When I grow up I want to be persistent.

"Glad to see you recovered. You made us worry a lot." Erwin stated when Elizabeth regained consciousness. Levi had not alerted anyone, he had limited himself to holding her firmly in his arms, listening to her heartbeat, calm and regular. After a few minutes he saw her open her eyes and, after ordering it, Jean handed her a water bottle to hydrate a little.

Drinking had helped her, her pain was still there but it was nothing particularly unbearable for her and the medical supplies had given her a way to recover in less time.

There was not much left of the journey now, the titan continued to crawl in the same direction as them and they were a few miles away from their destination. The Vice Captain braced herself and, after he stopped, she got off the horse to get on her own, and calmly advance to join Erwin, just ahead of them.

The two began to advance side by side while each was lost in their own conversations, some about the titan and those who preferred not to touch that subject.

"A bit like you when you lost your arm, I'd say we're even." Elizabeth answered with a hint of a smile.

"Are you sure you're okay now? You have lost a lot of blood, maybe you should stay on the same horse as Levi or on the wagon."

"No, I need to keep my mind active."

Erwin watched her for a while before answering her: in the end he too was fond of her, he felt great esteem for her and a lot of trust, he believed in her, in her abilities and in the person he wanted her to become. Sometimes he saw himself in that two-colors gaze, even if only occasionally.

"At the slightest discomfort we stop and it's not a questionable order."

"Okay Commander."

"The first problem is the titan itself. He is ignoring entire villages to reach Orvud. But this time we can't evacuate the city." Erwin began, discussing what to do with her.

"I agree. If we moved them all to Wall Sina he would follow them there and reach Mitras. And the damage would be significantly higher. Not to mention that I would like to avoid another trial. Among other things, you still have to explain to me how you did to avoid me that last time."

Erwin smiled a little, affable, holding the horse's bridle tight and staring straight ahead. "By telling the truth. You pointed out to me how dangerous that plan was in Shiganshina but I ignored it and appealed to my role of superiority towards you."

"What a bastard." she laughed, sure she had also piqued the curiosity of the rest of the team behind them, distant enough to hear her laughing but not to understand what they were saying. "I would have helped you, you know."

"Yeah, but you had no responsibility for that part of the plan. It was right and it should stay that way."

"I'm grateful to you." Elizabeth continued as she became serious again. "Going back to our titan here... we must take him down in front of the walls."

"They have cannons on the walls, we can exploit those."

"And reassure the people inside that they will hear the shots, perhaps making them believe it is a simple drill."

"Yes. At least they will remain compact."

Elizabeth seemed to think about something, twisting her nose a little.

"I have a theory, but I have to prove it first."

"What?" the Commander asked, turning curiously towards her.

"Eren!" she screamed, turning slightly towards the young man in the wagon. "Try to use the power of control on Reiss!"

Eren reacted immediately to the Vice Captain's call, standing up and starting to punch in the air in the direction of the titan Rod Reiss who was still crawling.

"Stop titan! Stop! Hey stop! I'm talking to you! Can't you hear me, idiot?! Rod Reiss, that means you! You tiny old man!"

At the last exclamation Eren suddenly stopped, remembering that behind him there was Levi on horseback who turned to look at him with his usual apparent blankness, but Elizabeth knew how much that comment had embittered him. Eren was frightened, completely silent, while Elizabeth turned completely forward to prevent Levi from seeing her hold back a laugh, even though he knew it perfectly even without seeing her.

"Okay I didn't expect this..." she whispered to the Commander, barely chuckling. "But it's damn funny."

Behind them, however, the rest of the group resumed calm, Eren sat back down and no one found the courage to even smile at the terrible phrase of the young titan, too frightened by the Captain to try. After a few moments of silence, when they saw that Elizabeth and Erwin had resumed whispering to each other, one of them just couldn't hold back their curiosity.

"Captain, can I ask you a question?" Connie asked in fear but, somehow, decided enough to risk so much. Levi just turned his gaze in his direction, bored, and rolled his eyes at the young man's attitude. If he seemed so frightened of a question it must be something he wouldn't like.

"I feel I will regret it." replied the captain. "Yes."

"Are you not jealous?"

"About what?" Levi asked without understanding what he was referring to.

"Of Elizabeth. She went on alone with the commander. Aren't you jealous?"

Levi did not know whether to laugh at that statement or to make the young man fall off the horse for implying that, in some way, he should feel threatened. One was his Commander, as well as his friend, and the other was his woman, the one who supported him not only as a soldier but as a life partner.

"About what? A tactical meeting?"

"Well we hear the things that many men say about her."

"Nothing new." he commented, now accustomed to the rumors going around. It had almost become a habit for him to hear someone make spicy comments about her, particular comments, or even just look at her as they shouldn't have done, just because of her appearance. She was a beautiful woman but she remained their superior and they had to respect her. Not to mention that for some time, that initial anger had turned into annoyance: he hated hearing certain comments about her but it was incredibly sexy to see how she reacted to them. And she hated those comments even more than him.

"I think Connie means that..." Jean interjected trying to go to his friend's aid, but Levi didn't let him finish speaking.

"I understand what he means." the Captain answered putting an end to that conversation. "No. I completely trust Elizabeth."

In the meantime, however, Elizabeth had moved a little closer to Erwin to avoid that even one of her words could be heard, especially by the team.

"There's one thing I'd like to talk to you about but I have to make sure Historia doesn't listen."

"Why?"

"Because it concerns you." she answered confidently, returning serious after that moment of hilarity. "She will be the next Queen but the people will not accept a ruler placed there at random just because she has the name. Not after everything that happened with King Fritz."

"You are right." Erwin stated, slightly nodding his head.

"I'd like you to try to stop Historia."

Elizabeth didn't turn around, she didn't need to hesitate or convince him because he had given her the utmost confidence, but still she needed some more information as this time it was something she was asking him directly.

"What do you mean?"

"Ask her not to fight. She is determined enough to understand, in that moment, what she will want to do: whether to be a soldier or a queen. And she will still ask you to fight. She'll have to kill Rod Reiss."

"But you're sorry, right?" Erwin asked looking at her carefully. He had not escaped the look of apprehension she had previously given to the rightful heir to the throne.

"It is quite cruel. Father and daughter against each other. " she answered, slightly lowering her gaze. A thought went to her own father; after she found out what he had done for her, she started to think about it more often. She did not know specifically what he had done forced by Kenny, but he had died for her and that no one would take it away from her. She wanted to know him, to be able to talk to him, and instead she didn't even know what his face looked like. She knew she was the one who had that idea but she still considered it a terrible thing.

"Everyone made their own choices. Historia has chosen us she is aware of what he has to do."

"It is cruel to have to make sure that she is the one to kill him. At the same it's necessary or no one will trust her and she will never reign in peace."

Erwin smiled at her for a moment, looking at her before returning his attention before him, continuing to ride, until a particular memory came back to his mind; for a moment he remembered when he saw her for the first time, physically still the same, only with shorter hair, but inside... she was different, she had been through a lot and had matured so much. She had learned when to speak and when to be silent, when to act and when to use her mind, becoming an even more lethal weapon against any enemy and in any area.

"It's nice to see that you're still the same little girl that Hange introduced me to four years ago, you know. You're just more responsible."

Elizabeth just laughed at him, shaking her head and then waving at him.

"It's your fault, Commander. I just wanted to help Hange, it was you who decided to promote me."

When they finally reached the Orvud District Regiment Branch, Levi's first thought was to help Elizabeth dismount. Erwin had preceded all the others, immediately reaching the superiors of the Stationary Guard to tell them what had happened and the urgency to organize a strategic meeting.

As soon as she set foot on the ground, still feeling pain in her thigh but still being able to walk, Levi squeezed her wrist to show all his apprehension but hiding everything else from everyone's eyes.

"How do you feel?" Levi asked feeling her hand still quite cold and shaking, evidently from the effort she was making.

She was a little paler but she had regained color than a few hours before, when she was without medicines and leg dressing. Just removing that bullet seemed to have helped her immensely.

Elizabeth smiled at him, looking into his eyes. He was damn handsome and she only wanted a moment for them.

Since they had lost their team and the female titan had appeared, she felt like she was in a full and continuous rush, without stopping for a moment. And now that race was tiring her. She just hoped that, after this, things could slow down for a moment and give her time to breathe.

In particular, she wanted to go to where they had erected graves for fallen soldiers and hang out with them for a while. She missed them terribly. She often wondered what it would be like if the four of them were still with her, how Petra and Eld would take Levi's marriage proposal, what Gunther would think of the coup d'état with his brilliant mind and how Oluo would react to the Military Police's attack led by Kenny.

And in that moment she felt, more than ever, that she needed them.

She shook those thoughts from her head to focus on Levi and the firm but delicate grip he had on her wrist, careful not to hurt her.

"Much better. Luckily Erwin also had medical supplies with him."

"You need to rest." Levi answered her, taking a step closer. He had been quite upset when he had seen her suffer like that without batting an eye. Sure, she had never been a woman who liked to complain but that was heartbreaking.

Ever since he'd discovered Kenny's surname, everything that happened to her brought the torture back to his mind, remembering what she had told him and the broken look and voice she had when she did it. That was one of the few times he saw her weak.

They were each other's shoulder but that time had been so eventful that he missed her. It was as if he hadn't seen her in months, despite the fact that she was beside him every day.

"I will, I promise."

Elizabeth's sweet smile warmed his heart, feeling her heavy breathing tickle his face at her proximity, as if they were talking about some military secret, but instead they were just taking a few moments for themselves. He felt his heart beating, as strong as the emotions he felt for her, until a male voice called his attention, breaking that sweet idyll.

"Please gather your squad in the hall. The strategy meeting is about to begin."

"All right." Levi answered, breaking away slowly and with his impassive calm. He had no reason to act as if he had been caught doing something wrong, it would only have increased the rumors that were already circulating about them.

"It's time to tell her." the Vice Captain then murmured, moving her head with a nod towards Historia.

"Yes you are right." he nodded, then turned in Elizabeth's direction. "Historia. Forgot to tell you... we need you to do something."

"Yes?" Historia asked, advancing a few steps to reunite with the rest of her friends, attracted however by the Captain.

"Erwin's orders. When this battle is over, since you're the true successor to the throne, become the queen."

"Queen?! Historia?!" Sasha exclaimed in shock, opening her mouth wide unable to contain her astonishment.

"The coup d'état was successful, but the people won't follow a regiment sitting at the top. What we need is a story to spread, that the true heir retook the crown from the fake." Levi explained, just squeezing Elizabeth's wrist when he felt her tremble again. Although he was engaged in that conversation with the young woman, the focus of his concern remained with her woman, even if she did not show her pain. The only one who noticed it was Hange, who gave her a worried look.

"I..." Historia began, lowering her head and carefully reflecting on the Captain's words. Unlike her, however, Connie started to talk but somewhat hesitant about how to express himself.

"Um, captain... I'm sure you heard what Historia said earlier, but... well, uh...by leaving her father she finally broke free from that burden, I guess you could say... and yet, again..."

"What? If you have something to say, say it."

Levi was on edge over Elizabeth's condition; luckily Hange had recovered but she still had serious injuries that prevented her from fighting and she seemed very worn; he was stressed out, nervous and the only thing he wanted was to put an end to that and go somewhere else.

"Uh, um..."

"In other words, Connie's trying to say...Historia broke free from the Reiss family and has finally found herself and now you're forcing her into another role? Isn't that... isn't that not fair to her?" Jean answered trying to help his friend.

Historia was moved by the affection and apprehension that her friends were having for her at that moment. So she finally looked up at the the Vice Captain. She didn't know how to explain it but she liked her particularly; she had given her a lot of moral support when she revealed her true identity and she had never, not even once, judged her for what she had done. In fact, she had spoken to her with an open heart and comforted her.

"All right. My next duty is to be Queen, right? Understood. Thanks for your concern but whether or not it's forced on me is up to me to decide, I think. However... Captain, I do have one condition."

"Hmm?"

"Since my fate is my own, I want to lay it all on the line."

And that was proof that Historia was already ready to be queen, she just had to realize it.

They walked down the corridor that would take them into the room with particular tranquility, with Hange talking to Historia about her new next condition. Nobody paid any attention to them until the voice of the team leader, laughing, reached everyone's ears.

"Admit you don't want the same thing we did to Liz, to happen to you."

"Oh yeah..." Historia smiled, making Elizabeth smile back too, as she immediately understood what she was referring to. It was a story she had told her shortly before, when Hange joined them to tell of Minister Nick's death.

"What did you do to the Vice Captain?" Sasha asked curiously, alternating her gaze from the two to Elizabeth.

"They deceived me." she exclaimed smiling but continuing to look ahead, at the head of the group next to the Captain.

"What?"

"Initially my promotion was only for the special operations of capturing titans. Then it was extended with a direct order and without the possibility of revocation."

"Essentially, we forced her." Levi then added, holding back a smile, but slightly raising the corner of his mouth, aware that only she could have noticed.

"And the two of them and Erwin agreed. I still have to make him pay for it."

But that relaxed air that everyone allowed themselves to have for a few moments dissipated as they entered the meeting room. Standing around the large table in the center of the room, the main problem of the meeting was the titan Rod Reiss advancing southwest of Orvud and reaching the District at dawn. Erwin communicated to them the main plan and the part involving the inhabitants, as agreed with Elizabeth, and, after a first objection from the Stationary Guard, they all finally agreed that it was the best choice to be able to take down the titan while limiting the damage and that they would exploited the cannons above the walls.

The titan arrived in the Orvud District, leaving the Survey Corps, combined with the Stationary Guard, to implement that particular plan. The people were informed of an exercise against a fake titan so as not to cause panic with the noise of the cannon.

A first order, when the Reiss got close enough, and the numerous cannons above the walls fired a multitude of shots, raising a great fuss.

They noted that, after the cannon shots on the walls, the titan was still alive, and was given the order to shoot also with those on the ground but with the same result.

"The ground cannons seem even less effective.." the Commander murmured, with Levi and Elizabeth beside him, looking ahead with a seriousness capable of putting many in awe. They were a strange couple: she was able to laugh and joke and provoke him regardless of what people might think but when they were in action they became a couple of coordinated and serious soldiers.

"Of course they are." Levi answered continuing to look at the titan. "The wall cannons barely hit the nape, even with the better angle. What's the problem?"

"It's a mishmash of soldiers, cannons they scraped together, superficial leadership... to top it off, this is a northern region, unlike troops on the front lines, they have no battle experience. However, this is the best we're going to get and that's a fact."

"Yeah, that much is painfully obvious. Yet again, your strategy for the Scouts boils down to another gamble, just like everything else you conjure up."

"And you can't even imagine how hard it is to point out certain details." Elizabeth added between the two, hinting a smile for a couple of seconds when she heard Erwin respond.

"I hear them, I only decide what to listen to."

"You should listen to me more often."

"She's right, you know." Levi said looking at the commander with the corner of his eye smiling.

"Don't you think you're biased in telling me this?"

Hange informed them that gunpowder, ropes and nets were ready, as well as 3DMG-like devices, equipped with a retractable hook, before asking the Captain how it was proceeding with the artillery.

"Slightly more than a pissing insect."

"Then we're really planning on using this?" the squad leader asked, referring to that particular idea that Elizabeth had had, along with Erwin, which concerned Eren.

"It will remain our last chance..." Elizabeth replied, giving the young man one last look before Erwin gave them an order, splitting the team in two.

"Levi, Elizabeth, Jean, Sasha, Connie take care of that side."

Elizabeth felt shocked for a moment just where she still had a fresh bullet wound but she forced herself not to think about it; she was in the middle of the action and she didn't want to be left behind. There was already Hange with a bandaged arm who couldn't fight, she couldn't stay behind too and leave everything in Levi's hands. She called the attention of a squad leader, telling them that the aim was wrong and that they should aim for the nape so he could give the order to correct the shot. But after a new barrage of cannon shots the wind shifted in their direction, overwhelming them with the extreme heat that the titan emitted, now terribly close to the walls.

Levi grabbed Elizabeth's hand instinctively as the wind forced them to close their eyes for a few moments, before finding Rod Reiss, with the part of his body that had previously been crawling on the ground, now facing the walls. From their shoulders came the screams of terror of the citizens, now aware that it was not a fake titan, but a real one who also hit the walls with one hand, causing part of the debris to fall inside the city. A tension-filled air began to dawn around them, no more mistakes could be afforded or many people would die, including them. Levi told the squad leader to retire and that only the Survey Corps would continue.

It was now inevitable to implement the plan.

Eren, after a confirmation, turned into a titan, running along the perimeter of the walls in the direction of Rod Reiss, after Erwin launched a red signal rocket into the air to kick off.

A first explosion near the hands of the titan made him retreat and Eren had the opportunity to throw him bags full of gunpowder in the mouth. The titan's heat would have been enough to make them explode and, as expected, so it happened.

Elizabeth felt the adrenaline take hold of her body and her breath muffle any other sense; she only perceived the flow of her own thoughts directed towards her target. Her fingers tingled with desire to take her own blade and fight.

"Finally..."

"Are you sure you can do it?" Levi asked apprehensively, referring to her leg. But Elizabeth was completely dominated by her own adrenaline and the substance injected into her by Kenny at her birth to feel anything at that moment; it had completely eliminated the pain.

"Please... who you think you're talking to?"

"All troops! Finish is off with ODM gear!" Erwin ordered.

Levi's team launched an attack, starting to cut the titan's flesh to prevent it from regenerating, and giving Historia a way to kill the host. Her father.

And finally, with one last explosion, it all ended.