The Lord of the Rings: Lords of Middle-earth.

Chapter 1073 Suspicion about Gandalf (The New Year is over, he is resurrected)
A massive mound of corpses stood beside the roadside, the purplish-black bloodstains melting the surrounding snow and turning it into a foul-smelling purple mud. The headless corpses of ogres were piled up in layers, their severed heads filling the gaps between them. The glaring, angry heads sent chills down one's spine, their ferocious expressions revealing a hint of bewilderment and terror.

If there are any survivors, they should never forget those infantry formations that advanced like the Great Wall. Moreover, the Lagrange City Guards are professional warriors, not ordinary soldiers like the Swift Infantry. Swift Infantry can only rely on groups and numbers to fight in formations, and their individual combat strength and survivability are very low on a large battlefield. But the Lagrange City Guards are different. Their individual combat ability is equally strong. These ogres were broken up and divided by the Lagrange City Guards' formation and then cut into pieces by the swarming city guards!
"Won't this cause a plague?" Bard asked worriedly, looking at the mountain of corpses piled up like a mound. After all, ogres are huge and obese, and once they decompose, they could become a source of plague infection. The North had been hit by a plague once, and Bard was still terrified when he heard about such a thing.

“No, I piled them up by the roadside because there was no shade. They turned to stone as soon as the sun came out! These ogres weren't modified by Mordor; they're afraid of light!” Roland shook his head. He had calculated it perfectly. After all, the expeditionary force had dealt with ogres during the Lonely Mountain Expedition. In the original story, those ogres turned to stone under Gandalf's sunlight, and incidentally, they also gave the expeditionary force a bunch of gold and equipment. Bilbo Baggins's Sting and Thorin's Ocrester were obtained in this way. It's amazing that magical weapons made by elves appeared in the ogre's collection.

"Let's pack up and go back to get some sleep! It'll be a while before dawn!" Roland looked at the night sky, waved to everyone, and after leaving behind a sufficient number of guards, he abandoned the dwarves who were still beheading them and collapsed back into his hammock in the tent.

……

"Clean up the camp, count the number of people, and pay special attention to checking for frostbite!" Roland pushed open the heavy tent flap early in the morning against the cold wind. A blast of cold air instantly seeped in through the gaps, making Roland shiver. He looked at the guards covered in a layer of snow and gave the order.

"Yes, Your Majesty!" The guard paused with his spear, shook off the snow, nodded, and left.

"Remember to warm up and have some hot soup when you're done!" Roland waved his hand. Roland now deeply understood the art of war. He loved his soldiers like his own children and used them like mud. These eight words were concise and to the point, but they were the core principles that many officers never grasped in their entire lives.

"I hope Aragorn doesn't freeze to death on the way!" Roland, who had changed history, was really afraid that his butterfly effect would cause Aragorn to die halfway through the journey. Although he didn't want Aragorn to inherit the High King title, he didn't want him to actually die. After all, Roland still intended to leave the Kingdom of Arno to him to rule, not the territory at its peak, but just the Northern Kingdom. The size of the Northern Kingdom was enough to suppress him in the Lagrange Empire that Roland planned.

Some might ask, since Aragorn has legitimacy, wouldn't eliminating him and plunging the Western world into chaos be more beneficial to the Empire? This is precisely why Roland wants him to take over the Northern Kingdoms in the future. The former site of the Northern Kingdoms is currently chaotic and disorderly, with the east-west thoroughfare severed! Roland needs an order that he can define and control; even chaotic order is better than disorder! Roland is laying the groundwork for the future, each cog in the machine having its place. Furthermore, Roland has no intention of dominating the Western world; the Eastern and Northern regions are enough to keep the future Empire and its nobles busy!
"That kid might not necessarily die. He's got such a strong protagonist aura, he hasn't even started causing trouble yet!" Roland turned his head and realized he was overthinking things. Although Aragorn might give off a vibe of a scoundrel king, his background is actually quite strong. Lord of the North might sound like a scoundrel, but his strength shouldn't be underestimated. Plus, his godfather is King Elrond, Lord of Rivendell, and as a descendant of the High King of Gondor, who knows what other trump cards he has up his sleeve.

"Good morning, Your Majesty!" Thorin quickly came up to greet Roland, who was in a daze.

"Good morning, Thorin!" Roland brushed the snowflakes off his shoulder and smiled kindly.

"What are you thinking about, Your Majesty?" Thorin asked Roland curiously. In his memory, Roland had always been a wise and resolute man, which was why Thorin had responded to this expedition without hesitation. After all, based on past cases, Roland was reliable! "I suddenly remembered the past. We also traveled here with Gandalf back then..." Roland's lips curled into a smile as he recalled the joy of their past travels. Back then, he was just a figurehead lord, leading a small group of men eastward with passion and the motivation of being a lord, eventually arriving at where he was today...

Thinking of this, Roland couldn't help but sigh nostalgically, "I've walked on thin ice all this way, Thorin... do you think I'll make it to the other side?"

"???" Although Thorin didn't understand Roland's meaning, he felt that there was a strange sense of profundity in the words.

"..." Seeing Thorin fall silent, Roland didn't know how to start the conversation, and the conversation died there. In the end, it was Roland who broke the awkward silence.

“Let’s take this opportunity to visit the Bottom of the Cave. Bilbo once invited us to visit his home again!” Roland smiled at Thorin.

"Of course! I really miss our master thief!" Thorin smiled nostalgically.

"How wonderful..." Roland thought to himself. His appearance had changed many things in history. Thorin's lineage, who died on Ravenhill, and Balin, who slumbered in Moria... all had their original fates altered because of his appearance. Bilbo's long-awaited return visit would finally come in this life. After all, in history, only Balin of the Lonely Mountain Expedition had ever returned Bilbo's visit. It was a pity that the smiling old man ultimately died in battle in his own kingdom...

"By the way, Your Majesty, do you have any news of Gandalf?" Thorin asked curiously.

“No, but I heard he’s traveling in the Western world. What’s wrong? Do you need to see him? You can ask him in Toel Londo!” Roland thought for a moment. After all, King Elrond and he were both members of the White Way Society, so they must have a way to communicate.

"It's nothing, I just wanted to visit him on the way. If I don't have the chance, that's fine! I can do it next time!" Thorin said magnanimously.

“There will be an opportunity!” Roland nodded. He truly deserves to be called the unparalleled king of the dwarves! Compared to other dwarf kings, Thorin, who was not affected by the Arkenstone, is in a class of his own in terms of interpersonal skills and personal charm. Or rather, the two dwarf kings, Balin and Thorin, are truly the last vestiges of the dwarf race. What strange personalities and temperaments do the other dwarves have?
"Hiss! Speaking of Gandalf... how many years has that old man lived?" Roland was suddenly startled. BYD! He seemed to have overlooked some important information. This world had no Western continent or gods, but Gandalf had still existed for quite some time. His stories and legends had a long history, and he was now actually the Grey Wizard? This level was ridiculous.
He's back online! Hope you guys had a great New Year! Updates are back!