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

Chapter 391 Two Routes
"Let's talk about this when Bard and Thorin arrive!" Roland shrugged at Whitewing. After all, this kind of thing requires discussion among several parties, and the route is not fixed. If they have a better plan, Roland would not mind listening to their suggestions.

"Okay!" Bai Yi nodded. After all, the two of them wouldn't be able to come up with anything useful here, so it was better to wait until everyone was present before discussing it.

"Alright! Then you can stay here for a while! The conditions are limited, so please bear with us!" Roland quickly arranged for the guards to prepare a guest room for Bai Yi.

……

"How is the situation?" Yun Feng asked Roland, arms crossed.

"The White Wing King is not interested in my suggestion. The need to station troops at the old pass is a major problem!" Roland sighed.

“There’s more than one route; there’s always one that suits us! The North needs commerce to prosper! Similarly, the Kingdom needs Gondor’s grain and Rohan’s meat… Even if they’re unwilling, we have to come ourselves!” Yunfeng shook his head, signaling Roland to calm down.

“I understand! But I must say that the kingdom is currently unable to support an army stationed far away in the Misty Mountains! Supply will be a major problem!” Roland said helplessly.

“Without a strong transport team or a teleportation magic circle, we simply cannot afford an army that is scattered in the field. We can’t let our soldiers go to eat dirt!” Roland tapped the table.

“Then we’ll have to consider changing our route!” Yun Feng shook his head. Although this route was the best, it only led to the Shire region. If we headed south, we could enter the Rohan and Gondor regions.

"To Rohan and Gondor?" Roland asked thoughtfully. Baron Lansor had traveled that route once with his cavalry.

“Well, that’s the only way then. At least we don’t need to station troops along the waterways… The only dangerous place is the orcs of Dolgodo!” Yun Feng nodded.

……

"Hey! Where is your king? Where is my friend Roland?" Thorin appeared outside Stream City with Bard at dawn.

"We've been waiting for you for so long! Thorin, Bard!" Roland came out to greet them.

"Is that your wife?" Thorin had sharp eyes and spotted Nyx standing under the doorway at a glance.

“Yes, my wife!” Roland affirmed.

"Good luck! How's your back?" Thorin and Bard exchanged a glance and teased Roland.

"Hey! This king's golden spear is still strong, how can you say your back is bad?" Roland said, feigning anger.

"Let's go! The Unyielding King!" Bard patted Roland on the shoulder, and the group walked inside arm in arm. (Thorin: I suspect someone's prejudiced against dwarves' height!)
……

"Thorin! Bard!" Whitewing stood up and nodded in greeting.

"White Wing! Hello! How have you been?" Thorin and the others exchanged pleasantries.

"It's so-so, but we're starting to run out of basic supplies. We need to buy the items that we can't produce ourselves!" Bai Yi sighed.

“That’s why I’m here!” Thorin nodded. Dwarves also need to sell their smelting results to get what they need.

“The River Valley is in dire need of rebuilding…” Bard didn’t say much, but everyone could understand the River Valley’s predicament.

“Since we all share the same goal, let’s discuss how to make the North prosperous again and how to bring merchants back!” Roland said, taking the lead. “Please speak!” Thorin politely extended his hand in greeting.

“I’ve briefly discussed this with Whitewing before, and I plan to take the Woodland Kingdom route! Heading west from the middle of the Magic Stream, we’ll reach the territory of the Beorn, where the Northlanders’ settlement is built by Bion, a family of nature druids clad in bearskins! Once we get there, we can resupply in the town of Karlock; I believe Bion and his men will also need goods! Next to it is the Karl Rock Ferry; after crossing the ferry, we can head directly towards the Old Pass! To the west of the Old Pass is Rivendell! Beyond Rivendell lies the Eastern Road! It’s like we’re retracing the route of the Lonely Mountain Expedition! Thorin, you’re the most experienced in this area! Tell me if the plan is feasible?” Roland gestured on the map, while the other three listened intently to his explanation.

“Yes! We’re going to walk the same path we’ve taken before, but this time it should be much safer than before!” Thorin nodded.

"What should we do with the orcs at Gambada Fortress?" Bard asked, pointing to the north at Gambada Fortress with a grave expression.

“They only need to go south along the Langevlad River (the source of the Anduin River) and they can intercept us at the Old Pass!” Bard said, pointing to the map.

"So the main focus of our discussion now is how to control the old pass!" Roland pointed to the ancient pass.

"The old pass is easy to defend and difficult to attack, blocking the eastern side of the Misty Mountains. Although it lacks a complete castle defense system and has been in disrepair for many years... it would still cause a lot of trouble if it were repaired!"

"That place should still be under the control of the orcs, right?" Bai Yi said coldly, arms crossed.

“Maybe…” Thorin and Roland exchanged a glance. They hadn’t cleared out the local orcs, and Thorin hadn’t bothered with the goblins after escaping… which meant there was a strong possibility that the area was still under the control of orcs or goblins…

“Perhaps the Beorn can be of help!” Roland said.

“Those druids?” Thorin was taken aback, then remembered Bion.

“Hmm! They took in many northern humans and even built their own small town… I think…” Roland pondered for a moment.

"If possible, I would like to take control of that place!" The Dwarf King had a strong desire for control, especially in a region of such strategic importance.

“That’s unrealistic… I don’t have an army that can be stationed here permanently!” Bai Yi said with a wry smile.

“The army of the River Valley State is having a hard time even protecting itself…” Bard’s face was also grim.

“Don’t look at me… Thorin, I can’t afford to supply an army that’s constantly on the move!” Roland shook his head like a rattle.

"..." Thorin was stunned, and could only open his mouth and stare at the group in silence.

“Then we won’t be able to use this road for long, and the orcs will raid our caravans at any time…” Thorin sat down somewhat sullenly.

“Sigh…this is the second option!” Roland patted Thorin on the shoulder.

“We can also head directly south to the Anduin River! Don’t forget! Going downstream, we can reach the borders of Gondor and Rohan!” Roland explained.

"I'm afraid there are other reasons, otherwise such a good route wouldn't be an option! Tell me, what are its shortcomings?" Thorin looked at Roland for a few moments, then could only rub his temples and say.

"The problem isn't huge, but it's not insignificant either. I think there's a huge hidden danger! If we had won back then, this southward trade route should be our primary choice now!" Roland sighed.

(End of this chapter)