The Reason [Seeking Recommendation Tickets]

Seeing Gandalf and that Lord Elrond on such intimate terms, the dwarves, who had been in a state of high tension, breathed a slight sigh of relief.

However, looking at the elven cavalry still surrounding them, the dwarves could not truly relax.

Bilbo remained protected in the center by the dwarves.

Morgan stood beside Gandalf with a calm expression.

"This may be because of us."

Hearing Lord Elrond's words, Gandalf spoke with a smile.

Lord Elrond did not reply; he waved his hand to dismiss the elven cavalry and spoke a few words to the elf behind him named Lindir before turning his gaze toward the Company.

Lord Elrond's eyes first fell upon Morgan, who stood beside Gandalf.

In a Company where the vast majority were dwarves, the tall and handsome human, Morgan, was an undeniably conspicuous presence.

Well, second only to the wizard Gandalf.

This was not only because Gandalf was slightly taller than Morgan, but also because of Gandalf's traditional wizardly appearance.

In Middle-earth, very few people had actually seen a wizard.

In the eyes of most, the image of a wizard was essentially that of a legendary being.

Lord Elrond looked at Morgan and asked with a smile, "And who is this?"

Gandalf was about to make the introduction, but he saw Morgan step forward as Lord Elrond spoke. Morgan bowed slightly, offering a salute to the elven lord whose reputation was renowned throughout all of Middle-earth, and said:

"I am Morgan."

"It is an honor to meet you, Lord Elrond."

Gandalf watched Morgan's actions with a smile on his face, though he was lost in thought.

In truth, he knew that bringing the Company to Rivendell to seek help was a bit of a gamble.

The ultimate goal of the Company was to steal the Arkenstone, the symbol of the highest authority of the dwarf race, from the underground vaults of the Lonely Mountain, where the dragon Smaug lay coiled.

With the Arkenstone, Thorin Oakenshield could rally reinforcements from the other dwarven clans to help him confront the dragon Smaug and reclaim the Lonely Mountain.

The evil and power of the dragon Smaug were beyond doubt.

Sixty years ago, he had been able to destroy the then-prosperous Kingdom Under the Mountain single-handedly.

He had monopolized the mountain-like wealth of the Kingdom Under the Mountain for sixty years.

During this time, no other power had dared to covet what Smaug possessed.

Such was the terrifying might of the dragon Smaug.

Although this evil and terrifyingly powerful being had occupied the Lonely Mountain for sixty years, he had also remained quiet for those sixty years.

This was something the major powers of Middle-earth were very happy to see.

No one knew exactly how much wealth "Erebor," known as the capital of wealth, had possessed sixty years ago.

But everyone knew that the Kingdom Under the Mountain, occupied by Durin's Folk, was unimaginably rich.

At the time, after the Kingdom Under the Mountain was conquered by the dragon, it was rumored across the world that the kingdom's downfall was precisely because they possessed too much wealth, which had attracted the greed of the dragon Smaug.

And indeed, that was the truth.

There was not a single major power in Middle-earth that did not covet the massive wealth of the Kingdom Under the Mountain.

But no one dared to touch it, and no one could!

In a way, this was for the best; with the dragon Smaug occupying it, no one could have it.

Everyone's heart was balanced.

At the same time, because he occupied such vast wealth, the dragon Smaug could remain quietly beneath the Lonely Mountain without running amok or causing chaos.

And he had stayed there for sixty years.

This was what all the powers hoped to see, and they expected that it would be best if Smaug stayed among the treasures of the Lonely Mountain until he died.

Under such circumstances, Gandalf was leading the Company of dwarves to the Lonely Mountain to confront the dragon Smaug and reclaim the Kingdom Under the Mountain.

Once the major powers, who were committed to protecting the stability of Middle-earth, learned of such a risky move, their reactions could be imagined.

This was also the reason why Thorin Oakenshield had strongly opposed coming to Rivendell.

Of course, the hatred between the dwarf race and the elf race was equally significant.

The Durin's Folk represented by Thorin Oakenshield wanted to reclaim the Lonely Mountain; they had their grievances and their reasons, and it was all perfectly logical.

The various major powers also had their own reasonable justifications for the sake of peace and stability in Middle-earth.

As for Gandalf himself, he had sensed the stirrings of dark forces, which provided the motivation to facilitate Thorin Oakenshield's party in reclaiming the Lonely Mountain.

Because once the dark forces made a comeback, it was highly likely they would join forces with the dragon Smaug.

Given the evil and might of Smaug, by the time that happened, it would be too late.

Gandalf came to Middle-earth in his capacity as a Maia, a lesser deity, for the purpose of maintaining peace.

This was his mission.

This was also why, even knowing the Company might be stopped upon arriving at Rivendell, he still came.

He relied on his friendly relationship with Lord Elrond.

Furthermore, he wanted to try and persuade others should they be blocked.

Because he knew this matter could hardly be truly hidden from those powerful beings.

As for whether there was a reason to come to Rivendell to decipher that map of the Lonely Mountain in order to persuade Thorin Oakenshield, only Gandalf himself knew.

"Welcome to Rivendell."

"Morgan, I hope you will enjoy your time in Rivendell."

Lord Elrond looked at Morgan and smiled.

Setting aside his status as the Lord of Rivendell, the Elven King Elrond was impeccable in his personal cultivation.

In the plot Morgan remembered, he had a deep impression of this Elven lord who controlled the most powerful force in all of Middle-earth.

Now that he had arrived at Rivendell, regardless of status, strength, or standing, Morgan needed to show the proper respect to this Elven King.

"I certainly will; Rivendell is the most longed-for place in all of Middle-earth."

Morgan smiled and offered a compliment, though it was indeed the truth.

After chatting briefly with Morgan, Lord Elrond's gaze turned to the dwarves who were still gathered together.

At this moment, Thorin Oakenshield stepped forward.

"Welcome, Thorin, son of Thrain."

Lord Elrond looked at Thorin Oakenshield and spoke in a deep voice.

"I don't believe we have met."

Thorin's tone was calm, but his words carried a sting.

"You look very much like your grandfather. I knew Thror when he ruled the Kingdom Under the Mountain."

Seemingly unbothered by Thorin's prickly words, Lord Elrond continued.

"Is that so? He never mentioned you!"

Thorin continued, his words still sharp.

Lord Elrond's expression remained calm; he did not seem angered by Thorin Oakenshield's unfriendly attitude.

But after Elrond finished sizing up Thorin Oakenshield and looked at the group of highly vigilant dwarves behind him, he suddenly spoke to Thorin Oakenshield in the Elvish language: "You are as stubborn as your grandfather Thror; both in character and speech, you are always so detestable."

Lord Elrond spoke very quickly.

But his expressionless face and the rapid-fire Elvish pouring from his lips immediately made the dwarves sense that something was wrong.

The dwarves were not stupid; they seemed to realize that the Elven lord before them had said something unpleasant to Thorin.

Gloin the dwarf immediately became angry: "What is he saying?"

"Is he insulting us?"

Gloin spoke in anger, immediately drawing a sympathetic response from the other dwarves.

The dwarves suddenly began to clamor in indignation.

Gandalf, standing to the side, saw that the situation was turning sour and immediately stepped forward, looking at the dwarves as he hurriedly said: "No, Lord Elrond means he would like to invite you to dinner!"

As soon as Gandalf's words fell, the dwarves immediately quieted down. They looked at one another, whispered among themselves for a while, and finally, it was Gloin who spoke with some embarrassment: "In that case, then lead the way."

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