Presently there rode up a Snake with three heads. His
steed stumbled, his hound howled, his falcon clamored.[78] Then
cried the Snake:

"Wherefore hast thou stumbled, O Steed! hast thou howled,
O Hound! hast thou clamored, O Falcon?"

"How can I but stumble," replied the Steed, "when under
the boarding sits Ivan Popyalof?"

Then said the Snake, "Come forth, Ivanushka! Let us
try our strength together." Ivan came forth, and they began to
fight. And Ivan killed the Snake, and then sat down again
beneath the boarding.

Presently there came another Snake, a six-headed one, and
him, too, Ivan killed. And then there came a third, which had
twelve heads. Well, Ivan began to fight with him, and lopped
off nine of his heads. The Snake had no strength left in him.
Just then a raven came flying by, and it croaked:

"Krof? Krof!"[79]

Then the Snake cried to the Raven, "Fly, and tell my wife
to come and devour Ivan Popyalof."

But Ivan cried: "Fly, and tell my brothers to come, and
then we will kill this Snake, and give his flesh to thee."

And the Raven gave ear to what Ivan said, and flew to his
brothers and began to croak above their heads. The brothers
awoke, and when they heard the cry of the Raven, they hastened
to their brother's aid. And they killed the Snake, and then,
having taken his heads, they went into his hut and destroyed
them. And immediately there was bright light throughout the
whole land.

After killing the Snake, Ivan Popyalof and his brothers set
off on their way home. But he had forgotten to take away his
gloves, so he went back to fetch them, telling his brothers to
wait for him meanwhile. Now when he had reached the hut
and was going to take away his gloves, he heard the voices of
the Snake's wife and daughters, who were talking with each
other. So he turned himself into a cat, and began to mew
outside the door. They let him in, and he listened to everything
they said. Then he got his gloves and hastened away.

As soon as he came to where his brothers were, he mounted
his horse, and they all started afresh. They rode and rode;
presently they saw before them a green meadow, and on that
meadow lay silken cushions. Then the elder brothers said,
"Let's turn out our horses to graze here, while we rest ourselves
a little."

But Ivan said, "Wait a minute, brothers!" and he seized
his mace, and struck the