"They should be waiting for us."
At the pass through the Misty Mountains, Gandalf said this.
"Our plan accounted for that."
"Not necessarily." Li Wei surveyed the terrain. This place was still the same as when he had last come—nothing had changed.
"Well, even if they really didn't wait for us, after such heavy rain, they would definitely have found somewhere to rest. We can catch up while they're resting."
"Hm?"
Gandalf suddenly stopped and looked toward a cave beside them.
"This is the front entrance hall of Goblin-town, a gate the goblins specifically set up to make it easier to ambush passersby. Because of them, no one has used this road for a long time."
"Come to think of it, I once planned to find a somewhat upright Stone Giant to block this place off. But they were simply too difficult to communicate with, so it never got done."
The well-traveled old wizard recounted the history of the place. As he spoke, he took several steps forward, crouched down, and ran his hand over the ground.
"These mechanisms show signs of having just been triggered..."
"Oh no, Thorin and the others must have been captured!"
"This is bad..."
"Then shall we go down and save them?" Li Wei also stepped forward, looking around before knocking on the walls and feeling the ground.
"Don't waste your effort. The goblins of Goblin-town are very clever. The gates they built cannot be opened from the outside."
Gandalf rose to his feet. "But I know of a back entrance we can sneak through. Perhaps we can..."
"Perhaps we can dig our way in."
Li Wei took out his fully enchanted Diamond Pickaxe and asked Gandalf, "Point me in the right direction."
"Just watch. If I don't dig straight through their Front Hall Gate,