He brought the King’s son home, and said to him, “Go to sleep in the place where you were last night.”
When the old King went to sleep the young daughter came and brought him into the fine chamber, and kept him there till the old King was about to rise in the morning. Then she put him out again in the fork of the tree.
At sunrise the old King came and said, “It’s time for you to get to work.”
“There’s no hurry on me at all,” says the King’s son, “because I know I can readily do my day’s work.”
e then went to the brink of the lake, but he was not able to see a stone, the water was that black. He sat down on a rock, and it was not long until Finnuala—that was the name of the old King’s daughter—came to him and said, “What have you to do to-day?” He told her, and she said, “Let there be no grief on you. I can do that work for you.” Then she gave him bread, beef, mutton, and wine. After that she drew out the little enchanted rod, smote the water of the lake with it, and in a moment the old castle was set up as it had been the day before. Then she said to him, “On your life, don’t tell my father that I did this work for you, or that you have any knowledge of me at all.”
On the evening of that day the old King came and said, “I see that you have the day’s work done.”
“I have,” said the King’s son; “that was an easy-done job.”