Chapter 186: Rohan

The troops who had fought a fierce battle against Wargs on the banks of the Anduin.

After recuperating by the river for five days, they prepared to enter Rohan along the fords of the Two Rivers.

The troops were able to set out so quickly, thanks in part to the Durin Dwarves, who were skilled in smithing and quickly repaired the weapons and equipment damaged in the battle.

It was also thanks to Allen's strength recovering extremely quickly, allowing him to perform secondary treatments on most of the wounded soldiers, helping them recover faster.

Gandalf, seeing Allen treat the wounded for the first time, was truly astonished.

Yet, amidst his astonishment, he also sensed an extremely familiar aura from Allen.

It was the aura of Varda, the Illuminator.

The Star Queen had gifted Allen eyes that could see into the Unseen World, and her aura would naturally accompany Allen.

And this aura had once frightened away Saruman, who had wanted to commit foul deeds.

It was just that the White Wizard was soon blinded by the desire for dominion.

Devoid of wisdom, he ignored warnings at the council and actually attacked Allen again; at that time, it was Gandalf who stepped in to help Allen.

And Gandalf, who had once served Manwe in Valinor, was naturally very familiar with this aura.

Even though memories regarding Valinor were like dreams in Gandalf's mind.

The Grey Wizard still found the source of this aura within them.

Having figured everything out, Gandalf naturally knew that Allen had received the recognition of Valinor.

As for the privacy and power of a friend, he would not ask too many questions.

When the entire party had finished resting, Lady Galadriel also bid farewell to everyone and returned to Lothlorien with the Galadhrim.

Because the Galadhrim who had laid an ambush in the forest had not intercepted all the Orcs that had fled into Mirkwood.

Many evil minions who escaped the ambush had fled into the darkness of Dol Guldur, and this required vigilance.

As for the Eagle King, who had lingered here for a time out of a fondness for fine wine and food, he told Gandalf in a huff not to keep sending him messages for no reason, as he was very busy too.

Gandalf nodded repeatedly with a smile, indicating that he understood.

But Allen knew that if the opportunity were right and the need arose, Gandalf would definitely request the help of the Great Eagles without hesitation.

And the Eagle King would never stand idly by regarding Gandalf's request.

In Allen's view, this had a very tsundere quality to it.

The Third Marshal of Rohan, meanwhile, was full of shock and curiosity at the scene before him.

Ever since the Rohirrim moved to the open terrain of Calenardhon, with its warm winds and lush grass, they had lived a very stable life of herding and farming.

During this period, they focused more of their attention on the Orcs in the White Mountains, the Dunlendings of Dunland, and the great enemy in the East, the evil Mordor.

Races from further north were rarely seen; for instance, Dwarves and Elves seldom set foot in Rohan, let alone the Great Eagles, who stayed in the Misty Mountains year-round.

Over these hundreds of years, many things had become legends in Rohan; who would have thought that the ancestors of the Rohirrim had once slain a Cold Dragon in the north?

And had incurred a feud with the Durin Dwarves because of it.

It was just that this long-standing feud, for short-lived Humans, had long since faded from their memories.

Therefore, the subordinates of Eoloth did not have any conflict with the Dwarves led by Fili.

It was just that the sight of some Dwarves sharing horses with Humans made these men, who were heroic on horseback, cast side-glances.

There was no help for it; in the battle against the Wargs, the Dwarves had not suffered many deaths, but their mounts had suffered heavy casualties.

Although Allen had a certain amount of foresight and brought some ponies suitable for Dwarves to ride.

It had not fully compensated for the Dwarves' losses, so they had to let some Dwarves take off their heavy gear and share horses with his men.

Those Dwarves who were being stared at grumbled with great reluctance, as they really did not want to ride such large beasts.

But in order to make time and reach Gondor as quickly as possible to complete the mission entrusted to them by the King under the Mountain, the Dwarves had no choice but to make do.

Subsequently, the entire party, under the guidance of Eoloth, crossed the Anduin River and began to advance along the outskirts of Fangorn toward West Emnet.

Because the Entwash, which blocked their path, only had riverbanks suitable for a large army to cross near this stretch of the forest.

The further south one went, the more turbulent the Entwash became, and the banks would become steep and impassable.

And when it flowed into the Anduin River at the southernmost point, it was a marsh known as the Wet Plains.

Without boats, one should not even think about passing through there.

After crossing the Entwash, the plains, which had sprouted tender green grass, were not as uninhabited as East Emnet.

Allen saw numerous villages on this vast plain, with large numbers of residents building villages and houses here, living a pastoral life.

In the vicinity of some villages, they would even clear small plots of land to grow some crops.

And when the village elders recognized the Rohirrim, they would often arrange for the villagers to send over crisp ale and succulent lamb to treat this army.

The young men who could join an Eored were the best Riders of Rohan, and the most heroic warriors in battle who charged at the very front.

This naturally earned them the respect of the Rohirrim.

Allen would also take this opportunity to purchase some supplies here, most importantly some fresh meat and some wine.

Eating Lembas and dry rations every day was something even the Elves could not stand; on a long journey, good food and wine could always soothe a weary body and mind.

In fact, in these turbulent years, the Rohirrim generally would not host strangers, especially large armies.

Although they were passionate and impulsive, that was only toward their own allies.

In fact, without the permission of the King of Rohan, any stranger stepping onto these grasslands was violating the laws of Rohan.

Under normal circumstances, as long as patrolling soldiers discovered strangers, they would be taken to Edoras to await the King's judgment in the Golden Hall.

However, the Rohirrim were not bloodthirsty; on the contrary, they were very merciful, as long as they were not enemies or entering these grasslands with the intent to harm them.

Most people could leave here unscathed, even when Fengel, who was greedy for food and wealth, ruled Rohan.

However, he would always "symbolically" demand some toll, which also made other lords of Rohan very dissatisfied.

The Horse-lords did not have such a tradition.

But with the Third Marshal of the Mark as their guide, Allen's troop naturally would not encounter any problems.

A line of several thousand riders arrived at Edoras quite smoothly, and they camped outside the city to rest for a day.

Allen also took his little companions and wandered around Edoras at will.

To be fair, the life of the Rohirrim was quite dull; Allen couldn't even find decent shops or places of entertainment on the main streets.

Even the royal city of Rohan had only a few sparse taverns.

Moreover, they were very unwilling to sell horses, because they regarded horses as their partners and cherished them above all else.

However, it was not that they had no goods; besides breeding horses, they also raised sheep and would trade some dairy products and furs for things they needed.

For example, iron that could be used to forge weapons and armor, or some daily necessities that the Rohirrim did not produce.

Compared to Gondor, they did not live particularly affluent lives, but the Rohirrim's mental state was quite healthy, and they lived very happily on these plains.

It was just that the recent war had made them begin to worry about their Prince and the young men who had followed the Prince to the battlefield.

Of course, Allen's purpose was not to sightsee in Edoras, but rather, accompanied by Eoloth, he came to Meduseld, the palace of the kings of Rohan.

It must be said that this world always had some strange things; for instance, although the roof of Meduseld was built of thatch, it emitted the luster of gold under the sunlight.

Even Allen did not understand the principle behind it, or why it was so.

And here, Allen also met with Sengel's wife, Morwen of "Gondor".

He also presented a glowing pearl Necklace as a gift to Sengel's daughter, which counted as a meeting gift from an elder to a junior.

Seeing that the gift was so valuable, Morwen had wanted to refuse, but remembering her husband's past praise for Allen and James's dedicated care for Fengel, she ultimately accepted it.

Because it could be foreseen that on the battlefields of the future, the friendship between Allen and Sengel would become even deeper.

Then the ties between the two royal families would also become more frequent; a pearl necklace was nothing, really.

Morwen of Gondor's background was not low either.

However, Morwen, who held great power at this time, also gave Allen a return gift, which was the right to travel freely within the borders of Rohan.

As long as the troop flew Allen's royal banner, they would receive a warm reception from the Rohirrim anywhere in Rohan.

And the alliance between the two countries could be considered formally concluded at this time.

Afterwards, Allen also met with Fengel, whose condition had stabilized, and proposed the idea of taking James away.

Although very reluctant, Fengel still returned James to Allen.

After so many years of recuperation, his condition had long since stabilized, and having James by his side could not provide further treatment for his illness.

What followed was merely maintenance, such as not drinking alcohol, not eating excessive fatty meat, getting appropriate exercise, and other such precautions.

But who would complain about having a highly skilled Physician by their side?

After several years, Allen's old friend James returned to his side once again.

These past few years, James could be said to have worked hard and achieved great things, having made significant contributions to the friendship between Rohan and Rhovanion; Allen did not even know how to thank him.

James had no other requests; instead, he strongly hoped to go to Gondor to take a look and experience the local customs and culture there.

In this doctor's impression, peoples on horseback were always fierce and cruel, a typical example being the Kujit who often rode out of the grasslands to plunder other nations.

However, the warmth and kindness of the Rohirrim completely changed this view for James, and also made him feel great curiosity about Gondor further to the south.

Because in the words of the Rohirrim, Gondor in the south was even more prosperous, and the people there were more affluent and friendly.

They had once gifted the vast Calenardhon to the Horse-lords.

This was indeed a generous and far-sighted decision.

At this moment, James was full of yearning for this southern kingdom.

However, the war made James's first impression of Gondor extremely disappointing.

After traveling for several days, the army led by Allen and Cirdan rested briefly at Aldburg.

Subsequently, amidst Eoloth's reluctant farewell, they crossed the Merlin River.

They entered Anorien, one of Gondor's northernmost fiefs.

As soon as the army crossed the river, they saw a large number of scantily clad residents farming in the fields.

There were also many thin and sallow-faced children searching for anything edible along the riverbanks and the edges of the forest.

But at this time, they had only just passed the Wind Month, which was March when all things began to sprout; how much food could grow from the land?

Most of the children returned empty-handed, their faces full of disappointment.

Most of these residents had fled here from further south to escape the flames of war.

As they farmed in the fields, seeing this elite force composed of Humans, Dwarves, and Elves, their eyes revealed a look of hope.

Because they had learned through word of mouth that besides the Kingdom of Rohan, Gondor had another reinforcement on the way, and that reinforcement was composed of mysterious and powerful Elves.

And once the reinforcements arrived, they would surely be able to drive away Gondor's enemies and restore their former peaceful life.

However, very soon, they lowered their heads in fear under the curious gazes of the many soldiers.

After all, Allen and his men were not Gondor's local army.

When stared at by strange, powerful people, the residents would naturally feel fear, even if the other party's gaze held no malice.

At this time, Mordor had already occupied Cair Andros for three months, which made the land in Anorien near the Anduin River very dangerous.

Even though Sengel led the Rohirrim cavalry to establish a line of defense near the Druadan Forest to guard against enemy attacks.

There were still a large number of residents who, under the threat of Orcish and the Variag, had lost their homes and fields and fled to the vicinity of the Merlin River to escape the war.

These years, their lives had not been easy.

Of course, this is not to say that the Gondorian nobles of Anorien had abandoned their subjects, but rather that most Gondorian nobles were also living very difficult lives during this battle.

Aside from Minas Tirith on the very edge, Anorien had no important towns.

There were only some scattered villages and manors, and the Gondorian nobles here were not particularly powerful to begin with.

And what they were most concerned about at this time was how to cooperate with the great army of Rohan to resist the invasion of Mordor.

And most of the resources also had to be used for the war.

By the standards of this era, being able to distribute grain to the subjects who had lost their homes and not letting them starve to death completely.

Furthermore, they even found a place for them to settle and protected the commoners on the very front line.

This alone is enough to show that these nobles are quite benevolent.

This is far better than those nobles in Calradia who forcibly requisition food and people.

But even so, when the kind-hearted James saw those pitiful children, he still found it hard to accept.

At his entreaty, Allen ordered his own troop to set down some rations.

Allen certainly knew that this would not solve the fundamental problem, but it was good enough to let those children have a full meal for the near future.

And such a benevolent act naturally earned the gratitude of the nearby people.

This made their gaze toward this troop no longer as fearful as it was at the beginning.

And just at this moment, a Cavalry troop arrived from the east.

Leading them was a green-bottomed Flag, on which a white steed seemed to be galloping across the grasslands as the Flag fluttered.

This naturally represented the arrival of Sengel.

And the other Flag was painted with a soldier holding a long spear.

Malherbe told Allen that this crest represented the most powerful Gondor noble of Anorien, known as the "Tenacious and Brave" Alger.

According to rumors, this lord once led the spearmen of his family to fight bravely against a troop of Orcish that had rushed out of the White Mountains.

Even while wounded, he still led his soldiers to give chase, driving the Orcish into the depths of the mountains and safeguarding the peace of the region.

From then on, he had the title of "Tenacious and Brave".

And the arrival of the two was naturally because their subordinates had reported to them.

The reinforcements had arrived.