The Fisherman and the Wizard Fairy Tale

Once upon a time, there lived an old man and an old woman. They had a daughter. The old man went fishing, while the old woman mended nets to make a living. One day, while fishing, the old man spotted a chest floating in the water. He pulled the chest out of the water and took it home. The old woman and their daughter tried together to open the chest but couldn’t. At that moment, the old man came to help and managed to force open the chest. To their surprise, inside lay a dragon, coiled up. It raised its head and said:

You have done a good deed for me. I have been stuck inside this chest for a century; you have freed me. A sorcerer from long ago was angry with me and trapped me in this chest, sealing it tightly. Because the chest was too small, I lost all my powers and strength. I almost went blind from not seeing the sunlight. If it weren’t for you, I would have died of starvation, - it said, and did not harm any of them. Instead, it said:

- For your kindness, I will take you to a place where there are plenty of fish, move there, - and after stretching its body and resting, it planned to take them to a rich fishing area. The old man and the old woman agreed:

- Alright, let’s move. - After a few days, the dragon, having regained some strength, seated the three of them on its back, loaded their belongings, and carried them to the promised place. The old man and the old woman set up their home in the area shown by the dragon, and their daughter prepared food for them. After they all sat together and finished their meal in the new place, the dragon bid them farewell and flew back to its home. Now, the old man went back to the water's edge to fish. After a while, he caught a huge fish. The fish was so big that the old man couldn’t pull it out. Unable to do it alone, he called for his wife and daughter to help him. Together, they struggled and finally managed to bring the fish out. The old man caught two more big fish in this way. Now, he took the three large fish to the king's palace. The king, astonished by the size of the fish, gave the old man three plates of gold and bought the marvelous fish. The old man was pleased with the king's gift and returned home. Meanwhile, in the evening, the king wanted to have some fish for dinner and ordered his cook to prepare one of the fish. As the cook began to clean the fish, suddenly, the fish spoke:

- Don’t eat me, you are making a huge mistake, - it said, and then vanished. The cook rushed to inform the king about what had happened. The king then decided to cook another fish. The same thing happened; that fish also turned to ash. The same incident occurred with the last fish. Thinking, "What kind of magic is this?" the king went to the old man’s house to ask where he had caught the fish. The king then took his sword and went to the fishing spot. As he walked along the shore, he encountered a man with a head like a head and a back like a stone. The king asked:

- Who are you? What are you doing here? - The man with a head and a back like a stone replied:

- Why do you want to know? Leave this place quickly, - he said. - Why should I leave? - said the king, utterly confused.

- This is a long story, you might unwittingly fall into trouble as well. My wife will be coming soon, leave now, - he warned. The king insisted, "Tell me, tell me!" and the man with a head and a back like a stone finally spoke:

- I used to be a king ruling over three tribes. One day, while traveling in the countryside, I returned home to find my servants crying.

- Why are you crying? - I asked. They replied:

- Oh dear, your wife has made a deal with a sorcerer and learned magic. Now she is plotting a way to get rid of you. One day, she will kill you, and that is why we are crying, - they said.

- At night while you are asleep, she will ride one of the tied horses, go this way, and come back that way.

- Can you prove what you said? - I asked.

- She goes every evening. She will go again today, - my servants continued. After hearing this, I decided to watch my wife at night. After she left, I dressed and followed her out. When I arrived, I found that my wife had already returned. There, I met the sorcerer she had spoken of. In my anger, I killed him with my sword. I returned home and went to bed. The next morning, I woke up to find my wife crying.

- Why are you crying? People don’t cry for no reason, - I said, and at that moment, she splashed a bowl of water. After that, I turned into the man with a head and a back like a stone that you see before you. Not only that, but I turned my kingdom into three rivers and my people into fish. Every day, she goes the same way to visit the dead sorcerer and comes back. She embraces his bones and cries. Then she comes and beats me, - he finished his story. After listening to this tale, the king said:

- Well, let me also go that way and see, - and he went to the place where the sorcerer's bones lay. When he arrived, indeed, he saw the bones of the sorcerer. Now the king wanted to help the man with a head and a back like a stone. With this thought, he destroyed the sorcerer's bones and laid down in their place. After some time, the stone-turned wife of the king arrived. However, she didn’t notice that another person was lying in place of the sorcerer. The woman came and embraced the sorcerer:

- Oh dear, is there still life left in you? - she cried, weeping. At that moment, the king stirred:

- Did I not say, "Make your husband a head and a back like a stone"? Go, restore him to his form, - he shouted. The unexpected words from the king startled the woman. At that moment, the king stood up and led her to her husband. The woman splashed another bowl of water. At that moment, everything returned to its original form. The woman was freed from the sorcerer’s magic. The king ascended to his throne and became friends with the former king, achieving his desires. It is said that the old man and the old woman's daughter was married to another king's son, and they held a grand wedding for them.