The Guardian

King Elrond left.

Gandalf immediately followed him.

Thorin Oakenshield and white-bearded Balin quickly followed as well.

Having watched these few bring the scene from his memories to life, Morgan naturally followed without hesitation.

Morgan didn't want to miss a single scene that was sure to increase the system's World Exploration Progress.

Seeing Morgan get up to leave, Gloin, the Dwarf beside him, hurriedly called out, "Morgan, your grilled sausages are ready."

"You can have them for me."

Morgan waved without looking back.

Hearing this, Gloin immediately grinned. "Then I won't stand on ceremony."

Dwarf Kili watched his "teacher" Morgan's retreating figure, then looked at the Dwarves around him and asked, "Aren't you going to take a look?"

"What's there to see? We won't understand a thing."

"I'm not going. Maybe Gandalf and Thorin will start arguing again in a bit."

"With Gandalf there, and Thorin and Balin too, it won't make a difference whether we go or not. We might as well eat more grilled sausages. Speaking of which, the Elves' grilled sausages taste great."

"Hey, Bofur, give me five more sausages."

"No. If you want some, cook them yourself."

"Haha, Bofur's gotten smarter."

As soon as the group left, the Dwarves quickly returned to joking and laughing.

Bilbo watched Morgan's figure. He hesitated, but decided to go take a look after all. He got up and hurried after Morgan.

King Elrond knew the way well. He passed through a garden and two gazebos.

Soon, he arrived at an open-air viewing platform.

The platform stood halfway up one of Rivendell's towering mountains.

It was as though a huge section had been cut out of the mountainside.

Aside from a table-like stand made of transparent crystal, there was nothing else on the platform.

The space ahead was empty, and so were the surroundings—wide open on every side.

On either side of the platform, two majestic waterfalls thundered down from above, flowing day and night and sending mist billowing into the air.

In the night sky, the bright, gentle moonlight poured down, bathing all things beneath it.

By the time Morgan reached the viewing platform,

King Elrond was standing before the crystal stand, unfolding the ancient map on a pale yellow parchment.

"These Moon Runes were written two hundred years ago, beneath the new moon on the eve of a midsummer's day."

"It seems you were destined to come to Rivendell."

"Fate is with you, Thorin Oakenshield."

"The same moonlight shines on us both tonight."

King Elrond looked at Thorin Oakenshield beside him and spoke slowly.

Not long after King Elrond finished speaking,

a cloud suddenly drifted across the clear horizon, swallowing most of the bright full moon and turning it into a sharp crescent.

Then, as the crescent moonlight shone down,

something strange happened.

On the ancient map spread across the crystal stand, a series of cryptic characters suddenly appeared, glowing faintly white.

King Elrond watched the changes on the map, then began to recite in a low voice:

"When the thrush knocks beside the grey stone,"

"the setting sun, with the last light of Durin's Day, will shine upon the keyhole."

The information inscribed in the Moon Runes on the map made Thorin Oakenshield, Gandalf, Balin, and the others' expressions darken.

"What is Durin's Day?"

King Elrond suddenly asked.

Gandalf explained, "It's the Dwarves' New Year, the day when the last moon of autumn and the first sun of winter meet in the sky."

"This is bad news!"

"Summer is over. It's already autumn, and Durin's Day is coming soon."

Thorin Oakenshield spoke in a low voice.

"We still have time!"

White-bearded Balin, who had been standing to the side and understood everything, suddenly spoke. "But we must be in the right place at the right time."

"Only then, and only then, will we be able to open the door!"

Hearing their words and piecing together the information they had found on the map, King Elrond finally understood what the Dwarves were trying to do.

King Elrond handed the map back to Thorin Oakenshield and said, "So this is your purpose. You're planning to enter that mountain?"

Thorin Oakenshield took the map and replied calmly, "So what if we are?"

King Elrond said gravely, "Some would consider this unwise."

Gandalf frowned and immediately asked, "Who do you mean?"

King Elrond turned to Gandalf and said solemnly, "You are not the only guardian of Middle-earth."

King Elrond left.

At last, having learned the information hidden on the map, Thorin Oakenshield felt both happy and worried.

He was happy because he now knew the hidden entrance to the Lonely Mountain—the Expedition Team's biggest problem.

He was worried because it was already early autumn, and Durin's Day wasn't far off.

And they still had a long way to travel before reaching the Lonely Mountain.

Thorin Oakenshield and white-bearded Balin kept talking.

Bilbo understood some of what they said, but not all, and stood to the side without contributing.

Morgan gazed at the dreamlike night scenery beyond the viewing platform without saying a word.

Gandalf frowned, pondering King Elrond's final words.

Before long, Gandalf was the first to leave the platform.

Thorin Oakenshield, Balin, and Bilbo left one after another.

Morgan alone lingered on the platform for a while, admiring Rivendell's night scenery before finally leaving.

By the time he left the platform, Morgan no longer felt like trying to encounter a beautiful Elf maiden.

He headed straight for the place the Elves had arranged for him to stay.

When he returned to the little garden, the Dwarves' barbecue party around the campfire was still going on.

Morgan glanced around and saw that everyone was there except Bilbo and Thorin Oakenshield.

He tried hard to recall the plot from his memories.

Only then did he realize that in the story, those two had gone for a walk around Rivendell and happened to overhear Gandalf and Lord Elrond discussing the expedition.

That was also why Thorin Oakenshield led the Company out of Rivendell in the middle of the night.

Although the plot had already changed to some extent,

Morgan wouldn't believe everything in his memories now, but they were still useful as a general reference.

Thinking of this, Morgan found it hard to sit still. There was more World Exploration Progress to be gained.

"I need to find Thorin. Do you know where he went?"

Morgan looked at the Dwarves and asked.

"Over there. He went for a walk."

Balin pointed in a direction.

Morgan nodded and strode off in the direction Balin had indicated.

But just as he took his first step, he suddenly stopped.

"Wait."

"The plot doesn't seem to go like this."

Morgan tapped his head, trying hard to recall the movie.

Then he remembered: The Hobbit movie had two versions.

There was the theatrical version and the extended version.

In the theatrical version, the plot went just as he had remembered.

But in the extended version, the Expedition Team spent quite a while in Rivendell.

He had watched the extended version, which was also the complete version.

He had simply watched the theatrical version more often, so he hadn't recalled it right away.

With that in mind, Morgan immediately turned around and headed back.

He hadn't had a proper night's sleep in over a month.

This time, he was definitely going to sleep to his heart's content.