The Executed Sage Reincarnates as a Lich and Begins a War of Aggression Chapter 40: The Sage Stands off Against the Ex-Pirate

I stood in midair, looking down at Doldar.

A layer of tension condensed over the battlefield.

Even the slightest movent was a matter of concern.

My opponent was a person that deed such a response.

Doldar the Thunderbolt was a pirate who was active when I was a human.

He was a mighty man who ravaged the seas of the world.

It was said that he could build a country with the treasures he possessed.

Even the demon race that followed the previous Demon Lord did not dare to approach the waters under Doldar's control.

This alone indicates what kind of authority he had.

The fact that Doldar was ntioned as a candidate for the hero stems from an incident when he refused to take on the task of subjugating the Demon Lord.

A country different from my forr kingdom had asked him, a treacherous pirate, to do the job.

In return, they received the ssengers freshly severed head.

The head was stuffed with gold coins in its mouth.

I guess that was Doldar's way of satire.

He was generally unrestrained and dangerous, but if you stayed clear of the waters under his control, you would not be hard.

For this reason, the nations of the world tolerated Doldar's pirates.

Every once in a while, they tried to kill him but were always beaten back.

Doldar was known as a genuine scoundrel until the Demon Lord was finally vanquished.

I didn't expect such a pirate to be in the Imperial capital ten years later.

I could only say that it was an unexpected developnt.

For him, the empire was supposed to be a place with which he had absolutely no connection.

According to the information from our spies, a knight who used lightning magic had indeed been ntioned as a person to watch out for.

However, they did not know his true identity.

This must have been another piece of information that was kept secret.

It was a very strange encounter indeed.

Id heard that the Demon Lord was a vile necromancer, but it seems I was wrong. You can fight with a heart full of spirit.

Doldar spoke with heartfelt joy.

Even in the face of a Demon Lord, he did not feel the slightest bit of fear.

I'm sure that for him, having dealt with sea monsters for many years, a Lich is an insignificant existence.

A heart full of spirit, huh? Not as much as you Thunderbolt.

Hoho, how long has it been since I've heard that na? It is an honor to be known by the Demon Lord.

Doldar spoke in surprise.

There is no doubt he must have been joking when he said he was honored.

His face told so.

I thought you were a pirate. Why are you in the Imperial capital?

Hahaha! How many years ago are you talking about? I retired as a pirate when my ship sank; now, I'm a general for hire.

Laughing loudly, Doldar put his hands on his chest and spoke.

I was surprised to learn that he had stopped being a pirate and chose to beco a general of the Empire.

Did you swear allegiance to the Empire?

No, I'm just a man who wants to have a good fight. It doesn't matter if it's on land or on the seas. The Empire is the most convenient place for to satisfy my needs.

This was a typical Doldar answer.

It is rare to co across a man for whom the word allegiance does not fit at all as it does for him.

As he said, he was hired, and his affiliation with the empire was probably temporary.

For Doldar, it must be a leisurely pasti.

Lets cut the idle chatter. Ive received the order to defeat the Demon Lord, and after I am done with you, I have to deal with the undead army in the city.

As Doldar gazed at the crumbling streets, he gave a sigh and raised his battleaxe.

The purple lightning, which had been quiet all this ti, surged up again with a crackle.

The synergistic effect of body-strengthening magic had given him an inhuman level of physical strength.

Let's go!

Doldar crouched, and in the next mont, his figure blurred.

He ran through the air, drawing an afterimage, and slashed at with his battleaxe.

He is fast.

During the conversation, I enhanced my kinetic vision with magic.

I don't have physical eyes, but I can produce the sa effect with my senses.

Doldar no longer flickered as he had earlier.

Humph!

Doldar swung down his battleaxe, and the swing hurled towards .

It was a very straightforward attack, but it ca at with a power and speed that was difficult to defend against.

I spun around just before the blade hit .

I could feel the blade of the battleaxe scrape my shoulder.

Disregarding the damage I took, I extended my hand, which was covered in miasma, towards Doldars face.

Urk!

Doldar, who seed to have a scowl on his face, withdrew his battleaxe and retreated.

As expected, even he has to avoid a direct miasma attack.

It seems that his lightning magic can combat the miasma to so extent, but there was a limit to that as well.

If he touches , I can take care of him.

I manifested ivy from my hand with a spell and tried to entangle Doldar.

Even he cant escape the fate of becoming an undead.

Urk!?

Doldar was a little surprised, but he used his battleaxe to cut down the approaching ivy.

It seed that his reaction speed was also extraordinary.

He cut down dozens of vines in a flash.

I continued to grow the ivy without regard.

His strength is terrifying. But sothings amiss.

Through the series of exchanges, I was convinced.

Doldar the Thunderbolt wasn't a threat that could kill the Demon Lord.

His strength remained within the limits of humankind.

At the very least, he was not an existence that could stall my progress.

If this was an encounter based on the will of the world, then I had been underestimated.

While Doldar slashed at the ivy, I turned my attention elsewhere.

It was the nearest cannon battery on the outer wall.

It was anchored by ivy.

I deactivated the spell and removed the ivy restraints.

I then used the undead who was the forr operator inside the magic artillery cannon to turn the barrel.

The target was Doldar's back.

The shells are already loaded. I can fire at any ti.

After confirming Doldar was in line of the barrel, I fired a shell.

Doldar, who had cut away the ivy, reacted swiftly to the shell hurling toward him from behind.

"Guoooooooooooooooo!?

He slamd his battleaxe into the oncoming shell and redirected its trajectory, releasing sparks.

A roar and a thunderbolt accompanied the storm.

The shell, with a now damaged tip, passed by Doldar and .

I'm surprised. He can even fight off the shells, I see.

My opinion of Doldar grew higher.

He was a man of unusual skill and physical strength.

He was definitely worthy of being called a hero.

If only his personality and conduct were better, he might have really beco a hero.

His ambition convinced .

!

He gave a small groan.

His battleaxe was broken and his arms were bleeding from dodging the shells.

His overworked muscles had reached their limit.

A few of his bones were probably broken.

He looked like he could drop his battleaxe any ti.

I approached Doldar from behind and twisted the ivy around his limbs, blocking his counterattack.

Doldar looked at with delight through his helt.

His blue eyes were blazing with passion.

B-Brilliant

As I listened to his mutterings, I snapped my fingers.

Doldars head flew through the air.

His head wearing the helt burned with black flas and disintegrated into dust.

His body entangled in ivy was tossed down.

As blood spurted out from the severed part, and Doldar's body was lost to the streets of the Imperial capital.

After witnessing this, I landed on the outer wall.

The empire is desperate to strengthen its war potential. Were they planning to conquer the continent?

Although the exact ti period is not clear, they had hired that Doldar as a general.

His enthusiasm for invading other countries was the real deal.

If left unchecked, he might have committed acts of aggression behind the scenes.

It seems I was correct to intervene at this stage.

It was a bit of a distraction, but it didn't affect my plans.

I'm going to continue to steal the Empire's military secrets.

I'll finish everything by sundown and leave as quickly as possible.