Chapter 78

Day 306 of Banishment: Beautiful Ruins (2)
The zombie died. Naturally. There was no need for multiple Iron Golems to even move. A few thrusts with a spear were enough to bring the zombie down, and it turned to dust and vanished.

"… What was that just now?"

Marylia gazed up at the sky with a distant look in her eyes.

Cream-colored clouds, tinged with the hues of approaching dusk, floated gently in the blue sky.

Before night completely fell, Marylia began preparing for camp.

"Excuse me~… No one’s here. Alright."

Following the golems, she entered a relatively intact house and found it empty. Naturally. Of course, it was. The zombie from earlier was the strange thing!

Jade seemed to have given instructions to the golems, as they began patrolling the house and its surroundings. Since they took it upon themselves to ensure safety, Marylia was quite grateful.

"Haah… This is quite the strange situation."

Marylia quickly set down her luggage and took a breather. Since the golems would assemble the makeshift beds, she had nothing left to do. So, she ended up lost in thought.

"… At least, I've figured out one of the mana presences on this island."

She pondered the zombie from earlier and what it revealed about the state of this island.

"This island is bound by necromancy."

Yes. Strangely enough, necromancy was stagnating here.

Necromancy, as the name implies, is the magic of controlling the dead.

… However, its details vary greatly. Compared to Marylia’s golem control, it was a much more intricate system of magic.

The most well-known form is "controlling a corpse to use it."

Even within that, there are three common methods.

The first is "binding the soul when the connection between the body and soul weakens upon death, and manipulating the soul to also control the body."

The second is "inserting another soul into the dead body to control and use it."

The third is "infusing the dead body with the caster's magic, substituting it for a soul to control and use it."

Essentially, necromancy is not about controlling the 'body' but the 'soul.' And since a soul is easiest to manipulate when the body dies, it is called 'necromancy.'

Even when it comes to manipulating corpses, necromancy takes many forms. But it does not stop there.

There are spells that fix wandering souls in place, binding them to a specific location. Others reinforce fading souls, stitching them together. Some forms of necromancy closely resemble healing magic, and at its pinnacle, "reviving the dead" is, in many ways, a form of necromancy.

Marylia’s golem control is somewhat similar. She substitutes her mana for a soul and infuses it into the golems. The difference is that a soul animating a human body is vastly different from one moving a golem. But depending on the classification, her magic could very well be considered necromancy.

As such, necromancy is an incredibly complex and multifaceted discipline. However, the way the zombie behaved earlier narrowed things down considerably.

That zombie turned to dust when stabbed.

This was a crucial piece of information. It suggested that its physical form was maintained by either a soul or magic.

… If it had been a mere "puppet" animated without a soul—one of the derivative arts of necromancy—it would not have collapsed into dust when stabbed.

The fact that it crumbled to dust indicated that the original body should have decomposed decades ago. Yet, some form of magic had preserved it and kept it moving.

Moreover, since it vanished after being stabbed, it meant that the destruction of the body caused the soul's binding to be broken.

That meant one of two things: either the soul was unwillingly bound in place, or a substitute soul made of magic was sustaining it, and the body's deterioration caused it to dissipate.

Either way, there had to be a source of mana sustaining it.

If mana is used to substitute for a soul, a continuous supply is necessary to keep it bound.

Marylia herself constantly, albeit in tiny amounts, supplies mana to maintain her golems. If that supply were cut off or the golem bodies suffered severe damage, they would collapse and cease functioning.

The same applies to necromancy.

If a body that should have decayed long ago was still moving, then it had to have been continuously preserved by mana all this time.

In other words…

"Tomorrow, I'll search for the source of that mana."

There were only two possibilities: either someone—or something—was still alive, supplying mana, or there was a large-scale magical mechanism at work.

The next day. Day 307 of banishment.

"Alright. Time to explore the town."

Marylia was full of energy the moment she woke up.

Today, she would uncover this town’s secrets. Somewhere within this town, there had to be survivors, a magical device, or some other mechanism at play.

She reminded herself not to forget, "And also, information about a ship," before setting out with her golems.

She had three things to search for.

The first objective is to gather information about a ship or any means of escaping this island. … However, Marylia’s hopes for this were growing thin.

The reason is simple—given the scale of this town and the level of preparation needed to sustain the movement of this zombie, it suggests that someone had been here, surviving for a significant period. This makes it far more likely that whoever was on this island perished here rather than successfully escaping.

Well, even so, she will search just in case… The second objective is to find any human survivors. The third is to locate any magical mechanisms. Those are the things she was looking for.

That said, if the second and third objectives are at play, chances are high that one negates the other. And… based on Marylia’s estimation, it is far more likely that the third—namely, the magical mechanisms—are the only things that have survived on this island.

“That actually works in my favor.”

Marylia muttered this with a smile as she proceeded through the town.

… If there were survivors, that would be a hassle in two ways.

First, if someone is still alive, it means they never escaped—meaning any clues regarding an escape route are lost. That would be troublesome.

Second… If there were natives living here, Marylia would be an outsider, an intruder! There’s a high chance of hostility, and even if they don’t attack, they’ll definitely try to drag her into their ranks! That would be a pain!

“I just hope things don’t get complicated… Haaah…”

Letting out a sigh, Marylia continued forward, protected by the formation of her Iron Golems.

… Even if someone were secretly watching her from somewhere, she hoped the Iron Golems’ presence would be enough to intimidate them.

The once-prosperous and splendid town, now crumbling yet still standing, carried a profound melancholy. The remnants of its former glory, prosperity, and peaceful life, now abandoned and silent, evoked a deep sense of loneliness.

And yet, it felt warm. People inevitably die. But if traces of their peaceful past remain even after their passing, gradually fading away with time, then perhaps this kind of “death” isn’t so bad. That’s what Marylia thought.

Yes, she didn’t dislike this feeling. There was something nostalgic, something wistful about this scene that she found oddly comforting… That is, of course, assuming this place was truly a “ruin” and nothing more.

“Oh my, here’s another one.”

After walking a little further, she encountered another zombie. …This time, instead of attacking immediately, she had her Golems hold their positions and carefully observed the creature.

… It showed no signs of fear. In other words, it lacked the ability to assess the situation. If a survivor were controlling these zombies remotely, they should have reacted in some way by now. Given the lack of response, Marylia concluded that the possibility of a living person controlling them was extremely low.

Feeling reassured, she quickly disposed of the zombie and resumed her exploration of the town.

“This looks like a blacksmith’s shop. Let’s see if there’s anything useful… Hmm, well, it’s rusty, but I found some ingots. I’ll take these.”

Scavenging ruins was one of Marylia’s specialties. She had a knack for identifying places that had once been inhabited and finding useful supplies. Though it seemed simple, this skill required a certain sense. And Marylia had it—she searched through homes and belongings with impressive efficiency.

… Perhaps, alongside her talents as a Golem user, she also had the natural instincts of a thief.

“I’ve got iron ingots, some really old liquor, a gold ring, what looks like gold coins, a well-crafted knife, and a nice glass vase… Not bad at all.”

She cheerfully examined her haul.

She was particularly pleased with the iron she obtained from the blacksmith. After all, she could never have too much material for mass-producing Iron Golems!

Additionally, finding various metal tools was a nice bonus. Knives, in particular, were always useful. She had one with her when she arrived on the island, but you could never have too many.

“But I have a feeling there’s even more good stuff ahead…”

With a delighted smile, Marylia twirled the knife in her hand and looked up.

Standing before her was the tallest building in town. Though its large stained-glass rose window was partially shattered, the architecture remained grand and beautiful. It resembled a temple, but…

“I’ve read about this before—dragons love nesting in places with strong mana. This is the first time I’ve seen it with my own eyes!”

Indeed, the building had become a dragon’s nest.

Gold, silver, scraps of iron, seashells—any and every shiny object had been hoarded within.

And, more importantly, the place was thick with mana.

With a soft *click*, Marylia stepped onto the stone floor and entered.

“Oh my… You really went all out collecting these, didn’t you?”

She moved the rocks blocking the entrance and stepped inside. The interior was piled high with glittering objects, completely filling one corner of the room. There was so much that she couldn’t even see the walls. It was clear that the dragon had painstakingly gathered all of this over time.

“I wonder how much this is worth… Ehehe…”

Most of the items were gold. Many were simple gold pieces stamped with an insignia—something akin to wax seals used for sealing letters. They were likely some form of currency.

“… Huh?”

Wait. Currency?

Marylia slowly realized the oddity before her.

“If there’s money here… that means this island had an economy…”

That was the problem. This island shouldn’t have had currency.

If the society here had functioned under a system where a single ruler controlled a population of slaves, then money wouldn’t have been necessary in the first place.

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