It was the dawn. The sun had barely risen above the horizon when the first fishermen were beginning to fish the rocks off the coast of Normandy near Cherbourg. As they cast their lines, they noticed a ship was passing by and was heading out towards the open sea. The fisherman who had been nearest to the boat called down to his companions, saying, "Look! A ship!"

At first the men thought no more of it than that. It was early and there were plenty of ships about.

One of his companions asked, "Which way does it sail?"

The first man answered, "It seems to sail westward, perhaps off to Brittany."

As soon as the second fisherman had spoken, the ship disappeared beyond the horizon, into the fog of the morning.

Alain Armorlaire's ship rolled into the port of Saint-Malo once again, where he was soon greeted by Philippe de Montauban, Chancelier de Bretagne. After disembarking from his ship, Alain Armorlaire was handed a letter from Duchess Anne. When he opened it, he found that the letter was written in the Duchess' hand and, after being read by the Chancellor, contained the words 'We hope you shall have a pleasant passage across the sea in the upcoming months. We, owing to your loyal service to the Duchess of Brittany, grant to you the title of Vicomte de Saint-Malo.'

Alain Armorlaire was overwhelmed. He looked upon the letter as he sank to one knee and bowed his head to the ground.

Philippe de Montauban laughed at the man, saying, "Well, you should stand up and give thanks to God."

Alain Armorlaire rose slowly from his knees and said, "I did just now."

Philippe smiled and said, "That is all right, for God knows your heart. I do not believe that anyone could say that you have ever given Him any reason to doubt your devotion. Serve your Duchess well, and perhaps you shall be granted further titles in the future. Now, let us go into town."

The Chancellor and the new Vicomte de Saint-Malo hopped into the carriage and set off towards Armorlaire's Saint-Malo estate.