"Give me thy buckler," he whispered. "Now make but the motions, and I will
hurl both spear and stone. But keep this a secret if thou wouldst save
both our lives."
To the surprise of every one Guenther won the games, and Brunhild,
surprised and mortified, ordered her followers to bow to her better, and
returned to the castle to make ready for the journey to Worms.
Siegfried carried the tidings to Worms, and the bridal party was met and
welcomed at the banks of the Rhine by the Queen Uta, Kriemhild, and a
large following. During the wedding feast, Siegfried reminded Guenther of
his promise, and the king, calling Kriemhild to him, affianced the two in
the presence of the company.
When the suspicious Brunhild saw Siegfried sitting at the table of the
king, she was angered, for she had been told that he was a vassal.
Although she could get no satisfaction from Guenther, she suspected some
secret. When she and Guenther retired for the night she conquered him, tied
him hand and foot with her magic girdle, and hung him on the wall until
morning. Guenther, overcome with wrath and vexation, told his humiliation
to Siegfried the next morning at the minster. "Be comforted," said
Siegfried. "Tonight I will steal into thy chamber wrapped in my
mist-cloak, and when the lights are extinguished I will wrestle with her
until I deprive her of the magic ring and girdle.
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