Snow.
This crystalline substance could usually only be seen in the high places of the Misty Mountains or the great snowfields of the far north... other places had to wait for winter's icy embrace.
But snow had never shown any particularly useful properties, so Levi hadn't paid much attention to it during his adventures.
However, while snow was useless, ice that often appeared with it was much more valuable.
Ice, or rather the non-melting blue ice crafted from regular ice, was essential for building high-speed passages.
In his first winter in this world, Levi decided to stockpile some materials with the methodical precision of a seasoned survivor.
On this day, he, who had returned from his distant journey, cleared the snow from the castle gate with powerful sweeps of his shovel and invited Gandalf in for a meal.
Then the old man immediately hurried off without even staying the night, his grey robes billowing in the cold wind.
"Thank you for the invitation, but if I don't leave now, I won't make it in time. I don't want the children calling me a liar."
"Well, I hope you have a pleasant New Year."
After seeing Gandalf off, the first thing Levi did was clear out the areas of his territory where he frequently moved about. Those layers of thick snow, while beautiful, really hindered movement like invisible chains.
This clearing yielded a whole chest of snow.
After several months away, the animals were still the same. Though exposed to heavy snow, they showed no abnormalities... quite cold-resistant creatures.
As for those original native animals from the beginning... the cattle, sheep, horses... they were now lying in covered sheds with heating stoves, lacking neither food nor water, living quite comfortably.
However, in comparison, the farm looked rather miserable.
As the weather turned cold, the water sources in the farm had all frozen into ice. Water turning to ice caused the nearby farmland to dry up as well, with crops directly turning into seeds that fell to the ground like nature's own inventory system.
Placing several glowstone blocks at the bottom of the water to provide heat and prevent freezing, Levi replanted the fields with determined efficiency.
"Mere heavy snow can't defeat my lodging-resistant crops."
After simply dealing with things in his territory affected by the heavy snow, evening arrived with its purple twilight.
Looking at the dark sky, Levi suddenly remembered what Gandalf had said about the soul needing rest.
So on this day, he rarely returned to his room for a sleep.
"Ah... comfortable."
Waking up, Levi felt refreshed, different from his usual constant energy. This feeling was like his entire state had been reset to full capacity.
Fundamentally different from the energy that came from being well-fed.
"Time to work!"
Walking into the warehouse and pulling out a large pile of materials, he planned out a large area and built an ice harvesting site with architectural precision.
Non-melting packed ice required nine regular ice blocks to craft one, while the blue ice needed for building high-speed ice roads required nine packed ice blocks to craft.
The amount of ice needed to build a road was quite substantial.
This was a long-term collection project.
Levi pulled out a pickaxe enchanted with Silk Touch and Mending and began chipping away at ice day and night with rhythmic determination.
Of course, after each harvest, the water always needed some time to freeze into ice again. During this time, he wouldn't just wait around at the ice harvesting site.
Instead, he used this gap to work on territory construction with the enthusiasm of a master builder.
After shoveling snow once, Levi really didn't want to shovel a second time. But unfortunately, the weather wasn't something he could control... once it snowed again, his territory would definitely be white again.
Fortunately, there were always ways to deal with this situation, like placing torches and glowstone.
These heat blocks could automatically melt falling snow, eliminating the trouble of clearing it.
So on frequently traveled roads and the main thoroughfares of his territory, Levi used glowstone or torches to build beautiful and warm streetlights along the roadsides that cast golden pools of light.
With streetlights, there naturally had to be roads, so he picked up materials again and built roads following the streetlight routes with meticulous care.
But having just roads and streetlights wasn't enough... it seemed too monotonous. So both sides of the roads gained some decorations: artificial landscape trees, small flower beds, stepped benches, railings, and small ponds, plus some gentle streams and small wooden bridges.
As he built, Levi couldn't help but think of Rivendell's scenery and architectural style, unconsciously incorporating some of it.
While Roadside Fort's aesthetic was constantly evolving, elsewhere, Gandalf had just finished a grand fireworks show in the Shire and was surrounded by cheering children, his kindly face smiling so much his eyes could barely be seen.
"Oh... alright, alright, good children, one last one, I can only set off one last one!"
Boom!
The firework exploded in midair like a flower of light, brightening the earth for an instant. All the hobbits in the settlement let out exclamations of wonder.
It was an incredibly joyful evening. Gandalf happily set off fireworks to his heart's content, and the children were so excited they spent the whole night reminiscing about those fireworks, lying in bed unable to sleep.
Perhaps in their dreams, those fireworks would bloom again.
"Gandalf, will you come again next year?"
Early the next morning, children surrounded the departing Gandalf with eager questions.
"Well, well, that's not certain, but I promise this won't be my last visit. Oh, I think I should be going. Goodbye, children!"
Gandalf waved as he left with his staff in hand.
"I have a feeling it's better to go this way."
He once again embarked on his journey, destination unknown but purpose clear.
People returned to their own paths, continuing to live as before.
Nothing eventful happened.
Days passed unknowingly, one after another.
Lightning flashed across the sky.
Rumble.
A heavy rain heralded the arrival of spring with its life-giving downpour.
Third Age 2941, March 15th.
Bree.
Inside The Prancing Pony, Gandalf suddenly turned his head and saw a dwarf who, though appearing somewhat down on his luck, possessed quite an extraordinary bearing that spoke of noble blood.
This face looked somewhat familiar...
Son of Thráin, Thorin?
The moment he saw this dwarf, Gandalf suddenly remembered the dwarf prisoner he had encountered nearly a century ago in Dol Guldur... tortured beyond recognition with even his memories fragmented like broken glass.
That dwarf had given him a key and a map, entrusting him to deliver these to his son with his dying breath.
But all this time, Gandalf hadn't known who that dwarf prisoner was, much less who his son might be.
However, the moment he saw Thorin, everything suddenly became clear, like pieces of a puzzle falling into place.
The dwarf who had given him the key and map was Thráin II, King of Durin's Folk!
And the dwarf before him was Thorin Oakenshield, who had inherited this title.
In an instant, Gandalf thought of many things.
At this moment, this fallen dwarf prince was concentrating on the food on his plate with weary focus. However, in this noisy inn, several malicious gazes were focused on him like predators watching prey.
Two thugs who had been waiting for some time slowly stood up, forming an encirclement from both sides with practiced menace.
They were spies bought by outside enemies.
Thorin slowly put down the food in his hands, one hand already resting on his sword hilt with the instincts of a warrior.
"Mind if I share your table?"
A voice that inexplicably brought peace suddenly came, interrupting the tense atmosphere like a calming spell.
Thorin looked up to see a grey-robed old man plop down across from him with casual authority.
Seeing the situation developing in an unknown direction, the two thugs exchanged glances and chose to retreat and observe.
"Let me introduce myself... I am Gandalf, Gandalf the Grey."
"I know of you."
Obviously, Thorin had heard of this strange old man and his reputation.
"Oh, that's good. What a coincidence today... speaking of which, what brings Thorin Oakenshield to visit Bree?"
"I heard someone had seen my father wandering in the wilds near the Black Lands. I went looking... found nothing."
"Thráin..."
Gandalf sighed with the weight of old sorrows.
The music of fate began to play once more.
[Chapter Complete]
***
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