Chapter 281: Undetected Cancer
After a simple meal of grilled fish by the river, Gandalf walked back with Levi and Bard.
In this way, he crossed the outermost high wall, passed the cordon of heavy crossbows and watchtowers, and headed straight for the center of the city.
“The First Bonfire.”
This was the name that the construction team and residents later gave to the bonfire that Levi first set.
Bud looked at the simple camp that was still the same as it was a few years ago and said, "I heard that you were ambushed here."
"With a king and a ruling prime minister."
Hearing this, Gandalf looked over with some surprise.
"When did it happen?"
Levi responded, "A few years ago, we were investigating the route from Dale to Gondor, and we encountered some blind Orcs."
Gandalf frowned and said, "Luckily nothing happened, and you guys are really tight-lipped. I never heard of it."
“Now you’ve heard it.”
"Yes, now."
As they chatted, the three of them walked up to the city wall and looked out at the land.
Of the two cities, the one in Nanhetao is a pure fortress city with strict defenses, while the one in Beihetao combines defense and transportation, serving as a transit node.
The flow of people and transportation of goods between the north and the south basically cannot bypass this city.
Including Gandalf.
In fact, his main purpose of coming here this time was not to find Levi. He just regarded this place as the best route for traveling from north to south and was just passing by.
Meeting Levi was pure coincidence.
On the city wall, Gandalf chatted:
"Sengir and Ecthelion II, they were both good rulers."
"Sengger's governance is quite wise. Except for his private life, which is often discussed, everything else is good."
"As for Ecthelion, he recently issued a new order: all talented people, near and far, regardless of their status, can go to serve Gondor, and he will give them generous rewards and due respect."
“He was always quite open-minded towards people who were really talented.”
In the north, there is the impenetrable defense line of Levi, the Lord of the North, which is a hopeless defense for the enemy. In the south, there is an enlightened and wise prime minister. In the middle, there is the wise Senger, who is assisted by a young man named 'Solongil'.
Things are getting better in Middle-earth again.
Gandalf thought so.
But the Ringwraiths and Orcs stationed in Dol Guldur do not think so.
In recent years, Levi and his subjects have been building at such an exaggerated speed that when they reacted, they suddenly realized that something was wrong and the way back to Mordor was cut off.
If you are not careful, you will be wrapped in dumplings.
However, despite their panic, the Ringwraiths never stopped developing.
The power of Dol Guldur grew equally rapidly, and large units such as trolls and ogres were cultivated here one after another. Some of them combined the characteristics of local species and were naturally poisonous.
And, as mentioned before, the local species - those big spiders - are quite distinctive.
Inspired by Sauron, the Ringwraiths went and caught a bunch of spiders.
Belonging to the dark camp, spiders are not as powerful as the Ringwraiths. Naturally, the Ringwraiths successfully tamed a group of spiders and made them work for them.
Thus a new type of soldier was born.
Spider Army, and Spider Riders.
These giant spiders have very strong climbing abilities. Even if they are carrying an orc, they can still climb up a long distance on a smooth 90-degree angled wall.
Without the orcs they would have climbed much higher.
The cancer is spreading secretly and silently in the Black Forest.
…
Vales of Anduin, town of Carr.
This small town located between Eagle's Nest and Woodland Kingdom has expanded a lot compared to two years ago. The most obvious thing is that it has expanded to the riverside.
At the widest part of the river, a pier was built where many ships stayed.
There are cargo ships and also frigates for maintaining security.
There were also some merchant ships that went south along the Anduin River, passing through the Golden Iris Swamp, passing by the Golden Forest of Lothlórien, and reaching the North Bridge between the Northern Plateau of Rohan and the Northern Rivers.
The North Bridge was designed with the passage of ships in mind, and a large space was reserved underneath it. Except for Levi's huge flagship, other ships could pass through without any problem.
But the flagship can't get here.
At this point, the final route is completed.
From the outer Belegaer sea route to the inner river transportation and the direct sky road across the mountains, there are no more obstacles to travel in the entire Middle-earth.
As long as you are not going to Mordor or further, there are safe and unobstructed routes available no matter where you go.
The previously closed camp was also affected by the caravans running around and became a little more active.
Needless to say, the Woodland Kingdom has roads built to their doorstep. They originally had a lot of interactions with the humans in the Valley, and in recent years, influenced by the development of Levi's territory, their exchanges with the outside world have become even more frequent.
This can be seen from the wine warehouse which is always full.
In addition to the woodland elves, Lothlórien also rarely interacted with passing merchant ships. They would occasionally come out to purchase some goods and bring back some new and unique products.
It adds a touch of change to the dull life.
The days passed one by one. There were occasional fights, but no major wars ever broke out.
After many years of efforts, the number of Orcs in Rhovanion was greatly reduced, and they were forced to retreat to the outer areas, concentrating in the areas near the Black Gate and the War Plains.
There is still constant friction in the area north of the Wayside Fort. Angmar, the Etten Wastes, the Leng Plain, Gundabad... Orcs, trolls, and mountain people gather in these places and live among them.
Faced with the cloudy Etten Wasteland and the snow-covered mountains connected to the former, Roadside Castle chose to maintain the status quo.
This kind of terrain is really difficult to operate.
It is enough to drive all the enemies from the plains to the mountains and dark forests for now. There is no need to go deeper.
The rangers took shifts to guard the wastelands and snow-capped mountains further north than the Lonely Land, which were filled with enemies.
Near the Riverfort, in Eregion, the former home of the Elves and at the gates of Moria, an outpost was established.
There are soldiers stationed here to watch the west gate of Moria, but since the last war there has been no movement here, and no Orcs are on the loose.
Some have suggested that the Orcs were wiped out in the great battle, others that the Lord passed through it again after the battle and killed the remaining Orcs in the process.
According to various rumors, Moria seemed to be a safe place.
But if anyone tries to pass through it, they will be warned immediately by the rangers: "You don't take the Heavenly Road, but insist on going through Moria. You live too idle and are afraid of something happening to you, right?"
(End of this chapter)
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