Chapter 55: Allen's Plan

Evening, Dale shrouded in the light of the setting sun.

Humans, Wizards, and Elves gathered inside Thranduil's tent.

At this moment, Gandalf was speaking incessantly to the few people in the tent about the war in Dol Guldur and the Orcish army he had seen with his own eyes.

Allen did not doubt the veracity of this information; hearing Gandalf's account, he breathed a sigh of relief, as such a result was far better than the original trajectory.

Especially upon hearing the news that Thrain II was still alive, Allen's mind immediately became active.

He had known for a long time that this current King of the Lonely Mountain was still alive.

Last year, when Allen attended the White Council meeting in Lothlorien, he had wanted to bring this matter up.

It was only out of various concerns that he did not speak of it, instead focusing on describing the power of the dark forces in Dol Guldur.

He had hoped at the time that the White Council would attach importance to this place, so that when these big shots arrived with the power of thunder to drive Sauron away directly, the probability of Thrain II being rescued safely would also be greatly increased.

Now, hearing with his own ears that Gandalf said Thrain II was still alive, Allen was happy inside.

Because he had a plan that required this news.

It was just that what made Allen strange was that Gandalf did not say the Great Eagles would come to support, which was very strange.

However, after Allen thought about it carefully, he felt relieved; his speculation on this was that Gandalf himself might not be certain whether the Great Eagles would come to support.

After all, these messengers of Manwe did not accept anyone's assignment; they would judge for themselves what to do.

Of course, Allen knew they would definitely come, but at this timeline, Allen was no longer certain when the Great Eagles would arrive.

And the King of the Woodland Realm, Thranduil, holding his Wine, finally realized under the double reminders of Allen and Gandalf that the Orcish had truly gathered a large army and were rushing toward this side.

Wizards did indeed often exaggerate, and Allen might also say some outlandish things for the sake of Thorin Oakenshield.

But Lady Galadriel, Lord Elrond, and Glorfindel, who were in the mouth of the Grey Wizard, were all his kin, and among them were not a few whom Thranduil held in extreme reverence.

Thranduil did not believe this Wizard would use these people's names to deceive him, so he had already believed it when he heard the course of events.

But this Elven King was unwilling to show it, and he was also unwilling to retreat to Mirkwood just like that.

Because he had already given the order for the army to besiege the Lonely Mountain tomorrow morning; he could not let his dignified King of the Woodland Realm change his order at the last minute because of a few words from a Wizard and slink back to Mirkwood, could he?

Thranduil was a king after all, and a king who had been on the throne for thousands of years; he still cared about face.

Additionally, he was unwilling to let his family's Starlight Gem fall into the hands of the Orcish.

If that were the case, the price to pay to get it back would surely be even higher; tomorrow morning might be his only chance.

Of course, at this time, Thranduil had never considered leading the Elven army to help the Dwarf defend the Lonely Mountain, unless time returned to two hundred years ago, or he had gone mad.

Therefore, facing Gandalf's account and request, Thranduil had a calm expression on his face.

His eyes looked at the Wine in his hand, taking a sip from time to time, neither expressing agreement nor raising an objection.

Watching the two who had fallen into a stalemate, Allen finally spoke up; he said to Thranduil, "Your Majesty, could you give me a chance to try? Thorin Oakenshield once owed me a promise; perhaps I can help you get back your Heirloom Gem."

Allen was, of course, not prepared to rely on that promise; that was just a pretext. As for the current Thorin Oakenshield, let alone a promise, he might not even abide by a contract written in black and white.

After hearing Allen's words, Thranduil was stunned for a moment; after pondering for a while, he felt that trying would do no harm.

This King of the Woodland Realm considered that if Allen could get the Starlight Gem back, then his goal would be accomplished, and then he would have plenty of time and opportunity in the future to compensate Allen.

Even if he could not get it back, he would still be in time for the siege of the Lonely Mountain.

Thinking of this, Thranduil said to Allen with an expressionless face, "You intend to make Thorin Oakenshield keep his promise? Very well, I can give him another half day."

Standing nearby, Gandalf's expression relaxed after hearing this; he was truly worried that the Elf and the Dwarf would engage in a great battle.

And Allen, sitting to the side, nodded toward Thranduil and said, "Your Majesty, I will do my best."

Subsequently, Allen and Gandalf left.

That night, Gandalf and Allen talked a lot, and Allen learned the specific details of the Battle of Dol Guldur from Gandalf's mouth.

In the end, Allen also briefly told Gandalf about his two plans, and Gandalf indicated that they could be tried.

The next morning, Allen rode an Elf Horse all by himself to the gates of the Kingdom of Erebor.

Standing at the gate, Allen looked at the city gate that had been blocked by large stones and knew that this was done by Thorin Oakenshield.

His heart was filled with helplessness; the Thorin Oakenshield who was not suffering from the illness, though stubborn and proud, still had many merits and was quite likable.

Once this Dragon Sickness struck, it really made one unable to like him at all, even if the goodwill accumulated before would gradually decrease amidst his unreasonable behavior.

Thinking of this, Allen shook his head and stopped thinking about it, instead waving his hand and greeting the taller Dwalin, shouting loudly, "What? No welcome for a friend to visit your homeland?"

Dwalin and Bofur, who were standing on the city wall on guard, had long since seen Allen; they waved to Allen cordially, preparing to lower the ropes to let Allen up.

But soon, someone stopped them, and then Thorin Oakenshield's voice rang out.

"Allen, I saw you bringing thousands of troops and joining up with that group of Elves; until this matter is explained clearly, you are not suitable to enter my kingdom."

As the voice rang out, Thorin Oakenshield, wearing a crown and a fur cloak, appeared on the city wall.

He looked down at Allen from a high position, his calm face devoid of a hint of a smile, as if Allen were not his friend, not his companion, but a stranger begging him for something.

Thorin Oakenshield's actions caused dissatisfaction among many, but they were Dwarf, and their damn loyalty meant they would not utter a single word about it.

But Bilbo Baggins had already begun to speak up for Allen.

"Thorin, that is Allen; he is the companion who walked with us from the Shire to the Lonely Mountain. Think about it carefully, do you really want to turn him away?"

Thorin Oakenshield turned his head to look at Bilbo Baggins, then looked at the clansmen around him, and fell into thought.

At this moment, Allen's voice rang out again.

"Thorin, no matter how many soldiers I bring, I have no malice toward you. I just want to go up and meet my friends; that is allowed, right? If not, you can let Bilbo come down instead."

Thorin Oakenshield remained silent for a long time after hearing this, so long that even Allen became a bit impatient.

Finally, this Dwarf Prince nodded and agreed to let Allen enter his kingdom.

Bofur immediately threw the rope down.

Allen nimbly climbed up the gate of the Lonely Mountain along the rope, and his first words upon reaching Thorin Oakenshield's side were.

"Have you sent word to Dain, asking him to bring troops to help you?"

Allen was extremely concerned about this question; after all, it concerned the Battle of the Five Armies and whether the Dwarf could participate in the war.

Upon hearing this, Thorin Oakenshield nodded subconsciously, but then he reacted, a look of indignation appearing on his face as he shouted angrily, "Are you spying on my military intelligence?"

Allen looked at Thorin Oakenshield, who was questioning him, and a sudden, inexplicable fire ignited in his heart.

The various hardships along the road of the Expedition flooded into his mind in an instant, causing him to cast aside all the forbearance and understanding he had planned before coming.

Allen looked down at Thorin Oakenshield, who already considered himself the King of the Lonely Mountain, and shouted, "Spying my foot! Let me tell you, Gandalf saved your father, Thrain II, in Dol Guldur."

Suddenly hearing this news, Thorin Oakenshield froze in place; his face first showed an expression of disbelief, followed by joy, but it vanished immediately, replaced by confusion, then anger, and finally pain.

And Allen's words continued to pour out incessantly.

"You think that just because you wear a crown and drape yourself in some pelt, you are the King of the Lonely Mountain? Do you have the royal heirlooms? Did Thrain II pass the throne to you?"

"Do you know that Azog, the murderer of your grandfather Thror, is rushing here with countless Orcish, and by then, this place will fall into darkness just like Moria? Yet you are still here feeling smug, calling yourself some King of the Lonely Mountain."

Saying this, Allen roared as if to vent his frustrations.

"Do you know how much of a price I paid and how much risk I took to kill that stupid dragon? And you are here acting sick, asking me if I am spying on your military intelligence? Ha!"

Perhaps it was the stimulation of the news that his father was still alive, or perhaps it was learning about the situation with the Orcish.

Thorin Oakenshield actually couldn't control his body, stumbling backward repeatedly.

A portion of the Dwarf rushed to Thorin Oakenshield's side, looking at him with concern.

Another portion of the Dwarf had already surrounded Allen, and they asked him the questions they were interested in one after another.

"Is His Majesty Thrain really not dead?" "When will the King come to the Lonely Mountain?" "Are there really countless Orcish rushing here?"

Allen once again experienced the feeling of being surrounded by ducks, and he shouted, "Stop!"

It finally became quiet around him, and Allen coughed a few times to soothe his throat, which was uncomfortable from the venting.

He said hoarsely, "Don't ask anymore; in a while, you will naturally know. I just want to ask now, did you send a message to Dain or not?"

At this moment, Thorin Oakenshield's weak voice rang out: "Sent. Dain should arrive today or tomorrow."

Thorin Oakenshield, who thought he had become the King of the Lonely Mountain, felt a monstrous wave surge in his heart upon hearing that Thrain was not dead and had already been saved.

At first, Thorin Oakenshield, suffering from Dragon Sickness, was extremely unwilling to believe that what Allen said was true.

But then, this Dwarf Prince suddenly realized just how terrifying his own thoughts were.

Having once traveled thousands of miles to Dunland in search of his father's tracks, he was now unwilling to believe his father was still alive; he realized, to a slight extent, just how terrifying he had become.

His heart was currently tangled and struggling, his Dragon Sickness and his affection for his family constantly at war.

Seeing Thorin Oakenshield answer his question, Allen knew that this guy must have been stimulated into a temporary state of clarity by the news that his father was still alive.

The logic was simple: the wealth of the Lonely Mountain belonged to the King himself.

After Thorin Oakenshield's grandfather, King Thror, died at the hands of Azog in the Battle of Moria, the throne automatically passed to Thorin Oakenshield's father, Thrain II.

The key issue was that before Thrain II went missing, he had not passed the throne and Thror's Ring to Thorin Oakenshield, so he had always been a Dwarf Prince.

Now, after occupying the Lonely Mountain, Thorin Oakenshield claimed to be King, asserting that he was qualified to possess all the wealth of the Lonely Mountain.

If his father was still alive, then theoretically, the wealth and the throne of the Lonely Mountain belonged to Thrain II; Thorin Oakenshield only had the right of succession, not the right of possession.

Then, his claim to the throne would not be recognized by anyone, including the Dwarf of the Expedition, and even he himself knew he was not qualified.

But under the influence of the Dragon Sickness, how could he possibly accept such a statement?

However, the bond between father and son among the Dwarf was very deep, and this affection prevented him from harboring that terrible thought—could he really kill his own father with his own hands to possess this treasure and the throne?

Tangled at this moment, he actually became briefly clear-headed amidst this contradiction and conflict.

Allen had actually started considering this problem a long time ago; after all, in the movie, what awakened Thorin Oakenshield was his Honor and his sense of responsibility toward his people.

At the time, Allen was wondering if he could use the affection between the Dwarf father and son to awaken Thorin Oakenshield.

Clearly, Allen had succeeded.

Although the effect was not as good as Thorin Oakenshield coming out of it on his own, it was clear that this Dwarf Prince had regained his senses.

Of course, Allen didn't have only this one plan; if it really didn't work, he would just have Bilbo Baggins steal the Starlight Gem as well.

By then, he would take half of the gems to negotiate with Thranduil, and everything would be solved.

It was just that doing so would make it too easy for their relationship to break down, and Allen didn't want to choose that.

Of course, it wasn't needed now.

Looking at Thorin Oakenshield's state, Allen prepared to seize the time to get done what he wanted to do.

"Thorin, so you believe my words?"

Thorin Oakenshield nodded, sitting there dejectedly like someone who had just recovered from a serious illness.

Having regained his senses, he did not doubt what Allen had said; at this moment, Thorin Oakenshield also hoped his father was alive.

Regarding the reactions of all parties after they reclaimed the Lonely Mountain, especially those of the Orcish, he had also considered them before.

Now that Allen said the Orcish would attack the Lonely Mountain, it was no different from what he had previously guessed, so he believed it immediately.

Of course, the friendship between Allen and him also played a big role; would he believe just anyone who told him that?

"Then I have a suggestion, Thorin, would you like to hear it?"

"Speak."

Thorin Oakenshield's voice was still weak, as if he were fighting something at every moment.

"I received news that Azog is leading an elite force of over ten thousand Orcish, marching toward here."

Allen looked at the wavering eyes of Thorin Oakenshield and knew he had to hurry.

He continued: "If you want to hold onto the Lonely Mountain that you worked so hard to get back, you need Thranduil's help."

Thorin Oakenshield's eyes turned cold for an instant, then fell into confusion again, and finally turned into the look Allen was familiar with.

He stood up and said, "I know what you mean. You want me to return his Starlight Gem to him in exchange for his help. I can consider it."

Allen looked at the fully awakened Thorin Oakenshield and, not daring to waste any time, said quickly, "Not only must you return his gem, but you must also pay the Elf a reward. If you only return the gem, the probability of Thranduil agreeing to help you is too low. Do not haggle; you have no more time."

Upon hearing Allen's words, Thorin Oakenshield fell into deep thought.

Although the Dwarf were greedy by nature, they were not lacking in shrewdness.

As an outstanding leader of Durin's Folk, Thorin Oakenshield, having awakened from the Dragon Sickness, knew that the treasure piled up inside the Lonely Mountain was merely a small fraction of the vast wealth here.

As long as he could hold the Lonely Mountain, reclaim the throne, and reassemble his kin, gold and gems would once again flow into his halls like a river, endlessly.

Being clear-headed, he quickly made a decision.

"Fine, I agree. Balin, draft a contract. State that I am willing to return half of the Heirloom Gem of Thranduil first as a sign of good faith, to hire the army of the King of the Woodland Realm to help me defend the Lonely Mountain against the Orcish attack; after success, I will return the remaining gems and pay one-fifteenth of my... my treasure, no, one-thirtieth of my treasure to Thranduil as payment."

After Thorin Oakenshield finished speaking, his expression shifted rapidly, and he sat back down.

Balin had already found parchment and was writing the contract quickly.

This old man still had his wits about him; if everything Allen said was true, this contract might be the only straw that could save the Lonely Mountain.

When the contract was presented before Thorin Oakenshield, Thorin Oakenshield hesitated to sign; Allen watched his flickering gaze and felt a shock in his heart, knowing that once treasure was mentioned, this fellow had started falling ill again.

At this moment, Bilbo Baggins walked over and said, "Thorin, what are you hesitating for? Isn't this the best choice right now?"

Thorin Oakenshield looked at the anxious face of Bilbo Baggins and actually became a bit clearer-headed again; he picked up the pen to sign his name, then, without a word, walked slowly toward the throne of the Lonely Mountain.

Allen put away the contract and then followed Balin as they walked toward the depths of the Lonely Mountain.

Balin led Allen to the place where the treasure of the Lonely Mountain was kept; even though he had seen this spectacular scene in the movie, Allen still took a deep breath and stood frozen in place, looking at the palace filled with treasure before his eyes.

Balin looked at Allen's reaction and smiled; although he was still very worried about the state of Thorin Oakenshield, the news that King Thrain was still alive made his mood a little better.

He patted Allen with a smile and said, "How is it? Allen, one-fifteenth of this belongs to you. After the war is over, I will personally bring this treasure to visit your territory."

Upon hearing this, Allen recovered from his shock, thinking to himself that, sure enough, there is no one who does not like treasure; it is only a matter of how much.

He said politely to Balin, "Whether you carry treasure or not, I will always welcome you to visit my territory."

Balin laughed, his pure white beard shaking, making this old Dwarf inexplicably somewhat cute.

Before long, Balin finished processing the Starlight Gem and packed it into a box; it was a necklace shimmering with a pure white light, and now there was only half of it inside.

Balin told Allen that cutting the necklace would not have any effect on the gem, and as long as there was a need, he could restore it to its original state at any time.

Allen took the box and felt a sense of relief in his heart; things were finally moving in a good direction.

Just as Allen took the box, Bilbo Baggins came running over.

Before he could even catch his breath, he told Allen to leave quickly, because at this moment, Thorin Oakenshield had actually gone back on everything he had just said.

Clearly, Allen's ploy could only last this long; the relapsing Thorin Oakenshield was walking this way while hurling insults.

In his words, he claimed that Allen had a silver tongue like a viper, using lies to bewitch him and make him commit insane acts.

Thorin Oakenshield emphasized time and again that the throne of the Lonely Mountain was his, the treasure here was his, and Thranduil's Starlight Gem was also his.

Helpless and somewhat annoyed, Allen looked at Bilbo Baggins and quickly whispered in his ear: "Do not give it to Thorin."

After saying this, Allen, with the contract tucked in his bosom and the Starlight Gem in his arms, slipped quickly toward the gate of the Lonely Mountain under the surprised gaze of Bilbo Baggins.

Before long, Thorin Oakenshield arrived at the treasure hall and flew into a rage upon seeing that only half of the Starlight Gem remained.

Meanwhile, Allen had already slid down from the ropes at the gate of the Lonely Mountain, mounted an Elf Horse, and galloped toward the direction of Dale.

As Allen rode, he suppressed the anger in his heart, repeating to himself, "He is a patient, do not lower yourself to the level of a mentally ill person, the big picture is what matters, the big picture is what matters."

Just like that, the muttering Allen returned to Dale, and at this time, King Thranduil was actually waiting for him at the gate of Dale, riding his Elk.

Even with his level of self-restraint, his eyes widened when he saw the box Allen was holding.