"But I really am doing it for humanity." Roger shrugged. "Everyone in this world—if you scrub them, they're dirty. At least on my road to power, it's a good thing for humans. So why be so harsh, Commander Hange?"
He set the pencil in his hand down on the table, smiling as he looked at Hange in front of him.
"Wh—"
Hearing that, Hange understood she could never persuade Roger. He had clearly come prepared.
If she kept arguing, it might only push Roger into something extreme.
"I need to unify opinions within the corps. I have to ask for their views," Hange said, intending to leave quickly.
Roger thought for a moment. The manpower ratio between the Survey Corps and the Scorpion Corps was 1:3. Even if the Survey Corps was smaller by comparison, it was still a force that couldn't be ignored.
"Do as you like. I'll give you one day. Tomorrow I'll be here, waiting for your answer. The day after tomorrow, the troops march."
"So fast?!" Hange blurted out.
"There's no time. If those people discover I'm inside the Walls, then you won't need to ask anyone's opinion—everyone will be used by me as needed for the war. Unless you want extermination."
Roger's tone made it impossible not to hear the word "blackmail" hidden inside.
For a moment, a complicated mix of emotions flickered across Hange's face.
Ever since learning there were all kinds of powerful nations beyond the Walls, there hadn't been a single night Hange didn't picture what it would look like when they finally set foot on this land.
Enemies?
Or friends?
Roger had said the outside nations all held various hostile feelings toward the people on this island—not just hatred, but also deeper discrimination—yet Hange still found it hard to believe.
They had never even met. Why would strangers harbor such irrational hatred toward them?
Marley had dropped Titans onto them.
That had shaken Hange to the core.
But it also made her understand where the power of Titans came from.
It was obvious Marley had everything to do with it.
If anyone deserved the world's hatred, shouldn't it be Marley?
Roger also came from Marley.
Were they really not cut from the same cloth?
Back at the corps headquarters, Hange immediately convened an assembly and made Roger's plan public.
As expected, the corps exploded.
"Become Titans?!!"
"Are you insane?!"
"He's a Titan himself!! Brothers! You're going to listen to him?!"
"Is this a joke?!"
"I absolutely refuse!"
"Is this an order? Heh…"
"That Roger—can he even still be called human? I think he stopped being one a long time ago."
The hall roared with chaos. Almost everyone voted against it.
Not a single person wanted to become a Titan.
Except for one.
Mikasa Ackerman.
She didn't vote. Instead, she went overnight to the Scorpion Corps' base.
There, she saw the Scorpion Corps soldiers' fervor with her own eyes.
Unlike the Survey Corps, they didn't completely reject their leader's intent.
There were still plenty who didn't want to transform, but soldiers willing to become Titans for Roger still reached about fifty percent.
Even so, for Roger's plan, it was a major failure.
If it wasn't forced, there was simply no way to turn these soldiers into Titans—let alone make them carry out his will.
So in the end… they still don't trust me enough? Roger thought.
But it was something without precedent, so it was understandable.
Night fell. Just as Roger was alone in his room, silently thinking about what he should do next, the door suddenly opened.
"It's me."
Mikasa walked in.
Seeing it was someone he knew, Roger put away the dagger in his hand.
"What is it?" Roger asked.
Mikasa didn't bother with small talk.
"I want to become a Titan," she said. "If Eren could do it, then this might be the moment I'm closest to Eren."
"But unfortunately… I can't do that." Roger shook his head. "The Ackerman clan can't transform into Titans. Not even the Founding Titan can change that."
Hearing that answer, Mikasa looked hollowed out.
"But you should at least let me join your corps."
"Why?" Roger asked.
"I want to take Eren's place—and keep moving forward."
"And what about Armin?" Roger asked suddenly.
"You know Armin?" Mikasa was surprised.
Roger realized he'd slipped up and felt a little awkward.
Knowing about Armin came from Eren's memories—Roger himself had never met him.
"I looked at the personnel files from your intake class. I learned a bit about the relationship between the three of you."
"Oh." Mikasa accepted the explanation. "Armin should have his own choice."
"Talk him into going back. With you," Roger said. "Leave what comes next to me. And… before he died, Eren also hoped you and Armin would look after each other."
"Really?"
"Yeah… and there's one more thing."
"What?"
"He didn't want you to remarry." Roger said it awkwardly. "Eren hoped you would keep loving him—at least for ten years. Of course, after ten years, if you really fall for someone else, then… you can make another choice."
"…" Mikasa.
"…" Roger.
They stared at each other.
After a few seconds, Mikasa spoke.
"That's a terrible story," she said. "Eren wouldn't say something like that. And you don't need to keep trying to comfort me. I've already made peace with it. Moving forward is what Eren told me—and it's also my own choice. Even if you refuse to take me in, I'm staying here."
With that, Mikasa walked out.
Watching her go, Roger let out a long sigh.
"It really is ridiculous. I don't even know what timeline Eren fed me that garbage from. Unbelievable," Roger muttered.
But at this point, it was clearly impossible to talk Mikasa into leaving. Fine—he would just let her stay in the Scorpion Corps.
With that in mind, Roger was about to order his men to prepare a bed for Mikasa and get her settled.
"Tours Beak, Tours Beak! Help Mikasa with that—"
…
Silence.
…
Pinching the bridge of his nose, Roger slumped into the chair, his eyes shimmering with tears.
"Nelly," he called softly.
"What is it?" Nelly Quick walked in.
"Prepare a bed for Mikasa," Roger said, his voice faint.
Nelly Quick noticed the strange look on his face, but didn't say anything.
"Alright."
He left and closed the door.
Roger rose from the chair and walked to the window.
Outside was an inky night, and beyond it, a dazzling river of stars.
Because it had been so long since they'd returned within the Walls, the Scorpion Corps soldiers—though still confused about their leader's intent—lit bonfires as usual and held a grand homecoming feast.
In the midst of all that cheer, Roger's expression was as hard and unyielding as an iron curtain.
"What kind of soft-hearted devil am I…"
He sighed again.
A first in his life.
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