Another night passed.
Lillian stared at the gradually brightening sky outside the window and rubbed his dry, aching eyes.
Another sleepless night.
He stood up and stretched, then quickly threw a couple of punches forward. The dull thump-thump of air being torn apart followed. It was proof that his control over his body's latent potential had grown significantly. He no longer had embarrassing moments like before—running too fast to stop, or throwing a punch so hard that his own body stumbled forward with it.
"How much time do I still have in this world…"
He murmured softly, watching the streets outside slowly "come alive." He couldn't help but think that having a visible countdown would be nice—like the one the scientists saw in The Three-Body Problem, counting down the arrival of the Trisolaran fleet. At least then, you'd know when the end was coming. Even if it was a bad ending, knowing when it would happen kept panic at bay.
But Lillian had no idea when his own countdown would reach zero.
Anxiety and unease constantly coiled around his heart, making it hard to breathe—yet there was nothing he could do about it.
Just then, through the window, he saw a carriage racing toward headquarters before screeching to a halt at the main gate. A man wearing a black top hat and a black suit stepped down. It was Kenny. He looked up, spotted Lillian, and casually raised his hand in a "V" sign.
Lillian pushed the window open and looked down at him.
"Why are you here?"
After the Central Military Police was reorganized, Lillian became the Corps Commander, while Kenny took the position of Deputy Commander. Lillian had handed all internal affairs of the capital over to him. Kenny had years of experience and handled matters with ease.
Lillian had no interest in micromanaging everything. He didn't have the time—and even if he did, he wouldn't necessarily do a better job than Kenny. Letting professionals handle professional matters was the only sensible approach. Leaders who refused to delegate authority rarely amounted to much.
"Obviously, I'm here on business," Kenny said. "You think I'd come all this way just to shoot the breeze? That thing you had me investigate—there are results."
A sharp light flashed through Lillian's eyes, and the exhaustion from staying up all night vanished instantly.
He leapt straight out of the window, dropping several stories before landing firmly in front of Kenny.
"Damn," Kenny glanced up at the window, then down at Lillian's legs. "That was four floors. Your legs made of steel or something, kid?"
"Enough talk. Give it to me."
"Alright, alright." Kenny pulled a thick stack of documents from inside his coat and handed them over. "Finding all this wasn't easy. But why are you so obsessed with this anyway?" he asked casually. "Didn't you already kill the guys who pulled the triggers?"
"They were just pawns."
Lillian looked down at the documents—names, identities, personal backgrounds, and detailed records of how each person had participated in the incident.
This was exactly what he'd had Kenny investigating all along: the ambush by the Military Police at headquarters.
The incident that had led to Karen's death.
Afterward, Lillian had never spoken of it again, but the matter was like a razor-sharp iron spike lodged deep in his heart. Until the real culprits were found and punished, that spike would never be pulled out.
That was why, after taking over the former Central Military Police's intelligence network, the very first—and most important—task he gave Kenny was to uncover the truth. Who planned it. Who participated. Not a single one was to be missed.
"All of these people were involved in planning it?" Lillian asked.
"More or less," Kenny replied. "Check the last page."
Lillian pulled it out. It was a record of intercepted dialogue.
[Get rid of him quickly.]
[Yeah. Ever since he showed up, our income's dropped by nearly half. Those bandits have made it clear they don't want to cooperate anymore.]
[Their condition is that Lillian has to die, right?]
[That kid's extremely cautious. And after what happened last time, that useless deputy commander failed. He might already suspect me. Using others to do the dirty work again won't be easy.]
[Then do it directly.]
[Directly?]
[Strike inside headquarters. No one would expect that. Use some excuse to lure him back while he's on patrol.]
[Heh, not a bad idea.]
[With dozens of guns aimed at him, even a god would die.]
[I've got it—use your commander's name. He'll definitely fall for it.]
[Perfect.]
Lillian finished reading, silently crumpled the page in his hand—then paused, unfolded it again, and carefully smoothed out the creases.
"Who wrote these records?"
"A clerk," Kenny said with a shrug. "Tried to shoot me when I found him. So I killed him."
"I see."
"Hey, kid," Kenny said with a half-smile, "what are you planning to do? More than half of these people are military—Military Police, Garrison troops, even a few who climbed to high positions after the coup. The rest include a major noble, several minor nobles, and even members of the Wall Church. It's a massive interest group. You really planning to move against them?"
"Why not?"
Kenny chuckled, excitement glinting in his eyes. "The cost could be pretty high. You might end up throwing the barely stabilized situation right back into chaos."
Lillian shot him a cold glance.
"Kenny," he said flatly, "are you telling me to put the greater good first? That doesn't sound like something you would say."
"Of course not." Kenny shook his head. "I just wanted to be sure of your stance. If you were planning to prioritize the bigger picture, I'd honestly find that pretty boring. But… if it were anyone else, they definitely wouldn't make a move at a time like this, right?"
"I'm not 'anyone else,' Kenny."
Lillian looked at him coldly. Flames flickered in his pupils as he stared down at the thick stack of documents in his hands.
"That so-called 'greater good'…" he said quietly, "…means less than dog shit compared to the people I care about."
"HAHAHAHA! Exactly! That's right! It's all fucking dog shit!"
At some point, Lillian's hands had clenched into tight fists. Kenny noticed that the ground beneath his feet had begun to crack ever so slightly. Even as he laughed, a chill crept into his heart—this kid was genuinely furious.
"You should head back first," Lillian said. "I'll make my preparations and then go to the capital to find you."
"Got it." Kenny nodded, then couldn't help but laugh again. "Ha! Feels like something exciting's about to happen. I can't wait!"
He climbed into the carriage. As it sped away, Lillian watched it go, then reached up and touched the pendant hanging at his neck.
Back then, just before he was crushed to death by the Colossal Titan, he had thrown it away. Later, Historia had recovered it—and when she saw him again, she returned it to him. It now rested once more against his chest.
"Karen… don't worry," Lillian murmured, eyes fixed on the names listed in the files. "I won't make you wait."
"I'll make them pay. Immediately."
Justice that arrives late is no justice at all.
Karen… I'm already late.