Wall Sina—within Lord Rod Reiss's domain, a small village.
The sun was bright. Annie opened her eyes and saw Pieck already seated at the table, head turned toward the window, lost in thought.
Breakfast was set out: milk and bread.
Inside the Walls, drinking milk and eating fine bread was a luxury, but they were under Lord Rod's protection—his "guests"—so a monthly food allotment was guaranteed.
They lived in a small village. Even though the villagers were families of members of the Anti-Personnel Control Squad, the two of them felt no discomfort.
People here were friendly, and they all agreed their sons and daughters serving in the forces were doing something honorable.
As for Lord Rod, they praised him—he covered the village's grain supply.
"Ha~"
Annie yawned, sat up, changed out of her nightclothes, and got dressed.
She came over to Pieck, pulled out a chair, and sat down, picking up the bread and milk with practiced ease.
"Has Bertholdt improved?" Annie asked, taking a sip of milk.
"No." Pieck shook her head. "He still believes he indirectly got Reiner killed. His will is weak. He can't bring out the Colossal Titan."
Pieck's hands rested neatly on her knees, hair combed smooth, her gaze gentle when she looked at Annie—but when she mentioned Bertholdt, she seemed desolate.
Annie didn't dwell on it.
"What's making him hesitate isn't Reiner—it's this easy life," Annie said, looking out the window.
Across the road lay fields, vibrant under the clear sky.
Bertholdt was working among them, laughing with villagers, blending right in, as if he'd forgotten his homeland—Marley.
Pieck understood what Annie meant. Life here was ten thousand times better than in the internment zone.
But she couldn't stay. Back home, her ailing father was still waiting for her to return, to make the mashed potatoes she loved.
"I went to the capital again last night," Annie said between bites. "There's intel that Rod Reiss caught Roger."
"Really?" Pieck asked, quick and tense.
"Mm. I didn't see him in person, but the news is basically confirmed."
"Great—then let's go now."
"It's not that simple." Annie finished her breakfast and wiped her mouth. "Reiss didn't notify us right away, and even now he shows no sign of doing so. So we can conclude—he's doing this on purpose."
"For the Jaw Titan?"
"Mm."
Annie dipped her chin slightly and looked at Pieck.
Pieck met her eyes, growing serious.
"You know this—Reiss and we are only using each other. He's a royal who lost the Founding, and we're outsiders searching for it. Our alliance is temporary. With the Jaw Titan and the Armored Titan in his pocket, he can bargain with us more easily."
"So he wants to swallow Roger for himself?"
"Seems that way, or he wouldn't have kept this from us," Annie said. "Remember Pastor Nick, the one who introduced us?"
"I do, but it's been a long time since he came," Pieck recalled. "He used to show up and ask questions—about the outside of the Walls, about the truth of the Titans."
"Later I found his corpse," Annie said flatly. "Behind the hill. No marker. Buried alive."
Pieck nodded.
The royal family might indeed do that—at the time, they didn't know Pastor Nick held part of the "truth."
If Pastor Nick wasn't bought off and sworn to secrecy but was killed instead, that meant the royal family never accepted anyone else's ideas. They'd always been their own closed circle. Even if someone shared their thinking, they wouldn't spare a glance.
In the end, the two sides were just using each other.
Both knew it well.
"…The royal family can't handle Roger. If they tried to make a move on him now, they'd probably be the ones killed," Annie analyzed.
"Mm. That's very possible," Pieck said coolly. "The only thing that can check Roger is Bertholdt's Colossal Titan, and he's lost."
"Whatever the case, it's time to drag Bertholdt out of his daydream. We're out of time for comfort." Annie's voice hardened. "We need the Colossal Titan. And now—it's time to fight again!"
Pieck nodded, agreeing.
They called Bertholdt in from the fields and took the straw hat off his head.
"Do you remember why you came here, Bertholdt?"
Facing the six-foot-three Bertholdt, Annie lifted her chin and pressed him.
Meeting the eyes of his two comrades, Bertholdt's gaze began to waver.
"Of course I remember," he said quietly.
"Then come with us," Pieck said, handing him the Rittai Kidō Sōchi (ODM gear) from the table.
"This…"
Bertholdt stared at the gear, at a loss.
"We've found Roger," Annie explained.
"You found him already?" Bertholdt blurted, but when his eyes met their burning resolve, he looked away again, turning to the fields outside the window.
After a few seconds of silence, he finally spoke.
"Do you really think what we've done so far is right?" he asked. "From breaching the Wall to infiltrating, to all our training… Look at these villagers. Are they really 'devils'?"
"They aren't," Annie said, unwavering. "But we are."
Both comrades looked at her.
"We've had no choice for a long time," she continued. "The moment we set foot on Paradis Island, we became ruthless invaders. But—was there ever another way?"
"Annie…"
The word "devils" stung Bertholdt.
Pieck stared at the floor. Clever as she was, she didn't want to say another word.
She just wanted to go back. To be with her father again.
"Roger is a hardline egoist. Once he decides on something, he'll accept any sacrifice. If he intends to wipe out Marley, we Eldians in Marley won't escape—we'll be ground to dust with everyone else." Annie let out a long breath. "So, Bertholdt—this isn't our home. Our home is across the sea. Once we take back the Founding Titan and the Jaw and Armored Titans, let's go back together, to our hometown. Okay?"
"…"
Hearing that, Bertholdt's eyes finally firmed.
He clenched his fist, then loosened it.
"I understand," he said, as if relieved, taking Annie's hand. "Let's go back—together. All of us. All of us together!"
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