Hogwarts wizards who signed in to Middle-earth.

Chapter 245 Venus Conjunction with Mars

“Gandalf!” Duy happily went up and hugged him.

Long time no see, how are you?

“It’s been great. I’ve been in Gondor lately, and just a few days ago I was discussing the eastern border with Regent Exelian II,” Gandalf said cheerfully.

"Oh, by the way, your owl messenger is really good. I was riding the Shadow at high speed when I received the letter, and I didn't expect it to find me. It gave me quite a fright."

Dui smiled and explained, "They do have a talent for delivering messages. I was worried that it wouldn't be able to find you, but I was relieved when it brought back your reply."

Just then, a loud cry of an eagle rang out from the sky.

"Oh, what's this?" Gandalf's eyes lit up as he asked Dui.

Dui smiled and nodded: "It's Aslan. He must have noticed you're here."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a griffin, several times larger than a lion, flew in from the distant sky and swiftly landed in front of the two.

Aslan the griffin was majestic, embodying the qualities of both the king of the sky and the king of the earth. He possessed the majesty of a lion and the sharpness of a giant eagle, which made Gandalf's eyes light up.

"After not seeing you for a while, Aslan has grown even more majestic and handsome; he's become a striking young man!"

If Pegasus is the elves' favorite, then griffins perfectly match Gandalf's aesthetic. If he didn't already have a mount, Swiftshade, he would have wanted a griffin pet long ago.

Aslan the griffin was also friendly to Gandalf, and did not reject Gandalf's approach and touch.

However, this stirred up the jealousy of the horse king, Jieying. He immediately snorted angrily at the griffin Aslan, and his hooves were eager to kick the guy who had seduced his master.

Not to be outdone, the clever griffin Aslan deliberately provoked Gandalf by rubbing against him right in front of Aslan.

Ma Wangjie was even angrier.

Gandalf quickly reassured his mount, saying it was his favorite.

But the proud King Jieying turned his head away, refusing to let him touch him.

Don't think he didn't see how his eyes lit up when he saw that griffin.

Dui found it amusing, especially when he heard Jieying's inner thoughts; anyone who didn't know the situation might have thought she was being cheated on.

After watching the commotion for a while, Dui invited Gandalf into the tower to rest.

As for King Ma and Griffin Aslan, they remained where they were, continuing their cross-eyed standoff.

Since the two guys were unlikely to actually fight, Dui and Gandalf didn't interfere much.

Upon entering the tower, they were immediately confronted by Cerberus, the three-headed wolf guarding the entrance.

Gandalf had seen the three-headed wolf before, but he was still surprised to see it again: "Wow, this little guy is so big now! If he grows any bigger, he might not even fit in here anymore?"

Cerberus, the three-headed wolf, also remembered Gandalf and knew he was his master's friend, so he did not bare his teeth.

It wagged its tail happily and affectionately at Dui, then its three heads and six eyes curiously examined Gandalf, even bringing its massive head closer to sniff him.

Facing a three-headed wolf that could swallow him whole, Gandalf showed no sign of wariness or fear. When the three wolves came closer to sniff him, he even reached out and scratched their chins.

The skillful and comfortable handling made the three-headed wolf squint its eyes and let out a comfortable purr.

Duy shook his head at Gandalf's words.

“I don’t know how big Cerberus can grow, but his growth rate has slowed down recently, so he should be nearing his limit.”

Cerberus, the three-headed wolf, is now enormous, standing over ten meters tall, making it one of the larger of all of Dui's pets.

Furthermore, it can breathe fire, its teeth and saliva are highly poisonous, its eyes have a dizzying effect, it has skin of copper and bones of iron, ordinary swords and blades cannot penetrate its skin, and its magic resistance is also very strong.

Even if the wound is broken, it can heal itself quickly.

Because it has incorporated the genes of dragons, basilisks, and giant octopus water watchers, the three-headed wolf is incredibly powerful, second only to the dragon Smaug. The sub-dragons in the dragon farm are no match for Cerberus.

Dui had previously released the three-headed wolf Cerberus outside the tower and sent him to the dragon farm to be a sheepdog, but it was the whelps that were herding.

The flames spewed by the dragons had no effect on Cerberus; they didn't even burn its fur. Instead, Cerberus was chased around and forced to flee in disarray, only able to escape by flying into the air.

Therefore, Cerberus, the three-headed wolf, became Dui's most powerful pet in Eisengard, and now not only guards Osankta, but is also responsible for the safety of the entire Eisengard.

Basically, when Dui is not around, the three-headed wolf guards the base, and with the griffin Aslan patrolling the skies, no one can easily get close to Eisengard.

After talking about the three-headed wolf, Duy led Gandalf upstairs and brought out a golden cup to entertain him.

The golden cup summoned all sorts of fruits, delicacies, and drinks, which were all placed in front of Gandalf for him to enjoy.

Then Dui took out a bottle of wine that the elven manor owner had given him when he was in Dovenian in the Far East, and poured it into a golden goblet.

Gandalf, witnessing this, was also amazed by the power of the Golden Cup. Besides its healing and nourishing magic, the Golden Cup could also summon delicious food and delicacies. In addition to specific targets, such as summoning food and fruits prepared in the Windrise kitchen in Isengard, it could summon food and delicacies from anywhere in Middle-earth without restriction.

Of course, the result of doing this is that other places will inexplicably lose freshly made food, leaving others hungry.

While the Golden Cup cannot conjure up food out of thin air, it can make existing food bigger and more plentiful, thus satisfying many people's hunger.

Such a treasure, with enough magical support, could sustain a village, a town, a city, or even a country.

If they fall into the hands of other forces or countries, they would be divine artifacts that could determine the fate of a nation!

This is enough to trigger a struggle among countless individuals, forces, and even nations.

After all, there are still countless people on the Central Continent who are starving. Once someone possesses a golden cup that can conjure up an endless supply of food, even a beggar could be surrounded by countless people and become a king.

Of course, the more likely outcome would be that countless people would fight each other for the golden cup, or even start a war.

But now, this "magical artifact" is quietly placed in front of Gandalf, to be used to entertain him.

This made Gandalf marvel at the magical power of the Golden Cup, and also made him admire and respect Dui even more.

If Dui had the same ambition to dominate the world as Saruman, he could have displayed the Golden Cup to the world, thereby winning people's hearts and minds and ruling the world.

But now, only a few of Dui's close friends know of the existence of the Golden Cup. Aside from Dui's own use, it is only used to entertain friends like Gandalf.

Of course, in Dui's own words, he had absolutely no interest in ruling or dominating the world.

Even Hogsmeade and Brie, which he now governs, became his territory by sheer chance, and Ashengard was entrusted to Duy by Gandalf, Elrond, and Galadriel.

Even with these territories, he didn't interfere much. Instead, he entrusted Hogsmeade and Brie to the two mayors for full management. At most, he would check whether there were any cases of embezzlement or oppression of the people.

In Eisengard, although the Black Barbarians also submitted to him, Dui was basically just a figurehead and did not interfere in the affairs of the Black Barbarians, leaving them to govern themselves entirely.

Dui's only ambition, from beginning to end, has always been to become stronger, and it is simply to become powerful.

However, such an idea is obviously not easy for people to understand.

In Middle-earth, whether it was Morgoth, Sauron, or Saruman, their ambition from beginning to end was to rule the world, and becoming stronger was only for the purpose of having the power to rule the world.

Or rather, the people in this world basically cannot understand Dui's simple desire to become stronger.

In their view, becoming stronger is for the purpose of ruling the world. If one cannot declare one's power after acquiring it, what is the difference between that and hiding one's true power in secret? What is the point of becoming stronger then?
Therefore, in the eyes of Gandalf, Elrond, Galadriel, and others, Dui was a good young man who had no ambition and was positive and motivated.

Even in Elrond's eyes, Dui was so unambitious that he was almost too conservative.

Gandalf then settled in Osankta.

When he finally had some free time, besides watching Dui draw magic circles and occasionally giving some advice, he would go downstairs to pet Cerberus's three heads.

Or ride the griffin Aslan and fly around in the sky; or go into the forest and communicate with the hippogriffs.

After learning that Dui also had a dragon farm, he couldn't wait to go there and see the sub-dragons.

For a time, Gandalf was so happy that he forgot all about home.

Time quickly came to the day when Venus and Mars were in conjunction.

As the green fire of the fireplace blazed, Elrond traveled from the Valley to Osankt Tower.

“Mislandir, long time no see. I didn’t expect you to arrive before me,” Elrond greeted with a smile.

Gandalf chuckled and said, "Lord Elrond, you're so busy, this old man had nothing to do, so I came a week early and have been having so much fun in Duir that I've almost lost track of time."

Elrond then looked at Dui and asked, "Is everything ready, Dui?"

Dui nodded: "Everything is ready, Lord Elrond. We're just waiting for the stars Eyarendil and Kanir to appear at the same time tonight."

Elrond nodded upon hearing this: "That's good. This celestial phenomenon of the convergence of the stars Eyarendil and Kanir will last for several months, the longest in a thousand years. The starlight will be the most abundant, and the success rate of refining the Philosopher's Stone will be greater."

However, in the crucial final moments, you must stay calm and composed, and don't put too much pressure on yourself, okay?

"I will, thank you for your concern." Dui nodded, listening attentively to Elrond's instructions.

If we were to say who, besides Dui, is most concerned about the Philosopher's Stone, it would undoubtedly be Elrond.

To prevent his daughter from repeating the mistakes of his ancestors Lúthien and Beren, he chose to give up eternal life.

Elrond used his wisdom to help Dui create the Philosopher's Stone, hoping to grant Dui immortality so that he could stay with Alvin.

This deep love for his daughter is truly touching.

(End of this chapter)