The Keyhole Revealed by Moonlight

It was not until dusk that Aaron’s Thoughtform returned to Bard’s home. The moment he entered, he nearly staggered and fell to the ground.

Seeing this, Sigrid hurriedly helped him into a chair.

"Why is your face so pale?" Bofur asked.

"Severe magical exhaustion," the Thoughtform explained weakly. He had been continuously channeling Magical Energy for over ten hours and had nearly drained himself out of existence.

"What did you do?" Bain asked in confusion. "You were perfectly fine when I left."

"Classified." The Thoughtform waved a hand. "Please prepare some food and warm water for me. I’m not just a little weak right now."

Bain nodded and quickly took out a plate of dark bread and cheese spread from the family pantry.

The Thoughtform’s mouth twitched, and several dark lines even appeared across his forehead.

Do you have no sense at all? This is what you’re feeding me? What if I don’t recover by tonight?

But considering Bard’s family’s financial situation, he could only make do.

"Where is your father?"

"He went to the bell tower." Tilda looked anxiously at Aaron. "My dad will be all right, won’t he?"

"He will." The Thoughtform gave a confident smile. "Your father will kill the dragon tonight and become the town’s hero. I guarantee it."

The three dwarves looked at one another. If the prophecy was true and the dragon was coming to Long Lake Town, that meant Thorin and the others had failed to settle the battle at Lonely Mountain.

"Thorin…" Bofur hesitated. "The expedition will succeed, right?"

"Of course. Gaius takes contracts very seriously.

"I’ll help Thorin find the Arkenstone and ensure everyone else’s safety as well."

"But you’re not even at Lonely Mountain. How can you guarantee that?" Kili asked weakly.

"Don’t underestimate a wizard’s power." The Thoughtform smiled mysteriously. "I’ve arranged everything.

"By the way, has your poison not been cured yet?"

"It probably won’t be ready until tonight." Bifur glanced at the earthen pot. "King’s Leaf Grass has to be simmered for a long time to produce the purest medicinal liquid."

Meanwhile, after traveling for an entire day, the expedition finally arrived at Lookout City.

Bilbo looked at the ruins of the city below and asked incredulously, "What is this place?"

"This was once where River Ancient City stood. Now, it’s nothing but ruins," Balin said. "The disaster Smaug brought."

"So this is a dragon’s power!" Aaron said with a sigh, becoming even more eager to activate the Dragon-Slaying Magic Crystal.

As long as he learned Dragon-Slaying Magic, within three years he too would wield this level of catastrophic destructive power.

"Before the sun sets, we must find the secret door into the mountain." Thorin started forward as he spoke.

"Wait." Bilbo hurriedly stopped him. "This is Lookout City. Gandalf said we were to meet here. Don’t enter Lonely Mountain alone."

"Do you see him?" Thorin retorted. "We don’t have time to wait for the wizard.

"We have to rely on ourselves. Let’s go!"

"Let’s go." Aaron patted Bilbo on the shoulder. "Gandalf has most likely already been to the Witch-king of Angmar’s tomb, but afterward he’ll be tied up with something even more dangerous. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have failed to make it here."

"You know?" Bilbo looked at Aaron in surprise.

"Hmm…" Aaron pondered for a moment, then shook his head. "I don’t know, but I can roughly guess.

"At Rivendell, Gandalf, the White Wizard, and two Elf Kings discussed an enemy they had faced centuries ago—a wicked necromancer.

"I can only tell you that this runs deep. If little people like us get involved, we’ll drown if we’re not careful."

"Then… will he be in danger?" Bilbo asked worriedly.

"Definitely, but when the sky falls, the tall people hold it up." Aaron was blunt. He knew his own limits better than anyone. Rather than go there and hold them back, he might as well do his own job well.

Bilbo fell silent, knowing that he could not help. All he could do was silently pray for Gandalf.

The expedition searched for the entrance to the secret door according to the map, but the search area was far too large. Even after everyone spread out and searched for over an hour, they found nothing.

Thorin took out the map. "If this map is real, the secret door is directly above us."

"Up there." Bilbo pointed at the statue of Thorin’s grandfather, Thrain, and shouted. A winding stone staircase climbed the massive statue.

"Sharp eyes, Mr. Bagins!" Thorin said excitedly. He immediately gathered everyone and began climbing the stairs. They finally reached their destination before sunset.

"This must be it—the hidden door." Thorin looked at the stone wall before him. The outline of a door was faintly visible, and he could barely contain his joy.

Thorin took out the key and shouted to the dwarves behind him, "Make those who doubted us regret it!"

The dwarves immediately erupted in cheers. Their expedition of more than half a year had not been in vain after all. The Dwarf Kingdom finally had hope of being rebuilt.

"We have a key, which means there must be a keyhole somewhere." Dwalin began searching the stone wall.

Watching the afterglow of the setting sun, Thorin could not help reciting the Moon-letters on the map. "The last light of Durin’s Day will shine upon the keyhole."

The contract is about to be completed. Aaron thought happily. As long as the door opened, he could use Captain Jack’s Compass to find the legendary Arkenstone and complete the System Mission.

However, as the sun slowly descended, Dwalin still failed to find the keyhole.

Thorin could no longer remain calm. He immediately had Nori go help, since his powers of observation were the sharpest among the dwarves.

Nori pressed his ear against the stone wall and continuously tapped it with a spoon, but the sounds he received left him deeply worried.

"Quiet! With you punching and kicking, I can’t hear anything."

"I can’t find it." Dwalin angrily slammed his fist against the door. "It’s not here. It isn’t here at all."

As Thorin watched the sun set and the light gradually fade, he could no longer endure it. "Break down the door."

Several dwarves drew their weapons, but the stone wall was exceptionally sturdy. Blades and axes could only strike a few sparks from it; even when their weapons shattered, they failed to leave the slightest mark.

"It’s useless. The door has been sealed. Brute force won’t open it," Balin said.

"Let me try." Aaron stepped before the stone wall and directly cast the unlocking spell. "Alohomora."

A pale yellow glow appeared across the stone wall and blasted Aaron several steps back.

"Damn it!" Aaron cursed under his breath, but quickly calmed down. If the secret door did not exist, there would have been no need to place such a powerful spell here.

The sun had set, and the last trace of daylight vanished. The dwarves still had not broken open the door.

"Impossible!" Holding the map, Thorin walked up to the stone wall and murmured in disappointment, "The last light of Durin’s Day will shine upon the keyhole.

"That is what it says. What did we miss?"

The dwarves said nothing. At that moment, merely holding back their tears was a sign of great inner strength.

"What did we miss, Balin?" Thorin asked, his voice choked.

"The light is gone. There’s nothing we can do." Balin’s heart was heavy. "We only had one chance. Let’s go, everyone."

"Wait." Aaron immediately stopped them.

They can’t leave. They absolutely can’t leave!

If they leave, I can’t complete the contract by myself!

I’m only one final step away from completing the System’s first mission. If I give up now, I won’t accept it even if it kills me!

"Lumos."

Aaron snapped his fingers, and a ball of bright light appeared in his hand, illuminating the stone wall and the dwarves’ disappointed faces.

"Child, I know you are unwilling to accept this, but we are even more unwilling than you," Balin comforted him. "But sometimes, you must learn to accept reality."

"To hell with reality." Aaron snapped in frustration. "All I see is how easily you’ve given up the hope of rebuilding the Dwarf Kingdom."

"Thorin." Aaron looked at the dwarf prince, whose eyes had gone vacant. "There is a powerful spell on the rock face, which proves we found the right place. You have the key, which means we possess the means to open the secret door.

"And now you’re leaving just because you can’t find the keyhole? You’ve disappointed me greatly."

"That’s right." Bilbo could not help speaking up. "We can’t give up. At least not yet."

Thorin let out a long sigh and slowly raised his head. "But we arrived too late."

"Who says we’re late? Is today Durin’s Day or not?" Aaron rolled his eyes speechlessly. "Your dwarf ancestors drew this map. The code on it can only be deciphered with Moon-letters, and that code is itself a riddle. Are you sure your interpretation is correct?"

Thorin opened his mouth, then looked thoughtfully at the key in his hand. A flicker of hope rose in his heart.

"Can you solve the riddle?" Thorin looked at Aaron expectantly, and everyone else turned their eyes toward him as well.

"I can’t." Aaron directly poured a bucket of cold water over everyone’s hopes.

"Then why bring it up?"

"But it can." Somewhat reluctantly, Aaron took out Captain Jack’s Compass. "This thing has a far better cost-performance ratio than the Magic Carpet. I spent a fortune to get it.

"It can point toward what a person desires most deeply in their heart. It is a treasure in the truest sense."

"You mean it can find the keyhole?" Dwalin asked skeptically.

"Of course." Aaron opened the compass and placed it in Thorin’s hand. "Give it a try!"

Thorin swallowed as he watched the unsteady needle sway across the compass. He felt he might have gone mad, placing his hopes on a toy.

But now, he had no choice but to try anything.

The secret door’s keyhole, the secret door’s keyhole…

Thorin focused completely on the location of the keyhole. The compass needle spun rapidly before finally coming to a stop, pointing toward the lower left side of the stone wall.

At the same time, bright moonlight broke through the clouds and shone upon the stone wall.

The light slowly moved downward, likewise pointing to the keyhole’s location.

"The keyhole." Balin looked at the black keyhole revealed in the moonlight, and tears nearly flowed from his eyes.

"The moon’s light." Bilbo murmured thoughtfully. "So the riddle meant the last moonlight of autumn."

Thorin stared at the keyhole for a long while, unable to come back to himself. When he finally did, he found his hand suddenly light—Aaron had taken back the compass.

"What are you standing around for? Open the door!"

Thorin nodded slightly. Under the expectant gazes of every dwarf, he inserted the key into the keyhole.