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

Chapter 226 Descendants of Turin
"Raise your shields! Hold the line! The enemy is about to descend from the darkness! Watch out for every corner in the shadows!" Officers shouted as they ran through the ranks.

"Children! Hold the line! Split their heads open with your axes! No one can stop us from returning home! Sons of Turin for Caesardoom! Fight! Fight!" The white-bearded Balin donned dwarven heavy armor, his double-edged axe gleaming in the campfire. At this moment, the future King of Moria led the procession, axe in hand and shield in hand.

"Clang!" The sharp Dragon Slayer Sword was drawn, and Roland took a deep breath, picked up Eliar, and walked toward the shield wall formed by the Royal Guards of Lagrange.

"People of Lagrange! For our homeland! For our allies! For our future! Tear apart the enemy! The empire's revival is unstoppable! Any enemy that stands in the way of the Lagrange army will be crushed into dust! Follow the dragon banner and crush the enemy!" Roland, his blood boiling, had only taken two steps when Caslo grabbed him and dragged him back to the rear.

"Let me go! The King of Lagrange will fight alongside his people!" Roland was clearly out of his mind at this moment.

"Quiet! Your Highness! If you don't want Lagrange to lose its last king, then I suggest you stay in the back. Besides, your injuries are not enough for you to fight on the front lines!" Caslo frantically dragged Roland toward the command tent, shouting as he did so.

"Lagrange's loyal Royal Guards! Form a squad of ten! Protect the King! Remember, His Highness's life is of utmost importance! I want you to protect him with your lives! And keep a close eye on His Highness; I don't want him in front of me during the battle!" Castor roared at the soldiers in formation behind Roland's tent.

Soon, ten fully armed guards, like human tanks, surrounded the tent, making Roland's defenses impenetrable. Unless there was a large-scale enemy attack, no one who slipped through the net could break through their lines.

“Thank goodness, I was just wondering how to persuade His Highness to go back. Hey, but you’re really rough. Aren’t you afraid His Highness will blame you later?” Omske said admiringly. Daring to forcibly drag the king away, it was no different from dragging a sack! Caslo was truly the bravest person he had ever met.

“It’s alright, he will forgive me! Now we just need to bring him victory!” Caslo calmly put on his helmet and pulled down his visor. As one of the earliest generals to follow Roland, he knew that his king seemed to be a bit out of place in this era, especially in his dealings with people. He did not have the aloofness of other kings.

“Then let us repay Your Highness with a victory!” Omske nodded in agreement.

"Take care of yourselves! I don't want you to trade your lives for these damned blacks! This is also His Highness's decree! Your lives are worth far more than theirs!" Caslo announced the order, knowing how much Roland valued the lives of his soldiers.

……

"Alternating cover fire! Damn it! Get out of here! Back to camp! Let the tin cans handle them!" the rangers shouted to each other.

"Fire! The camp is just ahead! Brothers, give it your all! His Highness is just ahead! Don't fall behind! Keep up!" The Lordaeron ranger captains shouted hoarsely.

"Oh! The bearded man of Turin! Look! Look! There are quite a few enemies!" Balin gripped the axe handle tightly with tension.

"They're behind us! Watch out, those guys' spears are accurate!" Suddenly, the jungle was broken open by several figures. The dwarves who had raised their battle axes were surprised to find that several half-elves had rolled out! Several Lordaeron rangers dragged their wounded companions and quickly came to the front of the formation, passing through the gaps left by the dwarves.

"Hey! Friends! What's going on inside?" Balin turned to the rangers who had just fought a bloody battle and asked.

“There are many enemies, we can’t see how many there are. We tried to resist, and as you can see…” A ranger captain pointed to his battered men. Although no one had died, many had been grazed by javelins! Only the Lordaeron rangers with elven blood could evade those attacks so nimbly. If it were the heavy rangers of the Lagrange Empire, there would have been heavy casualties.

"You've done a good job, leave the rest to us!" Balin patted the heavy breastplate, the bright silver plate armor exuding the charm of steel in the night.

"Fight! Sons of Turin! Reclaim our glory! We have reclaimed the Lonely Mountain! We have crushed Azog! Now we will return to our homeland! And these scum will stop us! Tell me! Children, do you agree?" Bahrain gave his final pre-battle pep talk.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!" The sound of axe handles striking shields rang out in unison, causing all the Lagrange soldiers to turn their heads.

“The situation seems a little better than I thought… This group of dwarves has a very strong fighting spirit, truly worthy of being the descendants of Turin—the Longbearded Dwarf Clan.” Caslo sighed as he listened to the sound of the dwarf battleaxes clashing against shields.

"Hmm! This battle is much easier! These dwarves are as tenacious as you said. It seems we don't need to worry about them anymore. I'll go command from the rear!" Omske nodded. Because he joined relatively late, he missed the bloody battle at Lonely Mountain at the beginning of the Lagrang Kingdom's restoration, but he had heard from others how brave and fearless this dwarven tribe was, and it turned out that those were not just rumors. "Whoosh!" The distinctive sound of spears piercing the air came from the darkness.

"Defense!" Bahrain roared, his eyes wide.

Before Balin could finish speaking, a crimson glow emanated from all the dwarves' shields! The unique skill of the long-bearded dwarves: Turin Iron Wall!

(After activation, it consumes some Battle Qi to increase resistance, stamina, defense, and strength by 50%! This effect ends when Battle Qi is depleted!)
Like elves with their long lifespans, the dwarves have ample time to advance to the ranks of professionals. Therefore, while Thorin couldn't provide Balin with high-end combat power, an army of 500 first and second-tier warriors was certainly achievable. This force was about to show the trolls why the dwarves had been able to stand strong in Middle-earth for so many years!

"Clang! Clang! Clang!" Like raindrops, spears rained down from the sky. At this moment, the advantage of the dwarves' small stature became apparent. The large shields at a 45° angle could completely cover their bodies. The dwarves hiding behind the shields could only hear the crackling sounds, but no attack could break through their defenses!

"Crack!" With a single axe stroke, the wooden spear embedded in the large shield was severed, and Balin spat out a mouthful of saliva.

"These scumbags think they can stop us with this junk? They're overestimating themselves! Sons of Turin, attack!" Bahrain sounded the horn of counterattack.

……

"The dwarves have engaged the enemy! It's Lord Balin's side... Stay alert!" Caslo frowned.

“It seems the dwarves got their business first.” Omsk stood at the front of the formation, leaning on his greatsword, blending in with the Dovenian heavy swordsmen beside him, looking imposing.

“Oli! It’s Bahrain! They’ve started fighting!” Ou Yin said anxiously, turning his head.

"Trust him! He has more experience than us, he's our leader! Do our jobs well! As a veteran, he knows what to do!" Ouli said calmly.

……

"Guards! What's going on?" Roland, who was being protected, also heard the shouts of battle and quickly came out of the tent to ask.

“Your Highness, it’s dangerous outside. I suggest you go back. Also, that commotion just now must mean the dwarves and trolls are at war,” a royal guard explained, shielding Roland from view.

“No, I have to go check on our men… Come with me, soldiers!” Roland frowned.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness, but I cannot carry out your orders. Your injuries have not yet healed, and it is too dangerous ahead. I cannot let you take the risk." The royal guards formed a circle around Roland.

“I feel obligated to go and see my soldiers,” Roland said, forcing himself to speak.

“But you have a greater obligation to ensure your own safety. After all, we have no other king, and you have no children.” The royal guards remained unmoved.

“…You’ve won…” Roland shrugged and stepped back.

(End of this chapter)