"It's impossible that everything Annie did for you was just an act!"
...Lock chewed on his dry rations and glanced sideways, saying coldly, "Are you finished?"
Jean's expression froze; he had never seen such a look on Lock's face before.
Instead, he felt that Lock's tone and expression at this moment were very much like... Annie's.
He turned his head and whispered, "Sorry... Lock, I've said too much."
But the expression on Lock's face grew even colder: "Jean, are you comforting me, or are you comforting yourself?"
"I..." Jean was lost for words.
"Annie admitted it herself, didn't she? She killed Marco with her own hands."
Jean said nothing more.
"Those three killed a third of the population within the walls. Do you think we can still reconcile with these animals?"
Lock's tone became heavier: "Why should I care about their reasons?"
"Interrogating them for information and then executing them on the spot in front of all the people is the best conclusion."
"Jean, isn't your home in the Trost District? Those three know that too, don't they?"
"On that day, when they breached Trost, did they ever think they might kill your mother?"
Lock gave a light chuckle: "Looking at you, your mother must have escaped safely. Otherwise, you definitely wouldn't be saying things like this."
After a long while, Jean lowered his head and gritted his teeth, "I was too naive. I'm sorry, Lock."
...They traveled in silence for three hours until Lock finally spotted the members of Hange's squad ahead.
Moblit came up to meet them, his cheeks and arms covered in varying degrees of burns.
He walked up to Erwin, who had dismounted: "Commander, you're finally here!"
Erwin asked, "What's the situation?"
Moblit immediately said, "The operation failed. Eren and that... Ymir was taken by both the Colossal Titan and the Armored Titan. Squad Leader Hange was also injured and hasn't yet..."
Before he could finish, Moblit felt someone grab his foot. Looking down, he saw it was Hange!
"Hange-san!"
"Moblit, bring the map over." The burning pain in her airway made Hange's voice sound somewhat hoarse.
Erwin shouted to those behind him, "Lower the Lifts!"
...Everyone gathered around Hange as they listened to her deduction.
"There is a Forest of Giant Trees not far from here. We should go there."
"The Armored Titan's tracks can't be hidden. If they want to evade our pursuit, I suspect they will definitely choose to rest and recover here."
Erwin said in a low voice, "And the reason?"
Hange continued, "Even if they have the power of Titans, being outside the walls means they could still be attacked by other Titans."
"They've just been through a major battle. Even if they aren't as exhausted as Eren, their energy depletion must be significant. Annie also seems to have fallen into a deep sleep because of it."
"I suspect they will wait here until nightfall, when Titans can no longer move, before setting out again!"
...On the periphery, Lock led his horse onto the Lift and smilingly asked an officer to transport it down.
Erwin ordered the more heavily injured members of Hange's squad to stay and rest, while the rest followed the main force on the pursuit mission.
Lock found Historia in the crowd and stopped her before she could get on the Lift.
"Have you decided that you're going?"
Historia had already been persuaded by Armin before this, so she was a bit helpless hearing the same thing, but she still said firmly, "Yes, Lock, you don't need to try and convince me otherwise..."
"If that fellow Ymir saw you like this, she'd definitely be overjoyed."
"Huh?" Historia was a bit puzzled by Lock's attitude.
Lock smiled gently, "Remember to stay by my side after we set out."
Historia flatly refused, "Lock, I am also a Soldier of the Survey Corps. I don't need—"
Lock softly interrupted, "This is a task jointly entrusted to me by both our fathers. I can't refuse."
Historia murmured in shock, "My... father?"
Lock, certain that no one was paying attention, continued, "I met your father while I was in the Central Military Police Corps. He instructed me to ensure your safety."
At this moment, Historia didn't notice the connection between the Central Military Police Corps and her father, in Lock's words; she seemed to recall the scene of seeing her father for the first time as a child.
And her motherwas lying in a pool of blood.
She looked at Lock and said with difficulty, "Lock, did you know all along?"
Lock didn't answer the question. He turned and said, "Let's move quickly. I'll find you after we're down."
...Coincidentally, Lock was also called out to before stepping onto the Lift.
The person who called him was Moblit.
Moblit handed Lock a cloak with the wings of freedom emblem printed on it.
"I have other duties and can't go, so you should wear mine. When you get back, there will be clothes that fit you."
Lock reached out to take it and draped it directly over his back.
The wings of freedom covered the Unicorn... or rather, the Unicorn was hidden beneath the wings of freedom.
Lock gave Moblit a sincere smile: "Thank you, Mr. Moblit!"
Moblit patted Lock on the shoulder and said solemnly, "Come back safe."
Lock nodded with a smile, "I will, Mr. Moblit!"
As the Lift slowly descended, Lock heard Hange teasing from above, "You really care about this fan of yours, don't you, Moblit?"
"That's not it at all! Captain Hange, your throat is injured; you should talk less."
...As the sun dipped toward the west, all the Soldiers finished preparing at the foot of the wall.
Erwin stood before the crowd on his horse, just as he had countless times before.
He looked around at everyone and shouted, "Move out!"
Lock followed behind Historia, gazing at the back of the future queen within the walls, mentally reviewing the plans for after this mission.
First, he would play the villain and cooperate with Kenny. Then, his father would step in to protect the Survey Corps. Finally, he would backstab Rod and Kenny and redeem himself in front of the main group.
This would be the best outcome.
Hopefully, nothing goes wrong.
"Hey, Recruit!" An officer from the Survey Corps ahead turned back and called out to Lock.
"Yes, sir!"
"The Commander is about to issue the order to deploy into formation. Follow me in a moment, and I'll take you to your position."
"Understood!"
Seeing Historia also looking back at him, Lock said with a smile, "Be careful on your own, Krista."
Historia nodded, "You too, Lock."
...Erwin waved his hand: "Long-Distance Enemy Scouting Formation, deploy!"
Lock followed the officer to the outer left flank of the formation.
After briefly explaining the types and meanings of the Signal Flares to Lock, the officer instructed, "You won't have to man a station alone this time. Just watch closely what I do."
"Understood!"
"I heard you're that noble young master who volunteered to transfer from the Central Military Police Corps to our Survey Corps?"
Lock was already used to such questions.
He answered sincerely, "Yes, I want to do my part for the future of humanity."
Lock no longer felt any psychological burden for telling such lies.
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