Warning: Increasing rating

Seventh Tale: Gambles
Part 1 – The Boy in Question

The Eulogy of Maria
Year 837

25 Because of sadness we learned hate
26 And then blamed everything else to innocent fate
27 That time we have begun to fall
28 Our curses rang throughout the city and its wall

29 Bitter luck ran dry and left us
30 Some of us prayed that our demise would come to pass
31 We did not know what happened then
32 All we wished for was safety to come whether when

33 Then they told me what had been done
34 That what was important to him was lost and gone
35 He was only sad and in pain
36 And he was worried for that which had kept him sane

37 And now I also cry for him
38 He who caused humankind's death with merely his whim
39 He who blamed people in return
40 The one who had cast the fire and left us to burn

41 O Ysmir! One who's truly kind!
42 How I woe for your efforts, to seek which you find!
43 You have simply driven us away
44 For that sadness in your heart will forever stay

45 But let me ask you one more thing
46 Let me save the one who I have shared my feeling
47 Then I will keep them safe from you
48 One who is angry and wrathful but always true

. . . . . . . . .

He briefly wished that he hadn't woke up at that moment. It was not the sudden wobbles of the cart that brought him inside the district that stirred him from his sleep, but the soft mutterings that came from the sides. As he remarked the scene from his spot, he easily remembered how he was once part of the crowd that always viewed the return of the Scouting Legion with pride and happiness, always looking at the scouts with great admiration for their courage. But a span of five years had finally taught him the bitter truth of the infamous military branch.

The return of the Scouting Legion was met with dim eyes. The people living within the districts were the common audience for the parade of gloom and death whenever an expeditions ended. The arrival of the legion was a testament of the brutality of the titans, of how powerful they were against humanity. When he was a kid, he believed that the members of the Scouting Legion were the heroes. But, right now, he realized that they were not far from the common citizens; that they were as well victims of the titans that they fought.

Eren could only cover his eyes as tears ran down his face. He wanted to say sorry to those scouts who had lost their lives in the expedition, felt sorry for those he should have saved if he only acted sooner. Everything weighed down against him. He wanted to tell everyone of how he was much of a failure; he wanted to apologize to the kids who only hoped for a better future, that of when the titans would only be part of history. Everything had ended in failure, Eren knew. And everybody else felt the same frustration he was feeling that time.

And during that same day a messenger from the capital brought ill news. The details of the Scouting Legion's defeat came flying to the Imperial Government and they had summoned for Commander Irvin Smith and Eren Jaeger themselves.

It was the day that the Scouting Legion felt dreadful for its own existence.

One day after the message of summon arrived

Eren took a cautious glance to his side, eyeing Commander Irvin at that short distance between them. He was already made aware of the strangling tension that surrounded the old palace-turned-headquarters of the Scouting Legion, though in fact he was more than mindful of it than they realized. The last mission had ended in a definite failure. And just when that memory passed inside his mind, Eren could still not accept the fact that he was made center of the 57th Expedition without him knowing it. And though he had tried his best to accept the secrecy of the plan, how it ended up as a disappointment was well within the reach of his responsibilities.

In comparison on how Eren took it as his own fault, he could not figure out as to why Commander Irvin Smith remained cool and collected. There were no traces of remorse on his face; there was not even that sign that in his leadership came another disaster that took away the lives of the good soldiers of the Scouting Legion. Eren had taken the blow so hard that he ended up blaming himself, but the expression that Commander Irvin wore only reminded him that as if death was a common end that befell the scouts of the military branch.

"Do not get upset." It was Lance Corporal Rivaille who spoke behind him. Eren took a cursory look at the Scout officer that took charge over him, and gave him a curious yet confused stare. Rivaille noted the gaze with nothing but his sharp, cold eyes before he continued to speak. "You're thinking that everyone died in vain." It was not an assumption, but as if it the statement was lifted from Eren's very mind. Eren nearly gaped in surprise when the corporal spoke, though his lingering depression easily dampened his expression. "You were not the only one given the choice to fight or to live. Everyone in the Scouting Legion had been given the same options." Rivaille just spoke. Though those words stung when Eren heard them, he did not see any signs that Rivaille was speaking in a harsh tone. In fact, he was less tense than he usually was. "I have told you before that no one – not even me – can tell you what you really need to do, and what can happen if you do it. They have thought of the same and accepted whatever end they would eventually meet."

"But if not for me, then everyone else would still be alive right now." Eren stated, his tone slightly grizzled. It was anger that he'd turn to himself and the disappointment that laced with his voice. "I placed my trust to them even though I knew myself that fighting the titans is about placing one's life as a bet." He said, hissing for a bit. Commander Irvin turned his head slightly, listening at the interaction as the three of them walked on the hallway. But he placed it back in front immediately. "I'm sorry." Eren only said softly, looking away from the Corporal and followed Commander Irvin's lead. "If I had only made the right choice, things would have been different." He only continued to say, refusing during that time alone to look at Rivaille's face. He had accustomed himself to the corporal's nearly belligerent stares, but to look at him just when the two of them had barely escaped from the eye of the tempest, Eren didn't know if he could say the right words so easily. "And that the others… the others would still be…"

"How can you even blame someone for the duty he's chosen for himself? Can you even spell the difference between 'responsibility' and 'desire' by that point? If one can't place his heart on something, then I swear that this 'responsibility' would kill him. But if that person accepts it, he will feel fulfilled and happy." Corporal Rivaille said in full, making Eren zip his mouth close as those words entered his mind. "Like you, it was not fear that drove them to join the Scouting Legion. Like you, they desired to rid this world off those titans. If they feared to die, then just what you think made them cling to the duty given to them until the end?" Lance Corporal Rivaille said.

The trio was silent as that final question hummed around them. Perhaps, among the three of them, it was Eren who had the most numerous questions in mind. But he only knew that every life was as important as his; that not just because he was labelled as a 'special case' meant that he was to be treated with utmost care. Right now, just right that moment when the Scouting Legion had suffered defeat, Eren couldn't justify his mistake. It was a mistake; there was no denying about it. But would it mean that what Corporal Rivaille had said was partly the reason for Commander Irvin's lack of remorse? He couldn't fully understand yet. Here with him that time were the top officers of the military branch that he'd admired since he was a kid, but it would seem that he had yet to fully discover what being a scout really meant. He had forced himself to grow up, but it appeared that he hadn't seen what the world was yet to unleash against him. Eren could not answer the previous question and only turned into silence.

"Those who have actually settled everything with their own selves are the one who are prepared to lose anything," Commander Irvin only remarked, not giving any hint if he answered Rivaille's question or he was only speaking to Eren. "But if there is one thing that you have settled for yourself, then it's your own sense of humanity–" by that time Commander Irvin looked once more at Eren "–and your willingness to save everybody else. And I applaud you for that. But there would always come that time when you have to question your own certainty once more." He said. "How willing are you to pay at any price for that certitude of yours?"

Commander Irvin Smith then stopped in front of a room, closed shut by a double-winged, wooden door. The three of them had halted at that point. Eren and Rivaille waited for Irvin to open it, and followed soon when the older male invited himself inside it. Rivaille motioned Eren to enter after, and then closed the door behind him when he and the teen had trudged further inside. Eren was still confused as to the reason why Commander Irvin himself escorted him to that particular place. He was only surprised when he saw someone else inside, kneeling on the center of the room, head sealed inside a burlap sack.

"Any words?" Rivaille spoke to the two scouts that stood on both sides of the bagged person.

"None," the taller of two answered. "From the time that you've left, no other words have been said."

"I see." Rivaille just said. "But we have brought someone else to ease up the process." He looked at Eren briefly. "I'm sure that we're bound to find something now." He maintained. "Irvin," he called the attention of the older male.

"I know," Commander Irvin responded and approached the person in question. He slowly placed his hand over the tip of the sack and pulled it off from the man's head. From his position – he was guided by Rivaille near the windows at the side of the room – he could not see who the person was, since Commander Irvin stood directly in front. "I was planning to bring him in from that start." Commander Irvin spoke to the man. "At the very least, we can agree on that part." After he said that, the commander of the Scouting Legion stepped to the side to allow Eren see the man being questioned.

Eren's eyes were wide when he finally saw who the person was. It did not take him long to identify the owner of the smooth locks of gold and the cerulean irises that spoke of great wisdom and feelings. Just as when he realized who it was, Eren started to walk closer to him, before he felt Rivaille's arm against his chest – the lance corporal had effectively blocked his way, perhaps wishing him to step no further. He only looked at Rivaille in question, before the corporal's piercing eyes glued him in place.

"I'll ask you again, Eren." Commander Irvin easily noticed the brimming apprehension in Eren's form. "How willing are you to pay for your own humanity?" He just asked, making Eren look at him almost haplessly. "And I'm sorry for the harsh treatment." Commander Irvin now directed his words to the person who still knelt near him. "I did not order for you to be hurt. Even Hanji has volunteered to discipline the scouts that had attacked you earlier." He said, pointing out the bruise that still swelled over the person's face. "But I will have to think otherwise if the necessity comes, Armin."

"You're asking Eren to respond to the same question you were forced to answer as well, Commander Irvin." Armin just said, watching him with a half-lidded look on his face, though he maintained his calm and respectful voice. "I understand that there are people who are prepared to throw their own humanity just for the sake of those they cared for." He maintained. "It was never even about saving one's self, but it was all about the willingness to throw lives for the sake of success." Armin explained, eyes still plastered over the commander. "That seems to be a tough choice," Armin ended, bowing down after he pulled away from Commander Irvin.

"Is that so?" Commander Irvin only muttered. "But throwing away one's humanity is as if saying that one is also willing to accept being a monster. And a monster is bound to be shunned by the people. Whatever good that is brought by throwing one's self is equivalent to the amount of evil that he collects to himself." He retorted almost figuratively. "But do you really think that it's a tough choice?" He could only ask. "Choosing is not tough. But coming up with the options is the more difficult part. It's easy to point to one answer, but how can you ever be sure that it's a legitimate answer in the first place?" He stepped away from Armin and walked short near Eren. "Just like what your friend said, Eren, the question is whether you're willing to throw away your humanity." He narrowed his eyes against the teen, though it was still technically devoid of any observable expression. "We are all hiding monsters within us. And those who can hide it well are those who are considered real humans. Are you one of those prepared to release that monster inside you?"

But between Commander Irvin's constricting stare and the battered Armin kneeling almost lifelessly in front of him, Eren's mind was suddenly sent into a trance of confusion and dilemma. He couldn't fully grasp what was happening that time. All the questions suddenly shot up from his head. He didn't know just what reason could have pulled Armin into the scene. He couldn't see just what triggered Commander Irvin to ask him those tough questions, that it was as if the commander was weighing him based on his answers. His pupils darting back and forth between Commander Irvin and Armin, Eren was finally pushed to his limits and asked,

"I don't understand what Armin has to do with this, Commander Irvin!" He said in a tone similar to that of giving a salute. Commander Irvin was unfazed, but Armin was noticeably taken aback with the response. It was as if they were back in Trost, when the units of the Stationary Guards led by Captain Felman had blockaded them from proceeding to safety. "Please, sir, tell me what is going on here." He said. Eren then felt a sharp twinge that invaded his head, pain suddenly causing him to wobble on his feet.

"We have confirmed something about Armin Arlelt, your friend." Commander Irvin said after he shared a brief eye contact with Rivaille. "I am not the one to judge, but Armin has a point. There are people who are willing to throw who they really are, and perhaps I can say that for myself as well. Maybe we can call ourselves monsters, and I am not going to deny that. Commander Pixis has once said that the death of many is both a leader's responsibility and sin. It may be more of the latter, but as long as only one person holds this sin, then there is nothing to worry about." He clenched his teeth, but it was so subtle that even Rivaille hadn't noticed it. "Everyone has called you a monster because you can turn into a titan. But how will you feel if I tell you that the real monster is not you, and not even me?" He stated and began to walk once more, now choosing to stand just right behind Armin. "That the real monster is someone as kind as your own good friend?" He asked.

And how could that even be? It was the question that quickly sprouted in his head. He isn't referring to Armin, is he? He even asked even though the insinuation was apparent. Armin was his friend. He had been there when life was rough against Eren. He had walked the same path of suffering and crossed the bridge of pain with Eren. Armin was one of two people who had reached deep into his heart, and was one of the only people that Eren was willing to waste his life for. Armin was that loyal friend who'd stay with him despite everything, who'd remain by his side even if the world separated them. Eren had given him his full trust and he knew that Armin had placed that same amount of trust back at him. If there was someone else who knew just who Eren was, then it was Armin. And it was that same Armin that fueled Eren's dream of breaking free from the walls that strangled their freedom. It was the dream that they had made when they were kids. And just how did those things made Armin the real monster? Eren only thought in question. There had to be a mistake. Armin was a good person and friend and—

"Do you know what an atmer is?" Commander Irvin immediately cut off Eren's train of thought. Eren only looked at Irvin disbelievingly, after hearing that strangely familiar word from the mouth of some other individual.

"No, sir." Eren answered. Though he had that instinct telling him that he knew what an atmer was, he still answered otherwise. He wasn't exactly sure what it meant since he only seemed to have a gut feeling about it. And if the commander himself had the information about it, then perhaps it would help clear the question of Armin's involvement.

"It was informed by a trusted source–" Commander Irvin looked briefly at Rivaille at that "–that an atmer is someone who can speak to the titans directly." He explained, which made Eren look at him disbelievingly.

"But that's impossible!" Eren blurted out. "We were taught that it hadn't been successful during the past." He was gesturing his hands as he explained, looking back and forth to Rivaille and Irvin. "Even Lieutenant Hanji told me that the trials to establish communications with the titans always ended up in failure."

"Except for one," Rivaille answered him. "There is a certain record that is being kept by the Scouting Legion. And I think that your friend was curious enough to have read it accidentally." He said. Even Eren heard the little stresses the corporal gave to some particular words. "It is a notebook that once belonged to Ilse Langer. She detailed that she had spoken to one titan before she was killed." Rivaille explained it to Eren. "By that little information alone, we have made the assumption that some titans have the ability to communicate, even to humankind." He stated and all he received from Eren was an incredulous stare.

"But I still don't get how Armin got involved in this, corporal," Eren immediately answered, still going for that question in his mind. All the information that was being fed to him didn't fully settle with his belief, and the sight of Armin kneeling miserably inside the room made Eren really uncomfortable. But, for some reason, Lance Corporal Rivaille was preventing him from approaching his friend – and that was the exact reason he wanted to discover soon. He looked at Armin and his friend had done the same. "Armin," he called out. "What's going on here?" He asked him.

Armin opened his mouth but only worded silent words. He looked down. "I don't know," he answered, making Eren feel relieved and more anxious at the same time. If Armin had no idea of what was happening, then it meant that he was only being held in suspicion, that he hadn't really done anything wrong which could be proven. But the question still loomed. Even if it was only a thought of doubt, then what made Commander Irvin and Lance Corporal Rivaille suspect Armin? "I was only brought here yesterday. Until now, Commander Irvin only asks me one question." He tried to look up and see the expression that the commander wore but the latter was too far behind for him to extend his neck. "He's asking me if I am that which he calls. He's asking me if I am an atmer." He finally said.

"Commander!" Eren's eyes were quickly sent to Irvin Smith. He had no time to doubt his friend; he knew Armin as he knew himself. And so he directed the sudden ire that budded within him to the person who held the suspicion against Armin. "This isn't right!" He explained. "I know Armin since we were kids. If he can really speak with the titans, then I'd know of it sooner that you guys suspect him!" He explained his side. Even if it was biased, Eren could not care anymore. If it was the position of the one of the people that he cared for that was in question, then he'd throw himself into the fray just to protect. "Armin can't speak with the titans! Please, you must believe me. If this is someone else's ploy just to put Armin into blame, then please send the person who raised this issue. I'm going to talk to him myself and prove—"

"You are a titan, Eren." Commander Irvin's voice was clear-cut and sharp, which immediately silenced Eren. "You are someone who can transform into a titan, a fact that you can't deny." He added. "During the trial at Trost, you discovered that you attacked you friend, Mikasa Ackerman, after transforming into a titan. You lost control back then, which made you nearly killed those around you." He gave the short background of the story. "But it hadn't been made clear of just how you were able to regain control of yourself." He looked straightly at Eren. "It was because of Armin, correct?"

Eren's memories surged within him, accompanied by that same pain that attacked his head seconds ago. He remembered seeing Armin in that trance, asking him get out. But he was with his family then. He felt contented that he didn't want to get out. But it was still Armin who had managed to pull him out, who reminded him that dream of getting out of the walls, to freedom and to the world not seen before. And just when he was rescued by Armin from that false illusion of comfort, he realized what his mission was that time. "But it was—"

"He spoke to you in a language that nobody else knew and directed you to the task at hand that time," Commander Irvin did not even let Eren finish his words. "He calmed you down that time. As soon as he finished talking to you, it was the only time that you regained your sense of awareness and resumed on your duty to Trost one month ago." He explained. "It seems convenient that neither of you have pointed it out." Commander Irvin meanderingly indicted.

"But he didn't!" Eren answered. He could swear that Armin had spoken to him in their common language. That's why Eren understood him in the first place, right? But whoever told that information to Commander Irvin was clearly delusional. That person might be trying to defile Armin's image for him to be harmed. "I did hear him speaking to me, but he told the words in the same language as ours!" He shared to Commander Irvin.

"Before the female-type titan attacked us in the forest of giant trees, it seemed that she was stalled by the right flank for a while." Commander Irvin only ignored Eren's words. "It was then reported to me that the female-type had actually ran over to the lines of the new recruits, of your own 104th Squad." He added. "Did you know what actually halted the female-type's advance?" He asked as rhetoric, since he soon spoke afterwards. "It was not the maneuver gears and the swords and the scouts. It was someone else who actually told the titan to stop." Commander dropped a lone hand atop Armin's shoulder. "And that is no other than your friend, Eren." He said. "I have witnesses, if you want. I even wanted for them to tell it to you themselves."

By that time, both Eren and Armin were silent. Eren was surprised after he heard all of it, facts that he couldn't truly accept. Armin, on the other hand, had only a blank expression. Perhaps he had been told of the same news beforehand. In a way, the look on his face told Eren that Armin himself was doubtful of all the accusations thrown against him. They could only feel their heart swell with heaviness and questions. They didn't know what was real anymore. Just when everyone had believed that the titans were their only enemies, it then appeared that the problem had already inched deeper into the walls – into the very heart of humankind.

"What will be your answer then, Armin?" At Commander Irvin's expectations, there would be few words to be spoken right at that moment. It was well within his imagination that the interrogation would end up short, after he exposed the truth to the two of them. After all, the commander of the Scouting Legion valued efficiency and effectiveness over anything else. From the time that they had started to suspect Armin, everything else had been splintered off from their emotions, from the very fabric of what made them human. He was a compassionate figure, but, sometimes, even compassion would flee from him to give way to a fiercer Irvin. "You haven't denied anything that had been said yet, though I must point out that you haven't actually admitted anything either."

But an answer never came. Armin suddenly darted from his spot, rushing out after he shook the commander's hand off his shoulder. He sprinted towards Eren's direction, aiming his full speed against him. He saw that Lance Corporal Rivaille had made a move, though Armin only ignored him. He easily sidestepped the corporal's seemingly feeble effort to stop him. Armin swung his arms open and grabbed Eren in a tight embrace, then letting his momentum take full action. Both he and Eren slammed against the window, easily destroying the wooden frame and sending shards of glass outside.

"I'm sorry, Eren," Armin only muttered as he caught a single shard while in the air. After some seconds, a blinding flash of light covered the vicinity around the Scouting Legion's headquarters, followed by a single tremor that shook the ground once. Irvin and Rivaille approached the hole made when Armin took Eren away and looked outside.

"The kid knows that I'm injured and took that opportunity to escape." Rivaille said. Though it was not obvious in his tone, he seemed to have meant that he was apologetic for the mistake. He glanced sideways and looked at Irvin.

"And so this is Armin's answer then," Irvin just spoke after witnessing what had transpired. "I've long acknowledged his skill as the 104th Squad's best tactician." He said as he turned away from the now-destroyed window and walked to the room's doorway. "And I did expect him to do something like this. Let's now wait for Armin's next move, then."

. . . . . . . . .

Jean Kirschtein felt apprehensive at that point. As soon as he had relayed the news concerning Armin, the top three officers of the Scouting Legion seemed to have a change of air around them. And soon after he had completed his part, he realized that what he'd done could never be taken back. He only realized late that the vital information concerning Armin would easily put him in a situation far more problematic and dangerous than Eren had been through. And then what it probably meant struck him, for then Jean only discovered too late what he'd actually accomplished.

When he accepted the task given to him by Commander Irvin himself, did he even realized that Armin's safety would be compromised in the long run? No. By that time, he was fueled by his hidden rage against Armin. During those moments, he felt that by accepting the duty of distrusting Armin, he'd be able to channel his anger against him. He hated Armin because he was Marco's indirect murderer. He thought that by helping the Scouting Legion look doubtfully at Armin he'd be able to avenge Marco's death. But to what end had this thought brought him? Because of his anger and grief and sadness, all what he did was to put Armin into a position wherein his life could be ended if he spoke wrongly. He acted as if he wanted to put Armin in a situation befitting to that of a murderer. But hadn't he just done what he thought Armin did to Marco? Jean's hands were cold. Since they were young, they were taught that the titans were humanity's enemies. But as they grew older, Jean finally discovered that the greatest fault of humankind lied at the very fabric of their humanity.

And what was worse was that he was bound to repeat the endless misery that everyone had suffered before. Marco said he was a leader, and that a leader understood the feelings of the weak. And then came the implied thought. A leader wasn't the one who would casually point an accusing finger to those people under him. It was carelessness and bias and hypocrisy. For someone who wanted to understand those around him, it would be irony to be same person who'd cast the verdict so easily.

It felt worse when he lost his comrades from the titans. But what sort of human would be able to stomach losing a friend because of some suspicion? Wouldn't that make Jean a similar monster like that of the titans? The fault of humanity rested within him, and that same mistake was causing the demise of those around him. If he was the leader Marco told before, then why was he the reason for everyone else's sadness and despair? He only looked at his hands at that time, questions still swirling inside his head. Who was his real enemy? Didn't he choose to be a scout to spell that difference?

But he was reeled out from his musing when a loud shattering sound filled the air. His eyes were quickly sent to source of the noise. Jean was only filled with horror and fear when he saw that it was Armin clasping tightly at Eren as they fell from the second floor of the headquarters. But he immediately took his vision off from the two to look at the expressions of the other scouts around him. He was frightened when most of them had prepared their maneuver gears and swords after seeing the sight. No, Jean said in thought. It can't be possi—

The blinding light shone upon them, reducing their sights for a brief amount of time. After the accompanying tremor had died down, they could only marvel at the titan-transformed Eren towering against the headquarters, on his shoulder was Armin himself. Jean was hidden alongside the others within the thick tree leaves, but he remarked Eren in all the dismay and dread he could muster. It was something that he never wanted to happen, something that Commander Irvin himself had wished not to ensue. But as the leader of the Scouting Legion, Commander Irvin had to take every possible chances as if they would happen eventually.

And then the worst possible turn happened.

If there was the right moment to act, Jean knew it was now. And there was no turning back. But there were no other choices either. If Jean had resolved not to lose anyone around him anymore, then he must pay it with his actions. He didn't wait for any orders when he shot his maneuver gear away, anchoring it on Titan Eren's form – one landing on his chest, one on the shoulder. He ignored the angry protest of his current squad's leader and sent himself to air. After landing shortly beside Armin, everyone from the Scouting Legion had finally revealed themselves, all of them ready for action. At the same time, Commander Irvin, Lance Corporal Rivaille and Lieutenant Hanji landed upon the roof of the headquarters.

"You took the risk of escaping because you know that I'm still going to trap you once you get away," Commander Irvin spoke loud. "And by utilizing the open space, you had Eren transformed into a titan so that the scouts guarding on the outside will have a difficult time in capturing you." He explained. "I applaud your quick thinking, but please do not make the mistake of pursuing your plan."

"Please, Commander Irvin!" Armin answered. "This is a mistake! I don't know anything about what you're accusing me of!" He said. "And I'm not planning to escape. I'm right here – right now – to prove you that I'm telling nothing but the truth!" He told him. Armin momentarily viewed the surroundings and noted that the scouts from the legion were prepared to attack anytime – even without the commander's orders. Escaping from the room was already a crime; using Eren's titan form would have meant that they were challenging the Scouting Legion itself.

"Armin!" Jean called from his side. "You need to get away from Eren, now!" He ordered, voice showing his apprehension and worry. "I swear I'm going to help and vouch for you in any way possible, so please trust me on this one! You just need to get away from Eren right now – please!" The last part of statement was said in an obvious plead, as if calling out for the reasonable Armin. The blond only looked at him confusedly at first. Then it slowly dawned to him.

"Jean… you…?"

"I'm sorry," Jean responded. And it was true. He was really frightened of the possibility that he might lose someone from the 104th Squad. "So please let me help you right now. I don't know whether you'll forgive me for this blunder, but I don't want to see a friend of mine vanish from me again!" He just said, stepping forward as he approached Armin. "Believe me; Commander Irvin would want you to get away from Eren right now. It's the most logical thing to do." Jean only watched as Armin's head lolled down. But his general form signaled that he was acceding to his request.

Jean draped his hands over Armin's back and tucked it under his arm, in preparation of carrying him away from Eren. But even before he could fire the maneuver gear, he felt Armin moved beside him; the blond twisted his hand, which made him let go of the gear's trigger mechanism. Armin whirled and took the trigger and at the same time loaded it with a blade from Jean's canister. Within that short moment, Armin was armed with the same weapon they used to kill the titans.

"Armin!" Jean said in surprise. "Please! Don't dig your own grave even deeper! Come on, I—"

"You don't understand!" Armin cut him off, voice clearly angry. He pointed the blade against Jean. "I've always trusted you, Jean! But if you're still going to stop me, then I won't ever think that you'd be able to understand me anymore!" He finally said. Armin then sent his eyes to Commander Irvin.

Without any words, Armin Arlelt rotated the blade and aimed its sharp point against his chest. Jean's eyes were wide as he tried to rush towards the blond in order to stop him. Armin hefted the blade up slightly, before he plunged it against his chest and—

- Seventh Tale to be continued -