Hearing Roger's scorn and rejection of his plan, Eren not only didn't get angry, he actually nodded in deep agreement.
"You're right, Roger," he said. "The second option… is you, Roger."
"?"
At Eren's words, Annie turned to Roger in curiosity.
In her impression, Roger was someone who would stop at nothing to achieve his goals.
With his personality, he should be ruthless enough to kill everyone in the world.
How could someone like that possibly have a way to resolve racial hatred?
"Of course I can't," Roger admitted bluntly. "And I don't want to. I just want some people dead, that's all. Don't paint me as something noble."
Annie was startled—he could hear her inner thoughts?
"This is a mental world formed by the three of us, so every thought gets laid out in the open." After a pause, Eren went on, "Humans hate one another, especially when one group is stronger than another. That's when war breaks out, and people keep dying.
"The power of the Titans became the key to breaking that balance.
"But while Titan power is a blade one group uses to oppress another, it can also be a chisel to carve out a better world.
"In the endings I've foreseen, in more than half of the good ones, I hand the Founding Titan over to Roger.
"In the other outcomes, the reason I start the Rumbling is that my lifespan is almost up. If I don't use the Rumbling to grind the outside world and Paradis down to the same technological level, the rest of the world will come in battleships and blast Paradis into a wasteland.
"There's no room for any other choice.
"But Roger is different…"
"Different how?" Annie asked.
"Once he inherits the Founding, he's almost unkillable."
"What do you mean?" Annie said blankly.
Eren looked at Roger with a grave expression.
"There's something in him that our world doesn't understand. Because of that unknown, he'll become ageless and undying; there won't be any power that can kill him. He'll become impossibly strong. Any force will bow to him, and any power will be nothing in his eyes. When that happens, Roger will be able to coordinate the whole world, to oversee it all, until racial discrimination fades away and humanity no longer holds universal hatred."
"Like a cult leader and his devout believers…" Annie murmured, suddenly grasping it. "As long as Roger's heart doesn't change. But can you guarantee he won't become a tyrant? Like the first King Fritz."
"I can't." Eren shook his head. "None of us can see through you, Roger."
Both of them looked at Roger.
Roger only smiled faintly and said nothing.
"But with the Attack Titan's precognition, the farthest I can see into the future is already thousands of years ahead," Eren said. "By then, the world doesn't look anything like it does now. The world is unified, like a single nation, and everyone is just a citizen in it. The countries we know now—Paradis, Marley, all of them—are nothing more than ordinary names in history books.
"Who besides historians would care about this slice of history?
"At that point, if there's an enemy at all, it's just Roger standing against the entire world.
"I trust the humans of that era, and I can only put my faith in those future generations. I believe they'll grow stronger."
"At the very least, there'll be a thousand years of peace," Annie added, looking toward Roger.
Roger scratched his cheek. "Don't look at me; I'm not promising anything. Since you've already seen a thousand years of peace, you choose—either that thousand years, or slaughter eighty percent of humanity and start the struggle from zero again. It's up to you. Just know that no matter what you pick, I'm taking the Founding, I'm destroying Marley as a nation, and I'm rebuilding a military directly under my command. So choose…"
At that, the two of them fell silent.
Roger was telling them to choose, but somehow…
It felt like they didn't have a choice at all.
"The Founding will go to you," Eren said at last, lowering his head. "All I care about is Mikasa, Armin, and the others living well. If I can put a time limit on it, then… a thousand years is enough."
When he finished, he glanced at Annie.
In that moment, he felt at peace.
The world would lose only him, and everyone else would be able to live happily.
That was enough.
So he turned around and slowly walked away from Roger and Annie.
"Where are you going?"
Annie asked.
"That's my freedom," Eren replied, waving to them in farewell.
Little by little, his figure vanished.
Annie was left alone to face Roger.
"You've got half the say here too, Annie," Roger said. "The Founding is in you right now."
Annie looked once more at the revolving lantern of her memories.
At all the humans killed by the Female Titan.
"I really… can't go back anymore, Dad."
She sighed, but her body felt strangely light.
This was her punishment, but at least she could atone.
"Make sure you take me home to see it… at least once."
Annie smiled as she spoke, looking at Roger and holding out her right hand.
"No problem."
Roger agreed, reaching out his hand to clasp hers.
The two of them had come to an understanding.
It was the first time Roger had ever seen Annie's smiling face.
Even with tear tracks on her cheeks, it was beautiful and moving.
As they held hands,
Annie's revolving memories gradually came to an end.
Slowly, slowly—
she finally faded away,
bidding farewell to this beautiful and cruel world.
Left with only his own hand hanging in midair, Roger pulled it back and clenched it.
A sharp, blinding light suddenly welled up out of the darkness before his eyes.
[Awake?]
[Brace yourself.]
[Those people are never going to let you go.]
[Whether you steal my power or stand on your own, you'd better fight to stay alive.]
[Do not ever give up.]
[Or I won't forgive you!!]
The Parasite's voice was rough and gravelly; clearly, it was still holding a grudge about Roger using its power without permission.
"Relax," Roger chuckled. "By the way, I never asked your name."
[Do you need to know it?]
"Not really. But it's better than nothing."
[…]
[Kaneki.]
"Kaneki."
[Ken.]
"Kaneki Ken?"
[Kaneki Ken.]
"I'll be asking you more about those people from now on," Roger said. "So please put some faith in me, Kaneki Ken."
[Ha, that the first time you've ever said 'please'?]
"Could be the last time too."
[…]
"I'm joking."
Roger smiled.
[You really are…]
[Far stranger than I am.]
"That so?" Roger sighed, quietly walking into the light before him.
"Guess so…" he murmured.
The sharp arrow was torn free from the Female Titan's nape, dragging a spray of blood that splashed across her back.
Seizing that moment, the Armored Jaw Titan drank down all of Annie's blood.
Its eyes turned a brilliant, piercing blue.
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