The man in charge of the trial was none other than commander in chief Darius Zackley. The situation was a precedent within the walls, and because Eren was on military duty at the time, the head of all three army branches would decide upon his fate.

"You are Eren Yeager, yes?" The commander in chief started "as a soldier, you've pledged your life to serve the public. Correct?"

"Yes, sir…" Eren responded.

"Regular law cannot apply in these exceptional circumstances. Therefore, this will be a military tribunal. Ultimate authority has been entrusted to me…"

"…even over your life. Now I will ask you only once."

"Do you have any objections?"

Eren looked down dejected.

"No, sir!"

Seeing the boy comply, Zackley continued.

"I'm glad you understand. This case has given rise to many conflicting, passionate arguments behind these walls."

"There are those who call you a demon that will lead us to destruction, and others who consider you a savior who will bring hope to human race."

"As expected, it proved impossible to hide your existence from the general public. When we are eventually forced to make an official statement about you, it will inevitably produce a new threat in addition to the titans."

"We're here to decide which branch of the military will be responsible for your activities. That decision will determine how you are dealt with. The military police brigade, or the survey corps."

"We'll hear from the military police first."

Dina looked at the other side of the courtroom. An older man with dark hair and beard stood up.

"I am chief Nile Dok of the military police brigade…" he started "…and we believe that Eren's body should be thoroughly examined, after which it should be disposed of without delay."

As the man continued on with his speech, Dina took some time to think. It somehow did seem like the king wanted to take Eren's power. Regardless of whether Nile Dok knew king's true intentions or not, it was one more reason for Dina to think that Grisha succeeded with his mission. It didn't prove anything yet, but it definitely was more likely.

"That isn't necessary!" A church official sitting in the front row suddenly interjected "he is a pest that circumvented the divine protection of the wall through trickery! He should be executed immediately!"

The official seemed a little deranged, but Dina knew that church of the walls was really close to the king. If anyone here had some additional information, it would be the church official.

"Minister Nick, quiet, please" Zackley said silencing the official "We will now hear the proposal from the survey corps."

The man in charge of the survey corps was tall and blonde. He seemed to display an aura of leadership and even though he wasn't old, he still seemed experienced. In Dina's eyes he already looked trustworthy.

"Sir" he started "I'm Erwin Smith, the thirteenth commander of the survey corps."

"We plan to induct Eren into the corps as a full-fledged member and use his titan power to take back wall Maria."

"That is all."

Short and to the point. Dina could see what the commander was trying to do. By grabbing Zackley's attention like that, he essentially made him more interested in the proposal.

"Hm?" The commander in chief looked surprised, as expected "That's all you have to say?"

"Yes, sir" replied Erwin "with his strength, we can recover wall Maria. I believe our priorities are clear."

"I see" Zackley said with consideration "by the way, what base do you plan to use to launch the expeditions outside the wall going forward?"

The commander in chief seemed to have caught the bait.

"Pixis?" he asked the old garrison leader "the Trost district wall is now completely sealed, is it not?"

"Yes" replied the man in question "that gate will never open again."

"We wish to set out from eastern Karanes district" Erwin started explaining "We need to develop a new route to Shiganshina district completely from scratch."

"Hold on!" One of the nobles suddenly stood up "isn't it the time we sealed off the gates permanently?!"

"If we just reinforced those areas, they would never be able to attack us again! Do those dogs in the guild really want land that badly?! All you people do is blurt out unrealistic ideals while plunging us further into ruin! We won't let you play heroes any longer!"

Captain Levi, the soldier who saved Eren in Trost, looked at the man.

"You're full of talk, you pig" he started "but where's your guarantee that the titans will wait patiently while we wall up the gates?"

"When you say 'we', you're talking about my friends, who protect you while you get fat" Levi seemed to get through to the man "you pigs take no notice of the people who starve, because there isn't enough land."

The nobble looked down upon Levi's comment.

"A-All I said was that we'd be safe if we sealed up the gates…!"

"THAT'S ENOUGH, INSOLENT SCOUNDREL!" Minister Nick turned to scorn the man.

As the discussion went on, Dina thought about commander Erwin. Could she really trust him? And if so, what information would she have to give him?

"Let's move on…" Exclaimed Zackley silencing the commotion "Eren… I have a question for you."

"Sir" responded the boy.

"It seems you wish to join the survey corps" commander in chief said, "but can you continue as a soldier and use this titan power for the benefit of the human race?"

Eren thought for a second before responding.

"Yes, sir!" He exclaimed "I can!"

Zackley looked questioning.

"Is that so…?!" He said and looked at some documents "the report from the recovery mission states that right after becoming a titan, you swung your fist three times at Mikasa Ackerman."

Eren looked towards them startled.

'He probably doesn't remember any of it' Dina thought.

"What was I supposed to do…? Lie in the report…?" Captain Rico whispered.

"Where is Mikasa Ackerman?" Asked Zackley.

"That's me sir." The girl in question stood up.

"Is it true that Eren attacked you?"

The girl held her breath.

"Just be honest" Dina whispered to her.

"Yes" Mikasa exclaimed "It's true…"

The courtroom seemed taken-aback by her statement.

"…however," the girl continued "two times before that, Eren saved my life."

"The first time, a titan was about to eat me. He stood against it and protected me. The second time, he shielded Armin and me from an explosive shell..."

"I wonder" Nile Dok interjected suddenly "everything you just said is in the report. Wishful thinking has severely clouded your views, reducing their objective value."

Mikasa looked at the man.

"I know why you are taking Eren's side" he said. "While investigating Eren's background, I came across a record of an incident from six years ago."

"When these two were nine-year-olds, they stabbed three adult robbers to death."

Whispers could be heard within the courtroom. Nile continued.

"Their actions are understandable. It was legitimate self-defence. Yet it raises doubts as to Eren's basic humanity. Should we entrust him with the lives, the resources, and the very fate of the human race?"

Despite being an MP, Nile Dok was a seasoned speaker. A commotion broke out in the courtroom.

"He must be a titan who took a form of a child to infiltrate our society!"

"He's right in front of us, like a powder keg that could explode any minute!"

"That one, too!" The noble who was speaking earlier pointed at Mikasa "how do we know she's human?"

Eren looked like he wasn't having any of it. All the years Dina spent at teaching him on how to control his anger seemed not to matter anymore.

"You're wrong!" He spoke.

"I may be a monster…" he continued "…but Mikasa has nothing to do with it!"

"And what's more… Everyone's just saying whatever speculation happens to be the most convenient to them! But once you've cut yourselves off from reality, it's all pointless!"

"How dare you…" Chief Nile started, but Eren didn't let him finish.

"In the first place… You people have never even seen a titan, so what are you so afraid of? Why do you want people with power not to fight so bad?! If you're afraid of fighting for your own lives, then please, help me! You cowards…"

"JUST SHUT UP AND LET ME FIGHT!"

This was bad. Someone had to do something quickly.

"Stand ready!" As Nile shouted the order, assisting MP pointed a gun at Eren.

SMACK!

A tooth fell out of Eren's mouth as he was kicked in the face by captain Levi. As the scout was beating Eren to a pulp, Dina had to put her arm on Mikasa's shoulder to hold her in place. It seemed like by doing this, the survey corps demonstrated they could contain Eren if he ever lost control. She still felt angry at Levi though. He didn't have to use such an excessive force.

"I've always found pain the most effective punishment" Levi said as he held Eren's head under his boot "the lesson you need to learn right now can't be taught with words."

He kicked him few more times.

"L-Levi" chief Nile said nervously "wait!"

The short captain turned to face the MP.

"What?"

"It's dangerous" Nile said, "what if he turns into a titan?"

"What are you talking about?" Levi asked as he grabbed Eren's hair and held him up "you are the one who wanted to thoroughly examine his body, right?"

The crowd was standing shocked.

"Apparently, he killed around twenty titans before he ran out of strength" Levi continued "But he's still no match for me."

"Do you really think you could take him down yourself?"

Erwin suddenly raised up.

"Commander in chief, I have a proposal" he exclaimed "there are many unknown elements behind Eren's titan power. Danger will always be lurking beneath the surface. Therefore, in the event that you decide to put him under our control, I would pair him up with captain Levi as a failsafe."

"Someone as skilled as the captain would be able to deal with Eren even in the worst-case scenario."

Zackley seemed to put that into consideration.

"I see" he finally said, "can you do it Levi?"

The short captain looked at Eren's slouched form.

"If you mean killing him, it's no problem" he said "rather, the problem is there would be no half measures."

This answer seemed to satiate Zackley's interest.

"I see we have exhausted this line of inquiry" he finally said "I will now make my decision…"

"Please, wait!" Nile suddenly interjected "Erwin, I want to ask you. What will you do about the interior?"

Erwin seemed to be prepared for that too.

"I'm quite aware that our activities outside the wall depend on the stability of the human race. I don't take the problems of the interior lightly. So let me promise that to calm the public, we'll prove that Eren is a valuable asset to humanity in our next expedition. I would like to decide his future based on those results."

Darius Zackley gathered his documents.

"I see" he said, "it's settled then."

"Eren Yeager is placed in the care of the survey corps. However, he may return here, depending on his accomplishments."

Dina let out a sigh. Eren was safe and she could start putting her plan in motion.

As they were leaving, she was stopped by Armin.

"Miss Dina" he said, "can we talk?"

Dina knew this conversation was coming. She nodded at the boy, and they went towards a corner, where no one could hear them. When they were sure nobody was around, Armin started his questioning.

"Back in Trost, when Eren was unresponsive, you knew exactly what to do" he said "you even knew that his real body resided in his nape. How could that be if you weren't there when he exited his titan the first time?"

Dina didn't want to lie to the boy, but right now, she had no choice.

"I thought that the titan's weak point had something to do with it. Besides, I saw him exit his titan when he saved you and Mikasa from a cannon shell."

Armin looked at her disbelievingly.

"This isn't right" he said "the fumes should have obstructed your view at that time. They were all over the place!"

"And when I was a kid, I never saw you around in Shiganshina either!"

Dina took a deep breath. For that question, she was prepared.

"I lived just outside the district. After my husband died, I lost my home." She practiced saying this line many times. Knowing that it would be hard for anyone to ever remember a beggar from outside the district, she was sure of her cover.

Armin however didn't seem to buy this.

"I don't trust you" he said, "the sole reason I didn't mention it within the report is because you always look out for Eren."

"If you ever do anything suspicious again, I will tell everyone."

Dina was a little hurt.

"Why can't you trust me?" She asked him, but he just turned around, and walked away.

Dina sighed to herself. Armin was never really fond of her, but she always tried to take care of him to the best of her abilities. Unfortunately, these days were long gone, and now she knew it for sure.

It was high time Dina had made her own move.