About the Magical Fish
On the sixth day after the new moon, the old wizard said to his only son:
"Dear boy, the time has come for you to learn how things work in the human realm. You will experience firsthand that the life of humans follows somewhat different rules than ours."
The young man eagerly agreed. For a long time, he had begged his father to let him glimpse the wondrous souls of humans. Now his wish was fulfilled.
"To avoid being recognized, you will dress as a common peasant."
As the old man said, so it was done.
The young wizard entered the human world. In the evening, his feet carried him to an unknown kingdom – a small village lying in a hollow beneath a castle. He found himself right in front of an inn. Then he recalled his father’s advice: If you want to learn about the conditions in any land, go among the common folk or visit a tavern.
So he stepped into the local tavern. He was greeted by a hearty landlady:
"Welcome to our place, young man! You surely are not from around here, are you?"
"Thank you for the warm welcome," said the wizard, "I truly come from distant lands. My homeland lies beyond the ridges of the heavenly mountains."
"Sit down at a table, you must be hungry."
The young man did not need to be asked twice.
The woman brought boiled sausages, freshly baked bread, smoked ham, home eggs, and a mug of dark beer."
The wizard’s cheeks puffed up from the delicious food. When he finished, he said appreciatively:
"It was a royal feast!"
"And see, our king turns up his nose at our simple food," the landlady lamented.
"What does he eat then?"
"I must tell you something about him – he is a great gourmet. That’s why he summoned the best chefs from foreign lands. Every day he has a different dish for lunch. One day Spanish birds, the next French potatoes, then German eintopf. Then comes Viennese schnitzel, Hungarian goulash, English and Tatar steaks…"
"He is a true epicure!" said the guest admiringly.
"What epicure! He should try our simple peasant dishes sometimes," grumbled the landlady, "like škubánky (potato dumplings), plum dumplings, tomato sauce, sirloin in cream sauce, or roast domestic goose."
The wizard listened attentively and then said:
"Madam landlady, I will arrange things so that it will be as you wish. And believe me, one day the king himself will come here for lunch!"
"You could do that?"
"I just had a great idea. I will borrow just two small buckets of water from you."
"And what do you need them for?"
"That’s a secret. Prepare them for me in front of the house in the morning and don’t worry about anything else."
The landlady shook her head but agreed.
After a tiring journey, the wizard went to sleep. In the fluffy blankets, he fell asleep immediately, feeling almost like in heaven.
In the morning, after breakfast, he set off with the buckets toward the castle. On the way, he changed his appearance. From a simple village lad, he became a respected merchant.
He crossed seven stones and arrived at the castle. He immediately asked to be announced to the king.
"Your Majesty, there is a foreigner here who wishes to speak with you. He claims to have brought a precious gift," said the chamberlain.
The king’s eyes lit up.
"Then why don’t you invite him in?"
The servant disappeared. Soon he returned with the stranger. He looked truly strange. He wore an embroidered white suit and a black hat. In his hands, he carried two buckets covered with silk scarves. When he stood before the ruler, he placed the containers on the ground, bowed, and said:
"I come from distant lands, all the way from Siam! I have brought Your Highness a unique, precious commodity."
"What kind of miracle is this?" the ruler asked impatiently.
"Well, it’s not so much a thing as a special, very delicate delicacy."
The king pricked up his ears.
The stranger uncovered the fabrics and said:
"In one bucket there is a large fish – in the other, a very small one. The first is for eating, the second still has to grow. Imagine, it takes a never-ending five years."
The ruler stepped closer and looked into the buckets.
"Such undersized fish commonly live in our royal stream," he said disappointedly.
"True, those creatures are not big. But their meat! Pure poetry," boasted the stranger.
"Those fish look like ordinary bleak."
"Appearances can be deceiving, Your Highness! Look at them more closely once again."
The ruler looked into the buckets again.
"Before, they were white, now both have turned red!"
"I told you they are no ordinary creatures."
The king could hardly believe it.
"They are very precious and magical fish. These creatures live in inaccessible mountain lakes. Few manage to reach those places, let alone catch them. They dwell at the bottom and surface only once a year. They are extremely shy and fearful."
The king listened carefully to every word.
"Whoever eats this fish will be endowed with unusual qualities."
"What does that loach cost?" asked the king.
"Nothing. It is free – a gift. I heard that your royal palate is accustomed only to the finest delicacies. That is why I wanted to please Your Highness."
The king was flattered by such news. After all, free gifts usually bring only a cold.
The stranger handed over the gift, said goodbye, and left.
The king pondered:
"What miraculous qualities could that fish hide? Too bad I did not ask. Well, we shall see."
He could hardly wait to taste the fish.
He summoned the most experienced chef and ordered strictly:
"You will prepare this delicacy in butter. But mark my words, you must not eat even a crumb!"
Soon a pleasant aroma spread from the kitchen. It filled the entire castle and reached the king’s nose. At that moment, his mouth began to water.
The wait seemed endless.
Suddenly the door opened and a servant entered. On a porcelain tray, he carried the fragrant delicacy. He placed the dish before the ruler.
The king could not believe his eyes. The baked fish was entirely blue.
"This is truly an unusual sight. First white, then red, and now this!" he marveled.
He started eating. It really tasted excellent. It melted in his mouth. After the delicious meal, thirst made itself known. As is well known, fish want to swim! The king called the servant:
"Wi-wi-wi-wi-ne wi-wi-wi-ne, br-br-bring me wi-wi-wi-ne!"
And so he began to stutter.
Suddenly he realized the stranger had not lied. That fish had magical power over humans.
The king turned as red as a turkey with anger. For that inappropriate joke, he wanted to punish the audacious man as harshly as possible.
He immediately sent troops in all directions to capture the misbehaving merchant.
The soldiers searched the entire kingdom thoroughly. But in vain. There was no trace of the stranger. The earth swallowed him up. The weary soldiers returned late in the evening empty-handed.
That night, the king had a strange dream. Someone seemed to speak softly to him from afar: "When you eat the second fish, the magic will pass." After those words, he fell into a deep sleep.
In the morning, the king got up and hurried to the bucket.
He looked sadly at the lonely little fish. He carefully examined it, hoping it had grown overnight.
Day after day, he came to look at it.
Five years passed like water. When the king ate the second fish, he spoke without stammering again.
And then he swore: "I will never again eat any foreign dishes, no matter how magical they may look!"
He dismissed all the famous chefs. He heard that the best cook in the area was the landlady from the inn down in the castle’s shadow. He did not hesitate and went to her.
When she saw the king, she almost lost her speech. But she quickly recovered.
She welcomed the unannounced visitor with dill sauce and dumplings. That dish was always a success. Nobody was known not to lick their fingers after it! The ruler was no exception. She even had to bring him a second helping.
"That peasant was quite a character to manage to cook all this," the landlady smiled.
She recalled the prophetic words of that charming young man. If only she had known then that the visitor was a true and genuine wizard!
Translated into English by artificial intelligence