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

Chapter 1114 Loyalty! Loyalty is beyond words!
"No, no! The kingdom is still here!" A group of people quickly helped Earl Black Cloud up, as they would have thought Roland had passed away.

"..." At this moment, Roland was staring blankly at Earl Black Cloud, his mind churning. What was he doing here? Why did his scalp feel a little itchy? When did my Lagrange Empire become synonymous with the Tartars?
"Ahem, that Earl of Black Cloud is also deeply saddened. I think we should let him go and rest early!" Roland touched his nose to cover his embarrassment.

……

"Loyalty! Unspeakable loyalty!" Roland exclaimed, looking at these families! Such loyalty! They'd all be crammed into Dreadnoughts (not really)!
"The loyalty of the Black Cloud family is evident, but the loyalty of the Franz family has never diminished in the slightest!" Marquis Al-Tegran Franz nodded.

“I know you! I understand the Franz family’s loyalty! Do your job well! The empire’s revival needs you!” Roland patted Marquis Al-Tegran Franz on the shoulder, and the man instantly stood up straight as if he had been injected with chicken blood.

"Yes! I will serve His Majesty faithfully!" Marquis Al-Tegran Franz replied righteously.

"..." Roland touched his philtrum. This time, it wasn't just his scalp that was itchy; his philtrum was so itchy it felt like a beard was about to grow...

"Keep a close eye on things on the way back. We're almost there, so don't let anything go wrong!" Roland nodded and instructed Al Tegrand Franz. "The last mile is often the hardest!" Roland didn't want anything to go wrong right on his doorstep.
“Yes, Your Majesty!” Marquis Al-Tegran Franz nodded.

"Everyone, go and rest! You've all worked hard lately!" Roland nodded to Caslo and the others. These dragon riders had a tough time hanging in the sky all day, and Roland hadn't forgotten any of them. As a boss, Roland was quite good. He provided food, lodging, and even children's and retirement benefits, along with titles and wealth. He was much better than those unscrupulous entrepreneurs who just shouted slogans and made people work for love!
"Then Your Majesty should rest early!" Caslo was the last to leave, a hint of concern flashing in his eyes.

“Yes!” Roland nodded.

"Sigh, the kingdom is getting bigger and bigger!" Roland scratched his head in exasperation. Now there were another hundred or so knights! The kingdom had officially entered the era of five hundred knights, which also meant an additional consumption of over a thousand magical warhorses... and they were running out of food again! You know, warhorses eat more fine rations than regular fodder!

"Oh no! Am I going to be so poor I'll have to eat black bread from now on?!" Roland broke down. He was probably the only one in the kingdom to be forced to eat black bread by the king. Roland had a considerable amount of grain reserves, enough to feed the kingdom's army for a while, but that grain couldn't be touched—it was for war! If that grain was moved, the kingdom's army would basically be paralyzed! They could starve to death even if they went too far!
"Hopefully this spring's planting season will bring some surprises! And that more land will be reclaimed!" Roland could only pray in his heart that his wife had strongly encouraged land reclamation last winter!
……

“Graditon River! This is the Graton Plain!” Caslow nodded.

"I remember there was a Nord village here! The village chief was called Golden Egg!" Roland thought for a moment, then activated his dragon memories, and those memories from the depths of his memory sea were brought up!

"Let's go! Let's go take a look!" Roland waved his hand.

“Roland, you’ve been to quite a few places!” Bard rubbed his chin.

"He has a nickname: Middle-earth Scoundrel!" Thorin said nonchalantly.

“He has men in both Rohan and Gondor!” Thorin continued.

"Oh! Roland is quite the troublemaker!" Thranduil exclaimed as if suddenly realizing something. He had been spending all his time in the Woodland Kingdom and hadn't really paid much attention to Roland's antics outside.

"The most active king in the North is joking! He's already led us all the way to the Shire!" Whitewing shook his head with a smile.

"Then we'll be making history! The Shire Expedition following the Lonely Mountain Expedition!" Thorin suddenly thought.

“What a coincidence! He was there both times!” Thranduil pointed at Roland.

"Hey! Can you please stop talking about me behind my back? If you must, do it in private!" Roland's lips twitched, a hint of helplessness flashing in his eyes.

"Among us, you're the most troublemaker. Who else should we talk about if not you?" Bai Yi shrugged.

"How did I get into trouble?" Roland was completely bewildered.

“I’ll start it! The War of the Six Armies!” Thranduil declared. “Did I start it?” Roland was shocked. How could this be blamed on me?
"An expedition to Golgodo!" Badr said.

"The battle at Lulong Fortress was a fierce one against the Ringwraiths and the Orc army!" White Wing nodded.

"An expedition against the Eastern Barbarians!" Sorin added.

“Oh, and he also helped Bahrain reclaim Moria!” Thorin continued.

"He even dragged us on an expedition to the Shire!" Thranduil said with great seriousness.

"..." Roland was speechless, as if you hadn't participated in most of the wars mentioned!
“Look! So it’s obvious!” White Wing pointed at Roland on horseback.

“War profiteers!” Thranduil interjected.

"Clang!" The sound of a sword being drawn suddenly rang out.

"Are you insulting His Majesty?" Earl Black Cloud asked with a dark expression. Although his face was completely hidden by his helmet, his tone clearly showed his attitude!

"Hehehe! Iron Boy, I was just joking with your king. Roland, you newcomer, you can't take a joke!" Thorin turned to look at Roland, urging his argali to trot a few steps to Roland's horse and tap Roland's knee.

"How dare you talk like that? Well done, my loyal Earl! Next time, put his flag on him!" Roland was quite satisfied. Let them all make fun of me! Caslow and the others were now immune to the Northern Kings' attempts to criticize Roland, letting them bicker as they pleased. Only the unsuspecting Earl Nicholas Blackcloud was honest enough to draw his sword and defend Roland's dignity!

"So loyal! So incredibly loyal!" Roland was deeply moved.

“Your Majesty! Nord Village is just ahead! Or rather, Nord Town!” Omske interrupted everyone’s bickering.

……

"Your Majesty!" Golden Egg knelt down before Roland.

"You recognize me?" Roland was taken aback. This was the first person, besides his own people, to kneel down upon seeing Roland!
“Of course! Your Majesty has been here before! We will never forget your dragon banner!” the golden egg said gratefully.

"Get up, Mayor Golden Egg! You're getting old!" Roland said with a sigh, looking at Golden Egg, whose hair was now completely white.

"But His Majesty's demeanor remains as dignified as ever!" the golden egg said respectfully.

"How have you been these past few years?" Roland asked.

“Great! Absolutely great! With armor, we also have soldiers. The scattered orcs dare not come. Those who have nowhere else to turn have come here. We have built stone walls! We have built watchtowers! Nord Village has become Nord Town! We have our own riders…” Golden Egg exclaimed.

"Not bad! It has a bit of a small-town feel to it!" Roland nodded.

"But restoring this city to its original state is still a long way off!" Golden Egg said regretfully.

"Let's take it one step at a time! It's already very good!" Roland nodded. This old man was capable; he had turned a small settlement of a few hundred people into a town of thousands. It wouldn't have been possible without some ability!
"We need to stay the night and find an open space for the army! If that's not possible, we can split up! I'll leave enough weapons and armor as payment!" Roland said to Golden Egg. Neither the Kingdom of Lagrang nor the Kingdom of Dwarves lacked weapons; they had as many as they wanted!