Mikasa reached the hospital within two hours. She then went as fast as her legs could carry her to Armin's ward. When she reached, a police officer in front of the room asked her to sit outside for a while as Albert and Fetta were already inside with him. About 15 minutes later, a man in a black suit and a fedora came into the hall. He took a glance at her while she wasn't looking and seemed to recognize her immediately. He then whispered something in the ears of the officer and went inside. 5 minutes later, Albert and Fetta came out of the room along with the suited man. Both of them had tears running down their cheeks. Mikasa went up and hugged the two of the them as they cried against her shoulder. She shed a few tears as well. As she began to console the two of them, the man in the suit went up to her and whispered slowly

"Lady Ackermann, he wishes to speak with you."

Mikasa then slowly nodded. After she managed to calm down Albert and Fetta, she slowly went into the ward as she prepared herself for the sight she had to see. Even so, she gasped as a few tears streamed down her cheeks. Although he was still able to speak, his body were marred with red and black patches from the blast. Although she had seen him with worse burns when they fought the Colossal Titan, she still couldn't take in the sight she saw.

"A…Armin…" she slowly said

He gave a light smile in the corner of his lips and gestured her to sit. He turned to the suited man and ordered

"Leave us alone."

He then slightly bowed and left the room

Armin then slowly said

"I just received an intel report from that agent. Apparently, my car was bombed by a member of the Yeagerists."

Mikasa slightly looked up in shock at the news Armin continued

"I never expected them to make an aggressive move like this, but it's only logical. I'm the only bigwig in the Peacemakers. Take me down, and nothing is stopping the Yeagerists from taking over the island. Looks like…this is the end. Although it seems like I've managed to survive the blast, I could feel my life fading. Seems like I've managed to become the next Darius Zackary, huh?"

"D-Don't say stuff like that! You'll only make it worse. You'll make it through…don't think too much!" Mikasa scolded him as her eyes started to tear up

"No…I can feel it…I won't last long…and neither will this island…The situation in the government is going out of hand at this point. With more and more Eldians enraged by the world's discrimination, the Yeagerists are becoming too powerful to hold back. The world is waiting for a chance to attack again as it begins to rebuild. If this goes on, we'll be at war again by the next 30 years at least…either with the Yeagerists, or the world. I was the only one holding things back, but with me gone, things will start to crumble. Everyone can see this island has developed and has undergone a lot of growth during these 53 years…we call this peace but all I see is every country holding a knife on our necks…waiting to strike…while the Yeagerists slowly poison us. Every time that comes to my mind, I wonder whether we did the right thing by betraying Eldia back then."

Armin then scrunched his face in thought

"Sometimes… I think our life would have been better within those walls. After seeing all of this, I feel that the future that Eren did everything for…doesn't seem worth it. Although every bit of this is technically his fault."

Mikasa slightly winced as she remembered Eren's role in the Rumbling.

Armin chuckled "It's ironic you know…Eren created the Yeagerists to protect Paradis from outside threats…yet now, that's the sole thing that's eating our country apart. He caused the Rumbling for the same reason as well, hoping that it would make us into heroes that saved the world…yet that only served to turn the world against us even more. I don't blame him though…for all he saw, he didn't have a choice."

Mikasa tries to compose herself after hearing this

"This peace…it wasn't built on an armistice. It wasn't built on the unanimous intention of peace. It was a peace built out of necessity…it was built on the corpses of millions of innocent souls…Eldian, Hizuran, and Marleyan alike. It was to hold until the world stood on its feet again…and then everything would return to the beginning…just like it was during the Great Titan wars. The only difference is that instead of the Titans, we have the Yeagerists. Other than ridding the world of the Titans, none of Eren's deeds have not caused us problems."

Mikasa thought about the children in her own orphanage who ended up embracing Yeagerist principles when they got older.

"These people…it makes me disgusted when I think about how they take Eren's sacrifice for granted…even after all that he did for their peace…these people are going to war again with the world…and the world with them…We are making every effort to opt for peace and these people just…after he sacrificed everything he wanted for them…Shinzo wo Sasageyo…that very term seems like a joke to me now. These people are dedicating their hearts to fight their own kin…it pains and angers me at the same time.

We risked our lives with that saying when we thought humanity was on the brink of extinction…but now…these people are just destroying themselves. Eren…shouldn't have suffered and died for these people…Eldians and the world alike…they don't deserve this chance…"

Mikasa looked down with her eyes furrowed as she said

"I think we were very naïve, Armin. Thinking that 2000 years of hatred over the Eldians added to the destruction caused by the Rumbling would just…disappear because of a few peace missions and donations to rebuild the world. It's true, Eren gave us enough time to establish peace with other nations. But at the same time, he gave so much hatred from the world and the island that is too much to handle for the time that we have."

Armin looked up to the ceiling as he said "That's true."

After a few seconds, he slowly said

"He may not look like it, but Eren was a slave himself. He was a slave to his own destiny…to his own future memories…to the tasks put on him by the previous inheritors of his Titan. No matter how tough he acted, in the end, he was just a 19-year-old with the power and the role to destroy the world. He…he said that even if he had not known he would be stopped, even if we won't be heroes to the world, he would have still caused the Rumbling in order to create a new world outside the Walls. When I asked him why, he said that he didn't know…it was something he just had to do…but looking at him…I think the Rumbling was something that was not completely out of his own will."

"Wha-What do you mean? What are you talking about Armin?" Mikasa asked in interest

Armin chuckled

"Honestly, I didn't understand what he meant by that. It's something that he alone knew. Before he died, I had a conversation with him in the paths, where he told me about Founder Ymir and her story. After that…I asked him what he thought about you at the beach… whether he'd want you to move on after him. He was hesitant at first, but after I punched him in the face, he broke down…*laughs lightly*… and trust me he was downright pathetic…for all the time he seemed to show no interest in you…it really surprised me…he told me never to tell you though"

Mikasa looked at him in curiosity

"He…he said he didn't want that…he couldn't even stomach the thought of you with another man…cried at the mere thought of it…he said he wanted you to think of him for the rest of your life…or at least for the next 10 years… he wanted you to be happy but…he couldn't help but be a bit selfish…it was like I was seeing the old him again…"

Mikasa lightly smiled as she lightly blushed "I wish I could have heard those words…"

Although she knew Eren loved her by what he showed her in the Paths, he never really said it out loud to her.

"Don't blush at your age Mikasa! It's honestly weird!" He says with a light laugh

He looked at the ceiling and continued

"He was so sad at the end…he said that mind was completely messed up because of the Founder's power…he said that he didn't want to die…that he wanted to be with everyone…he wanted to be with you."

Mikasa slightly teared up at this

"It broke my heart to see him like that…I then understood why Eren behaved like that those years…having the memories of your tragic future for years in your head while they play before you like clockwork…I can't imagine how painful and scary that must have been for him…I thought I didn't understand him anymore but…the truth is…I never tried to…none of us did…Even after seeing him change like that…we all thought of him as a threat or asset and looked at the big picture…but we didn't try to understand him as our friend…a human at the least…not even once…even when he looked at everyone with those lifeless eyes. It took him destroying 80% of all humanity for us to only understand his pain. But it was too late. Among all of us, he was suffering the most…knowing that he would die in four years…knowing that the world's not what he dreamed of…knowing that he would have to kill so many people…hearing their screams in his head…knowing that he has to force his best friends against him…to let them all go in the end…Every time I think about all this…I regret not approaching him as a friend back then."

Mikasa looked down as she thought about everything

"Back when he went rogue and attacked Liberio, I was only mad at him for ruining our chances of peace with Marley. I only asked him what made him attack Liberio on his own but… I never asked him why he did something cruel like that…why he changed so much…in such a short time…the Eren I remembered saved me from bullies as a kid…why would he attack innocent civilians so mercilessly like that? Wasn't the port the only thing we had to destroy? What made him turn into a hollow shell of himself? Not asking him that back then is something we can never be forgiven for."

Armin clenched his fists

"If only…I asked him those questions that day in the Marleyan restaurant, maybe he would have opened up…and none of this would have had to happen."

Armin grit his teeth

"He was becoming mentally unstable right in front of our eyes and we STILL didn't do anything to help. He was talking to himself too much, he screamed whenever he woke up, he literally cried in his sleep, Mikasa!"

Mikasa looked down with her lips pursed as she thought of everything.

"I'll never forget the day he saw the first memory of his father. The first thing he asked himself when he woke up was 'Who am I?!'"

"I…I've seen memories from the previous inheritors and I STILL didn't understand Eren's pain. What kind of shit do you have to go through in a dream to ask yourself 'Who am I?!' He was going through so much back then and we just…ignored it thinking that he was 'going through a phase'…all we thought was about ourselves and our duties, not even thinking about what he was going through…"

"Eren didn't become a monster. The world turned him into one…we turned him into one."

Mikasa closed her eyes tightly to stop her tears from coming.

"If I put it that way, we never really saved the world, did we? All we were doing was just cleaning up our mistakes. Because we failed to help Eren when he needed us the most. Because we failed to see other options. Because we failed to give him the assurance that Paradis would be safe from the world. So Eren took the only option that seemed most logical to him. He took it upon himself to try and ensure that Paradis's safety was sealed. He could have changed everything at any point since he knew the future, but he didn't as he hoped for a better future in the world without the Titans...a free world…that's what made him keep moving forward… All these years I believed the same that he did…but seeing things now, I can't help but believe that there might have been another way… a way to a better future that we haven't seen yet…even if we still had the Titans…I've thought about it since Liberio…I don't know why Eren came to the conclusion of genocide as the only option but looking at all this…I'm sure now…genocide is not the answer to peace…to end this cycle of war. I don't know the answer myself, but genocide is NOT an answer…but…it's too late now…everything's falling apart…"

He then said with a cracking voice as he teared up

"It's my fault…all of it…I was the peacemaker, wasn't I? Wasn't I the one who was good with words? Why didn't I make amends with Marley when I had the chance? Why didn't I persuade the world into accepting us? We didn't do anything wrong to them until Liberio right? We had everything in our favor and…I messed things up…I pushed Eren to commit genocide… I made everyone kill their own comrades… whenever I sleep, I remember how Connie cried when he killed Daz and Samuel…I-I'm responsible for all that…I speak of peace but…all my acts have led to nothing but war in the end…I think about it every time I see you bringing flowers for Eren…you may have been the one who killed Eren but…I was the one who left that as the only option…"

Armin then completely broke down

"I-It's completely my fault…it wasn't you, Mikasa…I-It was me who brought things till that point. The world…does not believe a lie…I was the one who killed Eren Yeager! I killed… my best friend."

He then began to say between gasps as he turned to her

"I-I'm sorry, Mikasa…I'm sorry…because of me...Eren was...It was all me… I'm sorry…I was the bad guy…It had always been me from the start..."

Mikasa looked at him as her hand tightened on his.

"Armin…" she whispered

She pursed her lips as she looked down with tears. As Armin's cries slowly stopped, Armin took a breath with gritted teeth

"Even after all the mistakes I made…Eren still believed that I could save humanity…I promised him that won't let his error go to waste…I failed him…again."

Armin then looked at her in the eye and asked

"Mikasa…there's one thing I always wanted to know…on that day, when you and Eren chose Commander Erwin over me…have I at least…lived a life worthy enough of his sacrifice? Were the lives I saved all these years…worth the cost? Could…could things have been much better than what I did for this generation if Commander Erwin had survived instead of me…could he have prevented all of this? Please answer me honestly, Mikasa"

Mikasa held Armin's hand through both of hers

"Believe me when I say this Armin, you have done a really amazing job as a peacemaker. If it weren't for you, this island wouldn't have even lasted for another 20 years…It would have long fallen under military control and we'd not have peace for this long…53 years of peace, Armin! Do you know how much that means? I'm really proud of you, and I'm sure that…Commander Erwin, Hange, heck even that chibi would have been really proud of you. And I'm sure…Eren would be proud of you as well. In the end…it happened just like Eren said it would…you saved the world…an entire generation…from war. If you ask me, you've turned out much better than Commander Erwin."

Armin then relaxes and slowly smiles "Thank you…Mikasa…"

She then heard a loud beep from Armin's ECG, which showed a flat line. She then looked at Armin, whose still eyes stared into her with the slight smile he had a few seconds ago. Mikasa slowly shook him with shivering hands

"A-Armin?" She slowly called him

He showed no response.

"Oi…Armin...ARMIN!" she called him louder, tears coming down her cheeks.

She went outside the room and frantically called the doctor, who then told her to wait outside as he used the defibrillator on him a few times. Mikasa watched as Armin's chest came up a few times, while the ECG stayed flat. The doctor then turned to her and nodded his head sideways, showing that there was nothing he could do now. It's over.

Mikasa's mind went blank. She couldn't think about anything anymore. She went outside and leaned against the wall. Albert and Fetta were sitting opposite her. They looked at her emotionless face as she came out the door. Mikasa looked at the ground while the two kids looked at her. She then slowly said

"He's gone."

She gulped as she wasn't able to put Armin's name in the sentence. She then slowly said

"A-A-Armin's…dead."

As the fact began to sink in for her, she slowly began to slide against the wall to sit on the ground. She then slowly said with a light chuckle

"I'm…all alone now, huh?" Tears began to lace her eyes

She slowly began to cry profusely at this. Her mind began to think about all the memories she had with Armin. The first time Eren introduced him to her, the times they spent together as kids, the way they looked out for each other when they lost their elders and joined the military, the time she nearly killed Levi to bring him back to life, the times she relied on Armin when Eren betrayed them, the day Armin stood up to Eren when he blatantly insulted her as a slave, the time when both of them worked together to take down Eren, and all these years when he stood by her as she mourned Eren.

At that moment, she couldn't hear anything in the hospital. Not the sounds of Fetta and Albert crying beside her, the sounds of footsteps in the building, nor the ticking of the clock. All she could hear were her cries and whimpers of sorrow and Armin's voice in her head.

The next day

Armin's funeral was done with all honorary rites. It was attended by many of the big leaders of Paradis from both wings. Mikasa watched the proceedings from the side. This day marked the downfall of the Peacemakers from power and ascension of the Yeagerists to the de facto rulers of Paradis Island. Although the other countries had no hand in his assassination, they were waiting for this moment. Now that the Yeagerists had now taken control, Paradis will now go on the offensive sooner or later. This will provide them more than enough reason to attack Paradis, to eventually destroy it in the process.

A/N: So this is my new chapter. It was hard writing this...my head started hurting by the end of it. Like all stuff in AOT, I know this will possibly spark a controversy, And I'll welcome all of it in the comments. It'll help me improve my work as well. So, keep the arguments coming!