Not sure of this. Wergild is a substitute for blood vengeance. If the defender doesn't pay up, YOU are responsible for persuading him to pay up or face the consequences. As those consequences can extend over his entire bloodline, his relatives are likely to persuade him to pay up too.
A defendant who refuses to pay agreed wergild is flouting the law that 'we talk before we fight', and, I expect, would be outlawed at the next moot. You (and your mates) could probably legally kill him before then.
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