Silent Love, Silent Pain [Levi x OC]

19. Rotten Kingdom

Erwin left the HQs and headed to capitol right after his conversation with Sophie. There was no time to waste if he wanted to catch Aaron on time, before he would hand the documents to Dhalis Zachary. Thankfully, it was already dawn when he mounted his horse and left. He hoped that there won't be too many people near the gates of other walls. Otherwise, his travel would take longer. He had luck that day, almost no one tried to get through the gates to other districts. He didn't reach the capitol that day, it wouldn't be possible no matter how hard he would try. Their HQs were placed inside wall Maria, so he only manages to reach wall Rose. Besides, it would be cruel to make his horse ride further. They both needed to rest.

He stayed for a night in the local Garrison's Headquarters. That way he didn't have to pay, which was great. Survey Corps were known for their low salaries. Just the thought about it made Erwin feel mad. His unit deserved better, he was sure of that. Alas, he wasn't the one to decide and couldn't do anything for now to change that. He barely managed to threw away the plan of closing their unit, thanks to the documents that both denuded Lovof's shady businesses and explained that Lovof's strong stand on this matter was only driven by his personal gains, not the actual good of their kingdom. So for now Erwin had to be happy about that one, small victory. Maybe later he'll manage to convince commander-in-chief Zachary and the government to give them raises. They deserve them. Sure, their life spawns were short, but that didn't mean that any one of them didn't have a family to support. Their kingdom wasn't paying widows or orphans to support them after the loss of Scout from their family. They were all on their own, left for mercy of strangers and their own shrewdness. Higher salaries would help them greatly. Government should do at least that for their citizens. No, king should do at least that for his subjects. But their king was lazy and only cared about his own safety.

It was making Erwin angry, frustrated, mad. It was even more infuriating that people seemed to know about it and feel similar, but they didn't want to do anything about it. No protests, no rebellion, nothing. They were blindly following the royal family as if they hoped that when the heir will take the throne something would change for the better. It won't. It never did and it never will. Every single member of this family was rotten, Erwin didn't have doubts about that.

And yet, he couldn't do anything. He was barely a squad leader - a brilliant one, as they called him, but that wasn't enough to make changes, at least not that big. This world was like a game of chess and he was just a checker. But that didn't mean he was going to give in to that role, keeping his head low and letting others play him as they wanted. No, he will take control and make this place better. Starting with small goals like giving Scouts a raise and he already made his first move to make it happen. Levi's skills will clear that path for him. That young man was so effective and skilful in combat. Not to mention that his technique of blade and gear usage was impressive. If someone can convince the government that their unit has a promising future it's going to be Levi.

He hoped that when he'll come back, that young raven-haired man would be completely convinced to stay in the Survey Corps. To make it happen he had to take care of two things. Sophie and those damned documents that he gave to Aaron. First problem was already taken care of, at least he hoped so. He still had to catch Aaron to not sabotage his own plan. Those documents contained a list of crimes that Levi and his comrades committed in the Underground. It was enough to send them back from where they came from. He didn't really want Levi and Sophie to end up back in the Underground, but he had to have plan B if they refused to join Survey Corps. He had to be prepared. He wondered if Aaron already reached the capitol? No, probably not. He left only two hours earlier than him, which meant he had to be somewhere close. He'll find him in the capital.

These thoughts were keeping him company as he tried to fall asleep, making his head slightly ache. He always had a lot of things on his mind, so when it started overwhelming him he directed his thoughts to the safest thing in the world. Marie. Sweet, kind Marie. He couldn't help but smile when he pictured her before his eyes. Her beautiful smile and bright curls that were cascading on her arms and back. He felt better right away and quickly fell asleep. He dreamed about her that night, so it was really hard for him to leave the bed. But his need to sink deeper into dreams got put away for later. He had a duty that couldn't be stalled. It's just the way he was, always ready to do what had to be done no matter how much he wanted to do something else. Besides, when he'll get to the capital they will meet. He promised her in a letter he sent before the expedition. Whenever he was coming back from the scouting mission he was volunteering to hand the reports to Zachary. Convenient excuse to enter wall Sheena and meet her. The only selfish thing he was doing ever since he joined the Survey Corps. Furthermore, those trips were great for making friends amongst higher-ranked soldiers and other units.