The Scary Twist

Once upon a time, every village had its own healer. And every healer was, first and foremost, a swindler. The healer would whisper spells, remove curses, and dabble in all sorts of witchcraft. People feared them and catered to them like they would to a festering sore.

Well, there was such a healer in one village. He was known not just in the surrounding area but throughout the entire region. And no one dared to oppose him, lest he bring some misfortune upon them.

But in that same village lived a brave man. His name was Todor. He had traveled far and wide, seen many places, and experienced many things.

"That healer is just fooling you," Todor told his neighbors. "He doesn’t know or understand anything."

"What are you saying!" the neighbors protested. "Be careful, or he might bring some disaster upon you..."

"Well, you’ll see for yourselves whether I’m telling the truth or not."

Todor went to his wheat field and made a curse knot. A few days later, he went to the healer.

"So, here’s the thing," he said. "Some villain has made a curse knot on my wheat. I’m afraid something bad might happen. Go and remove it. You’re the one who deals with this kind of evil. I’ll pay you whatever you want."

The healer, hearing about the payment, eagerly agreed. They went to the field. The healer looked at the curse knot from a distance and said:

"That’s a very fearsome curse knot. I’m even afraid to approach it myself."

He took off his shirt to further mystify Todor and then crawled on all fours toward the knot.

As he crawled, the healer kept groaning, saying how terrifying the curse knot was—clearly made to kill the owner.

Todor’s neighbors came to watch as the healer prepared to remove the fearsome curse.

Then Todor, without hesitation, climbed onto the healer’s back, pulled out a club from under his coat, and started beating the fraud.

"I’ll show you this fearsome curse knot, you scoundrel! I’m the one who made it!"

The healer screamed at the top of his lungs, while Todor whacked him with the club wherever he could. He beat him and beat him, then asked:

"Well, will you keep fooling good people?"

"No," groaned the healer, "just let me go alive."

Todor let the healer go, and the man scrambled to his feet and ran off, leaving his shirt behind.

The neighbors were terrified, convinced the healer would somehow do away with Todor—after all, he could do anything... But a week passed, then another, and Todor just went on with his life, spitting on the healer.

As for the healer, he groaned and groaned, and then he kicked the bucket—apparently, Todor’s club was stronger than his witchcraft.

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The Scary Twist

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