It might have been the first defeat this peerless warrior has ever known. For all the gladness it will bring him, he will doubtless be suffering the shame of being bested. It certainly explains his snapping tongue earlier. Well, let this be our approach then! He can be somber in defeat, all tight-lipped about the love he feels for me, now aching in his chest. And rightly so—for we are warriors, equal in lethality. We will act as warriors and not offend Odin with gushing talk of love.
It is not like we can do anything about it, not yet. I might be a princess but I still have no right to ask any man to take me as his wife. Nor can he wed me—not until Jaromir is dead and his sister saved. But he will. The spirits confirmed it. So, I will bask in my victory over him, yet be magnanimous. I wil
