Currently all these do is decide if Elius and Carina die on screen or offscreen.
Merciful
Upon defeating a criminal NPC, they will enter a defeated state like Elius or Carina does. They can’t be attacked. If you speak to them, you can choose to have them arrested or interrogate them in return for letting them go. This gives you a treasure chart or a jewel or something and sets them free immediately. Arresting them gives you actual payment and fame but no chart. Interrogation doesn’t actually pay you or give fame, you just get a chart. You can’t interrogate the same guy twice. Also, if it’s a hero or marine, the arrest option becomes “kill” because you’re still doing assassination missions
If the guy is lv160 and you spare him, he gives you the chart or reward, but leaves the Bronze Sea, telling you something along the lines of “This might be a sign to retire” to keep the bounty board cycling.
If you leave the criminal while they’re in the defeated state, the navy will arrest them after 1 minute. If it’s a hero or a marine NPC, then they will bleed out after 60 seconds of you ignoring them
Ruthless
When you defeat a NPC bounty with this trait, they will enter a downed state where they can be damaged. This gives you the chance to either let them be arrested (or bleed out if it’s a hero) or kill them right now.
Probably give them some kind of shield for a few seconds to ensure that your pulsar or other multi attack doesn’t accidentally kill them if you don’t want it to
This downed state has 100HP so you can kill it easily. You can uppercut him into space, piercing shot his head, throw a javelin at him, wind snare him into the distance etc. Something other than walk up to him, fade to black, play an axe sound.
If ignore them for 60 seconds, then they will be arrested if it was a criminal you just defeated, or they will bleed out if they are a hero.
The reason to execute people is increased fame and reward from your brutal execution, but it will give you notoriety if you’re a bounty player or it will send assassins proportional to that guy’s level after you if you’re a fame player so it’s not something you can just do over and over unless you think you can fight them all off