Chapter 639 640: Suspicion and Human Nature

Having departed Lothlórien, the Ringbearer Squad, after continuous travel, had followed the Anduin River and arrived at Fangorn Forest.

This forest was located on the northern border of Rohan, and further ahead lay the territory of Rohan.

Upon reaching this point, the Ringbearer Squad had completed half of their journey.

Seeing the exhaustion on everyone's faces from the constant travel, Gandalf made a temporary decision to let them rest in place before continuing their journey.

"This is great, we can finally rest. My legs are about to break from walking so long."

"Yeah, I didn't realize traveling could be so tiring!!!"

Pippin and Merry, who were on their first long journey, immediately lay down on the grass on the hillside upon hearing the command to rest.

These two companions of Frodo, whose families in the Shire were no less wealthy than the Baggins Family, were definitely among the local rich.

Therefore, their previous lives could be considered pampered.

Their decision to join the Ringbearer Squad out of curiosity had certainly given them a taste of hardship.

"Master Frodo, you go rest for a bit. I'll go over there and see if there's anything I can help with…"

Compared to the three wealthy "young masters," Sam, who often ran errands, clearly had much better stamina.

After the team stopped, he immediately went to help Gimli and others who were busy, preparing to cook a warm meal for everyone.

As for Frodo, who had made it this far driven by a sense of responsibility, his stamina was actually not much better than Pippin's and Merry's.

Although he also wanted to go help Sam cook, it was clear his strength wouldn't allow it.

So, in the end, he could only walk over and sit down next to the Wizard who was smoking his pipe.

"Will we succeed?"

With many worries hidden in his heart, Frodo couldn't help but overthink once he was idle.

And Gandalf, as one of the people he trusted most, was naturally a very good listener.

"We will succeed." Gandalf looked at the distant jungle, also preoccupied with his own thoughts, and thus didn't notice the confused expression on Frodo's face.

"What kind of person is Sauron, that you speak of? Also, after the One Ring is destroyed, where will the Elves ultimately go?" The giant Eye of the Dark Lord that Frodo had seen in the Mirror of Galadriel made him extremely wary of Sauron.

At the same time, he also felt sympathy for the Elves who were innocently implicated by the One Ring.

Even though Queen Galadriel had once coveted the One Ring, it did not prevent Frodo from having a good impression of the Elves.

"The situation with Sauron, is a long story…" Gandalf exhaled a puff of smoke, preparing to briefly introduce Sauron to Frodo.

After all, as the Ringbearer, Frodo was naturally an enemy of the Dark Lord. It was always good to know more about the opponent.

However, before the Wizard could say more, a gentle breeze reached his ear.

Then, Gandalf's expression suddenly became complicated.

As Maiar sent to Middle-earth to maintain peace, Gandalf had always regarded Saruman as a fellow traveler and had always respected him.

It was important to know that Saruman, as the only White Wizard in Middle-earth, despite being somewhat arrogant, had indeed made significant contributions to resisting dark forces over the past thousand years.

Yet, this very "pioneer" had now betrayed them and joined the dark side.

"Isengard… Wizard Tower… Orc…"

Gandalf chewed on the news brought by the breeze, then suddenly stood up and gathered everyone, saying, "I have something I need to attend to for a while. I will wait for you at the border of Gondor after I'm done."

"Aragorn, the safety of the Ringbearer Squad is now in your care."

The Isengard Highlands were precisely at the border between Rohan and Gondor, and also a necessary path for the Ringbearer Squad to reach Mount Doom.

Therefore, Gandalf wanted to go ahead and check on Saruman's situation.

"No problem, the Ringbearer Squad is in my hands." Although he didn't know what had happened, seeing the Wizard's anxious expression, Aragorn immediately accepted the task.

As a descendant of Isildur's queen, Aragorn hadn't been idle in the Northern Highlands all these years.

In his opinion, taking care of the Ringbearer Squad's journey wouldn't be a big problem.

"Sam, you're a good boy, please look after Frodo for me…" Along the way, Gandalf had come to realize that Sam was honest and dependable, someone he could trust.

And most importantly, he had a close relationship with Frodo.

So before leaving, Gandalf specifically reminded Sam a couple of times and handed him the reserve Lembas bread pouch he carried.

…

"Alright, everyone get moving. Boromir, Pippin, and Merry, go into the forest and see if you can find some firewood. We'll light a fire and cook as soon as possible, so we can eat and then head to the border of Gondor to meet up with Gandalf…" After the Wizard left, Aragorn arranged everyone's schedule.

From here to the border of Gondor, they needed to cross the entire Rohan, a distance that was not far but certainly not close.

According to the Ringbearer Squad's previous pace, it would take three or four days, but if they sped up, they could arrive in two or three days.

Special circumstances called for special measures. Although Aragorn was confident in protecting the Ringbearer Squad, for safety's sake, he still decided to have everyone quicken their pace.

"Ah! We haven't rested enough yet!!!…"

Pippin and Merry, who were resting on the ground, couldn't help but complain after receiving the task.

Of course, although the two grumbled, they ultimately still walked towards the forest.

It was currently summer, and finding enough firewood in the wild for everyone to cook a meal was not easy.

On the other side, Boromir had already vaguely guessed Aragorn's identity.

Facing this descendant of the Gondor royal family, Boromir's feelings were extremely complex.

On one side was his father, the Regent, who had an extremely strong desire for power, and on the other was the legitimate royal line of Gondor.

When the two sides met, there would inevitably be friction.

And as the eldest son of the Regent of Gondor, Boromir would naturally have some selfish motives. This also made him unsure how to treat Aragorn, this royal descendant.

Of course, apart from his own selfish motives, Boromir's heart was actually not bad.

Therefore, upon receiving the task from Aragorn, he did not deliberately go against him, and obediently walked into the forest.

Of the remaining people, Gimli and Sam continued to set up the cooking pot in preparation for the meal, while Elf Prince Legolas was responsible for security watch.

In an instant, only Frodo was left alone with nothing to do.

The Wizard's departure made the Hobbit very uncomfortable. The various thoughts in his mind put immense pressure on him.

A feeling of breathlessness made Frodo want to go for a walk to clear his mind.

So, as everyone else became busy, Frodo walked alone towards the surrounding hillsides.

Legolas and Aragorn quickly noticed the Ringbearer's movements, but both saw that Frodo had been under great stress lately, and the surrounding area was open; as long as Frodo didn't go far, there would be no danger.

Therefore, both tacitly approved the Ringbearer's decision to clear his mind.

On the side of the dark forces, the Ringwraiths had actually been monitoring the situation in the Shire.

However, when the One Ring appeared there, first Mike helped look after the Ringbearer, and then Gandalf stayed by Frodo's side to protect him.

This prevented the Witch-king of Angmar, who had been secretly following Frodo, the Ringbearer, from finding a good opportunity to act.

And now, with both Mike and Gandalf absent, the Ringbearer chose to act alone.

This undoubtedly gave the Witch-king of Angmar an opportunity to strike.

So, when Frodo unknowingly walked into the depths of the forest, sting, the ancient elven blade hanging at his waist, suddenly glowed blue and vibrated continuously.

"Who's there?" The sensitive Frodo had heard from his uncle Bilbo about sting's magic; it would react whenever an enemy was near.

Among the Ringbearer Squad, only Boromir had shown greed for the One Ring, so Frodo drew sting and tentatively called out, "Boromir, is that you?"

It was evident that after the incident with Queen Galadriel, Frodo had become a bit paranoid.

In fact, if he had paid a little more attention, he would have noticed that ever since leaving Rivendell, Boromir's attitude towards the One Ring had been one of respectful distance.

After personally experiencing the One Ring's eerie power, Boromir, knowing his own willpower was insufficient, no longer harbored any thoughts about the ring's power.

"Did I guess wrong?"

Frodo had also learned from his uncle Bilbo that sting would only glow blue when encountering an evil force.

Boromir had been traveling with the Ringbearer Squad all along, so he obviously had no opportunity to be corrupted by dark forces.

Just as Frodo was feeling uneasy, the terrifying figure of the Witch-king of Angmar gradually materialized behind him, and the cursed sword in his hand plunged towards his back.

"Uh—"

The immense force directly sent Frodo flying.

If he hadn't been wearing the mithril chainmail close to his body, that sword would have pierced him through.

Frodo, who had fallen to the ground in disarray, thankfully touched the chainmail on his body, then rolled over to look back, and saw the terrifying black shadow floating in the air.

"Hand over the One Ring!"

The Witch-king of Angmar, enveloped in terrifying black mist, roared and swung his sword again at Frodo.

"No!"

Immense fear unleashed Frodo's powerful potential. As the cursed sword came down, he suddenly rolled to one side, dodging another attack from the Ringwraiths.

However, his stamina was greatly depleted in that roll.

"I'm going to die…"

Looking at the huge indentation left by the cursed sword on the ground, Frodo, who had little stamina left, quietly reached for the One Ring hanging around his neck.

A voice in his mind seemed to tell him that only by wearing the One Ring could he escape death.

So, as the Ringwraiths approached again, the Hobbit, who was already at the end of his rope, suddenly vanished before their eyes.

Then, amidst faint gasps, the invisible Frodo quietly moved behind the Ringwraiths, and in a tit-for-tat manner, raised sting and slashed at their back.

However, the Witch-king of Angmar, who had been a human king in life, undoubtedly possessed rich combat experience.

As sting made a swishing sound, he had already turned to block.

Thus, Frodo's retaliatory strike was blocked by the Ringwraiths.

Good news: although the Witch-king of Angmar blocked the sneak attack, he still couldn't detect Frodo, who was invisible after putting on the One Ring.

Of course, there was also bad news: Frodo, who had put on the One Ring, found that his already limited stamina was rapidly draining away.

Clearly, it was not without cost for ordinary people to use the One Ring's power.

Therefore, after weighing the pros and cons, Frodo made the correct decision: to escape quickly while invisible before his stamina ran out.

However, the experienced Witch-king of Angmar began to listen carefully to the sounds around him.

Soon, he heard the faint footsteps of the Hobbit fleeing.

"Whoosh—"

Accompanied by the Witch-king of Angmar's sword swing, Frodo, who was within the attack range, could no longer bother to hide his figure and could only turn back and raise his sword to resist.

With a crisp "clink," Frodo was knocked back again. In his tumble, the One Ring and sting fell to the side, and he himself was revealed in disarray.

Just as the Ringwraiths were about to press their advantage and kill Frodo, Boromir, who heard the commotion, arrived.

"Watch out!"

With a shout, Boromir, clad in heavy armor, lunged forward, using his body to shield Frodo from a fatal blow.

"I'll cover the rear, you quickly go find Aragorn and the others for help…"

Although protected by heavy armor, Boromir, who had taken a direct hit from the Ringwraiths, still had a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth.

He had clearly sustained internal injuries.

But now was not the time to dwell on that. Realizing the terrifying strength of the Ringwraiths, he immediately drew the Rohan sword from his waist and shielded Frodo, whose face had turned pale from exhaustion, behind him.

And Frodo, whose life was saved by Boromir at a critical moment, now realized how much he had misunderstood the other party before.

Of course, now was also not the time to dwell on such matters.

"You be careful, I'll go find Aragorn and the others for help…" Picking up the One Ring that had fallen to the ground, Frodo decisively turned and ran towards the camp.

However, he hadn't run two steps when, accompanied by rustling sounds, a squad of Orcs appeared in the forest.

"This is bad, these monsters don't look like ordinary Orcs…" Shielding Frodo, who had been forced back by the Orcs, Boromir said with a heavy expression, "I'll create an opening for you in a moment, you run quickly, run as far as you can!"

It was clear that, looking at the fierce Orc squad surrounding them, Boromir had decided to fight to the death.

As the eldest son of the Regent of Gondor, Boromir's combat prowess was not low, so he was confident that he could escort the Ringbearer out before he died.

"Orcs…" At this moment, Frodo looked at the sturdy Orc, about two meters tall, and suddenly remembered what the Wizard had muttered before leaving.

"What?" Boromir, who had resolved to die, didn't react for a moment.

"They should be Orcs, I heard Gandalf mention them," Frodo explained.

"Orcs, huh? The name certainly fits. But no matter what…" Boromir suddenly shouted, "Now! Stay close to me!"

With a swing of his great sword, Boromir charged towards the weakest point in the Orc squad's defense, and with an unstoppable momentum, he actually managed to break through.

"Now, go quickly!"

After pushing Frodo out of the encirclement, Boromir turned to block the pursuing Orc squad.

It was also fortunate that throughout this entire process, the Witch-king of Angmar stayed on the sidelines, watching. Otherwise, Boromir would have had no chance to send the Ringbearer away.