The Lord of the Rings: Lords of Middle-earth.

Chapter 205 Barbecue
"It's really not easy to have wine these days!" Badr sighed. The nomadic people, apart from exchanging some crude wine with the northern inhabitants like the nomadic grassland elves and goblins and dwarves, simply couldn't afford to brew their own. Grain was considered hard currency in the Middle-earth. Compared to perishable and hard-to-carry wild fruits and vegetables, grain could be moved with the people. Without a fixed place to live, the people didn't have farmland. They would only cook some thin porridge to celebrate on grand festivals. Otherwise, they lived a life of fishing and hunting.

Ironically, centaurs are actually the race with the highest talent for farming in Middle-earth! An adult centaur can plow dozens of acres of land a day. Their strong limbs and well-developed muscles, combined with battle aura or magic, make it easy for them to plow and till the land. But unfortunately, they do not have a unified "sword" to protect their plows!

"Cheers to our prosperity!" Roland raised his glass and shouted.

"Cheers! To the King!" Badr also raised his glass.

"Bang!" The two oak glasses collided. Roland and Badr simultaneously raised their glasses and drank them down in one gulp. After Roland finished his glass, he smacked his lips and found that this cloudy ale tasted no different from beer!

"Hey girl, have some ice." Roland gently patted Nyx's pert bottom, who was curled up next to Nia eating snacks.

While marveling at the amazing feel of the ice, Roland couldn't help but feel a deep respect for magic! Look! Look! How about making ice with bare hands?
"Ugh!" Nyx was startled, turned around and glared at Roland coquettishly, letting out a soft moan from her mouth full of pastries.

"What? It's not that hot yet, be careful not to catch a cold!" Nyx swallowed the pastry in her mouth and rolled her eyes at Roland. Although she looked disdainful, her words were full of concern.

"Just a little bit more, ice wine is the best way to enjoy it." Roland gently ruffled Nyx's blonde hair, coaxing her like a kitten.

"Drink less, you'll get diarrhea." Seeing he couldn't argue with Roland, Nyx quickly succumbed to the warmth of Roland's hand. He then casually grabbed at the air, and a ball of icy blue magic gathered, quickly converting the water molecules in the air into several two-centimeter square blocks of ice. (A water mage's power is to control water, and ice is the strongest form of water! Therefore, water mages can also use basic ice spells.)
"Plop! Plop!" As the ice cubes floated up and down in the yellow liquor, Roland suddenly felt a pang of sadness. How he missed his days on Earth! Although he couldn't decide the fate of thousands, and he didn't have a crown to accompany him... the peace and warmth of home there were unforgettable for Roland. Fortunately... she was in this world! Roland turned to look at Nyx, who was still struggling with a snack made from a plant root, and a gentle warmth welled up in his heart.

"It's a pity there are no crayfish." Roland suddenly chuckled. Everyone says that crayfish goes well with beer, but if there are no crayfish, barbecue will have to do. The identity of the high-level magical beast Earth Boar is not an insult to this barrel of cloudy wine.

"What shrimp?" Bader scratched his head, somewhat puzzled.

"It's nothing. Baron Bader, get us some roast meat! Drinking alone is a bit bland." Roland thought it would be better to have some snacks to go with the drinks.

"No problem!" Badr patted his chest and prepared to call people to grill the meat.

"Roland~ I want to eat your grilled fish!" Suddenly, Nyx's sweet voice came. Compared to the simple salt used for barbecue in Middle-earth, Roland's special barbecue seasoning, given by the system's daily check-in, was simply a delicacy!
"Um... Badr, could you prepare a barbecue grill? I'll do the grilling!" Roland smiled awkwardly.

"Okay, okay, of course! I'll have them prepare right away!" Baldr immediately ordered two strong centaurs to bring over a grill. It was quite funny, actually, the grilling ingredients were provided to them by Stream City. After all, centaurs don't know anything about iron smelting, so it must have been really difficult for them to build such a big grill.

Roland skillfully added the finest charcoal, and then a ball of holy flame ignited in his hand. To his shame, the holy flame, the most powerful weapon for paladins against evil forces, was being used by Roland to ask for some charcoal... This was enough to make the first generation of paladins furious. Didn't you see Baldr standing there dumbfounded, holding his tinderbox?

"Isn't he handsome?" Roland said to Nyx with unbridled narcissism.

"Hmm! You look so cool using the Holy Flame like that! I hope the holy heroes of Lagrange won't be so angry they'll come back to life. I think our ancestors' coffins are about to burst open!" Nyx chuckled. You see, the first Grand Duke Nyx was also a holy hero! (Sixth-tier paladin) If he were alive... he'd probably be so angry he'd come back to life.

"This... is it really a matter of life and death?" Roland asked deliberately.

"Pfft!" Badr, whose face was flushed from holding back his laughter, couldn't help but burst out laughing. "I'm sorry! Your Highness... it was... I was being rude," Badr said, breathless.

"Enough! I will forgive your rudeness!" Roland said, feigning profundity, his arrogant demeanor reminiscent of the former Emperor Lagrange!
"Alright! Stop pretending! My fish is about to burn!" Nyx pinched Roland's soft flesh at the waist, instantly revealing Roland's true colors.

“Fish are so cute, how can you eat them?” Roland teased Nyx as he flipped the white fish while grilling it.

"Add more cumin! Less chili!" Tears welled up and streamed down Nyx's handsome lips.

"..." Roland.

"Extremely spicy?"

"do not want!"

"Extremely spicy?"

"Less spicy!"

"Super spicy?"

"Go to hell!" Enraged, Nyx unleashed a flurry of punches at Roland's broad back, but... what damage could a mage's melee attack possibly do?

(At this moment, a monk surnamed Gan passed by, glanced at Roland disdainfully, and cursed at him.)
"Hmm? It smells so good!" The moment the cumin touched the fish, a fragrant aroma wafted towards everyone along with the rising white smoke.

Badr's eyes widened, Nia's eyes widened, and Nyx's eyes widened too. Three pairs of shifty eyes were fixed on the poor grilled fish. One could only imagine what it would experience once it was served…

"Hiss hiss hiss~" As a small pinch of chili powder was evenly sprinkled on both sides of the grilled fish, a special aroma wafted over.

"Girl, could you get me a wooden tray?" Roland asked affectionately.

"Thud!" Badr, who had been waiting nearby, leaned in and handed over the wooden tray he had been planning for a long time.

"Hey! Eat slowly! Be careful, it's hot!" Roland warned before circling the giant boar, looking for a good cut to grill as tenderloin or pork belly.

"Hmm! This will do!" Roland looked at the Earth Boar's muscular shoulder blades and decided to cut off a foreleg, cut some meat off, and distribute the rest to the knights and centaurs.

(End of this chapter)