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Chapter 83 - Endless Questions
🕑 Added 2023-10-18 21:07:15 +0000 UTCChapter 83
Endless Questions
Ethan’s declaration silenced the throne room.
Even the King appeared slightly shocked at how boldly he declared that all three should be punished. Of the trio, the merchant was the only one to look up at him, while the other two remained with their heads bowed. However, Ethan's gaze was focused on all the people besides the King on the platform as well as a couple of figures nearest to the throne. While he was unable to precisely pin who might be behind the coup, he at least noted several possibilities.
“Is that your… final judgement?” the King asked with a heavy voice. There was a trace of unwillingness in the man’s tone, but due to the nature of Tunnels… he had no choice but to obey whatever Ethan wanted.
"Yes," Ethan said but didn't wait much to continue further, as this was only the beginning. "Your Majesty… if I may?" Ethan indicated he wanted to step out to the front and the King merely nodded. Even he found it somewhat unnerving to be stared at by so many people all at once, a good number of whom could rather easily kill him if they so wanted. At least, the Tunnel wouldn't allow it for now.
"Though I have passed judgment," Ethan said, both to the King as well as the entire hall itself. "There is one thing I have to clarify: they are sinners in so much their crimes are crimes.”
“... what do you mean?” the King asked as the hall broke out into murmurs.
"We were tasked with passing judgment," Ethan said. "Not declaring the severity of it. After listening to the three confessions, we have concluded that all three are indeed guilty of their crimes–but people are not simple statements on paper, and their entire circumstances must be understood."
“... continue.” a twinkle of interest appeared in the King’s eyes as Ethan continued.
“Let us begin with the Scribe,” Ethan said, deciding to go with the easiest one first. “What is her crime? In absolute lettering?”
“...”
“Is it altering Royal Records?”
“... no.” The King said.
“Is it altering Royal Records so that they reflect poorly on Your Majesty?” Ethan asked further.
“No.”
“No,” Ethan said. “In absolute lettering, her crime was simply doing so without first conferring with Royal Deliberation. And even if what she added to the historical records were true, she still would have been guilty of her crime.”
“Do you really think the technicalities matter here?!” one of the men near the King spoke out–the moment Ethan was waiting for, but didn’t let it show.
“If not in the eyes of Law, then where do the technicalities matter?” Ethan spoke back. “If we are judging the lives of other people, and deliberating what to do with them, shouldn’t we be absolutely certain in all the details before doing so?” The man was about to retort, but the King simply raised his hand slightly, indicating for him to remain silent.
“While I agree, what does that have to do with anything? You have already declared them Sinners.”
"There's a degree in sinning, too, Your Majesty," Ethan said. "Take your General, for example. His crime was abandoning his post. That's it. Somebody added a flowery description to the crime, making it so that it appeared his crime was allowing enemy forces to penetrate into the Kingdom's borders. However, his crime is abandoning his post–that's it. Nevertheless, should we not care why he abandoned his post? Would it be equal had he abandoned his post to visit a brothel and get drunk?" Ethan was eeking out reactions he wanted from several people, namely the man near the King, the one who appeared ever so slightly younger.
“Of course, per his crime’s letterings, the General is a Sinner. But he abandoned his duty to pursue another–his duty to You, Your Majesty. However, law is the law–and for his crime, he still should be punished. Just like the merchant,” Ethan swiftly broke into the hardest of the three, carrying the momentum. A lot surrounding the merchant was speculation, so he had to be careful with how to word it. “Ask yourself this, Your Majesty–as well as everyone in this hallowed hall–what is the merchant’s crime?”
“Again with the technicalities?! His crime is smuggling the artefacts! A crime punishable by death!” the man next to the King said, and Ethan swiftly hid a smile.
“Indeed,” Ethan said. “But… where are those artefacts?” Ethan’s words seemed to strike something inside the King’s mind as the latter’s gaze suddenly erupted in a light of understanding.
“What do you mean?” the King quickly spoke, hiding a smile as well.
“We can verify the Scribe’s sin, as we can verify the General’s sin,” Ethan continued. “But what about the Merchant?”
“He confessed himself!” the man next to the King said. “Are you saying he was lying?!”
“No,” Ethan shook his head. “It’s very likely that he did indeed smuggle artefacts into the Kingdom.”
“Then–”
“But if the artefacts are not with him, where are they?”
“Why does that even matter?!”
“Are you claiming that artefacts that amplify magic by so much being present within the Kingdom while unaccounted for don't matter?” Ethan said. “What if a party desiring untoward things toward the Kingdom were to have them? Would they matter then?”
“...!”
“There is something that struck me odd, Your Majesty,” Ethan continued. “May I speak freely?”
“... this was you being restrained?” By now, the King appeared relaxed, almost playful. He was a smart man–a viciously smart one, it seemed.
“Oh, very much.”
“Then speak freely. Whatever you say, and in whichever manner you say it, will not be considered as an offence.”
“Your Majesty–”
"We have spoken Our words," the King interrupted the young man, glancing harshly at him. "Do you want Us to take it back, younger brother?" Oh, wow, this bastard of a King is really fucking vicious… you’re gonna leave everything to me, huh?
“... no, Your Majesty.”
“Speak, o’ restrained one.”
“... thank you, Your Majesty,” Ethan held back a sarcastic comment. “We have noticed that all three stories of the sinners have two peculiar things in common. One, they were all instigated externally: the Noble who tasked the merchant with the smuggling, the cloaked figure who provided the Scribe with the ancient documents, and the strange man who warned the General of plans to assassinate Your Majesty. It happening once might be a coincidence, but thrice? There are no such coincidences.”
“...”
“The second thing we have noticed,” Ethan added slowly, waiting for the crowd to calm down. “Was that all three sins… are in relation to Your Majesty.”
“... to me?” the King acted shocked as the crowd exploded into whispers.
“The Scribe’s sin questioned your legitimacy,” Ethan said. “The General’s sin questioned your ability to protect the Kingdom from the enemies.”
“What about the Merchant’s sin, then?” the King played along rather marvellously, Ethan mused. Tsk, the bastard’s really clever… “It did not impact Us in any capacity, in so far We can tell.”
“Beyond just allowing the smuggling of the artefacts,” Ethan said. “The actual worrying part is very simple: who has them now? And, most importantly… why?”
“That still does not seem to affect Us.” the King said.
“There’s one scenario in which it does,” Ethan said, electing to drop the bombshell on the audience. “A coup.”
“...! Heresy!”
“How dare you suggest something so outlandish?!”
“Devil’s tongue! Your Majesty, execute him at once!!” dozens of cries echoed out amidst the horrified gasps, and Ethan didn’t have to note any one of them–the King did so. It looked as though the King was already aware of the plans but was for one reason or another unable to act on that knowledge. Why did he need me to bring it to the light? It didn’t matter, in the end.
“Powerful accusation,” The King said. “Can you verify it in any capacity?”
“Of course not,” Ethan shrugged. “Your Majesty as well as those closest to you also failed to grasp it, so how would a little woeful me have means of verifying it?” Ethan tossed in a quick jab at the King whose lips twitched ever for a moment.
"Then how dare you–"
“However,” Ethan interrupted the man next to the King, eyeing him specifically. “That has nothing to do with the judgement of the three. As I have stated before, they have all sinned-per their crimes. But their sins are but drops in the ocean of water, Your Majesty.” Ethan had already done what he needed to do–he’d brought it to the light. From hereon, the King would likely take care of it, as he had a firm grasp on most of the players.
Imagining that it was over, Ethan relaxed in the midst of shouts and whispers, doubts and gossiping lips that would spread the tale to the Kingdom’s borders and beyond within a day. However, suddenly, the time froze once more–this time, however, it also appeared as though Ronald, Elijah, Mingzhu, and Delilah had been frozen. Shocked, Ethan turned forward where he saw the King standing up and descending the platform, stopping in front of him.
The King was a rather tall man–almost seven feet, it looked–and had the regality of royalty rarely realised. Even Ethan, for a moment, felt as though he should bow down, but resisted the urge.
“I have asked a favour,” the King said. “For a moment of quiet between us.”
“... huh?” Ethan frowned.
“You can ask Them favours,” the King pointed upward to the sky. “Though whether they grant them… who knows?”
“Ask who favours?”
“Your world is infantile, still, it seems,” the King said, turning back and looking at the throne. “My name is Vortin the Sixth, the King of Audemae and the Inheritor of Light. Do you know how long I have been sitting on that throne, young one?”
“...”
“Eight hundred and forty-four years, as of three days ago,” Ethan’s eyes widened in shock. “But for others, it has been but forty-six years, the length of my life.”
“... what?” Ethan asked, confused.
"Just as you, I have thieved time," the King said with a faint smile. "And did my best with what I was given. Originally, I was a street urchin. My mother birthed me in the slums of Ottuk, with my father being one of the men she served in the brothels. She held little love for me and died before my tenth birthday. That was when it happened."
“...”
"A strange orb fell from the sky," by now, Ethan's heart was pounding. It felt as though he was learning things he wasn't supposed to, things that ought to have remained a secret for a long time. "It decimated at the time the most powerful force in the world, the Holy Empire. Overnight, it killed over eighty percent of their people and ended their reign. Soon after, it was not just the Noble-blooded who could use magic. Beggars, commoners, whores, merchants… soon, every man, woman, and child could learn it."
“...”
"And that's how it began for me," the King said. "At the age of twelve, I Awakened to my Magic. And I worked tirelessly to make something of myself. However, by the time I was forty, I had barely done anything. I had little talent and even less patience. I was angry… so, so angry that I blamed the world for all my sufferings. I couldn't breathe, often, because of my rage. My life came to a bitter end not long after–a former Noble provoked me, and, in want of some childish revenge, I attacked and was mercilessly beaten to death. On my death's door, a light appeared in front of me and ushered me back twenty-five years into the past. To when the orb fell from the sky."
“!!!” Ethan was having trouble breathing by now, his mind in a state of perpetual shellshock.
“It has been eight hundred years since then, and I have died 92 times on my way here,” the King said. “And in my 93rd life, I became a King. My ‘younger brother’ is quite an idiot,” the King sighed. “Fabricating ancient documents out of thin air instead of simply using his brain. Alas, that is why I’m the King.”
“... why… why are you telling me all this?” Ethan asked, short of breath.
“Because nobody told me anything when I began my journey," the King said. "I fancied myself chosen, special, untouchable. But be wary, young one–you are entertainment, as was I. You are not alone in your delusions. In fact, as you gasp your way through the Tunnels, you will likely meet an endless sea of the fallen 'chosen', those who thieved time… and did nothing with it."
“... isn’t telling me this a pretty major fucking favour?” Ethan asked.
“I have entertained plenty, so you needn’t worry,” the King smiled faintly. “You have helped me avoid the worst fate.”
“Wait–in the first place, how are you a challenge in a Tunnel, so to say?” Ethan asked.
“Why shouldn’t I be?” the King replied. “As I told you… we are all entertainment, young one. All of us.”
“Then… shit, you’re saying I can become part of someone else’s Tunnel? And they can fuck it up and destroy whatever I was working for?!”
“... I have never discovered the truth of it all myself, either,” the King said after a moment’s pause. “But what I do know is that there are forces beyond us, things and entities that we cannot comprehend. However… they are not of one mind. Some give us second chances because they truly pity us, some yet because they want to see the hatred in our hearts sow chaos in the world, and some simply because they were bored on that one particular day. Time, for them, is but a plaything. Hm, it seems our time has run out.”
“Shit. Wait, no, you can’t just drop something like this on my head and leave!”
“... here is my final piece of advice for you, young one,” the King said as he began walking back to the throne. “Why are we called Travellers? Is it because we move through the Tunnels and ransack strange worlds? Or, perhaps, is it because in order to live… we must Travel beyond. Ponder silently. It may yet save your life.”
