The sorcerer had fallen out of favor of the court, and the king sentenced him to death. On the day of the planned execution, the sorcerer told the king that if he would allow him to live for one year, the king could become famous around the world—because the sorcerer would make the king's horse talk. If the sorcerer failed, the king could kill him—and the sorcerer wouldn't object. The king agreed, and the sorcerer was spared for one year and dispatched to a dungeon. A duke, who was friendly to the sorcerer, sneaked up to the dungeon and said: "You are indeed a fool. I know and you know that you do not have the power to make animals speak. Now you will surely die." The sorcerer answered: "I have a year. Many things can happen in a year. The king might die. Or I might die. And who knows? In a year perhaps the horse might talk."