The Gamer Chapter 1554 – Trial and Punishment (Patreon)

The investigation was not televised.

John had originally wanted to push for the event to be public, but the Great Sultanate, the Illuminati, and the Purest Front had all given vehement pushback, with Prometheus and the Sons of Rome joining their concerns. Alfonse de Trastamare had a hand in many a covert operation over the years and no one wanted the public to see too much of the dirty laundry be aired.

The Divided Gates were gathered around the table. Arkan and the Azure Tribe were not present, save for Karia who had been summoned for potential fact finding. John himself stood near the table, hands behind his back, and waited for the proceedings to begin.

“I shall begin with the obvious,” Romulus began the meeting, his heavy, dark eyes drifting over the gathered people. There were many, but yet so few for what the court was capable of holding. “A word on the fact that the Abyss is a cruel place. War is the nature of the world and I am under no illusion that all of you and some of mine play the games of subterfuge even during these supposedly peaceful gatherings. That, however, is the key word – supposed. We are SUPPOSED to be PEACEFUL!”

John hadn’t heard the Apex raise his voice like that before. Everyone, from himself to Lu Zhi, tilted in their seats or took a step backwards, as if bending under a gust of powerful wind. The pressure of the Godkiller lifted as quickly as it came. Romulus put his knuckles on the table and leaned forwards, staring at no one and everyone.

“You are guests in my city,” he continued in a low voice. “Fights that must happen will happen. Fights that are agreed upon I shall let pass. Fights that do not threaten my people are yours to partake in. Duels are sanctioned, tournaments welcome, but you bringing strife into my streets will not be tolerated.”

“You speak like you are above us,” Sultan Atrahasis scoffed.

“I am above you,” Romulus declared with absolution. “Do you presume that I believe myself equal to the rest of man because I allow you to sit at the same table as I? I acknowledge the strength of our nations and the avoidable destruction war would bring.” Atrahasis opened his mouth to add something, but Romulus silenced him with a glare that had a dozen advisors behind the sultan simply pass out where they stood. The force of the stare even ripped the illusion off the wrinkly old man’s face, leaving him pale and rattling. “I am the Apex of the Abyss. To me, you are a child, sultan.” Romulus turned his attention to everyone else. “All of you ought to remember in whose halls you prance.”

John gulped and found himself nodding. For all the resistance his pride may put up usually, here he gave. The Apex had not demanded anything unreasonable, and sometimes it was best to swim with the raging torrent.

Forcefully relaxing, Romulus straightened up. “We shall find out what happened and who shall face my wrath. Everyone, bring forth your truth seers.”

Every present faction, save for the Great Sultanate, had a few people step forwards. John recognized only Absalm among the crowd of others. That the slimy little annoyance had an ability to identify lies was far from surprising, even if John loathed that. Fusion had Emrik and Lorelei step forwards.

“John Newman, continue with the proceedings. Your words will be judged by all, your lies identified.” Romulus sat down.

The Gamer sorted his thoughts carefully. He was under the scrutiny of about twenty different ways to make out any lies or half truths he told, so he best did not allude to anything he did not want to have come out.

“I should begin with a word of thanks towards the Heavenly Jade Empress and the Mandate of Heaven, who have located the last surviving assailant alongside the item that was the target of the raid. They were gracious enough to transfer Alfonse into Fusion’s care and have returned the Rose of Artifice to us. For that, Fusion will show our gratitude, that I pledge by all my honour.

“Moving onto the events as I am aware of them. Since the Rose was created during the journey here, I have been expecting some kind of attempt to take it. For that reason, I had Hailey be accompanied during her experimentations by Aclysia. Lee was then to remain vigilant while occupying the same barrier.”

“Why even show that weakness?” Eglystas asked.

Unexpected to come from the smartest being alive, but John answered the question anyhow. “I did not want Hailey to be held back in her experiments.” He paused for a moment and continued only because a number of the truth seers were making signals that they detected the half-truth. “And I wanted to goad whoever would overstep into doing so.”

“You showed your throat, hoping that someone would spill blood in my city,” Romulus remarked grimly.

“…Yes,” John admitted.

“One,” Romulus said to Luna, who went wide-eyed.

“Rom, you can’t possibly…” she whispered.

“One.” The harsh word shut the moon goddess up. After a few moments, she nodded.

John raced through what that was supposed to mean. All he was certain of was that it wasn’t anything good. Regardless, he continued from there. “When I learned that Karia had the ability to interrupt my connections, I deemed that this was the most likely time for the raid to occur. I prepared Aclysia via a message, and then had my fight with Karia. The attack occurred just as I was struck by her knife. I personally suspect that the Purest Front are the attackers.”

The accusation caused no outrage at the table. That the event wasn’t public had the benefit that no one felt the need to protect their image. They all knew what they thought of one another. “Do you believe Karia was in on it?” Sol asked.

“I do not.”

“Why?” the sun goddess continued.

“She informed me before the fight began about her ability.” Mengele furrowed his eyebrows at that revelation. A reaction that sadly could not be used to implicate him. As sponsor of the Azure Tribe, he had every reason to be mildly annoyed that Karia gave up any advantage, however slim. “Usually, I would at least suspect duplicity in that action. An attempt to create plausible deniability by doing something that seems to hinder her while ultimately meaning nothing. In this case, however, the item they attempted to steal is too valuable to pull such stunts and they were willing to even attempt to kidnap my Hailey. Either she did not know about it or she wanted to give me a leg up.”

“We shall ask her. Karia of the Azure Tribe, step forwards,” Romulus demanded.

John joined up with the rest of Fusion’s retinue at the side, while the arcane elemental took his place. “Ask away,” the blue haired woman allowed.

“Did you know about the incoming raid on Fusion’s yacht?”

“Yes.”

The swift and clear answer did manage to break the solemn silence of the room. Mengele’s previously mild annoyance turned into red-faced anger. “What do you think you’re saying, Karia?” he hissed.

“I was aware of the incoming raid on Fusion, I found out about it because I spied on the Purest Front,” the arcane elemental continued plainly.

Fury rose in the room. One short-lived flame from Mengele, directed at Karia, to then immediately be smothered by Romulus’ wrath. The butcher of Auschwitz retained his aggression and turned it to Romulus. “Ten,” the Apex declared.

“As you say, my beloved,” Luna agreed swiftly. “Although I should caution that her alone is not good enough.”

The meaning behind those numbers remained shrouded in mystery for now. Romulus ignored Mengele’s defiant stare and turned back to Karia. “Why did you spy on the Purest Front?”

“It is my purpose,” she answered with a dismissive shrug. “In the time before the thunder calamity, I was the Harashka. I do not believe that you have an equivalent of the position. My purpose was to find and kill those that live within the Azure Tribe without adhering to its values, destroying it from within. I sought. I found. I judged. I executed. This was my purpose.”

“You’re a judge, jury, and assassin,” Romulus summarized.

“Call it what you will. Fact is only that I heard of Mengele’s plan to use me.” She gave the leader of the Purest Front a dismissive glare. “I am no tool to be wielded for profit.”

“Why did you not prevent the plan altogether?” the Apex then asked.

“I judged that this way would be the harshest.”

“Two,” Romulus told Luna.

“…As you wish,” the moon goddess answered reluctantly.

“Alfonse de Trastamare!” the Apex then called for the third witness. The mercenary was brought out in chains. His short, black hair was dishevelled, his handsome face taxed by the exhaustion of the day. John took a dark joy in every minor injury the frost had marked him with. He was still the one that had enabled an ambush on his girls. “You were hired by Mengele, is this correct?”

“I assume,” Alfonse answered.

“You assume?”

“My process has its layers to give my hirers anonymity… Most at the table know this.”

“He’s lying. His words carry false assurances,” Lorelei announced. A few seconds later, other truth seers echoed the sentiment.

“…Truth is that there’s certain small things in the layers that let me trace things back. I always know at least what faction hired me,” Alfonse gave swiftly and looked around the room. “Look, I am just doing business! No hard feeli-“

“This is no space to justify yourself,” Aclysia interrupted the mercenary before anyone else could. Her words were plain, almost melodic. The contempt with which she stared at the man belied her otherwise so graceful body language. “Only answer what you are asked. You have wasted enough of Master’s time.”

“…How can a creature like you even pretend to be cute?” Alfonse mumbled.

John’s fingers twitched and he glared warningly at the man.

“Mengele, do you have any words to refute the evidence brought against you?” Romulus asked.

The leader of the Purest Front at that point just shrugged. “What point is there? I am being betrayed by unthankful rats. The Rose would be better in my lab than in the hands of those that would use it to further useless causes. I wanted it, so I arranged to take it.” Mengele stood up. “I do not answer to you. I’ll withdraw my courtesy of being present during this sham.”

A silvery white barrier was erected in Mengele’s path. The leader of the Purest Front looked to Luna, his eyebrows meeting in a moment of annoyance.

Romulus raised his voice again, his every word like the rumble of an approaching landslide, “In the old days of Rome, when my enemies were still many and many were brazen enough to burn what I built while I was not present, I used to administer lashings.” The Apex rose to his feet. Prismatic energy surged down his arm, until a whip of fire appeared in his hand. Its colour changed from gold and red to the same silvery white of the barrier. “The whip left marks on those that had wronged my city. It marked them as unwelcome within my realm, as enemies of Rome. Today, I shall revive that tradition.”

“You believe you can whip me like an insubordinate soldier?” Mengele asked mockingly. “I do not answer to you.”

“You are not given a choice in the matter,” Romulus declared.

Mengele grit his teeth, his veins rising in black from his otherwise white skin. His scleras turned red around his brown eyes, and just when he began to growl a warning at Romulus, his view danced over to a person behind John.

Eliana’s bones cracked as they expanded and her exoskeleton formed out of her pores. All of the harem readied themselves to attack. Mengele’s eyes wandered on, to Sol and Luna, to Rodaclam, and to Krieg who was watching all of this unfold in the corner.

The butcher was powerful enough to fend off Eliana; he may even have been capable of pushing back against Romulus for long enough to make the administration of the punishment unreasonably costly. With all of the backup, however, Mengele could either take the lashing or, well… John would do his best to accidentally overstep on aiding Romulus.

Grinding his jaw, Mengele finally stripped out of his suit and turned his toned back to the crowd. “Make it swift, then, ‘God-Emperor’.”

The magical whip cut through the air swiftly, cutting a thin line into Mengele’s back. The blood did not flow, instead becoming thick near instantly. John’s dark joy took a dent due to the butcher’s display of willpower. Not a single scream was heard, not even after ten of the lashes. At that point, John knew what Romulus had planned for him.

Once the last of the lashes had been administered, Mengele simply strained his back and the wounds all closed without a single sign. Putting his shirt and suit back on, the leader of the Purest Front gave the Apex an unimpressed look over his shoulder. “You overestimate yourself if you think this admonishment means anything.”

Romulus answered the gaze in kind. “That you believe that shows how small of a man you are.”

Mengele, rather than continue his walk towards the exit, headed towards a nearby wall and leaned against it, arms crossed. He seemed intent to watch the rest of the punishments be administered and he got to do so.

Karia was first, taking two lashes on her exposed back, hiding her chest behind a layer of arcane. The strikes broke the white-blue surface of her body and revealed bits of sand underneath. The wounds were also sealed up with arcane energy.

John did not have to be called to step forwards. Inside his mind, he revolted against this humiliation. He had exploited Romulus’ good will enough though. In a way, this was a long time coming, and if this was the only price he had to pay, then he would do so.

After discarding his clothes, John stood, facing the Apex and opened his arms readily. Romulus did not question the position, and a flash later, John felt the magical whip bite into his flesh.

The pain was excruciating. The weapon looked smooth, but the sensation made it feel more like it was lined with spikes too thin and numerous to perceive. Each needle fired an individual pain response and John nearly became the first and only of the three punished to scream. A moment before he gave, it was over.

The sharp torment was replaced with a dull throbbing. John looked at the clean cut on his chest. The whip had split the skin over his left pectoral up to where Thana’s bite marked his shoulder. The rims of the bleeding wound glowed silver, the remaining energy of Luna’s slicing barrier keeping it open.


John considered for just a moment, then he pressed the keep option. Gamer’s Body closed the wound a moment later, leaving only a thin, white line in his soft tan. When he stared up at the Apex, he found the anger of the ruler of Europe to have been replaced with a plain expression. “I’m not ashamed of what I did. By the standards of individuals, all states behave like sociopaths and I play the game to win,” John told him plainly, “but I respect that I overstepped my welcome. I’ll keep the scar as a reminder, Romulus.”

Neutrality made room for approval and Romulus walked away. “The Rose is in the hands it belongs and I’ve delivered admonishment to those that spilled blood in my streets. Alfonse de Trastamare is for Fusion to judge.”

The Gamer turned to the mercenary. Alfonse seemed resigned and that was not adequate for what John wanted someone who had aided his enemy in attacking his harem to feel. Terror would have been satisfying.

That urge for revenge underlying his thoughts was put aside for a moment. What was it that he wanted the world to take away from this? He had invited the attack and ultimately it had proven to drive a wedge between Mengele and a variety of other people, which served John well. Still, he did not want this repeated, so a cruel example may have been appropriate to display.

What were the counterarguments? Alfonse was a known mercenary, there was no shortage of crimes John could dig up about him. At best, Fusion’s court system would lock him away for life. More likely, he would be delivered the death penalty.

‘Perhaps this is where I reveal Inkaryl’s ability to take away longevity?’ John asked himself. Beating, crippling, and then leaving the man to die a natural death when he could have lived hundreds of years would have been quite the deterrent. However, John wasn’t willing to give up that trump card. ‘If there really is that enormous mountain of evidence, then the court will find him guilty anyhow…’ “For all the hatred I have for those that’d threaten my own, Fusion is a land of justice still. We’ll take him back and have him be judged by the regular process.”

“That’s why your nation is weak,” Mengele mocked the Gamer.

“Maybe,” John admitted with a shrug. “I know that mercy and cruelty are acts to balance. I have known that since I first learned the price of mercy I was too weak to give. I have yet to learn the price of being too cruel and I’d like to keep it that way. You, however, are a petulant butcher, unloved, uncared for, and eventually you’ll be remembered only as a bad example. You’ll die on your knees, weeping, afraid, and begging for a mercy you afforded no one else.”

John did not stay to hear the response.