Paimon put her hands on her hips. "The Archon War? That's a surprisingly serious metaphor."
Lumine found a place to sit down and thought seriously for a long time, then said quietly, "I think I already know the answer."
Paimon was also excited. "That's great! Let's go find Nahida."
Seeing Lumine approach, Nahida said, "I've been waiting for you for a long time."
"Judging by your expression, the Sabzeruz Festival exam can begin, right?"
Lumine nodded. "Go ahead and ask, Teacher Nahida."
[Furina: From now on, everyone should call me Teacher Furina.]
[Paimon: Okay, Teacher Furina.]
[Yae Miko: Good, I've found another child.]
[Lumine: I agree. Furina really does have a childish temperament.]
[Furina: Slander! This is blatant slander!]
Nahida extended her small hand. "First, have you found the hidden truth?"
Lumine said decisively, "The people of Sumeru don't not dream—their dreams are being taken by the Akasha, and all of us are inside a dream."
Paimon said, "So those empty spaces were dreams that had been taken away from their owners? No wonder the scenes inside those spaces were so strange, from her description."
"So the people of Sumeru do dream, and right now all of us are inside a dream."
Nahida nodded. "Correct. That answer is right. Then how did you determine that the Akasha is capable of doing this?"
Lumine said, "Because the Akasha is the manifestation of the God of Wisdom's power."
[Paimon: Nahida, without the Akasha, can you still roam through dreams?]
[Nahida: Yes. That is my power and authority.]
[Lumine: The God of Wisdom's power is so wondrous. But how did a power without combat ability win the Archon War?]
[Nahida: The Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's power could create looping dreams that even gods could not escape, trapping them in place. King Deshret in the desert was a friend of the Greater Lord Rukkhadevata. That's why Sumeru did not suffer the flames of war during the Archon War.]
Paimon suddenly understood. "I see. The power of those creatures in the forest that can control dreams also comes from the Dendro Archon. So the Akasha also has the ability to control dreams."
"But is taking away people's dreams the Akasha's method of integrating everyone's wisdom? How does that work?"
Nahida explained with a smile, "Dreams are always wondrous, intricate, and full of imagination. Moreover, when people dream, their brains are often at their most active."
"In other words, dreams are a collective of human wisdom."
Paimon said, "So those scholars in the Akademiya use the Akasha to take and use people's dreams, right?"
Lumine said, "And it seems the Sages are not satisfied with just that."
[Wriothesley: I can't wait to teach them a lesson in the ring.]
[Lumine: Especially that Grand Sage. He needs double the punishment.]
[Dehya: Yes. Let it all out.]
Nahida put her hands on her hips. "Good, Lumine. This shows you can already understand the current situation. Then what about the loop?"
Lumine said, "They are mass-producing dreams."
Nahida patted her chest with one hand. "Correct. The Akasha keeps people's brains in a constant state of dreaming and separates their consciousness from their original dreams."
"The separated consciousnesses are all in the collective dream of the Sabzeruz Festival. And those empty, ownerless dreams will be harvested by the Akasha."