English Original
There was once an enchantress who had three sons. They loved each other as brothers, but the old woman did not trust them, fearing they wanted to steal her power. She changed the eldest into an eagle, forced to dwell in the rocky mountains and often seen sweeping in great circles in the sky. The second she changed into a whale, living in the deep sea, only seen when it spouted a great jet of water into the air. Each could only bear his human form for two hours daily.
The third son, afraid she might change him into a raging beast like a bear or a wolf, secretly left. He had heard of a bewitched King's daughter imprisoned in the Castle of the Golden Sun, waiting for deliverance. Many had tried to free her and lost their lives; twenty-three youths had already died a miserable death. Only one more attempt was allowed. Fearless, the youth resolved to seek the castle.
He traveled a long time without success until he chanced upon a great forest and lost his way. In the distance, he saw two giants who beckoned him. They said, "We are quarrelling over a cap. We are equally strong, so neither can win. Small men are cleverer; we leave the decision to you."
"How can you dispute about an old cap?" asked the youth.
"You do not know its properties!" they replied. "It is a wishing-cap. Whoever puts it on can wish himself anywhere, and in an instant, he will be there."
"Give me the cap," said the youth. "I will go a short distance off. When I call, you must run a race, and the cap shall belong to the one who reaches me first."
He put on the cap, thought of the King's daughter, forgot the giants, and walked onward. At length, he sighed from his heart and cried, "Ah, if I were but at the Castle of the Golden Sun!" Hardly had the words passed his lips than he was standing on a high mountain before the castle gate.
He entered and went through all the rooms until, in the last, he found the King's daughter. He was shocked to see her: she had an ashen-gray face full of wrinkles, bleary eyes, and red hair.
"Are you the King's daughter, whose beauty the whole world praises?" he cried.
"Ah," she answered, "this is not my true form. Human eyes see me only in this ugliness. But look in this mirror—it cannot be misled—and it will show you my true image."
She gave him the mirror. In it, he saw the likeness of the most beautiful maiden on earth, with tears rolling down her cheeks.
"How can you be set free?" he asked. "I fear no danger."
She said, "Whoever gets the crystal ball and holds it before the enchanter will destroy his power, and I shall resume my true shape. Many have died trying. You are so young; I grieve that you should face such danger."
"Nothing can keep me from it," he said. "Tell me what I must do."
"When you descend the mountain," she explained, "a wild bull will stand by a spring. You must fight it. If you kill it, a fiery bird will spring from its body, bearing a burning egg. Inside the egg lies the crystal ball, like a yolk. The bird will not let the egg fall unless forced. If the egg falls to the ground, it will flame up, burn everything nearby, melt even ice, and destroy the crystal ball. Then all your trouble will be in vain."
The youth went down to the spring. The bull snorted and bellowed at him. After a long struggle, he plunged his sword into the animal, and it fell. Instantly, a fiery bird arose and was about to fly away. But the youth's brother, the eagle, passing between the clouds, swooped down, hunted the bird to the sea, and struck it with his beak until, in its extremity, it let the egg fall.
The egg did not fall into the sea but onto a fisherman's hut on the shore. The hut began to smoke and was about to burst into flames. Then waves as high as a house arose from the sea, streamed over the hut, and subdued the fire. The other brother, the whale, had swum to them and driven the water high. When the fire was extinguished, the youth found the egg. It was not melted, but the shell was broken from the sudden cooling. He took out the crystal ball, unhurt.
When the youth went to the enchanter and held the ball before him, the enchanter said, "My power is destroyed. From now on, you are the King of the Castle of the Golden Sun. With this, you can also restore your brothers to their human form."
The youth hastened to the King's daughter. When he entered, she stood in the full splendour of her beauty. Joyfully, they exchanged rings.
中文翻译
从前有一位女巫，她有三个儿子。他们兄弟情深，但老妇人不信任他们，害怕他们想偷走她的魔力。她把长子变成了一只鹰，被迫栖息在岩石山中，常被看见在天空盘旋。她把次子变成了一头鲸，生活在深海里，只有当它向空中喷出巨大水柱时才被人看见。他们每天只能保持人形两个小时。
三儿子害怕母亲把他变成狂暴的野兽，比如熊或狼，便偷偷离开了。他听说一位被施了魔法的公主被囚禁在金色太阳城堡，正等待解救。许多人尝试解救她都丧了命；已有二十三位青年悲惨地死去。只剩下最后一次尝试的机会了。这位青年无所畏惧，决心去寻找那座城堡。
他长途跋涉却一无所获，直到偶然进入一片大森林并迷了路。远处，他看见两个巨人在向他招手。他们说：“我们正在为一顶帽子争吵。我们力气相当，所以谁也赢不了。小个子更聪明；我们把决定权交给你。”
“你们怎么会为一顶旧帽子争吵？”青年问道。
“你不知道它的魔力！”他们回答。“这是一顶许愿帽。谁戴上它，就能许愿去任何地方，瞬间就能到达。”
“把帽子给我，”青年说。“我会走开一小段距离。当我喊你们时，你们必须赛跑，帽子将属于先跑到我面前的那位。”
他戴上帽子，心里想着公主，忘记了巨人，继续前行。最后，他从心底叹了口气，喊道：“啊，要是我在金色太阳城堡就好了！”话音刚落，他就站在了一座高山上的城堡大门前。
他进去走遍了所有房间，直到在最后一间找到了公主。看到她时他大吃一惊：她脸色灰白，布满皱纹，眼睛朦胧，头发红色。
“你就是那位全世界都赞美其美貌的公主吗？”他喊道。
“啊，”她回答，“这不是我的真面目。凡人的眼睛只能看到我这丑陋的样子。但看看这面镜子——它不会被误导——它会向你展示我真实的形象。”
她把镜子递给他。镜中，他看到了世上最美丽少女的容颜，泪水正从她的脸颊滚落。
“怎样才能解救你？”他问。“我不怕危险。”
她说：“谁得到水晶球，并把它拿到巫师面前，就能用其摧毁他的魔力，我将恢复真身。许多人为此丧命。你还这么年轻；我为你将面临如此危险而感到难过。”
“什么也不能阻止我，”他说。“告诉我该怎么做。”
“当你下山时，”她解释道，“一头野牛会站在泉水边。你必须与它搏斗。如果你杀了它，一只火鸟会从它体内飞出，体内有一颗燃烧的蛋。蛋里藏着水晶球，像蛋黄一样。除非被迫，否则鸟不会让蛋落下。如果蛋掉到地上，它会燃起火焰，烧毁附近的一切，甚至能融化冰，并毁掉水晶球。那样你所有的努力就都白费了。”
青年下到泉水边。野牛对他喷着鼻息，大声吼叫。经过一番漫长的搏斗，他将剑刺入野兽的身体，它倒下了。瞬间，一只火鸟升起，正要飞走。但青年的哥哥，那只鹰，正从云间飞过，它俯冲下来，将火鸟驱赶到海上，用喙啄击它，直到它走投无路，让蛋掉了下来。
蛋没有掉进海里，而是掉在了岸边一个渔夫的小屋上。小屋立刻开始冒烟，即将燃起火焰。这时，房子般高的海浪从海中涌起，漫过小屋，扑灭了火焰。另一位哥哥，那头鲸，已经游过来，将水高高掀起。火被扑灭后，青年找到了蛋。蛋没有融化，但蛋壳因突然冷却而破裂。他取出了完好无损的水晶球。
当青年走到巫师面前，将球举到他面前时，巫师说：“我的魔力被摧毁了。从现在起，你就是金色太阳城堡的国王。用这个，你也能让你的兄弟们恢复人形。”
青年急忙赶到公主那里。当他进去时，她正站在那里，容光焕发，美丽无比。他们高兴地交换了戒指。