The Crimson Fairy Book, part 7 · page 21 2101The person who has found out the puzzle is the son of a poor woman, who, if he lives, will become King of Hungary.102Therefore, if you want the crown yourself, you must get him here and kill him.”103After this conversation another letter was written to the Court of Hungary, saying that if the youth, now in the palace, was not sent to Turkey within three days, a large army would cross the border.104The king’s heart was sorrowful as he read, for he was grateful to the lad for what he had done to help him; but the boy only laughed, and bade the king fear nothing, but to search the town instantly for two youths just like each other, and he would paint himself a mask that was just like them.105And the sword at his side clanked loudly.106After a long search twin brothers were found, so exactly resembling each other that even their own mother could not tell the difference.107The youth painted a mask that was the precise copy of them, and when he had put it on, no one would have known one boy from the other.108They set out at once for the Sultan’s palace, and when they reached it, they were taken straight into his presence.109He made a sign for them to come near; they all bowed low in greeting.110He asked them about their journey; they answered his questions all together, and in the same words.111If one sat down to supper, the others sat down at the same instant.112When one got up, the others got up too, as if there had been only one body between them.113The Sultan could not detect any difference between them, and he told his aunt that he would not be so cruel as to kill all three.1 2← previousThe Crimson Fairy Book, part 6next →The Crimson Fairy Book, part 8↑ back to The Crimson Fairy BookThis page in Markdown → https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg2435/7/page/2/