Zak nearly said "a ruin" but stopped. He remembered the map that had failed him. "A map," he whispered.
Zak laughed. He walked home as the sun set, tired and hungry but strangely light inside. He never did find his pony — it had returned to the stable hours before him, smart creature.
"Tomorrow, when your tutor speaks of history, do not yawn. Listen for the mistakes men made. When your father gives a judgment, watch who it helps and who it hurts. Wisdom is not knowing facts. Wisdom is seeing what others overlook."
That night, he slipped past the sleeping guards and rode his pony into the Whispering Woods. By dawn, he was lost. His pony had wandered off. His map was soaked from a morning rain. And his stomach growled like an angry bear. prince zak and the wise frog pdf
"Time," Zak finally said. "Time devours everything."
"Trouble, young prince?"
Zak opened his mouth — then closed it. He thought of war, of fire, of dragons. The frog waited. Zak nearly said "a ruin" but stopped
"Good," said Elric. "Then answer three riddles. Succeed, and I'll lead you home with something wiser than a map."
"And you're a prince who doesn't know left from right in these woods," the frog replied. "I am called Elric. I've lived here three hundred years. What do you seek?"
Zak crossed his arms. "Fine. Ask."
Zak jumped. A plump green frog sat on a lily pad, one eye half-closed as if amused.
"You're a frog," Zak said.