Chapter XXI: Choices

"Gino! Dale levántate que tenes que ir a la escuela hijo" (Come on, get up, you have to go to school, son). My mother's melodious and familiar voice echoed in my ears as my eyes refused to open, my hands and legs clinging to the warmth of my blankets while I tried to drift back to sleep. The comfort and heat they provided was something hard to let go of.

However, my mother, well aware of my antics and tricks, simply moved towards the window to open the blinds and let light flood into my room, forcing the brightness through my eyelids. I groaned and grumbled in complaint.

"Vamos Gino, ya sabes que es mejor que te levantes de una antes que quedarte ahí acurrucado" (Come on Gino, you know it's better to get up straight away rather than stay curled up in bed). Her voice, so warm and soothing, made me open my eyes to see her face smiling at me. Her hand gently stroked my chin, as if trying to give me the energy to get up.

"Cinco minutos más mamá..." (Five more minutes, mum...) I murmured in a hoarse and tired voice, feeling a bit odd inside when I heard it. My mother, however, just smiled at me, whispering in that motherly and calming voice, "... me gustaría que tuvieras cinco minutos más pero me temo que no tenes esa suerte..." (I'd love to give you five more minutes, but I'm afraid you're not that lucky...)

Little by little, I soon saw my mother's radiant figure, which filled me with peace and happiness, transform into something much darker. Her loving, caring eyes looked at me with concern, and before long, I was faced with a figure dressed in dark clothes, standing amidst a yellowish light that cast its shadow, forcing me to squint.

"Tzzzzzs" Big mistake. At that moment, I felt a terrible pain in my eye sockets and all over my head. But that pain was only a fraction of it, because as I managed to wake up, a tidal wave of agony crashed through my entire being. A strangled scream of pure torment tried to escape my lungs, as every nerve in my body sent signals of pain from the tips of my toes to the very roots of my hair.

"I didn't think the beating would make you confuse me with your mum; I think this is a new record. Ha." My ears picked up the raspy, deep voice of the person in front of me, and my mind, nearly shattered and broken from the pain, recognised that it was Flokk.

"W-what are you going to do to me?" I stammered with great difficulty, closing one eye and using the other to try and look at Flokk, struggling not to scream as I felt the inside of my skull twisting and throbbing with pain.

I knew I was screwed, that things were only going to get worse from here. I just wanted to know what to expect, to prepare myself, to force myself to endure it and later try to find a way out of this nightmare.

Feeling a sharp pain in my scalp, I soon felt my head being pulled upwards. With my one open eye, I saw Flokk's covered face. "I'm going to make sure you understand your place, Gino, that's what I'm going to do."

After saying that, he let go of my head, and it fell limply. The movement caused my body to jerk, and I writhed in pain as the muscles in my chest slowly tore from the strain of supporting my weight on the hooks that pierced through my skin, flesh, muscles, and ligaments.

"Oooohhgg G-God" I groaned gutturally from the sheer pain, unable even to clench my teeth, as my entire jaw seemed to have been shattered, sending throbbing signals to my brain, amplifying the pain from the rest of my body and overwhelming me.

Soon, though, my eyes caught Flokk's hand grabbing my numb, almost paralysed left hand. He brought a metallic object close with his other hand, placing it over my index finger, just above the nail, as he began to say, "Even though we made sure you can't move your arms and hands because of the hooks, preventing your muscles from working, you're going to feel everything I do to you."

I felt my heart race as a terrible sense of dread washed over my stomach, imagining what was to come—something I never thought I'd have to endure.

I was aware, in any case, that begging and pleading for mercy would be futile; my only hope was to wait for some event or occurrence that would rescue me from this situation—like in fantasy stories, where someone swoops in at the last moment to save the day. It was either that or endure the torture I was about to face for as long as I could.

"Alright, Gino, tell me, I don't know how you've managed this or how you didn't alert anyone, but who did you steal those materials for?" Flokk began to question with his cold voice, causing me to try and swallow as I struggled to answer.

"A... nobody... I did it for myself..."

However, my answer was met only with a narrowed look from Flokk as he started to cut around my nail. "AaaaaAaaaarrrgghh!"

"Bad answer, Gino. Answer me with certainty, and I'll make sure it's all over quickly. Otherwise..." His warning was followed by another cut to my index finger, and with my one open eye, I watched as he positioned the blade beneath the nail, ready to slice it off.

Breathing was excruciating, my nasal passage likely clogged with blood and probably broken, and my mouth was so painful to move that I struggled to respond to Flokk. "I swear... the truth... I don't work for anyone... except you."

"AaaaAAAAaaaargh!" I howled in agony, my voice breaking and trailing off as I saw Flokk sever my nail the moment I answered. He lowered his voice to a threatening tone, "Do you think I'm an idiot? Do you think we don't know about your little escapades to all those abandoned buildings? That no one would wonder what you were doing in those places?"

His questions and words seemed to fuel his indignation as he positioned his tool on another finger. I couldn't help but wonder if they had truly been watching me all this time.

Though it was clear they hadn't seen the ships I could summon; otherwise, the questions and torture would have been different.

"I'll ask you again: if you refuse to tell me the truth, I'm going to remove each of your remaining nails in the slowest and most painful way possible. Understood?" Flokk leaned his face closer to mine as I laughed in impotent frustration, tears streaming down my cheeks.

"What did you do with the materials? What do they want from you for joining us?" Flokk pressed me with the same questions again, and I just wanted to scream in frustration, knowing that no matter what I said, it wouldn't be enough to satisfy whatever Flokk had in mind. I couldn't even afford the luxury of spinning a tale, not knowing how it might backfire later.

So, I was left with only the option of trying to tell a half-truth, resigned to the fact that Flokk wouldn't accept my words. "I-I told you I did it for no one... if you've been following me, you know I'm a piece of sh—AAAAAaaaaarrggj!"

Another nail was ripped from my finger, this time in a much slower and more agonising manner. My hand trembled despite the hook tearing through the muscles of my chest, and from the corner of my eye, I saw what looked like a nerve being torn apart.

I wanted the pain to stop, to end this nightmare. For a moment, I even considered summoning one of the ships I'd earned for completing the tutorial to crush us both and put an end to it all.

However, I endured the pain and agony as Flokk continued to rip off the nails from my left hand, asking the same questions again and again.

When he turned to my other hand and began the same process, I couldn't grasp his questions; only agony filled my mind as my body trembled involuntarily. I had no tears left to cry, no voice to scream—only exhausted, choked moans escaping my throat, which burned and stung with pain.

"...It seems you're not lying. Hmm, I wonder if Beatrix has anything to do with all this?" My ears finally registered some of Flokk's words, prompting me to open my eyes and plead with him, "S-she has nothing to do with this... please... don't hurt her."

Bending down to look me directly in the eye, Flokk let out a mocking laugh as he said, "Oh, well, finally you say something other than your yelps of a wounded dog." Then, grabbing a strange tool with a circle in the middle, he took one of my bloodied, trembling hands and inserted a finger into the ring.

Staring at me intently, Flokk began to apply pressure with his tool, slowly tightening the grip around my finger trapped in the device. "Look closely now, Gino, because what you're about to feel is the punishment for daring to tarnish the honour of a noble house. This is what you get for being incompetent and stupid. Remember this pain well."

His final words echoed in my mind with a powerful resonance as he tore my entire finger off, making me unleash a high-pitched, ragged scream as I felt bone, flesh and skin being ripped away. "AAAAAAAaaaaaaAaaaaAaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGUUUUUHKJ!"

DING

For a brief moment, I thought I heard a bell ringing in my mind, but I didn't have the capacity to focus on it.

I felt the tendon tear and snap, followed by the phalanx dislocating and being pulled from my knuckles. The agony was unlike anything I had ever experienced in my life, a pain that would resonate forever in my memory.

Yet, to my dismay, my torment did not end there, as Flokk continued with the rest of the fingers on my hand, repeating the same mantra over and over in his cold, grave voice. "This pain, this torture, is due to your incompetence. This is the price of stupidity."

However, he made a mistake; after a while, my brain became overwhelmed by the sheer amount of pain he inflicted on me. My voice was lost among the screams, my vocal cords nearly tearing apart. My body ceased to convulse and struggle against the hooks, falling limp as it only released occasional spasms from time to time.

I could only stare at Flokk, performing his butcher's work as I watched my blood flow from where my fingers should had been. I had no idea what kept me awake and resisting the seductive whispers of sleep, urging me to give in. To let myself rest forever.

When Flokk noticed I was no longer reacting to the torture inflicted by his cold hands, that the blood I had lost had dulled my senses, he stopped and began to clean his hands while I murmured in almost a whisper.

"You're going to... pay for this... you son of a thousand times fucked bitch... I'm going to make you suffer... a hundredfold more than what you did today... I'll ensure... to see... how the demons of... the Warp... consume your soul... and torment you... for all eternity... you son of a whore..." I murmured those words with a delirious smile, not caring if Flokk understood them.

"Well, now that you've run out of fingers on your hand to count your chances, which is none, ha ha! I hope you understand that you have a debt to pay, Gino." Flokk began, moving towards the wall of the room. The smooth, flat surface made me momentarily wonder what lay there.

To my horror, I soon realised why he moved towards it and what exactly was on that wall—or rather, what was on the other side.

He pressed a switch, and soon a light illuminated beyond that wall. I discovered it was a kind of glass, revealing Beatrix's battered figure, watching me with tear-filled, red eyes as she appeared crucified against a vertical surface.

"No, no, no. Please, no." I uttered between desperate pleas, my voice weary.

Though she seemed to be screaming something, her words did not reach the room where I was; only Flokk's voice echoed, "Oh yes, Gino. You know? Generally, it's easy for us here at the Guild to ensure our workers do as they're told; we simply need to guarantee that their families are under our care to motivate them to fulfil their duties. However, you've been a more difficult case. After all, we had no way of ensuring that... you would do what we asked. You had no family, friends, or anything that tethered you to us. So we had to devise a plan to make you and another worker in your position comply, and it seems to have worked well, don't you think?"

His words hammered into my mind like a mallet as a dreadful feeling settled over me.

"It's amusing, really, because it seems this always works. Relationships and friendships are the greatest motivators to ensure everyone complies with our orders. Even those who have no ties to this world tend to fall for such a simple trick." He said with a mocking tone, letting out a slight laugh.

I, on my part, watched Beatrix, praying that what my battered mind feared was not true.

And almost as if he knew what I was thinking, Flokk clarified, "Don't worry, we didn't order anyone to approach you. Whatever relationship you have with that girl is real; after all, what suits us best is that you both share something genuine and tangible. Heh."

"What do you want?" I finally asked, my agitation rising as my exhausted and agonising body struggled to utter the question.

Turning his back to me and gazing at Beatrix's figure behind the glass, Flokk replied, "You must choose how you wish to pay off the debt you owe us, Gino." He turned to face me, and in his eyes, I saw a ruthless glint as he continued, "I present you with the decision of how you want this to proceed."

Opening his hands, he began to lay out his options before me, and with immense effort, I strained to hear his words clearly as my mind and reasoning hung by a thread. "On one hand, you have the option to accept becoming a slave to the Guild, obeying and complying with all our orders and tasks without complaint or protest."

I merely looked at him, my fate hanging in the balance as I felt utterly powerless before Flokk, who played the role of butcher and judge simultaneously.

"Your other option is to become a servitor. It might not be the best choice, but at least for several decades, you will serve us and pay off your debt."

Gesturing towards Beatrix's figure, he added, "And finally, your last option is to maintain your current state, working for us, albeit under greater scrutiny, at the cost of your friend here bearing the brunt of your debt. What would become of her? I can't say for certain, but I can see she could be of eventual use in the pleasure district."

I felt fury and rage welling up within me, as if molten lava coursed through every inch of my body, threatening to erupt like a dormant volcano. My weary body writhed as I struggled against the hook, an atrocious sound echoing from my torn pectoral muscles. My hands, now devoid of fingers and soaked in blood, attempted to grasp Flokk, yearning to smash his face into the ground.

In that moment, as rage consumed my mind and all I wanted was to slam Flokk's face into the floor, to laugh at his words and flee from Vandalor, I felt everything around me tremble while the light started tilting as I finally saw a reaction from Flokk.

He quickly raised his eyebrows, lowered his hands, and pointed the weapon at my head, saying, "Calm down, or this ends here."

Snarling like a rabid animal, I retorted, "The best thing you can do is kill me now, you bastard. The moment I escape this, I'll make sure you beg me to do it."

To my frustration and helplessness, Flokk only laughed at my words as he lowered his weapon.

With a few simple words, he made my bravado evaporate as he said, "If you don't give me an answer the next time you open your mouth, I'll ensure you witness that girl endure a torture far worse than yours, only to turn her into a pleasure servitor. You will watch, without any limbs and unable to speak, as she serves whomever we please for the rest of your miserable days. Do you understand?" He voiced the last questions in slow, cold rhythm.

In that moment, in that almost eternal instant when my brain comprehended Flokk's threat and promise, I found myself silently begging to any god, being, or entity that could hear me. I wished for anything to happen. Window after window in the system opened as I desperately tried to find a way out.

But nothing happened; there was no divine intervention to save me. There was no awakening of my psychic powers. No fool stepped forward to take the bullets in the chest as I once had in the past.

In that moment, defeated and resigned, I understood that my life in this world would not resemble those isekai stories where everything unfolds according to the protagonist's desires. I was not that character. No one but me could rescue myself from the terrible fate that awaited me from now on.

So, head bowed and accepting that nothing was within my power to change, I resigned myself to my temporary fate. I swallowed the bitterness, rage, and helplessness, but I kept the flame of vengeance burning steadily.

"I... accept becoming a slave. Please, don't harm Beatrix." I nearly bit my tongue and lips as I spoke those words, drawing on the last reserves of my strength while staring at the ground, hearing Flokk's voice reply with a satisfied tone, "Very well, Gino, at last, we understand each other."

Soon, I felt my body descending from the hooks as I fell to my knees, hearing movement around me. I simply closed my eyes and withdrew into my own world, defeated, ashamed, and humiliated.

It seemed my torture had come to an end, and a dark chapter of my life was about to begin.

"Oh, right, I almost forgot..." Flokk's voice said. Perhaps in that moment, I should have looked up once more to avert what happened next.

ZING!

With a clean cut, he severed both my hands.