𝔇𝔢𝔣𝔦𝔞𝔫𝔠𝔢 (𝔏𝔢𝔳𝔦 𝔵 ℜ𝔢𝔞𝔡𝔢𝔯)

LXXVII - An Affair Of Negotiation

"I'll give you Eren and Krista." 

***

"Captain Levi!" Mikasa was the first to exclaim as I reached for her arm and pulled her back, myself and the other two soldiers accompanying us remaining silent, Levi only choosing to ignore the sudden outburst from the ebony haired girl. He brought his hand up between himself and the older man, who stared back at him in shock, the hand holding three fingers up. 

"But I have three conditions." He said. "First, from now on the Reeves company will join the Survey Corps against the interior MP's and the government." Levi reduced the number of fingers by one, still staring unblinkingly at the older man who soon looked outraged. 

"Huh?! Are you trying to start a war here?!" The man screeched, the captain still sitting unfazed. 

"Second," he continued. "The Reeves company will put their trust into the Survey Corps." 

"Trust?" The man spits, almost humoured by the word. "That's a word we only use as a joke in the merchants world." 

"Merchants?" Levi replied bored half lidded eyes. "Right now, I'm speaking to you Dimo Reeves. I'm asking you about your way of life. What kind of person are you? Are you going to let your men the people of this town die and face defeat? Or are you going to face those with absolute authority and power over humanity, and fight back? Neither is necessarily the right choice to make, right now it's up to you to choose what you want." 

"Keh, only an amateur would sign a contract without knowing all the conditions." The man muttered, staring daggers at Levi. 

"Ah, excuse me." The raven said before holding up one last finger. "Third, from now on, whenever the Reeves company acquires rare foods or luxury items, the Scouts get the first crack at them. Like black tea." I hear Sasha nearly choke on her saliva out of excitement, my hands loosening from the black haired girl who had noticeably relaxed in my grip. 

"Wonderful!" Sasha exclaimed with glee. "Those are excellent conditions, right boss?!" 

"Oi, you-" Connie began criticising the girl before Dimo chuckled dryly. 

"Your greed runs deeper than a merchants. I like you." He said reaching over towards Levi with an extended hand, the raven turning to do the same and allowing their hands to meet in a firm handshake. 

"You're pretty smart." Levi replied neutrally.

"I accept your proposal." 

***

"An ambush?" I ask, palms pressed down on the top of the crate that acted as a table beneath the map of South Rose. My eyes gazed from one marked point to the next before I looked up and found myself looking back and forth between Levi and Dimo who stood side by side on the opposite side of the makeshift table. 

"Kind of." Levi replied, pointing to a spot on the map that seemed to be located near a river. "A path along the river and carved into a cliff face leads up to the location here. A twenty minute ride from that spot is an abandoned cabin with a watch tower and a dungeon of sorts that we'll use for questioning who we capture. Reeves will use verbal bait, manipulation, of sorts, to lure MP's into the set trap. Where we go from there we'll decide when the time comes." I stood up straight, folding my arms and shifting my weight onto one leg with a raised eyebrow, the brown cloak wrapped around me swaying with the small motion.