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

Chapter 246 Simon of Moria

"Are we leaving already? Shouldn't we rest for a few more days?" Elrond asked Roland, looking at the allied forces who were all ready to depart early in the morning.

“Time is running out. I don’t want the orcs of Dolgodor Fortress and Gombard Fortress to realize what’s happening and move in! That would increase our casualties! And we’ve already been exposed to the Gombard orcs! They chased my royal banner and intercepted me in the Misty Mountains, but my men scared off their leader, the Fourth Ringwraith Amorazo, so they retreated. But there’s no guarantee they won’t come back, so we have to hurry.” Roland shook his head and declined Elrond’s offer.

"Alright then, please let me know if you need any supplies, and I will do my best to help you prepare them. I wish you a safe journey back!" Elrond said, patting his chest in a humble and gentle tone.

"Hahaha! Thank you, King Elrond! If I really don't make it back, please go to Moria and retrieve my royal banner to bring back to my country!" Roland said solemnly.

"Huh?" Elrond was stunned. Moria might be shrouded in darkness and filled with terror, but couldn't you think of something positive? What, a hero and two dragons (uh...who says faerie dragons aren't dragons? Come on, step forward, let me see!) couldn't protect you? You went to fight Moria, not Mordor! It's like you're entrusting your life to a dying emperor...People can be down-to-earth when they talk, but when it comes to the underworld...

“Hehe, just kidding! Don’t worry, Moria isn’t a den of dragons and tigers. After this matter is settled, let’s take some time to gather the leaders of Rohan, Gondor, the Shire militia, Rivendell, the Golden Forest, the Kingdom of the Mountain, Ironhill Ridge, Akvia, Singrey, and my Lagrange Kingdom. Let’s see if we can form a coalition army and wipe out Mordor. What do you think?” Roland asked Elrond with a smile.

"King Roland, you're truly a genius! If you had been there during the Final War, Sauron would have been driven back to his homeland long ago!" Elrond glanced at Roland, the implication being, "You're quite the smooth talker, why would anyone form an alliance with you? What's in it for them? Forget about Sauron's return; even if the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up. The complexities of human nature are beyond imagination. The elves might keep their promise and form an alliance, but the dwarves and humans… forget it, I'd rather hope the orcs of Mordor rebel…"

“…Sigh…” Roland sighed helplessly. Sauron was still weak, still massing his forces in Mordor. If they eliminated him now, the Lord of the Rings storyline wouldn't need to continue. But that's the complexity of human nature; who would willingly do something so thankless? Roland, for one, wouldn't go it alone. (Lagrange's generals: Listen to me, thank you! You think you're so great, so high and mighty! You think you can take on the Nine Ringwraiths?)
"You underestimate the Modo. There's a reason he can stay there so peacefully. Orcs also have their own Tier 6 combat power!" Elrond said helplessly, seeing through Roland's thoughts. Unless it's a matter of life and death, who would offer their own Tier 6 power to an orc? No one is so righteous. Middle-earth is essentially still a world where the strong prey on the weak.

"Thank you for telling me, King Elrond. We shall meet again!" Roland said to Elrond, patting his chest.

"Be careful. If things get really bad, you can consider going through the East Gate to Lorean to ask Queen Galadriel for help, or you can retreat back to Rivendell," Elrond kindly advised.

“Okay, thank you for your hospitality…” Roland said.

……

"King Roland, what did you and King Elrond talk about?" Balin asked curiously. Given his current status, he was naturally not qualified to participate in Roland and Elrond's discussion, but that didn't stop him from being curious.

"We talked about the prospects of the Moria expedition. Although Elrond wasn't optimistic about us, he still sent us his blessings..." Roland smiled and shook his head.

"Your Moria West Gate should be by Mirror Lake, right? I hope you remember the way!" Roland said with a smile.

"Don't worry! The dwarves won't forget their homeland!" Balin laughed heartily.

"I heard you have a cousin named Jin Pi?" Roland suddenly realized that this guy was supposed to be the young dwarf's cousin? The age gap was too big, wasn't it?

"Yes! That little fellow will definitely be the most valiant warrior of the dwarves! He will surely be the pride of our family!" Balin said proudly. "..." Roland was silent for a moment. In every respect, Jinpi was indeed doing better than Balin. In the game, he was a sixth-tier overlord, the King of Moria! In the original story, he was the only dwarf to go to the Eternal Land... On the other hand, Balin? Sigh... Not only was he ambushed by the orc Sixth Brother, but he also lost his vast family fortune, and in the end, he was even dragged down by the Fellowship of the Ring, with ogres practically flipping his coffin lid...

“Let’s go! Getting there is the priority. We need to reach Moria as soon as possible! The orcs of Mordor and the orcs of Dolgodor Fortress may be intercepted by Queen Galadriel’s elven army, but the orcs of Gombard can easily bypass us and ambush us at the east gate!” Roland said seriously.

“I’ll make them speed up!” Bahrain nodded; the dwarves’ short legs were indeed slowing down the allied forces.

……

"Huff... Holy crap! This is going to kill me!" Roland lay sprawled on the horse's back, wearing a mask of pain. This damn road was full of potholes! Oh! No! There wasn't even a road!

“Mountain…gable wall!” Bahrain suddenly exclaimed excitedly.

"Home! Kathmandum! Our home!"

"Dwarf City!"

"We're home!"

"The dwarves are back! We're back!"

Hundreds of dwarves excitedly raised their weapons in celebration, roaring and shouting. The veins on their necks and their flushed faces spoke volumes about their excitement and joy.

"My God!" Roland looked up and saw a spectacular scene!
The so-called gable was actually created by the dwarves cutting and flattening half of the mountain, forming a giant wall a thousand meters high! This shows just how great Kazal-d'Um was at its peak, with thousands of dwarves living there. However, the dwarves' decline and greed led them to release a Balrog they couldn't defeat, causing the place to be abandoned. Later, orcs and goblins, along with other dark races, occupied the area. The dwarves tried to reclaim it, but how could they, who couldn't even drive away Smaug, possibly conquer Moria, which was teeming with elite orcs?

"Don't get excited! Find the gate. Also, stay away from the lake and don't disturb it!" Roland instructed. After all, the underwater watchers could be dealt with slowly after Moria was subdued, but they couldn't afford to slow down his progress!
"Yes! Let's go into the city first!" Bahrain exclaimed excitedly, slapping his forehead.

"Your Highness! There seems to be something in the water?" Caslo suddenly frowned; as a dragon knight, his senses were more acute than those of ordinary heroes!

"Never mind it for now! Let's take back Moria first and then talk about it!" Roland shook his head. If the underwater watcher knew what was good for it, they could talk about it later. If it dared to show itself, Roland wouldn't mind giving it a good beating.

Dear readers, it's been three days since Xiaoyang was born, and his high fever persists. Please forgive me if there are any breaks in updates.

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(End of this chapter)