Bree

After a round of slaughter, the remaining Orcs scrambled and fled into the woods. Seeing this, Roland decisively called off the pursuit, gathered his Knights, and led everyone onward.

"Encounter Battle: Completed. Reward: Lagrang Royal Guard Paladin *1. Can be summoned at any time."

"Holy shit!" Roland was so excited he nearly blurted out the name of a certain mysterious plant.

Lagrang Royal Guard Paladins were among the most ridiculously overpowered units in the Ring System Game. Yet this was only the Third Age. In the game, Lagrang Royal Guard Paladins had not appeared until the Fifth Age. Their numbers were scarcer than nearly every other super-class, second only to Dragon Knights and the like. They had barely managed to form a Knight Order, but in truth, they had never even gathered the minimum hundred men required for one. At their peak, there had only been eighty-seven of them. After the Battle of Swift River, their numbers had dropped below fifty, and their formation had nearly been shattered. What made this legion famous was its defining trait—holy! The entire Knight Order consisted of genuine Paladins, not Light Knights passed off as Paladins like those in the church's orders. Moreover, the quality of its Knights was absurdly high. Those outsiders collectively called the Lagrang Royal Guard Paladins were, in fact, mostly Great Knights, and nearly half were Paladin Captains. Their commander, Lalus, was even a Holy Hero. Then there was their outrageously luxurious equipment: full dragon armor forged from Dragon Blood Sacred Steel—refined steel tempered in the blood of sacred dragons—Dragon Pattern Swords, dragon lances, Dragon Shields, and Sub-Dragon Bows strung with the main tendons of Dragon-kin and fashioned with bow limbs polished from their arm bones... You could only find comparable equipment on Dragon Knights. Even elite Sky Knights such as Pegasus Knights and Griffon Knights could not compare. Thus came the famous saying: Dragon Knights ruled the skies, while Paladins commanded the earth.

And now Roland actually had a Lagrang Royal Guard Paladin in his hands. He was so moved he nearly cried. He even suspected the Ring System had used up part of his lifespan to give him this reward... Strictly speaking, there were truly fewer Lagrang Royal Guard Paladins than Wyvern Knights. When Roland had logged into the One Ring, many great lords had Wyvern Knights under their command. Some had even formed Knight Orders of Dragon Knights, though a Dragon Knight Regiment differed from an ordinary Knight Order and had only fifty members, since Dragon Knights were too rare; gathering a hundred would require dragging in every Dragon Knight on the continent. Countless players had wanted to recruit—lure, abduct—even a single member of the Lagrang Royal Guard Paladins, but very few had succeeded...

Roland forcibly suppressed the urge to summon him at once and admire the Paladin's might. He could only rein in his impatience and continue marching.

"We're almost at Bree. Let's rest and resupply there." Roland glanced at the map and spoke to Gandalf and Thorin.

"Sounds good. We can replenish our supplies there. There won't be many places to resupply later," Thorin said.

"Master Baggins! Tonight, we can stay at an inn. You can sleep in a soft bed instead of on the ground." Roland rode over to Bilbo, who was mounted on a pony, and teased him.

"Oh, really? That would be wonderful! You have no idea how hard the ground is inside a tent!" Bilbo complained.

"Hahaha, then you should thank old Gandalf for dragging you out of warm Bag End," Roland said with a smile.

"God! I must have lost my mind. How did I ever agree to go adventuring with you..." Bilbo grumbled.

"That was because you have a restless heart!" Gandalf suddenly spoke up.

"Hahaha, the wizard is right!" Roland laughed.

Roland was greatly looking forward to the Lagrang Royal Guard Paladin waiting for him in Bree. He had just chosen to summon him, and the system had thoughtfully arranged for that knight to wait for him in Bree. Wait, a knight waiting for him in Bree?

"Fuck! It can't be Aragorn, can it? He's the protagonist of The Lord of the Rings..." Roland's heart suddenly skipped a beat.

Lost in thought, Roland soon caught sight of Bree's outline.

"All right, boys, we can finally enjoy ourselves!"

"My lord, Reno, Lagrang Royal Guard Paladin, reports for duty!" A tall, handsome silver-haired man around thirty strode up to Roland and announced loudly.

Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Roland's mind was filled with enormous question marks. A Lagrang Royal Guard Paladin was wonderful, but Lord Reno? Forget it... He could not keep this Knight Captain under control.

In the Ring System Game, Reno was known as Lord Reno. The fall of the Lagrange Empire and the devastating losses suffered by the Lagrange Royal Guards were directly tied to him. Reno had practically driven the entire northern map's storylines and quests by himself. He had led the whole northern war alone, and had also triggered the Orcs' southward advance from the north, directly causing the collapse of the Lagrange Empire. Yet people remembered his glory on the battlefield, and so the world called him—the Dawn of the North.

How the hell did this troublemaking monster, with every troublemaking skill maxed out, end up under my command? System, can we talk about exchanging him for someone else... Roland wailed inwardly.

"Welcome, brave Paladin! Welcome to our ranks." Roland still forced a smile and greeted the knight who had come to join him.

I just hope his ability to attract trouble didn't come with him... Otherwise, the Battle of Five Armies might suddenly gain several more enemy armies. That would be far too vivid a picture. Roland remembered the enemy reinforcement buff this man came with.

"Reno, can you still activate your Divine Dominion Aura?" Roland suddenly remembered the most important matter.

"Of course, my lord! If you require it, I can activate it right now," Reno said respectfully.

"That is good." Roland let out a long breath. If the system had cheated him out of the Lagrang Royal Guard Paladin's holy aura, he really would have to look for a refund option. A Paladin's holy aura was an excellent thing. Friendly forces within its range could gain increased physical and magical resistance, stamina, morale, vitality, and even infuse their attacks with holy damage. As one of the finest Paladins, Reno's aura extended five hundred meters in every direction from himself, covering all allies within that radius. In this world of The Lord of the Rings, where group buff magic was scarce, holy auras were truly useful. Used well, they could at least double one's combat strength.

"Re... no!" Roland nearly called him Lord Reno in his excitement.

"My lord!" Reno immediately stepped forward.

"Caslo and the Badenia Archers will protect me. I'll leave the Knights under your command." With a wave of Roland's hand, he handed the Knights over to Reno. After all, Lord Reno had commanded millions of player troops in the game; commanding a mere hundred-man Knight Order was child's play. Roland himself had no command buff, while Caslo was a Wyvern Knight with no experience commanding ground Knights. Reno, with his aura skill, was practically a beacon in Roland's dark night—convenient and useful.

"Very well, my lord. May Lagrange's radiance shine upon us both," Reno said humbly.