After ordering all the items I had listed, I took out a leather wallet from my bag. The woman counted the amount of my purchase. It did not exceed five large coins. The girlfriends, seeing the money in my hands, dropped their shyness. The one who turned away and was silent all the time raised her magic voice:
- If I look like your sister, then maybe you will let me try on the outfits you chose? - To avoid misunderstandings, she smiled, clarifying that she could talk. Her friend tried to pet the fluffy:
- What an interesting squirrel. Doesn’t she bite?
Touche bared his sharp snow-white teeth and barked. His threat worked. The girl removed her hand. I answered, letting the girls know I didn’t want to get to know them.
- My sister doesn’t wear someone else’s clothes.
The girlfriends became offended and with sparkling eyes, they vanished into the crowd. Someone who overheard our dialogue laughed and retold the essence of our conversation to someone else. A wave of laughter flew over the fairground.
-You shouldn’t be doing that, - the woman said. You’re a young guy, and the girls are cute. you fall in love with one of them, and she refuses you. You will live as a bachelor for the rest of your life.
- Please wrap up your purchases and don’t poke your nose into things that aren’t your own business. How and with whom I will live is my headache.
The merchant’s wife took out a piece of white cloth from a pile of rags, wrapped all my purchases in it, and tied the resulting envelope with a long narrow cord. The envelope fit into my bag.
My next purchase was a woolen cape intended for me. A simple but quite practical thing.
At the fair, many vendors offered various food and drinks. Fried and boiled meat, vegetables, whole and chopped, fruits. I bought Fluffy a dozen local apples, and it turned out that he liked them.
Our carefree stroll through the shopping arcades tired me. I decided that after getting acquainted with the draft animals, we would go to look for the merchant Hagar and his caravan. Fluffy yawned and, showed me how tired he was.
-Be patient a little, - I persuaded my pet. - If we now come across an animal that can replace Yurion, we will buy it and go to the hotel. Can you hear me?
I thought he was sleeping, but the fluffy one was looking at one enormous creature and trying to attract my attention to it. Between the black, melancholy Tuftons, chewing their endless cud, sat a giant. The giant’s gaze remained apathetic, showing no interest in the bustling fair.
Approaching close to the giant, I shouted:
- Hey, master!
The obsequious figure of the salesman slid out from behind the carcasses of the nimble tuftons. He was dressed in a robe with a hood, and in his hand, I saw a bunch of keys. The other hand was bandaged with a not entirely clean gray rag, on which blood stains could be seen.
-“He probably owns more than one giant, he just sells giants one at a time,” flashed through my head.
- Is yours?
- Mine, - the seller happily agreed. - Two in one.
- It’s a familiar formula, - I didn’t understand what the seller meant when he announced the terms of the sale. - Explain what this means.
- This means that I am selling a giant and with it a small appendage,” the seller grinned stupidly, seeing me as a potential buyer of his stale goods.
- Show me the makeweight! I’m not going to buy a pig in a poke.
It seemed to me that the seller did not know the meaning of the word “cat”. I thought that Orkvalia was probably the only country not occupied by these funny and at the same time demanding animals.
- She’s not in a bag, but in a cage, - the man explained his confusion and led him to show the appendage. We stopped near a cage in which sat a human-like creature covered with dirty, matted fur. On the creature’s head, hair was dirty and matted into thick strands. The creature had brown, almost black eyes. Just like an ordinary person. The creature’s gaze was filled with hatred and sadness at the same time. It didn’t make a single sound, it just watched us.
“Here,” the seller waved his hand and smiled obsequiously. - I won’t sell the giant without it.
- Did you say “her”? This is a woman.
- The most real woman. If you wash it, you will see for yourself.
- What can she do? And why are you selling it? Is this legal?
- There is no law prohibiting the sale of animals. And she is a real beast. If you want to make sure, stick your hand into the cage. Look what she did to my hand, — he showed his hand wrapped in a rag. - She is naughty and very restless. I don’t know what she’s capable of, what she can do. I received this little animal by accident and want to get rid of it as soon as possible.
- What happened to the giant? Why are you selling it? Is he also uncontrollable and can’t do anything?
- That’s where you’re wrong. If you buy Bump, that’s his name, you won’t regret it. It’s worth the money spent on it. He is young, strong, and obedient.
- If you do not remove the chains from him, he will obey you forever. - Why are you selling? - I looked at the seller. The slimy-looking guy needed a good beating. The face is disgusting; the look is like a snake.
- I buy and sell. I leave the difference between buying and selling to myself. Many people do this. All Tufton traders buy bulls from cattle breeders at a meager price, and here at the fair, they make a profit from the sale. Look, buyers are almost ready to buy, not knowing that the merchant has marked up the price by almost two hundred percent.
I looked in the direction he showed and recognized Crybaby among the customers. He stood with his friends and tried to reduce the price by at least a little. The merchant waved his arms, sprayed saliva, and resisted, not wanting to give in.
- Tufton, whom these people want to buy, is ancient and dreams of death, — the fluffy whispered right in my ear. The guards weren’t my friends. Traveling through the forest had brought us a little closer and I thought I’d feel guilty if I didn’t help them.
- Hey, Crybaby,- I called out to the customers. I didn’t know any other names. The guards exchanged excited glances with wide smiles on their faces.
- We thought you had left us.
- Well, the fair is for everyone. Have you bought it?
- Yes, - Crybaby answered for everyone. - We got one of Hagar’s carts. In order not to leave her here, we bought one bull. The owner gave us all a small advance, but this uncle, - the young man looked at the merchant, - doesn’t want to give in to us.
- How many does he ask for this dead meat?
The merchant turned pale, not understanding how his secret became known to me. He objected, trying to prove that the bull was full of strength and could cover the distance between the village and the city.
- If your words are true, untie him and allow him to walk to the cart.
- After you pay for your purchase, do what you want with it.
- No, buddy, that won’t do. I know more about the bull than you might imagine. And you ask...
- Twenty-five large coins, — Crybaby answered instead of the merchant.
- We’ll buy this bull, — I, relying on the right hint from Fluffy, chose a young and strong animal. - We will pay fifteen large coins for it. Otherwise, — I said the rest of the sentence to the merchant’s face, “your wife will find out you are sleeping with her sister.
The seller turned pale; he found himself in a very delicate situation.
- I bought it for fifteen, let me earn something, — he almost cried. I stopped him:
This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
- You bought it for seven and a half coins. If you do not agree to the deal, the village chief will find out about your adventures with his wife. What do you say?
- Friends, - the merchant, changing his face, announced to the market with a joyful cry. - I am glad to give you this wonderful animal for only fifteen large coins.
While bargaining with the bull seller, I glanced towards the giant, who continued to sit with an indifferent look. His sale did not last for the first day; he resigned himself to such shocks. Or maybe the gold chains had such a depressing effect? Perhaps they were charged with some kind of spell that suppressed the will and thoughts of freedom.
The deal with the bull could be considered completed, I made sure that the guards counted out the money correctly, and the crafty trader gave back exactly the bull for which the payment was made.
- So how much does a giant cost?
-Twenty large coins, — the seller smiled obsequiously at me. - Don’t forget about the makeweight in the form of a wild woman.
- “An appendage, damn me. I completely forgot about this unpleasant moment. Both the giant and the woman need to be fed. I may need an assistant or assistant. I can't do it alone. Where can I get one? Is there an agency at the fair for the selection of auxiliary staff?” - I was overcome by sad thoughts, I almost mechanically counted out the required amount to the giant’s seller.
- How to manage it? - I asked the jubilant seller. He handed me two keys from those that were hanging in his bunch.
- Bump understands human speech, but I don’t know if he can speak. We didn’t communicate with him. We didn’t find, you know, common topics for conversation.
I looked at the seller with such a hateful look that he choked and hurried to get out of my sight. I turned to the giant:
- Bump, get up, buddy.
The giant turned his head in surprise, wanting to look at the one who called him a friend.
- Are you hungry?
Bump nodded his head and noisily swallowed his saliva. The smell of fried meat teased our sense of smell, making us want to eat.
- Take the cage and follow me. Just be careful not to crush any onlookers.
The giant stretched out to his full ten-foot height. With strong hands he picked up the wooden cage with the wild captive and moved after me, taking utmost care when walking. The golden chain binding his legs rattled in a warning.
We quickly found ourselves in shopping arcades, where deer and bulls were roasting, and a stew of lentils and other local grains was being cooked in enormous cauldrons. Resourceful sellers sold intoxicating drinks from barrels.
I had to fork out for one roasted deer, which Bump grabbed with one hand and immediately took a decent bite out of it. It turns out he hasn’t eaten for an entire week. He preferred a pair of leather buckets of clean well water to the intoxicating drink. The caged prisoner, the wild woman, dined with us. She ate carefully, although she was starving.
The woman behaved calmly, did not growl, and did not throw herself at the bars of the cage. From this, I concluded that her behavior is a peculiar form of self-defense.
First, I had to deal with the giant. I knew what to do with it long before I bought it. It’s a pleasant event - to buy a bird imprisoned in a cage and release it into the wild. The giant didn’t know any of this yet.
- I’m ready to fulfill any of your wishes, master, — Bump bowed his head.
- How did you, so big and strong, end up in captivity?
- I was asleep. They grabbed me, sleepy, and threw chains that prevented me from using my power - the fluffy one translated the words spoken by Bump’s rough voice word for word. - My mother fell ill and needed a medicinal drug. I went to visit the wizard, he lives somewhere in the valley. The journey was long, I was exhausted and went to bed. And when I woke up, I was already in chains.
- You didn’t come up with this story to upset me? - I asked just in case, deciding to observe Bump’s reaction. The giant’s face at the time of the question remained as impassive as at the time of his sale.
I bent down and unfastened the lock; the golden chain jingled and fell to the ground.
- If you still want to help your mother, go. Just be careful not to fall into the same trap twice.
- Are you letting me go? - Bump expressed sincere surprise. - I heard that giants who fall into slavery to humans never return.
- Lucky you. You have met a man who values freedom and wants everyone to follow his example.
The giant bent towards me. The fluffy one jumped to the ground and jumped to the side. I bent down and grabbed the hilt of the sword. Bump spread his hands:
-I just wanted to hug you, he knelt. In this position, we were almost equal in height. I looked into his face. Compared to a human, it was rough and ugly. But something else struck me. The giant’s gaze, his enormous eyes, were filled with tears of gratitude.
We hugged. If Bump had pressed me a little harder, I would have turned into a pancake, his gratitude was so great.
- What is your name? - Fluffy, who was watching us in silent amazement, voiced the question.
- My name is Oris. Go, friend, don’t waste your time. Your family is waiting for you.
- Oris, — the giant said in a rough voice. It seemed to me that a faulty tractor engine was growling nearby. - If you need me, hold this amulet tightly in your hand. - I’ll come very quickly.
Bump handed me a round thing that resembled a pocket watch. While I was examining it, he straightened up to his full height, clutched the rest of the roasted deer under his arm, and quickly rushed toward the horizon. I did not follow him with my eyes; my soul was calm and joyful. Why unnecessary emotions? I helped the creature find freedom, and let him enjoy it.
- Now you, I turned around the cage, picking up the key. - I hope you also somehow understand human speech. Now I will open the cage and you can be free. You saw what the giant did? You are given the same opportunity.
-Well, with me, it’s not as simple as with a giant, — I heard a thin and enchanting voice. I looked at Touche, and he in turn looked at me. - I can’t walk because my legs are broken.
I sat down on the ground. If I don’t look for trouble myself, it finds me. I guess I was too quick to let Bump go. We must return him immediately, let him take the captive woman with him. Although, where will he take her?
I looked at the wild woman. Her voice did not match her appearance. She, in turn, looked at me and smiled:
- Admit it honestly - were you scared?
- Yes, — I had no other choice. - I have never been in such a situation, and I don’t know what to do.
- First, I need to find a place where I can wash myself and get myself in order. Do you know where this can be done? She came out of her cage and looked down at me.
-You said that your legs were broken, - I could not speak from surprise. The woman turned out to be tall and slender, her figure, even in torn clothes, seemed perfect.
-I was joking,- she extended her strong hand to me and helped me get off the ground. Standing next to her, I realized that the woman and I were almost the same height.
- My name is Dionela, or you can simply call it Dina.
- Why can’t you follow the giant?
Dionela sighed and looked at me searchingly:
- My return home is not as simple as it may seem, my good friend. So you, freeing me, didn’t even think about your action.