Chapter 83: The Time for a Contract Has Come
Underground Prison.
"We… found the notes Eren's father left," Armin's voice was low and heavy. He paused, as if gathering his thoughts, or perhaps simply unburdening himself to her.
"We learned about the world outside the Walls… about Marley… and about the Eldians. We learned that we are… 'devils.'"
"Annie, was it because you knew all this? Is that why you had to break our Walls? Why you had to… kill so many of us? Was it to complete the mission Marley gave you?"
He didn't press her for a motive. It didn't seem to matter as much anymore. Or perhaps, in his heart, he already had the answer. He buried his face in his knees, his shoulders shaking slightly.
Sealed in her crystal, Annie couldn't move or respond. But the sounds from the outside—Armin's whispers, Hitch's earlier chatter—penetrated the hard crystal wall and reached her consciousness.
Bertolt… is dead.
The comrade who had always followed quietly behind Reiner, but who would step up at critical moments. Was he… eaten too? Just like Marcel. Another one gone.
Dad… Her only goal, her only thought. The road home seemed even more distant, more hopeless now.
The truth… so they know the so-called truth now. And what good does it do? It's just trading one cage for another, much larger one. A cage called 'the world.' In the end, aren't we all just struggling desperately in the torrent of fate? Or, like me, have we just chosen to go with the flow? All I ever wanted… was for someone who just goes with the flow to be seen as a person, too.
Eren was told he couldn't possibly win against the Titans, yet he still chose to fight to the death. Did I ever envy him? Maybe. When fate forced me to kill Marco… did I, for just a moment, want to fight back like Eren, regardless of the consequences? Maybe for just that one instant.
Armin… She listened to the familiar voice outside, filled with his unique brand of pain and confusion. It's you again. Just like back then on the Wall, when you stood up to the cannons that were aimed at Eren. You always look so weak, yet you can summon a courage and a brilliant mind that are almost blinding to me. Perhaps… that strange feeling I had for you started back then.
And now, even though you know you'll get no reply, you still come to see me, to talk to me. Maybe, in this long, cold imprisonment, your voice is the only proof that I still… exist.
But that "existence" was, in itself, an endless torture. Deep in her consciousness, there was only a suffocating weariness and sorrow, and a deep longing for her father, all flowing silently. Everything was sealed within this hopelessly hard crystal.
And in a dark corner of the cell, a pair of red eyes calmly watched it all unfold.
…
Elsewhere, in a laboratory.
The dim, yellow light of an oil lamp barely illuminated the messy desktop. Hange was slumped over the table, surrounded by piles of hastily scribbled notes and chaotic sketches. Her hair was a mess, and her eyes were bloodshot, yet they still shone with a strange light—a mixture of excitement, confusion, and undeniable exhaustion.
The notes were filled with distorted sketches of Titans, next to which were casualty figures from the battle to retake Wall Maria, supply consumption data, and some completely different drawings: the general shape of a Soul Gem, and sketches of the outfits Eren and Levi wore after their transformation. There were even abstract lines representing energy beams and afterimages of speed.
Her gaze jumped back and forth between her old notes on the known properties of Titan powers and these new records describing the strange phenomenon of "magic."
"Completely different… this healing speed is just…" she muttered, her finger tracing the words describing the recovery of Armin and Erwin. "It's not Titan regeneration at all… Could it be… time reversal? Or a reconstruction on a material level?"
"And that power that appears from nowhere… the amplification of speed and strength… and those energy attacks… what's the principle behind them? Where does the energy come from? That stone on their chests—is it really just a decoration, or is it…"
The more she thought, the more her brow furrowed. All of this was far beyond her existing knowledge, beyond even her wildest scientific theories. It was as if a myth from ancient times had suddenly crashed into their cruel reality.
Her gaze finally landed on a report detailing the hardness test of Annie's crystal. The conclusion: with their current technology, it was impossible to even scratch it. Indestructible.
Hange ran a hand through her hair in frustration. The images of Levi and Eren slicing through stone walls and shooting energy beams from their fingertips flashed through her mind. That… "magic." Could that incredible destructive power break through Annie's crystal?
…
Deep underground.
Cold and damp. The faint light from the crystal was the only source of illumination, outlining the cell and the hazy, peaceful face of its prisoner.
"Annie." Hange's voice broke the silence. She was giving her final ultimatum. She stood before the crystal, flanked by a grim-faced Levi and a nervous-looking Eren. "This is your last chance," Hange's voice echoed in the empty space. "Release the hardening yourself. Otherwise, we'll have to take drastic measures."
Drastic measures? Sealed in the crystal, Annie's consciousness remained still. Here we go again. Haven't they tried this a dozen times already? It's just another futile attempt. She "looked" indifferently at the blurry figures outside, feeling nothing. Do what you want. The result will be the same.
…
Meanwhile, Armin sat at a table, his hands buried deep in his hair. Spread out before him were scattered intelligence analyses on the "Warriors" and the Marleyan Empire, as well as an operational summary for a plan to forcibly break Annie's crystal hardening.
The plan was to be executed today.
His heart seized, a suffocating pain spreading through him. Annie. The girl who had, during their trainee days, shown fleeting moments of kindness, yet had personally pushed countless comrades into the depths of hell. She had betrayed them. She had killed so many of their friends.
But… his mind couldn't help but conjure up the rare expressions she would sometimes make, so different from her usual coldness, so endearingly awkward. He knew that Annie… was actually kind. She knew how dangerous the Survey Corps was, which was why she didn't want them to join. She knew that if they did, they would inevitably be forced to kill each other. Their respective positions had determined everything from the start.
And yet, she had spared his life back then. And he, in turn, had used her trust in him to set a trap and capture her. Even though she had sensed his intentions, she had still chosen to believe him, probably because she wanted to be the "good person" in his eyes.
After so many of his comrades had died, he should hate her. But human emotions don't always follow what they "should" be. He had always held a vague affection for her, something he might not have even wanted to admit to himself.
From a "rational" standpoint, they had to take the power of the Female Titan from Annie now. Paradis Island was surrounded by enemies, and her power was an indispensable strategic weapon. Taking it and giving it to an absolutely loyal soldier was, at this point, the logical choice. Just like what they did with Bertolt. It was cruel, but necessary.
But the thought of Annie suffering the same fate as Bertolt—being eaten alive by a mindless Pure Titan—made Armin's stomach churn.
No!
He shot his head up, his eyes filled with a violent, internal struggle. There has to be… another way! We know the truth of the world now, don't we? We know about the vast world outside the Walls! Annie must have been forced to do what she did! Maybe… maybe we can talk to her? Get her to tell us more about Marley?
But even if she did cooperate, high command would never give up the Female Titan power that was right within their grasp.
I have to… I have to find a solution that works for everyone! A way to neutralize the threat Annie poses, while also keeping her alive, and getting that vital intelligence!
And in the corner of the room, Kyubey, who had been silently watching it all, knew.
The time for a contract had finally come.
[Non-Human Chat Group]
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