By Zephyria 
We decided to hurry our pace to re-enter the Oasis’s domain.
It was absurd to try and sleep in an open area where zombies might be roaming. All we could trust for now was that it was peaceful within the Oasis’s domain, so it was better to move our location there. Fortunately, Elvin said the next Oasis’s domain was not far, so we could set our direction without turning back the way we came.
The camels were walking, and I, carried on their backs, chose my words. What I knew. What the children needed to know. Having dealt with zombies for quite some time, I could quickly sift through useful information.
“Last time, at the Oasis… didn’t you say the Third God brought something strange over with me?”
“Yes, I did.”
“I suspect that damned thing might be the one controlling these ‘zombies’.”
“…What was its name?”
“Zombie.”
“Zombie…”
I thought the pronunciation might be difficult, but Ruben followed along well. He sighed once and continued, “It was called the ‘Thousand-Faced Devil’ because it had a thousand faces. It commanded numerous direct disciples and sought to raise all the corpses across the continent.”
“Thousand-Faced Wh- What?”
I changed my words calmly in response to Marianne’s interjection. “There was just some bastard like that.”
“Mm, the name doesn’t matter. Please continue.”
The Sylphs I had sent to scout the surroundings circled like kites from high above, and only the sound of our party walking echoed softly in the empty desert. Fearing someone might overhear, I explained slowly in a low voice.
“The dead, regardless of whether they were commoners or martial artists, rose again after receiving a wicked energy and killed people. Where I was from, there were no monsters; only humans and beasts lived… so many people feared such abominations.”
Many had even taken their own lives out of fear. Recalling familiar faces, I felt my breath catch again.
“It was later revealed that this was not a punishment from God, but that bastard using wicked arts to control corpses. Not only him, but sorceries using the blood and corpses of humans and beasts became rampant, and thousands more died.”
“Are there different kinds of zombies?”
“As far as I know… there are three. Ginger Corpses, Steel Corpses, and Blood Corpse Fiends. Ginger Corpses are simply the dead moving again and trying to harm people. Steel Corpses, like the one we saw today, have skin and bones as hard as steel, and can only be cut down using Sword Energy. And Blood Corpse Fiends…”
My breath grew ragged as I spoke more. I took a steady breath and calmed my mind. “They are fed abundantly with human blood, so their skin is red. Zombies who could still use their martial arts, their swordsmanship from when they were alive, even after death, were called that.”
The corpses of commoners mostly became Ginger Corpses, while the corpses of martial artists often transformed into Steel Corpses or Blood Corpse Fiends.
At first, it was considered a strange phenomenon that could be resolved by Taoist masters, so the masters of the Nine Orthodox Sects were put forward. It wasn’t until dozens of Taoist masters rose as zombies themselves that they learned Leftist Sorcery was completely ineffective against zombies.
What could one call them if not demons, when they wouldn’t die no matter how much they were killed, attacked day and night, and became tattered over time? Looking at the zombies, who would sometimes erupt into mad laughter with tearing voices, I felt as if I were standing in the middle of the underworld.
Afterward, the martial artists of the Orthodox Sects would tear apart the corpses of their friends and kin if they lost them, to desecrate them. It was to prevent them from reviving, but it was a horrific experience.
After hearing my story, Marianne replied in a serious tone. “Black Magic does have Necromancy. It’s almost a city legend… but they usually use monster corpses. They don’t use human corpses not for ethical reasons, but because it’s less efficient.”
“Inefficient?”
“Yes. The amount of Mana accumulated in an ordinary human body is actually quite small. Humans constantly consume and expend energy. Moreover, for reasons not clearly understood, they lose a large amount of Mana after death. Perhaps, as the God of Oasis said, it’s because they lose their souls.”
“…”
The Oasis had said human souls were lumps of Mana. I listened quietly.
“I don’t know about your world, but here, the knights accumulate Mana in their bodies. Knights become young and healthy due to the aura acting on their bodies, but wizards circulate Mana in their circles and expel its toxins in time, so their physical abilities are not much different from ordinary people.”
“…”
“Perhaps the corpses of knights in your world became stronger zombies… for that reason…”
Something suddenly came to mind. “The disappearance of the Sword Master’s body, could that be related?”
“…Yes, probably. If they gathered knights and mercenaries with a lot of Mana to perform some ritual, then naturally, a Sword Master would be among them. Those who resisted would have died. If they could take the living to offer to the Ninth God using their souls, then the corpses of the dead… might have been ‘recycled’…”
“…Recycled.”
“Or maybe they were just unlucky and ended up with different organizations.”
There were more than a few things that clicked. The mutated monsters whose skin had turned black, the vanished Imperial Knights, the kidnapped mercenaries, the lost Sword Master’s body, the suspicious divine revelations… My mind was in utter chaos. The entire party fell silent for a while, lost in thought.
Only the camels, unable to understand our conversation, walked leisurely.
How much time had passed?
The red moon was slowly setting, taking its place in the western sky. The white moon followed it, gently and steadily. The darkening sky embraced the starlight of thousands of stars, shimmering like a veil. Elvin, who had been walking ahead, pulled and released the camel’s reins and stopped.
“Here.”
“From here, it’s the Oasis’s domain again?”
“Mm.”
According to Elvin’s gestures and explanations, the Oasis’s domain seemed to act as a kind of safety barrier. Not all oases in the desert had this function; it was only effective in places that held a certain amount of Divine Power.
Hearing that the closer one was to the central spring, the less impure things could approach, I felt relieved. Just in case, we walked about twenty minutes further into the Oasis’s domain and pitched our tents.
It was the middle of the night, so we didn’t prepare a meal. Everyone shared dry bread, jerky, and some cheese, and retired to their tents early. Besides the Sylphs, several guards were posted, leaving the large tent feeling empty.
Elvin, Hugh Benson, and the mercenaries said they would take turns guarding outside. I also volunteered, but Hugh Benson refused. He reasoned that if anything happened, I, who knew the most about zombies, would have to fight on the front lines, so I needed to conserve my energy.
His words seemed right, so I obediently lay down with the other children.
My mind was troubled, and I couldn’t sleep. I knew it wasn’t my fault, but a sense of unease kept creeping in. I felt as if closing my eyes would show me vain things, and holding my breath would let me hear what was wrong.
As I tossed and turned, Ruben turned towards me and reached out his arm.
Was the child trying to comfort me? I waited with anticipation. Ruben reached out and gently stroked my cheek. His calloused hand moved from my cheek to my ear, then grabbed the back of my neck and pulled me close. Then he buried me deep in his chest.
“…Mph.”
“Sleep well, Mika.”
“…”
I was startled.
My head, cluttered with thoughts of zombies and the Thousand-Faced Devil, became blank and white.
I could hear his panting breaths above my head. The thumping of his heart echoed in my mind, so close. The sweet, soft scent of his body and his warm body temperature made me blush uncontrollably, and I couldn’t collect myself.
Wherever my cheek touched, it was so soft that I couldn’t lean into it. I just blinked blankly.
I remained in a daze for a long time, lost in a stupor. As I finally managed to push him away and tried to pull myself out, the child grabbed one of my arms and placed it over his slender waist. The sensation of his chin rubbing against my forehead made my whole body stiffen. Fearing I might accidentally do something improper, I couldn’t move an inch.
Ruben whispered in a sweet tone, “Mm? Sleep now.”
“…”
How could I possibly sleep like this?
When I held Ruben in my arms, I could gently pat his broad back like I was soothing a child, so it was fine. But now that it was reversed, my mind was filled with impure thoughts, and I had to grit my teeth. Fearing I might instinctively grab the child’s waist, I kept my arms extended far away and tilted my head back slightly.
Ruben breathed slowly, as if he were truly asleep. I blinked blankly, listening intently to his breathing and heartbeat. The arm draped across my shoulder gradually lost its strength, becoming heavy, and I found the sensation pleasant. It was a moment when all the world’s affairs felt like a waste of time.
❖ ❖ ❖
The next day.
Seeing Ruben smile brightly and ask if I slept well, I nodded.
I was amazed by Rubel’s nonchalance, even though I was so embarrassed I wondered what color my face was. I wondered if it wasn’t showing much on my face. Ruben hugged me tightly once more, then got up and went to greet the mercenaries.
It felt like I had been standing at attention all night. I wouldn’t mind such a punishment for a thousand years, but…
As I rubbed my numb arm, which I had held up all night, Benjamin came over and peeked at me. He swallowed a cough and said something unnecessary.
“Did you give the Prince a pillow with your arm?”
“…Pardon?”
“Your arm looks numb.”
“…Yes.”
Let’s just go with that.
Marianne, who knew nothing of the situation and had slept soundly, stretched out her body and yawned. She tidied her messy hair, cast Clean Magic on everyone she saw, then clutched her blanket and collapsed back down.
I remained sitting there, still dazed. Marianne pointed her staff at me and asked in a sleepy voice, “Do you need Restoration Magic?”
“…No. I’m fine, I’m fine.”
I declined for now.
Only after Benjamin and Marianne had left the tent did I pull my blanket around me and sit up. I knew it was unlike me to be lazy and not get out of my sleeping bag, but I simply couldn’t get up.
“Honestly, they’re no different from beasts.”
Sighing, I sat there and performed Circulating Qi once.
Only then could I finally tidy up my sleeping area.