Bastard Homunculus: Reborn in the Corpse Pit-Chapter 151: Sentencing

"Hm...? What the...? Where am I?" Muttered Leptar with a groggy look on his face, blinking a couple of times to let his eyes adjust to the brightness, before letting out a sigh as he got a look at the sight before him.

He was in a large room, restrained against the back wall, with the Elders, Grand Warriors and the Knights seated before him.

Thick chains were wrapped around his body, and a pair of handcuffs were on his wrists. His body felt weak and low on energy, he was barely able to muster up any strength, before glancing down at the handcuffs, which he realized were sapping his stamina.

"I see you’re finally awake," Remarked one of the Elders icily.

"Seems so...I definitely feel like I could take another nap, though, I’m absolutely exhausted," Yawned Leptar, as he leaned back against the wall.

"You certainly are awfully calm, given your current position, aren’t you? Don’t bother trying to resist. Those handcuffs are Magic Items, they drain your stamina and leave you in a constant state of drowsiness, you won’t be able to muster even a fraction of your strength while they’re on you," Responded Zesta with a frown.

"Yeah, I already figured as much, I can feel them sapping my energy as we speak. I must say that I’m surprised, though...tell me, why am I still alive? When I lost consciousness, I was certain that I would never open my eyes again. And yet, here I am."

"That’s exactly what we’re here to discuss. We shall determine your fate here and now," Responded one of the Elders.

"And you’re letting me be a part of that discussion? My, how laudably generous," Laughed Leptar in amusement.

"Shut your mouth, you bastard. After everything you’ve done, all the people you’ve killed...I believe there’s only one fate fitting for you. And that’s death," Remarked Wistari coldly.

"I have to agree. He’s too dangerous to be allowed to live anyway, I think imprisonment is too risky. If he ever breaks free, who knows how many more will die? The only way to ensure that he inflicts no further damage is to execute him," Nodded one of the other Elders in agreement.

"I must disagree, I think death is too merciful for him, I believe he needs to suffer for what he’s done. I think we should imprison him, and let him wallow in the weight of his sins," Argued another of the Elders.

"I’m a bit conflicted, but I think I agree with that notion. We must face our part in this, and acknowledge that this never would have happened had we not allowed the discrimination against him to persist. We cannot deny that he is a Monster of our making. In a way, we brought this on ourselves," Spoke up Zesta somberly.

"He’s right...we could have prevented this, but we failed. We must assume responsibility for that failure."

"Perhaps, but that doesn’t change the fact that he is extremely dangerous. Whether the threat he poses is our fault or not, the fact remains that his existence threatens that of the rest of our people."

"Exactly, if we let him live, we could easily come to regret that decision."

"I understand that, but still..."

"Ahem...mind if I chime in here? If you’re going to imprison me for decades or centuries or however long, I’d much prefer it if you just executed me instead, I’d rather not be caged like an animal. There’s no undoing the past, and no matter what happens, my grudge against this nation will never fade. So, I regret none of my actions, my only regret is my own failure. freeωebnovēl.c૦m

I prepared for so long to exact my revenge, and in the end, I failed. And I’d rather not be made to live with that failure. It was my sole purpose, my reason for living...and now that I’ve failed, I no longer have a reason to live, so just kill me and be done with it," Shrugged Leptar bitterly, before adding as he glanced at Raven, "The humans, and you in particular, you completely and utterly ruined everything, you know.

Seriously, do you have any idea how long I planned this out? The flames of my rage and hatred have been burning for longer than any of you have even been alive for! But, then, I suppose it was my fault for getting greedy...I should have just waited till you left before making my move. But with the immense power in my hands, I suppose I got too cocky, I was convinced that you humans wouldn’t be able to make a difference in the outcome.

But, as the current turn of events displays, I was sorely mistaken, a mistake that has cost me dearly. I thought that if I killed all of you alongside the Grand Warriors and Elders, then surely your nation would declare war on Sylph and wipe it off the face of the map. And yet, I was conflicted...I held no grudge against you humans, I had no reason to get you involved. I suppose this won’t really mean much, but I do apologize for the two humans I killed."

"You’re right, that apology is meaningless, you killed two of our comrades in cold blood, no amount of apologies will ever make up for that," Responded Jules icily.

"Tell us, what are your thoughts on what we should do with him? As just mentioned, you lost two of your Knights to his murderous rampage. And considering that you’re our guests, it is unacceptable that we allowed that to happen. Therefore, I believe you should also have a say in his fate," Suggested one of the Elders.

"While I do sympathize with what he endured in the past, I cannot forgive him for what he’s done. Honestly, I’m conflicted...the anger I feel tells me that we should just kill him and be done with it. But that’s exactly what he wants, he said he’d rather be killed than imprisoned, and it certainly didn’t seem like that was a bluff. Tell me, how effective are those handcuffs?" Inquired Jules, as she glanced coldly at Leptar.

"In theory, they should be flawless. They’re designed to keep the wearer’s Mana and stamina immensely low, and we’ve reinforced them with durability enchantments. Even at his full strength, it would be far from easy to break free of them, and effectively impossible in his weakened state," Answered one of the Elders.

"Our prisons are also heavily reinforced with enchantments, no one has ever escaped. We also utilize a powerful tranquilizing mist in case any prisoners do manage to escape, though like I said, that’s never happened before, so we’ve never actually needed to use that mist."

"I see...in that case, I say we lock him up for the rest of his life. Being imprisoned for several centuries sounds like a fate worse than death, if you ask me," Suggested Jules, after taking a moment to mull it over.

The Elders took a moment to discuss it, a few of them still on the fence, but after debating the matter more thoroughly, they eventually settled on Jules’s suggestion.

"Very well, then, it is decided. For the crimes he’s committed against the nation of Sylph, as well as against our guests from the Kingdom of Persona, the individual known as Leptar will be sentenced to lifelong imprisonment!" Declared one of the Elders.

"Come on...just kill me," Groaned Leptar in dismay.

"If you want to die that badly, go ahead and bite off your own tongue and be done with it," Remarked Jules icily, as a pair of First Stage Warriors grabbed Leptar’s arms and lifted him up, before dragging him away.

"I suppose I can keep that option in reserve. If the prison is really as inescapable as implied, I just might do that," Laughed Leptar, stifling a yawn as he struggled to stay standing, thinking to himself, "Well, this ended quite poorly for me. I wonder...will I ever get another chance, or am I doomed to rot in prison for the rest of my life? I suppose I’ll find out soon enough..."

"It’s finally over," One of the Elders sighed in relief, before adding as he glanced at Jules, "We’ve kept you waiting long enough, so I say we finalize the details of the alliance between our nations and make it official."

"Very well, that’s fine by me," She nodded with a smile, before adding as she glanced around at the others and noticed the fatigued looks on their faces, especially Raven’s, "I’ll take care of this, why don’t the rest of you go get some rest?"

"Sounds good, I’ll take you up on that offer, I’m really struggling to keep myself awake here," Grinned Aster sheepishly.

"Yeah, thanks, Commander," Nodded Raven gratefully.

"Of course. You all fought hard out there, you’ve more than earned a break," Smiled Jules in response.