Nile, Erwin, and Pixis were all nearly unable to stay seated.
Especially Pixis — he suddenly remembered reports from the Garrison stationed in Shiganshina. Several soldiers had claimed that, on the day the Wall was breached — just yesterday — they saw a strange-looking "Titan" attacking other Titans.
At the time, he hadn't given it much thought. Such a thing was unheard of, and he hadn't witnessed it himself.
But now, seeing what was right in front of him, those reports rushed back to his mind.
"If you want to die, feel free to pull the trigger"
Eto said coldly.
Her temperament had never been what you'd call gentle. She always acted on her whims and didn't mind using ruthless methods to achieve her goals.
If she wanted to, she could kill every soldier in the room right now.
Her voice didn't come from her mouth, but from her kagune — twisted and monstrous material now enveloping her body. It sounded distorted and unnatural.
Her kagune was so advanced it could form vocalizations—an effect of both her powerful RC cells and a vivid imagination.
"It... it talked! That thing can talk?!"
The soldiers from the three military branches were stunned.
It was the first time they'd seen a "Titan" speak.
Their hands, gripping their rifles, trembled with fear.
They were so shaken by that single sentence from Eto that none of them dared to fire. In fact, they began lowering their guns slightly, no longer daring to aim at the creature's head.
"As you can see, she can transform into a Titan-like form—and killing Pure Titans is child's play for her."
Byakuya spoke calmly. "If you still doubt her capabilities, feel free to test them yourselves."
Nile said nothing. Too much had happened in just a few short moments—things that defied everything he thought he understood.
Erwin looked deeply thoughtful, brows furrowed in contemplation.
Pixis was the first to speak.
"During yesterday's Titan incursion in Shiganshina, many of my men claimed they saw a bizarre Titan fighting other Titans. I assume that was this young lady?"
"Correct" Byakuya replied with a nod.
Nile and Erwin, having not heard of this, turned to Pixis in confusion.
Pixis hadn't shared the information because even he hadn't believed it at the time.
"No wonder" Pixis continued. "According to my men, that 'Titan' was slaughtering entire groups of Pure Titans — five meters, fifteen meters, even the abnormal ones — with ease."
He looked straight at Byakuya.
"I fully support making Mr. Byakuya the commander of this operation."
His response was swift and firm.
"I support it as well"
Erwin added without hesitation. He trusted Pixis's instincts.
"...I have no objections"
Nile finally said. He wasn't foolish. Whether he agreed or not didn't matter — Byakuya was going to be the commander. Opposing him would only bring trouble.
"Excellent" Byakuya said. "Then the operation to retake Wall Maria begins tomorrow."
"And let me be perfectly clear once more—I don't need you to fight the Titans. Your only task is to lure them to the location where Eto and I will be waiting."
After all, having the elite soldiers from all three branches draw the Titans wasn't meant to be a death sentence — it was simply the most efficient way to gather them.
With horses and 3D Maneuver Gear, this task was manageable. As long as they didn't engage the Titans head-on, they wouldn't be in fatal danger—they were the elite, after all.
Only the Abnormals posed a serious threat. Byakuya had every intention of "personally handling" those.
Nile, Erwin, and Pixis all nodded.
With everything in place, Byakuya considered the meeting complete.
He didn't care what the military leaders thought of him — as long as they followed orders, that was all that mattered.
...
After the meeting, Byakuya and Eto left the capital.
They didn't do much afterward — just found a place to rest.
Byakuya intended to help Eto replenish her RC cells — or more precisely, enhance them.
When Eto learned of his plan, she blinked and asked,
"Wait… you're not seriously thinking of letting me eat your flesh, are you?"
"Not exactly"
Byakuya replied with a small shake of his head.
He opened the system's interface through sheer will and navigated to the page with RC Cell Concentrate.
[Ding! Host has purchased RC Cell Concentrate. -100 Attribute Points. Current points: 500.]
[Ding! Host has purchased RC Cell Concentrate. -100 Attribute Points. Current points: 400.]
He bought two bottles straight away — both for Eto's use.
"I don't want to eat you either"
Eto giggled.
"But when we do get married, we're still doing the full wedding ritual~"
"Wedding ritual…"
Byakuya echoed. He suddenly remembered: ghoul weddings weren't like human ones.
In ghoul culture, the ritual was to leave an unhealable bite mark on each other's shoulder — one that regeneration could never erase. A sign of mutual commitment and absolute sincerity.
"You know what I mean, right?"
"I do"
Byakuya nodded.
Still, Eto bringing up marriage caught him a little off guard.
"What is it?"
Eto noticed the shift in his expression and teased,
"Don't tell me the guy who's been feeding me sweet words every day suddenly doesn't want to take responsibility?"
"Ahem…"
Byakuya cleared his throat.
"It's not that — I just hadn't thought about marriage until you brought it up."
"Well then, let me make it clear ahead of time—someday, you will marry me. Your wife can only be me, and my husband can only be you."
Even as she said something that bold and possessive, Eto wore a calm smile. There wasn't the slightest hint of shyness — only quiet confidence, and a tone that allowed no refusal.