"Hi, little one, what is your name?"
Mike was not angry that the heads of the three remaining snow Trolls had been "stolen." Instead, he took a pack of dried meat from his pocket and beckoned to the Great Eagles overhead.
Strictly speaking, the Great Eagles were also Maiar. Building a good relationship with such mysterious creatures would make Mike's reputation in Middle-earth rise much faster.
"Chirp... chirp..."
The mischievous fledgling landed on the ground, swallowed the dried meat, and affectionately rubbed its head against Mike's palm.
It was clear that it really liked the "scent" on Mike, or perhaps the [Animal Affinity] trait was at work.
"So your name is Gwaihir, and the Eagle King Thorondor is your father?" Mike asked with interest.
Legend had it that the King of the Great Eagles, Thorondor, had a golden beak. The young Great Eagle before him also had a ring of golden patterns around its beak.
Clearly, it definitely possessed the bloodline of the Eagle King.
"Chirp... chirp..."
The fledgling nodded in a human-like manner, acknowledging Mike's statement.
Like the rabbits of Rhosgobel, although the Great Eagles were intelligent creatures, they could not speak human languages.
Fortunately, Mike had the [Animal Affinity] ability, allowing him to communicate with animals without barriers.
Just then, a magnificent Great Eagle with a golden beak flew out from the flock above and called out twice to the fledgling below.
It was like a parent urging a mischievous child to come home.
So, after reluctantly saying goodbye to Mike, the fledgling spread its wings and flew back to the flock of Great Eagles above.
Then, the flock of Great Eagles circled into the sky and disappeared over the peak of the snow-capped mountain.
"That was truly amazing. Not only did we eliminate the snow Trolls on the mountain, but we also saw a flock of Great Eagles. The key is that the Great Eagles seemed to have a very close relationship with you..." After the flock left, Aragorn excitedly walked up to Mike, his eyes scanning him back and forth as if he were trying to get to know him all over again. "Tell me, who exactly are you?"
At this stage, Aragorn was still developing and did not yet possess the aura of a human king.
As a result, his emotions were all written on his face.
"I am just Mike, a human traveler. I have no other identity..." As he spoke, Mike tossed the Elven sword back to Aragorn. "Thank you for your sword; it was very useful."
Just as Aragorn wanted to say something more, the Rangers who had followed to watch the excitement immediately crowded around, beginning to boast about Mike's "great achievements" in killing the snow Trolls in all sorts of ways.
At the same time, they were also amazed that Mike could communicate with the Great Eagles.
"Alright, the trouble on the mountain has been resolved, and I think it is time for us to head down." After dealing with the enthusiastic Rangers for a few moments, Mike called Aragorn and headed down the mountain.
Seeing Mike leave, the Ranger observation team immediately split into two groups. One group rushed down the mountain ahead of Mike to spread the word about the [Troll Slayer]'s feat.
The other group of Rangers, not fearing the cold, went to chop off the heads of the three snow Trolls Mike had killed, then carried them behind Mike.
While these snow Trolls were alive, their skin was as hard as iron, but after death, they were no different from other animals.
After a long journey through the wind and frost, by the time Mike and the Rangers carrying the snow Troll heads returned to the Northern Highlands in the evening, the entrance to the village was packed with a dense crowd of people who had come to watch the excitement.
Yes, the group of Rangers who had gone down the mountain early had already widely publicized Mike's feat of killing the Trolls.
For a time, Mike's reputation as the [Troll Slayer] had become even louder without him realizing it.
"He is truly worthy of being the [Troll Slayer], capable of even killing snow Trolls..."
"Is that the head of a snow Troll? It looks truly terrifying. I wonder how ferocious it was when it was alive..."
"Good heavens, this monster's head is three or four times the size of mine. If it were really alive, I might not even be enough to fill the gaps between its teeth..."
The onlookers pointed at the snow Troll heads, while their gazes toward Mike, the [Troll Slayer], were filled with admiration.
The Rangers in the back, feeling a sense of shared honor while carrying the snow Troll heads, even suggested taking advantage of the excitement to have Mike tour other villages with these three heads.
Of course, the tour was a pretense; showing off was the real goal.
Mike was not that bored. He pushed through the crowd and said, "It's getting late, and I would like to go have a drink with my friend. Everyone, please enjoy yourselves—!"
Aragorn was not a person who liked excitement either, so he pushed through the crowd and followed Mike toward the largest tavern in the village.
"Snow Trolls are not common!!! Let's go to other villages and let those Rangers know how impressive the [Troll Slayer] from our village is—"
"Let's go, let's go together!"
The departure of Mike, the main person involved, did not dampen the Rangers' enthusiasm for showing off.
Before long, the Rangers had gathered a large group of people who loved excitement and set off toward neighboring villages, carrying the three snow Troll heads.
Some others who wanted to hear the "story" followed in Mike's footsteps to the village tavern.
The tavern owner naturally had heard about such a major event as killing snow Trolls.
Therefore, when Mike and Aragorn arrived at the tavern, the owner served them the best wine in the house without them even having to ask.
The people who followed afterward, listening to the Rangers from the observation team describe the scene of Mike killing the snow Trolls, couldn't help but feel a craving for alcohol.
For a while, the tavern became incredibly lively, as if it were a festival.
Until late into the night, the people, now having something to talk about, remained enthusiastic. Amidst the laughter, barrels of fine wine were brought out.
It was at this moment that the Rangers who had gone out to show off returned by moonlight, bringing more Rangers from neighboring villages who wanted to witness history.
Everyone seemed very interested in the warrior who could single-handedly kill snow Trolls.
"Mr. Mike, this is your commission for killing the snow Trolls, a total of three hundred gold coins." Under the gaze of everyone, a leading Ranger walked up to Mike and respectfully handed over a heavy money bag.
It must be said, while this group of Rangers from the observation team liked to show off, they were quite thoughtful in their actions.
"Thank you, take this money and share it with your companions." Mike took one hundred gold coins from the bag and gave them to the Ranger in front of him as a tip for his hard work, then kept the remaining coins.
"We should be the ones thanking you. Next time there is such a good thing, remember to notify us." Having seen a good show and also getting paid, the Ranger from the observation team was also in a very good mood.
As the Rangers from other villages arrived, the atmosphere in the tavern became heated once again.
Mike also noticed that most of the Rangers who had just arrived from other villages kept their eyes on him, looking as if they still wanted to come up and talk.
"Owner, serve another round of good wine to everyone here..." Mike stood up, gestured, and then patted Aragorn on the shoulder, saying, "Tonight, all expenses will be paid by Aragorn."
There were stories to hear and free wine to drink.
Suddenly, even more intense cheers erupted in the tavern, with everyone praising the generosity of Mike and Aragorn.
After the cheers, those visiting Rangers were also pulled to the tables by others in the tavern to drink together.
Now, for a short time, at least no one came to bother Mike.
"[Loner], you know me; the money I have is simply not enough to pay for everyone..." The only person unhappy at the scene was probably Aragorn.
Being poor, he was so angry that he even used Mike's derogatory nickname.
"Don't worry [Strider], this money is enough for you to pay the bill. You might even have some left over..." Mike smiled and pushed the money bag containing two hundred gold coins toward Aragorn.
Two hundred gold coins were enough to buy a small tavern, so of course, it was enough to treat everyone here to a good drink.
Aragorn looked at the money bag on the table, then at the smiling Mike beside him. In the end, having only a few copper coins on him, he chose to remain silent.
"Don't be so stingy; I'm just borrowing your name for a bit. Come on, drink—" As a consolation, Mike proactively poured a glass of wine for Aragorn.
Afterward, with the continuous laughter in the tavern, the cold-faced Aragorn finally experienced some of the fun of the party.
Next, as the Rangers came over one after another to toast, Aragorn, as one of the drinking companions, unsurprisingly drank too much that night.
...
In the following week, as more and more Rangers learned about Mike killing the snow Trolls, his reputation as the [Troll Slayer] was completely established in the Northern Highlands.
From then on, Mike could count on a steady income of [Power Of Faith] in Middle-earth.
Moreover, the strength of these Rangers was generally quite good, and the [Power Of Faith] contributed by them was more than that of ordinary people.
However, as Mike's reputation in the Northern Highlands grew, whenever he went out to hunt dark creatures recently, there would always be a group of Rangers following behind, wanting to watch the excitement.
This greatly affected his mood when hunting.
One day, having had enough of the Northern Highlands, he sought out Aragorn. "Come on, [Strider], I'll treat you to a drink. Don't worry, I'll pay for the drinks this time."
"Did the Sun rise from the west?" Having been tricked once a while ago, Aragorn had finally learned recently to trade the dark creatures he killed for commissions.
With a bit of confidence, he looked at Mike suspiciously and said, "No, you inviting me for a drink for no reason definitely has a problem. Are you planning to leave the Northern Highlands?"
It must be said, the future King of Men had a pretty accurate sixth sense.
"Yes, I plan to go visit the three Elven kingdoms south of the Misty Mountains, and by the way, make a tour of the human kingdom in the southeast, the Gondor Line of Defense. Finally, I expect to go to the Lonely Mountain to hunt that dragon, Smaug..." Mike answered without hiding anything. "So, my schedule for the next period will be very tight."
Middle-earth is very vast, and Mike urgently needed to tour the entire continent first. Only with specific coordinates could his [Spatial Gate] travel to any corner of this continent.
Otherwise, if he were only coveting the treasure on the Lonely Mountain, Mike could just continue walking east along the Northern Highlands. At most, after crossing a few more snow-capped mountains, he could reach the Lonely Mountain directly.
As for the dragon guarding the treasure on the Lonely Mountain, Mike didn't take it seriously at all.
"I didn't expect you to leave so soon, but it's not surprising. With your abilities, staying in the Northern Highlands is just a waste of time..." Thinking of his own situation, Aragorn felt a bit dejected, but still said, "By the way, if you pass by Rivendell and the Golden Forest, remember to give my regards to Lord Elrond and Queen Galadriel."
Aragorn's ancestor, Aidor, once led the race of men to defeat Sauron and obtained the one ring from the Dark Lord's hand.
It was a pity, however, that Aidor could not resist the temptation of the one ring, thereby giving the dark forces a chance to rise again.
It could be said that for the current dire situation in Middle-earth, Aidor needed to bear a large part of the responsibility; he failed the expectations of the race of men.
As a descendant of Aidor, whether for atonement or for himself, Aragorn bore the honor of the Gondor royal family and the mission to defeat the dark forces.
Under these circumstances, he had to try his best to make himself stronger.
And before that, it seemed that because of the immense pressure, he had confined himself to the Northern Highlands, associating with the Rangers.
It gave the impression that he wouldn't leave the mountains until his strength was fully realized.
Mike patted Aragorn on the shoulder, acknowledging his request. However, if he wanted to complete his family mission, he still needed to work hard himself.
Then, after the two had a couple of drinks at the tavern, Mike waved goodbye to Aragorn and walked back the way he came.
"Did this guy forget to pay again?" It wasn't until Mike's figure disappeared that Aragorn realized he had been "tricked" again.
...
"Chirp... chirp..."
As Mike walked into the mountains around the Northern Highlands, two Great Eagles with beaks reflecting golden light flew overhead.
They were the fledgling Gwaihir and his own brother, Landroval, who was also a fledgling possessing the bloodline of the Eagle King.
Mike had seen these two royal-blooded fledglings several times recently while hunting dark creatures in the mountains.
"I plan to go visit the Elves in the south, so I won't be hunting spiders today." After explaining, Mike took two pieces of antelope meat from his spatial storage and handed them to the Great Eagles.
According to what Mike had recently learned, the number of Giant Spiders in the Misty Mountains had not increased for so long entirely because the flock of Great Eagles led by Thorondor had been hunting them in the mountains.
Two days ago, Mike had accepted an invitation from Gwaihir to hunt Giant Spiders with the flock, and then he had been pestered by these two fledglings ever since.
They both seemed to really like the "scent" on Mike.
"Chirp... chirp..."
After eating the antelope meat, the two fledglings called out to Mike twice.
"You say you want to take me to Rivendell? Is that okay? Won't your old man, Thorondor, beat you up?" Mike asked with feigned concern, though he was very tempted.
Who could refuse two cool Great Eagles as mounts?
Even though they were still fledglings, Gwaihir and Landroval, with wingspans already exceeding fifteen meters, were still Great Eagles.
"Chirp... chirp..."
Gwaihir puffed out his chest in a human-like manner and looked at Mike with disdain, as if he were annoyed that the other had underestimated him.
Instead, the well-behaved eagle, Landroval, didn't dare to make a sound.
"Alright, then I will reluctantly agree to your request to accompany me." Mike smiled and jumped onto Gwaihir's back, then instructed the hesitant Landroval nearby: "Go back and tell the Eagle King Thorondor that Gwaihir is accompanying me to Rivendell. He will be back in a week at most, so tell the Eagle King not to worry."
Mike had met the Eagle King Thorondor twice, and he was a very stern Great Eagle.
But then again, even if the Eagle King were angry, the one who would get beaten up would be Gwaihir. It had nothing to do with Mike, and Landroval nearby could testify to that.
Besides, if the worst came to the worst and the Eagle King pecked at Gwaihir, Mike would definitely advise him to go easy if he had the chance.
That's decided!!!
"Alright, destination Rivendell, let's go—!" Sitting on the back of the Great Eagle, Mike excitedly gave the command.
He had already ridden in the [Sled] pulled by rabbits, but flying on a Great Eagle was a first.