The moment his foot fell upon compact snow and rock rather than his foe’s foot he realised his enemy was inhumanly fast. There wasn't a whole lot he could do to compensate as he launched his thrust and his opponent turned almost ninety degrees in the time it took him to step forward. However he could re-direct the point somewhat to react to changing circumstances. With his left arm above his right it was simplistic to tense his stone arm and stretch rightward while twisting his body in the same fashion, with the consequence of knocking his own thrust off-target. Or rather, it would have been off target had his opponent not span so significantly. The point of his longsword jerked rightward at the last possible moment, just catching the pauldron and glancing off without penetrating, its only eventual destination his opponent’s head. With her precautionary movements the blade was only likely to cut past the right side of her face rather than impaling her throat, but it could be debilitating none-the-less depending on how the sharp edge interacted with her exposed flesh.

Meanwhile, the movement of his left arm would not be wasted, as he stepped forward and right with his left leg to close the distance his enemy strived to create and avoid the menace of her burning lance. His only real advantage was the snow and rocky ground underfoot, which experience and northern-equipment gave him something of a homefield advantage trudging through. With his blade menacing her face the shield in his left hand twisted and faced the sky, his wrist straightening it. After completing his thrust, whatever the effect, he would draw his longsword back with the intent of drag-cutting the Greek’s neck, and his round shield would be prepared to swing round when he thought it best, each of his steps keeping pace with her own retreat, though only just despite the fact that he was moving forward and his opponent backwards over fairly uneven ground.

Sigurd had one clear advantage, even should both his longsword cuts fail, his foe had to make ground between them before she could use her weapon effectively. However, she could not see behind herself, and the rocky cliff-side would soon halt her progress.  With adrenaline pumping neither of the small burns on Sigurd’s left leg had really debilitated him in any way, much like the longsword cut to Iolanthe’s right arm had not prevented her from manipulating her heavy lance. His pursuit may be unnecessary if his redirected thrust cut across her face and blinded her or otherwise debilitated her, but assuming the worst the Northman could not afford to surrender the advantage of close proximity.