On one side, Arthur and Bilbo found Rogier not at home, while on the other, Legolas encountered someone unexpected.
"Elradan, Elrohir? You're here too?" Legolas looked at the two Rivendell Elves he knew with surprise.
Elradan and Elrohir were the two sons of Elrond, the Lord of Rivendell.
They looked very similar, both possessing dark hair, grey eyes, and fair, handsome Elven faces, wearing equally shining armor and well-fitted silver-grey cloaks.
Legolas had seen them both before, and was therefore even more surprised as to why they, given their status, were also present in the Golden Tree Territory.
Elradan, the elder brother, paused slightly upon hearing Legolas's voice, then smiled and greeted him: "Look who it is, Elrohir, our Prince Legolas from the Woodland Realm has also come to visit this magical land."
Elrohir, the younger brother, performed a handshake gesture common among Elves towards Legolas and invited, "Would you like to have dinner with us tonight, Legolas? The last time I saw you was probably four hundred years ago, wasn't it?"
Legolas returned the gesture to the Elven brothers, replying, "To be precise, it was 415 years ago... So, are you two also settled here because you're interested in the Erdtree?"
Elradan shook his head slightly: "Settled? No, although we are indeed interested in the Erdtree, and life in the territory is very comfortable, my brother and I do not intend to live here. Compared to the peaceful life in the Golden Tree Territory, Elrohir and I would rather accompany our father in Rivendell to hunt the orcs that plague Middle-earth."
Elrohir agreed, "My brother is right. The reason we came here is simply to await the return of Arthur, the Lord of the Erdtree."
Then Elrohir's eyes lit up: "I heard Arthur is busy with matters concerning the Lonely Mountain. Your Woodland Realm is very close to the Lonely Mountain, so Legolas, you must know something about Arthur's whereabouts. Can you tell us how long it will be until he returns? And what was the outcome of the war between the dwarves and Smaug at the Lonely Mountain? I heard my father say that Mithrandir went to great lengths for the dwarves to reclaim the Lonely Mountain."
Legolas paused slightly: "Arthur has just returned. I came to the Golden Tree Territory with him through one of his teleportation spells."
Now it was Elradan and Elrohir's turn to exchange surprised glances. The elder brother realized that many things must have happened, and quickly said, "This is not the place for us to talk. Legolas, come inside and sit with us. Please tell us in detail what happened at the Lonely Mountain."
Elrohir added with a smile, "Yes, I'll have other attendants bring us fresh Erdtree fruits, and there will be a hearty meat feast in the evening."
Elradan shrugged, "However, we might not need to prepare dinner tonight. Lord Arthur will surely prepare a welcoming banquet for Legolas. We can just bring gifts and visit the City Lord Hall then."
Elrohir reacted, nodding, "You're right, brother."
Under the warm invitation of the Elven brothers, Legolas, who had already planned to visit the Elves' dwelling in the Golden Tree Territory, had no reason to refuse and gladly went to the wooden house where the two currently resided.
Outside the wooden house, adorned with flowers and green leaves, Elradan looked at the locked wooden door, stepped forward, and called out with a slight smile, "Estel, are you awake? Open the door quickly, we've brought a friend back today!"
Legolas heard the name "Estel" and looked at Elrohir beside him with some confusion: "Who is Estel? I only heard that your sister is Arwen. Has Lord Elrond had another child?"
Elrohir smiled and shook his head: "No, Estel is a human child adopted by my father. His father bravely died in a skirmish with orcs, and my father, considering his young age, decided to raise him."
"I've been awake for a while, Elder Brother Elradan! And I've already finished my sword training for the afternoon!"
A tender male child's voice came from inside the wooden house, and then the wooden door opened inwards, revealing Estel's young face and his clothes suitable for exercise.
Estel's gaze first swept over Elradan, briefly lingered on Elrohir, and then fixed intently on the Elf Legolas, whom he had never seen before, standing beside Elrohir.
More precisely, Estel's interested gaze was on the two silver blades strapped to Legolas's waist.
He asked excitedly and curiously, "Are you also skilled in swordsmanship?"
Legolas noticed Estel's attire and his calloused fingers resting on the wooden door handle, and smiled at the human child, saying, "I'm actually more proficient in archery than swordsmanship. If you want to learn archery, you can find me. As for swordsmanship, I think these two are enough to teach you."
Estel showed a look of disappointment and said, "I don't plan to practice archery for now. Elder Brother Elradan told me not to bite off more than I can chew, so I'm only focusing on honing my swordsmanship right now."
Elradan came over and affectionately ruffled Estel's hair: "It's good that you know. Are there any fruits left inside? If not, please help get some from the dwarves' farm."
Estel dodged Elradan's hair-ruffling attack and replied, "You and Second Brother ate all the fruit yesterday, and why do you always make me go to the dwarves to get it?"
Elradan coughed lightly: "That's because they like you, the human child, more than us. Go quickly, there's good news today: Arthur, whom you've been thinking about, has returned. When you bring the fruits back, Elrohir and I will take you to see him tonight."
Estel's eyes lit up when he heard the name "Arthur": "Teacher has returned?"
Legolas, surprised, asked, "Wait, he's also Arthur's disciple?"
Estel proudly puffed out his chest: "That's right! I'm Teacher Arthur's first student, whom he personally acknowledged as having extremely high talent in swordsmanship!"
Legolas muttered with a strange expression, "First? But I recall those two dwarf brothers, Fili and Kili, also called Arthur 'Teacher'."
Elrohir, who had entered the house a few steps behind, heard the conversation between Legolas and Estel and explained, "The 'first student' claim is Estel's own. In reality, everyone in the Golden Tree Territory knows that Arthur first took two dwarves from the Durin royal family as disciples, and Estel is the third."
Estel then ran out of the house and said to the three Elves behind him, "Then I'm Teacher Arthur's first human disciple! Anyway, I'm the first!"
After he finished speaking, he ran off in the direction of the dwarf farm.
By the time Estel returned with a basket of fruit, and Legolas had recounted in detail his experiences in Lake-town to the three of them, the sun had gradually set.
The last ray of sunset slipped through the gaps in the fruit basket, Legolas's narration faded into the rising night wind, and the golden glow of the Erdtree spread across the land at that moment.
Elradan clapped his hands, pulling himself away from Legolas's story, and called out to the others, "It's getting late. We should head to the City Lord Hall within Stormveil Castle to visit Arthur."
Legolas, as a guest, also nodded, "Yes, I'm afraid if I don't meet up with Lord Arthur soon, he'll send guards to search for me."
Estel looked up from the thrilling battle of Lake-town and quickly said, "Wait, wait, I need to change my clothes to see Teacher Arthur. This outfit is too impolite."
Elrohir then stood up, "Then let me help you pick out a suitable outfit."
Inside the City Lord Hall of Stormveil Castle, Arthur was considering whether to send guards to find Legolas, who might be lost.
As for Bilbo, he was already sitting contentedly by the dining table, awaiting the lavish dinner.
"Teacher Arthur!! Oh, and Uncle Bilbo!!"
Estel's excited voice came from outside the hall, and the Storm Knights standing guard at the door opened the City Lord Hall's main entrance after confirming the identity of the arrivals.
"Uncle?" Bilbo was startled, then saw a small human boy, only half a head shorter than himself, run in.
Estel first gave the chubby hobbit a hug, then eagerly came before Arthur, stood steady, and respectfully bowed to Arthur, "Congratulations on defeating the strong enemy, Teacher Arthur!"
Arthur glanced at Legolas, who was following Elradan and Elrohir, and immediately understood why Estel had said that.
He unceremoniously bent down, picked up Estel, and placed him on a wooden chair next to Bilbo, while kindly saying, "I've received your congratulations, Estel. How have you been these days while I was away?"
Estel raised his hand and said, "I've been very happy! Those uncles and aunts in armor were also very kind and took the time to guide my swordsmanship! But recently some uncles and aunts aren't here, and I don't know where they went."
He must be referring to those Storm Knights.
The Storm Legion was unexpectedly mobilized, so the Storm Knights were temporarily dispatched to Lake-town. It's normal for Estel not to know about this.
Arthur chatted with Estel for a few more moments before looking at Legolas, "Where have you been, and what do you think?"
Legolas's handsome face showed a thoughtful expression as he replied, "If I were to describe my first impression, it would be peaceful. The biggest difference from other human kingdoms I've visited is that everyone else also has smiles on their faces, not sorrow."
Perhaps that's because you haven't met Nepheli Loux, Kenneth Haight, and Edgar yet. After all, they are all working desperately to maintain the stability of their territories.
Arthur said, "I'm pleased by your praise, Legolas. And you have plenty of time; you can stay in my territory for a while longer, and you might meet unexpected people."
Legolas nodded, "I intend to."
Afterward, Arthur exchanged a few pleasantries with Elradan and Elrohir, the two Elves, and officially began the welcome banquet for Bilbo and Legolas.
After the banquet ended, Arthur arranged accommodation for Bilbo, while Legolas followed Elradan and the others back.
Having dealt with the matters of interpersonal relations, Arthur finally had the opportunity to come to the courtyard where the Erdtree was located, ready to begin a new summoning.
Previously, whether in Lake-town, Dale, or when he stormed into the Lonely Mountain, Arthur never forgot to use the soul collector to collect the souls of those enemies.
It's just a pity that the soul collector has reached its limit again; he needs to bring this issue up with Teacher Sellen.
Arthur took out the faintly glowing soul collector with one hand, while skillfully stroking the now majestic trunk of the Erdtree, immersing his mind back into the elden ring.
His target for this summoning was very clear: Royal Capital Leyndell.
After all, with the current size and growth rate of the Erdtree, this courtyard in Stormveil Castle is quickly becoming too small.
However, for Royal Capital Leyndell, it can easily accommodate the Erdtree of its current size.
Of course, a more important point is that to summon a certain young girl who is alive in Arthur's memory, Royal Capital Leyndell is also a prerequisite for summoning her.
However, Arthur still didn't know what to say when he saw Melina again, or what her attitude towards him would be.
But avoiding the issue wouldn't solve it. Arthur felt it was time to face Melina again.
His mind was immersed in the elden ring, he found the words for Royal Capital Leyndell, and confirmed its summoning.
Just like when Stormveil Castle and Redmane Castle were summoned in the past, the golden light erupting from the Erdtree enveloped the entire Stormveil Castle, including the houses and farmlands of Elves, Humans, and dwarves outside Stormveil Castle.
Subsequently, Stormveil Castle appeared in the distance, and in its original place on this land, a vast and magnificent Royal Capital emerged.
The ancient Royal Capital, which appeared grand and decaying in The Lands Between due to the shattered elden ring, now stood once again under the brilliant radiance of the Twin Erdtrees.
The entire city was primarily dark gold in tone, with towering walls and intricate roads interwoven into a labyrinthine structure. Broken spires and domes were covered in vines, dragon wing remnants formed natural stairs to climb to higher places, and shattered statues and rusted weapons were scattered throughout the streets, silently narrating its past glory and the ravages of war.
The Erdtree Cathedral was the core landmark of the Royal Capital; its architecture was once built upon the massive root system of the Erdtree, with branches and stone steps merging into one.
However, the Twin Erdtrees at this time had not yet reached the scale of the one in The Lands Between, so to enter the cathedral, Arthur would need to send people to rebuild a proper road to allow more people to reach it.
But at this moment, Arthur did not notice these things; his entire attention was drawn to the young girl slowly appearing before him.
He averted his gaze for a moment, then took a deep breath and met her eyes, calling out her name: "Melina…"