Il Campione

“Once upon a time, there was a village with a hundred bells. Every noon, the big bell would ring… and everyone could hear it. But one night—bang!

The next morning at noon, the villagers, not hearing the bell, gathered under the bell tower. They looked up, then looked at each other, and asked:

“Do you know where the Big Bell is?”
“No, do you?”
“No…”

Then a child arrived and exclaimed:
“I can hear the Big Bell!”

All the villagers looked at him in amazement and, in unison, said: “Take us to it! Take us to it!”

So they followed him, entered the forest, and walked for kilometres, until they reached the cave inhabited by the evil dragon who had taken the Big Bell.

At that moment, Saint Michael arrived and, with his sword, defeated the dragon.

The villagers were then able to put the Big Bell back in its bell tower and celebrate with all one hundred bells ringing joyfully.

From that day on, every noon, the Big Bell rang throughout the valley, and the villagers lived happily ever after.”