Day 82 of Banishment: Iron Production (4)
And so, the forging began, with a significant advantage gained by using the Terracotta Golems.
The red-hot lump of iron was taken out and hammered on the stone surface.
The process repeated—hammering and stretching, then folding, hammering and stretching, then folding again. When the heat dissipated, the iron returned to the furnace. Gradually, the iron was refined step by step.
By carefully repeating the steps of hammering, stretching, and folding, the iron became stronger. It transformed into a marvelous material—more flexible and less prone to breaking.
After sufficient forging, the iron was shaped into a rectangular column through steady and meticulous work. From this point, even the stone used as an anvil was chosen carefully for its flat surface.
“It’s coming together nicely.”
Eventually, a rectangular column of a size that fit snugly in Marylia’s hands was completed. Once it was ready, the final touch came next…
“Alright, let’s make a hole for the handle.”
Using a jade chisel, Marylia struck the approximate center of the rectangular column. Gradually, a hole formed, and the compressed rectangular column widened slightly at the middle.
And so, the first creation—the “hammer head”—was complete!
Next came the crafting of an ax blade. After that, a chisel was made, concluding the initial forging session.
The freshly finished chisel was plunged into water with a sizzle, cooling to a steely shine. Marylia carefully confirmed that it was adequately cooled before gently placing it on the stone alongside the other tools.
“… Hehe, a hammer, an ax, and a chisel! How wonderful—finally, I can enjoy the blessings of iron!”
At long last, the moment had arrived.
Iron tools were now in Marylia’s possession.
With a hammer, she could shape more iron and even break rocks to extract additional iron sand. Though the hammer might be a bit small for this purpose, it would still be useful.
With an ax, cutting wood would become significantly more efficient, simplifying charcoal production. Marylia was overjoyed!
… And the chisel—it was critical.
“With a sharp iron chisel, I can make holes in wood easily.”
For the hammer, she had drilled a hole in the head to insert a handle and secure it as a mallet.
For the ax, the blade would not be attached in the same manner. Instead, as with the stone ax, the blade-free end would be inserted into a piece of wood for stabilization.
The chisel was indispensable for creating clean holes in the wood. With an iron tool, the task, which had previously been laboriously managed with stone and fire, became swift and efficient!
And so, Marylia moved on to processing the wood.
She adjusted the wooden handle to the right thickness to fit the hammer head snugly, then hammered it into place. Once the handle was securely set, the mallet was complete. From now on, the mallet will be ready for use. Of course, considering mass production with the golems, the jade hammer still held its value for certain tasks.
Simultaneously, Marylia had the golems sharpen the chisel. The steady scraping of stone against the chisel brought out the steel’s beautiful gleam, filling Marylia with great satisfaction as she admired its edge.
Next, she prepared the wood for the ax handle. This required creating a hole using the chisel.
“Ah! How wonderful iron tools are!”
Marylia was moved—awed by the sharpness and cutting power of iron.
“This is incredible… Just incredible~ cutting wood is so effortless!”
Previously, she had to break wood by striking it with stone. The fibers would loosen, and she would carve or break the weakened wood.
Now, she had entered a new era—one where “sharpness” became a tangible concept. The leap forward brought her closer to true iron-age civilization.
Marylia gazed heavenward, overcome with emotion, and silently cherished her happiness, murmuring, “Iron is the best…”
Thus, Marylia acquired a mallet, an ax, and a chisel.
Iron tools. These gleaming, steel-colored instruments held unparalleled value—worth more than gold or silver treasures. At least, to Marylia, these iron tools were far more valuable than gold or silver.
“Oh, how marvelous… I’ve finally come this far.”
Marylia let out a long, satisfied sigh before retrieving the slimes that had been working hard inside the box bellows. Though the slimes were completely drained, a quick dip in water revived them almost instantly. She set them loose and then gazed up at the evening sky.
The fiery crimson of the sunset was crossed by the dark silhouettes of birds, likely returning to their nests. Soon, those birds would disappear—they were migratory, staying in the area during summer and flying further south when winter approached.
“Autumn will be here soon.”
Marylia murmured with a smile, listening intently to the rustling leaves, the birdsong, and the sound of the wind.
… There was something undeniably pleasant about this late summer evening spent basking in a sense of accomplishment. After savoring the sounds and breeze of nature for a while, Marylia finally decided, “Time for dinner,” and returned to her home.
From then on, Marylia continued the cycle: gathering iron sand, cutting trees to make charcoal, and refining iron.
As she repeated the process, her methods gradually became more sophisticated and efficient.
For example, she figured out the optimal angle for the trough used in the washing process, allowing her to collect higher-purity iron sand more effectively.
She also discovered the ideal ratio of charcoal to iron sand for smelting, increasing her productivity in refining iron.
And, of course, there were the iron tools.
Thanks to her iron ax, she could cut wood at an astonishing pace, which allowed her to increase the frequency of charcoal production.
Though she hadn’t yet used her iron hammer extensively, it was only a matter of time before she would craft a larger one for breaking granite upstream or crushing weathered rocks to extract iron sand.
Indeed, Marylia had to increase her production of iron sand—not just by gathering it from riverbeds, but by actively generating it herself. Her goal was clear: to eventually create an iron golem.
And so, by her 90th day on the island, Marylia had assembled all the tools she needed.
“Ehehehe… I did it, I did it!”
She had crafted a pickaxe, a shovel, and a saw.
The pickaxe was long-handled and designed for large, sweeping motions rather than fine work. The iron shovel was built specifically for scooping and transporting soil. And the saw—it allowed her to turn wood into planks.
“The saw was such a challenge to make~…”
Naturally, the saw had been the most difficult to create.
She painstakingly carved the teeth into the blade using a chisel, sharpened each one individually, and alternated the teeth to angle slightly to the left or right to prevent wood shavings from clogging the blade. It was an intricate, time-consuming process.
But it was worth every effort.
With this saw, she could finally create planks and use them to construct larger and more precise structures.
Iron civilization was, in a way, also a wooden civilization. Iron tools enabled finer and more extensive woodworking, advancing wood utilization by leaps and bounds.
In other words…
“Now I can finally make sand iron extraction more efficient. Hehehe…”
By processing wood with iron tools to create devices for generating iron, she was setting the stage for mass production.
Marylia smiled brightly.
“Alright, let’s get started… Iron channeling!”
She was about to embark on a large-scale sand iron extraction process—a method known in the east.
First, she would carve a waterway into the mountains. At the upstream end of the channel, she would erode granite or andesite-rich soil, which contained plenty of sand iron, breaking apart larger rocks as needed.
As the eroded soil flowed downstream, it would be pulverized further. This process separated the sand iron trapped within the rock.
At the end of the waterway, a dam would be constructed to collect the water, allowing for a massive washing process. By stirring the sediment and letting the water flow rapidly, the efficiency of iron sand extraction would skyrocket.
It was nothing like the painstaking manual gathering of sand iron. This method allowed for the collection of enormous quantities at once!
However…
“Haha. This method is banned in Fractalia, isn’t it? This is my first time doing something forbidden~”
The reason this method, iron channeling, was prohibited in the Fractalia Kingdom was simple.
“It turns the downstream into a mess of sediment. Hehehe…”
This method caused significant environmental damage.
The sand iron settled in the waterway or the collection basin at the end—known as the wash area. However, the lighter materials flowed downstream, accumulating as sediment.
Moreover, diverting water for this process inevitably reduced the water supply for downstream areas. If there were farmland downstream, this could deprive crops of vital irrigation. The kingdom’s ban was entirely reasonable.
“But this is an uninhabited island, so it doesn’t matter! Ehehe, let’s do it~”
On this forsaken island abandoned by the Fractalia Kingdom, Marylia saw no reason to obey their decrees. She intended to take full advantage, regardless of the environmental consequences!
However…
“… There’s no way I can finish this before winter, is there? What should I do…?”
Marylia pondered.
Without careful prioritization, winter would arrive before she could achieve anything.
What do you think about this chapter?
