I had, however, expected to see his royal guard, not those of the dead souls of Samurai that had fallen on their own swords in hopes of regaining honour to their family name and bloodline. Seppuku was the name for this Japanese ritual of suicide by disembowelment, and had originally been reserved for Samurai and their code of honour. But then Lucifer had been more than happy with the influx of these fallen Seppuku warriors, as he had named them. Something that happened when the ritual was also practiced by other Japanese people during the Shōwa period. A way to restore honour for themselves and their families, particularly by officers towards the end of World War II.
But the Seppuku wasn’t always used voluntarily by Samurai to die with honour rather than fall into the hands of their enemies. For it was also offered as a form of capital punishment for those who had committed serious offenses or brought shame upon themselves. Hence Hell being their final resting place thanks to Lucifer’s keenness to own them. And seeing as it had been death by ceremonial disembowelment, I wasn’t surprised to see the symbolic choice used for where to keep their weapons.
The hilt of which was sticking out of their abdomens where they had originally inflicted the deadly blow. A short blade that looked to be what was traditionally known as a tanto, and one used to plunge into the belly and drawn left to right to slice deep enough to sever the aorta to cause rapid death by great blood loss.
After all, if you were forced to kill yourself or decided this to be your only choice, then most would choose a quick death, honour or not. And speaking of honour, it made me wonder if they still had any left after working for the Devil, as they each drew their short blades from their stomachs. Blood seeped out with the movement, but then floated in the air as though it had been dropped into clear water.
The lost Samurais’ souls of those that had committed suicide, now once again found themselves fighting for a new master, making me wonder if they feared a new death. I knew them to be incredibly skilled, hence why Lucifer had wanted them. A real Samurai also had two blades, so with their side arms already drawn from their insides, they pulled free their katanas in one swift motion. After this, they held both crossed above their heads in some sort of homage to their master, and stayed that way as if waiting for some silent command from the being himself.
As for the long blades of the katanas, each were made from Hell’s black steel, and decorated with a red line down its sharp edge, running all the way to the tip. This gave them the appearance that it had already drawn blood from its enemies.
They were a sight to behold, as they were dressed in select pieces of typical 16th century armour in black and red. A black hitatare robe along with dark hakama pants were worn underneath a dou chest plate, with kusazuri, which were leather plates hanging from the front and back of the dou. These protected the lower body and upper leg but like the rest of their armour, this was all for show, as no doubt Lucifer wanted them to look the part.
What completed the look were the overly large shoulder plates known as sode, this time made from iron that connected to the kote, which were armoured gloves. The only part of them that didn’t fit their past lives were the missing kabutos, the famous samurai helmet. No, instead their heads were covered in floating crimson sashes, making only their eyes glow white beneath their new veils of death.
But fallen Seppuku weren’t a new fighting force I hadn’t encountered until now, for I had fought them before. Although granted, it hadn't been for some time. Hence why I rolled my shoulders and cracked my neck to the side, knowing this would require at least some effort on my part. This was because they were fast, cunning, and could swipe their blade across your flesh with a mere whisper of movement. But more than anything else…
They were in my way.
“Well, this doesn't look too difficult,” Dariush said wryly, and as if they had been waiting for the perfect moment to prove him wrong, the fallen Seppuku separated, revealing what we were really there to fight. Oh, and but of course, it