Chapter 632
The Parliament in Progress and the One Ring
Chapter 632 The Parliament in Progress and the One Ring
"Bilbo, I didn't expect to see you here too!"
On this day, Mike, who was strolling around Rivendell with the elf princess, unexpectedly encountered Bilbo outside the library.
The 111-year-old hobbit was lounging in a deckchair outside the Elven library, leisurely basking in the sun while smoking tobacco brought by the Shire.
There are still a few books scattered around...
He looked like he was really enjoying himself.
It must be said that Ravendale, with its beautiful environment, is indeed a very suitable place for retirement.
“Oh, Mr. Mike, it’s so good to see you!” Bilbo stood up and gave Mike a hug before continuing, “You’re as radiant as ever…”
Meanwhile, the hobbits also saw the elf princess accompanying Mike.
There was an indescribable envy in her eyes.
The average lifespan of a hobbit is around one hundred years. Bilbo, who lived to be one hundred and eleven, had a truly remarkable life.
However, he also had many regrets in his life, such as not being able to meet his other half.
“You look much older, and you seem unusually tired…” Mike observed Bilbo for a moment and then said, “Let me help you.”
Although Bilbo appears to be enjoying life, he carries an air of impending doom, as if he is awaiting death.
It's quite contradictory...
Under Mike's healing power, Bilbo felt as if he were soaking in a hot spring, his body and mind completely relaxed.
Especially in terms of the spirit, the traces of corruption caused by the One Ring are gradually fading away.
"I feel full of energy, like I've returned to sixty years ago. Thank you, Mike!" After being healed, Bilbo was pleasantly surprised to find that his aging body had regained its vitality.
This feeling is indeed something to be happy about for an elderly person.
“Your body was already in good shape; I just treated some of your hidden injuries,” Mike said with a smile. “If nothing unexpected happens, you should live for at least another fifty or sixty years.”
If we disregard the side effects, the One Ring originally possessed the ability to grant its holder a long life.
For example, Gollum, the last Ring-bearer, has lived for over five hundred years and is still active in Middle-earth.
While Bilbo couldn't compare to Gollum, he still possessed the One Ring for a full sixty years.
If we disregard the spiritual corruption caused by the Ring, Bilbo should have lived sixty years longer than the average hobbit.
Mike helped remove the negative influence of the Supreme Demon, allowing Bilbo to enjoy the benefits he was entitled to.
"Thank you for your kind words~" Bilbo, who clearly felt much better, said with a smile, "Fifty or sixty years is too long, I dare not hope for it. I only need another ten or twenty years, after all, there are still many places in Middle-earth waiting for me to explore."
Bilbo has actually been traveling around the Shire, Rivendell, and Lonely Mountain for years, but he has never been to places like the Northern Highlands or Gondor in the south.
Moreover, judging from Bilbo's expression, although he was humble in his words, he believed that he still had half a lifetime to live because of his trust in Mike.
One hundred and eleven years old compared to sixty years, isn't that half a lifetime?
Of course, this realization is also a good thing for Bilbo.
The idea that mental health influences physical health is not just an empty phrase.
"Come on, try the fruit wine I brought from the old forest." Mike, who saw through the deception but didn't say anything, generously took out a colorful fruit wine to celebrate.
Bilbo, now free from his "shackles," enthusiastically contributed the fine tobacco leaves brought by the Shire to share with Mike.
"By the way, I heard you came to Rivendell with Frodo and the others. What happened?" After tasting the magical fruit wine, Bilbo steered the conversation toward his nephew.
It seems that although this hobbit was staying in the library, he did not lose contact with the outside world.
"It's about that ring. Gandalf wants to destroy the One Ring through Frodo," Michael revealed a little information about the One Ring.
“Sure enough, Frodo has also embarked on his journey. I had long suspected that this day would come…” Bilbo pondered for a moment, then, without mentioning the strange ring again, continued, “With you and Gandalf helping to keep an eye on Frodo, I am at ease.”
Bilbo was well aware of the strangeness of the One Ring, so even though he was in Rivendell with Frodo, he had no intention of visiting his nephew.
"What are your plans next?" Having sensed something, Mike didn't bring up the Lord of the Rings again.
"I'm planning to go to the Northern Highlands in a couple of days so that I won't have any regrets in my life..." Sure enough, Bilbo no longer wanted to have anything to do with that ring.
To avoid suspicion, he even planned to leave Rivendell, a place rife with trouble.
"Then I wish you a safe and pleasant journey!!!" Mike said with a smile, "Come on, let's drink~"
The dangers in the northern highlands have been largely resolved by Gandalf, Aragorn, and Legolas, so Frodo has chosen a good time to go there now.
“Come, let’s drink. Thank you for taking care of me all these years…” Bilbo was clearly a smart man to have traveled through Middle-earth for so many years without any trouble.
Naturally, one can also perceive the effect of the [Guardian Power] that Mike gave sixty years ago.
In addition to this treatment...
This made Bilbo feel like he owed Mike a lot.
If there's no way to express gratitude, then everything is in the wine...
Then, unsurprisingly, Bilbo, whose emotions were in turmoil, soon got drunk.
……
After settling Bilbo in, Mike and the elf princess Arwen walked back side by side.
“You seem unusually friendly towards that hobbit,” Arwen suddenly said.
There was even a hint of jealousy in his tone.
When Mike was drinking and chatting with the hobbits, the elf princess stayed quietly by his side, like a virtuous wife.
No matter how closely she observed, she couldn't see anything special about the hobbit that would make Mike treat him well.
“People always choose to be friends with good people, and Bilbo was undoubtedly a good person,” Mike patiently explained.
Compared to Gollum, Bilbo is the only one who has possessed the One Ring for so long without being corrupted by it.
In some ways, Bilbo was even "better" than his nephew Frodo.
He is a good person to whom you can entrust your back.
Although Mike doesn't "use" the other person, he doesn't mind having such a friend.
"Could you tell me about his story? If I remember correctly, sixty years ago he was a member of that dwarven adventure team that went to Lonely Mountain," Princess Arwen asked with interest.
At the same time, it also gives me more topics to talk about and allows me to spend more time with Mike.
This is how the elves view relationships; all their emotions are written on their faces, straightforward and passionate.
Alwin didn't know why, but after sixty years, she suddenly felt an inexplicable attachment to the human in front of her.
Perhaps it's because the other person has a "kingly" aura, or perhaps it's because the other person just happens to look very much like one's ideal type.
'Perhaps this is what the elves call love~'
As Alvin followed Mike toward the rest area, he secretly glanced at Mike's perfect profile, and a sweet feeling welled up in his heart.
……
The next day, instead of Gandalf and the others, Mike met Bilbo with his pack on his back.
Judging from the situation, the revitalized hobbits are in dire need of a spontaneous trip.
After making an appointment with Mike to visit Lonely Mountain, Bilbo shouldered his pack and headed north toward the Highlands.
Three more days passed, and as Michael and the Elf Princess were getting along better, Gandalf arrived in Rivendell with Aragorn and Legolas. This foreshadowed the imminent start of the White Council.
"Let me explain the situation first. I've found the One Ring. Now we need to discuss what to do with it..."
After a night's rest, the white wizard Gandalf summoned everyone the following morning and convened the council in the Great Hall of Rivendell.
Among them, besides Mike, Galadriel and his wife, the dwarf Gimlich, and Boromir, the eldest prince of Gondor, Frodo and his three companions, as well as another wizard, Saruman the White, were also present.
Yes, the white wizard Saruman had also arrived; he had only been in Rivendell for half a day longer than Gandalf and his companions.
Compared to his previous high profile, Saruman now lingers in a corner like a ghost, seemingly trying to minimize his presence.
"Frodo, bring out the things." As the leader of this council, Gandalf looked around at everyone present and then turned his gaze to Frodo.
"Okay, okay~" Frodo, who then became the focus of everyone's attention, stepped forward with a hint of nervousness, took out the envelope containing the One Ring, and then poured the ring onto the stone table in front of him.
Immediately, everyone's attention was drawn to the simple, unadorned gold ring.
Some of them had longing on their faces, while others had complicated expressions.
“I need not elaborate on the dangers of the One Ring. My personal suggestion is to send it to Mount Doom for destruction…” Seeing that everyone was staring at the Ring without speaking, Gandalf spoke first of his thoughts.
"I agree to Mithrandi's proposal to destroy the One Ring." After a long silence, Queen Galadriel expressed her feelings with a sorrowful expression.
This also means that the Elven Queen is ready to lead her people away from Middle-earth.
Following Queen Galadriel's statement, Celeborn of the Noldor elves, along with Elrond, the Sindar Elf-king, nodded in agreement.
Now, two of the three Elven races have agreed to destroy the One Ring.
“I believe that for the sake of peace in Middle-earth, my father Thranduil would also agree to destroy the One Ring.” Following this, the Elven prince Legolas, representing the Grey Elves, also stated his position.
As expected, the problem of the three Elven races, the biggest obstacle to destroying the One Ring, was solved, which made Gandalf breathe a sigh of relief.
"Aren't you making a mountain out of a molehill? It's just a ring. I'll smash it to pieces right now..."
The dwarf's fiery temper made Jinpi unable to bear the somber atmosphere.
To everyone's astonishment, Jin Pi stepped forward, raised his battle axe, and slammed it heavily onto the One Ring.
With a "clang," the axe blade chipped off.
The dwarf was also thrown back by a huge recoil force, but luckily someone reached out and caught him, preventing Jin Pi from making a huge blunder.
Before Jin Pi could finish his thanks, he saw that the person who had helped him up was the Elf Prince Legolas, so he said arrogantly, "Even if I fall, I'll be fine, so don't expect me to thank you."
The dwarves of this generation, Jinpi, grew up under Thorin's influence, while Thorin himself was hostile to the elves at that time.
Although Thorin has now reconciled with the elves, habits are hard to change.
Especially the habits formed when establishing one's values and worldview.
"Whatever~" Legolas had already learned the reason from his father sixty years ago, so he didn't pay much attention to Jin Pi's reaction.
It's clear that the elf prince, who has trained in the northern highlands for sixty years, has matured a lot compared to before.
"Hmph~" Jin Pi, who had punched cotton, let out a cold snort of feigned dissatisfaction, and then hugged his battle axe with heartache.
The small notch, about the size of a soybean, on the axe blade also proves that the One Ring is very hard and difficult to destroy by force.
“The best way to destroy the One Ring is to take it to Mount Doom, where it was forged, and melt it with the lava…” Gandalf stepped forward at the right moment and said, “And Frodo, who can resist the temptation of the One Ring, is the best person to do this job.”
At the same time, the wizard introduced Frodo and his three companions to everyone.
Pippin and Merry had been having a blast in beautiful Rivendell for days and were now waving to everyone in a carefree manner.
He seemed quite pleased to be the center of attention.
As for honest Sam, he stayed quietly behind Frodo, his expression showing a hint of unease.
As for Frodo, after the initial tension, he has now calmed down.
At least judging from his expression, he gives people a "reliable" feeling.
This prompted many people who had been quietly observing him to nod in approval.
"Look at him, what an outstanding young man. To resist the temptation of the Ring at such a young age, please allow me to express my respect..."
Just then, Boromir, the eldest prince of Gondor, began praising Frodo as if he had lost his mind, while striding to the stone table and staring at the One Ring, "It's so beautiful... I mean, so wicked..."
However, before anyone could understand what was happening, Boromir suddenly reached out and grabbed the One Ring.
The incident happened suddenly, and no one could have imagined that Boromir, the eldest prince of Gondor, would covet the power of the Ring.
Of course, Mike was not among these people.
"You want it?" Mike picked up the One Ring first and turned to look at the furious eldest prince.
“I knew it! The power of the One Ring isn’t insurmountable. As long as I can resist the temptation, I can use this power…” Boromir’s face gradually contorted with rage as he roared, “Give me the One Ring, and I will use its power to lead Gondor to victory over Mordor!”
It's clear that Gondor, as the first line of defense against Mordor's forces, hasn't had an easy time these past few years.
Boromir, the eldest prince of Gondor, was clearly captivated by the One Ring.
"You think you can resist the temptation?" Mike said with interest. "Then give it a try."
With that, Mike tossed the Ring to Boromir.
If the other party doesn't experience the "power" of the One Ring, they certainly won't be satisfied.
Mike assured that he absolutely did not intentionally embarrass Polomir because he disliked him.
"No~"
Gandalf, before he could even be surprised that Michael could resist the Ring's power, saw the other throw the Ring to the clearly tempted eldest prince of Gondor.
"Hahaha, is this what it feels like to have power?! Everyone should submit to me! Wizards, elves, and those worthless Lords of Lonely Mountain—you are all insignificant before me..."
Perhaps because he had been suppressed for too long, Boromir was instantly controlled by the power of the One Ring the moment he obtained it.
His face was shrouded in black mist, and even his voice became deep and low.
He looks exactly like a villainous big boss.
“It seems you can’t resist the temptation, not even for a second.” Mike looked at Boromir, whose eyes were gradually turning bloodshot, and reached out to remove the magic ring from the other’s finger.
While the One Ring possesses immense power, its effectiveness is limited if the wielder is incompetent.
Well, while Boromir craved power, as the eldest prince of Gondor, he also had his own bottom line.
A man who wants to control the power of the Ring, and a Ring that wants to control the Ringbearer.
Clearly, the two are not compatible.
"So, do you still want it now?" Mike, having retrieved the One Ring, looked at Boromir once more.
“No, please take it away. Such a dangerous thing should be destroyed…” The previously ignorant and fearless Polomir paid a small price for his actions.
Even after only a few seconds of contact with the One Ring, his entire being was drained of energy and vitality.
At this moment, his gaze toward the Ring was filled with apprehension.
That resistant expression was somewhat similar to Bilbo's when he discarded the Ring.
……
(End of this chapter)