"Where are they going? I've never seen so many Orcs..."
From a corner of Mordor Tower, Sam, clad in Orc armor, watched in horror as tens of thousands of strong Orcs left Mordor and marched towards Middle-earth.
"War... The scenes I saw in the Palantír are all real..." Frodo, also disguised in Orc armor, gazed at the dense Orc army below, his face growing paler.
Yes, the two hiding in a corner of Mordor Tower were Frodo and Sam, who had left the Ringbearer Squad.
After crossing the Anduin River, they encountered Gollum, who had gone mad after losing the One Ring, on the outskirts of the Dead Marshes.
Sensing the aura of the One Ring on Frodo, Gollum immediately joined Frodo and Sam's two-person team, offering to guide them.
Sam had expressed strong objections to this, but Gollum was adept at playing for sympathy, eventually earning a sliver of Frodo's trust.
This also laid a hidden danger for Frodo and Sam's journey to Mordor.
Gollum, with ulterior motives, led the two to the Giant Spiders' lair after arriving in Mordor.
He wanted to use the Giant Spiders to kill Frodo, thereby profiting from the situation and retrieving the One Ring.
It must be said, this was a very clever plan.
Frodo, unaware of the scheme, was soon caught by the arriving Giant Spiders after approaching their lair, cocooned, and dragged to their den.
Fortunately, Sam, who had always been wary of Gollum, sensed danger and narrowly escaped.
Then, this simple Hobbit, with a surge of courage, picked up Frodo's dropped Elven sword and secretly followed the Giant Spiders to their den to rescue Frodo.
Next, the two Hobbits ambushed two Orc Miscellaneous soldiers responsible for logistics, then put on their armor and successfully infiltrated Mordor Tower.
However, the One Ring had a spirit; the closer they got to Mount Doom, the greater the influence of the One Ring on Frodo.
Furthermore, when he was caught by the Giant Spiders earlier, he had been injected with a small amount of spider venom.
If not for the protection of his Mithril chainmail and Galadriel's magical phial for detoxification, Frodo would probably find it difficult to even stand now.
However, his situation wasn't much better at this moment.
"Are you alright, Master Frodo? Or perhaps, let me take the ring and destroy it at Mount Doom..." Soon, Sam also noticed that Frodo's condition was very bad.
His face was pale, his pupils dilated, as if he could collapse at any moment.
"No..." Seeing his companion ask for the One Ring, Frodo instinctively took two steps back, only feeling a sense of security when his hand touched the One Ring hanging around his neck.
At this point, Frodo had already realized that Gollum's previous feigned misery and guidance were all for the sake of obtaining the One Ring.
Having suffered a great loss again, he now felt he couldn't trust anyone.
Even though Sam seemed sincere and had saved his life, to the paranoid Frodo, it also seemed like ill intent.
"No one will take the One Ring from me. This is Gandalf's mission for me, and I must destroy it myself at Mount Doom..." Frodo glared fiercely at Sam, then stumbled and walked away.
...
On Sauron's side, after learning of Saruman's failure, he immediately gathered all the dark forces from Mordor.
Then, he divided his army into three routes, using two groups of cannon fodder to tie down Lonely Mountain and Rohan, while the main army was sent to Gondor.
He intended to conquer Gondor in one fell swoop.
Then, while the forces of Lonely Mountain and Rohan were unable to react, he would use Gondor as a springboard to quickly conquer the entire Middle-earth.
The idea was good, but he seemed to have underestimated the fighting power of Lonely Mountain.
The cannon fodder sent there had no restraining effect at all.
"That should be the Gondor Line of Defense. Should we go support them?" On the wilderness outside Lonely Mountain, Bain, who hadn't fully enjoyed the previous battle, looked at the soaring smoke signals in the distance, once again eager for action.
The area around Lonely Mountain had developed very rapidly in all aspects over the years under Mike's care.
The King of Dale nearby also benefited from this.
Now, there was no shortage of food, clothing, or people, so the military strength also expanded quickly.
Although they were still a bit weaker than the regular army of Lonely Mountain, it didn't mean they were weak.
With such strength, Bain naturally wanted to display the glory of the Kingdom of Dale.
"Support is definitely needed, but I alone will be enough." Mike looked at Bain, who was showing tendencies of a warmonger, shook his head, and continued, "Thranduil and his Elves warriors have already left Lonely Mountain, so the peaceful life here needs you and Sophia to protect it."
Even though the first wave of three thousand Orc cannon fodder was weak, who could guarantee that Sauron would not continue to send troops to attack Lonely Mountain?
As fellow human forces, if Gondor was in trouble, Lonely Mountain certainly had to send people to support them.
Mike, who had a space door, decided to go and check the situation. Therefore, Bain and Sophia could only stay to guard the home.
"No problem, the safety of Lonely Mountain will be left to me." Bain apparently understood the key points and accepted the task of guarding Lonely Mountain.
"Very good." Mike nodded to Bain, then separately instructed Sophia and Arwen before opening a space door and heading to Rohan.
Yes, he went to Rohan.
Having obtained the Flame Holy Sword, he planned to first gather the Army of the Dead in the White Mountains, and then go to Gondor to solve all the problems at once.
"Hmm?"
However, as soon as he arrived at the Rohan border, Mike saw tens of thousands of Rohan cavalry battling an equal number of Orcs on the wilderness.
Clearly, the Orc army sent by Sauron to harass and delay Rohan's forces, was much stronger than the cannon fodder sent to Lonely Mountain.
There might even have been the intention of taking Rohan in the process.
It could be said that the Dark Lord of Mordor was playing a very big game.
"Has Rohan's military strength become so strained that they have to send women to the battlefield?" Mike, after pushing through several waves of Orcs, entered the battlefield and approached a slightly shorter warrior fully clad in armor.
"Mr. M-Mike, why are you here? Are you here to help us?" In a surprised voice, the slender warrior lifted the faceguard of her helmet, revealing a small, sweaty face.
Yes, this person was Éowyn, the princess of Rohan.
"Swords have no eyes, aren't you afraid of hurting yourself?" Mike killed an Orc attempting a sneak attack, then looked at Princess Éowyn again.
She really did have the aura of a battlefield Rose when she wore armor.
"Don't underestimate people, I'm no worse than you men..." As if to prove herself, Princess Éowyn casually dispatched a passing Orc.
Then, she secretly glanced at King Théoden and her brother Éomer in the center of the battlefield, and whispered, "My brother and His Majesty the King don't know I came to the battlefield. Please don't let it slip later."
As a girl who secretly came to the battlefield, Princess Éowyn was actually quite nervous.
"You take care of yourself," Mike indicated that he was not a gossipy person, and then, out of admiration for Princess Éowyn, he condensed a ball of Guardian Power and threw it onto her.
It could at least help her withstand one fatal blow.
Then, under the girl's astonished gaze, Mike drew the Flame Holy Sword from within him and soared into the air.
As the Flame Holy Sword was activated, countless firefly-like flame orbs spread across the entire battlefield.
Although the Rohan cavalry was powerful, they did not gain much advantage when facing the even stronger Orcs, especially when outnumbered.
At this point, although the battle was not one-sided, it had reached a stalemate.
If Mike had not arrived, even if Rohan could win, it would at most be a Pyrrhic victory.
Of course, there was no 'if'.
The "fireflies" arrived just in time, mercilessly harvesting the lives of the Orcs while also replenishing the stamina of the exhausted Rohan warriors.
With this ebb and flow, the high-spirited Rohan warriors began a strong counterattack against the Orcs.
Before long, the battlefield situation became clear.
"What a remarkable hero!"
Princess Éowyn, who had been following Mike's movements, looked up blankly as he flew to King Théoden's side.
She herself might not have noticed that her face was even redder than before, and her eyes, besides admiration, held a hint of infatuation.
"Mr. Mike, thank you again for your help." King Théoden of Rohan had naturally noticed Mike's arrival long ago.
After all, his miraculous abilities were too dazzling to ignore.
"Mr. Mike—" At the same time, Prince Éomer, who had just finished fighting, also came to Mike's side to greet him.
"This war happened very strangely. What are your plans next?" Mike nodded to Éomer, then turned his gaze to King Théoden.
"The dark forces are planning something big this time. So I've decided to lead a team of elite cavalry to support Gondor..." With the fall of one, the others would follow. King Théoden naturally also saw the huge smoke signals above Gondor.
As fellow human forces with an alliance treaty, King Théoden would certainly not ignore his ally's plea for help.
On the other side, Prince Éomer had already begun to reorganize the troops.
Just as Mike had worried earlier, Éomer, fearing another attack from the dark forces, gathered his troops but left most of the warriors in Rohan.
He only selected a team of one hundred elite cavalry as reinforcements to support Gondor.
Mike also noticed that Princess Éowyn, who had put her faceguard back on, had also blended into the hundred cavalry.
Seeing Mike look over, the girl secretly winked.
"I still have to go to the White Mountains. We'll meet again in Gondor—"
Mike did not expose Princess Éowyn this time either. After bidding farewell to King Théoden, he went alone to the White Mountains outside the Rohan border.
...
"It's you again, human. If I recall correctly, we met sixty years ago..."
Inside the White Mountains canyon, it was still eerily ghostly.
The Ghost leader, wearing a crown and radiating a pale green glow, appeared the moment Mike stepped into the canyon.
As if sensing something, his gaze towards Mike was filled with anticipation.
Mike did not disappoint him, immediately taking out the Flame Holy Sword without a word.
"That is... the Flame Holy Sword..."
"The thousand-year curse is finally coming to an end... We are about to be free..."
"..."
As Mike raised the Flame Holy Sword, the Army of the Dead, sensing the aura of the King of Men, appeared one after another.
Before long, pale green light filled the entire canyon.
And the faces of the Army of the Dead were filled with excitement, anticipation, and fervor.
Of course, this was easy to understand; anyone confined to one place for thousands of years would become mad and suppressed.
Now, the hope of liberation was before their eyes, how could they not be excited?
"Quiet—!!!"
The Ghost leader stopped his restless kin, then looked solemnly at Mike and said, "Respected King of Men, what are your commands?"
It could be seen that although the Ghost leader was trying to suppress his emotions, his trembling body still betrayed his inner feelings.
"The dark forces are sweeping across Middle-earth again. It's time for you to fulfill your promise." Mike smiled and said, "Tell me, do you still have the courage to face Sauron?"
Given that these ghosts had not committed evil, Mike decided to give them a chance for liberation.
"We heed your call, and we shall fight for you—!!!"
The Ghost leader knelt on the ground.
Subsequently, the entire Army of the Dead knelt, their faces filled with fervor.
Having already died once, they were now fearless for their freedom.
...
"Faramir, don't make any more futile sacrifices. Retreating to the White City might still offer a glimmer of hope..."
Outside Minas Tirith, at the fortress, Aragorn looked at the ever-growing Orc army and tried to persuade Faramir.
"The White City has already sent out a call for help. If we just hold on a little longer, reinforcements will arrive soon..." Faramir said, unwilling to give up.
"Provided we can wait until then... Look at your companions around you, they've reached their limit. If this continues, they might be completely wiped out in the next second." Aragorn tried to persuade him again.
It seemed the Regent truly wished his second son dead this time. Since driving Faramir out of the city, he hadn't sent a single additional soldier.
And of the several thousand private soldiers Faramir had brought, only a few hundred remained alive.
Although they occupied the narrow fortress to resist the Orc army, in the face of an absolute disparity in strength, the fall of the fortress was only a matter of time.
"Aragorn is right, it's meaningless to keep defending here. Retreating to the White City and regrouping is the wisest choice." After wielding his greatsword to repel another fierce assault on the fortress by the Orcs, Gandalf also couldn't help but try to persuade Faramir.
Still, from the wizard's perspective, facing the strong offensive of the dark forces, defending the city was the wise decision.
Watching his Rohan warrior companions die tragically one by one, Faramir was actually very pained. After a moment of hesitation, he finally ordered: "Contract the defense line, retreat to the White City. We will fight the Orcs there!!!"
Then the formation changed, with Faramir and Aragorn covering the rear, and this private army, now numbering just over a hundred, withdrew from the fortress defense line.
"Damn it! Damn it!!!..."
At the same time, in the great hall of Minas Tirith, Denethor, who had not expected the dark forces to be so fierce this time, had long lost his composure.
Anxious, he looked at his eldest son and asked, "Have the reinforcements not arrived yet?"
Yes, when the Orcs attacked the fortress outside the city, this cowardly Regent had already ordered his eldest son to light the beacon fires.
However, Rohan, the closest allied nation to Gondor, would take at least a day to reach here.
Denethor was clearly too terrified to consider that reinforcements needed time to travel.
"Rohan reinforcements will still need some time..." Boromir explained softly, looking at his father's bloodshot eyes, then cautiously asked, "The city is already surrounded by the Orc army. Should we call Faramir back?"
Anyone with eyes could see the current situation: the Orc army meant serious business.
Under such an offensive, the fall of the outer city was only a matter of time.
There was even a high possibility that the White City could fall if they were not careful.
So the wizard's judgment was correct; concentrating forces and holding out in the White City was the wisest choice to await a turning point.
"Useless... Useless... All of them are useless..." However, Denethor was clearly in a rage, not listening to what his eldest son was saying, and furiously cursed, "Faramir, that useless fellow, if he can't stop the Orc army, then let him and his wizard friends all die outside the city!"