Ch.605Chapter 23. Patriotic General Do Ji-hwan (9)

I spread the awakening inscription thinly on my skin.

I acknowledge using metal manipulation ability to spread mana gold thin enough to blend with the skin.

But I cannot accept that reference, the original design element.

That’s why I attacked.

“Eek?!”

[Why so surprised? Like a high schooler caught watching porn.]

“En-entering a high school girl’s room without knocking!!”

Tae Yi-rin pointed at me with a flushed face.

She wore ordinary clothes—a white hoodie, black skirt, and white stockings—but with her good looks, even that became fashionable.

Though right now she was frantically moving on the bed, seemingly trying to hide something.

“What if I had been doing what adolescent students typically do?!”

[I came in because I knew you weren’t doing anything out there.]

“Ah, aah…!”

Tae Yi-rin’s face turned bright red, her fair skin flushing crimson.

“Pervert!”

[You’re the pervert. You sent those reference materials for the awakening inscription your sisters would use, didn’t you?]

“……”

[You’re not denying it. This is clearly that tattoo, isn’t it?]

“Hu, huhu….”

Tae Yi-rin crossed her legs leisurely on the bed.

“That’s right. According to what’s known, it could be called a womb tattoo or vaginal inscription.”

[Then….]

“Hey, did you know condoms are medical devices? Even minors can legally buy condoms at convenience stores.”

[I have no idea what you’re trying to say.]

“Or is it that you don’t want to understand?”

[…Well, I’ll hear you out.]

I sat in Tae Yi-rin’s chair and met her eyes.

[Try to convince me logically. How on earth did you come up with putting that design in that location for an awakening inscription that will be attached to a hero’s body?]

“To continue my condom analogy, condoms are clearly used for that kind of activity. Some call them betrayal boxes, but they’re mainly used by people who aren’t ready to take responsibility for having children or provide a good environment for raising them.”

[And?]

“Though their purpose is for that area, what if they’re used to save people regardless of their original purpose? You know in disaster novels, unused condoms can be…”

[Using them to hold water is just a fictional setting, not something you’d use as your main strategy. That’s absurd.]

“But they are used.”

There was something like madness in Tae Yi-rin’s eyes.

“The same goes for awakening inscriptions. They may look a certain way and be attached to that area, but their most important purpose is to be a ‘cradle protector.'”

[Hmm….]

I think I understand why Tae Yi-rin chose such a design.

“Awakening devices are only used when awakening… when drawing on external core mana. Usually, they’re just invisible accessories worn on the body. So rather than just wearing them as accessories, what if they serve as protective gear…?”

[So you’re saying it protects the cradle?]

“Yes!”

Tae Yi-rin’s eyes sparkled as she sat up.

“From here to here. First, attacks coming from the front would be blocked by the inscription attached to the front, right? The design might need to be different for the sides or back, but most attacks come from the front, so the awakening inscription would be a good shield.”

It’s logical.

I almost got convinced.

“Think about it. If an attack targets weaknesses when not awakened, it would naturally aim for one of the three vital points of an ability user. Especially if the attacker intends to Zenros an ability user without killing them outright.”

[Hmm….]

“It’s like how men protect their lower parts. Women need a shield to protect their cradle this way. We can’t just wear mana gold like a corset or belly band.”

[A corset maybe, but a belly band would interfere with using abilities.]

Even if corsets are harmful to pregnant women, they’re beauty items.

No matter how powerful an ability user is, as long as she’s a woman, she wouldn’t wear a mana gold belly band unless absolutely necessary.

[But Ms. Tae Yi-rin, do you really need to put the inscription on the lower abdomen like this?]

“I’ve thought about other methods too.”

[Like what?]

“Um….”

Tae Yi-rin smiled slyly at me, then stood up.

“Here?”

She put her hand under her skirt and slightly pulled down her stockings.

“Here…ack!”

I punched the top of Tae Yi-rin’s head as she lowered her white stockings halfway down her thighs, and she collapsed onto the bed with a tearful expression.

“Not even my brother has hit me!”

[Think of it as me hitting you on behalf of your brother. Where do you get off playing pranks on an adult?]

“It’s not a prank! I’m serious!”

[Your expression clearly shows you’re trying to tease me.]

“It’s real. Here, can’t you see this?”

Tae Yi-rin twisted her body to point at her inner thigh.

“Ta-da. This thing embedded in my inner thigh. Hehe, my awakening device is… Ah, don’t try to hit me! I’ll really report you!”

[There’s a limit to being flirtatious. Is it okay to show your underwear to a man who’s not your partner?]

“This isn’t underwear!”

Tae Yi-rin pulled down her skirt at once to show what she was wearing underneath.

“It’s a swimsuit!”

[…Have you been drinking?]

“No? I’m perfectly normal. I’m wearing underwear under the swimsuit, so it’s fine.”

[……I should have brought someone else with me.]

“Ah, well….”

Tae Yi-rin sat back on the bed with an embarrassed smile.

“You know, underwear is subject to censorship, but swimsuits aren’t. Even on public TV news, they show women playing at beaches in bikinis during summer.”

[Don’t you think that’s a cowardly excuse?]

“Swimsuits are meant to be seen, so it’s okay! Since it’s not panties, I’m not embarrassed!”

[This is driving me crazy.]

People don’t know.

The true nature of Tae Yi-rin.

“What? Are you going to reveal that Tae Yi-rin is actually a girl who wears swimsuits over her underwear? Hmph, that’s unfortunate. I wear this all for hero activities!”

[Hero activities?]

“Of course. Among villains, there are garbage perverts who try to strip women’s clothes off. If my underwear were exposed to such people, it would be embarrassing, right? But what if it’s not underwear but a swimsuit? Even if my coat gets torn, my combat efficiency won’t decrease due to embarrassment.”

It’s convincing.

Like how a man can use a basin to minimize sexual shame when running out naked from a bathhouse during a fire.

Or is it different…?

Am I getting caught up in Tae Yi-rin’s nonsensical perversion?

I don’t know.

[…I understand your thinking, but is there really a need to place the awakening inscription there? For example, this could work too.]

I created something like a magical sticker with the Goblin club and attached it to the back of my hand.

[I command by inscription.]

“Oh….”

An engraving appeared on the back of my left hand.

It was somewhat similar to the reference Tae Yi-rin had shown Tae Jo, but in a more angular, simplified form that fit perfectly on the back of my hand.

Fssss.

Like one layer dissolving, the outermost lines disappeared.

[You could do it like this, or this is also possible.]

This time I raised my right hand and clenched my fist.

[Clear as a mirror. Goblin of the Syndicate.]

A goblin mask appeared on the back of my right hand.

Simultaneously, magical power flowing from my right hand began to envelop my entire body.

[You could put it on the back of your hand, face, or back—normal places like that. So why specifically a vaginal inscription?]

“Well….”

Tae Yi-rin’s face still showed conviction.

“Wrists can be cut off without much issue, but damage to the baby room means death both as an ability user and as a woman.”

[…….]

“Just like a thick Bible kept in an inside coat pocket can stop a stray bullet, the awakening inscription will be a shield protecting the cradle. Look.”

Flap.

“Does this look like a joke to you?”

[…You don’t need to show me directly.]

On Tae Yi-rin’s smooth, white abdomen.

An awakening inscription was already set in white on her body.

The design, resembling an angel with wings spread left and right and something like a heart, should have been solemn in form, but….

[This isn’t some obscenity test.]

“Hu, huhuhu…. That’s it. The person who thinks it’s strange is the strange one.”

Tae Yi-rin kept pointing at her lower abdomen with a twisted smile.

“Or how about engraving a Queen of Do Ji-hwan inscription? Instead of a spade, a simple ‘D’ embedded in a Goblin mask silhouette?”

[Hey, perverted kid.]

I lightly extended my fist toward Tae Yi-rin’s awakening inscription.

“Kyaah!”

Tae Yi-rin screamed and collapsed onto the bed.

“Ugh, it doesn’t hurt but I was pushed back….”

[Take it easy.]

“I am taking it easy….”

[What…did…you…say?]

“Well, actually. You know. To preserve our tradition….”

*whispers*

[…….]

[Approved.]