` Take breath , ' said the horse , ` for you have no time to lose . The Welwa will return in a moment . ' Petru made no reply , only wondered how , exhausted as he was , he should ever be able to carry on the fight . But he settled himself in his saddle , grasped his sword , and waited . And then something came to him -- WHAT I can not tell you . Perhaps , in his dreams , a man may see a creature which has what it has not got , and has not got what it has . At least , that was what the Welwa seemed like to Petru . She flew with her feet , and walked with her wings ; her head was in her back , and her tail was on top of her body ; her eyes were in her neck , and her neck in her forehead , and how to describe her further I do not know . Petru felt for a moment as if he was wrapped in a garment of fear ; then he shook himself and took heart , and fought as he had never yet fought before . As the day wore on , his strength began to fail , and when darkness fell he could hardly keep his eyes open . By midnight he knew he was no longer on his horse , but standing on the ground , though he could not have told how he got there . When the grey light of morning came , he was past standing on his feet , but fought now upon his knees . ` Make one more struggle ; it is nearly over now , ' said the horse , seeing that Petru 's strength was waning fast . Petru wiped the sweat from his brow with his gauntlet , and with a desperate effort rose to his feet . ` Strike the Welwa on the mouth with the bridle , ' said the horse , and Petru did it . The Welwa uttered a neigh so loud that Petru thought he would be deaf for life , and then , though she too was nearly spent , flung herself upon her enemy ; but Petru was on the watch and threw the bridle over her head , as she rushed on , so that when the day broke there were three horses trotting beside him . ` May your wife be the most beautiful of women , ' said the Welwa , ` for you have delivered me from my enchantment . ' So the four horses galloped fast , and by nightfall they were at the borders of the golden forest . Then Petru began to think of the crowns that he wore , and what they had cost him . ` After all , what do I want with so many ?
I will keep the best , ' he said XXXXX himself ; and taking off first the copper crown and then the silver , he threw them away .
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