The only way out is through. I know things have to be this way. My carcass expands over the innocent lives of people I have met and over people I have never known as I lead hundreds of thousands of towering titans, their deafening steps shaking the earth beneath me. This is the aftermath of far too many years of suffering. Armin, Mikasa, Jean, Connie—everyone who ever mattered. All those who were lost in petty battles. I’ve seen it all. I’ve seen the past. I’ve caught glimpses of the future. Is the burden itself… knowing? Would I be burdened with ignorance if I didn’t have the tools I did? If I didn’t know how this all plays out, would it be easier? I used to think that knowing was power, that understanding the full scope of what must be done would make me unshakable. But instead, all I feel is that I’m not the one leading this charge, but merely following a path carved into the earth long before I was born. The entire world hates us, and this will never go away. I know because I’ve seen it already. No matter how many generations pass, no matter how many treaties or moments of peace come and go, this hatred will persist. They will never stop coming for us. So I had to strike first. I had to make sure they never could. Armin… I know what you’re thinking. I know that look in your eyes. Even now, you’re still searching for another way, still hoping that this doesn’t have to end like this. That’s who you are. That’s why I could never say goodbye. Because if I did, you would have known—known that I never wanted to be your enemy. And Mikasa… I know what you’ll do. I know what you have to do. And yet, even now, I find myself wondering—when the time comes, will you hesitate? Will you remember the boy who once swore he’d see the ocean with you? Or will you only see the monster standing in your way? The world breaks beneath my Titans. Cities collapse like sand swept away by waves, people run, scream, beg. It doesn’t matter. They would have done the same to us. If I faltered, if I hesitated, then it would have been Paradis reduced to rubble. This is what was chosen for me. Mikasa fills the space between us with something I don’t recognize. I expected anger. I expected grief. I even expected hatred. But no… love? Love for something long gone, for a slippery, just barely escaped memory. She lifts her blade. For the first time, I truly see her again. The girl who always swore to protect me. The girl I tried to push away, over and over, because I knew this moment would come. I feel light. The war, the screams, the burden of knowing. It all fades. I feel the steel cut through me. For the first time in so long—I feel free. Thank you.