[And then while Sir Launcelot was at court he strove hard to be accorded with Sir Gawaine, for he bore no malice neither to Sir Gawaine nor to King Arthur. But Sir Gawaine would not be accorded, and ever let King Arthur from being accorded, that would right gladly have received again his old faithful knight, Sir Launcelot. And ever more bitter grew Sir Gawaine: till at the last he said to Sir Launcelot:] "In this land thou shalt not abide past fifteen days, such warning I give thee. So the king and we were consented and accorded or thou camest hither; and else," said Sir Gawaine, "wit thou well that thou shouldst not have come hither, but if it were maugre thy head. And if that it were not for the Pope's commandment, I should do battle with my body against thy body, and prove it unto thee that thou hast been false unto mine uncle King Arthur and to me both, and that shall I prove upon thy body when thou art departed from hence, wheresoever I find thee."
Then Sir Launcelot sighed, and therewith the tears fell on his cheeks, and then he said these words: "Alas! most noble Christian realm, whom I have loved above all other realms, and in thee have I gotten a great part of my worship, and now I shall depart in this wise. Truly me repenteth that ever I came into this realm, that should be thus shamefully banished undeserved and causeless. But fortune is so variable and the wheel so mutable, there is no constant abiding, and that may be proved by many old chronicles of noble Hector, and Troilus, and Alisander the mighty conqueror, and many other moe [more]; when they were most in their royalty, they alighted lowest. And so fareth by me," said Sir Launcelot, "for in this realm I have had worship, and by me and mine all the whole Round Table hath been increased, more in worship by me and my blood than by any other. And therefore wit you well, Sir Gawaine, I may live as well upon my lands as any knight that is here. And if ye, my most renowned king, will come upon my lands with your nephew Sir Gawaine for to war upon me, I must endure you as well as I may; but as for you Sir Gawaine, if that ye come there, I pray you charge me not with treason nor felony, for, and ye do, I must answer you."
"Do thou thy best," said Sir Gawaine, "therefore hie thee fast that thou were gone, and wit thou well we shall soon come after, and break the strongest castle that thou hast upon thy head."
"That shall not need," said Sir Launcelot, "for and I were as orgulous set as ye are, wit ye well I should meet with you in midst of the field."
"Make thou no more language," said Sir Gawaine, "but deliver the queen from thee, and pike thee lightly out of this court."
And then Sir Launcelot said unto Queen Guenever, in hearing of the king and them all, "Madam, now I must depart from you and this noble fellowship for ever; and sithen it is so, I beseech you to pray for me, and say me well, and if ye be hard bestead by any false tongues, lightly, my lady, let send me word, and if any knight's hands may deliver you by battle, I shall deliver you."
And therewithal Sir Launcelot kissed the queen, and then he said all openly, "Now let see what he be in this place, that dare say the queen is not true unto my lord Arthur: let see who will speak, and he dare speak."
And therewith he brought the queen to the king, and then Sir Launcelot took his leave and departed; and there was neither king, duke ne earl, baron ne knight, lady nor gentlewoman, but all they wept as people out of their mind, except Sir Gawaine; and when the noble Sir Launcelot took his horse, to ride out of Carlisle, there was sobbing and weeping for pure dole of his departing; and so he took his way unto Joyous Gard. And afterwards he called it Dolorous Gard. And thus Sir Launcelot departed from the court for ever.
So leave we Sir Launcelot in his lands, and his noble knights with him, and return we again unto King Arthur and Sir Gawaine, that made a great host ready, to the number of threescore thousand, and all thing was ready for their shipping to pass over the sea. And so they shipped at Cardiff. And there King Arthur made Sir Mordred chief ruler of all England; and also he put Queen Guenever under his governance. And so King Arthur passed over the sea, and landed upon Sir Launcelot's land, and there he burnt and wasted, through the vengeance of Sir Gawaine, all that they might overrun.