American TV series: Starting with exploiting young Sheldon

"Being unable to control the mouths of your subordinates is not the virtue of a king..." King Elrond seemed to see through Thorin's little thoughts, and after tapping him, he said, "King of the Mountain, grandson of Thor, I wish you all the best in this mission."

Gandalf's desire to help the Dwarves of Durin reclaim Lonely Mountain in order to prepare for the subsequent invasion of the Dark Forces was no secret to many.

Moreover, King Elrond also possesses the ability of prophecy.

Compared to the nonchalant Elf King, Thorin's scheming was naturally outmatched.

In addition, the dwarves' bad talk about others behind their backs was overheard by the people in question.

This made Thorin very embarrassed, so after nodding in acknowledgment, he tried to retreat back into the crowd.

"Wait, can I see the sword at your waist?" Just then, King Elrond, who held the initiative, inadvertently noticed the ancient Elven sword at Thorin's waist.

“Those are the swords that Redagast gave us on behalf of Mike. There are three in total…” Gandalf, who hadn’t been able to get a word in edgewise, seized the opportunity to help Thorin out: “Redagast said that Mike found these three swords in the ogre’s cave in the forest…”

Gandalf, of course, also heard what the dwarves had just said to King Elrond.

To help the dwarves ease tensions with King Elrond, Gandalf, after explaining the origin of the sword, gestured to Thorin with his eyes, urging him to quickly hand the sword at his waist to the Elvenking.

Thorin did not disappoint the wizard's kindness, and then obediently handed the sword at his waist to King Elrond.

To be honest, Thorin didn't hate all elves, but rather the Sindar elves of the Black Forest.

Or to be more precise, it was hatred for Thranduil, the Sindar Elf King of the Dark Forest.

When the dragon Smaug attacked Lonely Mountain, Thranduil was right there, yet he did not offer any help to the suffering dwarves of Durin.

It's worth noting that Thorin had specifically sought help from Thranduil at the time.

Therefore, from that time onward, Thorin, who was not very magnanimous to begin with, began to hate Thranduil, the Elvenking of the Black Forest.

Chapter 601 Rivendell and Moonlight

The Sindar elves were the true enemies of the Durin dwarves, and their relationship with the Noldor elves was actually quite weak.

Thorin and the Noldor Elvenking were both fully aware of this situation.

This is why Thorin, even though he knew Gandalf was leading the adventure party on a detour, still reluctantly came to Rivendell.

As for King Elrond, he didn't actually have any prejudice against the dwarves; at most, he just disliked their rudeness.

At this moment, Elrond in the square also showed the magnanimity expected of an Elvenking, and did not make things too difficult for Thorin and the other Durin dwarves.

"Excellent craftsmanship. This must be a sword forged by the ancient elves..." After admiring the ancient elven broadsword, King Elrond handed it back to Thorin and said kindly, "I hope you will use it well and not let this elven sword be tarnished."

"Of course~" Thorin took back the Elf Sword, glanced at the Elf Queen, and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

After all, the ancient elven sword is still an elven sword. If King Elrond really wanted to take back what belonged to the elves, Thorin would have no grounds to refuse to return it.

Next, Gandalf and Bilbo each handed their Elven swords to King Elrond for his appraisal.

The two of them were clearly not lost in their own thoughts like Thorin, and as a result, the atmosphere in the square became increasingly harmonious.

Later, during his conversation with the others, King Elrond learned that the three of them had each named their ancient elven swords:

Because the blade makes a crisp sound, Bilbo gave his short sword a cute name—the Clanging Sword.

The battle wizard Gandalf refers to his ancient elven longsword as the Enemy's Sword.

Finally, Thorin named his ancient elven broadsword Orcrest, which means beast-bite sword.

"Your Excellency Elrond, the dwarves will probably need your help on their journey to Lonely Mountain..." Taking advantage of the pleasant atmosphere, Gandalf then suggested that the Elvenking help the dwarves translate runes.

Because he was asking for a favor, Gandalf's tone was very polite.

Under normal circumstances, King Elrond would have readily agreed.

Just then, seeing the elven knights returning from the entrance and the handsome human walking in the procession, King Elrond reached out to stop the grey-robed wizard and said, "We can talk about this later. Our other guest has arrived."

It must be said that even elves are visual creatures, and Mike's exceptionally good looks instantly won over the Elf King.

Meanwhile, Mike, who had just entered Rivendell, was admiring the beautiful scenery. The light mist in the valley made the place look like a fairyland.

Beneath the lush shade of the trees and beside the babbling brook, the melodious songs of fairies drifted from time to time, adding a lively touch to this beautiful scene.

Just then, Michael saw King Elrond walking towards him, along with Gandalf and the others behind him.

"Lord Elrond, adventurer Mike greets you~" Mike greeted the Elf King with proper manners.

"As expected of the [Ogre Slayer]..." King Elrond looked at the human before him and said with satisfaction, "Welcome to Rivendell."

As mentioned earlier, the Elven race reveres heroes, and it would be even better if such a hero was not only powerful but also very polite.

"Long time no see, Gandalf...and Bilbo, how are you?..."

After greeting the Elf King, Mike also greeted the Grey Wizard and the Hobbit.

Especially the latter, Mike gave the "poor" Bilbo a caring hug.

Then, several dwarves in the crowd who "forgave each other" also spoke up to greet Mike, who had helped them.

Of course, this still doesn't include Thorin, the descendant of the royal family of the Durin dwarves, who still chose to stand by and watch.

"Friends have come, so please come in. I have prepared a banquet for you all." At this moment, King Elrond had a brief conversation with the returning elven warriors, and then extended an invitation to Mike and the others in the unique language of the elves.

Then, he took the lead and walked towards the Elven banquet hall.

"What is he saying? Is he insulting us?" The Elf King's tone was so formal that it caused some misunderstandings among the sensitive dwarves.

After all, under Thorin's influence, the dwarves of Durin all harbored some prejudice against the elves.

"No, His Majesty King Elrond is inviting us to a banquet." Fortunately, Gandalf was there, and he smiled as he cleared up the dwarves' misunderstanding.

"Oh, so you're treating us to a meal! We've been walking all this way, and I'm starving now..."

"I feel like I could eat a whole cow..."

"I wonder what elven cuisine is like, and how it compares to our dwarven food..."

"..."

The dwarves' excitement came and went quickly. Hearing that King Elrond was going to host a feast, the dwarves, who had never tasted elven food before, excitedly discussed what the Elven King would prepare for them.

"Mike, I heard you killed several trolls in the jungle the other day and saved a lot of humans..."

"...Also, is the Northern Highlands fun? And what's the deal with that giant eagle you were with..."

Because they didn't encounter the three trolls in the dense forest that required the entire adventure team to fight together, Bilbo's relationship with the dwarves in his party isn't as close as it used to be.

Having had no "friends" to confide in along the way, he became a chatterbox when he saw Mike again.

“I can share my story with you slowly later when I have the chance. But you, it seems, aren’t very happy in the adventure team.” Mike could tell that Bilbo was not doing well now compared to the carefree hobbit he used to be.

“Don’t even mention it. Those dwarves are not only rude, but they also have very strange personalities. They’re really hard to get along with…” Bilbo muttered to himself as he complained about Thorin and the others, then added, “Oh, right, I haven’t thanked you for the elven short sword you gave me. It’s been a great help.”

Bilbo has yet to prove his worth, so the dwarves haven't taken special care of him along the way.

Bilbo truly owes his safe exit from the dense forest to the ancient elven dagger in his hand, which can warn of approaching dark creatures.

Along the way, the sword helped him avoid several unknown dangers.

"Do you regret it?" Mike asked.

Bilbo, who lived a comfortable life in the Shire with plenty of food and drink, had absolutely no need to participate in this dwarven adventure.

"Thorin and his men may have bad tempers, but I don't regret this journey because I was able to help them reclaim their homeland..." Bilbo gave his answer after thinking for a moment.

It must be said that Bilbo truly lives up to his name; he is still the kind-hearted hobbit he always was.

Then, bathed in the afterglow of the sunset, the group followed the Elf King through the stone-paved corridor and arrived at the Elf tribe's open-air banquet hall.

The nature-loving elves of Rivendell built the banquet hall on a spacious mountaintop, offering panoramic views of the surrounding mountains.

"Please don't be shy, everyone, and enjoy the food to your heart's content!" Upon arriving at the banquet hall, King Elrond pointed to the table behind him, which was filled with elven delicacies, indicating that the dwarves could help themselves.

After a long and arduous journey, and today encountering dwarves being chased by dire wolves and orcs, they cheered and rushed to the dining table upon hearing that they could finally eat.

Then I froze...

A table laden with green, healthy food was nothing more than fodder to the dwarves. Only the fine wine brewed by the elves could satisfy them even slightly.

Compared to the dwarves' picky and complaining manner, Mike, Gandalf, and Bilbo were much more elegant.

The salad-like dishes, paired with Rivendell's unique spices, have a distinctive flavor if you savor them carefully.

As the host, King Elrond, sitting at the other end of the table, could hardly bear to look at the dwarves' rude behavior. Only when his gaze fell on Mike and his two companions did a smile return to his face.

As the banquet progressed into its second half, King Elrond, who didn't have a big appetite, summoned a group of beautiful female elves who performed a unique elven dance for everyone.

"If only Middle-earth were free from calamity..." At that moment, Gandalf, holding a glass of Elven wine, sat down with King Elrond.

“Protecting the peace of Middle-earth is our duty. If anyone is to blame, it is those dark creatures that are not dead but still alive,” King Elrond sighed.

“That’s exactly what I was about to say. The Lonely Mountain is a crucial gateway for the dark forces’ invasion of Middle-earth. If someone can reclaim it from Smaug, they will surely be able to curb the expansion of the dark forces.” Gandalf pointedly steered the conversation toward the dwarves.

"Oh? It seems you think highly of those Durin dwarves." King Elrond asked knowingly.

“Yes, that was their home.” Gandalf did not deny it, and continued, “But before that, the dwarves need to decipher a code written in runes if they want to enter the Lonely Mountain.”

At this point, the wizard stared directly at the Elf King, the plea in his eyes speaking volumes.

"Moonlight script (rune)? I happen to know a little bit about it. If you need any help, just ask," King Elrond generously offered, indicating his willingness to assist the dwarves.

"That's wonderful!" Gandalf smiled with delight, then called to the idle hobbit beside him, "Bilbo, go and have Thorin bring over that runic map. Tell him that King Elrond has agreed to help him translate the text on it."

At this moment, Mike was admiring the graceful dance of the female elves. Although these female elves were slender, there was no doubt that they were all very beautiful.

As for the female elves of the Elven race, they have a near-infinite lifespan and a constitution that allows them to survive on dew, which makes them have very low material requirements.

Thus, they turned their energy to spiritual pursuits.

This led the female elves to become exceptionally enthusiastic about worshipping "heroes".

Mike's title of "Ogre Killer" was quite famous, and his appearance also fit the Elven aesthetic.

Therefore, the group of female elves who came to perform the dance were particularly enthusiastic towards Mike in the crowd.

It can be said that the man was in love and the woman was interested in him.

However, this was tough on Bilbo, who, feeling neglected by his friends, had no choice but to gravitate towards the wizard.

Bored, he perked up immediately after receiving Gandalf's task and headed toward Thorin, one of the dwarves.

The group of dwarves from Dulin were already quite dissatisfied with the elven cuisine, and the delicate female elves were not exactly to their liking.

Therefore, with their resentment accumulating, the dwarves set their sights on the exquisite tableware on the dining table.

Some dwarves couldn't resist and secretly hid the elf's tableware in their clothes.

Thorin remained silent throughout the entire process.

"Thorin, Gandalf says the Elvenking has agreed to help us translate runes." Just then, Bilbo brought good news to the dwarves.

As the dwarves discussed whether the Elven King was trustworthy, Thorin stood up and said, "You all wait here. Balin and I will go and check on things."

Balin, who served three generations of the Durin dwarf royal family, always played the role of strategist among the dwarves.

At this moment, Thorin needed him.

“Mike is also going to Lonely Mountain, and he might run into the dragon there. Maybe we should call him over too, and listen to what the runes on the map say.” Bilbo’s idea was simple: he naively assumed that Mike, who shared the same goal as the dwarves, was an “ally” of Thorin and the others.

Since we are allies, we should share information with each other.

Therefore, after informing Thorin, Bilbo also thought of calling Mike, who was surrounded by elves, over as well.

"Are you crazy? Only we, the dwarves of Lonely Mountain, can open the treasure of Lonely Mountain." Thorin roughly grabbed Bilbo, expressing his disgust at the other's failure to recognize the situation.

Bilbo, who had been inexplicably scolded, was still a little confused. However, having made a pact with the dwarves, he respected Thorin's wishes.

……

"The writing on this text only becomes visible under moonlight. You're lucky; tonight's moonlight perfectly meets the requirements..."

When Thorin brought Balin and Bilbo to the Elvenking, King Elrond studied the moon runes on the map and said, "Please follow me."

So Thorin and the others, led by King Elrond, headed toward a palace.

Their commotion naturally caught Mike's attention. However, he was busy enjoying the elven ladies' enthusiasm and had no time to care about Thorin.

Of course, he also didn't care about the runes on the dwarf map.

After all, with Mike's strength, he could easily have broken through the gates of Lonely Mountain by force. He wouldn't have needed to decipher runes to find the path into Lonely Mountain.

And so, while Mike was enjoying the tenderness of the female elves, Thorin, full of hope, followed King Elrond into a crystal palace.

Moonlight shines through the clouds onto the palace, then is refracted and focused by the crystal above, forming a natural beam of moonlight on the stone table.