The forest went silent.
Not the peaceful kind of silence—
but the kind that presses against your ears, forcing you to hear your own heartbeat.
"You're the replacement."
Those words echoed again and again inside my skull.
Armin stood frozen beside me, fingers gripping my sleeve so tightly they hurt.
"T-That's not true," he said, voice shaking but defiant.
"You don't know anything about him!"
The stranger didn't react to Armin's outburst.
His eyes never left mine.
"They always say that at first," he replied calmly.
"Denial is kinder than the truth."
My throat felt like it was closing.
"Explain," I forced out.
"What do you mean… replacement?"
The man exhaled slowly, as if weighing how much he was allowed to say.
"My name is Rowan," he said at last.
"I was a scout. Not officially. Not on paper."
Unofficial.
Unrecorded.
My chest tightened.
Rowan crouched near the fallen log, resting his forearms on his knees.
"There was supposed to be a Titan-shifter born into this era," he continued.
"Not Eren. Someone else. Someone who would awaken before Wall Maria fell."
Armin's eyes widened.
"A… hidden shifter?"
Rowan nodded once.
"He was meant to die protecting a small village near the southern trade route. His death would ignite events earlier than planned."
My heart began to race.
"Planned by who?" I whispered.
Rowan's jaw tightened.
"By the story itself."
The System flickered violently in my vision.
[ERROR: Narrative Interference Detected]
[Unauthorized Information Access]
Rowan noticed my reaction immediately.
"You can see it, can't you?" he asked quietly.
"That thing watching us."
I flinched.
Armin looked between us.
"See what?"
I shook my head, breath uneven.
Rowan continued.
"The original shifter died too early," he said.
"Before his Titan could properly bind to this world."
My hands trembled.
"So the world…"
I swallowed.
"…picked someone else."
Rowan met my gaze.
"It reached beyond itself."
My blood ran cold.
"To you."
Armin spun toward me.
"Junta… that's impossible. You're human. You're—"
"I was," I whispered.
The words slipped out before I could stop them.
Armin's breath hitched.
Rowan spoke again, voice steady.
"When the narrative broke, a gap appeared. An empty role. The world cannot tolerate missing pieces."
My chest burned.
"So it took me," I said.
"Pulled me in. Gave me a Titan."
Rowan nodded.
"And a System," he added.
My knees nearly buckled.
"You know about that too?"
"I know more than I wish I did," Rowan replied.
"I was assigned to monitor anomalies—people who don't belong."
Armin stepped closer to me, shaking.
"Junta… tell me this isn't true."
I wanted to lie.
God, I wanted to lie.
But I couldn't.
"…I don't belong here," I said quietly.
"I wasn't born in this world."
Armin's face went pale.
"You… you're saying you're from outside?"
I nodded once.
Tears blurred my vision.
"I didn't ask for this. I didn't choose it."
Armin's hands trembled.
Then—
to my surprise—
He grabbed my collar.
"Then that means you're trying harder than anyone else here!" he shouted, voice breaking.
"You didn't grow up here, you didn't know the rules—and you're still fighting not to hurt anyone!"
Rowan watched silently.
Armin pressed his forehead against my chest, breathing hard.
"I don't care where you're from," he whispered.
"You're still you."
My chest ached so badly it felt like it would split.
Rowan finally stood.
"You see why I followed you," he said.
"The replacement can't be allowed to spiral out of control."
I wiped my eyes.
"So what now?"
"Do you kill me?"
Rowan shook his head.
"No."
Armin stiffened.
"I protect you."
Both of us froze.
"You… what?" Armin asked.
Rowan's gaze was sharp.
"The original shifter's death caused damage. If the replacement dies too soon, the narrative collapses further."
He looked at me.
"You're too important to lose."
Important.
That word scared me more than any threat.
Rowan reached into his cloak and tossed me a small metal object.
I caught it instinctively.
A broken insignia.
Scout wings—
snapped clean down the middle.
"This belonged to the one you replaced," Rowan said.
"His name was Elias."
The name echoed inside me.
Elias.
"He never awakened fully," Rowan continued.
"But his Titan… lingered. Searching."
My fingers tightened around the insignia.
"So that Titan…" I whispered.
"It chose me?"
Rowan nodded.
"And it's still incomplete."
The System flared.
[New Information Unlocked]
[Phase Titan Origin: INHERITED — INCOMPLETE]
[Previous Host: Elias — DECEASED]
My breath shook.
Armin looked horrified.
"So Junta isn't a monster," he said fiercely.
"He's filling a hole left by someone else's death."
Rowan met Armin's eyes.
"Yes."
Silence settled between us.
Finally, Rowan spoke again.
"Kade will hunt you. The Military will hunt you. Eventually… others will too."
"Others?" I whispered.
Rowan's gaze darkened.
"Those who want the story to break."
The forest felt colder.
Rowan turned away.
"I'll buy you time," he said.
"Head north. Stay away from large populations. Avoid Eren Jaeger until your Titan stabilizes."
Armin nodded frantically.
"We'll do that."
Rowan paused, then added quietly—
"Junta."
I looked up.
"You're not the hero of this world," he said.
"But you're not its villain either."
He met my eyes.
"You're the mistake the world is trying to correct."
Then he disappeared into the trees.
---
Armin and I stood there for a long time.
Finally, Armin spoke, voice trembling but resolute.
"So… you're a replacement."
I nodded slowly.
He took a breath.
"…Then we'll just make sure you don't get erased too."
I let out a shaky laugh.
"Armin… that's not reassuring at all."
He smiled faintly.
"Good. Because surviving never is."
Above us, the moon drifted behind clouds.
And deep within my chest—
something ancient shifted,
watching,
waiting.
___
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