Far away in Isengard, Saruman had no idea that even the things he was curious about, or the food he wanted to eat, were being listed out and reported.
As for the other spies, without exception, their every move was under reverse surveillance.
Sometimes, the frightening thing isn't that you know nothing at all, but that everything you know is exactly what others want you to know.
Trying to extend one's hand into Eriador, this in itself was unwise.
"How has so much time passed without any news?"
Inside the tower of Orthanc, Saruman felt uneasy.
"These freeloaders... they'd better not let me find out they're slacking off."
Complaints aside, daily life had to go on.
That night, just as he put aside a day's worth of research and was preparing to rest a little, the great doors of the tower were knocked upon.
He turned over in bed, ignoring it.
Dong, dong, dong!
He covered his ears.
Dong, dong, dong, dong, dong...
Bang!
The crash jolted him violently.
He took a deep breath, gripped his staff tightly, and strode down the stairs.
By the time he reached the hall, the White Wizard was nearly out of breath.
"My door! Where is my great door!?"
"In my hands."
The last person he wanted to see answered him.
"You'd better put it back!"
"And what if I don't?"
The two glared at each other.
In the end, perhaps out of a guilty conscience of sorts, Saruman relented slightly. Word by word, he said, "Next time, don't even think about touching my door."
"It's just a door. I can replace it with a better one anytime. But I didn't come here to argue about that."
The cold wind blew in through the gap, carrying with it an ominous sense of foreboding.
"What do you want?"
"You should be asking your spies that."
Step by step, Garrett drew closer to Saruman, saying: "I never delay my revenge until the next day."
"So this is why you tear down my door in the middle of the night?"
"I don't know what grudges there are between us."
Saruman snapped angrily: "It's always been you unilaterally attacking me. I haven't even held you accountable, and yet you want to pin some baseless 'grudge' on me just to make trouble?"
"Enough is enough, or I'll show you what the true majesty of an Istar means!"
"Keep bluffing."
Garrett stopped at a measured distance. "Your spies have confessed everything."
"You keep saying spies, spies... I have no idea what you're talking about."
Saruman was still putting on a front.
"No matter. Whether you admit it or not, I already know it was you."
Garrett raised his head. "Understand this, I don't need you to confess to anything. Even if I said I came here just to make trouble, what could you do about it?"
"You're far too arrogant."
Saruman slammed his staff on the ground, his temper truly flaring now.
Garrett fixed his gaze on him, and said sternly:
"This is your last warning. Admit your guilt now, promise never to do such things again, and I'll forgive you. Tonight will just count as a visit. I'll even fix your door, and we can sit down and talk properly.
"But if you continue to deny what you've done, and keep scheming... I'll be back."
By this point, everything had been laid bare.
But someone as arrogant, conceited, and proud of his unmatched status as Saruman, how could he possibly bow his head over a few words?
"It seems my past tolerance and concessions have given you too much confidence."
With a dark expression, he said, "Today you'll learn the meaning of the word humility."
"Oh, really?"
Garrett slowly drew his sword. The blade gleamed with a blinding light.
Hm?
Did it just flicker?
"Then let's try."
Saruman's robes billowed though there was no wind, his figure radiating authority.
Garrett refocused, raising his sword and pointing it at Saruman.
"How many times have we fought already?"
"Hard to say. From the moment we met, we've been at odds."
"Then it's about time to settle this, Saruman."
"Heh."
Saruman let out a cold laugh and raised his staff.
"You're right. Remember, this is my tower, Garrett!"
Boom!
With a roar, he thrust his staff forward. A massive pressure swept forth, instantly snuffing out the flames around them. Ornaments and hangings in the hall were hurled against the walls and floor, shattering into pieces.
Even sight itself grew darker.
This was the fury of the White Wizard. As long as he stood within his tower, not even a horde of Nazgûl could bring him down.
Just as he had said, this was his domain.
Runic shields shimmered to life, helping Garrett withstand the crushing force. He bit into a golden apple, and a pale golden shield enveloped him.
The act made even Saruman wince, such a precious golden apple, eaten just like that, when Garrett wasn't even injured.
Whoosh
An ender pearl shot toward Saruman. Instinctively, he dodged, but in the next instant, with a flash of violet particles, Garrett appeared right in front of him.
Saruman's eyes widened. He quickly raised his staff, using its sheer hardness to block Garrett's blade head-on.
This time, it was Garrett who was surprised, the strike ended in a draw.
Clang!
Sparks flew, and the sound of metal clashing with metal rang through the hall. The two fought at close range several times, but Saruman, after all, was a wizard, not a true warrior. Soon he was overwhelmed, forced into a desperate roll to the side just to escape the flashing sword.
Swish
A sword aura sliced past, cutting a corner from Saruman's sleeve.
He quickly retreated several steps, widening the gap between them to more than ten meters.
Garrett was about to press forward when Saruman once again raised his staff and shouted, "Back!"
The voice boomed like thunder. Garrett's runic shield was instantly reduced by a large portion, yet the spell, as though bound by law, was blocked outside and did him no real harm.
Seeing that his strongest magical voice had failed, Saruman was truly shaken. As Garrett advanced, he hastily drew a dagger to parry the sword.
Just as the blade was about to cut down on his face, the air suddenly grew scorching hot. Flames coiled around him, and with a bang, they shattered Garrett's last shield, forcing him half a step back.
Sensing he had broken through something, Saruman quickly pursued, raising his staff and shouting: "Rise for me!"
Garrett felt a force pressing upward, trying to lift him into the air.
But it didn't work.
His emergency shield flared, blocking the sudden telekinetic assault.
"Curse that shield, why is there still more of it!?"
Saruman grew anxious.
Boom!
He summoned a fireball nearly half the size of a man and hurled it at Garrett.
It struck him head-on, exploding into flames that set the surroundings ablaze.
The runic shield shattered completely.
For the first time in a while, Garrett was injured.
"You may take pride in that."
He stepped out of the fire, orange-red flames still burning on his body, searing his life force.
He downed a fire-resistance potion, snuffing out the persistent flames.
"Oh? But this is far from the extent of my power."
Saruman's face darkened further.
Wizard, yes, still a wizard, and the mightiest of the White Robes.
He had reason for pride. An orc would already have been reduced to pieces. Even a troll would have collapsed under the same assault.
Wizards and mortals were fundamentally different.
Gandalf the Grey could perish alongside a Balrog, but Saruman the White stood higher in rank and power.
His raw combat might was even greater.
Chitter, chitter...
What was that sound?
Saruman looked up to see a small, dark-red creature flapping its wings toward him above Garrett.
"A bat?"
"A hellbat," Garrett corrected.
Saruman disdainfully swung his staff, swatting it to the ground.
Bang!
The creature exploded, though the blast was little more than a nuisance.
"Such petty tricks..."
He was about to sneer when a buzzing noise reached his ears.
In that brief moment, Garrett had already summoned hundreds of hellbats.
These creatures might be useless against Balrogs or massive beasts, but they were devastating against humanoid foes.
Saruman's eyes bulged. He raised his staff high, pointing at the swarm of hellbats:
"Begone!"
Boom!
Hundreds of hellbats exploded at once, cleared away by his single shout.
Garrett quickly hurled an ender pearl.
He had no choice, without shield protection, that one shout had already knocked him back several steps. Were it not for his armor's knockback resistance, he would have been flung outright.
"Where is he?"
When the swarm detonated, Garrett's figure vanished from sight.
Saruman's heart clenched.
Wait, that flicker of violet particles just now...
"Here."
A chilling voice spoke behind him.
Tap.
A hand gripped Saruman's shoulder.
He couldn't break free.
"Now that I've got you, you're in for it tonight, Saruman."
"Wait, Garrett, we can negotiate..."
Even as he spoke, Saruman suddenly spun, striking Garrett with a sneak attack. A massive telekinetic force surged forth, nearly lifting Garrett off his feet.
Fortunately, the runic shield had recovered a little, just enough to block the assault momentarily. That gave Garrett the chance to unleash his charging sword technique, closing the distance in an instant.
This time, Garrett would not hold back. He unleashed his full strength.
That night, Orthanc was anything but quiet. Flames, thunder, blazing light, explosions, and the sound of things shattering filled the tower.
It had to be admitted, a wizard within his own stronghold was truly hard to defeat.
But Garrett was unlucky for him, he had the power to reshape the battlefield itself.
Given enough time, he could gradually turn the enemy's home ground into his own.
Bang!
At last, the white-clad figure was knocked flat to the ground.
When the hall came back into view, from the great doors to the stairs, it was unrecognizable. Flames and lightning had scarred every surface. Blocks of stone, hastily erected as footholds or cover, lay scattered about.
In the year 2954, Saruman gave his word: he would no longer send spies to Wayfort or to any of the Free Cities, nor would he commit any act that threatened the Free Cities as a whole.
In the years that followed, even the Dunlendings grew cautious, no longer using Isengard as a base to harass Rohan's borders.