A magical journey that begins at Hogwarts

“The air in the woods is so thick it’s almost intoxicating,” Aaron said speechlessly. “It’s obvious we’re lost. I shouldn’t have let you lead the way in the first place.”

“You didn’t mention this request!” Bilbo said weakly.

That's because I'm not familiar with this place at all.

The Dark Forest isn't far from Lonely Mountain. Logically, being neighbors of the elves, and with the dwarves leading the way, things should be much easier for us. But it turns out I overestimated them.

“We’ve hardly ever been to this forest,” Balin explained. “Before Irubor was conquered by the dragon, the elves led the way, and that was many years ago.”

"Hurry up and find it, all of you, hurry up and find the way," Thorin said impatiently.

"Wait a moment." Aaron waved his hand. "My personal suggestion is that we don't split up. It would be bad if one or two of us got lost."

"Find your way, but don't stray too far."

The dwarves scattered and searched the surroundings, but in Aaron's view, they were simply going around in circles.

"The influence of the dark forest on people is too great!" Aaron thought to himself. "In the end, they still have to rely on me, the one who is clear-headed, otherwise they would be exhausted and still not be able to find their way in their current state."

Suddenly, he heard a strange sound. He turned his head and almost popped his eyes out.

Bilbo was seen brushing away a clump of spider web, which would have been nothing unusual, but behind the web lay a giant, sleeping spider.

He immediately stepped forward to stop Bilbo's reckless behavior, saying, "Don't move!"

"what happened?"

Aaron didn't answer, but instead told him to get closer to the spider web and take a closer look. When he saw a black spider leg, he was so frightened that he took several steps back, and his listless spirits instantly lifted.

“This must be what Gandalf was talking about,” Aaron mused.

"Did I wake it up?"

"Not yet, but we need to speed things up. I don't think there's only one spider in this dense forest."

Bilbo swallowed hard and nodded emphatically.

The road ahead was not easy, and as time went on, everyone's condition deteriorated, and they began to sway from side to side when walking.

To make matters worse, there are more and more spider webs on the road, which is not a good sign.

“Look, a pipe.” O’Neill picked up a pipe from the ground. “There are other dwarves in this forest.”

“And they’re dwarves from the Deep Blue Mountains,” Boff exclaimed in surprise. “This pipe is exactly the same as mine.”

“That’s yours.” Aaron rolled his eyes. “We have to stop. Getting lost isn’t scary; what’s scary is not knowing you’re lost and getting deeper and deeper into it.”

“We’re not lost; we’ve been heading east,” Devalin said.

"Really?" Aaron pointed to the sky, where sunlight was blocked by leaves, with only a small amount of light able to penetrate. "Could you please tell me how you determined which way is east?"

“I…” Dvalin opened his mouth, “Oyin has the best sense of direction, I followed him.”

"Great, he's swaying around more than you are on the road." Aaron sighed helplessly, preparing to take out his compass to find his way.

But before he could act, Bilbo jumped in front of him. "Sun, I have an idea. We can climb up to the canopy."

“I’ve thought of something, but…” Aaron looked at the dense spiderwebs on the tree, “I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

“But there’s no other way,” Bilbo said. “We have to climb the tree.”

“Alright!” Aaron shrugged. “Thorin, you and the other dwarves stay put. Bilbo and I will go scout ahead first.”

No sooner had they left than Thorin heard a soft rustling sound, and his expression changed drastically. "Be careful, everyone! Grab your weapons! We're being watched!"

The dwarves were jolted back to their senses by his shout, but they were in a very bad mental state at the moment. Before they could react, more than ten giant spiders surrounded the area.

White spider webs covered everything, and within seconds they were wrapped into cocoons.

Bilbo climbed to the top of the tree, a gentle breeze blew in, and as he breathed in the fresh air, his spirits instantly returned.

"Are you awake now?" Aaron stood on a tree branch, looking at him meaningfully. "I doubt even Gandalf would have thought that climbing a tree could eliminate the negative effects of Mirkwood."

“He certainly doesn’t know,” Bilbo said sheepishly, “but you seem unaffected by the polluted air in the woods.”

"This...is not important," Aaron chuckled. His body had been soaked in various medicinal baths, so he was practically immune to all poisons. The air in this forest couldn't penetrate his consciousness at all.

"I can see a lake, a river, and a lonely mountain," Bilbo exclaimed excitedly. "We're almost there!"

Did you hear me? I know which way to go.

There was no response from below, but instead, a creaking sound came from afar, as if some huge creature was rampaging through the forest and moving toward them.

“Spiders,” Aaron said gravely. “I’m afraid it’s not just one, but a whole group.”

"So that means Thorin and the others might be?"

"Don't be complacent; they've probably been arrested."

Most web-weaving spiders will wrap up their prey; we need to find them as soon as possible.

Bilbo nodded and began to climb down.

But as soon as he moved, he tripped over a clump of spider webs and fell off the tree.

After hitting several thick tree branches, Bilbo was hung in a white spider web.

A rustling sound came from the other side. Bilbo subconsciously looked over and saw a black spider head appear before him. Then it opened its mouth, revealing several rings of sharp teeth.

"what!"

Bilbo was startled and his body plummeted again, this time hanging on the spider web, unable to move.

Upon seeing this, the giant spider immediately gave chase, using all eight of its legs to wrap Bilbo in its web and turn him into a mummy.

"Strike the giant spider with a heavy blow."

A flash of white light, and the giant spider screamed as it was sent flying backward.

“Aaron, you…” Bilbo stared at Aaron, who was standing on the spider web holding a black wand, his face filled with astonishment. “You really do know magic. Gandalf was right.”

Aaron shrugged. "Our ancestors said..."

"Don't even mention your ancestors, not even a dog would believe that excuse."

"Our ancestors once said not to reveal your magic carelessly," Aaron said seriously. "So you must remember to keep it a secret, after all, I'm doing this to save you!"

"Okay, okay," Bilbo said helplessly. "It's really frustrating that you let me out first."

“I could release you, but I have a better idea,” Aaron said with a meaningful smile.

Bilbo paused, his expression changing slightly. "Wait, I don't think this is a good idea."

"I think so, that's fine."

Don't worry, I will protect you.

After saying that, Aaron tapped his shoulder with his wand and disappeared from the spot.

Bilbo: ......

"You can also become invisible?"

"Don't worry about the details."

"I..."

Bilbo was about to speak when the giant spider came running back.

Six black eyes scanned the area, confirming that the person who had attacked it earlier was not there, before dragging Bilbo away.

The giant spider led him to its lair, where, in addition to a bunch of spiders, there were thirteen mummies hanging upside down in mid-air. The entire dwarf army was wiped out, with none surviving.

Bilbo took a deep breath, drew his short sword, and stabbed the giant spider in the neck, knocking it off the tree.

Having dealt with the enemy before him, he immediately used his sword to tear the spider webs covering his body and carefully hid behind a tree trunk.

“They’re all here.” Aaron breathed a sigh of relief. “The good news is they’re alive and kicking, and the negative effects of Mirkwood seem to have disappeared.”

The bad news is that the spider is eager for dinner, and we don't have much time.

"Can you use magic to save them?"

"Saving one or two is no problem, but so many is a real problem. It's not a big deal to accidentally injure friendly forces, but you could easily get yourself killed."

"What if I lead them away for you?"

"you?"

“I have this,” Bilbo said, taking a gold ring from his pocket. “There will be no danger.”

"Let's switch!" Aaron said thoughtfully. "I'll distract them, and you can save the people."

Bilbo didn't mince words and simply put on the ring to become invisible.

Aaron raised an eyebrow, stepped out from behind the tree trunk, and then tapped on the trunk to make some noise. "You guys, come here!"

The spiders, who were about to enjoy their 'meal', turned to look at him upon hearing the sound, and then all pounced on him.

"grass!"

Aaron turned and ran, secretly cursing himself for being so hasty this time.

He only intended to attract a few giant spiders surrounding the dwarves, but he didn't expect the charm to be so great, drawing away at least several times more spiders.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Bilbo quickly ran to the thirteen 'mummies' to prepare to rescue them.

But then a spider crawled down and stopped in front of a dwarf. “Plump and juicy, have a bite.”

Bilbo swallowed hard, then took his short sword and slashed at the giant spider's tail.

The intense pain forced it to turn around, but it couldn't see Bilbo, who was invisible, and was slashed several times by him.

"Damn it, where is it? Where is it?" the giant spider cursed in a panic.

“Here.” Bilbo removed his gold ring and plunged his sword into the giant spider’s head.

"Ouch, ouch, I got bitten and it hurts."

Bilbo suddenly drew his short sword, and the giant spider fell from the tree.

"Thorn, that's a good name." Bilbo decided to name the short sword after it. Although it was far less famous than the Beastbite Sword and the Enemy Sword, at least it would leave a trace of its existence.

He glanced at the thirteen cocoons that were wrapped up, swung his thorns, cut the spider web, and placed them one by one on the ground.

Meanwhile, Aaron was being chased by more than twenty giant spiders as he ran wildly through the forest.

"Human children taste much better than dwarves."