An attempt had been made on the life of Duke Jan of Ziębice at Epiphany, the day of the Revelation of the Lord. When the duke was leaving the church after Mass, the would-be killer forced his way through his guard and attacked him with a dagger. Jan only survived thanks to the sacrifice of two of his knights, Tymoteusz of Risin and Ulrik of Seiffersdorf, who shielded him with their own bodies. Risin even took the blade for the duke, which gave others the chance to disarm the assailant. He turned out to be none other than Gelfrad of Stercza, the knight who had disappeared years before in foreign lands and whom everybody, including his own family, had thought dead.