Disclaimer: I do not own Attack on Titan / Shingeki no Kyojin nor its characters.

Other notes: Please read end notes!


"And… maybe me being a secret Princess isn't so far off the dot..." She wasn't sure how he was going to react to it though.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Levi frowned, unsure of whether he'd like where this conversation was heading to.

Mikasa smirked as she lifted her hand, revealing a small, singular dahlia flower wrapped around her ring finger. "Meet Paradis's future Queen."


Levi had left soon after Mikasa's marriage announcement. Her success was undeniably a crucial step forward in Kenny's plans and thus demanded his knowledge of such progress. So before the sun could completely rise from its slumber and dispel the night's secrecy, he went to seek out the old man.

"Hah. So that brat actually did it. That's fast." Kenny sounded arguably impressed when he heard the news, though his praise didn't last long when he started to ponder on the reasons of how Mikasa managed to make it this far, this quick. The first thing that came to Kenny's mind made him sneer. "Don't tell me that girl actua—"

"Apparently they made a deal." Levi added on before Kenny could have suggested anything atrocious. "The boy believes she doesn't want anything romantic and then decided to wed her so he could get the advisors off his back without having to actually commit to anything."

"That's… something." Levi noted both the amusement and distrust mingling in Kenny's remark. And for once, in this very rare moment, Levi could understand his reservations. It was certainly something for the Prince himself to bring up this sort of proposal. When he asked Mikasa if she had any idea if he had any hidden malicious intent, she merely shook her head and assured him that if the Prince did have any malice, it would be directed towards the Ackermans.

Which, right now, Mikasa was not one.

Unless, the Prince did find out about her identity; and all this was a trap, a lure—bait. He wasn't sure if that bratty royal had it in him to devise such a scheme but Levi certainly wouldn't put it past him.

Levi had voiced this concern to Mikasa before he left. And Mikasa's lips parted, in agreement? In protest? Levi would never know because she swallowed her words back down her throat. It must had left a sour aftertaste because it appeared that way; the way her eyes narrowed, the way her shoulders tensed ever-so slightly when Levi started to scrutinise her strange reaction, the way she pursued her lips and then dropped the topic as a whole and requested for Levi to ask Kenny about it instead because she was tired for the day.

Levi didn't say anything else and left. He wasn't sure how he should respond nor was he sure of what to make of Mikasa's reaction. The sinking doubt in his gut made it difficult to shrug it off as nothing; plus, ignorance was not his typical cup of tea.

However, Levi also promised to have more faith in her. And so he did. Besides, jumping to conclusions after witnessing something so momentary was never a smart move. Though ultimately, he did decide to give her the benefit of the doubt. But he was sure not to forget what he saw.

"Huh." Kenny seemed to pick up on his unspoken concerns. "Is my bratty nephew nervous about walking 'er down the aisle? Hah!" And naturally, he poked fun at it, like prickly taunting thorns waiting for its next victim to bleed crimson. It was more irritating than frightening to Levi.

"I am concerned that it may be a trap." Levi stated flatly. The last thing he wanted to do was give his uncle the satisfaction of knowing that his words had an unnerving effect on him right then and there, especially when it appeared Kenny already had an inkling of his present troubles.

"Yer' too paranoid."

"You told us to never trust them." It wasn't meant to be much of an accusation as it probably sounded. Rather, a reasoning and reminder that called out Kenny's hypocrisy more than it should. Yet, the old man didn't appear to be as bothered as what Levi expected despite the drip of contempt he failed to prevent from seeping into his words.

"Aye, I just think yer' overestimating that idiot Jaeger boy… focusing on him too much. It's the advisors yer' gotta watch out for… They've been there the longest… most of them." Levi presumed he excluded Hanji. He wasn't sure of her exact age but if he could take a guess she was probably around his age. Though certainly, she was years away from the wrinkly old snobs in the council. "I reckon they might be blinded by bloody greed now, but do not make any mistakes around them. At all. But that goes without saying.

"Although, me saying yer' too paranoid doesn't mean yer' should go around letting down your guard around that pampered brat." On Levi's part, he felt that that was a pointless clarification. Why state the obvious? In the first place, it was rare to hear Kenny be more naggy than threatening. Was the old man drunk or something? Levi considered, but was quick to drop that accusation when he picked up no scent of alcohol.

"It's me saying it'll blind yer' from what's important." Kenny continued. "Though… that's probably something I should tell the other brat, not you. Hah."

Levi's eyes narrowed sceptically. "Mikasa?"

Kenny's expression soured to something akin to revolt and irk as the following observation he made poured from his mouth like bile. "She was making those eyes that a starving mutt would when it spots a bone to the boy earlier."

"She was putting up an act." Levi defended immediately, yet the sureness in his tone faltered towards the end when he started to piece some things together. One of them being her hesitance from before. Was she keeping secrets from him now? It was a little more heart-breaking than unnerving to think so, given everything they had been through together back in the underground.

Regardless of whatever alleged secret Mikasa was possibly keeping away from him, he let himself believe that whatever Kenny was implying and accusing Mikasa of was outrageous just as much as it was impossible. He continued his defence of her dignity as an Ackerman out of pure promised faith. "And so far, it seems like he fell for it. For what it's worth, suspicions aside, she succeeded in fooling him."

"Or she is becoming a fool herself." Kenny deadpanned without a second thought. It was the chilling confidence ringing in his tone that made even Levi shudder just slightly. "We both know she dreams too much. Don't yer' think so?"

It irritated Levi that Kenny was right about one thing: Mikasa dreamt too much; dreams more perilous than the storms during the most haunting winters. Even after all the bloodshed and tears cried, this… flicker of hope of hers still survived.

A few years after Farlan's and Isabel's death, Levi had thought for sure she disposed of that hopeless hope. But evidently, that was not the case; not when her eyes sparkled so much just by breathing in the fresh air when they first stepped foot above. From ashen hope, it resurrected and clung– that was scary. It clung. Would she be able to let go when it was finally time to sink back down to hell?

Levi had told himself: Yes, she would. He had reminded her time and time again of who they were and how there was no escaping of such a sinful, bloodied fate. That was something she could never forget. That was something she could not be in denial of.

Her being an Ackerman was something she could never change.

So Levi's faith remained. He pushed away the suspicions Kenny dangled in front of him.

Ironically, now it was him holding onto the flickering hope that whatever Kenny was implying was false.

"Yer'..." It was probably the first time in a long while, or ever, Levi saw Kenny thinking twice of what he wanted to say, given his uncensored and unrestrained nature rooted in vulgarities. Whatever it was, he seemed to decide otherwise of what he intended to say, which was more surprising than anything. To that, Levi raised a brow. "I'll let yer' do what yer' want with all that information. But for now…"

Kenny started to voice out a few ideas regarding how they should proceed from there. Levi couldn't help but feel that something was off. Something was seriously off about Kenny that night. For one thing, his Uncle always had a hot temperament akin to the blazing ruthless sun above especially whenever the royals were mentioned. Yet, he seemed too awfully nonchalant despite the accusation of Mikasa he had, and of which he seemed to believe wholeheartedly.

Was this another one of his twisted mind games?

"So it's either Plan A or D given the present circumstances…" Kenny hummed nonchalant as he weighed both options in his head. Then came the abrupt, out of the blue question. "That aside… When was the last time yer' two killed?"

The change of topic to something murderous was less unsettling than Kenny's cool. Levi answered nonetheless, opting not to question his Uncle's mood in case it'd actually prompt him to do something about it. And that never ended well. "Almost a month."

"Huh." Kenny said as he shifted his stance. Levi noted the discomfort in that singular movement but couldn't make out much of the reason why. Was he just overthinking by then? One could never tell with this man. "That so? That long ago?"

"I was supposed to kill someone a few days prior to the Prince's Ball. But you stole it away from me."

"You and Mikasa." Kenny corrected. "And eh, oh well. There's more scum out there to kill."

"... Are you actually suggesting that we are to kill someone… in the middle of all this?" Levi couldn't even begin to describe how shocked and distraught he was. He knew Kenny could be a hypocrite and a cruel piece of shit, but what the fuck?

He told them to stay low, to not make any mistakes. Yet he was here, hurling at them more trouble beyond unimaginable. It was infuriating.

"Listen, boy." Kenny sighed, he seemed to pick up on whatever that was crashing and burning in his nephew's mind. "I may have spouted a shit ton of bull to yer' brats about many things but yer' must not forget that y'all are Ackermans–"

"And what? Killing is our fate?" This running joke was starting to become old and sickeningly stale.

"That it is because we are Ackermans, we must kill to survive." It was the way Kenny sounded so laughably serious that made the joke even grosser than it was.

It was killing that made Mikasa closer to madness with her uncontrollable bloodlust and all. It was killing that made their clan so damned unredeemable. It was killing that would undeniably lead them to their demise like the others. And yet this cruel man… said it was for survival? What–

Someone's here. Levi didn't even have the chance to finish thinking about how ridiculous this all was when this realisation dawned upon him. Kenny must've noticed too, given the change in his stance.

But before Levi could reach out for his dagger, Kenny stopped him with a dismissing wave and a gesture to the orange glow that slowly chased away the grey skies. "I'll deal with this parasite alone. Head back for now… we will go with Plan A."


Once Levi left, Kenny couldn't help but scorn at the said "parasite's" pathetic attempt to spy, "A ten-year-old brat could play hide and seek better than yer'."

"I wouldn't need to hide if you had told them both of your true plans." From the shadows emerged Kiyomi who had her arms crossed; her face wearing the same displeased look Kenny grew acquainted to. "It'd make things easier and possibly faster, no?"

This bloody conversation again. Kenny clicked his tongue.

"Telling them my plans would require me to tell them everything." He scoffed. "And after hearing everything, they'll probably go run and try to play hero or go bat-shit crazy."

"How would you know?" Kiyomi challenged.

"Because I've been there once." Kenny retorted with ease. "The entire bane of their bloody lives is their bloodlust. The root cause of all their damned suffering is their bloodlust. So what do you think will happen the moment they find out who was fucking responsible?"

"Irrationality. Impulsiveness. Impatience. Idiocy." Kenny spat the answer out bitterly. "And it will ruin everything before it ruins themselves."

"...Whatever the case," Kiyomi didn't have the time to argue Kenny's logic, much less admit that the man made some sense given the circumstances. "I presume that I am to make my entrance to the castle in a few days?"

Kenny didn't seem to care enough to call Kiyomi out on changing the topic. It wasn't anything new, and he learnt that after their numerous meetings that it was pointless to argue with a stubborn woman.

The only time it was ever worth it was when he felt like provoking her out of spite; it had been entertaining dangling a carrot in front of her until she made him realise she had the same power to do the same to him as well.

"I'll send Traute to alert you."

"Alright."

And that was the end of that. Personally, Kiyomi never understood how or why Kenny did certain things, like hiding things from his own kin; she knew that'd certainly come to haunt him one day. Kiyomi was sure of it, she had seen it countless times back at home when they were living through more tumultuous times.

But regardless of what she felt, she wouldn't dare go back on their deal. It was far too late, and she– they were far too deep.

Oh, I wonder… Kiyomi thought as she left, How long will it be before I can meet her again… or when I can bring her back home?


Mikasa was still unconscious by the time she was in Kiyomi's hands. The child had been drugged and stolen from her home by a group of thugs who soon met their end when Kiyomi found out about their crime. It was safe to say Kiyomi didn't expect her secret trip to Paradis this month to turn out this way.

Now, they were in a little secluded area on the surface. Hidden deep in Paradis's uncharted forest, Kiyomi had her guards on active surveillance should any unexpected intruder dare come and interrupt the intricate process she was about to commence.

"Hand me the box." Kiyomi instructed one of the guards. Admittedly what she was about to do was a rather hasty decision made on her part, but she figured that she might as well; knowing that there would probably be no other chance like this again in the future. Especially since for the most part, Mikasa was always either by Kenny's or that other child's side. Never hers. All she could do was watch from the shadows.

"The faster we're done, the faster we can return her before that wrinkly… vulgar alcoholic brute can give me more trouble."

"We're not taking her back with us?" The guard asked as he handed her the box, where it contained many items and tools to embed the family symbol onto Mikasa's skin. A mark of honour; a tattooed symbol passed down from generation to generation to signify their status and their belonging.

It was just such a shame it had to be done like this.

"Even if we did, then what?" Kiyomi scoffed as she gently adjusted Mikasa's position, laying her sides against a tree. Kiyomi sat down behind her before beginning to tattoo the family crest around her back. "We need an heir—a ruler. Not a monster."

Mikasa was an Ackerman too, after all. A poisoned and cursed child. For as long as her bloodlust continued to surge and thrive in her veins, she could not bring her home. Mikasa being 'half-blooded' (as what the people would call it) was already enough to deal with; had she not been the only healthy and living member left of the family, she would not have been even considered to be the next heir.

But bringing her home with her unstable condition would completely shatter any chances of her taking over the throne—as Queen of Hizuru. And Hizuru would once again be tossed into dismay and Kiyomi would rather not see another tyrant rise and attempt to seize the throne.

After the King's passing, Kiyomi—being one of the King's closest confidants and a somewhat distant member of the family— and a few other trusted members had taken over temporarily until the new ruler settled in. However, the candidates presented were either too distant or too old to be considered.

Mikasa's mother– her real mother– had been the daughter of the late King. How she ended up in Paradis was due to the tumultuous times Hizuru had been experiencing at the time where bloodshed became a daily occurrence, where power-hungry groups or even outsiders shook and destroyed the land. Afraid for her safety, she fled. Past the horrid storms and ravenous waves—she found herself washed up onto the shores of Paradis.

Kiyomi couldn't blame her for fleeing. That, she could understand. But why hadn't she returned when things finally settled?

Kiyomi thought she had died. That or Hizuru had isolated themselves so much that lands as far as Paradis thought that they had all been dead given the number of wars and tragedies they had experienced thus far; and so she didn't return home.

Kiyomi didn't even know she ended up at Paradis—it was completely by chance that she found out about this from a washed-up champagne bottle; where a note penned personally by her resided.

But that was another story on its own. Though, fate certainly had its strange tricks.

What mattered was Kiyomi found out about Mikasa's existence and then later, her bloodlust. She ended up both crossing paths and striking a deal with Kenny—she would help him formulate a cure for the Ackerman's plight in exchange for taking a cured Mikasa home.

The main issue of this deal was the waiting period. While Kenny had loaned a sample of his blood so that the research for the cure could kickstart, barely any progress could have been made with the strange, undecipherable substance. And so Kiyomi had to wait. Wait for Kenny to launch his plan. Wait for the Prince's coronation. Wait for the information and other items to be obtained.

After all, the bloodlust's origins were tied to them.

"Women. Always so impatient."

Or perhaps the main issue had been him.

The guards around Kiyomi immediately tensed; having not noticed or sensed Kenny's presence at all until he made himself known. Their hands, belatedly swift as they were, reached out and gripped onto their weapon—completely unafraid of drawing their blade against him. And they would've, had Kiyomi not signalled them to stand down.

This man… Kiyomi furrowed her brows as Kenny rested his back against a nearby tree, his posture slouched and evidently not threatened by the guards, or of anything at all. One might mistake it as an ugly overconfidence, but Kiyomi had observed him enough to make the judgement that he was not one to toy with so easily.

"I can't believe yer' would go as far to drug 'er, ain't she—"

"I didn't!" Kiyomi's face scrunched up in offence. "She was outside, unguarded and a horrid gang of—"

Kenny waved his hands dismissively; he didn't wish to waste his time on a grandmother's story. "She would've been fine."

"You–!" She was at a loss for words. For someone keen on getting the last of his family out of this vicious bloody cycle, he was ironically so flippant towards such dangerous and likely life-threatening things that–

"Do you even care about her existence? Or your other… what? Nephew, was it?" Kiyomi wasn't afraid to ask what most would consider sensitive. It wasn't Kenny that scared her, but his attitude towards Mikasa. She knew for a fact the way he brought them up was… something she couldn't agree with, but was powerless to protest against it.

"And would it kill you not to be so harsh on her– on them? I can… understand some level of strict discipline is needed to keep that bloodlust under control. But… violence of that level"

"Violence is the only solution to rid monsters." Kenny said crudely. "It's all I have ever known. And it's all they need to know to stay alive."

"You call living like that… being alive?" Kiyomi couldn't believe it.

"They aren't fucking rotting like corpses. What do yer' suggest I do? Sing a lullaby for the bloodlust to be knocked into a shitty coma?"

"You're despicable."

Kenny rolled his eyes. "So be it. I never claimed to be a parent."

"Yer' know," He continued after taking a deep breath to keep his calm. Or… at least, keeping him a step away from exploding on this impossibly irritating woman who just couldn't seem to understand. "If yer' want honesty, well personally I wouldn't have wished for their life." He said this as if it were a fact. He had no regrets and probably wouldn't ever regret saying what he just said.

As Kiyomi struggled to understand his thought process, Kenny took a glimpse at Mikasa who remained unconscious; but at the very least, he noted, that she didn't seem too awfully pale from whatever drug she inhaled. She'll live, Kenny concluded. regrettably.

"And," He continued without a moment's hesitation. He simply had no filter, there was no point to it. "I do damn bloody well regret not ending her life when I first found her."

"You–!" Kiyomi gasped, her fist balled as she stood up with the rage supporting her just as much as it was boiling from within. But before her mouth could go off shooting bullets at Kenny before possibly killing him for saying something so blasphemous, Kenny provided his so-called justification.

"No child should ever go through this."

Kiyomi took a step back after hearing that; she maintained eye-contact with his eyes that were void of any feasible touching emotion. It made it difficult to believe the sincerity in his statement even if he said it as if it were a fact. Was it really a fact? A belief? Was there a difference?

"... Then tell me," Kiyomi said after taking a deep breath. "What made you change your mind?"

"For Levi it was easy. A stupid shitty promise to my sister." Kenny clicked his tongue. Kiyomi was about to presume such sentimentality on his part was some sort of questionable sarcasm until he continued his sentence, "Plus by the time I found him, he was already a limping brat… past the deadline, ain't worth slaughtering."

Kiyomi decided to ignore that part. She wasn't really concerned about Levi.

"And Mikasa?" She asked, wondering what sort of twisted response she'd get. But what he said next was unexpected, at least to her– because he faltered. It was almost unnoticeable.

Just what happened on that rainy day when he found Mikasa? Kiyomi only ever heard a gist of the story. Not the full.

"…It's complicated." Kenny decided, "But perhaps, in the moment, I did not want to be a murderer like him."


News of Eren's proposal to Mikasa broke out in the early morning, some were dismayed although more were shocked not at the Prince's choice but at the fact that he even made a choice at all, this soon especially.

The advisors had no actual complaints about it though.

And a meeting was quickly put together.

"In lieu of Prince Eren's proposal to myself, I suppose revealing this piece of information is only necessary… take it as a sign of my trust." Mikasa said when Hanji, amidst her surprise of this sudden engagement, had asked how they were to deliver the letter back to Hizuru.

"Previously, when asked how we arrived, we mentioned that we took this route." Mikasa gestured to the map, just as Traute taught her. "As you know, however, it is a gamble to take this route given the storms occurring during certain seasons and months; which is why many if not all nations from the West are reluctant to travel to the East.

"While we did not lie about taking this route. Hizuru and a few other allies amongst the East Sea have recently partnered to transform this wasteland," Mikasa pointed to one of the bigger islands in between the East and West; one that was war-torn centuries ago. "Into essentially… a trading route, which should be ready in three days' time. It reduces travelling to the West by a day compared to the other route and is relatively much safer.

"A trading route?" Erwin narrowed his eyes. "You're only telling us this now?"

Mikasa did not fail to pick up whatever subtle implications and suspicions the Commander had.

"With all due respect… we had no way of contacting you given the previous limited routes available. We were in isolation and busy rebuilding ourselves since no one else initially wished to offer an aiding hand. And this island is evidently within our sphere and territory." Mikasa said.

"And you still managed to hear of Paradis's ball?"

"It was by chance." Mikasa answered seamlessly. Whatever she said next was rehearsed, and while she explained as naturally as could; she genuinely wondered if these people would buy this story. Well, regardless it was a story she had to sell.

"A group of men from Solailes* washed up on our shore, injured and hurt. Upon some investigation and interrogation, we found out a fair share of things… such as upcoming events and so on."

*(Solailes: An overall neutral nation situated in the west like Paradis. Albeit, it is geographically relatively close to the East Sea as compared to others. ;; and of course, this goes without saying that it is just a fictional place I randomly came up with.)

"We only hid this trivial information from you because we wouldn't want to be viewed as… barbaric as our first impression. We had no idea of what the… outside thought of us beforehand, when the war was over and all." Mikasa added before anyone could question. "And if you must know, those men were deemed non-threatening, and are currently safe and recovering from their injuries in Hizuru before they set sail back to their homeland once the storm calms or when the trading route is officially opened."

"I hope you realise I am being extremely transparent as a display of my trust in Paradis." Mikasa said. "I will not lie that I was uncertain about Paradis becoming our first official ally from the West, much less moving away from our isolationism… however, after everything that Prince Eren showed and told me…" Mikasa eyed Eren and smiled. "I am now certain."


If one were to scrutinise the entire happenings of the meeting as much as Mikasa, they could probably sense that the scepticism brewing from the Commander about the whole ordeal, and perhaps a little tentativeness on Advisor Hanji's part. And while both of them were authoritative figures with high rankings, she wasn't exactly too concerned about what they thought about her.

After all, the majority of the advisors were more thrilled about the drastic turn of events than suspicious. They didn't appear to care to find out the reason behind Prince Eren's decision to wed her despite his countless open protests about an early marriage. All they cared about was that it happened. Because to them, Mikasa wasn't just a Princess; she was the key to obtaining more rich resources they were short of, to more connections with the lands residing within the East Sea and so on.

It was just too bad she was none of that.

"Hey," Mikasa gave a soft nudge to Levi once they left the room. Rather than Hanji and Erwin who had been targets of Mikasa's scrutiny, there was something– someone else that had managed to actually draw her concern. "Everything alright?"

"Why the question?" Levi asked as he leaned against the wall. Being aware of their current setting, he continued carefully. "There's nothing to worry about. All we have to do now is wait for them to seal the letter you wrote so it can be handed over to the messenger who will help deliver it to Hizuru. I don't see a problem, unless… you wrote something incorrectly."

"I'm not talking about that." Mikasa assured, having picked up Levi's insinuations and dismissed them entirely. "You just seem…" For a lack of a better word, Mikasa made a random hand gesture that earned her a raised brow from Levi that hinted at his confusion.

"You just …look bothered." Perhaps it was an oversimplification but she didn't know how else to explain. But she did have an idea what the reason could be. "Did–"

"I was born with this face." Levi scoffed and Mikasa resisted the temptation to step on his foot for his lame use of sarcasm.

"That's not–"

"Princess Mika– ah," It was Eren who interrupted, and who stumbled a step or two back when his intrusion was coldly received by Mikasa's guard who shot him a glare. "Ah… am I - er - interrupting something…?"

"Ah, no worries." Mikasa must've noticed this because she stepped in front of Levi, blocking Eren's view of him in an attempt to ease the boy's nerves. He had seemed quite startled from whatever look her brother threw at him whether it be intentional or not. As for Mikasa, she had grown too accustomed to Levi's resting face that was more often than not perceived to be a threat. It would've been humorous if the circumstances were not like this.

"Is something the matter?"

"Ah, I was wondering if you wanted a proper tour around Paradis… now that we are… well…" Whether it be an act or not, Mikasa found the pink blooming in his cheeks rather amusing. It was a cheeky and forbidden thought, one that Mikasa would deny ever thinking but she did wonder what went through his mind after he proposed to her. Even if it was fake. "Now that we are betrothed and everything." He quickly finished.

"Oh." Mikasa took a glance at Levi who gave a rather reluctant look of approval. Out of all the days her brother could choose to give her mixed signals, he chose today? "Well…"

"I don't see why not!" Approaching from behind was Hanji who couldn't help but chirp in. "Now that you both are betrothed, it would be good to have you immerse yourself with Paradis's culture so you can understand us better. No need to worry about the letter." Hanji hummed as she held up the sealed envelope in between her two fingers. "Your guard and I will deliver the letter to the docks, we have already sent word for one of the more competent sailors to help deliver it."

"And there's no need to concern yourself with trivial matters, Princess." Levi added on to Hanji's statement as he pushed himself off the wall. Mikasa turned around and faced him with furrowed brows. "I'll see to it that the letter gets delivered."

Mikasa knew for a fact there was much more hidden beneath his words. Beyond the obvious, beyond the schemes– there was something else entangled with his words; a message, left undelivered and unspoken. But now was not the time to ask.

"... I'll leave it to you then." Mikasa smiled anyways.


"So it's just the two of us again." Hanji said, giving Mikasa and Eren a final wave of goodbye as they left the castle's premise. "Do you think this is going to be a regula– hey!" She exclaimed when her focus averted back to Levi, who wore the most unimpressed look she saw thus far. That by itself spoke volumes. "What's with that grumpy look? It wouldn't hurt to smile a little more! Or, you know, look less angry! Am I that intolerable?"

"You are noisy." Levi grumbled. Though, maybe that wasn't so much of a bad thing. Hanji's talkativeness was definitely something that managed to keep Kenny and his words out of his mind. In a weird way, it was both annoying yet peaceful… but certainly not intolerable. "And I was born with this face."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mea– Oi!" Levi started to walk off in the opposite direction from where Mikasa and Eren left. "Wait up! Oi! You're going the wrong way!"


"Commander Erwin," A young Paradis guard approached his older superior, offering a salute in the process out of basic courtesy and highest respect. Though, it didn't appear to be received. "Captain Nanaba was wondering if you wanted to dispatch more knights into town now that the Prince and Princess are heading there and– Commander?"

Distracted by the sight of the youngest advisor making her way out of the castle with the guard from Hizuru, Erwin failed to acknowledge the knight's request. "Ah. Forgive me." He only snapped out of it when the knight called for him the second time. "Yes. I believe it is best to. I will dispatch some of the Azker royal guards."

"Understood." The guard nodded. "...Otherwise, is something bothering you, sir? Do you wish to alert Captain Nanaba?"

"It's nothing of concern." Erwin was quick to dismiss such a horrendous notion. The last thing he wanted was for rumours to scatter or cause any unnecessary worry. "Leave."

"Y-Yes sir."

Perhaps he sounded harsher than usual when dismissing the guard, but perhaps that'd keep his mouth shut to Nanaba; the last thing he wanted was for another woman to nag at him.

Whatever past he shared with Hanji was six feet under, buried deep yet not forgotten. Evidently, some level of animosity existed just as much as the rare understandings that ghosted around them from time to time. Regardless, he was not jealous nor was he overly worried for her and whatever strange relationship she shared with Levi.

Hanji knew of Erwin's suspicions, that was what concerned him. Was she purposely forging a friendship with the guard to spite him or as a method of clarification? Granted, Erwin could acknowledge Hanji was a mature woman– but having spent some time with her personally, he knew she could have a childish heart. She wasn't the type to be vengeful, but conniving was another matter– although to him, it seemed like that part of her retired ages ago.

Whatever that was going in Hanji's mind now was beyond Erwin.

Forget it. He decided. It is a waste of time to speculate.


Author's Note:

Hello :) it has been a long time since I last updated haha. My apologies, life once again got busy and I was having a major writer's block since I was losing inspiration for attack on titan things :( but hey, I saw some cool edits and scenes from the new attack on titan season that kept me going haha so thank goodness for that :)) !

Side note, lol I didn't realise how long ago did I start writing this like wowwww. Time really goes by so fast! I really wish I thought of the plot more thoroughly hehe but oh wells… let us close one eye for any plot-holes HAHA but do comment if you spot any maybe I can try to fill it up loll

Anyways. I do hope if my readers are still reading this that you enjoyed it :) there's a lot of new info dump here so… have fun?

Please feel free to leave a comment or review! Or even your theories on what's gonna happen next hehe. As always, I am always open to receiving constructive criticism too because why not haha.

Thanks for all the kudos and support! Even though I don't reply to all comments, please know I appreciate all of them and I literally have them starred in my email inbox LOL and I'd actually look at them from time to time whenever I feel down and it'd never fail to make me happy (even the constructive criticism like,, thank you for noticing HAHA :))

Anyways, again, thank you for reading and hope you all have a nice day! I hope to update this again soon!

PS: I didn't re-read it again before publishing this new chapter because its late here and I just really want to sleep… but also post this already before I actually have to get up so hfvbhdghd I'll re-check it tmr just in case there are any grammar/phrasing mistakes! Otherwise, do comment if you spot any