Section 1
Once there was a King who had a large forest close to his palace which was inhabited by different kinds of wild animals. One day, he dispatched a huntsman to hunt down a roe. However, the huntsman failed to return. The kind said, "It is possible that an unfortunate incident has occurred to him." And the following day, the King dispatched two additional huntsmen with the task of searching for the missing individual, but they also did not return. On the third day, the King summoned all his huntsmen and ordered them, "Explore every part of the forest and persist until you have found all three huntsmen." However, none of the huntsmen returned, including the pack of hounds they had taken with them. After this incident, people refused to go into the forest, and it remained in a state of eerie stillness and isolation. The only thing visible above it were eagles or hawks occasionally flying over it. Many years passed, and a peculiar huntsman presented himself to the King, expressing his desire for employment and offering to venture into the perilous forest. The King, apprehensive for the huntsman's safety, refused to give his consent, saying, "It is not secure in there. I am afraid you will meet the same fate as the others and never return." The brave huntsman replied, "My Lord, I am willing to take the risk. I am not afraid."
The huntsman entered the forest accompanied by his faithful dog. While traveling, the dog detected some game and tried to pursue it. However, after taking a couple of steps, the dog came across a deep pool and was suddenly snatched by a naked arm that reached out of the water, pulling the dog down. Witnessing this, the huntsman returned to the kingdom to retrieve three men with buckets to empty the pool. When the pool was drained, they discovered a wild man lying at the bottom. The man had a body that looked like rusty iron and long hair that covered his face and reached his knees. The men tied the wild man with cords and took him to the castle. The wild man's appearance left everyone stunned, but the King ordered him to be locked in an iron cage in the courtyard. He warned that anyone who opened the door would face death. The Queen was entrusted with the key to the cage. After this incident, people could once again enter the forest without any fear.
The King had a young son, only eight years old, who was playing in the courtyard when his golden ball accidentally fell into the wild man's cage. The boy rushed to the cage and asked the man to return the ball. The wild man replied, "I will only give it back if you open the door for me." The boy refused, saying, "No, I cannot do that. The King has forbidden it," and then quickly ran away. The boy returned to the wild man's cage the next day and demanded his ball back. The wild man said, "You must open my door first." However, the boy refused to do so. The King went out hunting on the third day, and the boy returned to the cage again. When asked to open the door, the boy said, "Even if I wanted to, I couldn't. I don't have the key." The wild man then advised, "Your mother keeps the key under her pillow. You can get it there." The boy, who was determined to get his ball back, forgot about all the warnings and brought the key. The door was difficult to open, and he even pinched his fingers while trying to open it. Once the door was open, the wild man came out, gave him the golden ball, and quickly left. The boy became frightened and called after him, "Oh, wild man, please do not leave, or I will be punished!" The wild man turned back, picked him up, put him on his shoulder, and hurriedly went into the forest with him.
When the King came home, he noticed that the cage was empty and asked the Queen how it happened. She had no idea and tried to find the key, but it was missing. She called for the boy, but no one answered. The King sent people to search for him in the fields, but they couldn't find him. Then he realized what had happened and the royal court was filled with sadness.
Once they were back in the dark forest, the wild man set the boy down and said to him, "You will never see your father and mother again. But I will keep you with me, for you have set me free and I have pity on you. If you do everything I tell you to, you will be well cared for. I have enough treasure and gold to last a lifetime, and more than anyone else in the world."
