The Divine Hunter
chapter-549

The plaza of Temple Island was a sacred place where believers and pilgrims exchanged their experience with the religion, but now the plaza was filled with roars and shouts of the citizens filling it.

The people's eyes were set to the wooden stake in the center of the plaza. More precisely, they were staring at the bizarre, dwarfish creature tied to the stake. Its hands and feet were cuffed in silver fetters, its wrinkly face pale as a cloud, and its head hung low, its face out of the public eye.

Firewood piled underneath it like a small hill. Men in black shirts and black hats and equipped with lamia whips were splashing oil onto the firewood.

A wizened man with white hair scanned the great crowd standing beyond the guards. He was in a white shirt with red sleeves, and crimson stripes adorned his collar. A robe that blazed like the sun was draped over his clothes.

There were more than two thousand people in the plaza, and everyone from peasants, to merchants, to nobles, and even to senators, were there. Non-humans like elves, dwarves, and half-elves were around too, and they were segregated. The elves stood with their kind, including the impure ones. Many of them were people who'd never appeared in the city before.

Cleaver's men, muscular dwarves who were armed to the teeth, huddled close around their brethren, and a few halflings stood with them. They were creatures built like dwarves but had a young-looking face instead.

The non-humans stayed away from the humans, and the opposite was true as well. The humans were split into little cliques as well, with the nobles looking at the merchants with disdain. Armed mercenaries and soldiers stood in their own group, and peasants were gathered in the outer ring of the plaza despite them being the biggest group.

"There is one thing I'd like to announce, citizens." The hierarch spoke, his voice wizened, but it penetrated the crowd easily. The cacophony stopped. "The real Chappelle, our respected commissioner of security, was brutally murdered by this evil doppler two years ago. This creature has been assuming his position, usurping the power of the commissioner for itself, committing countless sins in our city.

The crowd was in an uproar. The merchants were engaged in hushed discussions, while peasants had anger flaring in their eyes. They’d heard news of dopplers. Unsavory ones, and they despised dopplers for their stealing of someone's identity. They looked around for something to throw at the doppler.

Some of the smarter ones looked at the creature calmly as they came up with their own conclusions. They could see that Novigrad was becoming better over the last two years. That was not something an evil creature would do.

Schirru was hidden amongst the crowd. He patted the woman's shivering shoulder and gave her a reassuring look.

Grimm and Cahir looked shocked. This was their first time seeing a doppler, and this one took on the position of commissioner for two years before it was discovered. It was a great oversight by the church. The knight tried to converse with a noble. He looked like a reasonable man.

"What'd that doppler do to deserve this?"

"Ah, hello, sir." The nobleman stroked his beard and shook his head. "It hasn't committed any crimes. Or nothing I've heard of, that is. Unless you count striking down human traffickers and criminals as a crime, of course. Perhaps its only sin is that it's a doppler, and the church has always been on the hunt for creatures like it."

Grimm frowned.

"But by the grace of the Eternal Fire, we have finally torn its mask away before it could do any more harm!" Cyrus continued.

Jiji looked at the Hierarch numbly.

"Bear witness, citizens. It is due to my oversight and mistake that this animal has lived on for two years longer than it should’ve." Cyrus had a look of regret on his face. "But praise the Eternal Fire, it hasn't done any harm big enough to ruin the city, and now the undying flames shall purge this evil that has obscured the path of its believers."

The believers put their hands in prayers and hung their heads low.

Cyrus held up the gleaming silver torch hanging before his chest and began his judgment.

"Bear witness. Every wrinkle on the face of this grotesque, blasphemous creature is a symbol. A symbol of all the lives it has stolen."

"Burn it!" the crowd roared.

Jiji's eyes roved through the crowd. He heaved a sigh, the light in its eyes dimming. He spent two years doing everything he could for the people, and they wanted him dead in exchange.

"Hierarch!" A burly, red-faced blacksmith with an apron around him spoke from the crowd. He'd been observing the creature, but unlike the agitated peasants, there was pity in his eyes. "You have been pinning generalized sins on the creature, but do you have any details? What crimes has it committed besides taking Chappelle's place? And do you have any witnesses who saw it kill Chappelle?"

"Darve, the Hierarch himself baptized you on the day you were born, and now you're doubting him?" A towering guard grabbed his blade and approached the blacksmith.

"I am not doubting him. I just want the truth." The blacksmith spat on the ground and wiped his sweaty hands on his apron. He raised his voice. "As a Novigradian, I believe I should voice my concern. Our city has been doing better over the last two years. Take my shop for example. If I left a bucket out at night, it would've been stolen before the next day even came, but nobody's stealing my stuff now. And business has been well. I had to hire a couple of apprentices, and even then, we're still busy. It's proof that we're seeing more tourists now. Think about it. Would people really flock to a city with a bad reputation?"

Everyone stared down and started musing over Darve's words.

"Darve's right." A skeletal peasant spoke. "All my poor Tina wanted was to play in the fields, and she was almost trafficked off to Skellige so those pirates could marry her. But Chappelle never gave up on the search, and he saved my Tina. She's at home feeding the chickens now. If the doppler is evil, why'd he help me then?"

Jiji heaved a sigh of relief. He was glad that at least some of these people had a mind of their own.

"Because the creature is a cunning one." Cyrus spoke, his voice convincing. "If it'd done nothing but evil, I would've seen through its ruse and taken it down, but it's a clever saboteur. A wily shapeshifting creature. It pretends to be an ally of justice and blind you to its real goal. Compared to the evil it did, its acts of justice are nothing."

Cyrus paused for a moment and looked at the crowd. One-third of them were non-humans. If he were to rile up tension between humans and non-humans right now, it would end in a disaster. He'd have to take it slow with the purge of these non-humans. First, the doppler must die.

"Its biggest sin is that it conspired with the mutants. They've built a secret laboratory in the alder woods right beyond the walls of Novigrad."

Cyrus dragged up the details of the orphanage Vilgefortz told him, and he circled the stake. "That place claims to be an orphanage, but it is a mask. The truth is, it is a laboratory where witchers conduct evil experiments in a bid to create their kind en masse. There are already children who'd fallen prey to their experiments. They have eyes like a beast's, changed into filthy mutants. Should this doppler keep its position, its accomplices would use the orphanage as a base to quickly expand their influence, turning this whole city into mutants."

Terrified gasps came from the crowd.

"How terrifying." Cahir shook his head. "The emperor has chased off all the witchers in the South. Are all witchers in the North as evil as he claims?"

"No." Grim shook his head. He was reminded of the White Wolf. The one who had a fair duel with him in Cintra. "I promise the Hierarch is only lying. He's speaking from his deep prejudice against the witchers."

"Hierarch!" A bard spoke up, the look on his face solemn. As if he were professing the truth, he said, "Witchers are not as evil as you make them to be. They have saved countless people from the jaws of evil monsters, ridding this world of man-eating creatures."

"But their fees are outrageous!" someone argued.

"Your lives are worth more than the money you pay!"

Some people were defending the witchers. Judging from their attire, those people were regulars of the ballroom.

"They lifted the curse of Princess Adda of Vizima. They cleaned Novigrad's sewers of its monster infestation, and they helped Princess Ciri escape the nymphs of Brokilon."

The citizens quieted down. The bard's work was bearing fruit. Listening to the odes to witchers planted a seed within the citizens' minds, and they were led to think that witchers were benefactors and kind souls.

Cyrus thumped his chest, his right hand shaking uncontrollably. "You've been fooled by the bards of the ballroom! They are sponsored by the witchers! They made those odes to elevate their image, and you fell for their tricks! Think, citizens! Not everything the bards say is the truth! Would you believe it if they claim that the witchers are the creators of this world?"

The people quickly shook their heads.

"Go around and ask the people of any other city their opinion on the witchers. They'll tell you a different story than what the bards are saying. Anyone in any hamlet can at least recount one violent act done by these mutants. They are unforgivable!"

Cahir muttered to himself, "The Hierarch knows how to rile up the people."

"Hierarch!" A knight spoke up. He was tall, muscular, and had a head of golden hair. His smile was as warm as the first rays of sunshine, and the people around him felt nothing but affection for him. "Then if we play by your rules and prove that witchers are no evil beings, does that mean the dopplers who lent them its assistance is a kind soul as well?"

"They even got to you? But you're a knight! There is no possible way that these witchers are not evil." The Hierarch turned his attention to Grimm. "Once we cleanse this creature, we shall depart for the outskirts and apprehend the accursed witchers. This doppler possesses a bizarre ability. Once we take away our silver items, it can shapeshift into any person and read their memories. All memories. And then it'll take over your home, rape your wives, kill your husbands, and abuse your children. You're not exempt either, knight."

That spooked more than a few people, and someone shouted, "Burn it down!"

Grimm looked solemn. He stared at the doppler, his eyes glinting, and he held his sword tight.

"Dopplers are no creation of any gods. Their existence must not be allowed! It must die!" the hierarch bellowed, and he gave one of the guards a look. The very same guard who had been with Chappelle all this time.

The guard hesitated.

"Citizens!" Jiji suddenly spoke, his eyes roving across the people, his voice croaking and breaking. "I do not deny the allegations of impersonation, but I have done nothing to harm the people of this city. I have never taken any bribes or abused my power. I did everything I could to strike down crimes and the human trafficking ring all so we could have a better city. I am sure you know that very well. I swear to the Eternal Fire that I meant no harm." The doppler looked devout.

The citizens didn't know Jiji could talk, much less articulate his thoughts well. Some of the citizens hung their heads low when Jiji looked at them, while some glared at him.

"You lie, heretic!" Cyrus swung his staff. His eyes were filled with contempt, and he shrilly castigated, "You have no right to be a believer. Your oath is nothing but blasphemy to the Eternal Fire."

The people knew why. The church of Eternal Fire had been hunting down dopplers all this while. They were sworn enemies.

"Hierarch, the Eternal Fire is a symbol of salvation. A beacon of light for those stranded in the dark. All lives are equal to it. That's what the scriptures wrote. And I am a living thing as well, am I not?" Jiji asked.

Cyrus' face fell.

"So why am I judged? Because of the powers I was born with? Even when I've never abused my powers?" Jiji posed that question to everyone present. "Just because of your prejudice and unfounded worries, you condemn me to death? Even when I've done nothing wrong?"

A moment of silence fell upon the crowd. The demihumans who had also suffered discrimination from the humans sympathized with the doppler.

A dwarf with a warhammer stroked his beard. "If you claim to be the speaker of truth, then everyone present would be a potential criminal from the moment they were born. In that case, are you suggesting that we burn down every single infant to cut down crimes?"

His voice traveled far.

"Burn that doppler! Don't let it speak!" some people roared, hiding their embarrassment with fury.

"Do it!" Cyrus glared at the guard.

Jiji suddenly smiled at the people, but there were tears in his eyes. He knew death was coming for him, and he welcomed it like an old friend. "Do it, K'dari," he told the guard. Jiji scanned the crowd calmly, and he spoke once more, his voice traveling across the plaza. "Burn me. If my death is what it takes to calm the people, then I shall gladly give my life in the name of the Eternal Fire. I shall end their worries once and for all," he announced.

"I shall be the beacon that leads the people, and I have but one wish. Once I am burned, I would like for the people of Novigrad to put aside their suspicion and doubts about their fellow humans and non-humans. Yes, even witchers too. I wish for nothing but a peaceful coexistence in the great city of Novigrad."

A smile cracked the lips of the doppler, and his smile shone like the sun. "If I can have my wish fulfilled, then I shall gladly give up my life."

K'dari struggled a little, and he sighed. Cyrus gave another guard a look, and he tossed the torch at Jiji. The flames snaked across the oil and formed a ring of fire underneath Jiji. The blazing light shone upon the creature's face. He was unafraid, and he was smiling at the people, but the smile was contorted by the twisted air.

***

For a moment, everyone in the plaza fell silent. They stared at the burning, their feelings conflicted. The only sound left was the crackling of the fire.

Grimm grinned at his comrade, and he held his sword, determination flaring in his eyes. "Get ready, comrade. Time to carry out our duty as knights."

And then something whizzed through the air.

Something leapt into the pile of burning firewood, and it exploded. Firewood flew everywhere, and splinters rained onto the people.

The air was lit up by countless sparks, as if the church were holding a firework show.

Some of the wood fell onto the guards standing around, and they screamed in pain, for the wood was still burning. Some fell into the crowd, smoke billowing from them, and it stirred up chaos.

One merchant, bless his soul, was knocked out by the wood.

Cyrus, who stood beside the mountainous pile of wood, was slammed backward by a violent gush of air. He fell with a howl, and he tried to get up, but he couldn't, not even when he was trying his hardest until his face turned blue.

The wood eventually settled down, and the embers died out. Some semblance of order returned to the plaza, and the light disappeared. The stake was the only thing standing in the center of the plaza.

Jiji was grimy and sooty from the flames and heat, and his already thin hair was burned off completely, though he did not sustain any further injuries. His mind was straight, his body was healthy, and he was staring ahead.

The crowd looked at him silently, but they were met with a cloaked silhouette standing before the doppler. A pair of swords jutted from his back, and the viper pendant hanging before his chest fluttered in the wind.

The stranger was young, and his eyes were unique shades of gold and silver, though they glinted coldly with fury. He turned to Cyrus, who was getting up with the help of his guard.

"Hierarch Cyrus Engelkind Hemmelfart. You think you have the right to pass judgment on my friend and all of witcherkind? Very well, you have an audience. Regale me with my sins, then. All of them. I. Beg. You."

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