The Water of Life (Grimm)
Short summary
A fairy tale kingdom. A dying king needed the water of life to survive. His two eldest sons sought it but insulted a dwarf they met and were trapped in a ravine. The youngest prince treated the dwarf kindly and received help.
Following the dwarf's instructions, he found the enchanted castle, rescued a princess who promised to marry him, and obtained the water along with magical bread and sword. He freed his brothers from imprisonment. On their journey home, the elder brothers plotted revenge.
They waited until they found him fast asleep, then they poured the water of life out of the cup, and took it for themselves, but into the cup they poured salt seawater.
The king drank the salt water and worsened. The elder brothers gave him the real water and blamed the youngest. The king ordered his son killed, but the huntsman spared him. When the princess tested suitors with a golden road, only the youngest rode straight to her. They married and the truth was revealed. The evil brothers fled forever.
Detailed summary
Division into chapters is editorial.
The dying king and the quest for the water of life
A king lay gravely ill, and no one believed he would survive. His three sons were deeply distressed and went to the palace garden to weep. There they encountered an old man who inquired about their grief.
When they explained their father's condition, the old man revealed he knew of one remedy: the water of life. If the king drank it, he would recover, but it was extremely difficult to find. The eldest son immediately volunteered to search for it, hoping to become his father's favorite and inherit the kingdom.
The elder brothers failed journeys
Despite the king's initial refusal due to the danger, he eventually consented to let the eldest prince go. On his journey, the prince encountered a dwarf who asked where he was going in such haste.
The eldest prince rudely dismissed the dwarf as a "silly shrimp" and rode on. Angered by this haughtiness, the dwarf cast an evil spell. Soon the prince entered a ravine where the mountains closed in around him until he could neither advance nor retreat, trapped as if in prison. When the second son also failed to return, he too was permitted to depart.
The second prince followed the same path and met the same dwarf, whom he also dismissed as "little shrimp." He suffered the identical fate, becoming trapped in a ravine. Thus both haughty brothers were imprisoned between the mountains.
The youngest sons successful quest and rescue of his brothers
Finally, the youngest son begged to search for the water of life. When he met the dwarf and was asked about his haste, he stopped respectfully and explained his mission to save his dying father.
As thou hast borne thyself as is seemly, and not haughtily like thy false brothers, I will give thee the information and tell thee how thou mayst obtain the water of life.
The dwarf provided him with an iron wand and two loaves of bread, explaining that the water sprang from a fountain in an enchanted castle's courtyard. He must strike the iron door thrice with the wand, feed the two lions with the bread, and fetch the water before the clock struck twelve. The prince succeeded in his quest, finding not only the water but also a sword, a loaf of bread, and a beautiful princess who promised to marry him in a year.
He also freed some enchanted princes by removing their rings. Though he nearly missed the deadline by falling asleep, he escaped just as the clock struck twelve, losing only a piece of his heel to the closing door.
But the prince would not go home to his father without his brothers, and said, Dear dwarf, canst thou not tell me where my two brothers are?
The dwarf released the imprisoned brothers but warned the youngest prince to beware of them. The prince used his magical bread and sword to save three kingdoms from war and famine, earning the gratitude of their rulers.
The brothers betrayal and the kings false accusation
During their sea voyage home, the two elder brothers plotted against their youngest sibling. While he slept, they stole the true water of life and replaced it with salt seawater.
The youngest has found the water of life and not we, for that our father will give him the kingdom... and he will rob us of all our fortune.
When they arrived home, the youngest prince's salt water made the king worse, while his brothers' true water cured him. The king, believing his youngest son had tried to poison him, secretly ordered a huntsman to kill the prince during a hunting trip.
Dear huntsman, let me live; there, I give you my royal garments; give me your common ones in their stead.
The compassionate huntsman helped the prince escape by exchanging clothes with him. When the three grateful kings sent wagons of gold and precious stones to thank the youngest prince, the king realized his son's innocence and proclaimed that he could return safely.
The golden road test and final triumph
Meanwhile, the princess had constructed a bright golden road leading to her palace, instructing her servants to admit only the suitor who rode straight down its center. The two elder brothers, thinking it would be shameful to ride on such a beautiful road, rode alongside it and were turned away. The youngest prince, lost in thoughts of his beloved, never noticed the golden road at all.
So his horse rode onwards up the middle of it, and when he came to the door, it was opened and the princess received him with joy, and said he was her deliverer.
Their wedding was celebrated with great rejoicing. The prince then returned to his father, revealed his brothers' betrayal, and forgave them. The king wished to punish the elder sons, but they had fled to sea and never returned.