Meanwhile the princess was in despair because the days slipped by , and the young man did not return , and she never rested until her father let her lead some troops against the Sultan . She rode proudly before them , dressed in uniform ; but they had not left the town more than a mile behind them , when they met the lad and his little sword . When he told them what he had done they shouted for joy , and carried him back in triumph to the palace ; and the king declared that as the youth had shown himself worthy to become his son-in-law , he should marry the princess and succeed to the throne at once , as he himself was getting old , and the cares of government were too much for him . But the young man said he must first go and see his mother , and the king sent him in state , with a troop of soldiers as his bodyguard . The old woman was quite frightened at seeing such an array draw up before her little house , and still more surprised when a handsome young man , whom she did not know , dismounted and kissed her hand , saying : ` Now , dear mother , you shall hear my secret at last ! I dreamed that I should become King of Hungary , and my dream has come true . When I was a child , and you begged me to tell you , I had to keep silence , or the Magyar king would have killed me . And if you had not beaten me nothing would have happened that has happened , and I should not now be King of Hungary . ' -LSB- From the Folk Tales of the Magyars . -RSB- The Prince And The Dragon Once upon a time there lived an emperor who had three sons . They were all fine young men , and fond of hunting , and scarcely a day passed without one or other of them going out to look for game . One morning the eldest of the three princes mounted his horse and set out for a neighbouring forest , where wild animals of all sorts were to be found . He had not long left the castle , when a hare sprang out of a thicket and dashed across the road in front . The young man gave chase at once , and pursued it over hill and dale , till at last the hare took refuge in a mill which was standing by the side of a river . The prince followed and entered the mill , but stopped in terror by the door , for , instead of a hare , before him stood a dragon , breathing fire and flame . At this fearful sight the prince turned to fly , but a fiery tongue coiled round his waist , and drew him into the dragon 's mouth , and he was seen no more . A week passed away , and when the prince never came back everyone in the town began to grow uneasy . At last his next brother told the emperor that he likewise would go out to hunt , and that perhaps he would find some clue as to his brother 's disappearance . But hardly had the castle gates closed on the prince than the hare sprang out of the bushes as before , and led the huntsman up hill and down dale , till they reached the mill . Into this the hare flew with the prince at his heels , when , lo !
instead of the hare , there stood a dragon breathing XXXXX and flame ; and out shot a fiery tongue which coiled round the prince 's waist , and lifted him straight into the dragon 's mouth , and he was seen no more .
Magyars Prince day days fire first huntsman left morning week