Chapter 18: Technology
by fnovelpia
Technique Gijutsu
Swordsmanship, martial arts, tactics, and so on.
They all use different words, but the essence is the same.
It’s something the weak devised to defeat the strong.
Because they couldn’t win with brute strength, they chose to win with intelligence.
They thought about how to swing a sword more efficiently.
How to fight more efficiently.
How to defeat someone stronger.
And through constant thought and refinement, technique Gijutsu was born.
Thanks to technique, fragile humans could survive against monsters and demons.
Though physically weaker, they used their minds to compensate for their weaknesses.
They built walls to prevent ambushes, crafted weapons to overcome their physical limitations, and developed more efficient methods of fighting to gain the upper hand.
All of that is technique Gijutsu.
So, the fighting style of the one known as Hero Ria’s master— that too is a technique Gijutsu.
He used his mind to defeat the strong.
Even though he ended up losing, considering he was stronger than anyone I’d ever faced, I had no choice but to acknowledge him.
Though his physical abilities were lacking, I had to admit he compensated for them with his intellect.
I respect that.
Because technique represents the very potential of humanity.
But still.
Even if I understand that, it doesn’t stop me from being pissed off.
A proper duel should involve trading blows, but that guy just kept hitting me over and over, and the moment he thought he might get hit—he ran.
I didn’t even get a single hit in…
He ran just when I was ready to fight seriously…
‘What…?’
‘Yeah, I guess that’s a tactic too…’
Fight when it’s favorable.
Run when it’s not.
That’s the foundation of tactics, and the reason humanity could survive against the overwhelming strength and numbers of monsters.
Monsters are dumb.
They fight even when they’re at a disadvantage.
That’s why humanity survived.
So, running away at the right moment is actually admirable.
…Or so I tell myself.
But no matter how brilliant the tactic, when you’re the one on the receiving end, it’s still infuriating.
So, my opinion of the person called Ria’s master is…
Hmm…
Complicated.
I don’t like that I was on the losing end, but in terms of pure combat, he was someone worth learning from.
Also…
He has a good sense for names.
‘Snowflake sword’
‘Nice…’
It’s a better name than something like “Sword That Blooms Snowflakes.”
‘Using rune-like characters for technique names.’
‘That’s cool.’
[Info: Due to translation magic, the Chinese characters the protagonist uses sound like runes to others.]
But then, a question came to mind.
“I want to ask something.”
“Hm?”
“What is it?”
“How does that so-called master know about snowflake sword ?”
“This is the first time I’ve ever used this technique.”
It’s true.
Until now, just using a freezing sword was enough to win.
Today’s the first time I’ve ever used snowflake sword.
That’s why I was so confused.
“That’s what’s amazing about my master!”
“Amazing?”
“Yeah!”
“My master knows everything!”
“Everything?”
“Yup!”
“What does that even mean?”
“I’ll tell you once the fight’s over.”
“There’s a book my master told me to show you if I ever make the Ice Princess my ally.”
‘A book, huh…’
‘What kind of book could it be?’
‘Now I’m curious.’
But I’ll save that for after the battle.
For now, the fight continues.
“Ria.”
“Yeah?”
“I already acknowledge you.”
“The way you blocked my swordsmanship, and how you took my sword aura head-on without flinching— you’re exactly the kind of companion I’ve been looking for.”
‘If she could endure my sword aura with her bare body, then that meant she could probably withstand my freezing energy too.’
‘That was enough for me.’
‘That so-called master, I’m not so sure about…’
‘But Ria, you pass.’
So now, this is no longer a battle to find a companion.
“Even though I already acknowledge you…”
“I want to test something else.”
“What is it?”
“I want to see if the technique I’ve honed so far… can work against a hero.”
An experiment.
A technique isn’t truly complete just because you think it through.
You need to test it in real combat.
Only then can it be called a real technique Gijutsu.
So I challenged her.
‘Until now, I never had a way to test it.’
‘I never had an opponent strong enough to use my techniques on.’
Technique Gijutsu was created so the weak could challenge the strong.
Using it on someone weaker has no meaning.
Anything works on the weak.
You have to use it on the strong— only then can it be truly called a technique Gijutsu.
With that mindset, I swung my sword.
Clang!
Snowflake sword, swirling with snowflakes, slashed forward.
Clink!
Ria blocked it with her wooden sword again.
But this time, something was different.
Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink! Clink!
Countless snowflakes whipped through the air like blades, battering her wooden sword.
Crack!
“!!!”
Slice!
The wooden sword was cut clean in half.
Experiment successful.
Snowflake sword worked even against a hero.
“Wow…”
“You actually cut through my wooden sword…”
“So even something invincible can break if attacked continuously…”
“Amazing.”
Ria spoke in pure admiration.
Then— she created a new sword.
“?”
Crack!
A blade of ice formed to replace the broken half of her wooden sword.
Whoosh!
Flames coiled around the icy blade.
“Wh…What did you just do?”
A bizarre sight— ice and fire coexisting in one weapon.
‘What the heck.’
‘I’ve never seen anything like that.’
‘How did she even do it?’
…Or so I thought.
“This is the true way to use ice magic.”
“My master taught me.”
“True mastery, huh…?”
“Yeah!”
Warrior Ria smiled as she swung her flaming ice sword.
“Ugh!…”
The fire was so powerful that it melted all the snowflakes on my Snowflower Sword.
But— Ria’s ice sword didn’t melt.
In fact, it became even stronger.
The more intense the flames became, the harder the ice grew.
***
Thump!
My heart pounded.
Energy can develop through self-reflection, sure, but fundamentally, It’s something you learn from others.
Humans live short lives, But human history is long.
Rather than relying on the ideas of one person, It’s more efficient to learn from the knowledge that many people have built up over time.
And— Adding one more brick to that great tower built by countless people, that is how techniques evolve, and how humanity progresses.
That’s why I loved learning things.
Whether it was swordsmanship or how to manipulate ice, I loved learning how to use it better.
However— Learning wasn’t easy.
The strength of humans lies in how they can pass down knowledge to future generations, but some people hoard that knowledge for their own gain.
Especially those who have reached the pinnacle of skill—they’re reluctant to share what they know.
Noble families renowned for swordsmanship keep their techniques to themselves.
The same goes for noble families who specialize in magic.
Skills grow stronger the more they are shared, but they refuse to share them.
That’s why I couldn’t learn magic.
Swordsmanship can be learned by fighting directly, but magic—no matter how many battles you fight—you can’t just absorb someone else’s spells.
That always frustrated me.
But finally— Someone appeared who could quench my thirst.
“Ria.”
“If I become that person’s student, can I learn those kinds of techniques too?”
“Yeah!”
“You’ll definitely be able to!”
“That’s great.”
My opinion of her teacher skyrocketed.
Weak—but because of that weakness, he honed his skills even further.
By sharing those polished techniques with others, he laid the groundwork for further development.
It was admirable.
…That’s what I thought, anyway.
But all of that joy would come after this battle.
We kept fighting.
***
“Hnnngh!…”
I released a massive wave of cold, freezing everything in my surroundings.
Since I’ve never formally studied magic, the only way I know how to use it is through brute force—freezing everything around me.
So I can’t use this technique when allies are nearby.
But I’m alone.
Everyone around me is an enemy—so I can use it as much as I want.
Whoosh!
Ria swung her sword unaffected, even after releasing that cold energy.
It was stronger than when she had gone berserk.
And yet she withstood it.
I was getting more and more impressed.
Crackle!
I condensed my sword aura even more tightly, and made my cold energy even colder.
Condensing, condensing—until finally, I released all my sword aura and cold at once.
“Snowflake Slash”
“No…”
“It’s snowflake , huh.”
‘Wow…’
‘So rune letters can be used like that, too.’
Normally, my sword aura technique is called Seolhwa (Snow Melting Slash)—”Turn all to snow.”
But this one wraps snowflakes around the blade to slash and freeze everything—Snowflower Slash.
‘Cool name.’
‘I’ve got to remember it.’
…That’s what I was thinking as I watched.
But—slash!
The moment my Snowflower Slash touched Ria’s body, it vanished.
‘What… just happened?’
My Snowflower Slash is supposed to keep attacking in a flurry of snowflakes until the enemy is destroyed.
It’s not the kind of technique that disappears in a single strike.
It didn’t melt either.
It was simply erased.
That’s what confused me.
“So this is how it can be used too…”
“A one-hit kill technique.”
“Anything that touches her body… instantly dies…”
“Ah…”
“So that’s why her master was able to use his own body as a weapon…”
Ria spoke of her master again, a look of realization spreading across her face.
Again with her master.
He teaches something, and the disciple gains insight, developing it even further.
Adding another brick to the tower the master built—raising it higher and higher.
That kind of growth through learning.
The disciple refining and evolving the master’s technique.
I was jealous.
I wanted to learn those techniques too.
I wanted to add my own brick to her master’s skills—so I could see even higher heights.
“So?”
“If you’ve got nothing left to show me, should we wrap this up?”
Ria spoke like she’d end it unless I had something else worth watching.
But I had nothing left.
All of my sword techniques had been blocked.
Some of my powers worked for a moment, but that was it.
All I managed to do was slice a wooden sword.
I couldn’t cut anything more than that.
The snowflake technique I was so proud of couldn’t leave a single scratch on the hero’s body.
My skills weren’t enough.
But— That’s why I was happy.
Because I’d found someone who could teach me.
Because I’d found someone I could test my skills against.
My techniques could still evolve.
And— that evolution might be the key to controlling my magical outbursts.
…That’s what I was thinking as I watched Ria’s technique.
It was beautiful.
A technique where flaming ice was wrapped in sword aura.
The snowflakes became blades, and— the swirling flames brought destruction.
It slashed through everything.
It burned everything.
The ultimate strike.
BOOOOM!
SSSSSSHHHH!
That ultimate strike passed right by me, erasing everything in its path.
“That’s amazing…”
“Right?”
“This is— This is the fusion technique I learned from my master, combining flame and ice magic.”
“You use ice to form a solid flame!”
“A solid flame, huh…”
“What a fascinating idea.”
Use hardened ice to shatter the enemy’s armor, and then searing flames to burn them from the inside.
A terrifying concept.
But that only made it more interesting.
“I want to…”
“Think I could learn it too…?”
“Yeah!”
“Let’s learn it together!”
“But before that, we’ve got something to do.”
“Something to do?”
“Let’s help stop Master from running away.”
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