"My lord, the Dwarf scum have joined up with the Orcs led by Lord Bolg."
After Dain and Bard had met up, a warg rider noticed this scene and quickly returned to report to the Orc commander responsible for pursuing Dain.
This Orc commander was the same Orc who had previously made suggestions to Azog. Now it wore armor that appeared more refined and distinctive than other Orcs, having clearly become the leader of this Orc army.
In fact, the scheme of using Orcs' numerical advantage to split into multiple pursuit groups to keep the Dwarves constantly harassed was its idea, not Azog's, as Dain had assumed.
This scheme had indeed caused the Dwarf army to be continuously harassed during their retreat, unable to get adequate rest and supplies, gradually falling into desperate straits.
The Orc commander asked: "Does Lord Bolg have any instructions?"
When mentioning "Bolg's" name, its tone was very respectful, carrying a trace of humility.
After all, it was Bolg's father Azog who had elevated him to the position of Orc commander. Azog's prestige and power in this Orc army were unmatched, and Bolg, as Azog's son, naturally received the Orc commander's respect. It knew well that its position was granted by Azog; therefore, it was especially respectful toward Bolg.
Though this Orc commander didn't know about the subtle, complex father-son relationship between Azog and Bolg. It simply thought that since Bolg was Azog's son, he naturally deserved respect.
Of course, it didn't need to know, since the father-son relationship between Bolg and Azog was set in stone with no possibility of change.
The warg rider answered: "After Lord Bolg's Orcs joined with Dain, they didn't linger long before leading that group of Dwarves toward Lake-town... I deliberately exposed my position trying to get their attention, but Lord Bolg didn't seem to leave any Orc to give us orders."
Its voice carried a trace of confusion, clearly puzzled by Lord Bolg's behavior.
"None?" Now it was the Orc commander's turn to be troubled.
It frowned, seemingly thinking about something.
After a moment, it employed its limited earth-shattering intelligence and said: "Lord Bolg must have his plans. Since Lord Azog said I should cooperate with him, we must cooperate with Lord Bolg in all aspects. Lord Bolg must want to trick this group of Dwarf scum into Lake-town, then close the door and beat the dogs."
The warg rider nodded vigorously, then said: "So my lord, what does this 'cooperate in all aspects' you mentioned mean? And what does this have to do with dogs in Lake-town?"
It completely didn't understand what this Orc commander was saying, but since Lord Azog said it was smart and to listen to it, then it would listen to this Orc.
For the first time in its life, the Orc commander felt the intellectual deficiency of its kinsmen and suddenly understood why Lord Azog had immediately and eagerly promoted it to commander of an Orc army upon seeing it.
It took a deep breath, suppressing its inexplicable anger toward idiots, and said: "Have the army temporarily follow behind Lord Bolg, ready to obey Lord Bolg's commands at any time."
"Yes!"
The warg rider immediately responded. Though it still didn't quite understand, since the commander had spoken, it would resolutely execute the order.
On the other side, the Lake-town guards led by Bard were silently guiding Dain's remnants toward Lake-town at full speed.
Though Dain knew Thorin's plans from the carrier pigeon, when he actually saw this group of people completely wrapped in Orc armor charging over, he almost couldn't help but raise his war hammer.
His fingers unconsciously tightened around the hammer's handle, knuckles turning white.
Even now, riding on his boar, he kept muttering to himself. After all, this group of people hadn't said a word or made any gesture since seeing him. They just started returning in the direction they'd come from.
Dain's nose twitched several times. What drifted from these people was indeed the stench belonging to Orcs.
That pungent smell made him even more suspicious, thinking: "Could they really be a group of Orcs?"
Just then, Dain noticed that among Lake-town's mounted guards, one soldier whose posture seemed somewhat uncoordinated suddenly slowed his horse's pace. His movements appeared stiff, as if he wasn't very accustomed to riding.
Under Dain's suspicious gaze, he heard that guard's somewhat familiar voice coming from inside the armor, speaking to him in Khuzdul. Though the voice was somewhat muffled, it carried a familiar feeling that made Dain's vigilance relax slightly.
"Lord Dain, I am Fili," the soldier said.
Then another Dwarf's voice came from around the figure's waist area: "And me, Kili. But I can't see anything right now... Ow, brother, could you please stop farting!"
It turned out this Lake-town guard was actually Fili and Kili disguised together in a piggyback formation, which explained the somewhat uncoordinated posture. Fili was on top, riding on Kili's shoulders, while Kili was below, supporting Fili's weight with his hands. Their cooperation was rather comical.
Earlier, Bard had noticed that warg rider and naturally hadn't dared let the disguised Fili and Kili communicate with Dain.
After all, Bolg's forces couldn't possibly communicate with Dwarves.
Now, Bard keenly noticed that the warg rider had disappeared, making him breathe a slight sigh of relief.
So he decisively let Fili and Kili have necessary communication with Dain.
Seeing these familiar juniors, Dain finally completely relaxed.
Since being ambushed, he had been constantly worried, but now his face finally showed a smile: "Hey, Fili, Kili! How is Thorin?"
"Uncle is doing well except for worrying about your safety. Lake-town has already prepared traps to surround the Orc army. Once they enter, they're guaranteed to die without escape." Fili immediately replied while detailing the intelligence Tarnes had prepared for Dain.
A fierce smile appeared on Dain's face: "Excellent! The hammer in my hand has long thirsted to drink the blood of those Orc scum. Now it's time to make them pay!"
Fili asked with concern: "Don't your heavy infantry need rest? They've been marching continuously and consumed much energy."
Dain shook his head with a cold laugh: "It's not too late to rest after eliminating those Orc scum. Too many of our kinsmen have died at those Orcs' hands. You must give us a chance for personal revenge."
Seeing Dain's determination, Fili knew his mind was made up and didn't try to persuade him further. After telling Dain approximately how long until they reached Lake-town, he returned to the Lake-town guards' formation amid Kili's disgruntled voice.
Some time later.
"Bard and the others are back! There's a group of Dwarves following behind. That should be Dain's army!"
Igon, who had the best eyesight, noticed movement in the distance outside Lake-town. He poked his head out from the watchtower and called down loudly to Tarnes below.
Tarnes nodded, glanced at the area the Storm Soldiers had cleared in an extremely short time specifically prepared for the Orc army, then smiled at Bernahl: "Ready?"
"You mean competing to see who kills more Orcs? Since you're willing to entrust this weapon to me, I have to beat you at least once." Bernahl grinned back, then lovingly caressed the weapon in his hands.
It wasn't a knight's greatsword but a silver staff that looked like a giant serpent coiled around a planet.
Its name was the Serpent-Hunter.
Facing countless Orc soldiers, naturally such a weapon of legendary mass destruction was needed.