The riders were startled. Not one of the hundreds of them caught Zheng’s movement. His speed was simply too fast and secondly, everyone’s eyes were looking at Gimli until the moment the red sword was placed next to their leader’s neck. No one dared to move at this moment.

Aragorn and Legolas were also appalled. It wouldn’t be as serious a problem if it were someone else holding the sword. They knew how strong Zheng was, someone who took down hundreds of Uruks. The riders were well trained but their numbers here weren’t enough for him to kill.

Aragorn immediately stepped in front of Zheng. “This is a misunderstanding… Riders of Rohan, I am Aragorn, son of Arathorn. This is Gimli, son of Glóin, and Legolas,...