After a simple dinner at the Military Police canteen, Lock followed Hitch back to their dorm.
Lock walked over and sat down at Annie's desk. A blue cat meowed and climbed onto Lock's lap.
He stroked it gently along its fur, and the cat purred contentedly as it settled on his leg.
Hitch, who was taking off her uniform, looked surprised at the scene and said, "How come the cat's even more affectionate toward you after you went out for a bit?"
"Usually, it couldn't care less about you."
Lock didn't explain. He said casually, "It seems a bit thinner."
Hitch shot Annie a glare and said irritably, "Well, it's stuck with an irresponsible owner like you. If I didn't remember to feed it, it would have starved to death by now."
Hitch took off her pants and shoes, grabbed the towel hanging nearby, and prepared to head out.
"I'm going to wash up first."
"Mm, I'll tidy up a bit and then go."
After Hitch left, Lock opened the first drawer and pulled out an envelope hidden beneath a booklet.
This was a letter Reiner Braun had sent to Annie before the expedition beyond the walls. She hadn't had a chance to deal with it yet.
Of course, Annie had thought at the time that once the mission was completed, she could return directly to her homeland, so there was no need to handle these things.
One corner of the envelope was slightly bent, suggesting Hitch had probably secretly rummaged through Annie's things these past couple of days.
Lock held the letter over a nearby candle, letting the flames consume it.
The fire burned until the end, scorching his finger, but Lock didn't let go.
The flame went out, and Lock looked at the wound on his finger.
With a thought, the wound instantly healed.
The recovery speed was even faster now, and he could control it at will. This was the Power of the Titans.
His mind also held much of Marley's knowledge regarding Titan research, which he could verify one by one in the future.
After cleaning up the ashes, Lock stood up and opened Annie's closet.
Annie had very few clothes: two sets of spare Military Police uniforms and two simple sets of casual wear.
Lock took off his uniform and put it inside. The one he was wearing was brought from his family's estate, so there was now an extra set in the closet.
At that moment, Hitch pushed the door open and walked in, wrinkling her nose in confusion.
"Did you burn something?"
Lock took off his white hoodie and said flatly,
"Yeah, I burned that letter you read."
Hearing this, Hitch's face turned somewhat embarrassed.
"You weren't back these past two days. I was worried something might have happened to you, so I tried looking for clues in your stuff. I didn't mean to snoop through your letter on purpose."
"Well, thank you for your concern, Hitch."
Seeing that Annie didn't seem to mind, Hitch relaxed. Drying her hair, she teased,
"I didn't expect you to be quite popular, Annie!"
"So, these past two days, were you sneaking off to meet another man behind that detective's back?"
"That guy named Reiner?"
Lock picked up his towel and said,
"Yes. Next time, I can introduce him to you. He also really likes helping people for free."
"Hey, you're not still jealous that I went to see your detective boyfriend alone, are you?"
Lock ignored her.
"I'm going to wash up."
Late at night, Lock lay in bed, carefully running through the next day's plan in his mind.
He wanted to minimize casualties without exposing himself.
"Eren, tomorrow it'll be my turn to test you."
Lock closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep...
In the morning, Lock gathered downstairs with Hitch.
Their superior scratched his head as he announced the day's task to them.
"Today's work is different from the usual miscellaneous chores, which is why you're all gathered here."
He looked at the report in his hand, his expression not particularly serious.
"The Survey Corps is being recalled to the royal capital today. They'll pass through the central avenue of our district."
"Escorting them isthe headquarters' business. We just need to handle their passage through this district."
"At that time, you'll be permitted to use the Omni-Directional Mobility Gear within the city, working alongside headquarters personnel to reinforce security."
Marlo suddenly spoke up.
"May I ask something? Who is our enemy?"
"Huh?"
Marlo explained nervously,
"I've never heard of anyone inside the walls daring to oppose the Royal Government..."
The superior laughed.
"You really are a serious one, aren't you? Well then, I'll put you in full charge of this matter. Just remember, don't cause me any trouble!"
At the Military Police branch plaza, Marlo was still seething with resentment over his superior's corruption and incompetence.
But he only drew unanimous ridicule from those around him.
Many of these Military Police recruits had joined precisely to become people like their superior, so they naturally looked down on Marlo, the naive newcomer.
Hitch was the one who laughed the hardest.
Marlo didn't want to stoop to their level.
"At least I'm the captain for this mission. Let's go."
Walking along the canal on the street, Marlo earnestly explained to the squad following him,
"The escort carriages will pass through the outer gate in forty-five minutes. Once on site, each of you confirms your assigned posts. Understood?"
Hitch yawned in response.
"Yes, sir, Captain Marlo."
"Hmm?"
Marlo stopped. Hitch, who was stretching, bumped into his back, earning her a dissatisfied look from him.
He looked at the scene ahead and said,
"Are they selling off military supplies?"
After saying this, Marlo strode forward indignantly, but no one dared to follow him.
Watching Marlo's back, Hitch couldn't help but say,
"Oh no, this guy really is a good person."
Soon, an argument broke out over there, and then everyone saw Marlo being beaten to the ground by two superiors.
"How pitiful..."
But as Marlo was beaten more and more severely, everyone started to feel a bit uneasy.
Lock walked over.
He grabbed the arm of the superior who was enthusiastically throwing punches and said,
"That's enough, isn't it? With so many people watching, it's best not to let this escalate, sir."
The superior stared into Annie's eyes, then glanced at the crowd gathering around, and withdrew his hand.
"Don't let it happen again."
"Forget it. Let's go have a drink instead."
The two men, completely unconcerned about what had just happened, left chatting and laughing.
Lock looked at Marlo, who was sitting on the ground with his head bowed.
Seeing the other man reach for the gun beside him, Lock said quietly,
"Don't do anything stupid."
Marlo's hand froze in mid-air. He looked up and met Annie's eyes.
"Didn't you want to climb up and change all this? Then you'd better learn to endure these things first."
He mumbled,
"Yeah... you're right..."
The minor incident was quickly over.
As a line of carriage caravans slowly entered through the gates of Stohess, Lock, standing on one side of the road, saluted along with the others.
Watching Nile Dok riding at the front of the procession, Lock silently greeted him in his heart and apologized in advance for what he was about to do today.
Lock followed at the rear of the caravan.
Not long after they started moving, he heard a voice.
"Annie!"
Lock stopped, turned, and walked into an alley.
Then, he saw Armin Arlert waiting there.
"Annie, it seems you've completely become a member of the Military Police now."
A barely perceptible smile curved at the corner of Lock's mouth.
The curtain was officially rising...
The actor Lock was filled with delight.
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