promise that he would be back again in the kitchen when the roast had
to be turned.

Almost immediately after he had got down to the sea-shore the Troll came
with a great whizzing and whirring, and he was much, much bigger than
either of the two former ones, and he had fifteen heads.

'Fire!' roared the Troll.

'Fire yourself!' said Minnikin.

'Can you fight?' screamed the Troll.

'If not, I can learn,' said Minnikin.

'I will teach you,' yelled the Troll, and struck at him with his iron
club so that the earth flew up fifteen yards high into the air.

'Fie!' said Minnikin. 'That was not much of a blow. Now I will let you
see one of my blows.'

So saying he grasped his sword, and cut at the Troll in such a way that
all his fifteen heads danced away over the sands.

Then the Princess was delivered, and she thanked Minnikin and blessed
him for saving her.

'Sleep a while now on my lap,' said she, and while he lay there she put
a garment of brass upon him.

'But now, how shall we have it made known that it was you who saved me?'
said the King's daughter.

'That I will tell you,' answered Minnikin. 'When Ritter Red has taken
you home again, and given out that it was he who rescued you, he will,
as you know, have you to wife, and half the kingdom. But when they ask
you on your wedding-day whom you will have to be your cup-bearer,
you must say, "I will have the ragged boy who is in the kitchen, and
carries wood and water for the kitchen-maid;" and when I am filling
your cups for you, I will spill a drop upon his plate but none upon
yours, and then he will be angry and strike me, and this will take place
thrice. But the third time you must say, "Shame on you thus to smite
the beloved of mine heart. It is he who delivered me from the Troll, and
he is the one whom I will have."'

Then Minnikin ran back to the King's palace as he had done before, but
first he went on board the Troll's ship and took a great quantity of
gold and silver and other precious things, and out of these he once more
gave to the kitchen-maid a whole armful of gold and silver hoops.

No sooner did Ritter Red see that all danger was over than he crept
down from the tree, and threatened the King's daughter till he made her
promise to say that he had rescued her. Then he conducted her back to
the King's palace, and if honour enough had not been done him before it
was certainly done now, for the King had no other thought than how to
make much o