The Execution

"Honey?! Wake up."

The gentle and warm voice of a woman rings through his ears. He knows that it was just a dream and that he's just hearing things, but it feels real to him, like someone is whispering close to his ears.

Einar slowly opened his eyes, but there was no one or light. It was pitch black. It was so quiet; although he couldn't scan the room, he could distinguish that he was back in his cell through the smell of blood, iron, and human waste. He passed out during the torture.

'How long was I out?'

He was held in one of the cells in the underground prison.

A prison chamber for the criminals with heinous crimes. It was built underground to isolate the criminals from the outside world, not just to isolate them but also to eliminate the sound of screams from being tortured.

He can only scan the four corners of his cell when the guards bring torches to illuminate the chamber to start beating him and take him to the torture room. 

"Ugh! Please, stop… I didn't do it!"

"Why?" As he said, the tormentor grinned, "We're just having fun here."

Einar's voice was trembling due to the excruciating pain from being tortured. He begged every single day; however, the torture never ceased. He described them as madmen, enjoying themselves as they slowly tortured him.

They cut his body with a smoldering knife again and again every day. Pull his nails, break his finger, and pull his teeth one after another. It was a pleasure, an amusement for these people to observe Einar crying, screaming, and squirming from pain till he passed out. They use every kind of method to torment his body.

It has been his everyday routine ever since he was imprisoned. For him, every day was hell. All he can do is cry and scream for help, even though he knows that no one will come.

"Hey, peasant!"

"Here's your food."

"F*ck! Why am I always the one to do this? It smells like shit in here."

The guard just tossed the food and walked away. But today, the meal has no use for him because even the slightest movement causes pain in every part of his body. His throat swells and hurts from screaming every day, and he is unable to swallow or chew food anymore.

'I never thought that I would end up in a place like this. I had always lived my life following the law of this Empire, but here I am waiting for my death to come. I am innocent of the charges they are bringing against me.'

'I was accused of murdering the 'Holy Sword,' Anna Blackwater. One of the Four War Heroes of the Empire during the Second Great War.'

'Kind, beautiful, and appealing, with pale yellow hair and blue eyes. She always has such a beautiful smile. Every man wishes he could see her beauty. Everyone adores her. When the empire was on the verge of war, she was the ray of hope and light.'

'Why would I kill her?'

Einar runs his thoughts as he closes his eyes and falls asleep again due to extreme exhaustion.

The next day.

'Clop! Clop!'

A footstep was heard in the hallway; it was the prison guards.

'Ting! Ting! Ting!'

One of the guards was hitting the railing of the cell multiple times with a club stick to create noise. 

"Wake up, peasant!"

Einar did not make a sound nor move; although he was awake, he couldn't respond to the guards. He had no strength to do so. The guards got annoyed, seeing no response from Einar. They opened the prison cell and walked close to where he was lying.

One of the guards stepped on Einar's head while cursing him.

"This motherf*cker! Do you think you're something special, huh?"

"You're just a f*cking peasant, you motherf*cker!"

Urgh!!!!

Einar groaned in pain. 

'F*ck! Why, why, why? I did nothing wrong. Why, why?'

'They say that justice is unbiased and does not bow to anyone. That's bullshit! Justice only benefits those who have a higher status, and wealth is the driving force behind this world's ruling. This world is corrupted; justice is elusive for people like me.' 

The guards beat him with the club stick; all he could do was cry in pain and receive the beating. The wounds caused by the torture start to bleed again. It was a horrifying scene as the blood splattered every single time the club stick hit. His trembling voice, caused by pain, echoed in the chamber; his vision started to fade, but before that happened, a person standing at the entrance of the cell spoke.

"That's enough!"

A deep, intimidating voice stopped the guards from beating him more. Trying to remain conscious, Einar's eyes slowly gazed at the man who had just spoken. His eyes were quite blurry from what just happened, but he was able to recognize the person by looking at his silhouette. He was the captain of the Empire's Royal Knights, Edward Montfort, one of the 'Four War Heroes,' like Anna.

The captain's presence baffled Einar. The captain visited him for the first time since the day he was incarcerated. He can't help but be wary of the captain's intentions.

'Why is he here? Is he going to kill me now or mock me from the state I'm in?'

"Leave us."

The captain's commands had an overwhelming pressure that made the guards leave in a hurry; they were terrified by the presence and the atmosphere he displayed. 

The captain scanned Einar's naked body; from the captain's point of view, Einar was a living corpse already, skinny, with every inch of his body full of scars, wounds, old and fresh ones, broken fingers, and the tendons on his Achilles were cut; a sign of extreme torture can be seen all over his body, but Einar endured it for months.

The captain can't help but feel amazed at Einar for enduring it; he is puzzled by Einar's tenacity. 

'A normal being could not last this long for being tortured. What could have driven this man to endure it this far?'

The tormentor who tortured Einar already told him that he would not confess no matter what kind of torture methods they used; he always denies the charges against him, but he still wants to hear these words from Einar directly while looking him in the eye. 

"Did you do it?"

Einar's eyes were lifeless as he gazed at the captain. Given the state of his physique, speaking was extremely uncomfortable for him, yet he persevered. For the first time since day one, someone had inquired and listened to what he had to say without torturing him. Even if the captain might not believe him, Einar was happy that someone would want to hear what he had to say, even though it would seem ridiculous to others.

"…No, I did not."

"Why would I kill my wife? She's everything, everything that I have in this cruel world."

'....' Hearing this, the captain felt pity for the state he was in; Anna was his best friend, and the man in front of him was her husband. Looking into Einar's eyes as he says those words, the captain can feel the sincerity of the words he just spoke. He recalls the day that Anna left them and chose to live a normal life with Einar. 

"Are you really sure about this, Anna? You're just going to give up your status?"

"Yes! I already made up my mind."

"You're a noble, and above all, you're a hero, the Holy Sword of this Empire. Are you just going to throw everything away?"

"I know that you will be against my decision, but I hope you understand it, Ed. The war is already over; I want to have a normal life, a life away from the battlefield and death." Anna spoke softly.

Seeing Anna say those words with a bright smile and lively eyes, he realized that Anna was happy; she had never seen Anna like this before since the war took place. Her gloomy expression caused by countless deaths on the battlefield was gone. It was an expression that he had never seen for a long time. 

'Right! That was the expression you used to have when we were kids. I'm glad that you're back from what you were before.'

The captain scratched his head while speaking to Anna.

"Tsk! Ok then, if that's what you want, I will respect your decision, but don't forget to visit us; you know my wife and kids always like it every time you visit."

"Don't worry, I will still be around. Einar is a farmer; we will be trading crops here in the city occasionally," Anna replied with a smile.

***

"I just heard the news; it has been decided; you will be executed tomorrow."

"I'm sorry, there was nothing I could do for you."

Einar didn't have any reaction to what the captain had said; he already knew he would be executed; it was just a matter of time before it happened. But he was grateful to the captain for hearing his words before he got executed.

The captain turns his back and commands the guards to leave him alone and cease the torture till he gets executed; it's the least he could do for him. But before he gives his command, he gazes back at Einar once again and asks him one last time.

"Was she happy with the life she chose?"

Einar's memories of Anna's happiness while they were together were evoked by hearing those words. where there is more brightness, excitement, and hope for the future.

Einar smiled, looking at the captain. 

"Yes! She was."

"I see." The captain then walked out of the cell and gave his command.

Following the captain, a man paid Einar a visit later that day. In the empire, it was customary for someone who was about to be executed to have a visitor before his execution.

"Take your time; he won't be here tomorrow." The guard declared while unlocking the cell door and left.

The man's eyes rose as he saw Einar's state and stop the guard from leaving.

"Wait!?" He exclaimed.

"What did you do to him? He is not supposed to be tortured."

The guard simply grinned and turned to leave without saying anything.

Seeing the guard leave without a response, he entered the cell and took Einar in his arms.

"What have they done to you kid?"

The man can't help but feel sorry for Einar's state, at that moment; Einar slowly opened his eyes and saw the man with eyes full of concern.

"… Mr. Sawyer?"

Mr. Sawyer led the market traders' union, the 'GRAND EMPORUS,' and was one of the greatest market dealers in the land. He made his first deal in the city of "Grandel," where the two of them first met. After they became close friends, Einar joined the traders' union and rose to the position of vice-leader.

Einar never thought that Mr. Sawyer would come to visit him. Einar was an orphan, and Anna was the only family he had. However, the union of traders never treats him as an outsider. He forgot that the relation he had with the trader was not just as partners in business but as a family.

"… How was the union?" He asked with a subtle smile and jubilant expression on his face.

"The union is ok; what we need to do now is get you out from here. We need to find those fuckers that framed you with your wife's death."

"That is all I want, Mr. Sawyer; however, I'm crippled now, and my body is already dying. Medicines no longer work on me anymore, and healing magic can no longer do it also; it will be a waste of time and resources."

Mr. Sawyer felt as though his heart had been wrenched a thousand times when he heard Einar say these words. Even though he was wealthy, he was unable to assist his friend, who was treated by him like a son.

"…I'm sorry kid." Tears started to shed from his eyes as he spoke.

"There's no need for you to be sorry, Mr. Sawyer; anyways, I was glad to see you before I die."

In the meantime, council members gathered at the royal palace's council hall.

"Hold on! You cannot enter, Captain; a meeting is in progress."

The royal guards in the hallway tried to block him, but there was nothing they could do to stop this man from entering; it would only be a futile act, for this man had already transcended from the human realm. The royal knights' captain, Edward Montfort, storms in like a raging bull and slams the door open at the council hall.

Bang!

A loud slam reverberates through the room and shatters the council's silence. Tension starts to fill the place with the captain's sudden appearance; at that moment, a white-bearded man at the end of this long table spoke with an intimidating voice.

"We were having a council meeting. What's with this sudden action of yours, Captain?"