While Gandalf and Thorin were deep in thought, the muscular man had already led Gandalf and the others into the ranks below the hillside. As Gandalf and the dwarves entered the ranks, everyone in the group held weapons and watched them.
He approached Wang Han. After whispering a few words to Wang Han, the muscular man stood beside him and waited.
"I believe you when you say you're being chased by orcs, but what is your purpose?" Looking at Gandalf and the others, Wang Han said, "To encounter orc wolf riders chasing you, especially here, in territory that doesn't belong to the orcs, is not something that can be explained by bad luck. These orc riders are here with a purpose, and you must also have a purpose. These orc riders' target is you."
As soon as Wang Han spoke, the team members with weapons immediately stepped forward and surrounded Gandalf and his men.
Upon hearing Wang Han's words, Gandalf and Thorin exchanged glances, their eyes meeting. They hadn't expected to be seen through so quickly, and judging from the fierce mercenaries around them, they feared they might lose their lives if they didn't explain themselves properly.
“Lord of the mercenary company, you are right, these orcs are indeed hunting us.” After exchanging glances, Gandalf spoke. “Allow me to introduce myself. I am Gandalf the Grey Wizard. The people around me are Turin dwarves.”
Gandalf did not reveal Thorin's identity.
"Then why are they hunting you down?" Wang Han asked with a smile.
“Because we are heading to Lonely Mountain.” Seeing that his identity as a grey wizard did not elicit any reaction from the other party, Gandalf hesitated for a moment before speaking. At the same time, he carefully observed Wang Han's facial expression.
"Lonely Mountain, the Lonely Mountain occupied by the fire dragon Smaug! Your ambitions are quite grand! Do you want to drive the fire dragon away? With just a dozen or so of you? Are you even enough to fill his teeth?" Wang Han said, his words filled with naked disdain.
“No, we’re going to Lonely Mountain to find something. We even hired a nimble hobbit thief for it,” Gandalf said, pulling Baggins forward. He quickly began to think things through.
These mercenaries are no pushovers, but if they could be persuaded, they might be able to get them to escort them to Lonely Mountain. That would be much safer than the dozen or so of them going alone. After all, the orcs are still hunting them down. Of course, teaming up with these mercenaries is like playing with fire. (There are no mercenary guilds in this world.)
"Taking such a big risk to find something, and even specifically hiring a thief, I'm very interested in what you're looking for. Could you tell me? It wouldn't happen to be the Arkenstone, the jewel that will inherit the throne of the Turin dwarves, would it?" Wang Han said with a smile.
“You are truly a wise commander.” Upon hearing this, Gandalf, who was unsure of Wang Han’s thoughts, flattered him without revealing his true feelings before nodding and saying, “We do indeed want to steal the Arkenstone back.”
“Grey Wizard, you are a truly honest man,” Wang Han said with a smile, waving to the team members surrounding Gandalf and the others, signaling them to disperse.
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