The Executed Sage Reincarnates as a Lich and Begins a War of Aggression

Chapter 3: The Sage Gains a Subordinate (2)

Further strengthening my resolve, I shifted my attention to the undead,

stretched out my hand and swung it to my side in a straight path, exercising my power.

As I did that, the undead were suddenly enveloped in a purple flame.

The purple flame spread until it completely covered the place.

Screams of agony erupted from the ground.

The souls of the dead were in pain.

The miasma swirling amidst the atmosphere grew thicker.

I could feel the land growing contaminated.

The purple flame enshrouding the undead below gathered at long last, slowly giving rise to a figure.

It finally disappeared, leaving behind white wisps of smoke.

The undead had been thoroughly burnt without a trace.

In their place stood a grotesque composite of bones.

Was that the result of combining them?

I leaned forward, carefully observing the grotesque creature.

Its height was comparable to that of an ogre, and its skeletal structure wasn't humanoid.

Three additional pairs of arms grew from its ribs.

Its head was that of an ox, with imposing horns.

Crimson flames swayed in its eye sockets.

An even thicker miasma enshrouded him like a cloak.

I knew from the appearance and intimidating air around it.

This undead possessed terrifying power.

Is this the highest-ranked skeleton?

Considering its enormous magic power, it seemed to show many traits of a lich.

Without exaggeration, it certainly could rival the former Demon Lord.

I had never expected to give rise to such an entity.

Although I had used many undead, he had clearly exceeded my expectations.

Perhaps a large combination of factors meshed well.

As I was immersed in my thoughts, the unmoving ox-headed undead looked at me.

The crimson flames in his eyes stopped swaying.

"Are you the one who brought me forth?"

His tone seemed heavy with resentment.

He seemed to clearly possess an ego.

In addition, it didn't seem like I had control of him.

Nevertheless, it was great that he could converse.

If I could communicate my intentions, we could easily reach a mutual understanding.

"It certainly was I, but"

"Grrr! "

As if interrupting my words, the ox-head thrust out one arm.

A black bolt of lightning fired out of it.

The bolt of lightning flew to me in a straight line.

Is a conversation impossible? The other side is on a rampage.

I leapt off the balcony.

The black lightning bent at an unnatural angle, precisely aiming at me.

The tracking function meant that the one casting it could control its movements.

I released a ball of water from my hands. It crashed into the lightning, neutralizing it.

I also created a force field of magic in the air and landed on it.

I maintained my position, looking down at the ox-head.

"Bwahaha, not bad. No wonder you were able to give rise to I! "

The ox-head transformed the miasma enveloping him into wings.

As he flapped them and soared high into the sky, black flames radiated above his head.

The lightning just now was the same. But here the main component was miasma.

This ox-headed undead was excellent at manipulating miasma.

If you compared our practical skills, I didn't hold a candle to him.

However, I have no intentions of losing.

I forced him back with wind magic.

The black flames held their ground for just a moment before they were pushed back.

They flipped directions, attacking the ox-head.

"Guoooooooooooooo! "

Flooded by black flames, the ox-head roared.

Its bones were a little burnt.

But it wasn't a fatal wound.

The undead seemed hardy.

"See mypower! "

The ox-head pointed both hands at me and sent a barrage of lighting my way.

It felt like a heavy downpour.

Each lightning stroke held power equivalent to that of high-ranking magic.

It could easily annihilate tens of thousands of troops.

I set up multiple barriers using magic.

I prepared hundreds of translucent circular shields.

Before long, the incessant rain of lightning strikes hit the barriers.

It resulted in sparks and explosions.

Cracks ran down the barriers, breaking them one by one.

The aftermath of the destruction reached the castle behind, scraping the walls and spires.

The magic offence and defense ended in an instant.

Around half of my barriers were intact. Only the surface had been smashed.

Of course, I took no damage at all.

I can defend using low-level magic, huh

I was honestly impressed seeing the destruction of the terrain around me.

This just now was a good way of confirming it.

Back when I was alive, I prided myself in having a large amount of mana as a human.

However, even then I was limited on race.

I used my ingenuity in various ways to counter the demons.

After a tremendous amount of study, I finally became a sage.

I now was very good at tricks.

And when it came to magic, I was second to none.

As expected, the blessings of the Valley of the Dead were great.

"Impossible"

The ox-head was shocked.

There was no mistaking that he had put in all his strength into the rain of lightning.

It wasn't unreasonable for him to be at a loss, seeing me come out unscathed.

In the meanwhile, I transformed the remaining barriers into dozens of spears.

I adjusted their tips, and aimed them at the ox-head.

"Can't you shut up for some time?"

As I moved my finger, the spears fired intermittently.

They moved faster than sound. The ox-head could do nothing but defend.

A wall of miasma immediately materialised.

The spears I launched crashed into the wall.

Thick black fog gushed out of the spots where the spears crashed.

The spears launched in quick succession, slowly weakening the wall.

"This isjust a trifleeeee! "

I could hear the ox-head scream.

He was desperately resisting the onslaught of spears.

At best, he was only buying time.

I devoted my attention to the spears lying in wait and released them all at once.

The wall of miasma was quickly smashed to pieces, and the spears that pierced through, hit the body of the ox-head.

"Grrrrrr! "

The ox-head fell.

With a gaping hole in his torso, he once again unfurled his wings of miasma.

Controlling his stance, he tried to avoid crashing into the ground.

"I won't let you! "

I severed his wings using blades of wind.

The ox-head crashed headfirst into the ground.

He rolled around as the cloud of dust caused by the impact of the fall coiled around him.

"GrrY-You"

The ox-head got up, groaning.

He compensated for his damaged parts using miasma.

Being able to move despite receiving such a fatal wound, was a trait very peculiar to the undead.

"Why can't you listen to me for once? I don't want to fight."

"Grrrrr! "

As I landed on the ground, the ox-head pounced upon me like a beast.

Each of his eight arms held a weapon made of miasma and magic.

They began attacking with shape-shifting movements.

Appear.

I created a sword out of magic and added a fire attribute to it.

I then foresaw the trajectory of the ox-head's attack.

It was the combat experience of someone from the Valley of the Dead.

It also contained the sword style of that person.

I raised the flaming sword above my head and swung it down.

Pulverising the weapons in the air without mercy, I slashed at the ox-head's torso diagonally.

"Ahgahh"

Cut in half, the ox-head fell to the ground.

As I thrust my sword into his back, I forcefully absorbed the miasma and magic contained inside.

With this, I had taken away his only method of resistance.

Now I did not have to worry about it doing anything strange.

I looked at the ox-head on the verge of death.

The flames in its eyes flickered weakly.

"Kill me. I have been defeated."

The ox-head murmured in a small voice.

Its fierce air from before had all but disappeared.

Now that he had lost his power, he was somewhat calm.

Seeing its change, I shrugged my shoulders.

"I won't kill you. What did you think I called you forth for?"

"What do youmean? "

The ox-head asked perplexedly.

The flames in its eye sockets flickered as if it were blinking.

I nonchalantly uttered,

"I want you to become my subordinate. I could make you obey, no questions asked. But I want to respect your free will as far as possible. Won't you lend me your strength?"

""

The ox-head gazed at my outstretched hand.

It was difficult to imagine what it was thinking because it didn't have a face, but it seemed like it was dumbfounded.

It seemed like it was ruminating over my words, trying to comprehend their meaning.

If it opposed me, I would have no choice but to use violence. It would be best that he cooperate of its own initiative.

Undead with a strong ego were valuable.

Their combat strength had no shortcomings.

It was no doubt an existence whose power I needed in the future.

There was a long silence at the place.

I said nothing more, and earnestly awaited its reply.

""

At long last, the ox-head stirred.

The undead, with its face bowed to the earth, clumsily grabbed my hand.