The two brothers laughed at him, and his father and mother begged him not to go, but all to no purpose, and Cinderlad set out on his way.So when he had walked the whole day, he too came to the King's palace as darkness began to fall.
There stood the King outside on the steps, and he asked whither he was bound.
`I am walking about in search of a place,' said Cinderlad.
`From whence do you come, then?' inquired the King, for by this time he wanted to know a little more about the men before he took any of them into his service.
So Cinderlad told him whence he came, and that he was brother to the two who had watched the seven foals for the King, and then he inquired if he might be allowed to try to watch them on the following day.
`Oh, shame on them!' said the King, for it enraged him even to think of them.`If thou art brother to those two, thou too art not good for much.I have had enough of such fellows.'
`Well, but as I have come here, you might just give me leave to make the attempt,' said Cinderlad.
`Oh, very well, if thou art absolutely determined to have thy back flayed, thou may'st have thine own way if thou wilt,' said the King.
`I would much rather have the Princess,' said Cinderlad.
Next morning, in the grey light of dawn, the Master of the Horse let out the seven foals again, and off they set over hill and dale, through woods and bogs, and off went Cinderlad after them.When he had run thus for a long time, he too came to the cleft in the rock.
There the old hag was once more sitting spinning from her distaff, and she cried to Cinderlad;`Come hither, come hither, my handsome son, and let me comb your hair for you.'
`Come to me, then; come to me!' said Cinderlad, as he passed by jumping and running, and keeping tight hold of one of the foals'
tails.
When he had got safely past the cleft in the rock, the youngest foal said:
`Get on my back, for we have still a long way to go.' So the lad did this.
And thus they journeyed onwards a long, long way.
`Dost thou see anything now?' said the Foal.
`No,' said Cinderlad.
So they journeyed onwards a good bit farther.
`Dost thou see anything now?' asked the Foal.
`Oh, no,' said the lad.
When they had gone thus for a long, long way, the Foal again asked:
`Dost thou see anything now?'
`Yes, now I see something that is white,' said Cinderlad.`It looks like the trunk of a great thick birch tree.'
`Yes, that is where we are to go in,' said the Foal.
When they got to the trunk, the eldest foal broke it down on one side, and then they saw a door where the trunk had been standing, and inside this there was a small room, and in the room there was scarcely anything but a small fire-place and a couple of benches, but behind the door hung a great rusty sword and a small pitcher.
`Canst thou wield that sword?' asked the Foal.
Cinderlad tried, but could not do it; so he had to take a draught from the pitcher, and then one more, and after that still another, and then he was able to wield the sword with perfect ease.
`Good,' said the Foal; `and now thou must take the sword away with thee, and with it shalt thou cut off the heads of all seven of us on thy wedding-day, and then we shall become princes again as we were before.For we are brothers of the Princess whom thou art to have when thou canst tell the King what we eat and drink, but there is a mighty Troll who has cast a spell over us.When thou hast cut off our heads, thou must take the greatest care to lay each head at the tail of the body to which it belonged before, and then the spell which the Troll has cast upon us will lose all its power.'
