kept
Explanation
This comic shows a knight confronting what appears to be a demon or devil trapped behind some kind of barrier or cage. The knight declares: "You wouldn't kill our enemies?" The demon responds with a "GASP!"
The demon then explains: "Because we are beneath your contempt? Killing us would lower you in your own eyes?" The knight's actual answer is far less noble: "We will keep you alive but for cruelty. You will degrade. On your knees, for all body and chattel." In the final panel, a small figure (possibly a prisoner or minion) observes: "Literally no one will remember this part."
The comic subverts the classic fantasy trope of the merciful hero who spares the villain. In traditional stories, when the hero refuses to kill the defeated enemy, it's presented as a noble act of mercy -- the hero is "above" killing. The demon initially assumes this is what's happening and is almost flattered by the perceived moral highroad. But the knight's actual motivation is far darker: he's keeping the enemy alive specifically to inflict ongoing cruelty and degradation, which is arguably worse than killing. The final panel's comment that "no one will remember this part" is a meta-joke about how history and storytelling tend to sanitize these details -- the tale will be retold as "the noble knight who showed mercy" rather than "the knight who kept prisoners for sadistic purposes."