Gripla - 2023, Blaðsíða 366

364 GRIPLA
Álfhildur and Ólafur next cross paths, she is so shocked by this news that
she dies. As a result, her father-in-law takes Ólafur to the elf court, accus-
ing him of having manipulated Álfhildur with the ring he gave her, “sem
með sinni náttúru orkaði því að hún gat ekki annað en gjört hans vilja þegar
hún hafði hann meðtekið” (“which by its very nature made it impossible,
once she had accepted it, for her to do anything but acquiesce to his will”
165). At this point, Álfhildur’s half-sister, Góðhjálp, shows up and prom-
ises to help Ólafur. Her name (literally meaning “good help”) underlines
that she, just like the hermits in The Quest of the Holy Grail, has knowledge
that the hero of the story lacks. Góðhjálp informs Ólafur that Álfhildur’s
stepmother had declared that the latter “skyldi fá sinn dauða vegna unnusta
síns sem nú er orðin vegna þín” (“should meet her death because of her
betrothed, as has now happened because of you” 136). Once again, Ólafur
discovers that things are not as they seem.
Góðhjálp enlists a solicitor to defend Ólafur in court. During the
trial, he underlines that Ólafur did not know why Þórhildur sent him to
Álfhildur and was aware of neither the nature of the ring nor the contents
of the message. The solicitor then reads the message aloud. That text can
be considered yet another nested narrative in Ólafssaga, as it supplements
the description of Ólafur and Álfhildur’s initial meeting. In the message,
Þórhildur asks Álfhildur to save Ólafur, who is lusting after Álfgerður of
Drangey. Þórhildur appeals specifically to Álfhildur’s own good nature and
feminine desire: “Hann er dauðans maður. Hví skal honum ekki bjargast?
Hans líf og heilsa stendur á yðar valdi. Oft falaðan girndargrip sendi ég
yður nú. Þér vitið að brúka hann og þegja og vænti ég nú náðar af yðar
náð.” (“He is a dead man. Why should he not be saved? His life and health
are in your hands. I am sending you a greatly desirable object. You know
how to use it and keep quiet, and I expect you to show mercy.” 167) The
message proves that Álfhildur was fully aware of the consequences of ac-
cepting the ring. Regarding Ólafur’s responsibility for Álfhildur’s death,
the solicitor points out that he had been under her stepmother’s spell and
that polygamy is allowed among the elves. In the end, Ólafur is acquitted.
But the quest for the truth about Ólafur’s interaction with the elf wom-
en does not end there. As in classic detective mysteries, Eiríkur Laxdal’s
poetics entails “returning to the same events over and over, checking and
correcting the slightest details, until at the end the truth breaks out with