Hogwarts wizards who signed in to Middle-earth.

Chapter 40 The Expedition Team Gathers

Dui frowned slightly when he saw this, his appetite suddenly disappeared, and he put down the knife and fork in his hand.

Bilbo was stunned, but before he could ask any questions, there was another knock on the door.

This time it was a white-bearded dwarf named Balin.

He walked in with equal politeness and greeted Dwalin familiarly.

"Who are you? Why did you come to my house?"

Bilbo tried to stop them, but they acted as if they hadn't heard him and continued to search his warehouse.

Immediately afterwards, the door was knocked one after another.

A group of dwarves came one after another: Kili and Fili, Dori, Nori, Ori... Each of them walked into the house carelessly and squeezed onto the small dining table.

The room suddenly became crowded and noisy.

Bilbo stood aside, looking at these uninvited guests, his face full of helplessness and shock.

His home seemed to have become a gathering place for dwarves, and he had become an outsider.

He looked at the dwarves with tears in his eyes as they raided his warehouse for food and wine. He could only look at Dui pitifully for help: "Dui'er~"

Seeing Bilbo's angry and speechless look, Dewi patted his shoulder with amusement and sympathy, and decided to let him vent his anger and teach these rude dwarves a lesson.

"Everything is petrified! Everything is petrified! Everything is petrified..."

The living room suddenly became quiet. The twelve dwarfs were frozen in place in different postures, only their eyes were rolling around with a look of fear in their eyes.

Bilbo breathed a sigh of relief and said gratefully, "Thank goodness for you, Doile!"

But before he could breathe a sigh of relief, the door was knocked again.

Bilbo was still a little frightened and did not dare to open the door.

Dui had no choice but to walk over and open the door.

And standing outside the door was Thorin Oakenshield.

"Thorin."

"Duyle."

The two nodded to each other in greeting.

"Is Gandalf here?" Thorin asked as he walked through the door.

Dui shook his head. "He hasn't come yet. He must have been delayed by something."

Thorin frowned when he heard this.

When he walked into the living room and saw the petrified dwarves, his pupils shrank and his expression became serious. He asked Xiang Dui in a deep voice, "What's going on? What did you do?"

Dui's expression was calm. "They were a little rude. I just wanted to quiet them down for a while."

Thorin's expression turned grim, thinking that Duy was trying to intimidate him. He gritted his teeth and said coldly, "Please ask Wizard Duyle to remove the magic from them. I'll wait for them to apologize to you!"

Dui shook his head. "They shouldn't be apologizing to me, but to the owner of this place..."

"Sorry, I'm late!" Gandalf's voice suddenly came from the gate, interrupting the depressing atmosphere inside. Gandalf walked in with his back bent, looked at everyone with a smile, and asked, "Did I miss anything?"

"Gandalf, you've arrived!" Bilbo greeted him excitedly, as if he had seen a savior. The oppressive atmosphere had almost suffocated him. "Hello, Bilbo!" Gandalf greeted him with a smile, then his eyes lit up when he saw the group of petrified dwarves standing at the table. "It seems you all know each other already, so I don't need to introduce you."

Seeing Gandalf come out to ease the atmosphere, Dui did not intend to completely become enemies with the dwarves, so he waved his hand and lifted the dwarves' petrification spell.

The dwarves, whose bodies had been stiff for a long time, suddenly fell together powerlessly, rubbing their aching limbs and groaning.

At the same time, he looked at Dui with some awe.

After some twists and turns, everyone calmed down again. Although Bilbo was not very welcoming to the dwarves, he still took out all the food and wine from the warehouse to entertain everyone.

At the table, Due and Gandalf sat together, while the dwarves sat together with Thorin at their head.

Only Bilbo was busy going back and forth between the kitchen and the dining table.

While eating dinner, everyone discussed the expedition.

"We don't need to face the dragon Smaug directly. We only need a key figure - someone who is flexible enough and not easy to be discovered, and then sneak into the hall of the lonely mountain and steal the Arkenstone." Gandalf said.

"So that with the Arkenstone, you, Thorin, the heir of Durin's line, can gather the dwarf army and take the Lonely Mountain back from the dragon."

Hearing Gandalf's words, Thorin was a little moved. He looked at Gandalf and asked, "Do you have a choice?"

Gandalf did not answer, but turned his gaze towards Bilbo.

Thorin also followed Gandalf's gaze, frowned, and questioned: "Gandalf, are you sure?"

In Thorin's opinion, this hobbit was completely useless except for being able to cook. Not only was he shorter than a dwarf, but his arms were not as strong as a dwarf's. He was very weak and completely useless.

Bilbo was a little overwhelmed by everyone's gaze and tried to hide behind Dewi.

Thorin frowned even more when he saw this scene.

But Gandalf disagrees. He explains: "Hobbits are short and light-footed, with a natural instinct for stealth. They are good at moving without being noticed (such as secretly picking mushrooms and hiding from neighbors), making them the perfect choice for thieves."

"And hobbits are never noticed by dragons unless they are trampled underfoot—and Smaug has sharp eyes and a sharp nose, and he knows the scents of dwarves, elves, and men, but he has never seen a hobbit and can't imagine what they can do."

Thorin was somewhat convinced by Gandalf's words, but he still had doubts about Bilbo's choice.

Seeing that Thorin was silent, Gandalf turned to look at Bilbo and said in a very serious tone: "Then Mr. Bilbo Baggins, are you willing to join the expedition and go to the Lonely Mountain for adventure?"

"Me?" Bilbo was caught off guard, his expression shocked, and then he shook his head frantically. "No, I can't! I never take risks. You should find someone else!"

Gandalf watched as Bilbo hid behind Dui, but he did not give up.

"Bilbo, don't you want to have a great adventure? Think about all those adventure books you've read. Don't you want to go to the places described in those books and experience them for yourself? You can even write your own adventure book when you return from your adventure, so that your descendants will know about your adventures and be proud of you!"

"And Duyle is going with you on this adventure. Don't you want to go along with him?"

At the mention of Dewi, Bilbo looked at him in confusion, "Do you want me to go too, Dewi?"

Dewi shook his head and did not follow Gandalf in persuading him. Instead, he said sincerely, "Whatever decision you make, I will support you."

Although he knew that Bilbo would leave the Shire and encounter the One Ring of his destiny, and even his choice would determine the direction of the entire Middle-earth and become a key role in the Lord of the Rings.

But if Bilbo was content with being ordinary and just wanted to live as an ordinary hobbit in the Shire, he would choose to support him without hesitation.

Hearing Dewi's words, Bilbo's expression was conflicted and hesitant, his reason and courage were constantly strained.

Finally, he took a deep breath and said to everyone, "I'm willing to join!"

(End of this chapter)