table in his bedroom , and he ate very fast . Saint-Aignan , of whom he would not lose sight , held his napkin in his hand .