Hogwarts wizards who signed in to Middle-earth...

Inside Thorin's hall.

Dui saw Thorin's oak shield again, and the time interval was less than half a day.

"It's you, the black-robed wizard." A flicker of surprise crossed Thorin's sharp eyes at Dui's reappearance, and he frowned slightly. "So, the customer who commissioned Bondi to reforge the ancient sword was you?"

Dui didn't have much affection for Thorin, but now that he wanted to help Thorin reforge the Corpse Demon Ancient Sword, he had no choice but to go to him in person.

"We meet again, grandson of Thor, son of Thrain, King of the Mountain, Thorin Oakenshield." Dui nodded in greeting, mimicking Gandalf's words. "I once obtained the ancient sword from the wights of Ancient Tomb Ridge, but it has been eroded by time and evil forces, and has long lost its former sharpness and resilience. I have heard that the dwarves are unparalleled in their forging skills, so I would like to ask for your help in seeing if it can be reforged."

Even the dwarves had heard of the terrifying reputation of Kozuka Hill, and the Kozuka Corpse Demon was even more fearsome.

Thorin had previously heard Gandalf mention Duir's solo adventures at Ancient Tomb Ridge, but he never imagined Duir would actually snatch the ancient sword from the wights. This gave Thorin his first clear understanding of Duir's strength.

Even Thorin, with his arrogance, would treat such a person with caution.

So he got up from his seat and said to Dui, "Forging is as simple as eating and drinking for us. We'll take your job!"

"But before that, could I see the ancient sword?"

Dui handed the Corpse Demon Ancient Sword he had brought to the other party.

Thorin took the ancient sword; the heavy sword, which was longer than him, seemed weightless in his hand, and he held it with just one hand.

He carefully examined the ancient sword, his regal seriousness fading from his face, revealing for the first time the earnestness and professionalism of a craftsman. "The sword-making process is complex, the blade is diamond-shaped, suitable for thrusting and slashing, the hilt is designed for one hand, the guard is a bronze crescent shape, and there is a white tree symbol..."

"Is this a sword belonging to the royal family descended from the Numenor people?" Thorin asked Dui with certainty.

Dui nodded and explained, "It once belonged to the last prince of the Kingdom of Kadolan."

Thorin suddenly realized that the dwarven history recorded the kingdom of Kadoran, which was a split from the kingdom of Arnor, and naturally knew that this kingdom, founded by the descendants of the Númenor, was eventually destroyed by the Witch-King of Angmar.

The Númenor people were taught the craft by the Noldor, the most skilled forgers among the elves, and mastered superb forging techniques. Even the dwarves, who were naturally adept at forging, would not underestimate the craftsmanship of the Númenor people.

Thorin held the ancient sword, pondered for a moment, and then looked intently at Dui, saying, "I will personally forge this ancient sword of yours, and I will ask the other best craftsmen in the tribe to help. Not only will it regain its former sharpness, but it will even become more powerful..."

Upon hearing Thorin's words, Dui's face showed no joy. Instead, he stared at him seriously and asked directly, "What are your conditions?"

He didn't believe Thorin would be so kind as to use the entire clan's resources to help him reforge the ancient sword.

"I would like to invite you to join the expedition to Lonely Mountain and help us fight the evil dragon there!" Thorin stated his purpose.

Dui frowned, looking at the dwarf prince with suspicion. "Have you forgotten that I promised Gandalf that I would join your expedition?" Why would you use that as a condition?

Thorin shook his head. "No, you don't understand. I'm inviting you to join my expedition, not Gandalf's!"

Dui paused for a moment, then understood Thorin's meaning and was immediately taken aback.

Good heavens, the expedition hasn't even been fully assembled yet, and this dwarf prince is already trying to seize power, actually trying to take leadership of the expedition from Gandalf!

Is this an attempt to undermine Gandalf?

Duy was somewhat speechless, but he still shook his head and said, "Although I agreed to join the expedition, I'm only joining as a collaborator, and I'm not under anyone's orders, whether it's you or Gandalf leading the expedition!"

Thorin's expression darkened upon hearing this. Ever since the dragons occupied Lonely Mountain and he was forced into exile, with no one offering him any help, he no longer trusted anyone. He didn't even trust Gandalf.

However, reclaiming the Lonely Mountain homeland was not only his father Serena II's obsession, but also his ambition to revive the Durin family.

So he changed his terms: "The previous conditions remain the same. As the heir of the Dulin family, I formally invite you to join the expedition. You will not need to obey my orders, but you must guarantee to help me reclaim Lonely Mountain with all your might. How about it?"

Dui's eyes flickered slightly; he naturally knew that even without him, Thorin and the others would eventually reclaim Lonely Mountain.

But he shook his head and chuckled, "Your demands are quite high; a sword isn't worth that much!"

Thorin gritted his teeth, "Plus one-tenth of the Lonely Mountain treasure! If you help me reclaim Lonely Mountain, I can share its treasure with you!"

When this was mentioned, Dui perked up. He knew that the treasures of Lonely Mountain were piled up like mountains, making it the richest place in the entire Central Continent. Even if it was only one-tenth of that, it would still be a fortune that could rival that of a country!

"Okay, but we have to sign a contract!" Dui agreed, but also set conditions.

After all, he remembered that this guy had a family-inherited dragon disease. Whenever he came into contact with the treasure of Lonely Mountain, he would lose his mind and become crazy and paranoid, filled with greed and possessiveness for the treasure.

However, Thorin was not affected by the dragon disease at this time and readily agreed to Dui's conditions.

Moreover, he believed that with the contract in place, Dui would be more dedicated to helping them reclaim Lonely Mountain, rather than giving up halfway.

Thus, with both parties' consent and witnessed by a group of dwarven relatives and elders, Dui and Thorin signed a contract.

The contract stipulated that Dui would join the expedition and help the dwarves reclaim Lonely Mountain.

In return, the Dulin Dwarves will use all their resources to help him reforge the ancient sword, and after reclaiming Lonely Mountain, they will give Dui one-tenth of the Lonely Mountain treasure.

After that, Dui stayed in the dwarven territory.

Thorin and the other dwarven craftsmen began to reforge the sword for Dui.

The sword was not forged in the dwarf town, but deep inside the mine tunnels of the Blue Mountains, thousands of meters underground, where the temperature of the underground magma was used to melt the Corpse Demon Ancient Sword.

When the dwarves were forging, they did not avoid Dui, so Dui was fortunate enough to ride the dwarves' cable pulley minecart to a depth of several thousand meters underground.

Here, the temperature soars, and beneath the ground lies a fiery red magma.

On the massive basalt forging platform, Thorin and two other craftsmen, both bare-armed and wearing leather armor, wielded huge iron hammers, relentlessly pounding the red-hot iron blocks.

The three men moved in a smooth and orderly fashion, striking the iron block with a mysterious and complex rhythm, producing rhythmic clanging sounds, sparks flying, and the sound echoing continuously in the cave, as if playing a war song of clashing swords and galloping horses.

Dui stood not far away, watching this scene quietly, his eyes filled with anticipation.

The scorching heat around him seemed to have no effect on him. He was still wearing a thick, long cloak, which exuded a cool feeling, as if it were being brushed by a mountain stream, dispelling the surrounding heat.