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

Chapter 870 The Heartless King

"Your Majesty means to get rid of him? Are we going to make a move on the Southern Kingdom?" Renault looked interested, as if he had discovered a new continent. He took a few steps and then came closer.

"Your Majesty has finally seen the light? You've started planning for the south? Although the empire's territory is very rich, the land in the southern kingdoms is also incredibly fertile. Hmm! The land under heaven belongs to the virtuous! What does Your Majesty intend to do?" Renault lowered his voice, as if he had seen through Roland's thoughts.

“However, I suggest we wait and give it to him first!” Renault gestured towards his neck.

"After dealing with Aragorn, we'll first take over the lands in the North, and then we'll set our sights on the South. At the very least, we must reclaim the southern border of the Empire so that we can connect with the lands of Gondor. Let's work hard! Let's strive to achieve this in His Majesty's lifetime!" Renault excitedly described the future. The vastness of the blueprint thrilled Renault. What achievement could drive a warrior more mad than reclaiming lost territory? It must be the expansion of territory!

"Ahem! General Renault, please sit down." Duke Giorstedia quickly got up and helped Renault to the side, wiping the cold sweat from his brow.

“General Reno, you seem to have gone a bit too far!” Yun Feng hurriedly said. Roland had only instructed them to keep an eye on this suspected sole heir of the Gondorian bloodline, but Reno actually wanted to fast-forward to the point of killing him…

"Really? Just cut off their bloodline and there won't be any legal disputes!" Renault said with a serious face. Although he couldn't use such unethical methods in his own country, that didn't stop him from using them in foreign countries! What could be more efficient and simple than cutting off their lineage?

"His Majesty currently has no plans to conquer the south!" Joelster said helplessly, rubbing his forehead. Wasn't Renault's thinking a bit too far ahead of his time?
"Ah... what's the point of paying attention to this person?" Renault frowned. What's the point of paying attention to an heir who has nothing but the advantage of bloodline? Are you going to watch him wander around?
"I don't know, but we just need to do as His Majesty orders. We have enough manpower to keep an eye on a lone wolf!" Joelster shook his head.

"Perhaps our Emperor is plotting another trap for Gondor? After all, his belly is so ripped open, his heart is completely black! I wouldn't offer my help for no reason!" Yun Feng, already provoked by Roland, sneered. What kind of good person is someone who can use you like a beast of burden! That person's heart is as black as a dumpling!

Hearing Yunfeng's words, everyone couldn't help but think of Roland's open scheme against Denethor II, and a chill ran down their spines. It could only be said that in Middle-earth, where moral standards were relatively high, Roland, who had studied the cunning history of a five-thousand-year-old introverted child, was terrifyingly powerful. If Roland were to truly disregard his own reputation, he could easily stage a Middle-earth version of the White-Clad Crossing of the River! Yunfeng and the others could guarantee with their bare hands that even if Roland's army marched to the foot of the White King's city, Gondor might not even notice!

Fortunately, everyone understands King Roland. Although Roland can be a bit shameless at times, he hasn't gone to such extremes.

While everyone's thinking was still focused on killing the heir and then plotting to seize the southern lands, little did they know that Roland, upon learning of Aragorn's appearance, had actually conceived a plan to tie him up and hand him over to the great Lord Denethor II, arranging for him to kill Aragorn himself. Roland would then secretly use a recording crystal to seemingly inadvertently record this secret! This way, Roland could use the crystal to blackmail and remotely control Denethor II. In simpler terms, it's like that famous line from the Hermit: "This secret is enough for me to live off you for the rest of my life!"

Ultimately, what forced Roland to end the plan was that this world was slightly different from the original book and the movie. No one could say for sure what trump cards Aragorn had in the game's world. If Denethor II were to be unexpectedly killed by Aragorn, that would be a huge problem!
The better situation was that Exelian II, enraged by the loss of his son, rebelled, declared himself king, and eliminated Aragorn, the original royal descendant. However, the nobles loyal to the Gondorian royal family and those opportunists were bound to follow suit, making a massive civil war inevitable! No one knew how the war would unfold, but Roland knew it would cripple Gondor! Whether the War of the Ring could withstand the Orcs was uncertain, and if Gondor were to fall to the Mordor after the civil war, Roland would be in deep trouble!
If things were to turn out worse, the Regent's family would have swallowed their pride and supported Aragorn, returning power to him. However, that would not have been in line with Roland's strategy of weakening Gondor. After all, Roland wanted to continuously bleed Gondor to make him a frontline tank, not to bleed Gondor to death in one go or to let them heal their wounds faster than bleeding them dry.

Therefore, directly killing Aragorn was too risky. Too many unpredictable risks made Roland feel constrained! This made Roland feel ironic. When he had nothing, he could lead his soldiers to risk thousands of miles to seize land, but after he became wealthy, he had to be careful in everything he did. Sure enough, the old saying that "barefoot people are not afraid of those wearing shoes" is still becoming more and more valuable!
……

"Legolas, are you alright?"

"Aragorn, are you alright!" Legolas asked Aragorn immediately upon returning, and Aragorn also stood up anxiously to inquire. Their simultaneous greetings instantly brought smiles to their faces, all their worries vanishing.

"Thank goodness, General Maple Leaf stopped me to pay my respects to King Whitewing and then rushed back to find you! But when I got back, I found you weren't at the door, and it took me a long time to find out you were back at the inn!" Legolas said breathlessly, the fine beads of sweat on his forehead showing that he had obviously been searching for a long time.

“It’s alright, those guards stopped me from going in, and I couldn’t force my way in, so I had to come back and wait for you at the inn!” Aragorn shrugged, and then told Legolas with a smile the story of how the innkeeper, fearing trouble after they were arrested, kicked their luggage out of the inn.

"Hahaha! It's all your fault! Who told you to open the window for no reason?" Legolas laughed heartily.

“I didn’t push you, I didn’t tell you to jump!” Aragorn retorted, not to be outdone. The two had been traveling together for so long and were so in sync that they could understand each other with just a gesture. Aragorn was being stubborn.

"Alright, alright! Next time I'll throw you down to scout ahead first!" Legolas shook his head.

"No, no, no, next time I've decided to take the stairs!" Aragorn shook his head. Falling from the sky was too terrifying and could easily frighten people and cause misunderstandings. He would learn from his mistakes.

"Tsk tsk tsk!" Legolas clicked his tongue in amazement. With Aragorn's birth chart and his cowardice, who would dare to take the stairs!

……

"Hmm? Renault is an interesting kid!" Roland smiled slyly. He took the envelope, looked at it, and pushed it to Adolf Heinrich across from him.

"What's wrong?" Adolf Heinrich took the letter and began to read it.

"This...isn't that a bit inappropriate?" As a legitimate nobleman, Adolf Heinrich still had some sense of shame. Such behavior would be met with the collective condemnation and expulsion of all nobles in the aristocratic circle, as it would violate the rules of the game. Of course, doing this to foreign nobles wouldn't be targeted by everyone; it would only make people think that the family had no class.

"It's alright, at least he's not as ruthless as me!" Roland chuckled. Compared to his own expectations, Renault's methods were already considered merciful.

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