ree hundred men of
her household, sat down beside her, and the Countess said, "I thank
Heaven that I have a youth so fair and so valiant as thou, since I have
not obtained the man whom best I love." "Who is he whom best thou
lovest?" "By my faith, Etlym Gleddyv Coch is the man whom I love best,
and I have never seen him." "Of a truth, Etlym is my companion; and
behold here he is, and for his sake did I come to joust with thy
household. And he could have done so better than I, had it pleased him.
And I do give thee unto him." "Heaven reward thee, fair youth, and I
will take the man whom I love above all others." And the Countess became
Etlym's bride from that moment.

And the next day Peredur set forth towards the Mound of Mourning. "By
thy hand, lord, but I will go with thee," said Etlym. Then they went
forwards till they came in sight of the mound and the tents. "Go unto
yonder men," said Peredur to Etlym, "and desire them to come and do me
homage." So Etlym went unto them, and said unto them thus--"Come and do
homage to my lord." "Who is thy lord?" said they. "Peredur with the
long lance is my lord," said Etlym. "Were it permitted to slay a
messenger, thou shouldest not go back to thy lord alive, for making unto
Kings, and Earls, and Barons, so arrogant a demand as to go and do him
homage." Peredur desired him to go back to them, and to give them their
choice, either to do him homage or to do battle with him. And they chose
rather to do battle. And that day Peredur overthrew the owners of a
hundred tents. And the next day he overthrew the owners of a hundred
more; and the third day the remaining hundred took counsel to do homage
to Peredur. And Peredur enquired of them, wherefore they were there. And
they told him they were guarding the serpent until he should die. "For
then should we fight for the stone among ourselves, and whoever should be
conqueror among us would have the stone." "Await here," said Peredur,
"and I will go to encounter the serpent." "Not so, lord," said they, "we
will go altogether to encounter the serpent."

"Verily," said Peredur, "that will I not permit; for if the serpent be
slain, I shall derive no more fame therefrom than one of you." Then he
went to the place where the serpent was, and slew it, and came back to
them, and said, "Reckon up what you have spent since you have been here,
and I will repay you to the full." And he paid to each what he said was
his claim. A