"Eugeny L.Schwarz. Dragon (англ.)" - читать интересную книгу автора

soon as the dragon takes her away, I'll die too.
Elsa. Daddy, please don't talk about this.
Charlemagne. Yes, yes, that's all.
Lancelot. I am sorry. If I may be allowed just one more question:
didn't anyone try to fight him?
Charlemagne. Not in the last two hundred years. Before that, he was
fought a lot, but he would kill all his adversaries. He's an amazing
strategist and a great tactician. He attacks the enemy unawares, pelting him
with stones from above, then swoops straight down, right on top of the
horse's head, and beats it with fire -- which totally demoralizes the poor
beast. Then he rips the horseman apart with his claws. Well, in time, they
finally stopped going against him.
Lancelot. Didn't you try going with entire town?
Charlemagne. Of course we did.
Lancelot. And?
Charlemagne. He torched the suburbs and driven half the population mad
with poisonous smoke. I told you this is a great warrior.
Elsa. Please, do take more butter.
Lancelot. Yes, I think I will. I need to restore my strength. So, I
apologize for asking so many questions, but -- nobody even tries to go
against the dragon anymore? He's grown completely shameless?
Charlemagne. Oh no! Not at all! He's so kind!
Lancelot. Kind?
Charlemagne. I assure you. When the town was under the threat of a
cholera epidemic, upon the pleading of the town doctor he breathed fire on
the lake and thus boiled it. The entire town drank boiled water, which saved
us from the epidemic.
Lancelot. Was that long time ago?
Charlemagne. Oh no. It's been only eighty two years. Good deeds you
don't forget, do you?
Lancelot. What other good deeds did your dragon accomplish?
Charlemagne. He rid us of gypsies.
Lancelot. But gypsies are very sweet people.
Charlemagne. What! I'm speechless! I admit, I've never seen a single
gypsy in my life. But even in elementary school they taught us that these
are horrible people.
Lancelot. Why is that?
Charlemagne. They are vagrants by nature. It's in their blood. They are
an enemy of any organized state -- or they long would have settled down,
instead of drifting here and there. Their songs are without courage, and
their ideas are destructive. They steal children. They sneak everywhere. Now
we have completely cleansed ourselves of them, but as recently as a hundred
years ago any brunette had to prove he did not have gypsy blood in him.
Lancelot. And who told you all that about gypsies?
Charlemagne. Our dragon, of course. Gypsies would challenge him
blatantly in the first years of his rule.
Lancelot. Now there's a nice, impatient people.
Charlemagne. Don't. Please don't say that.
Lancelot. That dragon of yours, what does he eat?
Charlemagne. Our town delivers a thousand cows, two thousand sheep,