"Quick! Get everyone up!"
"Gear up!"
"Damn it!"
The commotion outside instantly woke Rod. Still groggy, he grabbed a black briefcase by his pillow. Relieved it was still there, he dressed quickly and ran outside, seizing a Military Police officer.
"What's going on? What happened?!"
"Captain Kenny's been captured!"
"What?!"
Rod froze in shock, following the officer toward the gate. Outside, dozens of armed soldiers—Kenny's special unit—had already mobilized. Shotguns leveled at the approaching figure.
"Stop! Damn it! If you don't, we'll open fire!"
"Go ahead." Lillian pushed Kenny in front of him, walking toward the gate. If the soldiers dared fire, Kenny would be the first to die. But these were Kenny's men—intimidated by him, none dared touch the trigger.
"Damn brat…"
Kenny was both helpless and powerless. He had assumed that, though past his physical peak, only Levi and Titans could rival him in this world inside the walls. Yet he had been subdued in a single move by Lillian, whose hand on his shoulder was like an iron clamp—immovable.
And if Kenny couldn't resist, no one else could. Not even dozens of men.
"Put the weapons down." Kenny told them. "You all can't handle him… you wouldn't survive one kick."
"…."
The soldiers hesitated. Lillian tilted his head slightly from behind Kenny.
"Lay down your arms, and you still have a way out. Otherwise, prepare for prison—or the gallows."
"Lillian?!"
"He's not…"
"He's still alive?!"
Lillian, after all, was a deputy commander, and some of them had even been part of the squad assigned to investigate him. Naturally, they recognized him immediately. For a moment, confusion swept through them, and after Kenny's earlier words, they all lowered their guns.
At that moment, Rod arrived as well. From a distance of over ten meters, he saw the scene and cursed under his breath, "Useless trash!" before immediately turning and running.
The secret passage! He was escaping through the secret passage!
He caught sight of Lillian holding Kenny, and of course, Lillian saw him too. The instant Rod turned to run, Lillian released Kenny and bolted forward in pursuit. By the time the Military Police realized what was happening, Lillian had already gained six or seven meters.
For a moment, they hesitated — chase Lillian, or stay behind? But a glance at Kenny made the decision for them: they stayed. After all, they swore loyalty to Kenny, not to Rod.
"Damn it! Don't let him kill Rod! I still have questions for him!" Kenny cursed, running after Lillian despite his body screaming in pain. But the Ackerman bloodline allowed him to keep pace, and he chased Lillian into the passage.
Thump, thump, thump!
The sound of footsteps rapidly closing in from behind made Rod realize he couldn't outrun him. Gritting his teeth, he shoved his hand into his pocket and suddenly drew a pistol, spinning to fire.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Four shots rang out, yet none hit their mark. In the split second Rod twisted, Lillian had already moved ahead, three or four meters in front, and only then came to a sudden stop.
"Ah, I still need to work on controlling my speed a bit," Lillian muttered, turning to face him. As Rod spun to aim again, Lillian pulled a short dagger from his waist and hurled it.
Thunk!
Rod's hand was pierced instantly, and his pistol clattered to the ground. He cried out in pain, collapsing in agony.
"Ughhh!"
In the next instant, Lillian was at his side. His first move: grabbing the briefcase Rod held in his left hand. Despite the pain and the dagger lodged in his right hand, Rod swung his right arm violently toward Lillian. "Don't touch my bag!!"
"Get lost," Lillian snapped, stepping on Rod's arm and crushing it. A loud crack rang out as Rod nearly fainted from the pain; his left hand lost all strength, and Lillian easily snatched the briefcase away.
He couldn't deny it — he bore a deep grudge against this old man. The reason was obvious: he cared about Historia. Her tragic life stemmed entirely from her father's cruelty.
First, he exiled and imprisoned her illegitimate mother in a rural farm to protect his reputation. Then Grisha wreaked havoc, killing everyone in the royal family except Rod. Later, Rod came, slaughtered Historia's mother, and pretended to let Historia go, forcing her to live in hiding.
If you thought Rod had a change of heart, you were naive.
If Rod truly wanted Historia to live peacefully, why leave her under the watch of the Wall Church? The reason was simple: when the critical moment arrived, he needed her to be readily available — to reclaim the Founding Titan.
Why let her go at all? Rod feared that if Grisha investigated and discovered the illegitimate daughter, he would be killed. After all, Grisha's abilities were unmatched — his intellect and investigative skills ensured no one inside the walls could stop him. He alone could uncover the true identity and residence of the royal family.
Grisha had initially sought a quiet life and would never have pursued the Founding Titan if not for the breach of Wall Maria. So if Grisha discovered Historia's identity, he would annihilate everything. Then Rod would inherit the power himself — which he had long desired. Even when it passed to Uri, Rod was reluctant, but seeing the changes in Uri after inheriting it, he feared and rejected the power. When Uri neared death, the inheritance passed to his niece Frieda, who also became devoid of desire and hopeless.
Thus, Rod refused the power for himself, insisting Historia be the heir. He could have had another child, but the risks were too high: no trustworthy allies, potential theft of royal secrets, and insufficient time for the child to inherit if he regained the Titan power later.
Historia, in many ways, was the only feasible choice.
"That's why I'm so pissed at you, you bastard," Lillian muttered, opening the briefcase.
Inside were several bottles resembling grenades — specialized spinal fluid. Each bore a label: "Armor," "Speed," "Strongest."
Lillian eyed the bottle marked "Strongest." In the original storyline, Rod became a 120-meter Titan because he consumed that specific spinal fluid. Eren's ability to harden his body came from the "Armor" spinal fluid.
Clearly, the composition of spinal fluid could be tailored to specific purposes. It was precious and valuable only to the intelligent Titans. For example, giving the Armor spinal fluid to a normal Eldian wouldn't create the Armored Titan — only an intelligent Titan could utilize it.
So as long as Rod received the regular spinal fluid Lillian brought from the ship instead of the "Strongest" one, he would not become the 120-meter Titan from the original story. Controlling him would become far easier.
"Damn it… give it back!!" Rod roared, while Lillian zipped the briefcase closed, shot him a cold glance, and turned to leave.
"Kenny, your turn. Hurry up, I need to take him with me."
Kenny stepped forward, towering over Rod.
"Kenny… what are you waiting for… kill him! Did Uri misjudge you? Are you going to betray his trust?!!"
"Shut up! You perverted old bastard! How dare you even mention Uri?!" Kenny snapped, enraged. He slapped Rod across the face, grabbed his collar, and shouted, "Do you believe me or not?! Will I never obtain that power? Never see the world through Uri's eyes?!"
Rod went silent, helpless under Kenny's fury.
Rod said nothing. He only looked at Kenny with eyes filled with mockery and sorrow. In that instant, Kenny got his answer.
"Fuck…" He let out a bitter laugh and pulled a box of spinal fluid syringes from his coat. He had stolen it earlier from Rod's bag—and Rod had known all along. Kenny laughed at himself now. "What's the point of keeping this anymore? Hahaha… hahaha."
It really was useless now.
That was what Lillian thought as well, but he still reached out and took the syringe from Kenny's hand.
"If it's useless, then give it to me."
"…"
Kenny said nothing. Truth be told, he didn't know what there was left to say.
Ever since Uri died, half of his heart had died with him. The only thing keeping him alive was a single thought: to see the world through Uri's eyes.
But now—what reason did he have left?
The Ackermans were born as guardians of the king. An Ackerman devoted their entire life to one king alone.
Just as Mikasa devoted herself to Eren, and Levi to Erwin—Kenny's king had been Uri.
And now, the king was gone, leaving only the guardian behind, barely surviving.
"Kenny, the scenery you wanted to see—you'll never see it," Lillian said suddenly. "But… would you like to see the scenery Uri never got to see?"
Kenny froze and looked at him. "You brat… what the hell are you talking about?"
"I mean this," Lillian said calmly. "Do you want to see the beautiful world Uri longed for, but never got to see before he died? Do you want to fulfill the true wish he never spoke aloud?"