Once upon a time, in a country, there had an old soldier. He spent almost his life to dedicate to his contry, his king. But, when he turned old, injured and couldn’t fight anymore, he was abandoned.
“I don’t need you anymore”, said his king, “I will not give you money or anything like that because I only give it to people who are serving me”.
The soldier left the castle. He spent half that day wandering. He went to a forest when the sun was downing. There had only one tent in that forest and the owner of the tent was no one but a witch. The soldier saw the light emitted from that tent so he had no hesitation approaching the tent and asked the owner to have a place to sleep.
“Dear Madam! Could you treat me a meal and a place to sleep. I’m so hungry”, he said.
“Dear Madam! Could you treat me a meal and a place to sleep. I’m so hungry”, he said.
“Alas! No one’s stupid to treat a soldier old and useless. But, I will help you if you promise me to do one thing”.
“What’d you need me to do?” he asked.
“Help me plow my garden”, she said.
The soldier agreed. He woke up early in the next morning and work hard but he couldn’t finish after sundown.
“I know”, said the witch, “You can’t finish it in one day. I want you stay here one more night. Tomorrow you have to help me split wood”.
The next morning, the soldier woke up early, splitted wood hardly but when the sun downed, the witch another time asked him to stay there one more night.
“I need you to do the last thing.” said the witch, “That’s a blue-flame lamp. It now is on the bottom of a dried well. The lamp, my lamp was dropped in the well in an accident but I am not brave enough to take it up. So”, she stopped a while, “I need you the person who helthier and braver to take it up”.
The soldier agreed to help her. The next morning, the witch led him to deep forest where the well was. She asked him to sit on a basket which was tied by one end of a rope. The witch dropped the soldier down the well and he could easily find the blue-flame lamp. He asked the witch to pull up. When the basket was pulled up as high as the well mouth,
“Give me the lamp”, said the witch, handing toward him.
The soldier fastly recognized the witch had no idea kindly.
“Noooo!” he said, “let me out then I will give you”.
The witch’s angry. She dropped the rope then the soldier was fallen down back the bottom. It’s lucky the bottom was soft so he was not hurt much. The blue-flame lamp still lighted but it seemed useless with him now. He believed completely that he would die there. He sat there for a while, wondering sadly. Unconsciously he put his hand in pocket then found out a cigarette.
“Here my last cigarette”, he said, burning the cigarette he took some long drag then puff out clouds of smoke. When smoke spread out whole the bottom, appeared a black man. The man looked very small, just as high as one third normal human height.
“What’d you want me to do, master?”, said the little man in high pitch voice.
The soldier felt surprised.
“I don’t know what you saying”, said the soldier.
“Whatever you want was oder I have to do, master”, said the little man in the same voice.
“I wanna get this well”, said the soldier.
The little man quickly led the soldier followed a secret tunnel. The tunnel led to a secret chamber. The chamble was filled full of treasure. Silver, gold, and other treasures glittering in whole the chamber. The soldier helped himself to have some of them. He also didn’t forget the blue-flame lamp to bring it with him. As soon as he got on ground and met the witch, he screamed:
“Catch her. Bring her to judge and make her stay in prison till she dies”.
Immediately he finished, the witch was tied. She was thrown on a big black wild cat then disappeared. There was only the sceam of the witch. After seconds, the little man came back.
“Aall thing’ve done. The witch was prisoned. Do you need me to do anything?” said the little man.
“You... go home but if I call, you have come right away. Okay?” said the soldier.
“You don’t need to call me, master”, said the little man, “if you need my appearance, you only need to burn your cigarette by this blue-flame lamp, I will appear right away”.
The little man disappeared and the soldier turned back to capital. He bought some noble clothes. He rested in a luxury accommodation. After all, he burned cigarette, the little man appeared at one.
“I had served the king for long time, fought because of him, received scars because of him but what the things were he gave me. He prisoned me, let me die in hunger and threw me out the castle as like an useless dog”, said the soldier.
“What’d you want master?” said the little man.
“I want his daughter, the princess. I need her work for me as a maid this night”, said the soldier.
“The thing’s easy for me but if it’s discovered, you will be in danger”, said the little man.
At midnight, the princess was brought to the soldier’s room.
“You came”, shouted the soldier, “Work right now”, he threw a broom toward the pricess, “CLEAN!”
After cleaning, the soldier called her come, asked her to wash his shoes. He took of the shoes, threw it on her and roared: “CLEAN”. She sliently picked the shoes up, and started washing though her eyes still closed. She did as though she was controled. After the sun rose, she was brought back castle in secret. Morning, when she woke up, she felt very tired. Her whole body tured pained. She talked her father, the king about strange dream.
“I was brought out the castle in seconds. Came to room of an old soldier and was forced to do hard work. Thought it’s a dream but I feel it very real. Now I still feel my body pained”, she said.
“Sometime, dreams are also truth”, said the king thoughtfully, “tonight, before you go to bet, put some beans in your pockets. If you are bought out, drop them follow the way so that we can find out the person who dared to do that rude thing”, said the king.
The little man hid himself after the king hearing the words. That night, when the little man brought the princess to his master’s room, beans fell down from her pockets laid on the way a mark. But, the little had known the thing. He took other beans and dropped them on all roads in capital. Still did as a maid, the princess one more time talked her father about the strange dream in the next morning. The king ordered to soldiers to follow beans but beans were found anywhere. The only thing they got from people’s rumor that the last day had had a bean rain in capital.
“We have another plan, daughter”, said the king, “Tonight when you go to bed, don’t take off your shoes. And when you are brought to the room, do as normal but before you are brought back castle, leave a shoe a there. Remember hide it carefully. I will odered soldiers to find out it”.
The little man heard. That night, the soldier ordered the little man to bring the princess to come. The little man prevented.
“Master, I have no idea to help you this time. Tomorrow when the princess is back castle, soldiers will find out her shoe at here. You will be in danger, master”, he said.
“Do what I say”, said the soldier firmly
The third day the princess have to work as a maid, she hid her shoe carefully before she was brought back castle.
Early morning, all of soldiers in castle were mobilized and they discovered the shoe was hid under bed of the old soldier. He was brought out his room fastly that he had no time to bring anything with him, including the blue-flame lamp and gold coins. He was chained in prison. Thought he would die but luckily, he saw an old friend who was a guard in this prison.
“Help me, friend”, he said, “Please help me take something from my room to here. I will gift you this gold coin”.
The guard left and then he turned back, gave the soldier the blue-flame lamp. The soldier waited for his friend went out. He burned a cigarette then smoked. The little man appeared.
“Don’t worry, master”, said the little man, “let them do whatever they want but you have to always bring the blue-flame lamp with you”.
Next day, the soldier was brought to judge. Though he hadnt done any serious crime, he was sentenced to death. Before he was executed, he asked the king for him to do the last thing.
“What do you want?” asked the king.
“I wanna a cigarette”, he answered.
“I can smoke as much as you want. But, you have to die after that”, said the king.
The soldier took out a cigarette and started smoking. The little man appeared, he had taken a big stick in his hand.
“What do you want me to do, master?”, said the little man.
“Beat them all”, he roared, “the lie judge, the cruelty king and including their servants”.
As like a lightning, the little bursted into them and beat them pained that whoever was beat, he or she immediately fallen down and fainted. The king was frightened as each one fell down front his face. His body trembled. At last, when almost of people there were fallen, he tremulously prayed the soldier to forgive him. He presented the soldier the throne, let his daughter to marry with him in exchange for not being beat.
The soldier agreed. He became the new king and the princess was the new queen.
Somewhere in the country, at one secret chamber, the blue-flame lame was still hid there. It needs somebody to discover.
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THE END
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