At David's home, the observant Bilbo had noticed Thorin and Arthur leaving one after another. He wondered if it was related to what Gandalf had said that afternoon.
Millison noticed that the hobbit was a bit distracted, so she gently asked, "Are you worried about Arthur and his friends?"
Bilbo put down his bowl, the sound of the dwarves' laughter and joy filling his ears.
He honestly nodded, "Yes, aren't you worried about them?"
Millison replied in a relaxed tone, "Trust Arthur. When it comes to his friends, he cares more than anyone else."
Then she winked at Bilbo, "The only thing we might need to worry about is that Arthur's way of expressing himself is sometimes very direct, which might make his friends feel embarrassed. But that's also one of the qualities that attracts me to him, though sometimes it can be a drawback."
Bilbo tilted his head in confusion at the end, asking in return, "Why is it also called a drawback?"
Bernal heard their conversation, joined in, and answered for Millison, "This drawback is for Arthur himself. Because he cares too much about his friends; even if it means falling into sadness or danger himself afterward, Arthur will still help without hesitation, not knowing how to refuse."
Bilbo's eyebrows moved up and down, but he still didn't understand.
Bernal saw the expression on Bilbo's face and shrugged, "It seems you still don't understand, so let me give you an example. What if Arthur's friend asked him to kill that friend?"
Bilbo said incredulously, "Why would you give such an example? How could anyone ask their good friend to kill them?"
Bernal took a big gulp of wine, put down his wooden bowl, and pursed his lips, "That's a long story… Anyway, you just need to know that Arthur has indeed experienced similar things."
Bilbo frowned, not recalling Arthur ever telling him such a thing.
Just as he was about to ask Arthur more out of curiosity, a hurried sound of footsteps suddenly came from the roof.
Bilbo's eyes followed the source of the sound, and for some reason, his heart involuntarily started beating faster.
Immediately after, there was a heavy thud at the door, the wooden door let out a dull groan, and then was pushed open by an urgent force.
The cold wind from outside rushed in like a beast, wantonly sweeping away the smell of wine and warmth from inside the house.
Bilbo felt a chill, and with the cold wind came Thorin's stern face.
The hobbit felt that the reason his heart was pounding with tension was what Thorin was about to say.
Indeed, he heard Thorin say concisely and powerfully, "Everyone, take up your weapons! A large pack of wargs is approaching here!"
The lively atmosphere in the house instantly vanished, and after a moment of silence, it immediately became noisy again, but this time the dwarves were cursing the invading enemy.
"I'll let them know that dwarves are not to be trifled with, especially when they dare to interrupt a dwarf's hard-earned enjoyment of good wine!"
"My axe must be plunged deep into those Wargs' brains, which don't have much in them, before I can cool down."
Dwalin and Gloin, these two most hot-tempered dwarf warriors, were the first to put down their wine bowls, muttering curses as they stood up and reached for the axes at their waists.
The other dwarves did the same, only Bombur was still diligently finishing the remaining food in his bowl. Only after eating all of it did he wobble his big belly and stand up from the chair that was almost buckling under his weight.
As soon as Thorin finished speaking, Millison immediately stood up and asked Thorin, "Where is Arthur?"
Thorin nodded slightly and said to the tall female swordswoman, "Arthur has gone ahead to the wilderness west of the village to intercept those wargs. He told me to stay here and inform you all to prepare for battle."
Millison quietly thanked Thorin, turned, and quickly walked out of the house.
Bernal also stood up, his movements agile and decisive.
He grabbed his heavy knight's greatsword from the chair, its scabbard gleaming with a faint blue light in the dim candlelight, and at the same time, glanced at Igon.
Igon grinned, his laughter rough and hearty, "Don't worry, Bernal. I'll find a vantage point in the village, and I'll slaughter any wargs that manage to slip past your defense line."
Kili also came over at this moment, his quiver on his back and his longbow in hand, and respectfully said to Igon, "Sir Igon, I'll go with you."
The fire in the fireplace flickered, and the clang of swords against scabbards echoed in David's house.
Bilbo looked at the busy dwarves and, somewhat at a loss, asked Gandalf beside him, "Gandalf, what should I do?"
Gandalf was still pondering why orcs and wargs would come, and Bilbo's words interrupted his thoughts.
The wizard looked at Bilbo, saw the hidden fear and panic in his eyes, and gave a reassuring smile, "You stay in David's house and protect David and his wife and children."
Bofur walked over at this moment and voluntarily said to Gandalf, "Let me and my brother protect Bilbo and the farmer's family. Bilbo hasn't fought before, and those evil orcs won't care about that."
Bifur and Bombur followed closely behind Bofur, and the dwarves' initiative slightly surprised Gandalf.
He looked up, and his gaze met Thorin's.
Thorin nodded faintly at Gandalf, then withdrew his gaze and left David's house with Fili.
Only then did Gandalf realize that Bofur, Bifur, and Bombur, the three dwarves, had been arranged by Thorin specifically to protect Bilbo Baggins the hobbit.
After most of the dwarves had left, David finally dared to come over and ask Gandalf what had happened.
The space in the house was not large, and the dwarves had almost filled his home, so he and his wife and children were eating in their bedroom.
What Thorin had shouted loudly earlier was largely drowned out by the dwarves' noisy chatter, so David wasn't clear about what he had said.
From David's perspective, he only knew that a dwarf had roared, and then the other dwarves suddenly stood up with murderous intent, holding their weapons and walking out of the house, which made him a little scared.
Gandalf looked at the farmer and said in a serious tone, "Have your wife and children hide well, then quickly take me to the village chief's house. orcs are attacking."
"orcs? Hiss, come with me quickly. No, I'll prepare first." David was clearly stunned, but quickly reacted, immediately nodding and walking towards the inner room.
When he came out after instructing his wife and children to hide, he was holding a hoe and nodded to Gandalf.
Gandalf looked at David with some surprise, "You look like this, you don't seem surprised or afraid?"
"This isn't the first time our village has encountered orcs," David said as he walked. "These guys have been appearing since earlier this year. While the first time we paid a price to drive the orcs away, they haven't had it easy since. Honestly, orcs are easier to deal with than the wargs they ride; their bodies are very fragile, and even untrained adult villagers can easily defeat them. But the trouble is the Wargs—those fast, sharp-toothed wargs are the real threat."
Gandalf took one last look at Bilbo and Bombur, who had stayed behind to protect him, giving them a reassuring glance before catching up with David's pace.
He frowned upon hearing David's words: "You mean the village was attacked by orcs before? What month was the first attack?"
David replied without hesitation: "It was in March, or maybe a little later. The first to discover the orcs were hunters from the village who were out hunting. They noticed those wargs that were different from normal wolf packs and only escaped back to the village after two men lost their lives. That's what made the village vigilant and prevented the orcs from succeeding in a sneak attack."
Gandalf asked again: "How many times have the orcs attacked since then?"
David thought for a moment this time and said: "I'm not entirely sure about that. I go to that farmhouse in the deep valley every summer. But before I left, the village had suffered two more orc attacks."
Gandalf clicked his tongue.
He remembered Arthur talking about his encounter with Thorin, where he also saw those dwarves being attacked by orcs.
After the Battle of Moria, when Azog the Pale orc, the leader of the orcs, disappeared, the orcs gradually vanished from human sight.
For so many years, orcs would never have actively traveled this far to attack dwarves, nor would they dare to actively attack human settlements.
Something must have changed among the orcs.
Gandalf narrowed his eyes, combining this with the previous incident of Thorin being offered a bounty in the Black Speech. A very unlikely speculation formed in his mind.
"We're here, Gandalf, this is the village chief's house."
David's voice roused Gandalf from his thoughts. The wizard looked up and saw a hunter in leather armor looking anxious outside the village chief's house.
The village chief of David's village was a strong, middle-aged man with unkempt golden hair, a weathered face that was slightly flushed and purplish, and a hint of alcohol on his breath.
It was clear the village chief had drunk a lot that night. When he saw the hunter and David, there was still some impatience on his face.
But when he saw Gandalf, he seemed to sober up considerably, letting out a burp and asking: "What wind brings a wizard to my door tonight?"
"Village chief, we need to quickly dispatch the village guard. The armored knight who came to the village today told me that a large group of orc warg scouts are on their way," the hunter said anxiously.
Gandalf looked at him with slight surprise and spoke directly: "Yes, our friends discovered them and are holding back those wargs outside the village. In the name of Gandalf the Grey, I ask you to dispatch the village guard to protect the village and support my friends. They are a group of dwarves from the Blue Mountains, two armored humans, and a female swordswoman with a metal prosthetic hand."
Upon hearing those two phrases, it was as if a bucket of cold water was poured over the village chief's head, instantly dispelling all his drunkenness.
His eyes changed abruptly, and his expression immediately froze, no longer showing any impatience.
The village chief straightened his back and took a deep breath. The cold air entered his lungs, and feeling the chill swirling within, he shivered.
He fumbled in his waist pocket several times before pulling out a string of keys and handing them to the hunter, saying: "The bell tower keys are on me. Take them to the bell tower and ring the bell to tell the villagers to hide. I, I'll go find those guard fellows. They should all be together by now."
Gandalf's brows furrowed, his gaze falling on the village chief's stumbling gait and lingering smell of alcohol. He took a deep breath and said to David: "You need to support your village chief and go call the guards."
After saying this, the wizard hurried to leave.
David nodded quickly, then paused, looking at the departing Gandalf and asking: "Where are you going?"
Gandalf's hurried steps disappeared down the village path, and he left a reply without looking back: "Of course, I'm going to help Arthur and Thorin first!"
Outside the village, the moonlight was like silver, and a group of wargs broke the silent night, moving through the shadows untouched by the moonlight.
Their eyes glowed with a faint green light, their muscles taut, their limbs treading on the inky forest floor and grass.
These evil creatures were getting closer and closer to the village. If they were an ordinary wolf pack, the leader of the pack might have been unable to resist letting out a low, powerful howl by now.
However, they were wargs, intelligent creatures with their own language.
The tree branches swayed gently in the wind, and the ground covered with fallen leaves provided cover for the Wargs' movements. Even when running close to the ground, they carefully avoided sudden rocks and dead branches, fearing to make even the slightest sound.
However, a sharp whooshing sound suddenly appeared, and a sharp arrow pierced the night, accurately hitting the warg running at the very front, close to the ground.
The arrow accurately penetrated the fur on its forehead, deeply embedding itself in its brain.
Its four hooves struggled weakly in the air, and its body was carried forward by the momentum of its run, crashing into a raised piece of ground with a dull thud.
"Awooo—?! Awoo—! (An Elf?! There's an Elf in the village?!)"
A short, sharp warg howl came from one warg's mouth, and the other wargs echoed it.
"Awoo! (Continue the rush!)"
That warg howled again, and the surrounding wargs responded.
They no longer concealed their movements, letting the sound of their hooves echo through the dense forest, causing layers of leaves to tremble.
But another sharp arrow pierced the night, its arrowhead firmly embedded in the head of the foremost warg.
Blood and brains bloomed into a cruel flower in the night. This warg let out a short, shrill howl, its body stiffened abruptly, then slid several meters.
For the wargs, the archer's accuracy had far exceeded their expectations.
In the center of the village, the bell tower with its heavy bell stood tall, and Igon stood at its top.
He narrowed his eyes, and under Kili's shocked gaze, his powerful hand silently drew a third arrow from the quiver.
The wrinkles on Igon's face deepened with his focused expression, and the corners of his mouth turned slightly downward.
Bowing, nocking, drawing, releasing.
It was as simple as drinking water or eating food. A dull thud sounded, and the arrow accurately struck the third warg's spine, blood instantly staining its bronze-green fur.
The warg's body twisted in pain, its falling body stirred up dust, its roar abruptly ceased, leaving only a helpless wail.