The Prince met the sage in the next forest.
After meeting the sage the Prince bowed and asked the sage for his magic bed.
The sage looked at the Prince with confused eyes. “Are you certain that you wish to marry princess Lalun?
The Prince nodded fervently.
After looking at the Prince the sage realized that the Prince genuinely wanted to marry the princess and decided to help him.
The sage showed the Prince a magic bed which was nearby. “You just need to lie down on the bed and ask it to go wherever you want. The bed shall fly and take you there.”
The Prince was thrilled.
The sage continued, “Here is a magic bag and a stone bowl.”
The Prince looked confused as the sage nodded. “The magic bag will give you anything that you want. The stone bowl will fill with water every time you ask for it.”
Taking all the gifts from the sage the Prince sat on the bed. “Take me to princess Lalun's kingdom.”
The bed flew and crossed the seven forests and the seven ranges of mountain. Soon he was in the borders of the kingdom.
That is when the Prince learnt something important.
Princess Lalun's beauty was well known throughout the country. Far too many princes had wanted to marry her. But the king wanted to marry his daughter to the best prince. So he set impossible tasks for the suitors to fulfill.
Till date no one had been able to fulfill any of the conditions laid down by Princess Lalun’s father .
But still the suitors from various countries kept coming.
In order to stop this, the king of Princess Lalun's country had ordered that strangers were not to be let inside the country.
Just on the outskirts of princess Lalun's kingdom there was an old lady in her hut.
Knowing the king's orders at first she refused to give the Prince any lodging space.
However the Prince convinced her otherwise.
Not only that, the Prince said that he would prepare the food and make all arrangements.
The Prince just wanted to stay in the garden around the old woman's house.
Surprised with the offer, the old woman agreed to it.
That night the Prince asked the magic bag for gold spoons and golden plates and he also asked for food for him and the old lady.
After eating a sumptuous meal from the bag the Prince gave the golden spoons and plate to the old lady for her own keeping.
That night from the old lady's hut the Prince saw the terrace of Princess Lalun’s castle.
The Prince realized that princess Lalun was indeed breathtakingly beautiful and realized that the Ant king had been right in directing him to come here.
That night the Prince asked for a precious ring from the magic bag.
He took the ring with him and used his magic bed and flew to Princess Lalun's room in the castle.
He was about to put the ring in the sleeping princess's finger when she woke.
The princess looked at the Prince and she felt that he was a lovely looking man too.
So the next morning the Prince went to the king and asked for his daughter's hand.
In his usual style the king was annoyed at first. “There are eighty pounds of mustard seed. You must crush oil out of them in a single day.”
The Prince sat on the magic bed and came back to the old woman's house. “How can I crush eighty pounds of mustard seed in a single day?” The old woman shrugged. “You can do it only if there is an army of ants.”
The Prince naturally knew the answer and he thought of the ant king.
As soon as the Prince had thought of him, the ant king and the entire army came to the Princes’ rescue.
With the help of the ant king who was very happy to help the Prince the very next day the Prince had crushed all eighty pounds of mustard seed into oil.
However the king was not yet willing to let the Prince marry Princess Lalun.
He pointed at two hills far away from his kingdom. “There are two demons there. I have managed to cage the two demons. But I am afraid that the two demons may get out of the cage and attack my kingdom. If you are able to defeat those demons and kill them I will let princess Lalun marry you.”
The Prince again came back to the old woman's hut in his magic bed.
It was the old woman who pointed out that only two tigers could stop the two demons.
Then the Prince thought of the tiger whom he had helped.
The tiger and the tigress both appeared there.
The Prince then took the two tigers to the king and asked him whether the demons could be defeated by the two tigers on his behalf.
The king just wanted the dangers from the demons to end and agreed.
Soon the tigers fought with the two demons and killed them.
However after this was done the king was still not willing to let the Prince marry princess Lalun. “I have a kettledrum there in the skies. If you go there and beat the kettledrum, I will let you marry my daughter.”
When the Prince told the old woman of the latest condition of the king the old woman reminded him that he had a magic bed which could be taken anywhere.
So using the magic bed, the Prince went to the kettledrum of the skies and beat it loudly from there.
Now the king had no other conditions to place before the Prince.
The Prince happily married princess Lalun and took her back to his kingdom.
The Prince handed the magic items back to the sage.
And then he and Princess Lalun lived in the Princes’ kingdom happily ever after.
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