Melon Princess

Melon Princess

Long long ago, there lived an old man and his old wife in a village.
One day he went to a mountain to gather woods, while she went to a river to wash clothes.
When she was washing in the river, she found a big melon flowing down to her.
She caught and took it with her to the house.
Soon he came home from the mountain.
“Dad, I found this big melon in the river today, so let’s eat together.” said she, trying to cut it with a kitchen knife, when it split of itself and a pretty baby came out of it.
As they had no children, they were very happy.
They named her ‘Melon’ because she was born from a melon.
Soon the baby grew up to be a pretty girl, then a beautiful lady.
She was so clever and especially good at making textiles.
The rumor of her went to the town, lastly to the lord of the country.
The lord sent his men to the house.
The old man and his wife were so glad to hear that their daughter would marry the lord.

On the day before her marriage her parents went shopping in the town.
“Dear Melon, we’ll go shopping in the town to buy your trousseaus.
You must be in the house and must not open the door and windows even if someone calls you.
Be careful in case a mountain monster comes to you.”
She was making textiles alone at home.
A mountain monster had been watching them leaving the house and now visited her.

“Miss. Melon. Are you in? I’m your grandmother. Please open the door.” said the monster.

“I’m here, but I was told by my parents never to open the door even if somebody came. So I can’t open the door.”
“If so, why don’t you open it for my finger to enter?” She opened a little.
“Miss. Melon. Why don’t you open for my hand to enter?” She opened a little more.
“Miss. Melon. Why don’t you open for my leg to enter?” She opened a little more.
“Miss. Melon. Why don’t you open for my head to enter?”

“No. I will be scolded by my parents” answered she.
“But, Miss. Melon. I would like to see your face. Why don’t you open?”
“So, I’ll open for only your head to enter.”
On putting her head through the door, the monster rushed into the house.
The monster changed her dirty clothes with her beautiful Kimono and transformed herself into ‘Melon’, who was taken to the mountain and tied to a plum tree.
On the next day, the lord’s men were carrying the monster in a palanquin to his castle.
On their way to the castle, when they came near the pear tree to which she was tied, the crows in the mountain began to have a strange cry.
“She is not Melon. Melon is in the mountain. She is not Melon. Melon is in the mountain.CAW-CAW”
They thought there was something strange with her and found ‘Melon’ tied to the tree.
The mountain monster was caught and killed on the spot.
The beautiful lady got married to the lord and she was called ‘Melon Princess’.

The end