The King of the Golden Mountain

There was once a merchant who had two children, a boy and a girl. They were both very young and could not yet walk. The merchant owned two ships, full of goods, that sailed out to sea. He hoped to make a lot of money from them. But then news came that both ships had sunk. Suddenly the merchant was no longer rich. He was poor and owned nothing but one field outside the town.

To take his mind off his bad luck, he went for a walk in that field. As he walked back and forth, a little black man suddenly stood beside him. The little man asked why he was so sad and what was troubling him. The merchant said, "If you could help me, I would gladly tell you." "Who knows?" replied the black dwarf. "Perhaps I can help you." So the merchant told him that everything he owned had sunk to the bottom of the sea, and that all he had left was this field.

"Do not worry," said the dwarf. "If you promise to give me the first thing that rubs against your leg when you get home, and bring it here to this place in twelve years, you shall have as much money as you want." The merchant thought, "That can only be my dog." He did not think of his little boy. So he agreed, gave the black man a written promise with his seal, and went home.

When he reached home, his little boy was so happy that he held on to a bench, toddled over to him, and grabbed him tightly by the legs. The father was shocked. He remembered his promise and now knew what he had promised.

But since he still found no money in his chest, he thought the dwarf had only been joking. A month later, he went up to the attic to gather some old tin to sell. There he saw a huge pile of money. Then he was happy again.

He bought things, became an even richer merchant than before, and felt that the world was well governed.

Meanwhile, the boy grew tall and became clever and smart. But as the twelfth year drew nearer, the merchant grew more worried. His distress showed on his face. One day his son asked what was wrong, but the father would not tell him. The boy kept asking until at last the father told him everything: that without knowing it, he had promised his son to a black dwarf in return for a lot of money. He said he had signed and sealed the promise, and when twelve years were up, he would have to hand over his son.

Then the son said, "Oh, father, do not worry. Everything will be all right. The black man has no power over me." The son had himself blessed by the priest. When the time came, father and son went together to the field.

The son drew a circle and stood inside it with his father. Then the black dwarf came and said to the old man, "Have you brought me what you promised?" The father was silent. But the son asked, "What do you want here?" The black dwarf said, "I must speak with your father, not with you." The son replied, "You have betrayed and tricked my father.

Give back the writing." "No," said the black dwarf, "I will not give up my rights." They argued for a long time. Finally they agreed that the son, since he belonged neither to the enemy of mankind nor to his father, should sit in a small boat that would be placed on the water flowing away from them.

The father would push the boat off with his own foot, and then the son would be given over to the water.

So the son said goodbye to his father, climbed into the little boat, and the father had to push it off with his own foot. The boat capsized so that the keel was on top. The father thought his son was lost. He went home and mourned for him.

But the boat did not sink. It floated gently away. The boy sat safely inside it. It floated for a long time until it finally stopped by an unknown shore. He landed and saw a beautiful castle before him. He went toward it.

When he entered, he found that the castle was enchanted. He walked through every room, but all were empty. At last he reached the last room. There a snake lay coiled in a circle. The snake was actually an enchanted princess.

She was happy to see him and said, "Have you come, my rescuer? I have waited twelve years for you. This kingdom is bewitched, and you must set it free."

"How can I do that?" he asked.

"Tonight twelve black men covered with chains will come. They will ask what you are doing here. Keep silent. Do not answer them. Let them do whatever they want to you. They will torment you, beat you, and stab you. Let everything happen. Just do not speak.

At twelve o'clock they must leave again. On the second night, twelve others will come. On the third night, twenty-four will come, and they will cut off your head. But at twelve o'clock their power will end. If you have endured everything and not spoken a single word, I will be freed.

I will come to you with a bottle of the water of life. I will rub it on you, and you will come back to life as healthy as before."

Then he said, "I will gladly free you." And everything happened just as she had said. The black men could not force a single word from him. On the third night, the snake became a beautiful princess. She came with the water of life and brought him back to life. She threw herself into his arms and kissed him. There was joy and celebration throughout the whole castle. Then they were married, and he became the King of the Golden Mountain.

They lived very happily together, and the queen gave birth to a fine son. Eight years had passed when the king began to think of his father. His heart was moved, and he wanted to visit him. But the queen did not want him to go.

She said, "I know it will bring me bad luck." But he gave her no rest until she agreed. When they parted, she gave him a wishing ring and said, "Take this ring. Put it on your finger, and you will immediately be taken wherever you wish.

But you must promise me not to use it to wish me away from this place and to your father." He promised, put the ring on his finger, and wished himself home, just outside the town where his father lived.

Instantly he was there. He walked toward the town. But when he came to the gate, the guards would not let him in because he wore such strange but rich and magnificent clothes. So he went to a hill where a shepherd was watching his sheep.

He exchanged clothes with the shepherd and put on his old shepherd's coat. Then he entered the town without any trouble. When he came to his father, he revealed who he was. But his father did not believe that the shepherd was his son.

He said he certainly had had a son, but that he was long dead. However, since he saw that the shepherd was poor and needy, he would give him something to eat.

Then the shepherd said to his parents, "I truly am your son. Do you know of any mark on my body by which you could recognize me?" "Yes," said his mother, "our son had a raspberry-colored birthmark under his right arm." He pulled back his shirt, and they saw the birthmark under his right arm. Now they no longer doubted that he was their son. He told them that he was the King of the Golden Mountain, that a king's daughter was his wife, and that they had a fine son seven years old.

Then his father said, "That certainly cannot be true. What kind of king goes about in a ragged shepherd's coat?" At this the son became angry. Without thinking of his promise, he turned his ring and wished both his wife and child with him. In an instant they were there. But the queen wept and scolded him. She said he had broken his word and brought misfortune upon her. He said, "I did it without thinking, not with bad intentions." He tried to calm her down. She pretended to believe him, but she had mischief in her mind.

Then he led her out of the town into the field. He showed her the stream where the little boat had been pushed off. Then he said, "I am tired. Sit down. Let me sleep a while on your lap." He laid his head on her lap and fell asleep. While he slept, she first pulled the ring from his finger. Then she pulled her foot out from under him, leaving only one of her shoes behind. She took her child in her arms and wished herself back in her own kingdom.

When he woke up, he lay there all alone. His wife and child were gone. The ring was gone from his finger. Only the shoe remained as a sign. "I cannot go back to my parents," he thought. "They would say I am a wizard.

I must go on walking until I reach my own kingdom." So he went away. Eventually he came to a hill. Three giants were standing there, arguing because they could not divide their father's inheritance.

When they saw him passing by, they called to him and said that little men had quick wits, and that he should divide the inheritance for them.

The inheritance consisted of three things: a sword that had the power that if anyone took it in his hand and said, "All heads off but mine," every head would fall to the ground; a cloak that made anyone who put it on invisible; and a pair of boots that could carry the wearer to any place he wished in an instant.

He said, "Give me the three things so I can see if they are in good condition." They gave him the cloak. When he put it on, he became invisible and turned into a fly. Then he took his own form again and said, "The cloak is good.

Now give me the sword." They said, "No, we will not give you that. If you said, 'All heads off but mine,' all our heads would fall off, and only you would be left with yours." Still, they gave it to him on the condition that he only try it on a tree.

He did, and the sword cut the tree trunk in two as if it were a straw. Then he wanted the boots as well. But they said, "No, we will not give them. If you had them on your feet and wished yourself at the top of the hill, we would be left down here with nothing." "Oh no," he said, "I will not do that." So they gave him the boots too.

Now that he had all three things, he thought only of his wife and child. He said to himself, "Oh, if only I were on the Golden Mountain!" Instantly he vanished from the sight of the giants. That was how the inheritance was divided.

When he was near his palace, he heard sounds of joy: fiddles and flutes. People told him that his wife was celebrating her wedding with another man. He became furious. "False woman!" he said. "She betrayed me and left me while I slept!" He put on his invisible cloak and went into the palace unseen.

He entered the dining hall. A great table was set with delicious food. The guests were eating, drinking, laughing, and joking. The queen sat on a royal seat in the middle, wearing splendid clothes and a crown on her head. He stood behind her. No one saw him. When she put a piece of meat on her plate, he took it and ate it. When she poured wine into her glass, he took it and drank it. She kept helping herself, but she never got anything, because the plate and glass disappeared instantly.

Then, dismayed and ashamed, she got up and went to her room, crying. But he followed her there. She said, "Has the devil power over me, or did my rescuer never come?" Then he slapped her face and said, "Did your rescuer never come? It is he who has you in his power, you traitor. Have I deserved this from you?" Then he made himself visible. He went into the hall and shouted, "The wedding is over! The true king has returned!"

The kings, princes, and advisors who were there laughed at him and made fun of him. But he did not bother to answer. He said, "Will you leave, or not?" They tried to seize him and pressed toward him. But he drew his sword and said, "All heads off but mine!" Immediately all their heads rolled on the ground. He alone was master. He was once again the King of the Golden Mountain.