The troll was quite willing, and before long he fell asleep and began snoring. When she saw he was sleeping soundly, she placed some stools and cushions under his heads and went to call the hens. The soldier then stole into the room with the sword, and with one blow cut all the three heads off the troll.
The Princess was as pleased as a fiddler, and went with the soldier to her sisters, so that he could also set them free. First of all they went across a courtyard and then through many long rooms till they came to a big door.
"Here you must enter: here she is," said the Princess. When he opened the door he found himself in a large hall, where everything was of pure silver; there sat the second sister at a silver spinning-wheel.
"Oh, dear; oh, dear!" she said. "What do you want here?"
"I want to set you free from the troll," said the soldier.
"Pray do not stay, but go," said the Princess. "If he finds you here he will take your life on the spot."
"That would be awkward that is if I don't take his first," said the soldier.
"Well, since you will stay," she said, "you will have to creep behind the big brewing-vat in the front hall. But you must make haste and come as soon as you hear me calling the hens."
First of all he had to try if he was able to swing the troll's sword, which lay on the table; it was much larger and heavier than the first one; he was hardly able to move it. He then took three draughts from the horn and he could then lift it, and when he had taken three more he could handle it as if it were a rolling pin.
Shortly afterwards he heard a heavy, rumbling noise that was quite terrible, and directly afterwards a troll with six heads came in.
"Ugh, ugh!" he said as soon as he got his noses inside the door. "I smell Christian blood and bone in my house."
"Yes, just think! A raven came flying past here with a thigh-bone, which he dropped down the chimney," said the Princess. "I threw it out, but the raven brought it back again. At last I got rid of it and made haste to clean the room, but I suppose the smell is not quite gone," she said.
"No, I can smell it well," said the troll; but he was tired and put his heads in the Princess's lap, and she went on scratching them till they all fell a-snoring. Then she called the hens, and the soldier came and cut off all the six heads as if they were set on cabbage stalks.
She was no less glad than her elder sister, as you may imagine, and danced and sang; but in the midst of their joy they remembered their youngest sister. They went with the soldier across a large courtyard, and, after walking through many, many rooms, he came to the hall of gold where the third sister was.
She sat at a golden spinning-wheel spinning gold yarn, and the room from ceiling to floor glistened and glittered till it hurt one's eyes.
"Heaven preserve both you and me, what do you want here?" said the Princess. "Go, go, else the troll will kill us both."
"Just as well two as one," answered the soldier. The Princess cried and wept; but it was all of no use, he must and would remain. Since there was no help for it he would have to try if he could use the troll's sword on the table in the front hall. But he was only just able to move it; it was still larger and heavier than the other two swords.
He then had to take the horn down from the wall and take three draughts from it, but was only just able to stir the sword. When he had taken three more draughts he could lift it, and when he had taken another three he swung it as easily as if it had been a feather.
The Princess then settled with the soldier to do the same as her sisters had done. As soon as the troll was well asleep she would call the hens, and he must then make haste and come in and put an end to the troll.
All of a sudden they heard such a thundering, rambling noise, as if the walls and roof were tumbling in.
"Ugh! Ugh! I smell Christian blood and bone in my house," said the troll, sniffing with all his nine noses.
"Yes, you never saw the like! Just now a raven flew past here and dropped a human bone down the chimney. I threw it out, but the raven brought it back, and this went on for some time," said the Princess; but she got it buried at last, she said, and she had both swept and cleaned the place, but she supposed it still smelt.
"Yes, I can smell it well," said the troll.
"Come here and lie down in my lap and I will scratch your heads," said the Princess. "The smell will be all gone when you awake."
He did so, and when he was snoring at his best she put stools and cushions under the heads so that she could get away to call the hens.
The soldier then came in in his stockinged feet and struck at the troll, so that eight of the heads fell off at one blow. But the sword was too short and did not reach far enough; the ninth head woke up and began to roar.
"Ugh! Ugh! I smell a Christian."
"Yes, here he is," answered the soldier, and before the troll could get up and seize hold of him the soldier struck him another blow and the last head rolled along the floor.
You can well imagine how glad the Princesses became now that they no longer had to sit and scratch the trolls' heads; they did not know how they could do enough for him who had saved them. The youngest Princess took off her gold ring and knotted it in his hair. They then took with them as much gold and silver as they thought they could carry and set off on their way home.