Asuna spoke, looking down at the white bikini she wore.

“This swimsuit has a defense rating quite a bit higher than low ranking metal armor, but just how does that work?”

“E-Erm……”

My speech came to an immediate halt. Despite the strong desire to give her with a «divine protection through magic» answer, as modelled on the so-called theory behind bikini armor, magic did not exist here on Aincrad. As the thin fabric covered no more than approximately a tenth of Asuna’s skin, there certainly should be no argument available to explain its high defense rating—or so it seemed.

“Hmm… maybe it has a physical enhancement effect akin to the martial arts skill or…”

Reaching out with my left hand, I poked at Asuna’s exposed belly—

“Kyaa, wait… what was that for, all of a sudden!”

The swift slap that came flying knocked me down into the lake in front. Her attack rating increased as well, it appeared.

 
abec’s comment on the illustration
The theme was body paint with swimsuits and I was at a loss at where to draw the numbers, but I thought to draw it somewhere Asuna wouldn’t emphasize too much, so I placed it on her thighs. She’s almost always in outfits with a trusty zettai ryouiki, so it is emphasized in a sense, though!