The masterpiece that was the underground base wasn't the only marvel borne from the concepts of women who had forsaken martial strength for another path.
One such marvel was the "Tattoo."
Unlike a normal tattoo, it was inscribed with mana and could only be inscribed on women due to its nature.
The tattoo granted a multitude of boons: greater fertility, enhanced stamina, slower aging, and resistance to illness. But its true purpose was to aid during childbirth, preventing deaths, and to nourish the fetus during conception, ensuring a healthy, strong, and talented child free of complications.
And this tattoo's existence was yet another reason for the accelerated development of the tribe's people.
Rune was the woman who inscribed these tattoos. With each ascension of her Pathway, she gained new skills that further heightened their potency.
Ashen remembered the dragon tattoo on his mother's thigh and wondered what Lapis would choose.
He did not have to wonder long. In the time he spent daydreaming, Lapis was already back.
◉◉◉
Inside one of the many rooms in the underground house, a certain boy lay on his bed.
Calling him a boy felt odd, given his physical development and the countless monsters slain by his hands.
Yet he had barely lived fourteen years, so technically, "boy" was still correct.
And such a boy was currently sporting a helpless smile, simply because he was thinking of the incident he had caused recently.
"Maybe I've gone too far?" he muttered under his breath, then shook his head.
"No… Sooner or later, Lapis is going to be my wife either way… Why does Ashen get to live with her in the same room and not me?"
The thought alone sent a wave of bitterness through him. Even his own spit tasted sour all of a sudden. Now that he was in his adolescence and hormones had begun wreaking havoc in his body, he found himself questioning many things.
According to the bet against Ashen set by their father, his twin sister's marriage would only be decided when they turned eighteen.
Now that he thought about it… His father allowing Lapis to stick so closely to Ashen was completely unacceptable to him, and to any man for that matter if they were put in the same situation.
"Unless…"
He never planned to give me Lapis from the start…?
Cain did not dare voice the thought. Just thinking it brought the receding bitterness surging back with a vengeance.
'…Should I just give it up…?'
A rational thought emerged, only to be crushed with impunity.
'Give up? Don't joke around… She is mine… mine… mine!!!'
The internal thoughts grew louder and louder until he started muttering them under his breath, over and over.
It was clear from this… Cain was still far from letting go of his obsession. On the contrary, growing up had only added one more component to feed it.
Sexual desire.
And that… was what had driven him to do what he did.
'If only you looked at me with the fondness you show him… if only you treated me the way you treat him… Damn it… why is it only him…?'
'What am I missing? Just tell me and I'll fix it…'
'Goddamn it all…'
Tok. Tok.
The sudden knock on his door yanked him out of his internal spiral.
"Who is it…?"
"It's Lapis."
"...!"
The voice of the girl of his dreams made him jump at once. He hurried to the door but did not open it right away.
First he stood still, took two deep breaths, and forced his expression from excitement into something nonchalant.
Creek…
"Oh? If it isn't my future wife. Coming for a visit? How sweet of you."
The only look he received was one of irritation.
'That same look again… it never changes… I'd even take hatred over it at this point.'
By now Cain was sick and tired of that indifferent gaze. To his surprise, it actually changed to mild concern.
Lapis rolled her eyes and let out a quiet breath. "I hope you're fine after that beating?"
"Hmph. I'm good. And don't misunderstand. That guy just took me by surprise. I didn't lose."
"Sure, sure… but I'm talking about this." Lapis tapped her own forehead twice. "No problems up there, right?"
"Hah? Of course not! I'm not that weak."
"No trauma?"
"Nope."
"Well, that's good. My brother can be a bit overprotective. But what you did was also wrong. You can't enter other women's rooms without at least knocking, you irritating brat. Do you understand?"
"But aren't you going to be my wife later anyway?"
Lapis stared at him, exasperated, for two full seconds, as if she couldn't believe he was still on about that. Then she pressed a hand to her forehead and started muttering under her breath.
"This kid… seriously… It's not like I'm painted in honey… why is he clinging so hard? Damn kids…"
"What? Honey? Yeah. That's an apt description. So how about it? Ditch that farmer and be my wife. No need for bets."
"..."
Lapis ignored the nonsense and changed the subject.
"Anyway, I came to make sure your head is still screwed on properly, which is clearly not, and also to inform you of something."
"I'm perfectly sane. What's the other thing?" Cain asked, displeased.
"Right. You know about Sister Rune's tattoos, right?"
"Of course." Cain nodded naturally. "Was it today? C'mon, show me. I'm sure you chose something cool."
Lapis smirked. "I can't show you, since it's here." She pointed to the top of her cleavage. The robe obstructed any view, so Cain naturally couldn't see what it was.
"But worry not. I'll tell you exactly what I tattooed." Her smirk turned mischievous as she intoned each letter.
"A. S. H. E. N. ' S."
"..."
"Do you get it now, Cain? The tattoo is permanent."
"..."
"You can't have a wife who has another man's name tattooed right on her breast, okay? That's just not manly."
"..."
"Now don't be too mad. I only did this to get the idea through your skull. I'm not much for bullying." Lapis waved a hand indifferently at the frozen Cain and turned around.
"Don't worry, there are plenty of other good women around. I'm sure Dad won't let you stay single."
"I'll be going now. See you next week, you naughty brat. And don't sneak into women's beds anymore. That's also not manly."
"..."
Until the very end he stood frozen, even as the object of his obsession gradually disappeared down the corridor.
"..."
"..."
"Heh."
Eventually the frozen look melted away, and in its place an expression of utter madness took hold.
"Tattooed his name? So what. I can just wipe it out. You're mine. My twin. My woman. You can only end up with ME."
◉◉◉
"…And so that's what happened." Lapis finished retelling her conversation with Cain and looked at him curiously.
"So? You think he'll relent after this?"
"I honestly don't have a clue. The child seems a bit too stubborn to me." Ashen shrugged. "Let's wait and see for now. Just don't show him your real tattoo. If the ruse is found out, your little lie would be for nothing."
"..."
"By the way," Ashen gave her a curious look, "what did you actually tattoo in there? And did you really put it in such a provocative place?"
Instead of answering, Lapis loosened the robe from around her collarbone and slid it down slightly.
Watching Ashen's gaping expression, she winked with a giggle. "Silly. Who said anything about lying?"
"..."
"I haven't told a single lie~"
Staring at his own name etched right there on her skin, as if he already owned her or something, Ashen suddenly felt faint.
'Ah…'
For the first time in a while, his mind completely stopped working.
"What? Too shocked from happiness? Wheew… you're plenty naughty yourself, brother. And that intense stare… do you like it that much~?"
"Shut the fuck up."
That was all he could say. He truly did not know how to react. And no, there was no happiness to be felt, only a massive headache.
"Rude~" Lapis sent him a mock glare as she straightened her robe. The moment she finished, a large hand suddenly grabbed her head.
"Aye~! Bro bro, staph et!"
"Come with me. Now."
"Okay okay… violence is never the answer! I'm coming~"
Ashen dragged her until they reached their room and threw her onto the bed. "Wait here. And don't play any games."
"Yes… yes… what kind of games can I even play?"
Ashen sent his nonchalant sister a mild glare, then turned and securely closed the door behind him.
His next destination was the tattoo room. There he found the second culprit behind his headache.
"Big Sister Rune…"
A woman with a mature air sat writing in complete concentration on a parchment. Like many of her fellow clan members, she had flowing white hair and lovely pink eyes.
And after the Late Bloomer's effect, her already good looks had become even more stunning.
She wore the same kind of robe his own sister used.
"Oh?" Hearing her name, she lifted her head and found her dear little brother peeking from the half-closed door of her workshop.
"If it isn't my favourite brother. Come on in."
"Yes, thank you."
"So what brought you here? Need a tattoo?" Rune smiled.
"Wasn't it only for women?"
"The effects are, but I can tattoo anyone, Ash."
"Ah, of course." Ashen nodded once, then shook his head. "Thank you, but I didn't come here for that. It's about Lapis."
"About her?" Rune tilted her head curiously. As far as she could remember, everything had gone smoothly today.
'Was there a mistake?'
As the thought crossed her mind, her gaze drifted to the parchment she had been drawing on, and finally stopped at Lapis's name and the tattoo she had chosen, written boldly beside it.
Ashen's.
'Oho? Now that I think about it, that bold little sister chose something like this.' Rune secretly smirked and looked back at the boy who was sheepishly smiling at her.
"It's a bit of a personal matter. Can you come with me to my room?"
"Sure. I'm done here anyway. I've got some time for you."
"That's good."
With a quiet sigh of relief, Ashen led the way. The moment he opened the door and stepped inside with Rune in tow, he was met with Lapis wearing a loosely tied sashed robe that put her cleavage—and more importantly, the blasted tattoo—on full display.
"Brother. Just in case you didn't see it well back on the farm, here you go."
She leaned forward and stuck her tongue out.
"..."
"Pfft—"
Hearing the snicker from behind him, Ashen understood at once. He had brought in reinforcements… but not for himself.
✦⟡⟲⟡✦
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[Lapis Tattoo(NSFW)]
[Lapis showing Ashen her Tattoo under the manaweave tree (NSFW)]