Bilbo Baggins

"Hyah!" Urgent hoofbeats shattered the peace of Hobbiton as twelve fully armed knights appeared on its winding paths.

The young knight barked at his squire, "Caslo, are you sure this is the road?"

"Yes, uh, I mean, it should probably be... after all, you understand, sir... these country roads are far too winding," Caslo the Wyvern Knight stammered.

Damn it! Are you all useless? Roland held back his curse.

"Oh, sorry, brothers. I didn't mean it that way." Realizing his poor choice of words, Roland hurriedly apologized.

"Let's keep asking for directions and find where this damned Bag End is," Roland said dejectedly.

"Hey! Sorry to bother you, friend, but do you know where Bilbo Baggins lives?" Roland asked everyone who passed by.

After getting nowhere, Roland could not help complaining, "Who the hell said Hobbits were friendly?"

"Hello, may I ask if you know Bilbo Baggins?" Roland asked a Hobbit sitting in a roadside yard.

"Baggins? What do you want with him?" the young man asked in surprise.

"Uh, because... well, here's the situation. After a while, a group of dwarves and a wizard will come looking for him, and I want to find those dwarves!" Roland explained.

"All right, that's me. I haven't seen any dwarves, but a wizard did come by today. He wanted me to go on an adventure with him, and even more ridiculously, he wanted me to be a Flying Thief! I don't even know how to fight!" Bilbo Baggins explained.

"Ah..." Roland stared dumbfoundedly. His timing was perfect. Thinking of this, he could not help giving Bilbo a sympathetic look. Tonight, his supplies are doomed... Thirteen dwarves will clean out his pantry.

After glancing at the corner by Bilbo's front door, Roland smiled at him. "Then, Mr. Baggins, see you tonight."

"Uh, sir, do you mean you'll be coming to my home as a guest tonight?" Bilbo asked in surprise.

"Yes, just prepare food for me alone. My squires will not be coming. Oh, right, my name is Roland!" Roland smiled kindly.

"All right, sir. You are welcome to visit tonight."

"Bond of Fate: Achieved! Reward: 90 Novice Knights! Can be summoned at any time."

"Ninety knights... plus these ten! That makes a full hundred Novice Knights. I've assembled an entire Knight Order!" Roland felt like bursting into laughter.

Finding a secluded corner, Roland summoned the knights. He then hurriedly used the Gold Coins awarded by the system to rent a larger inn, intending to house the squires for the night.

Clear hoofbeats rang out, and Roland could not help marveling at the system's efficiency. There would be no loose ends, either. These knights had supposedly come from the wilderness; no one would know they had been summoned.

As the sky gradually darkened, Roland summoned Caslo and had him arrange the knights under his command while he himself went to attend the feast.

Ding, ding, ding! Roland rang Bag End's doorbell.

Boom! The moment the door opened, the fragrance of food mixed with all sorts of chaotic noises rushed out. Clearly, the dwarves had already begun their revelry...

Looking at the mess filling the house, Roland's eye twitched. Just as he wondered whether he should step inside, he lowered his head and saw Bilbo's dejected gaze.

"Mr. Roland, did you know something... And I'm sorry about the food I prepared for you..." Mr. Baggins said awkwardly.

"It's all right, Bilbo. Don't worry about it." Roland comforted Baggins, then stepped inside.

The moment he entered, Roland recognized Gandalf. After all, those robes and that staff made his identity far too obvious.

"Greetings, esteemed Mr. Gandalf!" Roland said respectfully.

"Should I call you Thorin Oakenshield, or should I call you King Under the Mountain?" Roland asked lightly as he looked at the king among the dwarves.

Roland's words had clearly struck a nerve with Thorin, who rose to his feet with clenched fists.

"Hey, Thorin! Take it easy." Gandalf hurriedly stepped in front of him.

"Young man, I cannot see through you..." Gandalf said in astonishment.

Roland merely smiled without confirming or denying it. He looked at Thorin and asked, "Durin's Lineage, Son of Thror, Son of Thrain—can you still be called King Under the Mountain now?"

Bang! Thorin slammed the table and prepared to leap at Roland. Everyone hurriedly held him back, while his nephew Kili stepped forward. "Sir, pardon me, but did you come here deliberately looking for trouble?" The other dwarves also glared at him with hostile expressions. Only Gandalf looked at him thoughtfully.

"Looking for trouble? You are not worthy of that. I simply do not want to see Durin's Lineage come to an end!" Roland knew how the story would unfold. Even if they won, Durin's Lineage would still inevitably end.

With the One Ring's help, Roland successfully sensed everyone present. Aside from Thorin, who was a Berserker, the others were merely Novice Warriors or Warriors. With that lineup, they would not even withstand a single charge from the Knight Order under Roland's command.

A warrior's class ranks were: Novice Warrior, warrior, Berserker, commander, Warlord, and finally the ultimate class, Overlord!

"Bullshit!"

"Utter nonsense!"

Everyone began accusing Roland, while Gandalf's gaze grew increasingly astonished.

"Enough! State your purpose!" Thorin suddenly shouted, stopping his subordinates' accusations.

"Straightforward. As expected of the Descendants of Durin. I am the commander of the Holy Radiance Knight Order. I now need to find a territory where I can settle down with my knights, so you understand... I need money!" Roland calmly stated his demands.

"What? A Knight Order!"

"My God! He actually has a Knight Order..."

The dwarves were utterly shocked, while Gandalf's expression only grew more puzzled.

"Mr. Roland! This is no laughing matter! Do you know what it takes to be called a Knight Order?" Thorin asked solemnly.

"Of course. Mine is merely the weakest kind of Knight Order. It has one hundred Novice Knights and one Knight Captain." Roland wore a proud expression.

"Then... what do you mean..." Thorin's tone softened as well. After all, they shared common interests, and everything could be negotiated.

"I will lead my Knight Order into battle and escort you all the way to Erebor! In return, you must pay a commission. If there are casualties, you must also provide severance pay. Of course, if you ultimately fail to reclaim Erebor... then you need not pay anything!" A flame called ambition flickered in Roland's eyes.

"If you agree, I can gather my squires right now!" Roland continued.

Thorin lowered his head in thought. Gandalf quietly tugged at him and whispered in his ear, "Agree to it. There are too many dangers along the way. With a Knight Order protecting us, we can reach our destination more safely."

After hearing Gandalf's whisper, Thorin nodded. He raised his head and declared, "Mr. Roland, I will draft the contract now."

With that, he and the other dwarves began writing the contract. Roland then saw a contract even longer than the Flying Thief contract Mr. Baggins had received—a whole massive scroll...

"Then, may our expedition go smoothly!" After signing the contract, Roland put it away and nodded to everyone. He then declined Bilbo's attempt to keep him there and walked outside.

"Oh, right. At dawn tomorrow, I will wait for you at the edge of the forest!" Roland's voice drifted back from afar.