Mergen, a fine fellow, lived alone. He lived well and then one day he went to get water. When he scooped up water, a three-legged roe deer came close to him. He scooped up some water and was just about to get up when the roe deer walked off into the distance. He scoops up water again, and the roe deer comes close. He wants to get up and goes into the distance. Mergen thinks: “What kind of roe deer came on three legs?” And the roe deer says:
- Brother, my older sister is calling you. Come back tomorrow.
- How far do you live? - asks Mergen.
“Not far,” the roe deer answers.
- Well, okay, I'll come tomorrow.
Getting up in the morning, Mergen went. I met some house. He looks, there is a beauty sitting there.
- Hello, beautiful friend!
- Hello, friend Mergen!
“Do you know, my beautiful friend, that a three-legged roe deer came to call me?” Where is that roe deer?
“This is my younger brother,” says the beauty. “My brother is an evil spirit.” He calls people and kills them. Come on, friend Mergen, let's become husband and wife.
“If you want,” says Mergen, “I’m not averse to it.” In the evening a boy came. He is lame in one leg. The boy says:
- Hello, son-in-law! Yesterday I went to ask you to be my older sister’s husband. Hey, son-in-law, let's go and play tomorrow!
At night the beauty woke up and said to Mergen:
- When you go tomorrow, go up the mountain before him and put on your skis without the straps that will be there. If he wants to take them, don't give them away.
In the morning the boy got up.
- Hey, son-in-law, get up quickly!
Mergen went later, but overtook.
- Son-in-law, let's go together!
“I won’t walk so slowly,” said Mergen and walked ahead. I took the skis without straps and put them on. A boy came and said:
- Son-in-law, give me the skis!
“You put on good skis,” said Mergen, “but bad ones are fine for me.” Whoever put it on first won’t give it back to anyone.
Well, how are we going to play now?
“We’ll slide down the mountain through this river,” the boy answered.
Mergen sees that this river flows quickly. He rolled over her. The boy also rolled down, but fell into the water and ran through the water screaming. “Now he’s dead,” thought Mergen and rolled down the opposite slope. He took off his skis and left,
The beauty was chopping wood.
- My beautiful friend, your brother died.
- Friend Mergen, he will never die. Sitting at home. When Mergen entered, the boy was singing songs.
- Well, son-in-law, are you back?
- He's back, brother-in-law.
- Well, tomorrow we'll go play again. At night the beauty woke up and said to Mergen:
“Tomorrow, when you climb the mountain, there will be a tree there.” Don't sit on the branch that faces the river, sit on the branch that faces the mountain. He will say: “I want to sit here,” but don’t give in.
In the morning the boy says:
- Hey, son-in-law, let's go quickly!
“You go ahead,” said Mergen. “I’ll catch up with you.” Mergen went and overtook him.
- Let's go together! And Mergen says:
- I won't go so slowly.
Mergen went forward, reached a tree, climbed it and sat on a branch facing the mountain. The boy says:
“Son-in-law, this is the branch I’m going to sit on.” You sit on a branch facing the shore.
“Whoever sat down before will not change,” answers Mergen.
The boy climbed a tree and sat on a branch facing the shore. The branch broke off and fell. The boy fell into the water. He ran through the water screaming. Mergen went home.
- Well, my beautiful friend, is your brother here?
- He returned a long time ago, friend Mergen. The boy says again:
- Son-in-law, let's go chase the beast tomorrow! At night the beauty woke up:
— Friend Mergen, in the place where he chases the beast, there is a bench. You go up there earlier and sit down, and make him drive. When he drives, don’t shoot the female deer and don’t shoot the male deer. If you shoot a male deer, you yourself will die; if you shoot a female deer, I will die. And if you shoot a three-legged roe deer, he will die.
We got up early in the morning.
- Hey, son-in-law, let's go faster! I'm leaving. The boy left, but Mergen overtook him.
- Well, let's go together!
“I won’t walk so slowly,” answered Mergen. He reached the place where the boy was chasing the beast. I took a bow and arrows. So the boy came and said:
- Son-in-law, I want to sit down.
“I don’t know how to drive,” answers Mergen. “If you know how to drive, then drive for yourself.”
The boy reluctantly went. He began to drive, and then the deer were approaching: the male was in front, the female was behind. The boy shouts:
- Shoot, son-in-law!
Mergen sits motionless. After this, a three-legged roe deer approached. The boy shouts:
- Don't shoot, son-in-law! This is a bad roe!
Mergen fired. The roe deer died. Mergen looked at the boy and the boy died. Mergen put the boy on his skis and took him home.
- Well, my beautiful friend, I killed your brother. Now he won't rise again.
“What joy!” exclaimed the beauty. “He killed so many people.”
Having placed it in the house, the beauty set her house on fire. Then she went with Mergen to his house. There they live as husband and wife.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru