ninjured with his son and his daughter and his wife. Then the king hid
himself again and looked on with eyes filled with tears of joy, and
could not see enough of them.

Now Hero, like a man awaking from a dream, gazed at his son and his
wife and his daughter, and was greatly perplexed. He spoke to each by
name, and asked them how they had come to life after being reduced to
ashes. "Is this a fancy of mine? Or a dream? Or an illusion? Or the
favour of the goddess?" And his wife and children said to him: "By the
favour of the goddess we are alive."

At last Hero believed it, and having worshipped the goddess, he went
home happy with his children and his wife. And when he had seen his son
and his wife and daughter safe at home, he went back that same night to
the palace gate.

And King Shudraka saw all this and went back without being seen
himself, and climbed to the roof, and called: "Who is there at the
gate?" And Hero replied: "Your Majesty, I, Hero, am here. At your
command I followed the woman who cried. She must have been a witch, for
she vanished the moment I saw her and spoke to her."

When the king heard this, he was astonished beyond measure, for he had
seen what really happened. And he thought: "Ah, the hearts of brave men
are deep as the sea, if they do not boast after doing an unparalleled
action." So the king descended from the roof, entered the palace, and
passed the rest of the night there.

Then when the court was held in the morning, Hero came to see the king.
And as he stood there, the delighted king told all his counsellors and
the others the story of the night. And all were amazed and confounded
at hearing of Hero's virtues, and they praised him, crying: "Well done!
Well done!"

Then the king and Hero lived happily together, sharing the power
equally.

When the goblin had told this story, he asked King Triple-victory: "O
King, which of all these was the most worthy? If you know and will not
tell, then the curse I told you of will be fulfilled."

And the king said to the goblin: "O magic creature, King Shudraka was
the most noble of them all."

But the goblin said: "Why not Hero, the like of whom as a servant is
not to be found in the whole world? Or why should not his wife receive
the most praise, who did not waver when she saw her son killed like a
beast before her eyes? Or why is not the boy Trusty the most worthy,
who showed such wonderful manhood when only a little boy? Why do you
sa