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

Chapter 4 Bilber Baggins
"Giddy up!" The rapid sound of hooves broke the tranquility of Hobbiton, and twelve fully armed knights appeared on the path of Hobbiton.

The young knight berated his squire: "Caslo, are you sure this is the way?"

“Yes, uh, I mean maybe… after all, you know, sir… the country roads here are too winding,” the dragon knight Caslo stammered.

"What the hell! Are you all useless?" Roland held back from swearing.

"Oh, sorry, guys, that's not what I meant," Roland quickly apologized, realizing his inappropriate wording.

"Let's keep asking for directions and see where this damn Bag Bottom is," Roland said dejectedly.

……

"Hey! Excuse me, do you know where Bill Burgh's Baggins lives?" Roland asked everyone who passed by.

After his inquiries yielded no results, Roland couldn't help but complain, "Who the hell said hobbits were hooligans?"

"Excuse me, do you know Bilbo Baggins?" Roland asked a hobbit sitting in a roadside yard.

“Barkins? What do you want with him?” the young man asked in surprise.

“Well, because… well, the situation is this: after a while, a group of dwarves and a wizard will find him, and I want to find that group of dwarves!” Roland explained.

“Alright, that’s me. But I didn’t see any dwarves, but a wizard came today. He wants me to go on an adventure with him, and what’s even funnier is that he wants me to be a thief! I have no idea how to fight!” Bilber Baggins explained.

"Ah, this..." Roland was dumbfounded. He had timed this perfectly. Thinking of this, Roland couldn't help but look at Bill with pity, thinking that his inventory was going to be in trouble tonight... The 13 dwarves would empty his storeroom tonight.

Roland glanced at the corner of his front door and then smiled at him, saying, "Well then, Mr. Baggins, see you tonight."

"Um, sir, you mean you'll be visiting me tonight?" Bill asked in surprise.

"Yes, you only need to prepare food for me; my entourage won't be coming. Oh, by the way, my name is Roland!" Roland smiled kindly.

"Yes, sir, welcome to your visit this evening."

……

"Bound by Fate: Completed! Reward: 90 Apprentice Knights! Can be summoned at any time." The magic ring on Roland's hand, which had been dormant for a long time, finally came to life.

“Ninety knights… plus these ten! That makes a full one hundred apprentice knights. Now we can have a whole knight order.” Roland wanted to burst into laughter.

Roland found a corner and summoned his knights. He then used the gold coins awarded by the system to book a larger inn for his squires to stay overnight.

The crisp sound of horses' hooves approached, and Roland couldn't help but marvel at the system's efficiency. Moreover, there were no worries about the consequences; these knights had all come from the wasteland, and no one knew they had been summoned.

As the sky gradually darkened, Roland summoned Caslow and asked him to take charge of arranging his knights, while he himself went to a banquet.

……

"Ding ding ding!" Roland rang the doorbell of Bag Bottom Cave.

"Boom!" As soon as the door opened, the aroma of food mingled with a jumble of noises, clearly indicating that the dwarves had begun their celebration...

Roland's eyes twitched as he looked at the mess in the room. Just as he was wondering whether he should step inside, he looked down and saw Bill's dejected gaze.

“Mr. Roland, do you know something… and I’m sorry for the food I prepared for you…” Mr. Baggins said embarrassedly.

“It’s alright, Bill, it’s nothing,” Roland reassured Baggins, then stepped inside.

As soon as he entered, Roland recognized Gandalf; after all, his robes and staff clearly betrayed his identity. "Greetings, Mr. Gandalf!" Roland greeted him.

"Should I call you Thorin Oakenshield or King of the Mountain?" Roland asked the king of the dwarves indifferently.

Roland's words clearly provoked Thorin, who stood up with his fists clenched.

“Hey, Thorin! Relax.” Gandalf quickly stopped him.

“Young man, I can’t see through you…” Gandalf said in surprise.

Roland smiled faintly, neither confirming nor denying. He looked at Thorin and asked, "With the blood of Turin, grandson of Thor, son of Thorne, can you still be called the king of the foot of the mountain?"

"Bang!" Thorin slammed his hand on the table, ready to jump out and fight Roland, but the others quickly held him back. His nephew, Kili, stepped forward: "Sir, excuse me, are you here to cause trouble on purpose?" The other dwarves also looked at him with unfriendly expressions, while only Gandalf looked at him thoughtfully.

"Looking for trouble? You're not worthy. I just don't want to see the end of the Turin bloodline!" Roland knew the plot was going to go well. Even if they won, the Turin bloodline would inevitably come to an end.

With the help of the Ring, Roland successfully sensed everyone present. Apart from Thorin, who was a berserker, the others were either apprentice warriors or warriors. This lineup wouldn't be enough for Roland's knights to launch a single attack.

The warrior class ranks are: Apprentice Warrior, Warrior, Berserker, Commander, General, and finally, the ultimate class Overlord!
"fart!"

"nonsense!"

Everyone began to criticize Roland, while Gandalf looked at Roland with increasing astonishment.

"Enough! State your purpose!" Thorin suddenly shouted, stopping his men from accusing him.

“Excellent, as expected of a descendant of Turin. I am the leader of the Holy Glory Knights. I need to find a territory to settle down with my knights, so you know... I need money!” Roland calmly stated his request.

"What? The Knights!"

"My God! He actually has a knightly order..."

The dwarves were utterly astonished, but Gandalf's expression grew increasingly perplexed.

“Mr. Roland! This joke is not funny! Do you know under what circumstances one can be called a knightly order?” Thorin asked solemnly.

“Of course, I only have the weakest knight order under my command, with 100 apprentice knights and one knight commander,” Roland said arrogantly.

"So...you mean..." Thorin's tone softened, after all, they had common interests and everything was negotiable.

“I will lead my knights into battle! I will escort you all the way to Lonely Mountain! In return, you will need to pay a commission, and if there are any casualties, you will also need to pay compensation. Of course, if we fail to reclaim Ereber in the end... then you will not need to pay anything!” A flame called ambition gleamed in Roland’s eyes.

“If you agree, then I can now gather my retinue!” Roland continued.

Thorin lowered his head in thought, and Gandalf quietly tugged at him, whispering in his ear, "Say yes. There are too many risks on this journey. With the protection of the Knights, we can arrive more safely."

Upon hearing Gandalf's whisper, Thorin nodded, then looked up and said loudly, "Mr. Roland, I will now draft the contract."

After saying that, he and his dwarves began to write the contract. Then Roland saw a contract that was even longer than the thief contract that Mr. Baggins had received, a whole large scroll...

"Well then, I wish our expedition a successful one!" After Roland signed the contract, he put it away, nodded to everyone, declined Bilber's offer to stay, and left.

"By the way, I'll be waiting for you at the edge of the forest tomorrow morning!" Roland's voice came from afar.

(End of this chapter)