Once upon a time there was a king who determined to take a long voyage . He assembled his fleet and all the seamen , and set out . They went straight on night and day , until they came to an island which was covered with large trees , and under every tree lay a lion . As soon as the King had landed his men , the lions all rose up together and tried to devour them . After a long battle they managed to overcome the wild beasts , but the greater number of the men were killed . Those who remained alive now went on through the forest and found on the other side of it a beautiful garden , in which all the plants of the world flourished together . There were also in the garden three springs : the first flowed with silver , the second with gold , and the third with pearls . The men unbuckled their knapsacks and filled them with those precious things . In the middle of the garden they found a large lake , and when they reached the edge of it the Lake began to speak , and said to them , ` What men are you , and what brings you here ? Are you come to visit our king ? ' But they were too much frightened to answer . Then the Lake said , ` You do well to be afraid , for it is at your peril that you are come hither . Our king , who has seven heads , is now asleep , but in a few minutes he will wake up and come to me to take his bath ! Woe to anyone who meets him in the garden , for it is impossible to escape from him . This is what you must do if you wish to save your lives . Take off your clothes and spread them on the path which leads from here to the castle . The King will then glide over something soft , which he likes very much , and he will be so pleased with that that he will not devour you . He will give you some punishment , but then he will let you go . ' The men did as the Lake advised them , and waited for a time . At noon the earth began to quake , and opened in many places , and out of the openings appeared lions , tigers , and other wild beasts , which surrounded the castle , and thousands and thousands of beasts came out of the castle following their king , the Seven-headed Serpent .
The Serpent glided over the clothes which were spread for him , came XXXXX the Lake , and asked it who had strewed those soft things on the path ?
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