Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1084 1066. Orc Lake
The Day of Durin is approaching, and the dwarves' sense of urgency is growing, because this is their only chance to enter the Lonely Mountain Kingdom through a secret door, a secret door that Smaug does not know about.

As the dwarves' sense of urgency increased, the orcs became far more anxious than they were.

The afternoon was almost over, and the sun had reached a point in the sky that could be called the setting sun.

The golden-red light shines on the Long Lake, and the shimmering appearance seems to bring some warmth, but the temperature is actually colder than in the afternoon.

The lake was foggy again.

This cold fog will gradually become thicker and heavier at night.

On the edge of the Mirkwood, a large number of orcs were moving from the edge of the Long Lake along the waterline towards the wooden bridge connecting Long Lake Town to the shore.

A tall orc holding a brutal hammer walked in front.

His head had a deformed outline, with a deep gash on his skull, which was roughly covered with an iron cap.

A knife wound covered one eye, which had turned white and was apparently useless. Only the other eye still had an almond-yellow pupil.

There were also many armor plates roughly inserted into his body. Those armor plates were inserted diagonally into his ribs and back flesh, acting as defensive armor.

It is hard to imagine that anyone could actually complete such a brutal method alive.

"There is only one place the dwarves can go. They are cold, hungry, and without weapons or armor."

The orc stood on a big rock under the setting sun, looking towards the town built on the huge rock in the middle of the lake, with a cruel arc on the corner of his mouth, revealing his jagged black teeth.

He raised the hand holding the brutal hammer, and the team behind him stopped immediately.

The wargs in the team let out uncomfortable growls because they stopped.

They are the orcs' allies, with a higher status than ordinary orcs, or even higher than the orc cavalry on their backs.

If there is a shortage of food, you can eat orcs to fill your stomach.

In fact, this is how the orc army always solves the supply problem when going into battle.

"Split the troops."

He called out, and the orcs behind him began to move slowly and quietly.

"Half of us will block the bridge, and the Wargs will cross the river and approach the town. We will also have twenty quiet men, and we will sneak in quietly."

The orc said, licking the corner of his mouth.

The wargs are allies, they are wild and difficult to tame, and they have more autonomy. If the wargs are allowed to enter the town directly, they will most likely take the opportunity to eat directly.

So the orc leader only took the people he pointed at in first.

"Let's go to the rooftops and check if the dwarves are there. If we find them, then everyone..."

His one eye looked around.

"Let's rush in together and make sure nothing survives in there!"
-
Night slowly fell, and the light of the stars and the moon replaced the sun, covering the earth and hills.

About half an hour after leaving, Bud came back in the same hurry as before.

He slammed the door of his house open with a bang, took a breath and looked around, then quickly ran to Lan En, bent over and grabbed Lan En's shoulders while he was sitting.

"No! We can't let these dwarves go to the Lonely Mountain!"

The demon hunter frowned slightly, looking at the human in front of him, who he felt was not simple when they first met.

But before Lan En could speak, the dwarves were the first to respond.

"What do you mean?"

Philip, who had been taking care of his injured brother by the window, stood up and spoke.

Qili's injuries only got worse instead of better. He kept groaning in pain, and his hair was piled on his forehead due to cold sweat.

Oin, who was in charge of the treatment, was busy around him.

Balin, who was sitting next to Lan, was mature and steady. After he stood up, he first put his hand down, signaling Philip to be more gentle, and then turned to Bud.

"What happened, Mr. Budd?"

"You ask me what happened?" Bud let go of Lan's shoulder, stood up and looked down at Balin, his eyes narrowed slightly, looking a little dangerous.

"Thorin among you, the leader. Is he called Thorin Oakenshield? Son of Thrain, grandson of Thror?"

Balin's face froze, but soon returned to normal: "Indeed."

"Then he is the King Under the Mountain! The purpose of your going to Lonely Mountain is not to visit relatives in Iron Hills, nor to reminisce about the past! It is to restore the country!"

With a snap, Bud walked to the window of his house, pushed open the wooden window, and then made way.

Let the dwarf come and look outside by himself.

It was already dark outside. The broken ice floating in the waterway of Changhu Town reflected the moonlight and starlight. Although the townspeople had no money in their pockets and could not afford to light too many lights, the reflected light still made the town not too dark.

Many townspeople sat in their small boats on the waterways, or simply sat outside their homes mending their fishing nets.

And as they worked and chatted, the incredible and expectant voices buzzed and gathered.

"The Lord of Silver Springs, the King of Stone Carvings. The King under the Mountain will return to the throne."

"Have you heard? When the King Under the Mountain returns, the gold in those mountains will flow out! The whole river! The whole lake will flow with gold!"

"Gold in the river? How much is that?"

"What do you care? That mountain is full of gold! It's full!"

The words that the townspeople were talking about were considered festive words, whether for dwarves or humans.

So Balin and the dwarves who came over sounded quite happy.

But Lan looked at Bud's worried expression and knew that things were not simple.

"You dwarves may have prophecies and songs about the restoration of your country. I don't know what those prophecies describe. However, Long Lake Town also has its own prophecies."

Bard said in a deep voice. The experienced Balin was the first to realize that the prophecy of Changhu Town might not be good.

But after being told happy words, Philip's thoughts became much simpler.

"You guys also have a prophecy? That sounds great. We can all live a prosperous life again!"

“Does this ballad sound good?”

Bud snorted.

"Yes, it sounds good. But it is precisely because the first half sounds so good, it is simply the best part, that people are more willing to sing the first half repeatedly and remember the first half, instead of continuing to recall the second half!"

"I'll tell you the whole prophecy!"

"The Lord of Silver Springs, the King of Stone. The King beneath the Mountain, will return to his throne. When the King of the Mountain returns, the bells will ring for joy."

"But then it will fade and run dry! The lake will shimmer and turn into a sea of ​​fire!"

Bard looked at the dwarves and the three children who were cowering in the corner of the room with complicated eyes.

"You can't wake up the dragon and kill everyone in Lake Town just for the sake of your kingdom, your throne and your gold!"

"You can't do this. You can't."

His hand was grabbing Balin's collar, and seeing this, Philip wanted to go up and push him away.

But Bahrain still waved at Philip.

"Don't come over here, calm down! You calm down too, Master Bud."

Balin is also an old man among the dwarves. He has seen too many things and is much more mature mentally than the young dwarves.

He knew that many things, as long as they had not yet developed to the point of physical action, would often give him a chance to continue the discussion as long as he remained restrained.

It's easy to start a fight, all it takes is a rush of the mind.

However, when a fight is about to break out, being able to control yourself and remain calm in the face of both the enemy and your own excited emotions and tense situations requires greater courage than mindless enthusiasm.

At this time, in Changhu Town, which was illuminated by the moonlight reflected by the ice in the waterway, a distant bell rang.

The townspeople under Bud's window were whispering with curiosity and anticipation, and were heading in groups of two or three toward the mayor's residence.

The bell was the sound for the townspeople to gather in the square in front of the mansion.

"It must be time to issue armor and weapons."

Balin opened his arms and looked at Bud. He had no intention of pulling his collar out of Bud's hands. He was very restrained and polite.

"Thorin is there to get his weapons. If you really want to stop him, let's go together. Let's talk things over in front of all the townspeople, how about that?"

Bud's hand that was holding Balin's collar rubbed it repeatedly and tangled for a few times, and finally let go suddenly.

After a moment of silence, Bud opened his mouth and said, "You all are going to the square?"

The dwarves nodded, and Kili tried to stand up, but his wounds were hurting more and more. Fili and Oin had no choice but to hurry to his side.

Looking at Qili's face which was as pale as death, Bard pursed his lips and nodded.

"Come downstairs and get on the boat. I'll take you there. It's faster to go by water."

Balin smiled at Bard in a friendly way, and then he, Bofur and Bilbo went downstairs.

"Are you going too?"

After the dwarf went downstairs, Bard turned and asked Lan.

"I'll walk. Your boat can't carry me."

The witcher waved his hand, then walked closer to Bard and continued in a soothing tone.

"I don't think we need to worry too much about your predictions. Thorin and his team are very conservative in their plans."

"They went into the Lonely Mountain this time just to find the gem that could command the dwarf army. They will withdraw after finding it. After they gather their army, they will go back to the Lonely Mountain to kill the dragon."

"It's just a gem. It's unlikely to wake up Smaug. He's been asleep for sixty years, right?"

Bud shook his head.

"I can't be as optimistic as you. The gold in the Lonely Mountain can corrupt the minds of the dwarves, especially Thorin's family!"

"The dragon was originally brought here by his grandfather's insatiable greed and endless accumulation of treasure! Greed for gold is a family disease!"

"This disease has destroyed a dwarven kingdom and a human city! Isn't that enough? Can we still trust him?"

Bard shook his head and walked quickly downstairs, paddling the boat to lead the dwarves to the square in front of the mayor's residence.

Although his three children witnessed many changes today, they were able to remain calm and kind.

Bud's eldest daughter put a new towel on Qili, while the youngest daughter, a little timidly, carefully brought a glass of water to Lan.

"Thank you, miss."

After thanking her, Lan En drank the cup of water in one gulp and smiled at the little girl.

He walked towards the door, winking at the fluffy ball to stay.

The kitten calmly raised its little paw to show that it understood.

After going downstairs, Lan En found that walking was indeed slower than rowing on the waterway.

The townspeople were gathered by the bell and walked towards the square, which was already crowded.

In addition, they were all working on their own things, and the already narrow aisles in Changhu Town were filled with a lot of debris that got in the way and blocked the way.

It's a nuisance in not-bad-but-not-great lighting conditions.

But just as Lan En raised his long legs and stepped over a small pile of woven baskets, his ears twitched slightly and his eyes narrowed slightly.

(End of this chapter)