"Lady Galadriel."
Levi nodded in greeting, truly unsure what the Lady of the Golden Wood wanted with him.
As Galadriel gradually approached with ethereal grace, Levi could feel a trace of sacred radiance emanating from this lady, as if it would purify him with its divine presence.
Levi unconsciously raised his head and met her piercing gaze.
If he remembered correctly, this lady's ability to perceive the future was much stronger than that of wizards and other elven lords. She could see farther and in greater detail.
The moment Levi raised his head.
Instinctively, Galadriel tried to see something through his eyes with the power that had gazed across ages.
However, when she actually attempted to do so, she suddenly paused slightly.
She could see nothing...?
"Your future is full of uncertainty."
After a moment of silence, Galadriel said this with mystical authority that carried the weight of prophecy.
Levi didn't know whether this counted as praise or something else, and remained silent for a moment.
However, although she couldn't see deep into the future, she could still perceive some possibilities regarding Levi's near future, especially since these possibilities were intertwined with the fates of others and could be deduced from the side.
"Many possibilities of this expedition lead to bad outcomes, but with your participation, perhaps those things can be corrected."
"I wish you a smooth journey, Adventurer Levi."
"After this matter is concluded, you are welcome to visit Lothlórien as a guest."
At this moment, Galadriel was quite curious about Levi's completely blank future. Having lived so long, this was truly the first time she'd encountered such a situation.
When he came to the Golden Wood, she could try using the Mirror to reveal something.
"Thank you for your blessing. I will."
Galadriel smiled and nodded with ethereal grace that seemed to make the very air shimmer.
Levi felt somewhat dazed. When he came to his senses, that holy figure had already disappeared.
"Levi!"
Suddenly, someone called from below the steps with urgent intensity.
Turning his head, he saw a grey-robed old man hurrying forward, saying urgently: "We must set out quickly. Thorin and the others have already gone far. This isn't something we can catch up to in a short time."
"The elves say they went along the High Pass. Who knows if the orcs have returned there after all these months. If they're ambushed, that would be terrible."
Although the orcs at the High Pass had already been cleared out by Levi, no one could say for certain whether the place had been reoccupied after Levi left.
"The High Pass? That's really... I hope they're alright."
Levi turned to fetch his horse.
"Oh, wait. I suggest you temporarily leave the horse in the elves' care, since the road we're about to take isn't exactly smooth."
Not only would they have to traverse steep, narrow mountain paths, but they might also have to pass through dark, cramped caves.
These places were indeed not suitable for bringing a mount.
"Alright, then let it stay here temporarily."
"Let's go!"
While Levi and Gandalf were hurrying along the route the dwarves had taken.
On Thorin's side, the group had finally escaped the stone giants' playground and were all quite exhausted from their harrowing ordeal.
Unfortunately, the thunderstorm overhead continued without pause, and the expedition urgently needed rest.
"Hey, I found a cave entrance! Everyone come quickly!"
At this moment, Fili and Kili, who had been scouting ahead, suddenly called to everyone, heading toward a relatively level-looking cavern that promised shelter.
"We'll rest here tonight. No fires. We leave at first light," Thorin commanded with kingly authority.
"No, Thorin. According to the original plan, we should wait for Gandalf and Levi to arrive before departing," Balin reminded him.
"Plans change."
Night fell like a heavy curtain.
The dwarves were all quite tired, and soon snoring filled the air. Even Bofur, who was on watch, couldn't stop nodding off.
Bilbo suddenly opened his eyes, looked at the sleeping dwarves, gathered his things, and picked up the walking stick he'd found.
"Where are you going?" Seeing Bilbo about to leave, Bofur was immediately wide awake.
"Back to Rivendell."
"No, no, you can't leave. You're already a member of our company, you're one of us."
As the two conversed, they completely failed to notice that the snoring around them had stopped.
"No, I'm not. Just like Thorin said, I shouldn't be here. He's right. I shouldn't have run out of my home on a whim."
"Bilbo, I understand you. You're just homesick..." Bofur quietly persuaded.
"You don't understand. None of you understand. You're dwarves. Your lives are spent on the road, never putting down roots anywhere, with no sense of belonging..."
Bofur listened silently to Bilbo's words, his eyes full of sadness and weight.
"I'm sorry, forgive me, I didn't mean it that way..."
Bilbo quickly said, nearly forgetting that this group of dwarves had embarked on this journey and endured so much hardship precisely to reclaim their homeland.
"No, you're right, Bilbo."
Although his pain had been touched upon, Bofur didn't blame Bilbo. The dwarves had shown considerable tolerance for this burglar from the beginning. Aside from Thorin's somewhat harsh words, everyone had actually been taking care of him throughout the journey.
If an elf had said such things, Bofur would have already grabbed his weapon to fight.
But this was Bilbo. This hobbit who had his own warm home.
"May all good fortune accompany you on your way."
"I mean it, Bilbo."
Bofur patted Bilbo's shoulder, indicating he needn't feel guilty.
"Wait, what's that?"
As they spoke, Bofur noticed that the short sword at Bilbo's waist was beginning to emit a pale blue radiance—a glow that was extremely conspicuous in the dark cave.
It had to be said that the dwarves had a talent for getting into trouble, always managing to find the most dangerous places when looking for somewhere to rest.
This seemingly level cavern was called the "Front Porch," and true to its name, it was the front hall of Goblin-town.
The orcs living in Goblin-town were a variant of the orc species—smaller and more frail than ordinary orcs, but correspondingly more cunning and agile.
Actually, compared to the brutal, warlike orcs outside, another name was more suitable for them: goblins.
"Everyone wake up! Alert!" Thorin, who had been pretending to sleep, immediately jumped up and shouted.
But it was too late.
Clang!
The floor of the Front Porch suddenly collapsed with a thunderous crash, revealing a passage. The entire group fell down, tumbling and bumping through the tunnel.
Splash!
The moment they landed, a large swarm of goblins surged forward—so numerous they seemed endless, immediately overwhelming everyone with sheer numbers.
Even though the dwarves fought desperately, they couldn't break through. Soon the entire group of dwarves was captured and taken to somewhere in the center of the town.
Only Bilbo was left hugging his head and crouching in place, at a loss.
Bilbo was too small—smaller even than the goblins—and his clothes happened to blend with the cave environment. Combined with the hobbits' unique talent for blending into their surroundings, not a single goblin had noticed him since entering.
However, when the main force had passed and Bilbo stood up, a straggling goblin still discovered him and attacked with a shriek.
During the struggle, Bilbo accidentally fell into a deep pit in the valley, rolling all the way down.
His whereabouts unknown.
"I never imagined Middle-earth would have such creatures."
On the other side, in front of the mountains, Levi looked up at a group of stone giants taller than mountains, throwing massive boulders at each other in play, his eyes full of amazement.
[Stone Giant 80000/80000]
"I think their danger level is much greater than a mere dragon."
Gandalf, who had just climbed up behind him, also looked up and said breathlessly: "In terms of pure strength, that's certainly true. But don't worry. These stone giants aren't very intelligent, and they have no interest whatsoever in Middle-earth's affairs. Neither Sauron nor the great enemy Morgoth of earlier ages managed to make them do anything."
"They are absolutely neutral creatures."
"Don't mind them. We just need to keep moving forward."
[Chapter Complete]
***
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