Chapter 11: Misunderstandings and Movements
"Sir, aren't we being too arrogant?" Reynold, who had arranged the plan, gathered his courage and approached Roland.
"No way, I just want to find Rivendell. No harm in that," Roland shrugged helplessly.
"I hope there won't be any misunderstandings with the elves," Reynold said, glancing nervously at the tied-up elves struggling against their bonds.
"Let me know when the elves arrive," Roland replied, waving his hand dismissively as he went to lie down comfortably in the shade of a tree.
...
Back in Rivendell...
"King Elrond! Linde and his reconnaissance team are missing!" an elf reported urgently.
"When did they leave?" Elrond narrowed his eyes.
"They set off early this morning. Linde said they were going to patrol the kingdom to prevent orc incursions. It's been half a day with no word..."
"Gather a search party. Let's find Linde," Elrond commanded solemnly. "Gods, please protect them from harm..." he murmured a quick prayer.
...
"Sir, something's not right," Carlos said, shaking Roland awake.
"What..." Roland looked up, stunned.
"Why are we surrounded by an elf army?" Roland asked Reynold in disbelief.
"Uh, there might be a misunderstanding," Reynold pointed to Linde and the other tied-up elves.
"This wasn't part of the plan!" Roland was shocked. In his mind, even if the team disappeared, the elves should have sent a smaller group to investigate, not an entire army.
What Roland didn't know was that the half-orcs had learned about the dwarf expedition and organized several wolf cavalry troops to intercept them. After encountering one such troop yesterday, Elrond thought the orc army was heading south and mobilized his forces to search for the enemy. Instead, they found a small group of humans resting in the shade, with Linde and his team tied up nearby. Elrond assumed the humans were preparing for war against the elves.
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A full three thousand elf archers were lined up in the rear, and a thousand elf knights on moon deer stood at the front. Behind them, the fluctuating magic power indicated the presence of at least ten elf mages. Roland's hundred infantrymen had their shields grounded heavily. Only then did Roland realize they were using leather-wrapped iron shields. The five-meter-long pikes pointed diagonally at the sky. The Batanian archers, having given up their mounts, hid behind the infantry to protect their fragile bodies during the battle. The knights mounted their horses, ready to engage in combat.
"Let's go," Roland said, knowing they couldn't avoid this confrontation. He took Reynold and Carlos to meet the elves.
Elrond approached on his moon deer.
"Why did you invade elf territory and arrest our people?" Elrond's tone was harsh.
"King Elrond?" Roland recognized the elf king immediately.
"You know me? I don't recall meeting you. Where are you from? Where are you going?" Elrond asked, his eyes gleaming with a detection spell.
"We come from the remnants of the Lagrand Empire in the East. Our homeland was destroyed," Roland said, not delving further into the painful topic.
"We're looking for you, King Elrond," Roland said, saluting respectfully.
"Looking for me?" Elrond asked suspiciously.
"More precisely, we're looking for the group of dwarves and Gandalf who entered Rivendell," Roland explained.
Elrond eyed Roland warily.
"You misunderstand. We were hired by Thorin Oakenshield. Ten of our comrades are with them. We didn't know how to reach Rivendell, so we had to resort to this," Roland said.
"And you didn't think to ask Linde and the others?" Elrond pointed to the bruised elves.
"They attacked us first. We had no choice but to capture them," Roland lied smoothly.
Elrond was speechless.
"Can you release them now?" Elrond asked with a dark expression.
"Of course. Carlos, release them," Roland ordered.
"Yes, my lord!" Carlos hurried to comply. Linde's angry shouts echoed as he was freed.
...
"What? Thorin and the others left first? My people stayed?" Elrond informed Roland as they headed to Rivendell.
"Your soldiers are loyal. They insisted on waiting for you before continuing. Thorin didn't want to waste time and left," Elrond explained.
"Unbelievable!" Roland was stunned. He quickly realized Thorin intended to abandon them. "King Elrond, I need your help to catch up with them!" Roland said urgently.
"Why?" Elrond was puzzled.
"Our movements are known to the orcs. They'll block the dwarves in the Misty Mountains. Without our help, they'll be slaughtered. The line of Durin will end!" Roland explained.
"We encountered an orc attack from Gundabad. They're watching us!" Roland added, seeing Elrond's skepticism.
Elrond studied Roland and then increased his pace. "Follow me."
...
"My lord! We're relieved you're safe!" an archer greeted.
"Thank you, Lagrand. Our lord is safe and sound!"
"Stand down," Roland ordered.
"King Elrond, where did the dwarves go?" Roland asked anxiously.
"That path," Elrond pointed to a narrow mountain trail.
"Are you kidding? Can you ride a horse there?" Roland asked in disbelief.
"They abandoned their horses and snuck away last night," Elrond shrugged.
"Damn it! They're walking into a death trap! Where's Gandalf?" Roland fumed.
"They left Gandalf too," Elrond replied.
Roland forced himself to calm down. Thorin's stubbornness had disrupted his plans. "It's late, you should rest," Elrond said, leaving Roland to his thoughts.
Roland knew Gandalf would head to Dol Guldur, the dwarves might fall into Goblin-town, and Bilbo would still find the ring. "History's torrent is hard to change..." Roland mused.
Unable to sleep, he finally got up to find Carlos and Reynold.
"Assemble the team. We're moving out," Roland said firmly. The treasure of Lonely Mountain was within his grasp. He might even secure River Valley City.
"Yes!" The two men nodded and left.
"System, sign in. Give me something useful," Roland sighed.
"Sign-in successful! Reward: 100 Lagrand Empire Infantry!"
"Another 100 infantry?" Roland was surprised.
...
"King Elrond, they took the path you indicated," Linde reported.
"Yes, they're gone... Shadows from the north and south... Peace in Middle-earth won't last," Elrond sighed.