I reforged the glory of the magic ring in Middle-earth

Chapter 63 Old Forest

Before the Second Age, Eriador, the Ened region, and even east of the Misty Mountains were covered with continuous forests.

Over the next several thousand years, after the Numenorians' wanton felling and the countless wars of the Dark Ages, only a few scattered patches of the once dense ancient forest remained. The remaining woods on its northernmost edge were called the Old Forest.

In the middle of the Third Age, the Old Forest was part of the Kingdom of Cardolan, whose territory stretched from the Barrowdowns in the east to the River Baranduin in the west.

In the year 2340 of the Third Age, a Hobbit named Gohendad Oldbuck left the Shire and settled in the area between the east bank of the Brandywine River and the Old Wood, which later became Buckland.

The Hobbits who lived there cut down some of the trees to make room for their houses.

They built a high fence between their homestead and the old woods, and it was said that the trees of the old woods had tried to climb over the fence and invade the buckland.

The hobbits fought back by felling hundreds of trees and setting fire to the overgrowth, creating a burnt patch that remains to this day.

As a result, Old Linzi's hostility towards the Hobbits deepened.

Thus, many Hobbits in the Shire believed that the trees of the Old Wood were somehow "awake" and had ill intentions towards them.

Bilbo Baggins was one of the Hobbits who believed that the Old Forest was "awake". He screamed and told the rumors and stories he knew about the Old Forest, and strongly opposed Thorin staying there tonight.

But Thorin asked, "Have you ever been to the Old Wood yourself, Master Burglar?"

Then Bilbo was instantly silenced.

He flushed, and, gesturing with his hands (his pan had been taken over by Bofur, who continued to cook), said, "It makes no difference whether I've been there or not. Why, if I had been there, you would never have seen me alive. Why would I have gone there, such a dangerous place? No hobbit who values ​​life would go into the Old Forest, let alone spend the night there!"

"Don't get too excited, Bilbo. I understand how you feel."

Tanes put a gentle pressure on Bilbo's shoulder to calm him down.

Bilbo lowered his hand when he heard Tanes' voice, but his mouth continued to speak.

"Tannis, you have to listen to me on this matter. Although I am a hobbit who stays at home and has never gone hiking, I have read more texts than these dwarves have eaten more rice! As a hobbit, I know the situation of the Old Forest very well. In Hobbiton, the bad reputation of the Old Forest is known to everyone, including women and children." Bilbo said.

Thorin was not angry at Bilbo's attitude. On the contrary, he said seriously, "Go on and tell me everything you know about the Old Forest."

Bilbo put his hands on his hips and nodded: "Okay, since you want to know, I'll tell you."

The other dwarves had gathered round the fire which had risen on the grass, and were eating their breakfast which Bofur had cooked in a frying-pan, and watching Bilbo intently.

As for Tanis, Gandalf, Bernard, Millicent, and Aegon, they stood beside their mounts.

Bilbo's mouth twitched. "I don't know why it's suddenly become like a storytelling session, but as long as you listen to my advice and understand the dangers of the old forest, that's all that's good."

Then he cleared his throat and began to tell his story: "The stories told by those who have come to Hobbiton from outside prove the dangers of the Old Wood. Those who pass through it, whether they have bad intentions or not, are violently lashed by the branches. The trees move without wind, whisper in the night, and sometimes drop branches or raise their roots as people pass by."

"Those terrifying, moving trees can cause people who enter the forest to lose their way and lead them deeper into the woods. There are also rumors that the paths in the old forest will change their direction and even monitor those who enter. Paths that appear peaceful and safe on the surface can lead people into the most terrifying depths of the forest."

Bilbo felt his mouth dry after he had spoken so much.

Bofur kindly handed over a water bag, and Bilbo thanked him and drank it in big gulps.

He put down the water bag, looked at Thorin and asked, "That's all. Do you still want to spend the night in the old forest tonight?"

Thorin shook his head. "No, you have told me of the dangers, and therefore I do not intend to pass the night in the Old Forest."

Bilbo smiled happily.

Thorin then changed the subject, "But the dangers you speak of are all caused by travelers entering the Old Forest. Moreover, those so-called 'trees' in the Old Forest harbor ill will towards you Hobbits. Therefore, our destination today remains the Old Forest. However, we will not enter. We will camp outside."

Bilbo's smile froze on his face and he froze.

Amid the Hobbits' dejected expressions, the dwarves laughed, and after a noisy breakfast, the team set off again.

The dwarves were very happy. They told stories or sang songs while riding horses.

Bilbo was riding on his own pony, looking very unhappy, and was lost in thought.

Tanis patted Torret's horse's back, bringing it closer to Bilbo, and asked, "Are you still worried about the old forest?"

Bilbo was slightly startled by Tanis's sudden question and replied, "Uh, oh! Yes, because every hobbit says it's dangerous there, including my grandparents, my parents, and I grew up listening to the rumors about the Old Forest."

Gandalf came over and said, "But that's just a rumor after all. You haven't witnessed it yourself, have you?"

Bilbo said crossly, "But the hobbits who went to the Old Forest and never came back were real, Gandalf."

Tanis looked at Gandalf and asked, "You have been to many places. What do you know about the Old Forest, Gandalf?"

When Bilbo heard this, he looked at the old wizard curiously.

Gandalf took a puff of his cigarette and said with a smile, "I don't know much more than you, Bilbo. The only thing we should be careful about is not going into the Old Forest alone at night. The trees there are indeed different from those in other forests."

Bilbo frowned. "So you actually knew there was danger there, so why didn't you stop Thorin?"

Gandalf took another drag from his cigarette and said, "If we do not spend the night on the road outside the Old Wood, I am afraid we shall reach the Barrow-Downs in the dead of night if we continue on, Bilbo."

Then he asked with a smile, "Would you rather spend the night outside the Old Forest, where it's less dangerous, or in the Barrow Hills, where the howling of wights is everywhere?"

Bilbo said speechlessly, "Must we choose between these two options?"

Tanis said, "To be honest, I admire you hobbits for having the guts to live near these two places."

Bilbo said, "There's nothing strange about it. We've been doing this all these years. As long as we don't go to the Old Forest or the Barrowdowns, we won't be in any danger."

Then he muttered, "But I'm actually going to the old forest on my own initiative right now. This is crazy."

Tanis laughed good-naturedly after hearing Bilbo's muttering. He said, "This is the meaning of adventure, Bilbo. Go to the dangerous places you've heard of, see with your own eyes that they are different from what you've heard, and then bring these experiences back and tell others. Think about it, when everyone in Hobbiton was discussing the dangers of the Old Forest, but no one had ever been there. And then you stood up, confidently told them that you had been there, and then told them what happened there. It's actually a great feeling." Bilbo thought about it and nodded. "It seems to be the case. Well, you convinced me."

Tanes smiled and said, "Of course, more importantly, I am confident that I can protect you and the other dwarves. Otherwise, I would not have let Thorin go near the old forest like this."

Bilbo shrugged. "Then I'll leave it to you."

Gandalf also joined in the fun and said, "Please help an old man like me, Tanis."

Tanis just rolled his eyes at Gandalf's words.

Gandalf needs protection? That's a complete joke.

Who was it that wielded the ritual straight sword so skillfully during the Oak's attack?
Thorin's expedition continued its journey and soon passed through the territory of the Hobbits. Bilbo had arrived in a place he had never been to before.

The terrain here is very open, the residents are decent and upright, the roads are flat, and there are one or two inns occasionally.

From time to time, you can see dwarves or farmers strolling by, busy with their own business.

These dwarves did not focus their attention on Thorin's team, because although a team of more than a dozen people like theirs was not a large number, there were still other similar large teams on the avenue.

Moreover, Thorin had his hood pulled up so that the dwarves passing by him did not notice that the person riding on the horse was none other than the King of the Dwarves of Durin.

The expedition team did not attract anyone's attention here, perhaps because it was relatively close to Hobbiton, so no strange people appeared.

The expedition continued along the road eastward and soon came to a place where the locals spoke very strangely. In Gandalf's words, they were speaking some variant dialect of the Common Language of Men.

These natives also sang songs that Bilbo had never heard before.

Of course, Tanes and the others hadn't heard of it either.

Then Thorin led the team off the official road and into the small path next to it.

Bilbo did not know how long the team had been marching. He only remembered that when the sun was high in the sky, the team stopped to have lunch and then continued on their way.

Now, they were deep in the wilderness, with no human habitation, no hotels or inns to be seen, and even the road conditions were getting worse and worse.

This made Bilbo want to ask Thorin if he had taken the wrong path.

However, when he saw that Tanis and Gandalf on his left and right did not object, he thought it was not his turn to speak up, so he kept quiet.

The sky gradually darkened, from fiery red to dusk and then to black in less than an hour. The road ahead could no longer be seen clearly on the ground, even with a torch.

Especially before dark, Thorin had already seen the lush, dark green forest not far ahead. The trees seemed to block out the sun, and it was obviously the "old forest" that Bilbo mentioned.

And now, in the night, the old forest looked even more eerie, causing Thorin to stop his horse.

He raised the torch in his hand, looked toward the weed-covered road on both sides, pointed to the small hill on the right and said, "Let's rest there tonight."

"Oh, we can finally take a break!" Kili behind Thorin cheered happily.

Fili wanted to do the same, but after being looked at by Thorin, he could only swallow his words and look at his brother who was cheering with envy.

But for Tanes, Qili's cheers were of no importance, because the dwarves had been noisy all the way, and one more cheer at this time would not make much difference.

Bilbo also breathed a sigh of relief. With the help of Tanes, he got off the saddle of his pony in a tortuous manner and almost fell down.

He felt his legs go weak, his buttocks seemed to have lost sensation, and his legs were trembling.

Bilbo swore that if Tanis had not held his arm tightly like a vice, he would have sat down on the ground.

"What's the matter with me?" asked Bilbo.

Tanes called Torret back to the whistle and replied, "You've been riding for too long. It's normal. Don't be nervous."

Bilbo looked at the dwarves who were still full of life, pointed at them and asked, "Then why are they okay?"

Gandalf, who had already tied up his horse, came over and said with a smile, "I think that if a hobbit were to compete with a dwarf who has been traveling all year round in terms of physical fitness, the latter would obviously win."

Bilbo sighed. "Well, I'll have to get someone to pitch the tent for me, and I'll have to rest my legs."

Tanes smiled and said, "That's no problem."

Then he turned to Millicent and Aegon and called out, "Our lovely hobbit needs help."

But before Millicent and Egon could answer, Bofur's voice came: "What does he need?"

Tanis looked at the dwarf with some surprise. He had actually noticed that since they set out early this morning, the dwarf seemed to have been hanging around Bilbo intentionally or unintentionally.

Whenever Bilbo had any problems, Bofur would always respond promptly and come to help.

Tanis smiled at the attentive dwarf and said, "His legs are numb from riding, and he needs someone to support him. As for the rest, let Bilbo tell you himself."

Egon came over at this time and said loudly: "Then I will help you get the things!"

Bilbo seemed a little overwhelmed by the two overly enthusiastic people. He said it was not necessary and was taken to the small hill by Egon and Bofur to rest.

Bernard and Millicent came to Tanes at the same time. Bernard looked at the forest in the distance and laughed: "It seems that there are indeed some strange things in that old forest."

Millicent nodded. "Well, ever since the woods came into our sight, I've felt a lot of eyes looking at us."

Tanes said, "It seems that our three feelings are correct. Although this place is still some distance away from the woods, just in case, Bernal, the first half of the night's guard duty will be handed over to you and Egon. Millicent, you and I will guard the second half of the night together."

　Merry Christmas to everyone!!!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)