(EP-214.1) Forest Wedding #1

214 – Wedding of the Witch Forest #1

━Sounds similar to a Draco koma. They say koma meditates during sleep and unconscious states. To wake up, you need to stimulate the consciousness from the outside.

“What do you mean? Explain it more simply.”

Elga demanded an easier explanation. Mirna then translated it into a language we could understand.

“People who are unconscious in this way are in a coma. In our family, we call it koma. There are various ways to wake them up, but the most effective one is to directly extract them from the dream.”

‘Coma. A koma?’

So what I was hearing would be, Aira’s sleep wasn’t actually a slumber but a coma.

That expression might be accurate considering she was alive like a plant, but unable to move.

And to awaken Aira, someone had to dive deep into her sea of consciousness and bring her out.

In the Draco Family, those who could infiltrate the consciousness like that were called divers.

After hearing the whole story, Elga said.

“We found a way. So what are you doing now? Hurry up and do something!”

“But it’s not as easy as it sounds. Do you know that human consciousness is as vast as the universe? If you approach it recklessly, you’re likely to get lost.”

The consciousness was like the universe… I thought I’d heard something similar before.

They said that the human neural network and the universe were similar. It was often jokingly said on the internet that the world might be inside the brain of a giant.

The vast unconscious mind was submerged like an iceberg.

Moreover, we didn’t know what lied within the consciousness of the Archmage Aira. How much time would it take to navigate through such a huge sea of unconsciousness and bring Aira back?

Narmi, who was being reflected in the mirror at Mirna’s prudence, said.

━But, it should be fine as long as there’s a medium to lead the way! A milestone, a guide will do! Even a special item! It might take some time to create, though.

Milestone and guide.

They were two familiar words. Then I looked at the balloons I had in my hand. Five balloons. These were given to me by the Guide.

“Could this possibly work?”

“Balloons?”

Mirna received the balloons from me. As she examined them, her eyes suddenly widened in surprise.

“Where did you get these…? They don’t seem like ordinary items. They have a pathfinding spell cast on them. It’s a high-level blessing that priests of the church give only to pilgrims….”

Judging from her reaction, it seemed possible.

Looking at this, I was convinced. The Guide knew that I would go look for him and for what reason. He already knew everything in advance.

Did he have foresight?

My wariness and suspicion towards him increased. But for now, focusing on Aira, who was sleeping right in front of me, was more important.

“Then we will select divers as a standard of two. It’s usually done by family or those with blood relations. Lady Lioness is blood re….”

“Whatever, I’ll do it. I’ll enter Aira’s dream and bring her out. It’s that simple, isn’t it?”

Elga was overflowing with confidence. Being Aira’s cousin, she was the closest in blood relation to her.

However, in practice, Elga couldn’t infiltrate Aira’s dream.

“Lady Lioness, your consciousness is too strong. It’ll get a significant rejection. And you….”

“And what?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

Mirna seemed like she wanted to say something but then closed her mouth. Now, it was just me left. I was prepared for it anyway.

I tied the balloon to my arm and lay down beside Aira, as guided by Mirna.

“There are some things to watch out for, Sir Theo. As I said to Lady Lioness, the unconscious mind is deep and vast. You must never dive in recklessly.”

“I’ll be careful.”

“I will also send a signal to Sir Theo. It should assist you in some form in the dream. If you utilize it well, you should have no problem bringing the Queen. And….”

Mirna’s gaze, like mine, turned towards Lily lying beside Aira.

Lily became my diving partner. Perhaps, her and Aira’s mental link was better than I thought.

I guessed it made sense since she was the one serving Aira when I wasn’t around.

“You two need to watch each other closely. It’s easy to be influenced in a dream world that has no form. You need to depend on each other.”

It was like a comrade-in-arms in the military.

“For the Queen you admire so much, you must cooperate and help each other. Do you understand?”

At Mirna’s urging, Lily reluctantly replied, “Yes…” I can’t believe I had to go with this girl. This was making me uneasy.

“Well then, let’s begin. It’s not usually done so urgently, but… Narmi, let’s start.”

━Okay. Then I’ll chant the first verse. Unnie, you take it from the second verse.

━━─. ━━━─. ━━.

Narmi and Mirna’s voices echoed simultaneously.

Two voices singing as one. The strange harmony seemed to penetrate not the ears but the mind, plunging me into darkness without a moment to gather my thoughts.

* * *

“Hey, wake up. How long are you going to sleep?”

Someone nudged me awake. When I lifted my head, I found myself lying in the bushes, surrounded by strange trees and grass.

“Where… is this.”

A forest? That was the only way to describe it. Was I sleeping in the woods? I felt completely disoriented.

“Snap out of it! Can’t you remember why we’re here? You need a good smack to come to your senses!”

Pak-.

Someone slapped my cheek. The slight sting brought me back.

Ah, right. I dove into Aira’s consciousness.

Did that mean this was Aira’s consciousness? It just looked like an ordinary forest. The scent of grass swaying in the wind and the soft soil beneath my butt all feel real.

Was this really a dream? Just to be sure, I picked up a handful of soil and put it in my mouth.

Edited by: faker