Prevod

There was once a merchant who had two children, a boy and a girl, both still so young that they could not yet walk. He had two richly laden ships at sea, carrying his entire fortune, and just when he expected to make a great deal of money from them, news came that they had sunk. So instead of a rich man he was now a poor one, with nothing left but a field outside the town. To take his mind off his misfortune a little, he went out to the field, and as he was walking up and down, a little black man suddenly appeared beside him and asked why he was so sad and what was weighing so heavily on his heart. The merchant said, "If you could help me, I would gladly tell you." "Who knows?" answered the little black man. "Perhaps I can." So the merchant told him that all his wealth had been lost at sea, and that he had nothing left but this field. "Do not trouble yourself," said the little man. "If you promise to bring me here, twelve years from now, the first thing that bumps against your legs when you get home, you shall have as much money as you please." The merchant thought, What can that be but my dog? He did not think of his little boy at all, and so he agreed, gave the black man his promise in writing under his hand and seal, and went home.

When he reached home, his little boy was so delighted to see him that he held on to the benches, toddled over, and clasped him round the legs. The father was horrified, for he remembered his promise and now knew what he had signed away. But as he still found no money in his chests and coffers, he thought the little man must only have been joking. A month later he went up to the attic to gather some old pewter to sell, and there he saw a great heap of money. Now he was in good spirits again, bought goods, became a greater merchant than before, and left God to his own devices. Meanwhile the boy grew up clever and wise. But the nearer the twelve years drew to their end, the more troubled the merchant became, until his fear showed plainly in his face. One day his son asked him what was wrong. His father would not tell him, but the boy persisted until at last he confessed that, without knowing what he was promising, he had pledged him to a little black man and received a great deal of money in return. He had given his promise in writing under his hand and seal, and now, when the twelve years were up, he would have to hand him over. Then the son said, "Oh, Father, do not be afraid. All will be well. The black man has no power over me."

The son had the priest bless him, and when the hour came, father and son went out together to the field. The son drew a circle and stood inside it with his father. Then the little black man came and said to the old man, "Have you brought what you promised me?" The father kept silent, but the son asked, "What do you want here?" The little black man said, "I have business with your father, not with you." The son answered, "You deceived my father and led him astray. Give back the written pledge!" "No," said the little black man. "I will not give up my rights." They argued for a long time, and at last agreed that, since the son belonged to the Evil One and no longer to his father, he should sit in a little boat on a stream flowing downriver, and his father should push it off with his own foot; then the son should be left to the mercy of the water. So he took leave of his father and sat down in a little boat, and his father had to push it off with his own foot. The little boat overturned, so that its bottom was uppermost and its deck beneath the water. The father thought his son was lost, and went home to mourn him.

But the little boat did not sink. It drifted quietly on, with the young man sitting safely inside, and floated for a long time until at last it ran aground on an unknown shore. He stepped ashore, saw a beautiful castle before him, and went towards it. But when he entered, he found it was enchanted. He went through all the rooms, but they were empty, until he reached the last chamber, where a snake lay coiled. The snake, however, was an enchanted maiden, and when she saw him she rejoiced and said, "Have you come, my deliverer? I have been waiting twelve years for you. This kingdom is under a spell, and you must set it free." "How can I do that?" he asked. "Tonight twelve black men will come, hung about with chains. They will ask what you are doing here, but you must keep silent and give them no answer, and let them do whatever they please with you. They will torment you, beat you, and stab you. You must endure it all, only do not speak. At midnight they must leave again. On the second night twelve others will come, and on the third, twenty-four, and they will cut off your head. But at midnight their power ends, and if you have held out until then without saying a single word, I shall be freed. I shall come to you with the Water of Life in a bottle and anoint you with it, and then you will be alive and well again, just as before." He said, "Gladly will I set you free." Everything happened just as she had said. The black men could not force a word from him, and on the third night the snake became a beautiful princess, who came with the Water of Life and restored him to life. Then she threw her arms round his neck and kissed him, and there was joy and rejoicing throughout the castle. Their wedding was celebrated, and he became King of the Golden Mountain.

So they lived happily together, and the queen bore a handsome boy. Eight years had passed when he remembered his father, and his heart was moved, and he wished to visit him once more. But the queen did not want to let him go, and said, "I know this will bring me misfortune." He gave her no peace, however, until she consented. At parting she gave him a wishing ring and said, "Take this ring and put it on your finger, and you will be carried at once wherever you wish to go. Only you must promise me not to use it to wish me away from here to your father's house." He promised her, put the ring on his finger, and wished himself home, outside the town where his father lived. In an instant he was there, and wanted to enter the town. But when he came to the gate, the guards would not let him in, because his clothes were so strange and yet so rich and splendid. So he went up a hill where a shepherd was tending his flock, exchanged clothes with him, put on the shepherd's old coat, and entered the town unchallenged. When he came to his father, he made himself known, but his father would not believe he was his son. He said he had indeed once had a son, but he had long been dead; still, since he could see that this was a poor, needy shepherd, he would give him a plateful of food. Then the shepherd said to his parents, "I truly am your son. Do you know of no mark on my body by which you might recognize me?" "Yes," said his mother, "our son had a raspberry birthmark beneath his right arm." He pulled back his shirt, and when they saw the raspberry beneath his right arm, they no longer doubted that he was their son. Then he told them that he was King of the Golden Mountain, that a princess was his wife, and that they had a handsome son seven years old. His father said, "That cannot possibly be true! A fine king you are, going about in a ragged shepherd's coat!" At this the son grew angry and, forgetting his promise, turned the ring and wished both his wife and his child to his side. In an instant they were there, but the queen wept and lamented, saying that he had broken his word and made her miserable. He said, "I did it thoughtlessly, not with any evil intent," and tried to soothe her. She pretended to give in, but she had evil in mind.

Then he took her out of the town to the field and showed her the water where the little boat had been pushed off, and said, "I am tired. Sit down, and I will sleep a little with my head in your lap." He laid his head in her lap, and she picked the lice from his hair for a while until he fell asleep. Once he was asleep, she first slipped the ring from his finger, then drew her foot out from under him, leaving only her slipper behind. Then she took her child in her arms and wished herself back in her kingdom. When he awoke, he lay there utterly alone. His wife and child were gone, and so was the ring from his finger; only the slipper remained as a token. You cannot go home to your parents again, he thought. They would say you were a sorcerer. You must be off and keep going until you reach your kingdom. So he set out and at last came to a mountain, at the foot of which stood three giants, quarrelling because they did not know how to divide their father's inheritance. When they saw him passing, they called to him and said that little men had clever minds, and he should divide the inheritance for them. It consisted, first, of a sword: if anyone took it in his hand and said, "Off with every head but mine!" all the heads would fall to the ground; second, of a cloak that made its wearer invisible; and third, of a pair of boots that would carry anyone who wore them wherever he wished to go in an instant. He said, "Give me the three things so I can try them and see whether they are still in good order." They gave him the cloak, and when he put it round his shoulders, he became invisible and was transformed into a fly. Then he took his own shape again and said, "The cloak is good. Now give me the sword." They said, "No, we will not give you that! If you said, 'Off with every head but mine!' all our heads would be cut off, and yours would be the only one left." But they gave it to him on condition that he try it on a tree. He did so, and the sword cut through the trunk of a tree as though it were a stalk of straw. Now he wanted the boots as well, but they said, "No, we will not give those away. If you put them on and wished yourself up on the mountain, we would be left standing down here with nothing!" "No," he said, "I will not do that." So they gave him the boots too. Once he had all three things, he could think of nothing but his wife and child, and said to himself, "Ah, if only I were on the Golden Mountain!" At once he vanished before the giants' eyes, and so their inheritance was divided. When he was near the castle, he heard shouts of joy, fiddles, and flutes, and the people told him that his wife was celebrating her wedding to another man. Then he grew angry and said, "The faithless woman! She deceived me and left me while I was asleep." He put on his cloak and entered the castle unseen. When he came into the hall, a great table was spread with delicious food, and the guests were eating, drinking, and jesting. His wife sat in their midst, dressed in splendid robes, upon a royal chair, with the crown on her head. He stood behind her, and no one saw him. Whenever they put a piece of meat on her plate, he took it away and ate it; whenever they poured her a glass of wine, he took it away and drank it. They kept serving her, yet she was always left with nothing, for plate and glass vanished in an instant. Bewildered and ashamed, she rose and went to her chamber and wept, but he followed her. Then she said, "Is the devil upon me, or did my deliverer never come?" He struck her in the face and said, "Did your deliverer never come? He is upon you, you deceitful woman! Have I deserved this of you?" Then he made himself visible, went into the hall, and cried, "The wedding is over! The true king has returned!" The kings, princes, and councillors gathered there mocked him and laughed at him. But he wasted few words and said, "Will you leave or not?" They tried to seize him and rushed at him, but he drew his sword and said, "Off with every head but mine!" Then all their heads rolled to the ground, and he alone was master, and once again King of the Golden Mountain.