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A man passes away alone after leading a stagnant and unfulfilling life, but his tale doesn't conclude there. In a fantastical realm brimming with magic, a boy named William is born. Raised in a city of the dead by his new family—a mummy, a skeleton, and a ghost—he retains fragmented memories of his previous existence, enough to realize that his time on Earth was squandered. Determined not to repeat the same mistakes, he pledges to live differently this time. Educated in both magic and combat, Will embarks on a journey to explore the world. Along his path, he encounters a myriad of beings, each with their own stories and lessons to impart. Through these interactions, Will learns how to truly embrace and live his life to the fullest. Official Web Version
This is mostly a very good fantasy story with an almost entirely irrelevant isekai subtheme. I particularly like that, while it features an overpowered protagonist, a) he's not at the top of the food chain (e.g. he's clearly weaker than the gods), b) most problems he confronts can't be solved with force, or rather, c) the story spends very little time on battles he'll obviously win.
The only part that really annoyed me was an infuriatingly terribad tropey scene in chapter 38:
The rest of the story is really good, but that scene was atrocious.
I feel like lately a lot of many characters are edgier, or just straight up terrible people. They're for revenge, and go after it no holds barred- even if that means they rape/murder their way to the top. Or they're just overpowered and don't really care about the little guy, or helping people is just kind of a side effect of everything else they're doing.
In comparison, Saihate no Paladin features an actually GOOD main character. He isn't perfect, and struggles like everyone else, but he always tries his best to help the people around him. Its purposeful instead of accidental, and is just so wholesome.
Beyond that, the author does a really good job at world-building and setting the scene. My only complaint is that it is a monthly release, so with the slower pace of the story it can be hard to remember what happened last month.
Thinking about it, it gives me distinct Vinland Saga (post-slavery arc) vibes. The main character here is what Thorfinn eventually grows into, albeit more religious here.
Speaking of Religion, I really like how it is done in this story. Religion isn't really something that is featured in a lot of manga, aside from exorcists and such. But here it is a core tenet of the main character without being overly preachy. It is just a facet of his character, and done well.
This author is a master at storytelling, character development, and has paid attention to all the fine details. I honestly feel like everything I want to extol, even the most mundane parts, is enough to warrant a spoiler alert due to unexpectedly fantastic execution.
This author has a penchant and talent for impactful surprises. I was often left with the thoughts, "No author! You can't do that! Stop, please stop! My heart can't take this nor can my teary eyes endure!" However, the author ignored my pleas and continued their sadistic abuse that enraptured my heart.
Some might call this manga a hidden gem, but I would go as far to say that it is clearly an elite work wholly worthy of the laurels of storytelling. Once again, I have been enchanted.
The best written characters with excellent character growth , not your run-of-the-mill isekai. The people in this story come very much alive and tug at dusty old hearstrings as you feel you grow with them.
Best isekai I've read in quite a while. It got lots of potentional and hopefully the author will deliver 🙂