Levi wiped the drool from Zeke's mouth with visible disgust, then tossed the handkerchief aside.
This rude new recruit again! Davion seethed inwardly. His Majesty the King and the President are present, and he dares to litter?
Levi ignored him. Still gripping Zeke by the hair, he forced his head up.
"Hey. Can you still talk?"
"Can… you…" Zeke tried to form the words. His tongue was sluggish, his mouth barely able to close.
"Are you still sane?" Levi asked.
"Wide awake…"
"What's twelve-thirty-four times fifty-six seventy-eight?"
"…" Zeke's face twisted. "Count it yourself!"
Levi gave a curt nod, turning to Erwin. "He's still angry. Looks like only his body's paralyzed—his brain's fine."
Erwin exhaled in relief.
He turned toward Zachary. "Mr. President, you may proceed with the questioning."
Zachary nodded and faced Zeke. "Zeke Yeager, you may now tell us everything you know."
Zeke ignored him. His eyes softened as he looked at Eren. Though his mouth was numb, his voice was gentle. "Don't be afraid, Eren. Everything will be all right."
Eren hesitated. "…I'm not afraid." He lowered his gaze. "What do you need me to do?"
"You don't need to do anything," Zeke murmured. "If they ask you questions, just answer truthfully."
"Oh."
Zachary blinked.
Why do I feel completely ignored?
Still, he cleared his throat and pressed on. "Zeke Yeager, please answer carefully. First, I want to know—your companions, or rather—how many people like you have been subjected to living experiments in Titanization?"
Zeke finally looked away from Eren and met Zachary's eyes. "A lot."
Zachary frowned. "A lot?"
Everyone stared at him.
Zachary gestured to an aide, who quickly whispered to the Military Police Brigademan Davion. Davion straightened and barked, "He said 'a lot!'"
Zeke glared, his mouth twitching. My voice is numb, not nonexistent.
Zachary pressed, "How many is 'a lot'?"
"There are too many to count," Zeke replied hoarsely.
"Are you trying to fool me?"
Zeke smiled faintly. "It's the truth."
"Can you give a rough number?"
"Probably… several hundred people every year. The highest I remember was 1,314. The lowest… 520."
"So many!" Zachary blurted, stunned—along with nearly everyone present.
Yes.
The year with the most victims was the year his parents were arrested—the year the Restorationists were wiped out.
Since then, the numbers had dropped, perhaps because the heart of the Eldian Restorationists—the Titans who had fought for freedom—was gone from Marley.
Suppressing the ache of memory, Zeke said evenly, "In short, the number of Titans will not decrease. It will only increase."
The words sent ripples through the hall.
"What he says is true," Erwin admitted. "We, the Survey Corps, have gone beyond the walls countless times, killed countless Titans, yet their numbers never fall. They don't even have reproductive organs—we've dissected them—but somehow, their numbers keep growing."
Panic spread through the courtroom.
For the Survey Corps soldiers, the revelation hit hardest. After a century of battle, the enemy's ranks had only multiplied. How could anyone's resolve survive that?
The figures Zeke cited were staggering.
It was already hard enough to handle a single Titan—yet hundreds appeared every year.
How could humanity possibly stand against that?
Despair thickened in the air like smoke.
Zachary slammed the table. "Silence! Whatever you hear from now on, hold your tongues. The truths Zeke reveals may be even more shocking—testing the very limits of what we can bear."
The hall fell into utter quiet.
Zachary fixed his eyes on Zeke. "Why are so many people being used for Titanization experiments? If hundreds disappear every year, the government should know. How has this gone unnoticed for so long?"
"You should ask your government," Zeke said flatly. "Not me."
Zachary turned toward the King.
The King sneered.
"This is nonsense!" the Left Minister barked. "If so many vanished every year, we'd certainly know! He's trying to frame our royal government!"
Zachary said nothing. In front of the people, the King and the President stood united—one could not expose the other. Instead, he turned back to Zeke.
"Zeke," he said carefully, "is what you've said true?"
"Absolutely true." Zeke gave a cold, disdainful smile. "Do you want me to swear on my father's name?"