Aldia's Demon

, Three members of the elite class also returned.

"The three of you go to rescue the recruits at the rear left!"

Under the command of the head of the regiment, they embarked on the journey again without stopping.

On this side, Alvin's journey is also unfolding on the endless grassland.But on this endless grassland, there is still a tall and straight giant tree.

Although the speed of the four-legged strange species is fast, it has no wisdom after all.Alvin led it, speeding up his horse, it seemed that he was about to hit the tree straight, but he changed his direction when he was about to hit it.

However, the Qixing species that rushed at him with its teeth and claws could not dodge in time, bumped into the giant tree, and lost its mobility.Seeing the momentum, he jumped up from the horse, cut off the back neck of the strange species with the blade, and easily reaped the benefits.

After finishing the giant, he got back on his horse and saw Olud and Pica coming on horseback.

"What are you doing here!?..." He said a little anxiously.

"Huh? You don't appreciate us coming to save you!?" Olud was a little puzzled and aggrieved.

"That's not what I meant..." Knowing that he was slipping, he explained, "Let the seniors come to save me, it will be safer for you to follow the big army..."

"The seniors did come..." Bi Jia looked back and pointed his thumb backwards, "but he was trapped by the giant coming over there..."

"We have to save them!" Olud said.

"Well, let's fire a bomb first, let them confirm our position—"

Just as Erwin lowered his head to pretend to be pissed off, and Picasso looked back, there was a muffled scream from very close to the two of them...

"Olud!!!" Startled, he looked back at Pica, who was beside him. When he turned his head again, he saw that Olud was picked up from the horse's back by a giant, and his entire upper body was swallowed into the giant's mouth... …

"!!..." Alvin looked up at all this in disbelief. The three of them only stayed here for a while, when a giant was attracted again.It appeared from the blind spot behind the giant tree, and bit Olud when the two were distracted!

"Damn it!!——You beast!" The next moment, Picasso impulsively jumped up from his horse and flew straight at the back of the tall giant's neck, "Let him go!!"

And Erwin angrily clamped the claws of the three-dimensional mobile device on the shoulder of the giant, and rushed towards the monster.He blamed himself, why he didn't think well enough, why he failed to protect the safety of his companions...

As the hook cable of the three-dimensional mobile device shrinks, the half of Orud's body that has not been completely submerged in the giant's mouth is enlarged in front of his eyes. He can see that he is still struggling in pain... So he stabbed the double blade into the giant angrily At the same time, Bi Jia behind him also slashed at the back of its neck with a blade.

However... When Erwin fell from the giant, he saw that the giant tooth had already fallen like a execution rack.After all, he still failed to catch up, and the giant bit down at the last moment, and the blood of his companion gushing out like a waterfall from the huge gluttonous mouth splashed all over his body that fell from midair...

He knelt on the ground weakly, and looked up at the huge giant that had lost its vitality and fell to the ground. What also lost its vitality and fell to the ground was the half of Orud's body that had not been swallowed by the giant... It fell from mid-air, straight before his eyes.

The internal organs, intestines and blood stains flowed out from the half-empty shell in front of him, immediately infecting the tender grass on the plain with scarlet... And Picasso, who had chopped down the giant, also fell to the ground and saw this scene.

Although after three years of training, it was the first time for them to see their companion's dead body like this...

After two glances, Picasso collapsed to the ground, vomiting uncontrollably.Seeing this situation, Erwin's stomach was also full of turmoil, but he tried his best not to let everything get out of control...

After vomiting, Biga hammered the ground with his hands, and lamented while crying and laughing: "This is the world outside the wall!... How insignificant and powerless human beings are... Hahahahaha..."

The first investigation outside the wall faced the tragic death of his companions, and the seniors who came to rescue were also entangled by giants in the rear. Picasso's spirit was on the verge of collapse, and he continued sadly:

"Erwin... you know? Ha, ha ha... I can see that guy's intestines and blood splattered all over you!!..."

Hearing the hysterical words of his companion, kneeling there, he didn't know how to react, but silently savored the experience of walking outside the wall for the first time...

Suddenly, Pika in front of him suddenly raised his head.Then, what appeared in Erwin's eyes was his eyes that widened suddenly due to panic, and his hand that stretched out and tried to push him away...

The next moment, a giant crawled over and grabbed Picas head in one bite, biting it off...

If he hadn't pushed him away at the very moment, he would have been eaten... After realizing this fact, Erwin sat slumped on the ground, watching the headless corpse of the only remaining companion spewing out Blood fell silently on the grassland.

Why? ...I was watching my companions die tragically in various ways?

Why? ...Failed to slay giants, avoid risks, and protect companions?

Why? …After three years of rigorous training, soldiers died in this senseless and immediate way…

Is this the world outside the wall...

(Soundtrack BGM: YAMANAIAME)

"Ahhhh-!!"

He was angry, he roared, grabbed the grass soil below him fiercely with one hand, stood up on his knees, threw the blade vigorously with one hand, and inserted it straight into one eye of the giant in front of him.

The startled giant turned his head to look at him and spat out something at him... and it rolled down before him kneeling, the unswallowed head of Pyga...

He saw that head... it was engraved with the terrified and terrified eyes of his companion when he died, and there was still pain and unwillingness in his eyes... But now it is soaked in the filthy giant's saliva and gurgling blood together with other five sense organs, At this time, the giant also opened its mouth wide and approached him.

He was still staring at the head with wide eyes, the giant's shadow had covered him, he felt that the giant's saliva was about to flow on him, but he couldn't move...

The comrades who agreed to join the survey corps all died by themselves first, and the companions who had undergone three years of hard training together were tortured and killed in front of his eyes without any power to fight back... Before he had time to taste the joy of walking out of the huge wall, I didn't have time to tell my dreams to my companions.

If this is the price of dreams...if this is the price of freedom... then let it all end like this?

Feeling the last moment before death, a dull mournful cry woke him up.

Looking up, he saw the ferocious giant being chopped down in front of his eyes, and the person who rushed to save him was a senior from the elite class.

"Hey, recruits, are you scared to death?" The visitor withdrew his blood-stained blade, looked down at him, and stretched out his hand, "But this is the first time we encountered such a tragedy when we investigated outside the wall... It's really bad luck..."

"Isn't it disgusting and scary for a giant to eat people?..." He looked around and said, "The first time I saw it, I was so sick that I couldn't eat for three days."

The visitor was talking, but Alvin didn't hold his outstretched hand, and stood up by himself.

"It's a pity that you don't have a towel to wipe off the blood on your body. Just bear with it." The senior took his horse and motioned him to ride it, but their horse was lost and scattered in the giant's attack, "it should be I'm going back soon, and the survey corps suffered heavy losses this time..."

He didn't use his hands to wipe off the blood on his face and hair, even though he was bathed in blood, the ends of his short blond hair seemed to be soaked in the color of the setting sun... This was the blood of his dead companion.

At that time, he didn't know that he would walk in this deep pool of blood for more than twenty years...until he got used to seeing death and pain.

But at this time, he just rode on the horse without saying a word, waiting for his senior to take him back to the team.

On the way, this talkative senior was still "chattering".

"Originally, I and two companions from the elite class were going to rescue you together..." he said, his words were also tinged with sadness, "but we were also stopped by giants on the way. They tried their best to cover me from birth..."

He spoke with difficulty, unable to continue.And they also came near the place where the two were trapped by several giants...

"It's right there..."

Alvin followed his words and looked towards the pile of giants in the distance... The two seniors resisted desperately, tried their best to cover their companions and escaped, and then fell into the siege of giants.One of them has been eaten, and the other is being torn apart by several giants after some resistance...

From such a long distance, Alvin seemed to be able to hear the tragic howling of the man whose body was torn apart. He saw that man was torn apart by huge hands, and the internal organs were lifted from the abdominal cavity in mid-air. falling one by one...

He turned his head, unwilling to look again.Closing his eyes, he couldn't get rid of the scene of the tragic death of his two companions... He felt nauseous again.However, the senior's words sounded again at this time fortunately diverted his attention:

"They died to save me... So I thought, at least I have to save you, so that they didn't die in vain..."

He was a little surprised to hear the senior's repressed and extremely sad words, and for a moment he realized that the senior was also the same as him...

Yes.Everyone here is the same.

The dead have no dignity and meaning, while the living walk forward painfully with the lives of the dead on their backs...

Yes.The same goes for everyone who wants to come out of the wall.

Today I sacrificed the lives of four people and survived, who will I die tomorrow, and how will I die?Or born for whom and for what?

"What about you? Do you have any reason to survive? Do you have any reason to join the Survey Corps?"

The senior turned his head and stared at his blood-stained eyes, and asked seriously.

"...I—" He paused, and the scene of his companion's death suddenly appeared in his mind, he hesitated to speak, and finally gave up, "...it's nothing special."

Hearing the plausible answer from the young man behind him, he looked at the young man's brows and eyes wrinkled in pain and struggle, pondered for a moment, and said with emotion:

"Have you lost your mind and can't see what's ahead?...Young man, can you still fight?...There are not a few recruits who apply for resignation from the regiment after the first investigation outside the wall..."

He is not too surprised that this kind of thought may appear in a young man. Many recruits will lose their fighting spirit after seeing a giant once, let alone seeing such a cruel scene of hell like the young man behind him... But, he It's a pity that the Survey Corps may lose another soldier.

fight...?

No matter what kind of psychological preparation you have gone through before going outside the wall, no matter what kind of ambition you have before leaving the wall.There are some things that cannot be confirmed without seeing the giant with your own eyes.

Far away...?

Knowing that the giant wall has protected people's peace for decades, there are still many people who continue to advance towards the unknown outside the wall.I yearn for freedom so much, but if I knew this situation from the beginning, would I still go so desperately?

[What else is there besides the giant? 】

Suddenly, the words of the person who gave me a great insult appeared in my mind...

That's right... This is the outside of the wall that I have paid so much to want to go.

And beyond this wall there are not only giants, but also freedom, hope and possibility...

Even though he was blocked by the barriers of huge walls and giants, he still believed that... in the distance beyond the reach of human beings, there were still possibilities.

Even if it's a one in ten thousand possibility.

So since he survived, he must continue to move forward and go to a farther place; let more people survive, so that human beings can go further...

【Misery and desolation is the status quo of this world...】

[Desperately guarding the road ahead is the creed of the battlefield. 】

【No matter what you give up, the hope of mankind will last forever. 】

The climax of the song sung by the girl reverberated in my heart, and the lyrics that emerged after my first investigation outside the wall resonated with it.

Looking up at the blue sky, the white cloud leisurely sky has never been stained by blood, and even giants can't get their hands on the free eagle and sky.

When Ma'er was about to walk in front of the investigative corps, he finally said to the senior in front of him:

"My dream is to join the Survey Corps."

Hearing the sudden sentence from the young man behind him, the man turned around in astonishment.When we saw each other again, the hesitation in the boy's eyes had changed to firmness. He noticed that those eyes were azure blue that could not be stained by blood and rain, and the flying eagle and the sky were shining in them.

So, he looked at the boy and smiled.

【Heh, join the Survey Corps? 】

【It seems that I have said everything, but it seems that I have not said anything...】

【Well, but, that's all... Some people are born like this... Just to survive, they will go to a distant place; just to exist, they can feel free... Are you also such a person?Young man... your journey is the earth and the sky! 】

And on the last section of the road before the team, he looked at the back of the senior, and heard him say a word to himself:

"Well done, boy. You got over your fear and you can still fight. You're a good soldier now, tougher than normal, tougher than anyone."

This was Alvin Smith's first extramural investigation.

And all this is just the beginning.

Countless times in the future, he will continue to face the tragic death of his companions like this time, and continue to move forward in the hell of mountains of corpses and seas of blood... and as he continues to climb to the top, he will have to look directly at The dripping blood of companions and subordinates, and take responsibility for their deaths.

So, at that time, he will touch another thing that must be discarded...

That was the third thing he gave up—his own humanity.

【Speaking of fabricated hopes, but unable to make dreams shine. 】

[In the endless crisis, countless times sacrificed their lives and leaped into it. 】

【Sometimes the best strategy is to give up your precious life. 】

This is the song of destiny that he wrote in the struggle of blood and tears for more than [-] years.

But even though he paid a painful price each time, even though he was faced with abandonment and choices each time, he still maintained the investigation outside the walls of the Survey Corps for more than [-] years...

Until the day your dreams come true.

……

The pointer of time finally moved again, and the bell of fate sounded quietly.

Let's go back in time to the moment when he faced Nel's question in the dark dungeon...

At this moment, the candlelight in the dark cell seemed to reflect the scene of the two conversations between the two more than [-] years ago... But now, things are different.

And after a long period of self-torture and struggle, he finally finalized the answer in his heart.

Regret?

Do not……

Do not……

Do not……

If you always choose the "optimal strategy", you will not be able to defeat the enemy and go beyond the desperate situation.

And why not the meaning of living?

If you have always chosen a relaxed way of life, how can you pursue your dreams and freedom in this cruel world?

Even if you make a choice that ordinary people cannot understand, even if you bear sins that ordinary people cannot forgive...

go ahead……

Thinking about moving forward.

This is the belief he has long chosen, and it is also the practice he has always followed.

Even if you do it all over again...

He still wants to go.

He never regretted it.

But he didn't say what he was thinking to the people outside the iron fence, just kept silent.

Nair watched the man in the firelight and was silent for a long time.

Twenty-two years ago, he thought he understood him, but now he is unfamiliar... A few days ago, he wanted to apologize for his conjecture that he had always dismissed him lightly, and also wanted to say something after his triumphant return. The "sorry" that I couldn't export 22 years ago...

But now, there is no way to export it...

I can't understand him...

The 22 years of parting made them embark on their own different paths, and the two who had crossed paths during the three years of training as soldiers drifted away...

Maybe no one can understand him...

Finally, in order to break the unbearable silence, Nell had to ask:

"Next... what do you want to do?"

"...Reviving the Eldia tribe." Hearing this question, Alvin raised his eyes and looked directly at his former classmates and friends outside the prison door, his eyes became firm again, "I have won four years in the negotiation, come Change inside the walls."

"!?..." This is the man's crazy answer that he has heard countless times in the past. Neil stared at him with wide eyes in surprise, cold sweat slipped from the corner of his forehead, and then let out a self-deprecating or mocking laugh. "Ha... the last time was to take back the Wall of Maria to find the truth, this time to fight against overseas enemies and revive the wall?... Another crazy dream..."

He doesn't understand.He doesn't understand why in this hopeless doomsday, this man can still look into the distance, always finding a reason for himself to fight, no matter what the situation...

At this time, this man actually gave an answer to himself who consciously couldn't understand him:

"It's just obsession..."

"Obsession..." He was a little stunned, he didn't expect him to say that, he suddenly suspected that maybe this man was not as firm as he thought, "So for this kind of obsession...is it worth it? Let yourself become like this, let the world become like this..."

does it worth? ...

For freedom, turn into a devil and go to hell; for ideals, sacrifice your principles and become an executioner...

If it is said that I was lying about being a human being in the past, then what is it for now? ...

Yes.

Not without hesitation, not without ever backing down, not without pain.

But if there is a high wall in front of you, then you have to move forward even if you are smashed to pieces;

If someone doubts, then even if you force yourself to believe it.

Because this is the path I chose...

……

"I will move forward. Even if it hurts..."

In the end, he informed the other party of this conclusion.

This drives him forward in the rest of his life, but it also imprints a damning conclusion.

Nair's eyes widened in surprise, the man's words shook his heart, but these few words carried an unchangeable oath.He looked at the man's expression in disbelief. In the blue eyes on the resolute face, the soul fire of hell was burning quietly...

At this moment, he felt a little afraid to look directly at the man's eyes... It was the eyes of a demon who would spread his wings and soar no matter how painfully he was burned by the fire of karma in hell.

Let go of the past and decide to move forward.

A bigger problem lies in front of him again, and a more difficult danger is presented in front of him again.

In four years, a different Aldia...

is it possible?

he does not know.

But at least at this time, he has taken the first step to know the truth of this world.

In the continuation of the journey, his unfinished song of life also ushered in a sequel...

【Even if the things you give up are endless, and what you get is only a little...】

[As long as you keep challenging, hard work will never be in vain. 】

[The possibilities are immeasurable. 】

And the journey he is about to embark on is not the earth and the sky, but the abyss of the blood prison...

The author has something to say:

The setting of Erwin’s badness in three-dimensional maneuvering devices comes from what Isayama said in the interview, “The commander was not good at three-dimensional maneuvering during the training period, but the overall score ranked in the top ten.”

His nickname "eyebrows" comes from the content of Isayama's interview, and "disgusting guy" comes from the manga Wang Zheng. He said, "People often say that about me when I was young."