The Waterway Wasn't Safe Either

"Galion, you old bastard, we've almost finished our wine."

"Those empty barrels should have been delivered to Esgaroth hours ago; the boatman is waiting for them!"

"Complain all you want, our king has a bad temper, but he has very high standards for wine."

"Here, Elros." An elf handed Elros a bottle of red wine. "Have a taste."

"I also have to supervise the dwarves." Elros sighed and took out a bunch of keys.

"Where can they go if they're locked up?"

Elros thought so too, so he hung the key on the wall and turned to enjoy the wine with his friend.

Bilbo, Bilbo squatted behind a large barrel. Only after hearing Bilbo's snoring did he tiptoe out and take the key from the wall.

He himself didn't expect everything to go so smoothly. He got the key and found the exit; the only thing left was to transport those empty wooden barrels.

In addition, it is also a wine cellar, which perfectly meets Gloin's requirements.

He was truly powerless when it came to weapons. The ordinary weapons were locked in the armory, and he couldn't get in at all. Even if he did get in, he couldn't possibly take out that many items.

As for the Orcrist and the Wand, they were both in Legolas's possession. He wasn't confident he could get these things from the highly skilled Elf King.

Bilbo didn't linger and quickly returned to his cell.

The dwarves were astonished to see the key in his hand; they hadn't expected him to complete the task so quickly.

"Have you found an exit yet?" Aaron asked.

Bilbo nodded as he opened the dwarven cell. "Found it. There aren't many guards on that road. We should be able to get through safely if nothing unexpected happens."

"That's good."

"Follow me down that path," Bilbo said in a low voice. The dwarves spontaneously lined up and followed him, but after entering the wine cellar, they were all dumbfounded.

The dwarf elf, who was supposed to be guarding the table, was fast asleep, with a pile of empty wine bottles next to him.

"Jian Yi can't believe it, we have it in our wine cellar." Kili was both excited and puzzled.

Gloin pointed to the empty bottle on the table with a regretful look, "It's a pity there's no ready-made bottle."

"You should lead us out of here, instead of letting us sink deeper," Bofur said dejectedly.

"Is there a hidden room, or Secret Chamber?" Aaron pondered, because his family's wine cellar was like that.

Bilbo nodded, then led the group to a pile of empty barrels. "Everyone, climb into the barrels quickly."

"You're crazy, they'll come after us!" Dwalin said angrily, looking at Bilbo.

Bilbo was about to say something when a voice came from above saying, "They've escaped!" Elves had discovered their breakout.

"There's no time to explain, you have to believe me," Bilbo said anxiously. "Please."

"Do as he says."

At Thorin's command, the dwarves all crawled into the barrels.

Aaron also crawled inside. He vaguely heard the sound of water flowing from under the floorboards and immediately understood Bilbo's plan.

"Be prepared, there might be an underground river below us."

"It's much safer to go by water than through the gate," Bilbo said, pulling the switch. The plank slowly tilted, and all the barrels on it rolled into the underground river.

Just as Bilbo was about to leave, the plank returned to its original state.

The switch remained on, and the guards' footsteps grew closer. Bilbo panicked and retreated hastily.

But after he took a few steps back, the plank began to tilt under his pressure, and Bilbo slid into the passage below. However, he was still caught by the elves, including Tauriel, who had come to chase after him.

Thump!

Water splashed everywhere, and Bilbo managed to grab a wooden barrel to avoid getting too disheveled.

A dark, underground river is carved out, forming a small waterfall.

The only means of transportation for everyone was a wooden bucket, so they could only drift with the current and struggle forward with the turbulent water.

Upon seeing this scene, Legolas, who had chased after them, immediately ordered his men to close the sluice gates.

As the melodious sound of the horn rang out, the guardian spirit of the dam pulled the switch, and an iron gate slowly closed.

"No!" Thorin roared in grief and indignation; he was only half a meter away from escaping.

"Sigh!" Aaron sighed and shrugged at Bilbo in the river. "It's not that you didn't find the right way, it's just that we were a little unlucky."

"It's alright, we're still valuable to Thranduil, he won't kill us."

"But we'll still be locked up, and this time it won't be so easy to escape," Balin said bitterly.

"It's not that there's no way out. At worst, we can follow the previous plan and try to break out of prison after we're released. However, whether we can reach Lonely Mountain before the Durin's Day is still uncertain."

"Absolutely not! We have to find a way to open the gate and pull the switch before the elves catch up," Thorin said urgently.

"I'll go," Kili volunteered, and started paddling towards the shore.

"Where are you going?" Aaron grabbed him and pulled on the barrel. "There's a squad of elven guards up there, and you're unarmed. One arrow from each of them could turn you into a sieve."

"Then what should we do?"

Aaron hesitated for a moment, then turned to look at Bilbo.

Here, besides him, only Bilbo can become invisible, openly and Silencio pulling the switch.

"Me again?" Bilbo pointed to himself, speechless. "Aren't you?"

"My Wand has been confiscated," Aaron refused defiantly. He could Wandless Casting, but there was no need to expose himself.

"I'm sure Mr. Golden Snitch knows what it means to be willing to do more work than one needs, right?"

Bilbo's lips twitched; it seemed only he could do this job.

I'll do my best!

Bilbo sighed helplessly and prepared to dive into the water to put on the ring.

Before he could make a move, he saw a half-orc climb onto the dam.

"Ugh!" Aaron shook his head wearily. "One problem after another!"

"Watch out, Oak is coming."

The elves discovered the orcs and decisively abandoned the dwarves below, joining forces with the orcs in battle.

Faced with this sudden attack, the few elves, who were completely unprepared, were immediately at a disadvantage and suffered heavy losses.

"Kill them, quickly, kill them all."

A burly orc roared from a high place, and an army of orcs surged out from behind him.

"Who is that?" Aaron asked in surprise. "He doesn't seem weak, and he's much taller than the average orc."

"Bolg, the Orc Warlord," Balin said solemnly. "He is Azog's confidant, and his strength is no less than Azog's. Among the Orcs, he is considered one of the strongest among ten thousand."

"Commander-in-Chief?" Aaron raised an eyebrow. "Judging from his decisive victory over the elves, he certainly deserves this position."

"They may not be after the elves," Oin said in a deep voice.

"If they're not elves, then are we...?" Aaron's expression changed drastically halfway through his sentence. "Wortefa!"

As if to prove his words, several orcs jumped off the bridge and attacked the group.

The dwarves fought back fiercely, and although they had no weapons, they were able to barely hold off the attack with their fists alone.

Bilbo killed an orc, and Aaron immediately snatched the dagger from his hand, using the crude weapon to defend himself.

"Damn it, I take back what I just said."

"What kind of brain does he have? Even if he wants to ambush us, there's no need to invade the elves' territory. Wouldn't it be easier for us to escape?" Aaron was furious, but then he quickly realized something. "No, we are the main target, and he doesn't intend to let the elves go either."

"Bilbo, move quickly, we need to get out of here fast."

"I really can't do it now." Bilbo looked troubled. He could have taken the risk if it were before, but now he was surrounded by a bunch of barrels, blocked under the stone bridge, and with the Orks around him obstructing him, he couldn't move at all.

"I'll go."

Kili jumped to the shore, killed an orc, seized his weapon, and rushed toward the switch.

The distance of a dozen meters is not long, but four orcs blocked his way, intending to kill him.

Fortunately, with the help of the people under the bridge, he successfully reached the switch.

But at that moment, Bolg fired a stray arrow, which struck his leg.

"Kili." Fili looked at his younger brother lying on the ground, groaning in pain, and felt extremely anxious.

"Damn it!" Aaron cursed under his breath. "I'll go check it out."

After saying that, Aaron jumped onto the barrel and, stepping on the shoulders of several dwarves, leaped onto the shore.

Just then, an orc climbed up the dam and discovered Kili, who had a leg injury.

Just as Aaron threw the dagger in his hand, an arrow struck the orc in the neck.

Turning my head, I saw Tauriel, bow and arrow in hand, charging towards me all alone.

The orcs along the way were no match for her, their lives being harvested as easily as cutting melons and vegetables.

"What are you looking at?" Aaron patted Kili's face. "I admit she's beautiful, but you were the one who was rescued. Don't you feel ashamed?"

"I don't feel it," Kili said with a hint of delight, forgetting even the excruciating pain in his leg.

Aaron:...

With a girl as infatuated as you, you're probably going to be henpecked if you get married.

"Stop gossiping and open the gate!" Thorin said impatiently.

"Alright." Aaron tossed the Kili into his barrel and then pulled the switch.

The group was swept down the waterfall, swaying left and right in the rapid current.

"The dwarves are escaping!" Bolg roared. "Chase them!"

The orc army immediately dispatched most of its forces, pursuing the expeditionary force along the river.

Aaron stared blankly at the dozen or so wooden barrels that were drifting further and further away. Had they forgotten about me?

The sound of something cutting through the air came from the side. Aaron heard the sound and decisively reached out his left hand to grab the arrow.

"Trying to ambush me won't be that easy." Aaron gave Bolg the middle finger, turned and chased after the expedition team. After running for a while, he jumped into his empty barrel.

"Don't tell me you've forgotten about me again," Aaron said, looking at the crowd.

"We knew you would catch up," Kili said with a weak laugh. "None of us doubted it."

"Isn't your face a little too pale?" Aaron frowned slightly, and looked at the arrow in his hand as if by some strange impulse. He noticed a strange pure black mark on the arrowhead, and his pupils widened instantly.

"Kili, you, you..."

Kili's expression changed slightly, and he immediately said, "He was slightly injured and lost a lot of blood, which is normal."

Aaron read the pleading in his eyes, hesitated for a moment, and then threw the arrow in his hand into the rushing river.