The Jumper
Once upon a time, on the vast continent called Rolva, there was a huge battle between two kingdoms. One was led by King Julian of Meredon, and the other by Queen Minerva of Klong. The battle lasted for days.
Seeing her army losing, Queen Minerva cursed the kingdom of Meredon.
— King Julian, you have won this battle through treacherous ways, so I curse you that when you return home, your subjects shall turn into animals. I curse you!
Queen Minerva's Curse
Saying this, Queen Minerva disappeared. King Julian did not take her curse seriously and returned to his kingdom, where his daughter had organized an extraordinary reception for him. The next day, however, when he was in the throne room, suddenly, his servants began to transform into animals, one by one.
— Oh, no! Her curse actually worked! — Father! It's not just our servants! All the people in the kingdom have turned into animals!
The Search for a Solution
— Call the fairies! The fairies were called, but they could not undo the curse. — Call the hermit! Soon, the hermit arrived, but he too failed to undo the curse. — My King, the curse is irreversible. Only the person who cast this curse can also undo it. I am sorry.
The King and the princess were sad. Then, Princess Aria had an idea.
— Ah! Father! Do you still remember Hikkacio? Your wise advisor? — Ah, of course, I still remember him. Ah, he has turned into a dog. How much I wish he could help me in these moments of crisis. — You still can! — What do you mean?
— The curse has turned your subjects into animals, but it has not taken away their power to think like humans or to speak. They can still speak, at least some of them. The King was delighted to hear this. — Wonderful! How did I not know this? Call Hikkacio, quickly!
Princess Aria called Hikkacio, and he came immediately.
— Welcome, Hikkacio! How are you doing? — I've turned into a dog. How do you think I'm doing? — My mistake. Perhaps we should set aside pleasantries and get straight to the point. — That would be absolutely wonderful! Tell me, Hikkacio, what can get us out of this curse?
— As the hermit said, the curse can only be undone by the one who cast it. It seems there is only one solution. — I'm listening. — We will have to make peace with Queen Minerva. — Well, I am ready. But you know how she is. She will never agree to make peace. — Then give her what she wants.
Hearing this, King Julian became silent and sad.
— What does she want, Father? — My princess, she wants the Sword of Magic. — The Sword of Magic? — It is our ancient sword, passed down in our family from generation to generation. Its energy makes our army immune to famine, rain, heat, or even storms, giving us a great advantage over our adversaries. Your grandfather gave it to me, and I hoped that one day I would give it to the one who would become your husband. — Mhm. — Yes, which, apparently, will no longer be possible.
The Jumper's Festival
— Send the fairies to Klong, to invite Queen Minerva to the Jumper's Festival. Tell her that at the end of the event, I will bring her the Sword of Magic. The fairies conveyed the King's offer to Queen Minerva. She smiled. — This day has finally come! I accept his invitation! Tell King Julian that I will be there to take part in that event and I will take the Sword of Magic.
Soon, the day of the annual Jumper's Festival arrived. Everyone was excited. The King and the princess announced the beginning of the event. Queen Minerva was also present. Among the participants, the frog, the rabbit, and the cricket were considered to be the best jumpers who had ever lived in Meredon.
— We are ready to begin, Your Majesty! — Very well. — Good day, everyone! Welcome to the annual Jumper's Festival! Let the games begin! — Yay! Woohoo!
The Frog and the Rabbit
— First, I present to you the frog! — Greetings, Your Majesty, Princess Aria, Queen Minerva of Klong, and greetings, beings of Meredon! I am the frog from the Northern Valleys. It is a great honor for me to be part of the Jumper's Festival! The King was quite impressed by the frog's manners. — He is indeed very well-mannered. I wonder what he looked like as a man. Perhaps if all goes well and the curse is undone, we can ask him to marry you. — Oh! Are we starting again?
The frog climbed onto the stage and took its place. The crowd waited, silent. The frog took a deep breath, and just as it was about to take a leap and jump, a fly began to buzz around it. Its attention was distracted, so it went after the fly.
— Boo! Boo! — Ah! I should have let my little one participate! He would have done a much better job!
— Well, that was a disappointment. But don't worry, I now present to you the rabbit! — Yay! Woohoo! — Greetings, Your Majesty! I am the rabbit from the hills west of the Selina River. The rabbit, too, was very well-mannered, which pleased the King. — I'm not interested.
The rabbit took a big leap, jumped, and landed right in front of the King. The King was impressed.
— Incredible, rabbit! Congratulations! Queen Minerva was also amused by the rabbit's jump. She smiled and applauded him. — Huhu!
The Cricket's Courage
— And now, finally, I present to you the cricket! — Yay! Woohoo! The cricket was very quiet. He didn't utter a word and didn't greet the King either. — From the scent I perceive from him, I know he comes from a good family and is a very bold creature. — Ah, very well then. I won't say anything more. Let the trial begin!
The cricket took his position, and just as he was about to leap, his senses detected something coming from behind through the air. He quickly understood that it was an arrow heading towards Queen Minerva. He immediately jumped very high and, kicking hard with his leg, changed the arrow's course. The arrow missed the Queen and embedded itself in the bark of a tree.
Queen Minerva was shocked, as was King Julian. Just then, an eagle carrying a bow and arrows appeared and began to shout at the cricket.
— Fool! Why did you save the evil queen who destroyed our lives? — She is a royal guest and is under the protection of our King as long as she is here. Your actions have damaged our King's reputation!
Hearing this, Queen Minerva was very impressed.
— Thank you, cricket! And from you, Queen Minerva, I ask for thousands and thousands of apologies. Please, forgive the eagle, for his anger has clouded his judgment. — I don't care about this eagle! His arrow cannot harm me, even if it touches me. You know that. We have fought against each other, but I must say, I am very impressed by the cricket!
Ragnar, the Unexpected Hero
Saying this, Queen Minerva pointed towards the cricket, and he immediately transformed into a charming soldier.
— It's Ragnar, the great soldier! Princess Aria smiled when she saw Ragnar. She had always liked him, even if he didn't know it. — Ragnar! Thank you for not worrying about the competition and risking your life to protect me and the King's reputation! Ask me for anything you wish!
— Thank you, Queen of Klong. I would like all the beings of Meredon to be freed from the curse and return to their human form. The Queen was surprised to hear Ragnar's wish. — Are you sure that's what you want? I can offer you all the riches of the earth! — I am sure. I don't care about those things at all.
Queen Minerva was very impressed because she had never seen such a strong soldier, so loyal to his king and his people. She turned to King Julian.
— Let us cease all rivalries! To begin, I propose that I adopt Ragnar and he become the heir to my throne! Everyone was shocked, including Ragnar.
— Ragnar, do you agree? — I do not know what a mother's love means, for my mother died giving birth. If Your Majesty permits, then yes, I accept. — I name Ragnar, the son and rightful heir of Queen Minerva! — Yay! Woohoo!
King Julian raised his hand and the crowd fell silent.
— And what is your second proposal? — I propose that my son and your daughter marry! — Well, I don't know if my daughter will... — Father, I agree! Ragnar smiled, for he too was fond of the princess.
— Wow! I didn't think it would be so simple! All right, Minerva, you'll get that too. Do you have any other proposals to make? Queen Minerva smiled. — That would be all!
A New Era of Peace
Saying this, she moved her hands through the air, and soon, magical sparks touched the creatures one by one, and they returned to their human forms.
— Wow! Yes, yes! — Ah! We're back! — Yay! Woohoo!
Meredon erupted with happiness. Ragnar and Princess Aria soon married. And on that day, during the feast, Hikkacio announced the winner of that year's Jumper's Festival edition.
— Going from soldier to cricket and from cricket to the heir of the Klong kingdom, Ragnar made the biggest jumps, and thus, I announce that he is the winner! — Ha ha ha!
And so, the rivalry between the two kingdoms ended forever. And everyone lived happily ever after.
