Her Kingdom Come: Distant Memories

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"Told you so, Lieutenant. It's no use. One way or another, the Scouts will soon come to an end!"

The incoming figures come into the moonlight that shines upon the tall grass ahead of us. By now, I can see it's only two people...who I recognize without fail. Stepping out from behind the tree, I sheath my blades and raise a hand to the others. "It's Hange and Moblit." The most surprised out of this is the Interior Police himself, who was sure we were being approached by the enemy. As the lieutenant goes to meet with my superiors, I step on the man's broken arm. "Seems the Scouts will make it another night."

Levi returns and sits with a paper in his hand, the other cadets crowding around him to see what Hange and Moblit brought us. After roping the officer again, I join them to read the news that the government is no more. "And there you have it. The coup d'etat was successful. Premier Zachary has control of the capital and administrative district. For the time being, the nobility hasn't rebelled."

"What about the Boss Reeves incident?" Armin asks.

"We got a confession that proved the charges unfounded. His son Flegel really pulled through big time. Just like it's written right there, it shows the charges were bogus, they abused their power, and that King Fritz was a total fake. All our actions were justified self-defense. In other words, we're free people now."

Us cadets look to each other and celebrate (though I feel sorry for Mikasa, who is lifted off her feet by Sasha). I clap hands with Armin, smiling to my friend. "Still think we're criminals?"

"In a totally different kind of way, we are."

"If that's the fun way, I'll take it."

We tune back to Levi and Hange's conversation. "The thing is, part of the Interior Police, their leader, Eren, and Historia are somewhere else. If we don't find them soon…"

"I may have a clue about that. Let's get there and put an end to this battle."

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With the quiet darkness around us, we set out for the northern lands of Reiss. Moblit and the cadets, save for me and Mikasa, ride on horseback carrying torches. Armin directs the horses that pulls the wagon me, Mikasa, Hange and Levi sit in. For the time being, we keep quiet until Mikasa speaks up. "Hange, you might know where they are?"

"Yeah, I'll explain. Erwin gave me this Scout Investigation report regarding Lord Reiss' land. Most of it has to do with an incident five years ago that shook up the Reiss family."

Armin looks back for a moment. "Five years ago?"

"Right. On the day Wall Maria was breached."

I sigh. "What a coincidence."

"I'll summarize the important bits from the beginning. As the lord of his territory, popular opinion of Rod Reiss wasn't all that bad He had five children, and his eldest daughter Frieda was a down-to-earth girl that even the peasants adored. But that night, five years ago, disaster struck. With the world having plunged into pure chaos, some bandits raided and set fire to the only chapel around. Unfortunately, that night, the entire Reiss family was there praauing together. And so, the whole family, save for the head of the house, Rod Reiss, was massacred that night by the bandits. To top it off, this incident occurred just a few days before Historia's mother was killed by the Interior Police. In other words, immediately after losing his family, Reiss sought out Historia. There must be a reason he and his lackeys arer after Historia."

"The same bloodline?" Levi questions. "Is there some secret to their blood?"

"I don't know for sure yet. But what really makes me curious is that parts of the chapel are completely wrecked. The chapel itself is stone. It would take tons of time and effort to destroy it. Bandits would take what they can and make a quick escape. Plus, the only one who saw those bandits was Rod Reiss himself. Soon after, he used his own fortune to rebuild the chapel. But why?"

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