Lu Mingfei: What? They're all real!

Lu Mingfei frowned, staring at the badge on the man's chest. He couldn't be mistaken; it must be the World Tree. Although he didn't understand why it was a half-decayed World Tree, he was still certain that the image on the badge was the "World Tree" he knew, the pillar supporting heaven and earth, and he sat at the top, on his throne.

The young man smiled and led the nervous Liu Miaomiao into the venue. The piano prodigy's steps were unsteady, but her demeanor remained elegant. Everyone was sitting quietly, holding their breath. The clattering of her hard-soled shoes echoed in the room, making everyone even more nervous.

Only when the conference room door clicked shut did the crowd finally regain their breathing, and then the sound of conversation resumed.

"Does anyone know anything about this school? I looked it up online, and it's supposedly a very prestigious school," Zhao Menghua tried to strike up a conversation with Chen Wenwen.

Putting Lu Mingfei aside, he can only chat with Chen Wenwen now. Su Xiaoqiang over there is like a demon; her eyes flash with cold light whenever he glances in her direction. He had heard people say that Su Xiaoqiang claimed to like him, but what kind of liking is that?!

That day, she almost verbally abused him so much that she dug up his ancestral grave.

But Chen Wenwen ignored him, and seemed to be focused on comforting the extremely nervous Lu Mingfei, who was breathing heavily like a bull, and was afraid he would faint on the spot from nervousness.

Zhao Menghua couldn't help but feel a little annoyed. He really couldn't understand why someone like Lu Mingfei had suddenly become so popular. Did girls now start liking serious, suicidal guys?

He felt he might also need to find some time to research how to jump off a building...

No one paid any attention to Zhao Menghua, so he sullenly shrank back, pretending that he hadn't spoken.

Chen Wenwen on the other side kept whispering, but she maintained a very reserved demeanor and kept a good distance.

However, Lu Mingfei ignored her and sat quietly.

The scene of these three people in a row was rather bizarre. Zhao Menghua vaguely reached out his hand as if to talk to Chen Wenwen, but the girl's head was always turned to the other side. Meanwhile, Lu Mingfei on the other side was staring blankly at the ceiling, also ignoring Chen Wenwen. From any angle, it inevitably resembled a melodramatic love triangle scene...

"Lu Mingfei, was that badge on that guy the World Tree?" Su Xiaoqiang, who hadn't spoken until now, suddenly opened her mouth. However, her question was a bit off-topic. Instead of discussing the interview or the academy, she was getting bogged down in trivial details.

But these words had a surprising effect on Lu Mingfei. His eyes suddenly widened, and he turned his head sharply. "You think it looks like it too? I also think it looks like the World Tree, but it looks a bit too withered, as if it has been bitten by something."

The awkward scene that happened to Zhao Menghua was repeated for Chen Wenwen. She talked on and on, racking her brains to come up with words of comfort, but it was not as good as someone else's meaningless chatter... She was really frustrated.

"Because you and I have been spouting too many ridiculous myths and legends, I've been tormented by them for the past few days!" Su Xiaoqiang's head seemed to be on fire.

"I'm really sorry..." Lu Mingfei chuckled awkwardly, "But you can't blame me. Look at that prestigious and elegant school, they also study Norse mythology, right? That shows it's an internationally recognized field of study."

Lu Mingfei had been cursing this lousy school in his mind for days, but now he was describing it as "grand and elegant." This wasn't chameleon behavior; he was genuinely starting to take an interest in the school. He didn't think it was a coincidence that Jormungandr would mention this place, and that the school emblem was the World Tree—although the World Tree looked like it had been chewed up by a dog…

He couldn't help but feel excited, and a hint of anticipation appeared on his face. The slight upturn of his lips seemed to be a smile directed at Su Xiaoqiang.

“Turn around, I don’t want to see your face.” Su Xiaoqiang raised her hand in disgust, blocking his face.

"okay!"

Lu Mingfei saluted, then turned to face forward. However, he didn't forget to smile at Chen Wenwen, who had spent so much time comforting him. Now he felt the world had become bright again. With so many coincidences, maybe his beautiful red-haired wife was sitting quietly inside waiting for him. He was willing to smile at anyone in the world, whether it was Chen Wenwen or Su Xiaoqiang.

Of course, this excludes Zhao Menghua, whose face was more bitter than a bitter gourd. Lu Mingfei secretly glanced at him and, for some reason, felt that the guy's teeth seemed to be making a constant squeaking sound.

……

Liu Miaomiao came out with a bitter face, Su Xiaoqiang went in and left with a look of utter despair; then came Zhao Menghua, whose face looked like she wanted to kill someone; then came Chen Wenwen, who looked like she was about to cry. Lu Mingfei couldn't help but think to himself, could it be that this school verbally attacks students who don't perform well in the interview?

Now he regretted not preparing properly; he should have prepared his online trolling remarks...

One student after another entered the meeting room, but they all came out with a strange, dejected expression. Time passed by, and finally it was Lu Mingfei's turn. The interviewer had not yet come out, but everyone else had already been interviewed, and some had even left. Now, only Lu Mingfei was left who had not yet participated in the interview.

However, this group of classmates were quite "loyal and devoted," and they all stayed in their seats without leaving. Even Zhao Menghua seemed to be waiting for Lu Mingfei's result.

But he believed Zhao Menghua was more inclined to comfort Chen Wenwen; the girl had become increasingly angry after coming out, and now her eyes were almost glistening with tears. Lu Mingfei felt he should at least say a few words of comfort, otherwise, after the girl had encouraged him for so long, he would seem like an ungrateful wretch—

"Lu Mingfei, it's your turn next." Ye Sheng waved to him, interrupting his intention.

"Oh."

Lu Mingfei stood up, exhaled, and took a step.

Just then, an elderly man with a head of white hair and an excessively robust physique entered the venue from the side front door. Behind him followed a beautiful girl, who kept her hands tightly pressed against her face as if afraid of being seen by someone.

Lu Mingfei saw that the newcomer was an elderly man with a foreign appearance, and he could recognize the girl at a glance, even though she was covering her face.

Isn't that Jormungandr?

Chapter 16 This academy is indeed unreliable

"Lu Mingfei!" The foreigner, who had suddenly appeared, became excited. He stretched out his hands and quickly caught up with him. "Hello! Lu Mingfei!"

He looked extremely excited, as if he were the interviewee eager to enter the academy. Even his self-introduction was somewhat awkward: "Hello, I am Guderian, and I am in charge of this interview."

Compared to this guy's excitement, the fact that he has the face of a typical foreigner but can speak fluent Chinese is nothing to worry about.

"Ah, hello..." Lu Mingfei was caught off guard and recoiled as if he had been electrocuted. This guy was being a little too enthusiastic, which made him a little scared.

His nature compelled him to say the strange phrase, "Hello Guderian, I am Manstein," but he was genuinely afraid of a guy named "Guderian"—he was afraid he'd get hit by a tank shell as soon as he stepped outside... and what if this guy actually had a colleague named Manstein?

"That's great! I was worried I wouldn't make it. The traffic was terrible today. Luckily, something went wrong at the college, which allowed me to move my flight earlier. Otherwise, I definitely wouldn't have arrived until tonight."

Guderian began to chat like a native speaker, holding Lu Mingfei's wrist as if afraid he would run away.

Lu Mingfei did the math. Actually, according to the predicted time, he was indeed not going to make it in time. However, Su Xiaoqiang's interview lasted a bit too long, almost half an hour. Lu Mingfei heard her say that she talked about the World Tree and other miscellaneous things in the meeting room for almost twenty minutes. These were all mythological stories that had been instilled in her brain by him.

That's quite a coincidence.

"Enough with the small talk, let's get started on the interview," the man said. "We can talk about other things after this is over. We'll have plenty to discuss once we're at the college."

That sounds a bit strange, as if it's an implicit acceptance that Lu Mingfei's interview went smoothly...

"Oh."

Lu Mingfei nodded, took two steps forward, and stood in front of the room's door. He suddenly remembered that there was a girl standing there, her face hidden behind her back—

"Who is she?" he asked, pointing to Jormungandr's face, feigning ignorance.

"Yes, who is she?"

Ye Sheng seemed to have not expected that there would be new people entering the venue. With the arrival of the unreliable professor, the calm and composed demeanor he had maintained from the beginning gradually disappeared, making him look like a helpless nanny.

"Oh, this is Miss Xia Mi, a student in our college's preparatory program. We happened to meet her on the road, and since she's also interested in the freshman interview, I gave her a ride. After all, it's a waste to have only one person in a car, haha~" Guderian laughed heartily, and the joy on his face hadn't disappeared since he met Lu Mingfei.

Guderian seemed to really like Lu Mingfei, almost too much... This made Lu Mingfei a little scared, and his body involuntarily felt a chill. He hoped that this foreigner wasn't eyeing some part of his body.

But what made him even more uneasy was the girl here—

"Is it really such a coincidence?" Lu Mingfei narrowed his eyes, staring at the girl as if he were scrutinizing a criminal.

In his mind, Jormungandr was an extremely cunning fellow, just like the mythical figure, a quintessential "serpent," treacherous and cruel. That day, she would sneak into Shilan Middle School with a smiling face to inquire about him, and today she would "coincidentally" hitch a ride with a professor here...

Lu Mingfei always felt that she was like a spy who was afraid of her secret being exposed, returning to the dangerous area time and time again just to confirm whether she had been exposed or not.

If that's the case, she might then decide to silence those who know the secret forever...

However, Jormungandr now resembles a shy little girl, shrinking her head and covering her face, unwilling to say a word, and not even daring to look him in the eye. When he tilts his head and casts his gaze from the side, she turns slightly to avoid his gaze, hiding behind Guderian from beginning to end.

“This isn’t appropriate, it doesn’t comply with the regulations…” Ye Sheng seemed like a composed person. He lowered his voice and whispered to Guderian.

“It’s alright. Xia Mi’s predicted rating is almost guaranteed to be at the A level. Her small wish to see what the interview process is like can be granted. Future A-level students should enjoy special privileges.” Guderian waved his hand and made the decision, then pulled Lu Mingfei into the conference room without further ado.

The girl then entered the room. Ye Sheng sighed helplessly, and finally went in, gently closing the door and leaving his sigh outside.

A quiet girl was sitting in the conference room, but she wasn't the girl Lu Mingfei wanted to see. He couldn't help but feel a little disappointed, and he started sighing as soon as he entered the room.

This is a rare occurrence; almost no interviewee on this planet would do something like this, and it's not a good sign for an interview from any perspective.

But Professor Guderian, who was so enthusiastic, was completely unaffected. He was even a little worried about Lu Mingfei's feelings. He took his seat in the main seat and the first thing he did was to soothe Lu Mingfei's emotions. "I know the conditions are not perfect, but I assure you that the conditions inside the academy will be better. You don't need to worry about the conditions after you enroll."

His way of speaking was really strange... Lu Mingfei thought. From the very beginning, this person seemed determined to recruit him... and even desperately wanted to recruit him, almost begging him to do so...

"Aki, let's begin." Guderian waved to the girl on his left.

“Okay.” The girl with a sweet smile stood up gracefully and introduced herself to Lu Mingfei, “I am the examiner for this session, Shudeya, hello.”

As her name suggests, she was likely Japanese, a fact confirmed by her subsequent impeccable 90-degree bow.

Lu Mingfei had just sat down when he jumped up again and returned the bow with a sharp angle. Although he didn't care about the interview result, the girl's smile was so gentle that he felt he should at least be polite.

"Hello." Lu Mingfei struggled with the choice between Japanese and Chinese, and in the end, he became flustered and his words sounded like he was stuttering. He looked a little nervous.

However, he was actually completely unmoved.

"Don't be nervous." The girl covered her mouth and chuckled, winking at Ye Sheng, who was flipping through a notebook beside her.

The two looked like a couple… Lu Mingfei made the judgment in his mind. Whether in the past or now, he was always adept at discerning feelings and almost never made a mistake—of course, this excludes himself, as he was always sure he was wrong about his own affairs…

"Then let's begin." Ye Sheng's voice rang out, his expression turning serious as he quietly looked at Lu Mingfei and said softly, "Don't be nervous, just answer according to your own thoughts."

Lu Mingfei nodded, placing his hand flat on the table.

"First question—" the question was posed by Shudeya, who spoke softly, her voice gentle, "Do you believe in aliens?"

Lu Mingfei blinked, sat at one end of the table, and stared at the crowd for a long time without saying a word, as if petrified. Only the faint breath he exhaled from his nose proved that he was not dead.

What kind of question is this?

At that moment, he suddenly revived the idea he had thrown away in the trash.

This college is really unreliable.

Chapter 17 I've Seen a Dragon

Time slowly passed, until Lu Mingfei himself felt that he had been silent for too long, and he finally managed to open his mouth.

"I think it's probably not..."

A few days ago, Lu Mingfei would have given a definite answer. He had a habit of climbing to the rooftop at night to look at the stars, and every time he did, he would think, "The sky is so empty and so dark. If only humans existed in this world, wouldn't it be too lonely?" Lu Mingfei knew how pitiful a lonely child like himself was, so he couldn't bear the thought that humans were also lonely.

But now he doesn't feel lonely anymore, so naturally he's not so melancholic.

But more importantly, he now possesses a clear judgment, a judgment derived from his memory—

Even if aliens really exist, all they would hear when they come to Earth is, "Earth is not for you to invade, get out!"

"Okay, if you don't believe in aliens, why?" Shudeya continued to press for an answer, her voice light and airy, making it impossible to tell whether she agreed or disagreed with the question.

This question really piqued Lu Mingfei's interest; he had been wanting to chat for a long time. He stretched slightly, leaned back against the cushioned backrest, and withdrew his hand, striking a pose reminiscent of Gendo Ikari's famous pose.

He said, "The most important thing in judging whether something exists is the traces it leaves behind. There is no evidence to prove the existence of aliens, whether it is the so-called crop circles or UFOs. They are not significant evidence."

The boy's voice was calm and his attitude was different from before. He was now calm and composed, as if he had been taken over by someone with higher knowledge when facing a problem with profound reasoning.

"Rather than believing in the existence of aliens, it's better to believe that the myths of various countries are true." This was his final conclusion.

"Fantastic!" Guderian, seated at the head of the table, clapped his hands, interrupting the interview. His face was beaming with joy, his smile almost wrinkling his somewhat aged features. He stood up, praising the interviewer like a fervent believer, "A rigorous research mindset, that's truly rare for a researcher, absolutely fantastic, and so standard, it's simply—"

“Professor, please be quiet.” Shudeya reminded him softly, but her attitude was not gentle. She tugged at Guderian’s loose clothes and pulled the old man back into his chair.

Well, the school spirit of this academy seems quite open-minded... Lu Mingfei silently complained, but what he cared more about was the tremor when Guderian sat back in his chair. It was really too big, even the carpeted floor was shaking. This old man is at least 1.9 meters tall, but is he really that heavy?

Or is this gentle girl just a little too strong?

"It's normal to feel overwhelmed with joy when you see outstanding students." Guderian continued to laugh, but he had no intention of saying anything more.

Like a nanny cleaning up a mess, Ye Sheng shrugged and continued with his second question, "Do you believe in superpowers?"

“I believe you.” Lu Mingfei answered very quickly this time. He didn’t even need to think before giving his answer. “Human history has many differences, but it has maintained consistency only in mythology. This similarity is peculiar, so the existence of superpowers is not surprising. At most, it is just the realization of mythology.”

This time, he was three parts objective and ninety-seven parts subjective, after all, he had already witnessed the supernatural firsthand, and from any perspective, he couldn't give a single reason to say "no"...

"This is the second time you've mentioned mythology, so which mythological account do you think is closer to reality?" Shudeya still concealed her attitude, but Guderian beside her looked like he was about to stand up excitedly at the question.

"Probably Norse mythology..."

Lu Mingfei slumped his head, feeling quite uncertain. He felt like he was rambling on... In this situation, shouldn't anyone first say that their own country's mythology is more credible? He felt like he sounded like a traitor...

"Fantastic!" Guderian jumped up from his chair again, ignoring the utterly helpless expression on Shudeya's face, almost leaping across the conference room table. He kept slapping the table, like gentlemen in the British House of Commons expressing their approval. "I knew it, I knew you were so great, Mingfei! This answer is fantastic. We must have a good talk about it after this is over."

Lu Mingfei was completely stunned. He hadn't expected his answer to have this effect. The German man in front of him seemed to be high on drugs. He had always heard that Germans never smiled...

"Professor!" Even the usually gentle Aki Shuto couldn't help but feel a little angry. She reminded her, "We still have a third question to ask."

"It doesn't matter anymore, it doesn't matter anymore!" Guderian shook his head violently, and after straightening his back, he looked about two meters tall.

Now his expression turned serious. "Aki, I think you should know just how standard Mingfei's answer is. To be honest, before I came here, I prepared ten different ways to praise him no matter how he answered. But that's really unnecessary. Everyone in the academy will know that his answer is standard. Even Xia Mi from the preparatory course should know that, right?"

The girl who had been silently hiding in the corner was suddenly called upon, and a smile immediately appeared on her face. She smiled awkwardly, grinning and praising Lu Mingfei's answer as if she were looking for a question with the answer in hand.

However, there was a hint of reluctance in her smile, and her eyes kept glancing at Lu Mingfei, hinting at something, with a pitiful look as if she were pleading with her hands clasped together.

Someone praised Lu Mingfei, which made Guderian even happier. He waved his hand, indicating that he would take charge of the rest of the interviews, ignoring the two young examiners.

With helpless expressions on their faces, Ye Sheng and Jiu Deya could only step aside and leave the third question to Guderian, who was as excited as a child.

"So Mingfei, why do you think that the expressions in Norse mythology are closer to reality?"

Guderian asked guiding questions, as gentle as a kindergarten teacher, but such gentleness was really not suitable for an elderly man like him. Lu Mingfei could not look directly at an old man smiling so gently at him, so he quickly looked away and focused his gaze on the girl who was trying to make herself as inconspicuous as possible.

"There's no reason," he said.