After the meal at Saga’s cabin, Freya tells Bjorn that Saga could not see any clear path that would spare many lives. She also admits Saga told her how Bjorn came to Skaland and why he turned against Snorri. Freya still does not know what choice to make, and Saga takes her to the sauna with wine so they can talk in private.

In the sauna, Freya explains that she came to Saga hoping for truth, help understanding Hel’s magic, and guidance on escaping the future. Saga asks why Freya will not simply run, and Freya says every attempt to escape has been blocked, including by the burned female specter who once stopped her from jumping at Grindill. When Freya tries to mention the oath binding her, she cannot speak, and Saga correctly deduces that Ylva used magic to bind Freya into silence and likely tied the oath to Snorri’s bloodline rather than Snorri alone.

Saga reasons that because the oath extends to Snorri’s blood, Bjorn may have as much authority over Freya as Snorri or Leif. She suggests Bjorn could order Freya far away or command her not to use Hel’s gift, turning him into a possible means of escape. Saga then pushes Freya to forgive Bjorn, arguing that Freya is risking both many lives and her own happiness by holding to her anger. Freya, drunk and emotionally worn down, begins to feel ashamed of her resentment and accepts Saga’s comforting version of events, then listens to Saga’s old stories until both women are heavily intoxicated.

Later, unable to sleep, Freya decides she must speak to Bjorn before morning robs her of courage. She goes to the sauna and tells him Saga explained his lies, then reveals the oath’s exact terms: Freya vowed to serve no man outside Snorri’s blood, to give allegiance and protection to those of that blood, and to speak of the bargain only to them. Bjorn realizes the full shape of the trap and apologizes for not stopping Snorri from taking Freya that night, though he says he had promised Saga he would not kill Snorri.

Freya moves from confession to desire, trying to use sex as reconciliation and as relief from her pain. Bjorn, though he wants her, sees that she is drunk, still furious, and not truly ready, and he refuses. When Freya’s rage flares strongly enough to make the ground tremble, Bjorn carries her outside and drops her into the snow to cool her down. They argue over whether love can include her anger and whether truth was meant to force forgiveness; Bjorn insists he brought her to Saga for answers, not to erase her feelings, and says he does not deserve Freya’s forgiveness unless he earns it before retreating back into the sauna.