Asahi shook his head with a long sigh. Commander-in-Chief of what?
It was just a game.
A few days ago, after things were relatively settled—at least the government trash had been cleared out—Darius Zackly resigned from the position of Commander-in-Chief and "gifted" the position to Asahi. He also ensured that Asahi didn't need to sit there every day handling administrative work and could freely mobilize the three armies.
With such enormous privileges, even if Darius didn't say a word, Asahi knew well that there was no such thing as a free lunch.
Darius was well aware of the current situation of the Eldian people on Paradis Island, and Asahi was now the greatest asset he could acquire. He wanted to use benefits to tie Asahi down, or at least link him to the Eldian forces, rather than his previous style of fighting as a free agent. Asahi knew this but accepted the role anyway because it did not conflict with his own goals.
This led to the current situation: Asahi became the Commander-in-Chief, establishing a research institute near Wall Maria. He brought Hange Zoe and a few Survey Corps soldiers, preparing to capture Titans for research and antics.
Erwin and the rest of the Survey Corps remained in Wall Sina. The Survey Corps' power and voice had increased significantly since the coup. Erwin wanted to leverage this to gain the maximum benefits possible, mainly by recruiting new blood, supplementing forces, and securing logistical supplies.
With Darius Zackly now being the highest authority in the political system ensuring their support, resources that the Survey Corps previously couldn't even dream of were now abundant before them.
"We've arrived, Commander-in-Chief."
Asahi was interrupted in his thoughts by Hange. Following the direction of her hand, not far away was the large Wall section adjacent to Shiganshina District, where the breach had been sealed with a mass of squirming Titans.
Because the glue layer had hardened completely, they fundamentally could not escape, only able to wiggle the parts of their bodies not sealed by the glue.
Excluding Hange, the soldiers brought in to serve the Titan Research Institute were not Survey Corps members. They were mainly personnel from the Military Police or Garrison who had some medical knowledge or interest in research, all rounded up by him. Of course, they had never seen a Titan before, relying mainly on stories and illustrated drawings.
Now, they finally saw this terrifying and unnatural creature with their own eyes.
When the eyes of the Titans glanced at them, almost everyone trembled. Their bodies' physiology warned them non-stop, causing their bladders to clench, their palms to sweat, and their throats to run dry. There were many who had graduated excellently from the military training school and had been repeatedly informed of the Titans' horror. But facing them directly was another matter.
Three years of training, studying, and practical application felt utterly useless when confronting those colossal beings.
If the Titans weren't trapped and this were a battlefield like Shiganshina that day, this group of soldiers would likely collapse in despair.
"Ignore them, focus on the work."
Asahi spoke. His voice carried a strange, intangible force, instantly blowing away their fear. The soldiers—no, now the new research personnel—came to their senses, quickly preparing the Titan containment tools.
It was a thick, very large wooden platform, with a wheel system underneath for towing. The Titan would be placed here, securely anchored, and then pulled back to the research institute.
As they worked, these new personnel carried looks of awe whenever they glanced at Asahi. Originally, some who were dissatisfied with being transferred out of Sina didn't dare to show it or even think about it. How could they forget that this was the person who had defeated an entire army? Not to mention the hole in the Wall right in front of them was sealed by this very man.
Asahi didn't pay attention to what the personnel behind him were thinking. He and Hange used the ODM Gear to move onto the sealed Wall surface.
Carefully choosing a spot where no Titan parts were exposed, Hange stomped her foot on the hardened glue several times, unable to help but comment.
"This is lighter than the brick Wall, but the hardness is not bad. Commander-in-Chief, where did you find this material?"
"That's a secret."
Asahi answered casually, crouching down and placing his hand on the glue layer. He hadn't noticed it before, but now he could faintly perceive the structure of the hardened glue slowly decomposing. The speed was very slow, but it was indeed decomposing. Just like its expiration date.
His eyes flickered. It seemed that after resolving the issue of the Titan power in Grisha, he would also have to deal with this underlying threat.
Fortunately, Shiganshina and the surrounding area were still under reconstruction, with almost no civilians present.
"Hange, go up first."
"Huh?"
Without looking at Hange, who was gleefully trimming a Titan's hair, Asahi clenched his fist and swung a punch straight down onto the hardened glue below, startling her. She immediately abandoned the Titans' hair and scrambled back up onto the Wall's surface.
Crack!
The sound of something breaking rang out. A section of the hardened glue cracked and shattered, neatly freeing a six-to-seven-meter class Titan from its bondage.
He controlled the force perfectly, just enough to let one out. This one would be their "guinea pig" for research and experimentation later.
"Hold your ground! Don't panic!"
He roared. His figure immediately vanished from his previous spot, leaping high into the air, accurately landing on the Titan's head, using the momentum and inertia created to make the entire creature lose balance and fall forward.
Asahi said nothing, his dark sword snapped out. He swung the blade, severing the Titan's two shoulders and armpits, temporarily preventing its arms from moving to stand up. Next, he retreated, slicing through the tendons in its legs and thighs. Although the Titan's structure was incredibly bizarre, at least the external gross anatomy, like muscles, tendons, and bones, was similar to that of a human. Severing the tendons was equivalent to paralyzing it.
Afterward, someone would throw him ropes to tie around the Titan's neck and anchor to its limbs. They would all pull it onto the wooden transport platform. During that time, Asahi would guard the Titan, ensuring it couldn't move at all.
Once towed, Hange would take command on how to properly pin the Titan down with steel cables. She had prepared this for a long time, based entirely on Titan habits; even if it fully regenerated, it would still be neutralized.
Finally, a team of horses set off, running in parallel, bringing the prize back to the research compound.
...
"Carla, take care of the children and protect yourself well."
"Grisha, how long will you be gone?"
"Perhaps... a few months. Don't worry, we will see each other again very soon."
Grisha smiled at his wife, looking completely calm. This departure felt like a normal business trip. However, immediately after turning away and the door closing behind him, his expression became somber and filled with lingering agony, his hands clenched white.
Only he knew that this journey was a near-death experience, perhaps even a definite death sentence. Not because it was inherently too dangerous, but because his destiny and what flowed in his very core had already dictated it.