Why Did I Give Such Complicated Names?

The man called Sekichin.

He was originally a martial artist practicing martial arts at a mountain temple.

In that temple, there was a nearly forgotten training method called the "Beast Resting Practice”.

It was a life-threatening training that took several years, running through mountains and fields, facing beasts, monsters, and nature to hone one's martial skills. Few dared to attempt it due to its extreme difficulty, but Sekichin completed it.

After finishing the training, he brought back a stone he used as a pillow while sleeping in the mountains and turned it into his prized possession, earning him the name Sekichin.

The Khenis Empire actively sought talented individuals.

At that time, the then Blue General, Hoshikan, sought a talent who could become a trump card for the military. Sekichin was chosen.

Sekichin accepted this invitation without hesitation.

Believing that becoming a member of the continent's strongest army and throwing himself into battle to protect people was a splendid thing, he saw it as an opportunity to further refine his martial arts through combat.

The battles with the elves were different from those against humans.

He thought the change in perspective would be a good experience, but Sekichin quickly grew bored.

The elves' tactics were irrational, and even in the face of defeat, they stubbornly refused to change their ways.

The elves being defeated became pitiful.

He preferred battles that would end quickly.

To stop a peculiar magic, Sekichin attempted a solo breakthrough and successfully defeated the mage who was the source of the magic.

It was a great achievement.

While there would likely be rewards and promotions, Sekichin didn't care. He was more pleased to have fought elite warriors.

The battle with the elves might have been the nourishment for Sekichin to ascend to greater heights.

After annihilating the oncoming enemies, the goal was achieved.

Now, without any plans to enter the depths of the forest alone, he considered contacting the squad leader via the communication charm.

The next step would be to sweep the elves fleeing into the forest, he thought.

That's when she appeared.

A young woman with a well-proportioned figure, glossy blue-black hair tied into buns on either side of her head.

She had a charm with some kind of inscription attached to her face, but even with that charm, her charming and girlish face was visible. However, her face lacked color, being pale to a pitiful extent.

Colorful and tattered, her attire resembled that of a fairy or spirit, but after a hundred years of wandering, it looked worn out, fitting for an undead.

Yes, she was an undead.

A Jiangshi. A corpse animated by evil magic.

It was said that those who were martial arts experts in their past life become formidable Jiangshi.

There were rumors about blood-drinking and turning those bitten into Jiangshi, but those were confused with vampires. Her nails and fangs were indeed venomous, a more significant issue.

However, she wore gigantic gauntlets just like Sekichin, so he had no reason to fear the poison in her claws.

Her stance showed no openings, and the emanating evil aura conveyed the strength embedded in her when she became undead.

Sekichin felt like his hands and feet were tied up with ropes of cold ice.

—No way, it can't be!

As if trying to deceive something, Sekichin struck the gigantic gauntlet resembling a dragon, assuming a respectful posture.

"The one before me, I perceive you to be a renowned warrior! My name is Sekichin. The one who received teachings from Master Kuryu at the Temple of Konzen and is called the warrior Red Boy Gudo!"

In response to Sekichin's resounding introduction, the undead remained silent.

"...Introduce yourself!"

She merely approached.

"[Lightness Art: Buoyant Body]"

With a somewhat familiar voice, she quietly murmured.

It was the keyword to use the Lightness Art.

Unlike regular magic, martial and physical arts didn't necessarily require incantations, but uttering a keyword aloud to activate or switch techniques was a way to clarify. Sekichin and his fellow disciples were taught to do so by their master.

"Guh... [Lightness Art: Buoyant Body]!"

The two collided like flashes of lightning.

Kicking the ground, kicking the air, even the falling leaves became footholds.

Deadly kicks clashed with gauntlet strikes.

It resembled Sekichin's martial arts quite closely, and because he understood the movements well, it was relatively easy to receive.

However, the enemy seemed to know Sekichin's movements from the start, making it difficult to attack.

Matches and battlefield fights were essentially about defeating the opponent before they got used to your movements. However, when fighting in a temple, both sides often ended up in such situations, knowing each other's movements well.

—It's a lie, it's a lie, it's a lie, it's a lie!!

The charm affixed to the Jiangshi's face was incredibly resilient, as if it were a part of her body, possibly due to the magical energy flowing through it. The portion adhered to her forehead remained securely in place, unaffected by vigorous movements.

However, beneath the fluttering charm...

A face.

"Tsu...!?"

Sekichin's movements faltered. It was an unmistakable stumble in the midst of their evenly matched battle. The enemy's gauntlet grazed Sekichin.

Similar to Sekichin's dragon gauntlet... no, different.

—Is this gauntlet modified!? Is there something embedded in it...

If it were the usual Sekichin, he would have observed the enemy carefully without being swayed by preconceptions.

However, the current Sekichin was different.

Desperately trying to confirm the face beneath her charm, he neglected attention to other aspects.

A part resembling a dragon's fang had been added to her gauntlet, just like Sekichin's.

And at the moment it brushed against Sekichin's shoulder, an unpleasant heat surged through him.

"Guh...!"

His shoulder felt numb, as if it were burning.

The venom emitted by the Jiangshi's claws flowed through the gauntlet.

In exchange for that wound, Sekichin saw.

"...I see it, the face hidden behind the charm...!"

The undead maintained a flawless stance, confronting Sekichin without waivering.

At least, that's how it appeared to Sekichin.

"Why... Odoka... no, Chenxi...! Why are you here...! Why in such a state...!"

Coughing up blood from the poison-damaged digestive tract, Sekichin shouted.

A girl named Chenxi. ...When they parted, she was still a girl.

Whether one should say it was a sibling-like relationship or a somewhat sweet one-sided crush from Sekichin's boyish perspective, he still hadn't found an answer.

Hair that fluttered in the wind, graceful and beautiful techniques, a smile like the sun, and the beautiful mountains they had seen together.

But she gradually became thin, and her smile clouded. And...

"Since you left the temple...! I just...! If I had more power back then, I could have protected you...!! Damn it! This...! I can't stand for this to happen!!"

Sekichin was hit by a shock as if his entire life had been denied.

Sometime, someday, he wanted to set out on a journey to find her, so he could protect her from anyone.

It was a dream. A fanciful idea, and whether he really intended to carry it out, he didn't know himself.

However, it was one of the core elements, like the core material, deep within Sekichin.

"Teaching Number Four. Disrupt the mind, and the breath will falter. Disturb the breath, and the technique will falter."

"Chenxi...!"

"I'm sorry."

In Sekichin's slowed movements due to the poison, Chenxi swiftly slipped into his guard.

Then, assuming a posture as if gathering strength in her hips, she delivered a heavy and sharp thrust to Sekichin's abdomen.

"Guh...!"

A powerful impact burst within Sekichin's body.

The outlines of everything visible seemed to double.

Simultaneously, more poison flowed into Sekichin's body.

Unable to take a defensive posture, Sekichin rolled over.

Rolling clumsily, bathing in crushed grass, Sekichin collided with a tree...

No, it was someone's foot that he bumped into and came to a stop.

"Guh... Flowing Shadow..."

Because the presence was too faint, Sekichin recognized who it was.

The man also promoted by Hoshikan, Flowing Shadow.

A mysterious man wrapped in black attire. He, who had been assigned by Hoshikan to support Sekichin and scout, now revealed himself.

"...Hand it over. The strong ones must be killed, and they must be offered to the princess."

Flowing Shadow paid no attention to Chenxi's words and slammed something onto the ground.

With a crisp explosive sound, a strange-colored smoke rose.

A smoke screen. Moreover, a high-quality one that distorted magical senses.

As soon as the smoke screen was deployed, Flowing Shadow lifted Sekichin onto his shoulders and began swiftly traversing the branches of the trees.

—Why, why, why...

Repeating like a murmur in his mind, Sekichin's consciousness drifted further away.

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