A long time ago, in the old days, there lived one man, kind and hardworking. He had everything - a house full of all sorts of goods, horses, sheep, and cattle. Only there were no children, and he was very sad about that. Every day travelers from distant countries came to see him. The hospitable owner greeted them warmly, invited them into the house, and the hostess fussed around the fireplace, preparing a treat.
And then a day turned out when no one entered the hospitable house until the evening. The owner went out into the street to see if any wanderer was coming, and if he was coming, to invite him to come to him. I waited and waited, the night came, but there were no travelers. He felt sad. He was just about to return home when he suddenly saw an old man with a white beard reaching to his waist walking down the dark street. The elder approached him and said:
- Good evening, son!
- Welcome, elder! Why are you going out so late? Would you like to come to my house to spend the night?
- Thank you.
The old man rejoiced and went to the good man. We entered the house. The hostess was glad to see the guest, rolled up her sleeves and began to prepare a hearty dinner. After dinner, the elder began to ask the owners how they lived and whether they had everything they needed.
“We live well,” answered the hostess, “our house is full!” But there is no baby, no one in the cradle to lull with songs.
“Don’t worry,” said the elder, “you will have a child.” Well, now it’s time to sleep - it’s already past midnight.
The next morning the white-bearded old man got up early and got ready to leave. The owner accompanied him to the outskirts. At parting, the old man rummaged in his pocket, took out a ruddy apple and handed it to his hospitable host.
- Take an apple! When you come home, cut it in half. Eat one half with your wife. In nine months she will give birth to a wonderful boy. And he will have a sign - a star on his forehead. He will grow up and become a young hero, the likes of which the world has never seen.” Then the old man put his hand into his bag and took out a folding saber. “Here’s a saber for you,” he says. “Take care of it well.” And when your son turns twenty years old, give him the saber and tell him that when the need comes, the saber will jump out of its sheath. But if not your son, but someone else takes it out of its sheath, the youth with the star on his forehead will die at that very moment... You cut the other half of the apple into twelve slices. You have twelve unfoaling mares. Let them eat a slice. One of them will bring you a foal with a horn on its forehead. Take care of it like the apple of your eye - your son will ride on it. Well, goodbye, be healthy!
The hospitable host returned home and exactly fulfilled the elder’s order. Whether long or short, a boy with a star on his forehead and a foal with a horn on his forehead were born.
The boy grew up, grew up, and now he was twenty years old. He began to go hunting in the mountains and every time he brought home deer and chamois, and once he even brought a bear vulture.
And then one day a rumor spread throughout the village that a terrible young man had appeared in the city - he had heroic strength, he could break two horse horseshoes. Then the daredevil son told his father that he wanted to go to the city to look at this strong man.
- Go, son, but first choose a horse from the stable.
A young lad went to the stable, grabbed one horse by the tail, spun it over his head and threw it out of the gate; then he grabbed another horse by the tail, turned it around, and threw it out; then - the third, fourth, fifth - until I went through them all.
“Don’t we really have a better horse?” - the young man asks the grooms.
- There is, how not to be! Only he has a horn on his forehead. The horse has a temper - it kicks and bites. You can’t drive around this one, it’s not suitable for driving.
The young man approached the unicorn horse, grabbed it by the tail, wants to lift it, but the horse doesn’t budge - it stands rooted to the spot.
- This is the horse for me! - says the young man.
He mounted his horse and rode up to his parents to say goodbye.
The father saw that his son had chosen a unicorn horse, rejoiced with great joy and went for the saber. He took it out into the yard, gave it to his son and conveyed to him the order of the white-bearded old man.
Yunak kissed his parents' hand and set off on his way. He drove and drove and reached the city where the famous strongman lived - the one who broke horse horseshoes. A young man found him in a forge and said:
- Let's measure our strength with you.
“Come on,” the strong man agreed.
He took two new horseshoes in both hands and broke them like a loaf of bread.
Then our young man dismounted and took three horseshoes. He put them one on top of the other and crumbled them playfully.
The famous strongman bowed at his feet.
- I admit that you are stronger than me! - speaks.
Then the young man with a star on his forehead mounted his unicorn horse and rode off to look for other heroes, so that he could measure his strength against them. He drove around for a long time, torturing and asking everyone he met and those he met where the famous young men lived. And they told him that somewhere far away, on a mountain, there lived a hero and no one could defeat him. The rider headed in that direction. So he drove up to that mountain and saw a white house standing behind the fence. The unicorn horse jumped over the fence. A man immediately ran out of the house, jumped on a black horse and rushed at the stranger.
-What are you looking for in my house? - shouts.
Yunak with a star on his forehead grabbed his saber from its sheath and cut the air - a whistle went through the air. And his opponent suddenly retreated - he saw the saber, saw the horn on the horse’s forehead and did not take his eyes off them. He jumped off his black horse and fell on his knees in front of the young man.
“I recognize you, guest, as such a young man who has no equal!” From now on and forever I am ready to serve you faithfully.
Yunak with a star on his forehead sheathed his saber, dismounted, and entered the white house. Here the maids got busy and prepared a rich meal. The host and guest sat down at the table. They ate, drank, had fun and, finally, became brothers. The owner began to tell the guest what miracles he could create.
“I,” he says, “can turn into a bear, a goat or a donkey; I can walk on my hands with my head down, and use my legs like my hands.
- This is all business - not business! Well, what else can you do?
“If I put my ear to the ground, I’ll hear what people are saying all over the world.”
- This is good! - said the young man with a star on his forehead. - And now goodbye, brother!
- Farewell, brother! Good time to you! But when will we see each other again and how do I know if you are alive and if something happened to you?
“I’ll tell you this,” answered the guest. “Take this flower.” It grew in my mother's garden: she planted it the day I was born. A stem grew from the seed, and two flowers appeared on it. They bloomed and have not withered to this day. And they will wither when I die. Take one, and I'll have the other. Look at yours every day. While it blooms, know that I am alive; and if it withers, it means I’m no longer alive.
The young man with the star on his forehead said these words, jumped on the unicorn horse, spurred it and flew out of the yard like a falcon. For a long time he raced through green meadows and forests, crossed nine rivers. On all the roads and crossroads he asked passers-by if they had ever met such a hero who was stronger than everyone else. He wanted to measure himself against such strength. But no one could show him such a hero.
And then the young man with the star on his forehead reached one deep lake. There was a hut in the middle of the lake. Yunak touched the horse - he wanted to give him water, but suddenly a man with a huge belly jumped out of the hut and shouted:
- Hey, don't drink my water! I myself am dying of thirst - I ate too much salted fish. I waited a whole week for the rivers to fill the lake and quench my thirst.
Then the belly leaned down to the water and drank the entire lake in one breath.
The young man with the star on his forehead marveled, jumped off his unicorn horse and started a conversation with the water-drinking belly. They talked as friends and became brothers. At parting, the young man with the star on his forehead gave the belly another of his flowers and told about it; then he shook hands with his brother-in-law and left.
Whether long or short, the unicorn horse descended into a deep valley. In the valley stood a tall tower covered with golden tiles.
“Some big man probably lives here,” thought the young man with a star on his forehead and knocked on the locked gate. He knocked once, twice, three times, then looked through the fence. He sees a young woman descending the stone stairs, a beautiful woman, all in silk and gold, with precious stones sparkling on her fingers. She went up to the gate, unlocked it, and as she looked up at the brave, good fellow, she burst into tears.
-What are you crying about, beauty? - asks her guest.
- How can I not cry, unknown young man? I happened to become the wife of a robber. But I am the king's daughter. A year has already passed since they betrothed me to a good fellow, a handsome man no worse than you, but on the very day of the wedding, robbers attacked my father’s palace and took me away from the groom. Brought here. And here I am, shedding tears every day. My life is black. But I’m not as sad for myself as for you - after all, you too will die in your young years. A robber can destroy a thousand people like you.
“Don’t be afraid, beauty,” says the young man with a star on his forehead. “I will defeat him and send him to the next world.”
The robber was hunting at that time. He saw from afar that some horseman was talking to his captive, he flared up like lit gunpowder - sparks fell from his eyes - and drove his horse to the tower. But before he could drive up, a young man with a star on his forehead grabbed his saber from its sheath and cut the robber’s horse in half. The robber collapsed to the ground. The young man swung his hand again and struck with his saber, killing the robber on the spot. And the beauty stood in the hallway with a knife in her hand: she decided to kill herself if the robber defeated the young man. But then she saw that the robber was dead, ran to open the gate to the winner and, bursting into tears, rushed to hug him. Yunak, with a star on his forehead, rode into the courtyard, took the unicorn horse to the stable, and he himself went to the tower, and stayed there to live, marrying the king’s beautiful daughter.
How long or short did it take the king, the beauty’s father, to find out that the robber was no longer alive. And so he sent to tell his daughter to return home - supposedly her father wants to marry her to a certain prince. But the beauty did not agree to return and told the messengers:
“Tell my father that I’m already married and I don’t need any prince.”
The king was an evil man. He began to look for hunters to kill the youth with the star on his forehead, but no one was found. And then a sorceress, cunning as a fox, came to the palace and said:
“Tsar-Sovereign, I undertake to destroy this youth and bring your daughter to you.” Will you reward me richly?
“I’ll give you a bag of chervonets,” the king answers.
The sorceress disguised herself as a beggar and went to the tower where a young man with a star on his forehead lived. He was hunting at the time. The witch knocked on the gate, the beauty came up, and the witch said to her:
- Daughter, have pity on me! I don't have a crumb of bread in my house. Give me alms!
The beauty was pitiful. She carried a whole basket of bread, fried meat, fruits outside the gate, gave them to the witch and said:
- The need will come, grandmother, you come again. I always sit at home alone. Come, let’s talk, I’ll give you something else.
The next day the sorceress waited until the young man with the star on his forehead went hunting, and she trudged along again. He’ll come today, he’ll come tomorrow, and so she made friends with the king’s daughter. The sly fox began to ask the beauty how she lived with her husband.
“We live in harmony,” the beauty answers. “My husband doesn’t hide anything from me.”
“Don’t really trust your husband,” says the witch. “It’s impossible that your husband isn’t hiding something from you.” But, for example, ask him what the secret of his life is, he will never tell you.
- He will!
- Try! You'll see what he won't say.
The witch has left. In the evening the beauty set the table and sat down on the edge; sits slumped.
- Why are you upset? - the young man asks her.
- Tell me, are you hiding something from me?
“You know what I’m not hiding.”
“Why haven’t you told me yet what the secret of your life is?”
- I'll tell you - there will be trouble.
- Please, tell me! - the wife asks, and she bursts into tears.
The young man became alarmed and hugged his wife.
“Don’t cry,” he says, “I’ll tell you.” The secret of my life lies in the saber that hangs on my belt. As long as I take out the saber myself, nothing bad happens to me. But if anyone else takes it out of its sheath, I will die at that very moment. This is the secret of my life. And don’t tell anyone about her, otherwise I’ll be ruined.
The next day the sorceress learned the secret - the beauty was unable to keep it. In the evening, the sorceress was getting ready to go home, but as soon as she left the yard, she turned into a cat, crawled under the locked gate, crept into the tower and hid under the bed in the young man’s bedroom. Before going to bed, the young man took the saber from his belt, lay down and fell asleep. Then the sorceress crawled out from under the bed, turned into a woman, grabbed the scabbard, took out a saber from it and threw it out the window. The saber fell into the lake. At that same moment, the young man with the star on his forehead stopped breathing.
The next morning the beauty woke up, cried, screamed, and the sorceress went to notify the king. The evil king found out that his son-in-law had died, armed an entire regiment and sent it by force to take the beauty. But as soon as the regiment approached the gate, a unicorn horse jumped out of the gate, and a fierce battle began. The unicorn horse fought alone with a whole regiment, and did not let anyone near the tower.
On the same day, the young man’s brothers-in-arms noticed that their flowers had withered.
- Our brother-in-law is no longer alive! - they shouted and clasped their hands.
The brothers gathered and went to find out what had happened. The one who could hear all the conversations in the world put his ear to the ground and heard the sorceress say to the king:
“Before I had time to take the saber out of its sheath, he stopped breathing.
-Where is the saber?
“I threw it into the lake in front of the tower.”
- Yeah! - said the first brother-in-law. “So this is who killed the most glorious of the young men!” Old witch. Let's go quickly and give him his life back.
The brothers sat down on two huge mountain eagles, flew to the tower and landed on the shore of the lake. The water-drinking belly bent down and drank all the water in one breath. A naked saber flashed at the bottom of the lake. The first brother took it, climbed the stone stairs and entered the bedroom where the lifeless young man lay. He grabbed the sheath, and as soon as he put the saber into it, the young man with the star on his brow rubbed his eyes and stood up.
And at that time, the unicorn horse bravely fought with the royal regiment and did not allow anyone to approach the tower. Yunak with a star on his forehead jumped to his feet, took the scabbard with a saber and ran out into the yard. He pulled out his sharp saber, and as soon as it whistled over the heads of the enemies, they scattered in different directions like chickens. Yunak did not chase after them; he captured only the king and the sorceress.
The evil king was imprisoned in a dungeon, and the sorceress also got what she deserved - they threw her into the lake.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru