Tags: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Drama, Isekai

Sub-Tags: Villain, Strong Lead, War, Strategy, Game Elements

A Doomed Lord Fights for Survival!

The Evil Lord

We’re all familiar with reincarnates being thrust into characters on the verge of doom, although they usually have more time on their hands than the poor sap who’s been reincarnated as Lord Erhin Eintorian. With only a day before his territory is invaded and he’s killed, Erhin has to work fast to ensure his survival – a task made all the more difficult given the lord’s notoriety and evil deeds.

Key in both the reincarnate and original Lord’s ability is intelligence. For Erhin, schemes are more to his forte than fighting prowess. He can easily read the emotions of others, a skill he often puts to use given the need to quickly raise an army and tempt turncoats. This is shown best in his dealings with Euracia. She’s hell-bent on killing Erhin and stopping his evil deeds, but Erhin can de-escalate the situation and later turn her into an ally. 

Overcoming Martial Prowess

Erhin’s intelligence is also shown in his warfare strategies, and several battles take place during the volume.

Having the protagonist put under immense pressure brings out the best in this story. Whether it’s facing the Naruyan Kingdom in his own territory or stopping them from taking a strategic castle, these do-or-die situations take his strategies to the next level.

About more than just different attack and defence strategies, the protagonist needs to bend the game system’s rules to his advantage. This requires genuine out-of-the-box thinking and makes the system more than just an easy cheat machine.

Taking a closer look at the game system in use, beyond the protagonist’s unique application of the system in life-or-death situations, I’m conflicted as to its integration within the story. The levelling and appraisal aspects are all within the expected range; however, the systems’ work during warfare is an issue. It allows the user to access a skill without any prior training or practice, which in a strategy-based world, feels like a bit too much of a cheat. 

Overall, The Villainous lord’s first volume makes for a good start to the series. Focusing heavily on the protagonist, Erhin, the reader can grasp his character, motivations and abilities by the end of the volume. Volume one ends with several interesting plot devices, all of which could take the series in promising directions.