Chapter 263 It's Unacceptable Not to Grab the Dragon
After the key turned once, Thorin pushed open the secret door.
"Erebor!"
Entering the secret door, Thorin was moved by the sight, "I recognize these walls, these halls, these stones.
Do you remember, Balin? The room was gleaming with gold."
"I remember." Balin nodded, tears in his eyes.
Gloin looked at the murals on the wall, "Here lies the Seventh Kingdom of Durin's Folk, may the Heart of the Mountain unite all Dwarves to defend their home."
"Is that the arkenstone?" Aaron noticed an oval gem radiating light in all directions above the king's throne in the mural.
"Yes." Thorin said, "It is the goal of your journey, both of you."
Bilbo and Aaron exchanged glances; with the moment at hand, both burglars felt a little nervous.
Uncertain if Smaug was still asleep, the Dwarves dared not take risks, so Balin, who knew Erebor best, led the way for the two.
"I know we're looking for a gem, but what does it look like?" Bilbo asked.
"A large, white gem."
"That's it?" Bilbo's eye twitched slightly, "I think there must be quite a few gems down there."
"There is only one arkenstone; you will certainly recognize it when you see it."
"Don't worry." Aaron raised the compass in his hand, confidently saying, "We can find it without having to recognize it."
Balin suddenly stopped, sighing, "To be honest, my friends, I don't know what you'll see down there.
You can go back if you don't want to; there's nothing to be ashamed of."
"No, Balin." Bilbo said righteously, "I promised I would do it, and I must try."
"Even more so for me." Aaron grinned, revealing a row of white teeth, "Our family takes contracts very seriously; I will find the arkenstone.
Besides, you should also be mentally prepared: as long as Smaug lives, Thorin is not truly the King Under the Mountain."
"We understand." Balin nodded, "But the arkenstone can unite the Dwarf tribes, and the Dwarf army might be able to defeat the Dragon and reclaim Erebor."
Aaron shrugged, thinking to himself, *You won't get that chance.*
The Dragon's Head is his; no one else can have it.
"Let's go, Bilbo!"
"Wait." Balin stopped them, saying haltingly, "If there really is a living Dragon down there, don't wake it."
Bilbo involuntarily swallowed, wanting to ask more, but Balin had already left.
The two continued forward, trying to keep their footsteps as quiet as possible.
"Bilbo, isn't your heartbeat a bit too exaggerated?" Aaronsaid, exasperated.
"Dare you say you're not scared, not nervous?
That's a legendary Dragon; I've lived for decades and never seen one; Old Took probably hasn't either."
"Calm down." Aaron smiled faintly, "With me here, you'll be fine, I can guarantee that."
Hearing this, Bilbo's heart rate slowed down a bit.
After all, Aaron's combat power was much higher than his, and he was a wizard, so there was a sense of security.
Walking into the last door, Bilbo began to give himself a mental suggestion: *He's not home, he's not home, he's not home...*
The two suddenly stopped, looking in astonishment at the palace below.
This Dwarf hall was filled with gold coins, and various gems were everywhere.
"This is too magnificent!" Bilbo rubbed his eyes in disbelief.
"I've seen more magnificent." Aaron was also a little shocked; the Dwarves' wealth was almost comparable to his family's treasury.
No wonder Smaug occupied Erebor; Dragons just love shiny things, and with so much gold brazenly displayed here, it would be wrong not to take it.
"Can the compass find the arkenstone?" Bilbo asked in a low voice.
Aaron looked at the motionless needle, then at the golden ocean below, a wry smile appearing on his face.
"The direction can be confirmed, but there are too many gold coins down there; we'll probably have to dig it out."
"Phew!" Bilbo Took a deep breath, "Let's go down first and see!"
Aaron did not object; the first step always had to be taken.
But as soon as they Took their first step, the gold coins beneath their feet clattered downwards.
"Damn it!" Aaron said, exasperated, "We probably won't even need to dig out the gem to wake it."
Shhh!
Bilbo immediately made a shushing gesture, pointing at the compass needle, signaling Aaron to focus on digging for treasure and not to speak.
Aaron spread his hands and walked forward, following the needle.
The two slowly walked to the center of the hall, preparing to climb over a mountain of gold coins more than ten meters high.
But then, gold coins several meters away slid down with a whoosh, and Aaron immediately pulled Bilbo behind a pillar.
"What's wrong?"
Aaron gently bent down, picked up a golden mirror, and used its reflection to let Bilbo see a huge Dragon eye.
Bilbo's heart raced, and a layer of cold sweat appeared on his forehead.
"Smaug, he's home."
Aaron nodded, planning to go around in another direction, as moving under the Dragon's nose was prone to causing heart attacks.
But as soon as he turned, the gold coins on the other side also clattered down.
Aaron gasped, quickly hiding back.
Bilbo stood frozen, arms outstretched, silently comparing his size to Smaug's, then humbly squatted down.
"At least fifty meters." Aaron said with a wry smile, "Bigger than any Dragon I've ever seen; I'm definitely no match for it in a direct confrontation."
The sound of gold coins sliding echoed, and a pile of gold coins slowly slid down from above to their feet.
Icy vertical pupils suddenly opened, scanning everything within its line of sight.
Bilbo was so startled he almost fell, but Aaron pulled him in time, preventing them from being exposed.
The huge Dragon's Head slowly lifted from the gold coins, followed by heavy breathing; Smaug seemed to have smelled the scent of living beings, its lips curling into a mocking smile.
Aaron and Bilbo exchanged glances; one cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself, the other decisively put on the magic ring, both becoming invisible.
"Alright, thief." Smaug looked towards the pillar, his nostrils twitching slightly, "I can smell it, I can hear your breathing, I can feel your presence.
Where are you? Where are you?"
As the huge Dragon's Head approached, Bilbo became extremely nervous and ran off.
Aaron didn't hesitate either, running in a different direction.
Although Smaug couldn't see them, it could determine their approximate location by their footsteps.
"Come out! Don't be shy, show yourselves!" Smaug teased, moving in Bilbo's direction, "You're a bit strange; it's something you're carrying.
Made of gold, but even more precious."
Bilbo was drenched in cold sweat; Smaug's words made him dizzy, a terrifying magical eye flashed in his mind, and when he came to his senses, he realized he had taken off the ring, and then saw the Dragon's Head right in front of him.
"You're here! Little thief in the shadows.
Where's the other one? Not going to show your face?"
Aaron heard this and secretly grumbled.
*You tell me to come out and I come out? That would be so undignified.*
"Not coming out?" Smaug revealed a sneer, sniffing Aaron's scent and pursuing him, "I'm very familiar with the scent of humans; do you think you can hide?
But you are special; you can hide your tracks without the One Ring."
Smaug's pupils focused on the top of a pile of gold coins, as if confirming Aaron was there.
It Took a deep breath, and a hint of surprise flashed in its Dragon eyes, "Who are you? Why do you have the scent of my kind?
Unbelievable, there are other Dragons in Middle-earthbesides me."
*My kind?*
Aaron was stunned for a moment, then was shocked by Smaug's sense of smell.
He and Abey had been separated for over half a year, and it could still smell him.
"Answer the question."
Smaug slammed a claw down, and a large number of gold coins and gems rained down.
Aaron couldn't continue to be invisible and reluctantly dispelled the Disillusionment Charm.
"Still a child?" Smaug was even more surprised, staring at Aaron meaningfully, "How old are you?"
"Let's say fourteen!" Aaron said neither humbly nor arrogantly, then slowly walked to Bilbo's side, "I'm more curious about how old you are?"
"Living from the First Age until now, I don't even remember." Smaug said coldly, "Now tell me about the other Dragon, and I can spare your life."
"Ah, this..."
"Speak." Smaug's voice rose a few octaves, "Who is it? Where is it?"
Aaron scratched his head in embarrassment, "Abey should still be at my house; I've been raising it since it was born, and it should be almost three years old now!
But its body isn't as big as yours; it's less than five meters now."
Hearing this, Smaug was utterly stunned, unable to recover for a moment.
Bilbo was also dumbfounded, his mouth twitching uncontrollably.
*Raising a Dragon? There's a limit to jokes!*
"Impossible, absolutely impossible." Smaug roared in anger, "How could a noble Dragon succumb to a mere human?"
Aaron: *...If we're talking about bloodline, even gods might not be as noble as me.*
"Who knows?" Aaron feigned an air of importance, "Perhaps it has something to do with charisma."
Smaug's lips curled into a sneer, "Charisma, you say?
It doesn't matter; dead people don't have any charisma."
"Eh? You said you'd spare my life!"
"Naive child." Smaug opened its mouth, revealing a mouthful of fangs.
"A naive child wouldn't have made it this far!" Aaron's throat let out a low growl, and Smaug, who had originally intended to swallow him whole, abruptly stopped.
"Dragon Speaker?"
"Dragon Language, the language of Dragons." Bilbo looked at Aaron in astonishment, "You know, the Dragon Language?"
"Otherwise, how could I raise a Dragon?" Aaron said righteously.
"Hmph!" Smaug snorted coldly, "Leave here before I change my mind; this is the only mercy I will show you."
Aaron yawned, "Sorry, I won't leave until I achieve my goal."