Preparing for Battle

"Unbelievable." Bifur stared at the wound on Kili’s leg in astonishment. "This is Morgul poison, yet you managed to suppress it with nothing but these herbs."

Aaron’s Thoughtform casually spread his hands. "My ancestors…"

"Please be honest, Mr. Gaius."

"Fine! I have one—no, more precisely, two teachers.

"One is a master of Potions, and the other is a master botanist. As their student, suppressing the onset of poison is nothing to me."

"Who are they?" Bifur asked excitedly. "If possible, please introduce me to them."

Thoughtform: …

Unless something unexpected happens, you won’t see them in this life. You probably won’t see them in the next one either.

"Ahem! They left Middle-earth, and I don’t know where they are."

"What a pity." Bifur beat his chest in frustration, regretting that he could not meet the two great masters.

"But there are only so many medicinal ingredients in this town. I spent several hours researching before I found a way to suppress the poison. Completely detoxifying him will take a few more days of research."

"That is already remarkable," Bifur said with a sigh. "King’s Leaf Grass can detoxify poison. If word got out that you could use ordinary herbs to replace King’s Leaf Grass, who knows how many healers would be ashamed of themselves."

"King’s Leaf Grass?" Sigrid’s eyes widened in disbelief. "Isn’t that just a weed? We use it to feed pigs."

Bifur: …

This was awkward.

Holding back a laugh, the Thoughtform patted Kili’s shoulder. "Wait here, buddy. I’ll go find you that miraculous herb."

"I’m going too." Bofur immediately raised his hand.

After the two walked out of the room, they looked at each other and burst into laughter.

Bofur found the pigpen and snatched a blade of grass from a pig’s mouth. "Honestly, I really saw utter despair in Kili’s eyes just now. He probably never imagined that something used to feed pigs could save his life."

"I didn’t expect it either." Speechless, the Thoughtform picked up an identical weed from the trough and wrapped it up with obvious disgust.

After getting the King’s Leaf Grass, Bifur quickly washed it clean and brewed it using a special method.

"Once it is ready, drink this bowl of medicine. Within a few hours, the poison in Kili’s body will be completely eliminated."

At that moment, Bard walked over and looked seriously at Aaron. "There is not much time left. Thorin and the others will reach Lonely Mountain after dark. We must prepare for battle before night falls."

The Thoughtform looked at Bofur and Bifur. "Kili is in your hands. I need to make some preparations, so we have a way to deal with Smaug if he comes."

With that, the Thoughtform followed Bard downstairs. To his surprise, Bain, Sigrid, and Tilda were all waiting in a small boat.

Tilda wore an innocent smile. "Brother Gaius, we all want to see your magic."

The Thoughtform’s lips twitched slightly. He felt like a street performer now, but he really could not refuse a little girl’s smiling face.

"All right. But there’s no need to get in the boat."

The Thoughtform placed his right hand on the cold lake surface, and an ice-blue Magic Array appeared before them.

White frost spread from the Magic Array, slowly freezing half the lake beneath the house into a thick layer of ice.

"How amazing," Bain murmured. A strange light also gleamed in Sigrid and Tilda’s eyes.

Seeing this, Bard finally breathed a sigh of relief. With Aaron’s magical ability, even if Smaug came, he should be able to protect his three children.

"I will carve an advanced defensive Magic Array onto the ice. It can withstand one blast of Dragon Fire.

"If Smaug comes, lie within the range of the Magic Array and play dead. Row out only after everything has settled."

"Then why not put a defensive Magic Array around the entire town?" Tilda asked in confusion.

The Thoughtform rolled his eyes and rubbed the little girl’s head.

"My magic is limited too. I cannot cover the entire town.

"Besides, even if I could, I cannot do that. Smaug is coming to destroy Long Lake Town. If the town is destroyed but hardly anyone dies, it will definitely notice something is wrong."

Tilda lowered her head, half-understanding. This method could save people, but not many.

"Is there anything I can do?" Bard asked. "As for materials…"

"No need," the Thoughtform interrupted. "Only beginners need materials. I can carve the Magic Array with magic, and the effect will not be much different."

As his words fell, a white inner magic circle and basic incantations slowly took shape on the ice, followed by a hexagonal star and an outer magic circle…

Within half a minute, the circular Magic Array was complete, blending into the ice.

"Not bad." The Thoughtform pinched his nose. "It took a little longer than usual, but there is not a single flaw."

"Bain." Bard looked at his son. "When Smaug comes, hide beneath the house with your two sisters. You must protect them."

Bain nodded solemnly. "I understand, Father."

"Let’s go. We need to check out the bell tower. That is our only stronghold." The Thoughtform’s expression turned grave. "I just hope that windlance works. Otherwise, I’ll have to waste effort repairing it."

If you enjoy this book, please remember to add it to your bookshelf so you do not lose it next time.

"You can repair a windlance too?" Bard looked at Aaron in surprise.

"Don’t mistake me for an ordinary wizard." The Thoughtform smiled meaningfully. He had learned the Repair Charm as well. Forget a windlance—even if a house fell apart, he could fix it.

The bell tower stood in the center of Long Lake Town and was the tallest building in the entire town.

The only windlance was mounted on the platform above the great bell, which could only hold a few people.

"This is the most conspicuous place in the entire town. Smaug will definitely notice it," Bard said.

"Then it will be up to you, master archer.

"I will do everything I can to strengthen this bell tower’s defenses." As he spoke, the Thoughtform slowly raised his right hand and used his finger as a pen to carve runes beneath the bell tower.

Using the entire tower as the core of the Magic Array, the Magical Energy within his body continuously flowed into the array.

Ten minutes later, the enormous Magic Array vanished into the air, but Bard and the others could all feel the immense sense of security contained within it.

"Done. The pinnacle of my life’s work." The Thoughtform let out a long breath. "This is a perfect ultimate defensive Magic Array. Even Smaug’s Dragon Fire can be blocked once."

"Only once?"

"What more do you want?" the Thoughtform said irritably. "If it were the Dragon Fire of an ordinary dragon, blocking it several times would not be a problem. But Smaug is at the Dragon King level.

"Its body is much taller than this bell tower. One sneeze could burn it to ashes. It is already no easy feat for my Magic Array to withstand a full-force blast of its Dragon Breath once."

"No, I’m not dissatisfied." Bard gave an awkward smile as he explained. "It’s just that if it could defend us a few more times, we would have a better chance of winning."

"Tch!" The Thoughtform shot him a speechless glance. "People should not be so greedy."

"I understand."

"But this is a matter of life and death. No amount of caution is too much.

"Fortunately, I came prepared." The Thoughtform smugly took out a Magic Crystal. "Ta-da! Pretty, isn’t it?"

"Pretty." Sigrid and Tilda nodded repeatedly, their gazes fixed unwillingly on the blue crystal.

"A sapphire?" Bard ventured. "I admit it is precious, but gems cannot help us. Though the dragon likes shiny things, something so small cannot compare to the treasure in Lonely Mountain."

Thoughtform: …

What kind of taste is that? Am I really that vulgar?

"This is a Magic Crystal. It contains powerful magic and can supply energy to the Magic Array.

"Until the Magic Array drains all of its magic, it can keep operating."

Hearing that, Bard stared excitedly at the blue crystal. "How many blasts of Dragon Fire can it block?"

"Hmm… This is an ultimate Magic Array, so I cannot be sure. But three to five times should not be a problem." The Thoughtform pondered for a moment, then released the Magic Crystal toward the bell tower.

The blue crystal slowly rose, stopping at the top of the bell tower before merging into the core of the Magic Array.

"Is it done?" Bain asked.

"Of course not. This is only the most basic setup.

"I still need weapons—spears and bows."

"I have bows, but as for spears… we only have spear-hooks modified from old harpoons."

The Thoughtform immediately thought of the treasured top-grade weapons Bard had hidden away, and several dark lines appeared on his face.

"Forget it. We will make do, but the more the better.

"Besides those, I also need a small boat and a guide.

"I need to familiarize myself with every house, street, and waterway in Long Lake Town as quickly as possible."

"I can help you." Bain stepped forward of his own accord. "Is it to make fighting the dragon easier?"

The Thoughtform looked deeply at the boy, who was two or three years older than him, then nodded after a moment of silence.

Unless something unexpected happened, Bard, the master archer, would be the main attacker in this battle. He only needed to stand atop the bell tower and shoot.

As for him, the mage, he would have a harder job. Not only did he need to provide support, but he also had to draw Smaug’s attention. If he did not even know the roads, he might accidentally run into a dead end.

He could not use Apparition to escape every time. He did not have much Magical Energy to begin with, and he could not withstand that kind of expenditure.

Bard took his two daughters back to his house. He first pulled a bundle of weapons from beneath the boat, then carefully inspected the bows and arrows.

Meanwhile, the Thoughtform sat in the small boat, taking in Long Lake Town’s less-than-beautiful scenery while Bain patiently explained the lengths of the streets, where they led, and how many forks they had.

The Thoughtform listened and memorized. As time passed, a simple three-dimensional layout gradually formed in his mind.

"All right, I have more or less memorized it."

"Are you sure?"

"Very sure." The Thoughtform pointed to his head. "My memory is beyond your imagination."

A trace of envy flashed through Bain’s eyes. Half-understanding, he asked, "Is there anything else I can do to help?"

"The boat stays. You go back." The Thoughtform smiled meaningfully. "I need to circle this town a few more times. After all, our opponent is a dragon. It is necessary to make a few more preparations."