Episode 532 Rip Van Winkle (1)
“How did you get here?”
“How did you come? “Oh my, it’s a bridge.”
Zandman patted his thighs with his hands and groaned.
He raised his eyebrows and glared at Ludger.
“Just by looking at it, I thought it looked like it was going into the depths somehow, so I hurried along.”
“I thought it would take quite a while, but you came sooner than I thought.”
“Originally this would have taken a long time! Due to the circumstances, it was a bit unreasonable to come quickly. “I even brought this.”
Zandman said that and showed the luggage he had packed.
Ludger, seeing the large luggage, instinctively knew that it was the item Clara had said she would give him.
“Is that it?”
Ludger’s gaze fell from the baggage to Zandmann’s hands and legs.
Outside, he was only wearing casual clothes, but when he entered Dreamland, he dressed up in full-fledged clothes with the Dream School logo on them.
Brass-colored gloves and gaiters worn over the outfit.
If you look at the barometer and watch embedded on the back of the glove’s hand, it was definitely not an ordinary item.
“It’s something called a siesta. When you enter Dreamland, you will adjust your dream pressure so that you do not get caught up in the dreaminess of this world and try to mimic the flow of time in reality as much as possible. “It is an essential artifact to go into the depths.”
So the other name given to Siesta was wetsuit.
Just as a wetsuit protects your body from cold and shock when entering the deep sea, and supplies oxygen periodically.
This is because Siesta also protects the wearer when entering the depths of Dreamland.
“Normally, you can move up to the upper middle level of Dreamland without much trouble, but to get to the central part, a siesta is essential…” Zantman
stared at Ludger with a look of disbelief.
“I can’t believe I could pass through the central part so easily and reach the entrance to the lower part. Plus, it still looks fine. “What happened to your mental strength?”
“Even though it looks like this, I went through some hardships.”
“It’s disappointing to hear that. When I hear you say that, it seems like you didn’t put in enough effort. “I should have done more to avoid saying things like this.”
It was difficult for Zandman to say anything good.
It’s so dangerous that it’s not enough to stay still, so you can enter the danger zone on your own without wearing proper equipment.
I understand that the situation is urgent, but from my perspective as an expert, Ludger’s actions were too reckless.
Clara was a very important person, so if I hadn’t been told to protect her, I would have dismissed it as a natural death and left her alone.
However, since that was not possible, Zantman came all this way alone, leaving behind other school wizards even after coming down to the middle layer.
And it even came with a Siesta for Ludger to wear.
Does that young man even know?
What an opportunity to become a genius.
Zandmann tried to say it out loud, but stopped.
Not only was Ludger in very good physical condition, but there were as many as three people next to him.
‘no. ‘Isn’t he completely human?’
On one side is a dwarf girl.
The other side… has a subtle elf feel. That would mean mixed race.
In the central region, it is difficult to stay healthy on your own, and it is even more difficult to move around with other people.
‘The pure white landscape of the central region is a drawing board for projecting human desires and the past. There were not one but four brushes in there, so it must have been a normal mess.’
Still, everyone seemed safe.
Was it because all four of you were incredibly talented?
‘The only one who shows any level of skill is a small, mixed-race child. The other two are not to that extent.’
Because it was Dreamland, Zandman was able to roughly estimate his opponent’s skill based on the momentum flowing from him.
In his judgment, among the four, Ludger was the only one capable of withstanding the harsh environment of Dreamland.
‘But the fact that all four are fine…’
This means that only one person led the rest.
‘Is this possible?’
It would be possible.
Isn’t it unfolding right before your eyes?
Zandman seemed to know why Master Clara told him to take a close look at Ludger.
“Anyway, now that I’m here, it’s good to take an hour off.”
“Can I wear that siesta now?”
“There is no need right now. Isn’t it a loss if I waste my energy already when I’m fine like this? Just take it with you before you go in there.”
At that time, Hans, who had been silent, opened his mouth.
“Who is that?”
“ah. Come to think of it, I didn’t introduce myself. My name is Zantman. One of the wizards and dreamwalkers belonging to the Dream School. “What about that one?”
“I’m Hans. “This is Sedina Roshen and this is Sheridan Ironfeet.”
“Hmm. I see. Wait… Sedina? Sedina Roshen?”
Zandman shook his head when he heard the familiar name.
Sedina didn’t seem to understand why Zantman was calling her name.
“It’s you! “The friend who our youngest couldn’t live and die like that!”
“yes yes?”
“Oh my. Look at this small body. Are you going to eat? Would you like your grandfather to give you some candy?”
“Over there…”
If Julia had been there, it was a sight that would have screamed at her to stop right away.
Even as Sedina felt burdened by Zandman’s sudden interest in her, the word he said, “youngest,” lingered in my ear.
“That youngest person…”
“Huh? Aren’t you two friends?”
“A friend? ah!”
Only then did Sedina realize who Zantman was talking about.
If you think about it, you should have noticed from the moment he introduced himself as a member of the Dream School.
The reason she couldn’t do that was because Zandman was an extremely old wizard, but there was also a reason why it was very different from what she imagined.
“The Dream School wizards… are somewhat mysterious and mystical people…”
“Huh? “Who said that?”
“That…”
Sedina thought about Julia.
Excellent appearance. Overwhelming talent. It even looks like a noble crane.
Julia was always alone, but no one pointed a finger at her.
A flower on a cliff that no one can match or match with her.
Because that was the perception of someone named Julia.
In creating that perception, it cannot be said that the background of the dream school was not important.
“That’s it…”
But what should the dream school wizard I actually met say?
It was a little frivolous.
It’s not like he’s something mysterious or something you’d expect to see in an oral fairy tale, but rather something you’d commonly see in a rural town.
That didn’t necessarily mean it was bad.
I don’t know how this happened because it’s so conflicting with the dream walker she’s seen, Julia.
“Hehehe. The youngest one is out there showing off all his talents, right? “When I go back later, I’ll have a year’s worth of stuff to make fun of.”
From Sedina’s reaction, Zandmann immediately recognized where she was disappointed.
Actually, it was hard not to know.
Because many people who visited the Dream School had a similar reaction to Sedina.
However, since they are Julia’s friends, I thought they would know a little bit about them, but they were so embarrassed.
It could be said that Julia desperately did not mention the stories of her seniors.
Anyway, that’s the way things are these days.
Even though Zandmann clicked his tongue, he did not forget what he had to do now.
“teacher. “I’m here in a hurry. Can you explain exactly what happened?”
A sudden incident of sleeping sickness occurred.
And even the appearance of subordinates that have never been seen before.
Zandman came this far because he had to take care of urgent matters, but there were too many unanswered questions.
“It’s quite a long story.”
Ludger explained to Zandmann how this happened.
An old man named Nirva, his subordinates, and even the fact that he is waiting for something to awaken from the depths of Dreamland.
After hearing the whole story, Zandman’s expression hardened.
“I thought it wouldn’t be normal, but it’s much more serious than that. “I finally understand why the Master warned me so much.”
Zandman sighed and stroked his beard.
“teacher. Teacher, are you going to keep going?”
“I came this far, can I go back?”
“Write. That’s right. Even if you run away, it won’t be any use. But it’s okay to go first and use poison.”
“If you’re really worried, you can wait here. “I’ll go down first.”
“What are you looking at me for? Come all the way here and tell me to leave? If I do that, everyone in our school will laugh at me. “You can never do that!”
As he said, Zandman came all the way here to fight from the beginning.
Ludger didn’t know that either.
“Just take it. “It’s a special siesta made for you.”
Zandmann handed over the siesta he had brought to Ludger.
The large case opened, revealing sophisticated gloves and gaiters inside.
Unlike other Siestas, which were brass-colored, Ludger’s was pitch black.
And the design was much slimmer and sleeker.
“It looks a little different.”
“Because it’s a special dish. I told them to just make it the same way, but the guy who made it said how could he do that and made it to look like it was suitable for a teacher. “Well, honestly, it doesn’t look that bad.”
Ludger wore Siesta’s gloves on his hands.
The black gloves made of metal automatically adjusted their size to fit perfectly on the hands.
You could feel Ludger the moment you put it on.
The energy of Dreamland, which was subtly pressuring his mind, disappeared as if blocked by something.
It was like having an oxygen respirator put on my mouth while I was holding my breath in deep water.
‘That’s why I said it was an essential item for Dreamwalkers. It’s definitely different.’
Zandmann gave one piece of advice to Ludger, whose eyes were shining with admiration.
“Isn’t that the green gem on the back of your hand? “Let’s pour a little magic there.”
I did as I was told, and the green gem turned bluish.
Soon, a translucent force field was created centered on Ludger.
“Uh huh?”
“Whoa.”
Hans and Sedina Seridan, who entered the force field, unconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.
It was thanks to being free from the dream pressure that Dreamland exerted knowingly or unknowingly.
“It will be quite a burden on you to maintain it, but you can safely transport up to 10 people in your party.”
Does this mean that it is not just tailored to individual users, but also pays attention to the role of colleagues who will move together?
“At this point, we should call it a submarine instead of a diving suit.”
“It was the master’s order. “I guess that means their role is important.”
“So what is the name of this thing?”
“name?”
“If it’s a special dish, shouldn’t it have a separate name to match the special dish?”
“As soon as I made it, I immediately wrapped it up and brought it out, so I wonder if there was even time to give it a name. However, as someone who is the owner of what I said, I will give it to you.”
“Are you saying you want to completely transfer ownership rather than rent it?”
“Uh huh. Sir, we are not in business. “Especially in an emergency situation like now, I’m not the type of person who thinks about taking care of his own interests.”
Ludger burst into laughter at the sight of Zandmann talking to him with straight eyes.
In this critical situation, he is a person who moves for the greater good, not for personal greed.
I felt like I knew why the dreamers had gathered together as idealists.
If only Zant, who can be said to be the head of the group, is like this, it is natural that the same goes for those below him.
If there were a lot more people like this in this world, it would be a better place to live.
‘no. Still, it’s no use. ‘The very foundation of the world is wrong, so it cannot be solved just by individual people coming together.’
Ludger shook his head and shook off his random thoughts.
“It’s a name.”
Ludger, seeing the black gloves covering his hands, suddenly remembered a story.
This is a story about how after spending too much time immersed in a dream, I came back and the world had changed.
There is a saying that the straw sack may rot in Sinseonnori, and there are various similar traditional fairy tales.
Ludger decided to give it a name based on that.
“[Rip Van Winkle]. “This would be good.”
When you enter the depths of Dreamland, you enter a completely different timeline than the outside.
Considering the name given to these gloves, isn’t this a truly timely situation?
Ludger knows the end of the story that gave rise to the name.
Nevertheless, giving it this name doesn’t seem to fit the current situation.
It was to endlessly remind me of the current situation in which I entered this world.
I am.
no.
I am determined that we will never face an ending like this.
“Let’s go. You have to go through that door to go to the depths.”
The group, with Zandman added, moved towards the huge door.
