"The Survey Corps? That's fine too. Eren has entered the corps he longs for, and his Titan power should be able to bring great support to the Survey Corps." Hearing that Eren's final judgment was to be placed under the supervision of the Survey Corps, Yago finally let out a breath of relief for him.
In the afternoon, Commander-in-Chief Zackly and the Military Police left, and it seemed that the Survey Corps had also taken Eren back to their own base.
Yago pondered as he walked to a corner of the barracks. He needed some quiet time alone—should he also reveal his own Titan power?
Yago had once spent some time with the Survey Corps when he was a child, so he could be considered acquainted with part of their upper ranks. But the people of the Survey Corps, just as the other corps said, were either freaks or lunatics.
"Historia! What are you thinking? Why do you want to join the Survey Corps? Even if you can't get into the Military Police, the Garrison would still be safer than the Survey Corps!" Ymir shook Historia's shoulders, speaking anxiously.
But Historia looked firmly at Ymir.
"Ymir! I don't need to be protected forever. I—I also want to do something for humanity's future!"
Ymir stared blankly at Historia.
"Tch!" Suddenly, Ymir let out a scoff. "Historia, you're still as naïve as ever. Do you remember what I once said? Do you dare face your former name even now? Historia Reiss?"
Hearing this unfamiliar name, Historia was startled, as if recalling some very bad memories. She lowered her head and murmured nothing.
Yago, hidden in the shadows, was shocked by what he heard. The amount of information in those words just now was astonishing.
Seeing Historia like this, Ymir seemed to feel she had gone too far. She sighed and said, "I'll join the Survey Corps too."
Historia raised her head. "But, Ymir, you don't have to do this for me—"
"Tch~ Who said it was for you, Historia? Don't think too highly of yourself just because you're cute." Ymir mocked deliberately.
Historia's small face flushed red.
Yago hid by the corner of the wall and slowly retreated. At times like this, it was better not to expose himself—eavesdropping on girls' secrets wasn't a good thing.
After sneaking away, before Yago could relax, he realized he seemed to have heard something even more serious.
Leaning against the wall outside a room, relying on his extraordinary hearing, Yago clearly heard the conversation inside.
"Bertholdt, come with me tonight to deal with those two captured Titans."
"Why? Reiner, they're just two ordinary Titans. Should we tell…" Bertholdt wanted to say Annie, but before he could finish, Reiner stopped him.
"That person's heart is no longer in… wait, Bertholdt! There's movement outside," Reiner suddenly said. Swish! Reiner and Bertholdt drew their blades at the same time and cautiously opened the door to look around.
But there was nothing outside. "Reiner, there's no one," Bertholdt said, cold sweat dripping.
Reiner: "No, we still need to be sure. Bertholdt, close the door. Lean against the wall and see if you can hear me talk."
"Okay…"
After a moment, Reiner opened the door and asked, "How is it?"
Bertholdt shook his head. "I can barely hear anything at all. Reiner, are you just too tense?"
"Let's hope so."
In the corner, Yago watched with a deep gaze. This afternoon, what he had heard was truly a bit too much.
"Those two Titans should have been captured by the Survey Corps. Reiner, why kill those two Titans?" Yago frowned, unable to understand. Was it because of hatred toward Titans?
Yago knew that in the Survey Corps there was a Squad Leader named Hange who was extremely fascinated by Titans. When Yago was with the Survey Corps, he often saw Squad Leader Hange repeatedly requesting the capture of Titans.
Unfortunately, most people in the Survey Corps paid no attention to this Squad Leader's strange requests. Killing Titans was already difficult enough—capturing them alive?
As he walked, Yago suddenly stopped. So tonight, should he stop Reiner and the others? He heard that tomorrow the three major corps would come to reselect new recruits. At a time like this, if he exposed Reiner and their intentions, would it cause them to lose their future?
Yago believed he could not do something that would destroy his companions' prospects. Moreover, Reiner was usually regarded as a reliable partner by everyone.
In the end, Yago closed his eyes and decided to trust Reiner and the others this time. He hoped they truly were just driven by extreme hatred toward Titans.
...
"All trainee soldiers! Assemble at the mess hall and accept the Garrison's investigation! Bring your Vertical Maneuvering Equipment!" Early in the morning, all the trainees were suddenly assembled.
"What happened? Why gather us so urgently?" Jean Kirstein complained.
Armin replied, "I heard that the Titans captured by the Survey Corps were killed last night. The murderer seems to have used Vertical Maneuvering Equipment."
Connie: "Isn't it just killing two Titans? What's the big deal?"
Armin: "Even so, the Survey Corps worked hard to capture those two Titans, and now they've been killed. It might affect research on Titans. Looking at it that way, it's a loss for humanity."
Hearing this, Yago's expression suddenly became serious. Yesterday, he hadn't thought of this at all. He subtly glanced at Reiner and Bertholdt—sure enough, both of them looked uneasy.
At this moment, the Military Police responsible for questioning came in front of Yago.
"Your information?"
Yago: "Yago Norman, 104th Training Corps, Class 34, Squad Leader."
"When was the last time you used your Vertical Maneuvering Equipment?"
"I haven't used it. My Vertical Maneuvering Equipment was damaged in the last battle to retake Trost District and was only repaired two days ago."
The Military Police checked the records in his hand, nodded, and indicated there was no problem.
As the Military Police turned and left, Annie Leonhart, standing beside Yago, lowered her head and asked,
"Yago, are you really going to join the Survey Corps?"
Several others also looked toward Yago. Everyone wanted to see what choice this top trainee would make.
Yago thought for a moment, then smiled and said,
"Of course. Joining the Military Police and the like is way too boring. Joining the Survey Corps to fight Titans sounds far more challenging. I'm going to surpass Levi and become humanity's strongest soldier."
After hearing this, Connie said, "Ah, I didn't expect even Yago to choose the Survey Corps. Is no one going to the Military Police?"
Connie looked at the top ten of their class present. Yago was going to the Survey Corps; Mikasa went without saying—if Eren was in the Survey Corps, Mikasa would definitely go too. Annie Leonhart kept her head down, no one knew what she was thinking, but she was usually always with Yago. Reiner and Bertholdt—those two were also unclear. Marco had lost his combat capability. Jean Kirstein was also going to the Survey Corps.
Where would Sasha go? Connie glanced at Sasha nearby.
Annie kept her head down, deeply conflicted. She really didn't want Yago to go to the Survey Corps. If he truly went, how should she face it herself? But sometimes, the cruel world always forced people to make choices, didn't it?