Legend of the Legendary Librarian (4)
Author-nim. I'm terribly sorry to send you this private message like this, but I don't think comments would let me convey all my thoughts, so I'm humbly sending this DM.
You seem to have put a lot of thought into superpower users' costumes. Though I can't carelessly guess the gender, it looks like you're trying to draw outfits for female superpower users. I imagine there's plenty of 고민 there.
Female superpower users are at their most beautiful when they reveal the form of their bodies and the graceful lines of their well-toned flesh, right? But if you're set on drawing superpower users' clothes—and heroes' uniforms in particular—I'd like to suggest hanbok, clothing alive with the spirit of Korea.
I'm Korean. And hanbok is garb infused with our people's soul and spirit.
Do you know about the structure of hanbok? Hanbok is...
In that vein, I humbly propose hanbok.
Already, many superpower users in Korea have adopted hanbok as their hero uniforms. But what they wear is fake hanbok tainted by Western influences—not the modernized versions for everyday convenience, but a cultural sellout product that rapes and desecrates tradition in the name of "bold innovation."
Back in the '70s and '80s, we Koreans treated American culture as the pinnacle. That was the Miracle on the Han River era. But now, after the Miracle on the Nakdong and East Sea, with Korea standing tall at the world's center, we must proudly broadcast our heritage and prove that Korean culture is world culture.
Over the last twenty-five years, Korea has spread its culture worldwide, but nothing beats a powerful superpower user for impact. When our top hero, the Princess of White Eyes, filmed an ad devouring bibimbap, gochujang flew off shelves in overseas grocery stores. That's the influence they wield.
Imagine if superpower users made hanbok their signature uniform. What better way to spread our culture far and wide?
Author-nim, the same goes for your art. Your illustrations will flood the seas of information, dazzling eyes across the globe. How wonderful if that outfit were hanbok?
Picture someone in far-off northern Europe seeing your work, getting hooked on hanbok, then Korea itself—flying here to snap photos at Busan’s Dongnae Fortress site in Righteous Army garb, making memories.
Isn't there a better way to spread Korea's spirit than with all those foreign clothes?
Author-nim, lately I've seen too much fawning over foreign ways—like that "Dokkaebi" and his new look. Ah, what a lamentable sight.
A guy with the alias Dokkaebi struts around in suits, wielding a so-called Dokkaebi Bat that's not even a polo mallet but a Western baseball bat? Is he really a Dokkaebi?
Arbitrarily slapping the Dokkaebi name on himself while twisting our traditions? He's a true villain.
This latest stunt proves it. If his "transformation" as Dokkaebi had matched our cultural icon—draped in a durumaegi over dobok-like sobok, declaring he'd wrestle demons—I'd have applauded the villain.
But no. Whatever that transformation gizmo was, he mocked our heritage by using English. Spouting nonsense like "ohui" and other bizarre terms to fend off demons.
He could've named techniques like "Southern Cross on a Summer Night" or "Heaven's Cross Line," but he chose English. On Sejong Island!!
He's no Dokkaebi. Some foreigner cosplaying as one, no doubt. The type who rinses kimchi in water, dumps it in soup, slurps gukbap without pickled radish, and sieves the rice grains from sikhye.
And the world eats it up. What a tragedy!
It's like a cuckoo sneaking eggs into an oriole's nest—the chick shoves out the real eggs and parades as the oriole. This pretender acting like "Korea's Dokkaebi" boils my blood.
He shouldn't call himself Dokkaebi. Pick an alias fitting his roots.
I'm out there educating folks on what a true Korean Dokkaebi is—countering that organization's vile distortions, championing our native spirits to safeguard tradition.
Not forcing you. But if you joined in spreading our nation's soul, I'd be overjoyed.
This isn't empty talk. To help your hanbok art ignite Korea's spirit worldwide, I've gathered materials:
1. National Museum of Korea_Introduction to Our Traditional Hanbok
2. National Museum of Korea_Hanbok Exhibition VR Experience
3. Video_[Rented Hanbok and Came to Busan for Pig Gukbap]
Source: Piesto Carman's Korean Working Holiday.
4. ....
Our ancestors wove vibrant, varied colors into hanbok from ancient times. Nobles added exquisite embroidery.
I've sketched some concepts: hanbok fit for Ganggangsullae dances, sobok for Dano baths, a colorful jeogori like Janwol Daecheon oesaek tteok, even one patterned after hero Night Shadow's general uniform from the 2020 Armed Forces Day event.
My crude lines can't touch your talent, but I send them hoping they'll spark some reference for your work.
May your art pulse with Korea's spirit. I end here.
The season of cold winds envious of blooming flowers. Stay healthy—no colds—and keep drawing beauty.
—BlazingFangs
"......."
How long did this maniac write to churn out that many pages? But the scariest part was still that one thing.
"Yumir. You know what? This message has exactly one English word in it."
"...The source?"
"Yeah."
In everyday life, you'd casually drop foreign loanwords everywhere, but this DM avoided them to an obsessive degree.
"Must be exhausting having a type like that nearby, huh?"
"Really? I see 'em all the time on variety shows."
"...What?"
"Blondes with blue eyes rocking dopos, horsehair hats, and fans, going 'Ahem!' or 'You scoundrel!' Tons of that stuff. Oh, you'd never know in Korea."
"......."
This world's nationalism was on another level. Had it even colonized Canadian TV stations? A true horror.
So that's why Doji Rider or whatever's blowing up.
An era where even broadcasters drowned in Korea-praise. Doji Rider's mishmash of Hollywood sci-fi flair and Japanese tokusatsu vibes, stripped of Korean essence, probably hit nostalgia buttons just right.
"...Hmm."
Which was why.
"Yumir. This is actually a solid idea."
"Huh?"
"Hanbok. Let's make your suit concept hanbok."
"......Teacher? Weren't you extremely grossed out by this a second ago?"
"I was. But think about it—if we design around hanbok, folks like this'll be cheering you on here."
"Ah."
Hooligans, sure, but nothing beat having them in your corner.
"If you were gonna go villain, yeah—organization style, Dokkaebi, Doji Rider vibes. But why'd you come to this academy? Not to turn baddie, right?"
"I..."
"If you hate it, no biggie. But I'm curious, personally."
Honestly.
"You in hanbok? You'd look stunning."
"...For real?"
"Totally."
Wearing hanbok was the ticket to hassle-free living here.
"Tons of people would see you like some exotic foreign daughter-in-law. Hanbok costume seals it."
"Foreign... daughter-in-law?"
Yumir flashed a wry, flustered smile. But then...
"...Y-yeah. Daughter-in-law, huh."
She licked her lips and grinned faintly.
"Deal. Hanbok costume it is."