Bear School Astartes

”Oh! Yes, Rong Buqiu was a great help too!”

Radagast spoke to the Elu Cat with more enthusiasm than when he talked to people, which made Lann twitch his mouth.

They quickly left the ancient tomb of the Northern Kingdom that sealed the Angmar Witch King.

Retracing their steps down the mountain.

Beside Radagast’s rabbit sled, the big rabbits were nibbling at the sparse grass of this barren land.

The qilin was nowhere to be seen.

Lann wasn’t worried, just rubbed the Magic Ring in his hand, and soon a burst of bluish-white lightning erupted from a nearby hill.

Then the lightning rapidly approached this way.

”What now?” Lann asked Radagast during the gap before the qilin could catch up.

”Now we can confirm that the short sword is indeed the genuine Blade of Mogul, and the wraiths are out. But do you have any plans to deal with the crisis next?”

With a solemn look, the ragged old man took off his worn-out leather hat that looked like a shabby Lei Feng hat.

The three little birds that used his hair as a nest flew out and landed in his hand.

Lann and Rong Buqiu only saw Radagast whispering and blowing a breath to the birds, and they chirped away.

”Are you going to notify Gandalf?”

Lann crossed his arms, watching the birds fly away.

After spending enough time with Radagast, he realized this guy didn’t really want to handle matters, just to live among diverse life in nature.

So, he would immediately choose to report the situation to others.

”Yes, I notified Gandalf.” Radagast admitted bluntly, putting his ragged hat back on and stepping onto the sled.

”I set a meeting point with him, and actions need to be taken—the situation is urgent... very urgent!”

”It’s been nearly three thousand years since the end of the Second Era when we defeated Sorun, and four hundred years since our last battle with the remnants of the Dark Forces. And now... you never know what might happen these days.”

The thunderous sound of hooves was already very close, and the qilin was swiftly descending directly from the mountain.

Listening to Radagast’s pessimistic tone, Lann nodded with a frown.

His hand unconsciously rubbed the hilt of the long blade at his waist.

Feeling the powerful holy force safeguarding him.

During the previous confrontation with the wraiths, though Aron Dite displayed its power that could reach into the Netherworld and took down two wraiths—

Lann always felt... as if there was something still dormant deep inside this blade.

This feeling was hard to describe; perhaps it was what Elrond hinted at when he sent the blade?

Lann felt the Lake Lady’s Sword, adjusted by Galadriel, until the qilin beside him lowered its crystal-like azure horn and nudged him.

”Hey! Listen to me!”

”Hmm? What?”

Lann snapped back to reality and saw Radagast, already standing on the sled looking ready to go with the big rabbit sled team all in order.

”I said: we’re going to that old place to meet Gandalf!”

Radagast sighed.

Lann mounted the qilin, and Rong Buqiu deftly grasped the silk rune cloth on the qilin, climbed up, and sat securely.

”The old place...” Lann immediately understood where it was. ”Are you going directly to Dorguldu?”

Faced with Lann’s surprised expression, Radagast did not elaborate, just sharply tugged the reins.

”I keep saying it’s urgent... we have no time, Lann.”

-----------------

Since Lann parted with Gandalf in Rivendell, they met again in the southwest corner of the Dark Forest, outside the ancient, eerie, towering old fortress.

The sky in this region was still perennially shrouded by heavy, gloomy clouds, while the branches of the surrounding trees twisted and sharp, reaching toward Dorguldu.

As if eager to extend their branches into a darker, more evil environment.

The sound of hooves and sled sliding drew closer and eventually halted in front of Gandalf.

”Impressive swordsmanship, Gandalf.”

Lann dismounted, teasingly approaching the old wizard smoking his pipe.

On the way, he and Radagast saw many giant spiders lying on the ground. These spiders had sharp, powerful pincers and thick, strong abdomens, each giant spider as large as a donkey!

Yet all these spiders bore a single clean, precise sword wound, lying motionless on the forest’s thick humus.

Undoubtedly, the one who effortlessly sliced through the giant spiders trying to eat him and now sitting here was the Grey-robed Wizard Gandalf.

The old man sat on a large rock, facing the dark castle that stood not far away on the hillside. Its edges and corners were covered in spikes, making people shiver just by looking at it, as if their skin was already pierced and torn by the barbs.

Gandalf had the sword once owned by the Elf King of Gondolin, Glamdring, hanging at his waist. Yet he himself showed no sign of grandeur.

He simply held his magic staff in his arms, sitting on the large rock, puffing on his pipe, gazing with a solemn expression at Dorguldu in the distance.

Only when Radagast and Lann arrived as agreed did he reluctantly crack a smile, though it quickly faded.

He took the pipe out of his mouth and gestured across from him.

”Want a puff? This time it’s Old Toby tobacco.”

”Sorry, I don’t smoke.” Lann shook his head, declining.

Gandalf and Radagast looked at the Demon Hunter in surprise, as if not smoking a pipe was rare.

But thinking about it carefully, Lann realized that most of the people here did seem to smoke a pipe.

”Then...” Radagast also looked at the old castle in the distance, walked over to Gandalf, and said, ”I’ll take a few puffs.”

Lann watched as the two old men passed the pipe back and forth, while he pushed aside the Qilin’s large head that had come over out of curiosity to smell the pipe tobacco.

With fingers stained with ash, tar, and soil, not exactly clean, Gandalf pointed toward the thickening dark clouds over the old castle.

”Look at the atmosphere of this castle now, it’s like the Demon Art Capital.”

Gandalf pulled at his grey sleeve and wiped the sweat from his cheek.

”The messenger you sent has already told me about your findings... You’ve worked hard. Who would have thought there were three Nazgûl hidden on the Rudolph Plateau? Truly dangerous.”

”If one were to be injured by their weapons, there are only a few places in this world where one could be healed, such as Rivendell and Lothlórien.”

Radagast silently shook his head, then took off his hat, allowing the three birds flying in the air to land back on his head.

”The situation isn’t good, Gandalf. Even the presence of Nazgûl has returned, but...”

The shabby old wizard looked at the eerie castle, yet still appeared bewildered.

”I’ve watched this place for hundreds of years. It always seemed abandoned... How could it be? Darkness gathered power right under my nose?”

”As expected, old friend.”

But Gandalf wasn’t surprised; perhaps any shock had been exhausted when he received the news from the bird messenger.

”This might even be considered good news under the current dire circumstances.”

”Sorun, our enemy, is skilled at deception and concealing the truth with spells, and the castle is filled with such magic. This indicates that the Dark Demon Monarch is not yet prepared to reveal his true form and rally evil beings across the Middle-earth Continent under his banner!”

”In other words...”

Gandalf’s wise and steady gaze turned to Radagast and Lann.

”He has not yet returned to full strength!”

”This is our chance!”

The Demon Hunter looked at Gandalf, his expression firm and composed.

Even when faced with a great enemy, there was hope and persistence, and he calmly responded to the situation and changes with ancient wisdom and reason.

In the Magic Middle Ages, warlocks who mastered magic often reshaped themselves with spells.

Women tended to make themselves dazzlingly beautiful, while men often made themselves appear older and grew large beards, as this fit people’s imagination of a ’wise person.’

Yet Lann glanced around; those so-called wise men, no matter how they reshaped themselves, could never possess Gandalf’s bearing at this moment.

In front of Gandalf, they seemed like a bunch of clumsy actors wearing fake beards, ready to perform.

”Okay, the pipe’s done.” Gandalf stood up, using his knee for support, took off his pointed hat, and used it as a rag to pat his body, knocking off twigs and leaves.

”Radagast, I need you to send messages to Rivendell and Lothlórien. Lann, I’d like you to set off immediately to Long Lake Town to help our common friends—the dwarves fighting for their homeland.”

Radagast was momentarily stunned by Gandalf’s sudden shift in tone, but Lann frowned, reaching out to stop Gandalf.

”Wait, what do you mean?”

Lann’s eyes were filled with a sense of ’are you kidding me?’

And Gandalf nodded, confirming the accuracy of the Demon Hunter’s feeling.

”I’m going in alone; none of you can follow me! No one can, understand?”

”Wait, wait, wait! Why, why is that?” Radagast only then reacted, urgently speaking, ”That place devours without leaving bones, Gandalf!”

”But you said it yourself, Radagast, my old friend. You’ve guarded this castle for hundreds of years, yet you’ve found nothing.”

The Grey-robed Wizard’s eyes never moved away from Dorguldu, as firm as his decision, and he spoke in a low voice, ”We knew at that time, after Sorun’s destruction, only a spirit light flew here. But no matter how we searched, we found no trace, which is why you stayed.”

”Sorun’s ability to evade and remain untraceable has always been our headache! And now, while his power hasn’t fully recovered, his forces are restless... We must find a way to ’lure’ him out! Even if it means using ’bait’! And that means me!”