The Story Begins Here

The Dwarves had drafted Morgan's contract on the spot.

Bilbo's contract had been prepared in advance, since Gandalf had mentioned it from the start.

However, Morgan's addition to the team meant that Bilbo's commission had to be adjusted.

The commission originally promised to Bilbo had been one fourteenth of the total earnings. It was temporarily changed to one fifteenth.

As for Morgan's commission, the Dwarves couldn't come up with any more money on such short notice.

So, like Bilbo, he was given one fifteenth of the total earnings.

As for why only fifteen people were sharing the earnings when the entire party numbered sixteen,

Morgan didn't know, and he didn't ask.

When Thorin Oakenshield solemnly handed Morgan the hastily drafted contract,

Morgan quickly read it over, then readily signed his full name on the line at the end.

Bilbo, on the other hand, hesitated after reading all the terms.

When it came time to sign,

he faltered.

For a Hobbit who had never traveled far from Hobbiton since birth,

leaving his cozy home, his delicious breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, and his comfortable Bag End

to throw himself into a dangerous, grueling, filthy adventure took an enormous amount of courage.

In the end, Bilbo shook his head and said he needed time to think, then returned to his room.

Morgan wasn't the only one who realized Bilbo had lost the desire to join the adventure.

Gandalf saw it too.

So, as soon as Bilbo left, Gandalf went after him.

By then, night had fallen.

The Dwarves, who had made a ruckus all day, were starting to yawn.

They had to get up early the next morning to hit the road.

Bilbo's Bag End was too small to have any spare beds.

The Dwarves had to sleep on the floor or find some other way to make do.

Fortunately, it was still summer, and the weather was hot, so sleeping on the floor was fine.

Morgan spent the night sitting on a bench, slumped over the dining table.

Early the next morning,

Morgan woke to find the Dwarves getting ready to leave.

After a quick wash, he took hold of the pony the Dwarves had specially chosen for the journey, one with greater stamina and carrying capacity.

He had already gotten rid of the horses he and Gandalf had ridden the day before.

Leading the pony over to Gandalf, who was watching the sunrise with a pipe between his teeth, Morgan asked, "Is Bilbo staying behind?"

"What, do you think Bilbo doesn't want to come either?"

Gandalf turned to look at Morgan.

"Mm, not exactly."

"I just think it takes a great deal of courage for an ordinary person to leave everything behind and go adventuring with us."

"Of course, I have even more faith in you, Gandalf!"

Seeing Gandalf fall into thought, Morgan patted him on the shoulder and smiled.

Bilbo still hadn't gotten up.

Thorin Oakenshield wasn't going to wait any longer.

The Dwarves had finished cleaning up the mess they'd made in Bag End the day before.

Then the group mounted their ponies and left Bilbo's home.

Of course, they left the contract they'd given him the day before.

As long as Bilbo wanted to come, and woke up early enough, he could still catch up with them.

The late-summer sunshine wasn't too harsh.

As they rode along a shady path beneath the tall trees,

the Dwarves soon started talking about Bilbo.

Before long, they were betting again on whether he would catch up.

Morgan was truly impressed by the Dwarves' knack for finding entertainment. They always seemed to come up with something fun to do.

Bofur, the Dwarf who loved wearing leather caps, spoke up first. "I bet Mr. Baggins won't come after us, because he's too scared. Who'll take that bet?"

Fili, the young Dwarf with a head full of golden braids, immediately protested. "Hey, everyone knows Mr. Baggins won't come. That's not a fair bet!"

The other Dwarves quickly chimed in. "Exactly, exactly."

Kili joined in too. "Bofur, if you bet that Mr. Baggins will come, I'll take you up on it."

Just then, Morgan suddenly laughed and said, "I bet Baggins will definitely catch up with us. Who'll take me on?"

If Morgan hadn't known the story, judging by Bilbo's behavior the day before and the fact that he hadn't even managed to get up that morning, he never would have taken that bet. The odds were just too low.

But now, he could make some money and earn a little goodwill from Gandalf at the same time. Why not?

Sure enough, as soon as Morgan spoke, Gandalf smiled at him.

He thought Morgan was doing it because he believed in him and wanted to save face for him.

After all, even Gandalf himself had no confidence that Bilbo would catch up with them.

Besides, the Dwarves' mockery of Bilbo's lack of courage was also, in a way, a slight against Gandalf, even if they were only being boisterous and didn't mean it that way.

After all, he had been the one to recommend Bilbo so strongly the day before.

"I'll bet with Morgan too. Count me in."

Gandalf tapped his pipe against his shoe and chuckled.

As soon as he finished speaking, two voices called out one after the other.

"I'll take Morgan's bet."

"I'll take Gandalf's."

Kili and Bofur hurried to speak up, leaving the other Dwarves who'd wanted to bet lamenting that they'd been too slow.

"Count me in too. I think Mr. Baggins might catch up with us. We should have a little faith in him."

At that, Balin, the white-bearded Dwarf, spoke up, making everyone pause.

Gloin was the quickest to react. "I'll take Balin's bet!"

Only then did young Fili get a chance to speak.

"Fili, you're too slow! Hahaha!"

While the members of the Expedition Team were joking around and betting on Bilbo,

back in Bag End,

Bilbo had just woken up.

When he got out of bed and saw that the house was empty and everything was neat, clean, and intact,

he might have thought the previous night had all been a dream if not for the food cupboard, which had been emptied of its contents.

Looking around the empty rooms and remembering how lively and noisy things had been the day before, Bilbo suddenly felt a strange sense of loss.

Soon, he spotted the contract he'd refused to sign the day before, lying on the table.

Just then, he remembered Gandalf's words from the previous day: "Bilbo, your mother, your grandfather, your great-grandfather, and your great-great-great-grandfather were never ordinary."

"You're a Took too. Do you really intend to spend your whole life cooped up in this little home?"

Gandalf's words seemed to ring in his ears.

A sudden, powerful impulse welled up in Bilbo's heart. That's right. I don't want this. I don't want to live my whole life like this. I refuse to settle for an ordinary life!

Bilbo immediately found a pen and signed his name on the contract.

Then he dug out his bag, stuffed in a few changes of clothes, and dashed out of Bag End, sprinting toward the distance.

Half an hour later,

with his backpack slung over his shoulders and its mouth still untied,

Bilbo finally spotted the members of the Expedition Team in the woods, just as he was about to leave Hobbiton.

Waving the contract in his hand, Bilbo ran toward them excitedly.

And that was where the story began.