Chapter 243 – The Fountain of All Wisdom
Mimir.
It’s a name I’ve heard of.
The first elf and the first Gaut.
And the founder of the High Elf royal family that ruled Elven Wood.
‘Could it be the same person?’
I couldn’t help but think of that thought, so I decided to just ask it out loud.
“Are you the Mimir who is said to be the representative of the Goddess of Wisdom?”
Then the blonde girl tilted her head with an innocent face and answered my question.
“I don’t know what Mimir you’re talking about, but if you’re referring to Mimir, the Goddess of Wisdom, her mother, then I’m probably right.”
The girl answered in a strangely melodious tone, as if a child was playing with words, and then she looked up at me with her big deer-like eyes.
“So how did Kaldrashu come here?”
“When I opened my eyes, I was here.”
Then Mimir shook her head.
“That can’t be possible. This is Dreamland, a space that exists between dreams and reality where unauthorized people can never enter.”
I was puzzled after hearing her words.
“Is Dreamland the name of this place?”
“Yes, my mother made it specially for me.”
Mimir said and spread her arms as if she was showing off.
This exposed her small breasts, which had been hidden by her messy hair, but surprisingly, I didn’t think anything of it.
Should I say that it feels like looking at a well-made work of art?
The brain clearly recognizes her as an incredibly beautiful girl, but she has no sexual desire at all.
Anyway, since she didn’t seem to believe me, I decided to honestly explain the situation I was in.
“In real life, I was in the middle of studying. But I must have dozed off and when I opened my eyes, I was here.”
After hearing my explanation, Mimir smiled playfully.
“It was like that, after all.”
“Do you have any clues?”
“Yes. The reason I am in this world is because of the mission given to me by her mother.”
Mimir said that and backed away from her, and she took a step back.
Then, naturally, the spring where she was bathing caught my eye.
“The name of this spring is Mimisbrunn. And anyone who drinks Mimisbrunn’s spring water can gain spiritual knowledge.”
“What? Such a ridiculous spring exists in the world?”
I have read numerous books so far, but this is the first time I have heard that there is a spring water that can help you realize the truth just by drinking it.
But Mimir nodded and said as if it was a very obvious thing.
“So, I was ordered by my mother to protect this spring forever. If an unworthy person drinks from Mimisbrunn’s spring, an evil spirit may be born.”
After saying that, Mimir bent down on one knee and scooped up a handful of water with her palm.
“Perhaps the reason you came here and met me was to determine whether you are worthy to drink this spring water or not.”
“Who makes that decision?”
Then Mimir smiled softly and pointed to her sky.
“Me and my mother in heaven.”
“…”
To be honest, even at this moment while I was talking to her, I couldn’t tell if I was dreaming or if I was really in her other world called Dreamland.
Because it was a suspicious situation in many ways.
As I looked at myself with a complicated expression, Mimir smiled and asked me with an unknown look on her face.
“Does Kaldrashu think I’m lying right now?”
“That’s… No.”
At least Mimir wasn’t lying.
Because we have the ability to distinguish that much.
“Then what’s the problem? As long as you pass the test I give, Kaldrashu can easily obtain territory.”
“… That’s right.”
If I think about it, I had nothing to lose if I failed here.
Rather, it was Mimir who unilaterally took the risk.
When I, who had come to her belated realization, lowered her guard towards her, Mimir nodded her head with a satisfied expression and said.
“Then I will judge from now on whether you are worthy to drink this spring water or not.”
“Is that the test you were talking about?”
“That’s right. But it’s not difficult. I’ll just ask simple questions. You just have to think carefully and answer.”
“… Okay.”
As I nodded to her with a nervous expression, Mimir sat down on the wide rock next to the spring and asked.
“Then let me ask you a question. Kaldrashu, what is your dream?”
***
“… What is my dream?”
“Yes.”
It was a somewhat unexpected question.
It wasn’t some elementary school presentation time, and I never thought there would be someone suddenly asking a 30-year-old about his dreams.
Normally, I would have tried to understand the intent of her question and come up with the most ideal answer, but it seemed that such a calculated answer was probably not what Mimir was hoping for.
So, after thinking about it for a while, I decided to let go of all my embarrassment and give the most honest answer.
“Eating well and living well.”
Then Mimir copied exactly what I said.
“Eating well and living well?”
“That’s right. To put it more simply, I want to live a long and healthy life with the people I like, and close my eyes happily surrounded by my grandchildren right before I die.”
I said that and explained it with a calm expression.
“Most people probably have ordinary dreams like this. To be honest, I don’t have the time to dream bigger than this because I’m already overloaded with just living.”
“Then did you achieve that dream?”
“No, unfortunately, it is still in progress. And to achieve this dream, you need the strength to carry out your will.”
If I die during this war, that will be the end.
I will no longer be able to do anything and disappear from this world.
But I hated it.
Because there were so many things in this world that I didn’t have in my past life.
Father, teacher, family, friends.
Now I didn’t want to let anything go.
Because I am greedy.
“So, I have to become the 8th rank as soon as possible. Only then can I achieve my dream. … Is this your answer?”
Then Mimir, who had been listening to me silently, smiled.
“Yes, I passed.”
“… Simple as this?”
“Why are you surprised? Shouldn’t you be happy if you passed?”
“That’s… True, but they told me I passed too easily.”
When I said that with a puzzled expression, Mimir giggled and told me the truth.
“Actually, my permission is not that important. As I said before, Dreamland is a land where unauthorized beings cannot enter. That is, when Kaldrashu entered this space and met me, he was already qualified to drink spring water. It’s evidence.”
“… Then why did you ask about the dream?”
“Hmm, just a quick way to kill time? I’ve been alone in this space for a long time. The last time someone came in was already 700 years ago.”
Still, thanks to you, I think I have a general idea of what kind of person Kaldrashu is.
Mimir said that, and she suddenly grabbed my hand.
“Okay then, let’s go in.”
“What? Where?”
But Mimir didn’t answer my question.
Huh? Meanwhile, she falls into Miss Brun with her.
Since I can’t swim, I was embarrassed and started flailing my hands and feet, but soon realized that the bottom of the spring was very shallow and stood up with a puzzled look on my face.
Mimir, her body and hair drenched with water again, looks up at me with a mischievous expression.
I held out my hand to her.
Then she pretended to wake up and held my hand, and then, by surprise, she kissed me.
“Eup!”
As I looked at her with wide open eyes, Mimir poured the spring water that was in her mouth into my mouth.
Gulp!
When she swallowed the spring water, which had turned lukewarm due to her body temperature, she felt her head instantly tingle.
As I stumbled behind her, tripped over a rock and fell down, Mimir spoke to me with her back behind her.
“See you later, Kaldrashu.”
That’s all I remember.
***
“Hot!”
When I came to my senses, I was still sitting where I was originally sitting.
Looking at the thick feeling in my mouth and the saliva stains on the desk, it seemed like I had a good night’s sleep.
“What on earth was that?”
I still remember the conversation with Mimir clearly.
And the feeling of her soft lips as she kissed me at the last moment was definitely not a dream.
As I was playing with my lips, feeling a strange lingering sensation, Glinda, who seemed to have been away for a while, came into the barracks.
“Are you awake?”
“Oh, yes. Looks like I fell asleep.”
“Because he hadn’t slept for quite some time. While studying next to me, he collapsed like a doll whose strings had been cut. At first, I thought something was wrong, but soon he started snoring, so I just let him sleep.”
As Glinda said that, she held out a water jug and a water cup that were placed on one side of the barracks.
“Ah, thank you.”
After giving her thanks, she drank a glass of cold water and I felt that her head felt refreshed than before.
Is this the effect of a good night’s sleep?
Maybe it was because my fatigue had completely disappeared, but my condition had improved, and I picked up the pen again to solve the problem I had been solving right before going to bed.
And then I realized.
‘Uh? Huh?’
Even before I fell asleep, the formulas that I didn’t understand at all were slowly being solved.
With a pounding heart, I received points from Glinda for perfectly solving a problem in just one minute that would normally have taken three hours.
And after completing all the proofs, Glinda asked me with a surprised face.
“What happened? The level suddenly went up?”
Of course, I answered that question with a bright smile.
“Glynda’s ancestor helped me.”
