"Outside the gate, from here begins the journey that never ends~"
Clatter... clatter...
The wagon swayed gently, and the people riding it occasionally moved with the rhythm.
Not particularly beautiful humming drifted from the cargo pile, plain and simple, but it attracted attention from many in the convoy.
"The lord is singing."
Two Rangers with the keenest ears identified the source of the sound.
As the wagons gradually moved forward, the group finally left that gloomy and unsettling land behind.
Vast and barren, not only lacking trees and grass, but even broken wood and scattered stones were absent. It was truly a land devoid of all life.
This was the impression it left on everyone.
Of course, it wasn't naturally like this. This was all the result of Sauron's "scorched earth policy." He had sent great armies to burn and level everything on this land, and even after more than three thousand years, it hadn't recovered at all.
Later this land would be called the "Brown Lands."
For two more days, the caravan rolled across this desolate wasteland, the contrast growing starker as they gradually approached more fertile territories. When they finally reached the ancient crossroads south of Mirkwood, the gateway to Eastern Rhovanion, the humming stopped.
Two roads lay before them.
Continuing along the Anduin Road led to the Anduin Valley, territory of Beorn's people.
Following the Rhovanion Road led to the Free Cities' Dale territory.
"Take the Rhovanion Road."
Levi gave the order.
So the caravan started up again.
On the road, two Rangers quietly approached, and this small movement was soon noticed by Levi.
"Is there something you need?"
"No!"
"It's just... we're just curious about that song you were singing earlier."
"Oh, that."
Levi shifted position and continued lying comfortably, saying: "I learned it from Gandalf, that grey-robed wizard who's also my friend."
The Grey Wizard...
"Are there other wizards?"
The young Ranger asked curiously.
"Yes, though I've only met four. I didn't get to meet one before he was kidnapped by another wizard."
"Kidnapped?"
Hearing this word made both Rangers even more curious.
So Levi began telling of his experiences with the wizards he'd encountered.
As he narrated, not only the two Rangers but also other caravan members within earshot listened carefully. Those who couldn't hear clearly, driven by curiosity, also moved closer to catch his words.
The journey continued peacefully.
After traveling leisurely for several more days, the caravan finally crossed the bridge at the Running Ford, officially entering Dale territory.
Along the main road, a new settlement appeared before everyone.
Roadway Town.
This was a settlement recently established by Dale territory in this region, located at the intersection of Valley Road, Rhovanion Road, and the Eastern Road, which was also the source of its name.
A year ago, when Levi had nodded and included this area within his domain, Bard immediately brought people to build a town at the three-road intersection. When Roadway Town was completed at incredible speed, many guilds and markets were also established.
Gondor, Rohan, Dale, Mirkwood, Iron Hills, Dorwinion, even distant Rhûn to the far east and the Red Mountains in the extreme east, regardless of safety concerns, in terms of routes, all roads led to Roadway Town.
Due to its geographical location and security guarantees from Levi's domain, large numbers of traveling merchants stored goods here. It clearly had the potential of becoming the northern logistics hub.
Now it was increasingly prosperous.
The wagons gradually entered the bustling market.
Initially, when Levi and the caravan entered Roadway Town, not many people paid special attention. After all, people had seen plenty of such caravans since Roadway Town's establishment. There were many convoys much larger than this one.
But when that banner bearing only a name unfurled in the wind, people realized which caravan this was.
Roadside Keep, the legendary first city of the free city-states west of the Misty Mountains, and where Levi resided.
They'd heard that people there lived even more prosperously and peacefully than in Dale territory.
When hearing this news, many couldn't imagine what such a life was like, because Dale's territory already seemed wealthy enough to them. Everyone had housing, didn't lack clothes or food, could enjoy the best education, and after graduation could work in their preferred industries.
When Dale territory developed, the vast surrounding area no longer had hunger or vagrancy, and bandits and robbers also decreased. This alone showed how remarkable it was.
Better than such a place? What would that be like?
Were they all wealthy magnates?
They couldn't imagine anything more prosperous.
But this didn't stop people from casting curious glances at the approaching caravan.
"Hey, are you from Roadside Keep?!"
Soon bold townspeople struck up conversations.
"That's right."
Charlie, sitting at the front, responded warmly.
Roadway Town people were curious about Roadside Keep, but weren't Roadside Keep people equally curious about the outside world?
"How did you get here? I heard that road isn't in use yet."
"We walked, of course."
Charlie said: "From Roadside Keep south, across Eriador, over the Isen River, through Rohan and Gondor, then all the way north. We came via the Black Gate."
"The Black Gate!?"
Everyone within earshot was shocked.
"Oh heavens, weren't you stopped by those Mordor orcs? I heard caravans once dared step onto that grey plain and were never heard from again."
"Is it very safe there recently?"
"No, no, no, don't think that way."
Charlie said seriously: "We dared go there because..."
As he spoke, his gaze drifted backward toward the cargo pile.
"Because what?"
The questioner's gaze followed Charlie's look backward.
Then they saw someone sitting up among the goods.
Alright, now they understood why.
"Unless you have several thousand well-equipped elite guards, you'd better not go that way."
"Less than a thousand might not even stop their vanguard squads."
Levi calmly shared his assessment of the route's dangers.
Hiss!
"It's Lord Levi!"
Someone shouted, and immediately a bunch of heads popped out from the roadside. People outside turned to look, while those indoors opened windows and craned their necks to see.
"Alright."
The questioner stood in place, still somewhat stunned by this revelation.
"Yes, yes, indeed. In that case, those orcs should be the ones hiding."
"Wait, goods personally escorted by Lord Levi?"
He suddenly realized the significance and quickly followed the crowd surging toward where the Roadside Keep caravan had stopped.
"Let me see what treasures they're carrying!"
Roadside Keep's goods and specialties weren't really different from Dale and Lake-town's offerings. This place even had more variety available.
Price-wise, both places were similar, and quality was quite consistently stable.
But this caravan's composition was rather unique, having traveled such an extraordinary route.
"Don't buy any more! Don't buy any more! Those are specialties I'm bringing back for everyone at Roadside Keep!"
Charlie shouted frantically, packing and loading wagons, protecting the foreign specialties that residents had commissioned him to purchase before departure.
Levi slapped his knee, laughing at the chaos.
"Let's go, let's go! We continue departing!"
Quickly packing everything, the convoy hurriedly rushed out of Roadway Town, heading along Valley Road toward Lake-town before the enthusiastic crowd could buy up all their return gifts.