I get the feeling I'm going to need something a little more potent to get past that dragon, just these four-leaved clovers and golden eggs aren't going to cut it. I make my rounds again, starting at the lake south of the goat pen. Next to the lake I see an old, rotting stump. The game informs me that, looking at the stump, I see nothing special. Instead, I peer inside the stump to find a little bag, whose contents appear to shift inside as I pick it up.
What's in your hand? It's a bag. Open the bag. Look away. Now look back. The bag is full of diamonds. Anything is possible when your man wants to be king. I haven't found anyone to bribe yet with these diamonds, though, so I'll stash them away quietly into my pants.
Next to the beanstalk, I find a little golden bowl sitting next to it, unguarded and unsupervised. Examining it shows that the bottom of the bowl reads "Fill". With what? I take the bowl to a nearby lake, trying to fill it with water to see if it works. Apparently the game thinks I'm "too busy" right now for that, so I try from the shore.
To my disappointment, the bowl does not fill with water. Instead it magically fills itself with delicious meat stew.
Oh, hot damn, isn't this just perfect! I bring the magic bowl to the woodcutter, who accepts the gift graciously, and begins to feed his bedridden wife, offering me their viola in return. I step outside to play a merry tune on the fiddle, but my playing falls upon deaf ears. Hmph.
West of Castle Daventry, there's a very nice clearing with, as the game informs me, a perculiar stone. Looking at the stone itself, on the other hand, shows there's nothing special about it. But there has to be some reason why the game calls my attention to it, after all, it worked with the stump. Mustering up great strength, I lift the boulder up and haul it over...revealing an intricate dagger hidden under it. Okay, as useful as this is going to be on my quest, who the heck goes about hiding daggers under rocks?
Dagger-in-hand, I travel back to the well to cut the rope and steal away the bucket, bringing it to a nearby lake to fill it up again. Now I'm fully prepared to face the dragon! Diving inside the cavern in the lake, I face up to the dragon, and just as it's about to flame-grill me, I toss the bucket of water at its face, dousing it instantly! Ashamed, the dragon pulls aside the rock and slinks off, leaving the mirror unguarded. I pick it up and stuff it in my pants, and follow the dragon outside, taking in the fresh air once again.
Two down, one to go. Tune in next time for the final update of Kings Quest I!
