“Behold,” he said, “thou art a Knight of the Table Round, and yet showest fear before thou hast felt harm. So did not I when thou didst strike me, and therefore must I be the better man.”
“It is true,” said Gawaine, “that I have shrunk once, but I will not again. Therefore strike thou, and speedily.”
Again the Green Knight brought down the axe close by his neck, but Gawaine moved not at all nor changed countenance. So the third time the knight smote him full on the neck, and the axe just drew blood, but no more. Then Gawaine drew his sword.
“Have a care,” said he, “that thou strike not again, for my covenant with thee was only to receive one blow.”
Then the other laughed loud, and when Gawaine looked at him, behold, he was no longer the Green Knight, but his late host, the lord of the castle.
“Know thou,” said he, “that I sent my lady to thee to try thee, and in the main I found thee true; but thou sinnedst a little for love of thy life when thou didst take the girdle and spoke nothing of it to me.”
Then was Gawaine sore abashed, and he denounced bitterly his own cowardice and covetousness, and took off the girdle and threw it to the lord of the castle.
“Nay,” said the other, “now that thou art repentant, I hold thee to be as clean as if thou hadst never sinned.”
And he gave him the girdle as a token of his adventure, and invited him to return again with him to the castle. This, however, Gawaine, who was still exceedingly ashamed, would not do, but he desired to be remembered to the fair lady that had beguiled him. He thanked the lord for the girdle, and said he would wear it in memory of his fault. Then he asked the other for his name, and the knight said he was called Bemlak de Hautdesert, and that he served Morgan le Fay. She it was who had caused him to go in the guise of the Green Knight to Camelot, to test the renown of the Round Table, hoping to grieve Arthur and Guenever. Then the two parted, and Gawaine rode back to Camelot, where he was joyfully welcomed, and told all his adventures even as they have been here set down.