And watched, if haply a foeman would yet draw near for the fray.
Sorely the King lamented, and the Queen, with bitter cry;
Sisters and wives were wailing in bereavement’s agony.
Ah, death, I ween, full surely against them an oath had sworn,
For many a warrior’s life-thread by the guests was yet to be shorn.
XXXVI.
How the Queen bade set fire to the Hall
“Unlace ye now your helmets,” spake Hagen Troneg’s lord.
“I and my comrade Volker will again keep watch and ward;
And if yon vassals of Etzel once more the onset essay,
Straightway will I warn my masters with all the speed I may.”