The Tarnished in LOTR with Elden Ring

Bilbo saw Azog's head fall to the ground with Thorin stepping on it, then stood up from behind the Orc corpse with a disgusted expression.

He hesitantly asked, "So... Azog just died that simply?"

Bilbo felt somewhat unreal about it. According to the epic biographies he had read, Thorin should have fought a great battle with Azog alongside Fili and Kili before finally defeating him with difficulty.

But Azog died just like any other Orc he had seen on this journey, simply frozen by Thorin's axe and then beheaded.

After cutting off Azog's head, Thorin breathed heavily, like a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders. The mental relaxation made Thorin, whose nerves had been tense for days, feel physical fatigue.

Hearing Bilbo's words, he squeezed out a tired smile. "That's thanks to the stone you threw. Very accurate."

Bilbo said somewhat awkwardly, "But even if I hadn't thrown that stone, Fili and Kili would definitely have helped you stop Azog..."

Kili let out a hearty laugh, telling Bilbo, "At times like this, just graciously accept credit for your contribution."

Then Fili patted Kili's shoulder, saying, "Though Azog is dead, the Orcs in the Mountain aren't all dead yet. Teacher Tarnes and Master Gandalf are still up there blocking those Orcs for us. Give me a hand. Let's throw Azog's corpse in front of those Orcs, and they'll run off on their own."

If Thorin hadn't stomped Azog's head, frozen by the Icerind Hatchet, into pieces, Fili would only need to throw Azog's head onto the stairs.

Only after watching Fili and Kili drag away Azog's corpse did Thorin sit down wearily on the ground.

Seeing Thorin's condition, Bilbo asked with concern, "Uh, are you injured somewhere?"

Thorin shook his head slightly. "Just haven't slept much these past few days. I'm a bit tired."

Just then, urgent footsteps and armor-clashing sounds came from a tunnel. Judging by the sound, there were many people, immediately alerting Thorin and Bilbo.

Bilbo motioned for Thorin to hide behind an overturned wooden table, and both carefully poked their heads out to watch the direction of the sounds.

"Quickly report to Lord Azog! Powerful human soldiers with three terrible beasts have followed the were-worm tunnels and caught up with us! The were-worms were killed by terrible human archers, and all the Dwarves have followed!"

Panicked Orc voices came from within the tunnel, making Bilbo and Thorin exchange glances.

As the footsteps grew closer, fleeing Orc soldiers appeared in a massive tunnel, with lion-like roars and angry Dwarf battle cries following behind them.

Bilbo was silent for a moment, watching Orcs push down their comrades to escape, then said, "They seem to be the army that attacked your father."

Thorin also nodded. "Yes, that general of the Redmane Legion told me that after Smaug flew out, the human knight called Ogha would lead the remaining soldiers and those three great lions waiting outside Ravenhill to support my father."

This was why the Lion Guardians never appeared on Dale's battlefield.

Radahn had not only calculated that Azog would use were-worms to destroy Ravenhill, but also anticipated that this cunning, vengeful Orc leader would send other were-worms and an Orc army to attack Thrain's forces again.

As for why he didn't have the Lion Guardians join Ogha's invasion of the Mountain from the start, it was because Radahn worried they might be lost to Smaug, hampering the subsequent rescue of Thrain.

Though this Orc army attacking Thrain was elite and armored, their numbers weren't large.

After Ogha's team disrupted these Orcs' planned surprise attack on Thrain, the already-alert Thrain immediately responded, cooperating with Ogha to sandwich this Orc army from front and back.

What Thorin saw were merely Orc deserters whose courage had been completely shattered, so he called out loudly for Fili and Kili, actively emerging from behind the wooden table with his Icerind Hatchet to charge these Orc deserters, finally successfully joining Ogha and Thrain to eliminate these Orcs.

"Thorin!"

Among the Dwarf soldiers, a strange yet familiar voice suddenly exploded in Thorin's ears, making his body tremble.

Thorin's grip on the Icerind Hatchet suddenly weakened, the axe handle's crisp impact on the ground echoing long in this bottom level of the Mountain palace.

He turned slowly, his war boots crushing the frost on the ground, yet unable to crush that call spanning a century.

Thrain's figure emerged from among the Dwarf soldiers, the surrounding torchlight outlining the black bloodstains on his armor, blood that had splattered on him when Thrain killed an Orc with his war hammer.

The old king's beard swayed with his movements, his eyes burning like a furnace as he looked at Thorin. "Let me see which little mole has been making such a commotion in the Mountain?"

Thorin staggered forward two steps, his trembling hand touching his father's familiar armor, fingertips repeatedly stroking the bloodstains as if to confirm this wasn't some hallucination.

Finally, Thorin gathered courage to meet his father's gaze, his throat bobbing. "Your beard needs trimming..."

But Thrain actively embraced Thorin tightly, leaving Thorin, who hadn't felt his father's embrace in so long, with his hands frozen awkwardly in mid-air.

Then Thrain released Thorin, looking intently at his son and throwing back his head in laughter.

When he lowered his head, tears carved two bright channels through his wrinkles. His war hammer struck the ground heavily as he raised his hand to gently stroke the wrinkles on Thorin's forehead. "The young man from back then has now become a true man."

"Father..."

Before Thorin could finish, Thrain suddenly grabbed his hand.

The old king said, "I heard from Gandalf that when you proposed reclaiming the Mountain, all those lords opposed you. Come! Let those old stubborn fools see whether my son succeeded or not!"

Thorin didn't refuse, allowing his father to hold his hand.

He looked at his father's back, still strong as before, his throat burning like he'd drunk a cup of strong liquor, and the pressure that had weighed on his back now melted away like snow.

News of Azog's death quickly spread among the Orc soldiers in the Mountain. Without their commander, the Orcs scattered like sand, and within just two days they were completely cleared out by the Dwarves, who cleaned and arranged the Mountain's interior into a suitable dwelling environment for Dwarves.

Thus began a grand feast.

Thorin's first invitation went to Tarnes and all the people from the Golden Tree territory, followed by Gandalf and Bilbo, and finally Bard and the people of Lake-town.

As for King Thranduil of the Woodland Realm and his Elven warriors, Thorin originally hadn't planned to invite them.

However, considering Tarnes' feelings, Thorin grudgingly sent an invitation to Thranduil.

Because Bernahl had also told Tarnes and the others about Lake-town's situation, the Nazgûl attack made Gandalf's heart, which had just relaxed due to the Mountain's reclamation, tense up again.

But Thranduil refused Thorin's invitation, dropping the line "Rather than attend a Dwarf dinner reeking of copper, I'd prefer to fight Orcs again" before directly taking his Elven army back home.

Only Legolas and Tauriel stayed due to Bernahl's direct invitation, since these two Elves had indeed helped him hold off the Nazgûl.

Legolas, unsure about his father's attitude toward him, didn't want to immediately return to the Woodland Realm with Thranduil, so he agreed to Bernahl's invitation.

As for Tauriel, she originally wanted to politely decline Bernahl's invitation and go straight back, feeling she hadn't helped much and was ashamed of the invitation.

But since Legolas stayed, she was more worried he might get into arguments with the Dwarves at the feast, so she had to stay as well.

In the Mountain now, torches cast the feast hall's dome in molten gold.

For the first time in 171 years, the palace's black iron chandeliers were again adorned with flames and gold.

Long tables suspended by silver-forged chains hung in midair, with actual rivers flowing across their surfaces.

Underground springs channeled by Dwarf craftsmen through carved rock rushed in grooves, supporting golden goblets filled with mead.

The liquid rose and fell in the flowing waterways, clashing together, and before the splashing amber droplets could hit the ground, drunk Dwarves deftly caught them with battle axes and drained them.

Dain stepped onto the throne's steps, orange beard dripping with roast rock-sheep grease, shouting loudly, "Bring me another barrel of ale!"

Dwarf servants carried oak barrels as tall as themselves in single file. The moment the barrel lids opened, the wine's aroma mixed with the malt fragrance exploded, making Dain laugh happily.

At the table's center, an entire beef carcass was mounted on a rotating silver spit, its skin roasted to a crystal-bright caramel color.

Bombur wielded a gem-encrusted carving knife and pounced on it. When grease dripped and sparked, burning small holes in his belly's clothing, he was oblivious as he tore off a leg of meat and stuffed it in his mouth, revealing mushroom pieces and other vegetable stuffing mixed in the meat.

"Slow down, Bombur! You've already eaten half a cow! And before that you drank a whole barrel of ale. How does your stomach hold so much food!" Bofur stared dumbfounded at his brother and shouted.

On the other side of the long table, Fili looked conflicted at his brother Kili, considering whether to pull his drunk sibling down from the table.

At this moment, Kili was hugging a wine pot, stepping on wine barrels to jump onto a chandelier, hooking his boot tip on the lamp frame, and shouting down to Legolas, who sat uncomfortably beside Tarnes, "Hey, Elf! I'll buy you a drink!"

Then he aimed the wine pot at the silver cup in Legolas's hand, filling it without spilling a single drop.

"Elves don't drink Dwarf wine. He can't leave the Mountain gates!"

"Drink! Drink! Drink!"

All the Dwarves in the hall, seeing this scene, pounded the table and cheered, singing newly composed lyrics.

Bernahl frowned slightly at Kili. He didn't mind Dwarves joking with him like this, but obviously the relationship between Elves and Dwarves wasn't good enough for such behavior, and Legolas was a guest he had invited.

Just as Bernahl was about to speak up for Legolas, the Elf raised an eyebrow and was about to drain the wine cup.

But before Legolas's hand could touch the cup, Tauriel, sitting beside him, snatched it and drained it in one gulp, then slammed the empty cup down on the table, the splashing wine foam turning into rainbows in the chandelier's glow.

"Good!"

Seeing the female Elf drink so boldly, the Dwarves burst into cheers.

Kili on the chandelier stared somewhat dazed at Tauriel, while Fili took this opportunity to pull his drunk brother down from the chandelier and seat him properly.

Legolas said quietly to Tauriel, "You didn't need to drink that cup for me."

Tauriel replied quietly, "I just can't stand the Dwarves' overbearing way of pushing drinks."

At the table's far end, Thrain was holding a mead-filled wine pot, arm around Thorin's shoulder, forcing drink down his throat.

Thorin wiped away the liquor covering his eyes and also grabbed a wine pot to pour drink down his old man's throat.

Tarnes, Gandalf, and Bilbo sat in seats near Thrain and Thorin. Gandalf silently took a piece of sauce-covered roast meat from a distant plate on the long table for Bilbo, who thanked him repeatedly.

Gandalf asked with a smile, "I saw you daydreaming just now. What were you thinking about?"

Bilbo chewed the delicious roast meat, swallowing before replying, "Yes, I was thinking about how to describe this feast when I return. Perhaps I should write: This was the Dwarves' night; even the stones were singing. What do you think, Gandalf?"

Gandalf nodded. "Excellent description, Bilbo."

Tarnes then joined their conversation, asking Bilbo, "Have you thought of how to write the opening title of this journey?"

Bilbo nodded without hesitation. "Of course. It'll be called 'An Unexpected Journey.' But I'm thinking about how to make my descendants believe that a halfling who couldn't fight once helped the Lord of the Mountain with a stone."

Thorin, having finished another pot of mead, heard Bilbo's words and laughed loudly. "The Mountain will record your assistance. You don't need to worry about that."

Taking advantage of Bilbo and Thorin's conversation, Tarnes quietly said to Gandalf, "Gandalf, I have two things I want to show you."

Seeing Tarnes' mysterious manner, Gandalf couldn't help asking curiously, "What good things are they?"

Tarnes cleared his throat, placing the rings Bernahl and Igon had given him in his palm while showing them to Gandalf. "It's because I don't know that I'm asking you. These are rings Bernahl and Igon found on the Nazgûl they killed. I sense something like a curse on them and don't dare easily remove the curse, so I came to ask if you know the origin of these two rings."

Rings of Power, the Nine Rings belonging to humans!?

Gandalf's expression became shocked when he clearly saw the rings' appearance. He quickly looked left and right, and after confirming no Dwarves were paying attention to their situation, immediately grabbed Tarnes' wrist to make him put the rings away.

At the same time, he said quietly to Tarnes, "Never let humans know you have these two rings."