Chapter 298

〈Chapter 298〉 Part 1, Chapter 13, Section 15

Having summoned the officers, I explained the situation and temporarily erected a barrier to check on the Power of Tubulus residing within Yu I-shin.

[What are you trying to do without telling me again?]

As soon as the barrier was cast, Baek Hee-a contacted me, having noticed I’d created my own space within the room. Unlike when I was focused on Park Ra-on and Yu I-shin, I immediately replied to Baek Hee-a.

[Test if Tubulus’ trait is properly embedded.]

[???]

I informed that I would test how the Tubulus power manifested in Gongsung. Since Baek Hee-a also had to oversee Gongsung, she needed to know how the arrows would change.

“Then I’ll shoot.”

Yu I-shin drew her bow and aimed at the target. On the wall, Deokbae stood uneasily, holding a cup on his palm.

“Why do I have to stand here like this?”

“So you can focus on shooting.”

“Just draw a target on the wall and shoot already!”

“Sorry, but Gongsung shoots best when aiming at people.”

Yu I-shin shoots best when there’s a living target on the line – not for nothing was her villainous nickname not <Robin>.

“Huff… Huff…”

Sure enough, Yu I-shin kept subtly shifting the bow aimed at Deokbae’s hand.

“Mr. Jo Deokbae, I’ll curve the shot, so it won’t hit you directly, okay?”

“Don’t say ridiculous things!”

“That shot will be straight, not curved, at 99% likelihood.”

Gaeul sat on the bed, biting into a strawberry. I ate a strawberry from which Gaeul had removed the leaf, right beside her.

“Hurry up and shoot. The Executioner is waiting.”

“Understood. Then…”

Yu I-shin hesitated not a bit. Her gaze, filled with determination, subtly targeted Deokbae’s hand.

Pang!!

Yu I-shin released the string. The green arrow drew an arc like a crescent moon.

“Oh.”

I couldn’t help but exclaim at the sight of the arrow’s body. Who would’ve thought Tubulus’ traits would manifest like this?

“Aaah?!”

Deokbae, sensing the green arrow heading toward his wrist, surrounded his arm with magic power. His rocky skin activated, slightly lifting the cup.

“Ah.”

Yu I-shin was surprised by the raised target, and I inwardly mourned for Deokbae at what was about to happen.

Clang!

The arrow pierced the mug. A hole was drilled through the mug by the sharp arrowhead, and Deokbae looked relieved.

And at that moment, the arrow, which had been spinning since its release, began emitting wind.

Kagagak!!

A spiraling gale swallowed everything near the arrow. Though the arrow embedded itself in my barrier and disappeared, the whirlwind it left behind scratched Deokbae’s rocky skin before vanishing.

“Ow…!”

Deokbae threw the mug to the floor and clutched his hand.

“Wouldn’t have gotten hurt if you hadn’t used your rocky skin, right?”

“Is that even something you can say now, ow….”

Deokbae’s rocky skin was cracked as though clawed by a beast. I tossed him a low-grade core, and he rubbed it on his wound to heal it.

“It seems the Tubulus residing in Gongsung is like a time bomb.”

“What do you mean?”

“The trajectory of the curving arrow aside, the arrow itself spins like a whirlwind. When it hits the target, the arrow explodes. It feels like a blade of wind bursting from within the arrow?”

Though the range was very small, B-rank Jo Deokbae’s skin was torn apart without issue.

Even with some recovery through the core after the maximum magic power decreased due to Tubulus’ embedding—still, there was no problem piercing the B-rank level defense.

“We’ll check later if it works against A-rank or S-rank targets.”

I briefly summarized the additional special ability added to Gongsung’s arrows and sent it to Baek Hee-a. Baek Hee-a quickly replied to me.

[It’s fortunate the results are good. But what about Unsah?]

“Ah.”

Suddenly, my head started to ache. While Yu I-shin and Jo Deokbae were bickering about whether they should shoot again with Unsah as the target instead of a bullseye, Gaeul tilted her head upon seeing Baek Hee-a’s message.

“Right. If that’s the case, wouldn’t Unsah then be SS-rank in both wind and water attributes?”

“No, not yet. Yu I-shin, come over here for a moment.”

I called Yu I-shin, who was about to fire indiscriminately at Deokbae, and she knelt on one knee before me with her bow lowered.

“Give me your hand for a moment.”

Following my command, Yu I-shin extended her hand, and I grabbed her wrist to scan her entire body.

“…Tubulus has nested inside you and doesn’t seem to want to come out.”

Tubulus chose you as its host but is trapped inside because of the seal I placed on you.

“But does it really have to be underwear?”

“Isn’t it fine as long as we stick talismans or something similar there? Monsters don’t urinate, right? How about turning it into a patch?”

“Better to keep it as underwear.”

Yu I-shin visibly recoiled at the mention of patches. Still, while doing so, she glanced at me furtively.

“…Director, does this mean I can’t do that anymore?”

“Who would willingly participate with you?”

Deokbae stole a giant strawberry from the basket on my thigh. Gaeul glared daggers at Deokbae, but he pointed at Yu I-shin with the strawberry he’d bitten into.

“Why would you release the seal just to have some kind of blender monster burst out? Do you want to cripple the guy you’re sticking it into?”

“Then does that mean I’m stuck…?”

Yu I-shin knelt down on both knees, looking pitiful.

“Director, isn’t there any way…?”

“Do you really want to do that so much?”

“Isn’t it possible to feel pleasure without consequences?”

Holding onto my knees and pleading desperately, Yu I-shin’s face looked desperate. What she said wasn’t wrong. Since monsters cannot bear fruit even when sharing love, only the pleasure of the act remains.

“A test is necessary… Gaeul?”

“What?”

“Can you extend a tentacle for a moment?”

“Hey, I’m an earring.”

Deokbae shuddered and finished eating the giant strawberry, and I turned it into a core and hung it on my ear as he wished. Though the location couldn’t be avoided, the core acted to spare him as a human being.

“You don’t need to worry.”

“…Really, you guys. The one who runs away hastily or the one who thinks nothing of it.”

Gaeul sneered and extended a single tentacle. I gripped Yu I-shin’s wrist and flowed magic power into it.

“Wanna try it?”

“I’ve lived this long, and now… sigh.”

While shaking her head, Gaeul still pushed the tentacle between Yu I-shin’s thighs. Yu I-shin swallowed hard and slightly parted her legs, and the tentacle stopped in front of the seal.

“What shall we do now?”

“Just pierce it.”

“…Haa.”

Covering her face with one hand, Gaeul still thrust the tentacle in. The blue seal covering Yu I-shin’s groin moved inward according to the shape of Gaeul’s tentacle.

“…Oh my.”

Yu I-shin opened her eyes wide and smiled faintly.

“It’s just like a condom.”

“I made it similar. Even if someone gets inside, it will protect you.”

Like Kim Ji-hwa or Lighthouse. Despite smiling bashfully and bowing her head, Yu I-shin licked her lips in regret.

“Ah…”

“What’s wrong again?”

“If this happens, won’t it…?”

“Really, you ask for all sorts of things.”

I infused more powerful magic power into Yu I-shin’s wrist. Gaeul withdrew the tentacle, and the seal returned to its original form.

“It’s set to slightly open only when you climax.”

“Will Tubulus go wild then?”

“Tubulus switches hosts only if there’s someone stronger than you. There shouldn’t be such cases, but you shouldn’t think about doing it with anyone stronger than you.”

If Tubulus, enjoying Yu I-shin’s A-rank magic power, smells S-rank magic power, what will happen to the man who enters her? At the very least, cat-claw-like sharp marks will appear there, like on Jo Deokbae’s rock skin.

“Then Mr. Kim Ji-hwa…?”

“Lighthouse is much weaker than your wind attribute, so relax.”

“Thank you, Director.”

Yu I-shin bowed deeply to thank me. Feeling awkward, I stuffed my mouth with strawberries.

“……It’s only because you work hard. Unlike other members of the Pine Division. Understand?”

“Yes, I will remember.”

The blue feathers who tried to stab me in the back in Moscow completely vanished. I didn’t revive them and just left them in Seoul for now. There’s something to consider regarding their use.

“Then, Gongsung, I have a new mission for you.”

“What is it?”

I pointed to Yu I-shin’s abdomen.

“When we arrive in India, share a room with Park Ra-on.”

“…Yes?”

“To transfer some of the magic power inside Tubulus to Park Ra-on gradually while living together?”

Since Tubulus ended up gaining unexpectedly good traits, it’s better to slowly pass on the power rather than killing you and returning Park Ra-on’s original magic power.

“You two seemed to get along well when lying down earlier, like sisters.”

“…”

Yu I-shin’s lips trembled, but I silenced her complaints by feeding her a strawberry.

“Order.”

Forced.

* * *

At that time, the captain’s private quarters.

“Why are you standing there so tactlessly, old man?”

Usa openly frowned and scolded Pungbaek. But Pungbaek burst out laughing, drawing his thumb across his neck.

“If I hadn’t played the fool back there, we’d all have lost our heads, you idiot. Didn’t you see the look in his eyes?”

“The look that promised to kill us all if things went awry, yes. Ugh…”

Tempest Lady shuddered. Although her mouth was awkwardly smiling, Phoenix’s eyes were never smiling.

“Looks pretty but has a seriously insane personality, huh.”

“…They say she’s not human but a spirit. An existence beyond human comprehension.”

Only Hwakwon defended Phoenix among everyone. Not endorsing her abnormality but…

“Regardless of what kind of being she is, what matters to us is that she’s an ally, right? Imagine if Phoenix, maintaining her identity as Cheongnyeon and the Blue Wind Sect, crossed over to Japan. What do you think would happen?”

The other heroes fell silent at the Executioner’s hypothetical scenario.

“If she crosses over, wouldn’t she go to China? That Tianzi fellow was practically drooling.”

“Russia is also a possibility. She seems to have a close relationship with Undine of the Round Table.”

“…She might even leave for America altogether. The country with the most S-rank super-powered individuals is America, after all.”

The heroes sighed simultaneously. It’s uncomfortable to be forced to trust someone who can’t be trusted blindly.

“Executioner, can we really trust her?”

“…At least, we share the mutual interest of world peace, don’t we?”

“Ugh…”

Although each hero had different thoughts and beliefs, those gathered here were at least moving according to the Executioner’s intentions. Tempest Lady did make a sudden move, but that was merely a mistake born from concern for her comrade, Unsa.

“Unsa-dnim, what do you think?”

Hwakwon quietly directed the conversation to Unsa, who had remained silently throughout. Unsa, adjusting her clothing neatly, lifted her head and calmly answered.

“I believe one thing is certain: she likes women.”

“…That’s something everyone already knows.”

Baek Hee-a pressed her fingers to her forehead. It’s a widely known secret now that Phoenix, while extremely avoiding men, subtly—or sometimes blatantly—flirts with women.

“Since rumors spread that Cheongnyeon likes women, visits from foreign female heroes to Korea have been gradually increasing. It must be a beauty trap, surely.”

“Beauty trap conducted by a woman against another woman?”

Pungbaek openly showed his disdain, and Usa twisted her lips. Hwakwon merely raised an eyebrow.

“Hey, Lee Seung-hyeong. Why are you reacting like that?”

“……Because I already knew.”

Hwakwon only bitterly smiled. Although he had let go of his lingering feelings for Gaeul, it now saddened him to see Gaeul pining unrequitedly, just like his former self.

Let me give a little help. Hwakwon straightened his posture and offered his opinion to the Executioner.

“Executioner-dnim. If you’re worried about her leaving for a foreign land, attacking her surroundings might be a good strategy. Bribery of her close aides, you know.”

“Sycophants?”

“Yes. <Phantom>.”

“Isn’t that your personal bias?”

The Executioner stiffened her expression and questioned Hwakwon. Hwakwon nodded freely, showing no intention of denying.

“As a senior who’s experienced similar situations, I’m offering support. Phantom is at least someone with whom common sense conversations can be held.”

“Influencing her through Phantom?”

The Executioner tilted her head and clicked her tongue.

“That probably won’t have much effect…”

“Then how about dispatching a spy?”

Pungbaek pointed at Unsa with his stick.

“Seems like she’s quite cherished, doesn’t she? How about using a beauty trap from this side? Hehehe!”

“……Isn’t that a good idea?”

“Old man’s joke. Don’t take it seriously.”

Pungbaek quickly put on a serious face and retracted his statement, but the Executioner’s mind was already filled with ‘spies’ and ‘beauty traps’.

“He likes talented beauties.”

“Women.”

“…Yes, talented women. Very much so. In that case, for now…”

The Executioner turned her gaze towards the person Phoenix showed interest in.

“Please take care, Unsa. For the time being, you are a dispatched hero supporting the Blue Wind Sect.”

“……Executioner-dnim.”

Unsa scratched her head awkwardly in response.

“At least once we reach India, aren’t we supposed to move together?”

“……”

After a while.

The ship Baegnaroh, carrying double dreams, entered Indian airspace.