Time flies, and three days have passed in the blink of an eye.
Thanks to the protection of the mercenary group and the availability of vehicles that didn't require rest, the convoy traveled almost 24 hours a day, except for mealtimes, despite the rugged terrain and slow pace. As a result, the orc werewolf riders pursuing them were never able to catch up.
On the third day after leaving the Orc Dungeon, the caravan bypassed the impassable Dark Forest and finally arrived at Laketown at the foot of Lonely Mountain. However, Laketown did not welcome the dwarves and Wang Han's mercenary group. Of course, they did not want to provoke Wang Han's mercenary group either, so the caravan bypassed Laketown and headed to Lonely Mountain.
It's worth mentioning that after leaving the orc dungeons, Gandalf left the party and disappeared without a trace. Wang Han guessed that Gandalf probably went to discuss the One Ring with someone, or perhaps to check on the Witch-King of Angmar's tomb. However, with the giant eagle leading the way, he would eventually arrive here.
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"We have escorted you to Lonely Mountain. Mission complete."
Before the collapsed gates of the Lonely Mountain Kingdom, Wang Han smiled and spoke to Thorin and the other dwarves. As Wang Han spoke, Thorin and the others' belongings were thrown in front of them like trash by the mercenary group, their intention to demand money and drive them away was obvious.
“Now it’s time to pay the final commission,” Wang Han said to Sorin with a smile.
Looking at Wang Han, Thorin's face was grim, but this mercenary group was one he couldn't afford to offend right now, so he could only say, "All our money is inside Lonely Mountain. You'll have to come in with us to get it."
"The Lonely Mountain, heh heh!" Upon hearing this, Wang Han laughed, then glared fiercely at Thorin and said, word by word, "Do you think I don't know what's inside the Lonely Mountain? There's a sleeping dragon inside, a giant dragon, a giant dragon that has existed since the First Age, Smaug! You want to go in and get it, and then be forced to fight Smaug? I've already seen through your little scheme."
Upon hearing Wang Han's words, Baggins vaguely felt that he had overlooked something, but he just couldn't figure out what it was.
"The money is inside Lonely Mountain. It's filled with mountains of gold and silver, and piles of gems. It's more than enough to cover your commissions, let alone more. If you don't go in, you won't get the rest of your commissions. It's your fault for not going in to get them." Hearing this, Thorin looked at Wang Han defiantly and said in a deep voice.
"Provocation won't work on me. Money is what matters." Wang Han sneered, his fierce expression returning to calm. "You, the King of the Mountain, have long since lost this place. You're nothing but a stray dog in the name of King of the Mountain. You've only returned to reclaim it. Smaug now owns this place. Before you took it back, it belonged to Smaug. And what we got after killing the dragon was spoils of war. Spoils from the fire dragon Smaug weren't your commission."
"You dare to kill the dragon?" Thorin sneered at Wang Han. Before Wang Han could speak, he continued, "You wouldn't dare, you wouldn't even dare to go in. So, even if we defeat the dragon, the kingdom below the mountain will still be mine, and the wealth inside will certainly be enough to pay your commission."
"Can you defeat the dragon?" Wang Han sneered. "Even the entire kingdom below the mountain couldn't do it. You, thirteen dwarves and a hobbit thief? Are you going to just fill his teeth? Or are you planning to go in, lure the dragon out, and then let us deal with it while you reap the benefits?"
“Yes, we cannot defeat the dragon, but we have the Hobbit thieves,” Thorin said confidently. “Bagins can definitely steal your commission without alerting the dragon, and then we can smuggle it out. That way, we can pay you your commission. At the very least, as long as I get the Arkenstone, I can still pay you your commission. If you don’t trust us and are afraid that we will lure the dragon out, you can detain our men.”
"That's a good idea. However, I don't trust you. Your Kingdom of the Mountain has already lost enough dwarves fighting Smaug; a few more being held captive won't matter." Wang Han sneered. "Besides, even if you really do what you say you're doing, without any tricks, the commission you get from the theft is just a drop in the ocean compared to the Kingdom of the Mountain's wealth. It's more in our interest to obtain the entire Kingdom of the Mountain's wealth as spoils of war."
Upon hearing Wang Han's words, Baggins, who had been frowning, finally showed a look of realization. He finally understood what he had overlooked. The reason why the Sky-Bombing Mercenary Group would escort them here even though they knew there was a giant dragon in Lonely Mountain and that they couldn't possibly pay the commission was because they wanted all the wealth in Lonely Mountain.
They likely possess the strength they demonstrated in the Orcish dungeon kingdom, as well as their secret weapons. Those weapons were probably prepared specifically to deal with dragons.
However, new doubts made Baggins frown. If they had already decided to obtain all the wealth in Lonely Mountain, and knew that they were penniless, why were they still escorting them to Lonely Mountain? Moreover, since they had already decided to enter Lonely Mountain to fight the dragon, why did they turn against them before entering?
"Are you puzzled, Hobbits? Are you wondering why we escorted you here? Why we're turning against you now and no longer using you a little longer?" Wang Han said to Baggins with a smile.
“Yes,” Baggins replied, his gaze fixed on Wang Han. Now that the tables had turned, there was no point in denying it anymore.
Wang Han said with a smile, “I prefer to have the initiative in my own hands rather than be used. As for why I escorted you here, it’s because you do have some value. Smaug took the Lonely Mountain from the dwarves, and the dwarves, especially Thorin, the nominal King of the Mountain and former master of this place, will be very excited. I think you would be happy to do so if you could help kill Smaug, who destroyed the kingdom below the mountain! Besides, we also need someone to guide us, someone who will honestly guide us.”
"Hahaha...!" The mercenaries burst into laughter at Wang Han's words.
After a moment of silence, Thorin said, "I can cooperate with you, but I hope you will release the others."
“Of course, no problem. Even if they call in the Iron Legion, it doesn’t matter,” Wang Han said with a smile, waving his hand.
Thorin's men immediately rushed forward, tied him up, and drove the others out of the group.
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