Through his rigorous training with Elrohir and Elladan, Luke's martial arts skills improved at an astonishing pace. If he had once been a fragile wizard, now, even without using magic, he could rely on the Flaming Sword or the Divine Spear Aeglos in his hand to directly confront orcs. During this time, he consumed another dose of Ent-draught. The potent drink caused his height to increase further, just barely exceeding two meters. This made him one of the tallest, even among Elves.
Beyond his height, the greater gain was the profound strengthening of his body. Before the effects of the Ent-draught wore off, he felt boundless energy every day. Even under the demanding training of Elrohir and Elladan, he remained vibrant and grew steadily stronger. To maintain this benefit, he specially brewed several more batches of Growth Potion, then dispatched his Giant Eagle, Súlond, to Fangorn Forest to trade with Treebeard for more Ent-draught.
Súlond was no longer a fledgling. Under Arwen's meticulous care and constant feeding with the magical Lembas dry food, his body had grown rapidly, and his wings had become strong enough to carry him in circles near the top of the world. After that, Luke fed him Ent-draught, and Súlond's size doubled, surpassing that of an adult Giant Eagle. Súlond officially became Luke's messenger, flying thousands of miles with the potion to Fangorn Forest, where he successfully traded for the Ent-draught. Treebeard was very fond of the Giant Eagle and specifically treated him to more Ent-draught. Thus, when Súlond returned to Weathertop with the Ent-draught, Luke was greeted by a Giant Eagle that was now twice its already impressive size. Luke could only marvel at Súlond's good fortune. Though not yet fully mature, Súlond was already larger than the largest Eagle King in the Misty Mountains, with a wingspan nearing 30 meters. When his colossal wings flapped, they swept away clouds and wind, like the legendary Roc blotting out the sky.
After gaining the ability to fly long distances, Súlond no longer required constant feeding. The residents of Hogsmeade, living at the foot of Weathertop, would see the Giant Eagle flying daily; he would depart for the distant wilderness to hunt at sunrise and return to his nest in the tall mallorn tree at sunset.
For Bilbo's birthday, he too received a gift from Luke: Ent-draught. The effect was immediate. Bilbo grew a full 10 centimeters taller, becoming the tallest Hobbit in the Shire. Bilbo was overjoyed and hosted a party in Hobbiton, inviting all his neighbors to witness his newfound height.
Days turned into weeks, as Luke continued his courtship of Arwen and endured his 'training' with Elrohir and Elladan. Until one day, a raven brought news from Gandalf: the Dwarves had finally decided to march on Moria. The leader of this expedition was an old acquaintance of Luke's: Balin. Thorin Oakenshield, the King Under the Mountain, would not directly participate, but he would fully support Balin in reclaiming Moria and restoring the Dwarven glory of Khazad-dûm.
Originally, the Dwarves would not have made such a swift decision. After all, not only were the orcs in Moria a formidable foe, but the Balrog lurking in the Mines of Moria posed the greatest threat. The terror of the Balrog far surpassed that of the dragon Smaug, and it had caused the once-mighty kingdom of Khazad-dûm to fall overnight. Consequently, the Dwarves had been hesitant and divided on the issue of retaking Moria. But when Gandalf traveled north and delivered the news that Luke was willing to join, the Dwarves suddenly found their confidence renewed. With two powerful wizards, Gandalf and Luke, willing to take action, and Luke also possessing the dragon Smaug, they believed their chances of victory were significantly high.
"Luke, long time no see!" Inside Weathertop castle, Balin stepped out of the green flames of the fireplace and greeted Luke warmly. He then looked up, surprised, at Luke's towering figure. "Oh my goodness, Luke, what have you been eating? How did you grow so tall?"
"A small gift from the tree-men," Luke explained with a smile.
Balin looked at Luke with a hint of envy, then shook his head, regretting, "The tree-people aren't very friendly to us Dwarves, it's said they even had conflicts with our ancestors. Fangorn Forest has always been forbidden territory for Dwarves." Luke mused that Dwarves, with their love for mining and forging, inevitably cut down trees. It would be strange if they had a good relationship with the tree-people who protected the forests.
After all, he himself had almost been deemed an unwelcome person by the tree-people for having burned trees in the Old Forest. It was quite ironic that Yavanna, the goddess of plants, and Aulë, the god of craftsmen, were husband and wife, yet their creations—the tree-people and the Dwarves—were so hostile to each other. This, he thought, was another peculiar twist of fate.
The two then began to discuss the terms of their cooperation. As the Dwarven representative and leader of the expedition, Balin had full authority to negotiate with Luke. And once Moria was recaptured, Thorin Oakenshield would not directly rule it. Instead, Balin would become the Lord of Moria, enjoying autonomy much like Dáin Ironfoot of the Iron Hills. Balin was very generous. As a collaborator, he promised to give Luke half of Moria's treasure after its recapture, and also pledged Luke permanent ownership of one-tenth of the mithril vein. This meant that, in the future, one-tenth of all mithril mined from Moria by the Dwarves would belong to Luke.
Even Luke was a little surprised when he heard Balin's offer. Moria was renowned for its rich mithril mines, and mithril, as an incredibly precious magical metal, held immense value. The mithril armor that Thorin had given to Bilbo alone could purchase the entire Shire. Before the Balrog awoke, Khazad-dûm had built a prosperous kingdom on the mithril it produced, its wealth far surpassing that of the Lonely Mountain. Now, Balin was willing to give him a tenth share of this mithril, permanently. This was a vast and seemingly endless source of wealth. Since Balin was so sincere, Luke naturally accepted with a smile. It just so happened that Smaug was constantly complaining about being 'poor', so he would certainly be asked to contribute to this expedition to Moria.
After the terms of cooperation were agreed upon, Balin did not linger. They settled on meeting up in a month, and then Balin left the castle and returned to the Lonely Mountain to prepare the necessary manpower and weaponry. Meanwhile, Luke also began his own preparations for the upcoming journey to Moria. He had to face a Maia-level entity in the Balrog. And unlike Gandalf and other Maiar whose strength was deliberately constrained, the Balrog had no such limitations. Although Middle-earth was nearly torn apart after the War of Wrath, it was restricted by the Valar from unleashing powers that exceeded the limits of the material world. Yet, the Balrog's power was unquestionable. Even Sauron, without the One Ring, wouldn't have an absolute chance of victory against it.
According to Gandalf's description, the Balrog was essentially a spirit of fire and shadow, whose primary abilities were fire manipulation and close combat. Originally a Maia associated with fire, the Balrog was once considered a "Guardian of the Flame." Before Morgoth's complete fall, when he was shrouded in glory, these Maiar were drawn to and followed him. They then descended into darkness with Morgoth, transforming into the terrifying Balrogs.
In anticipation of the Balrog's fiery attacks, Luke began making a fireproof potion based on Professor Snape's potion notes. During Harry Potter's first year, Snape had created a dangerous wall of black flame in the Hogwarts basement to protect the Philosopher's Stone. Even Voldemort, possessing Professor Quirrell, couldn't pass through those flames. He could only solve Snape's logic puzzle, obtain the fireproof potion, drink it, and then pass through the flames. This particular fireproof potion could resist all magical flames except for Fiendfyre. Luke wasn't sure how the fire unleashed by the Balrog compared to Fiendfyre, but he needed to be prepared for both possibilities.
So, over the next month, he began to replicate this potion. For some potion materials that weren't available in Middle-earth, Luke consulted the Brown Wizard Radagast, the master of Middle-earth herbs, referencing the medicinal properties noted by Snape. Radagast proved worthy of being a Maia serving the goddess of plants, Yavanna. He knew all the plants and animals in Middle-earth like the back of his hand and directly provided Luke with materials that had similar medicinal properties. With Radagast's help, Luke substituted several Middle-earth materials, and after several setbacks, he finally succeeded in making a fireproof potion. And its effect was even stronger than the original fire retardant.
Luke captured a lone orc, fed it a fireproof potion, and then unleashed Fiendfyre to burn it. Although the orc was eventually incinerated by the Fiendfyre, Luke was surprised to find that, even after taking the potion, the orc managed to withstand the fierce flames for a few seconds before succumbing. This result surprised Luke, and without any hesitation, he immediately poured another bottle of fireproof potion into a different orc to test it. This orc endured the burning of the Fiendfyre for over a minute before being consumed. Even though the time was relatively short, Luke was very pleased. With the fireproof potion, he would feel much more confident when facing the Balrog.
As if that wasn't enough, Luke continued to brew fireproof potions in the following days. By the time the agreed-upon day to meet Balin arrived, he had already made five pots of the potion. If the potion hadn't been so complex to make, and if time hadn't been so pressing, he would have continued to make even more fireproof potions.
As the castle's fireplaces ignited with green flames, Gandalf and Balin emerged one after another. Balin was carrying an iron box.
"Luke, I haven't seen you for a while. I'm truly surprised by your changes!" Gandalf remarked, looking Luke up and down. "You look more like a warrior. Have you been training?"
Luke nodded, a grimace hinting at unbearable memories. "Uh... Elrohir and Elladan have been accompanying me in training."
Gandalf saw through everything instantly and smiled knowingly. "You 'stole' their precious 'Evening Star'. The fact that they didn't drive you out of the valley is a testament to the Elves' good manners." He chuckled. "I remember when the human Beren wanted to marry the Elf Princess Lúthien, Thingol, the Elf King of Doriath, was greatly opposed. He even put forth a very harsh condition: demanding that Beren bring Lúthien a Silmaril from Morgoth's crown as a dowry, in an attempt to deter him. You are fortunate that Elrond is a kind lord, not one who would deliberately make things difficult for you. Otherwise, you would not only have suffered this little, but he would have also found opportunities to help you grow stronger."
Luke smiled and nodded, no resentment in his eyes. "I know that Gandalf, Lord Elrond, and Elrohir all cherish and love Arwen very much." Then he asked curiously, "Gandalf, where have you been all this time?" After all, it shouldn't have taken so long just to persuade the Dwarves of the Lonely Mountain to march to Moria.
Gandalf did not hide it. "I went to Dunland. You know that Saruman not only contacted the orcs but also tried to win over the Dunlendings, so I wanted to see if there was any way to stop him."