It felt like it was the end of the world. That or, Isanna somehow winded up in hell.

"Shit—" She barely dodged the next batch of falling debris, and some of the scrap scratched her cheek. Billows of dust and dirt swirled around the room, and Isanna knew that she'd turn into squashed kebab in the next five minutes if she stayed there any longer.

With the magnitude of the earthquake only getting higher, she angled her hook and shot it up the broken portion of the ceiling. Isanna sent one last look at the machinery room, feeling a tinge of regret that she couldn't salvage them in time, before she flew up and exited the underground room.

When she reached the surface, Isanna stared at the new scenery in front of her, lips parting.

A vast chunk of the ground got destroyed. From where she was standing, she could see the light illuminating from the crystal chamber, pillars intermittently standing from each other but no longer supporting anything, and Isanna assumed the perpetrator for the drastic change of the landscape was that gigantic motherfucking featherless turkey.

Since when did titans start to look like that?

It began crawling away, dragging its entire body through the grassland and leaving behind a blazing trail. Kind of like a snail. Except this one was a thousand times larger, and it had the capacity to annihilate an entire outer wall district if left behind unattended for too long.

Before Isanna could begin looking for Levi and the others, the ground she was standing on suddenly caved in. "Fuc—" she leaped to the side and managed to dig her fingers on the edge of the ground that was still intact. With a grunt, she hoisted herself and caught her breath.

Hearing a cough, Isanna leaped to her feet and brandished her spare blade behind her, only to freeze when he saw what she assumed was an Interior MP curled like a ball on the ground.

"Who are you?" she demanded, tightening her grip as she gauged the soldier. He didn't seem to be much of a threat—almost his entire body got burned, and to top it off, he was old.

To her surprise, the old man just smirked.

"Just an old man who's about to bite the dust," he coughed, voice parched and laced with a thick accent. Isanna surmised he was not going to live the next day. He shifted so that he faced the sky, arms stretched at either of his side on the ground. "You a pal of Levi's?"

Isanna squinted in suspicion. "What about him?"

The man hacked a few times. "Nothin'. Just curious." He side-eyed her, although Isanna wasn't sure if he could see her through the burns in his face.

Either way, this man was going to be dead in the next few hours. Isanna decided to let him have his short peace before death and turned away without a word, looking to regroup with Levi and the others.

She made sure to be wary of her footing. The ground could cave in without warning again. Cursing under her breath, she pressed a hand to her temple when she felt dizzy. Now that the immediate danger was temporarily on hold, her hunger reminded her again.

When she finally saw the Levi and the rest, she made her way, waving to get their attention.

Jean was the first one to notice her, and he quickly informed Levi.

When Levi turned to Isanna, she could see the frown on his face. He walked over to meet her halfway. "Do you ever learn how to sit your ass down?"

"Careful captain," she said, "your forehead wrinkles are showing again."

Levi ignored her comment and asked where she'd been. When Isanna relayed her short escapade, his frown deepened.

"You almost got crushed to death. Can't you stop putting yourself in unnecessarily dangerous situations alone?"

Isanna rolled her eyes.

"Give me a break, Levi. We're the Survey Corps—we're always almost dying!"

"U—um.. captain, Isanna-san, Hanji-san said we should get moving," Armin cut in, meekly raising a hand in an attempt to get their attention.

When Isanna and Levi looked back at the wreckage around them, they were brought back to their current priorities.

She turned to Levi.

"What's up with the turkey, by the way?"

Levi, being the tight-lipped mouth he was, just grunted, "Rod Reiss."

"Rod turned into a turkey?"

Levi finally turned away and ordered the rest of his squad to prepare the wagons and horses—they were going to follow the abnormal titan and monitor its movements until further planning.

In a matter of minutes, they were already on the trail, keeping a careful eye on the titan. Isanna rode Hanji's horse because the latter had been injured in their earlier battle, leading the group at the very head while the rest were brainstorming how to manage Rod's titan. Eventually, Eren began screaming at it in hopes of manifesting the founding titan's commanding power. His efforts bore fruitless however.

Meanwhile, Isanna stared at the blazing titan as it crawled. The longer she stared the more it resembled a roasted turkey fresh out of an oven.

And for Isanna who was starving, it was torture.

"You're drooling."

Levi's sudden comment snapped Isanna out of it. She turned to see that he was now riding beside her, his usual neutral expression gracing his features.

"I can't be the only one who thinks it looks like a turkey," she defended.

"You're the only one," he countered, earning a scoff from her. When he glanced ahead of their route, he added, "Looks like you won't have to worry about that stomach of yours anymore."

"What do you mean?"

When she saw Levi nodding his head forward, she followed his gaze and finally saw a group of Scouts and a familiar blond leading them.

The rest of the cadets also saw the reinforcements and felt relief.

"Commander Erwin!"

Erwin nodded at the group as he pulled the reigns of his horse to a stop near them. He asked whether anyone was hurt, but after seeing Hanji's condition, he concluded it wasn't anything serious.

"Well done, all of you," he commended, looking at Isanna, although the grave expression on his face didn't look all too happy.

After being told that the abnormal titan was Rod Reiss, he ordered them to head fast to Orvud district. By the time they arrived, the northern troops of the Garrison were already dispatched by the district commandant. Soldiers were hustling to get the needed equipment ready for the face-off against the abnormal titan, which was predicted to reach Orvud by dawn.

Upon stopping in the stables, Isanna lowered herself from her horse. She missed her footing and almost slipped if it weren't for the sudden strong grip that grabbed her bicep, steadying her.

"Watch your step," Erwin said.

"Thanks," she mumbled a reply, straightening herself.

After Erwin ordered a soldier to tether their horses, he ordered her to follow him to the tent where the district commandants were gathered, currently planning for their next action. Despite moving separately for the past two days, no words were exchanged as they headed to the tent; both aware that they needed to address the abnormal titan first before anything else.

"Erwin, Sergeant Major," the Garrison district commandant acknowledged as soon as they entered the tent. In the middle was a table where a map of Orvud district lay.

"I expect you have some sort of plan to sort this out, Commander. I've already called my soldiers to start evacuating the civilians." He stood and waited for Erwin to explain.

"Call the order off. We will not be evacuating the civilians," Erwin announced, shocking the rest of the Garrison soldiers in the tent. Confused murmurings rippled.

It took the commandant a few seconds to register his decision. Indignant, he stepped forward but was stopped when a hand was placed in his chest. He turned and saw the Sergeant Major frowning disapprovingly at him.

"Step back and let him continue," Isanna said.

"Continue?! That titan will be here by dawn, and your commander wants to keep the civilians here?!"

Simply speaking, Isanna could just bash his head on the table and knock him out. They were in deep shit, a giant turkey was on its way, and she was still starving. Her patience was running thin.

She regarded the rest of the soldiers in the tent. "Listen up. This is the northern regions, which means that you lot here have less on-field experience than the horse of an average Scout." She returned her sharp look at the district commandant. "So might as well listen to someone who has more experience and knows what he's doing."

When the silence reigned after her words, Erwin gave her an appreciative nod. He began relaying his strategy. On the chance that the first counterattack fails, which was highly likely, the Survey Corps would have no choice but to step up.

When the meeting was adjourned and the soldiers went away to prepare, Isanna called for squad Levi to the tent for the briefing and waited for them to arrive while Erwin had taken a pen and began to make a sketch of what Isanna assumed was his artistic rendition of Rod Reiss' abnormal titan.

"It's nice to know there's one thing the so-called perfect commander can't do," Isanna mused as she stared at Erwin's drawing and held back a laugh.

Erwin gave her a pointed look as if to say 'Seriously?' "I'm right-handed."

Isanna cleared her throat and straightened her face.

"Sorry. The hunger's getting to me," she reasoned out.

"Hunger?"

"I'm starving, Erwin. If that giant turkey won't kill me, my starvation will."

Erwin was about to ask what she meant by turkey, but before the conversation could get longer, squad Levi finally arrived and gathered around the table to listen to Erwin's instructions. When the briefing was done, they all headed for the top of the wall where the Garrison was stationed.

The artillery was doing a piss poor job, something Isanna was not surprised to see.

Squinting her eyes, she saw the smoke from the cannons fluttering around the abnormal titan, only to dissipate and reveal that it didn't do shit at all.

"Watching them makes me appreciate Commander Pixis' troops at the south," she said. "At least they don't have the poor aim of a toddler."

"And not as effective as a swarm of cicadas pissing on it," Levi dryly added with his top-notch humor.

Beside the duo stood Erwin, thoughtfully monitoring the progress of the Garrison—or for better description, lack thereof.

"Prepare yourselves," he ordered without taking his eyes off from the titan. Isanna and Levi glanced at him. "It seems we'll have to take over things from here."

Hanji arrived a moment later together with the equipment Erwin had told her to bring. The soldiers promptly began stacking the barrels together for the back-up plan.

As they began preparing the equipment, Isanna heard Erwin and Historia's conversation about the latter being out here in the open danger.

"I have a question for you, Commander," Historia began, "do you think the people are so naïve that they'd obey a ruler in name only?"

At the determination shooting through her eyes, Isanna found herself subconsciously smiling at the girl.

"I've assigned myself a mission I have to carry out, that's why I'm here right now," Historia continued, standing tall as she looked up at Erwin. Isanna thought it was brave of her to try and stand up to a 6'2 man while being shorter than 160 centimeters. Historia barely reached Erwin's chest.

Now that's the look of a queen.

"Let her go, Commander," Isanna said, stepping up to them as they looked at her. She grinned at Historia and ruffled her hair, catching the latter off-guard at the sudden gesture.

Isanna turned to Erwin with the faintest hints of a smile. "What better way to prove a queen than to let her wield a sword before she wears the crown?"

Erwin looked at Isanna, then at Historia, letting her words sink in his mind as he weighed his options. After glancing at the titan that was just meters away from the wall, he eventually sighed and relented.

"Thank you, Isanna-san," Historia said while Isanna smiled at her.

"I don't know what happened during the time I didn't see you, but judging by the look on your face, you seem to know what you're doing." Isanna lightheartedly slapped her by the back in an encouragement. "Now go show me what a queen should be, soldier."

With newfound resolve, Historia nodded firmly at her and returned to her post, eager to end this battle once and for all.

•

"Where is Historia?" asked Erwin as he scanned the town below. Everything went by too fast; all that he knew was that amid the mess of raining titan flesh, she'd managed to slice the nape and killed the abnormal titan. He imagined having their queen plummet to her death after that heroic display. That wouldn't be a dignified ending.

"She's over there," he heard Isanna say, and he followed her gesture to see a crowd of civilians gathering in one street. They seemed to be gathering around a wagon where Erwin could see someone standing on top.

"Want me to get her?" Isanna was about to scale down the wall when Erwin grabbed her wrist out-of-nowhere.

She glanced at his hand then at him, raising a brow. "What?"

Erwin, realizing that they were currently in public, promptly let go.

"It's fine, that won't be necessary," he said, looking back at the huge carcass of the abnormal titan. Thick curls of steam were floating in the atmosphere, a sign that their immediate danger had finally passed. They survived. All was well.

"Taking Historia from the crowd wouldn't look good on the military's part," Erwin finished, returning his gaze at the crowd below who had begun to chant Historia's name. It seemed that she eventually managed to win the hearts of the citizens.

He turned to Isanna.

"Are you alright?" he finally asked. The last time he'd heard from her was when she was a wanted criminal by the Military Police after pulling that stunt at the prison ward. He was eager to know how she was doing after being separated for the past days.

Isanna looked at him, tilting her head. She too had a lot of questions on what went down in Erwin's side.

But there was one thing she wanted to know first.

"Erwin, I've been keeping quiet ever since I saw you earlier because we had a turkey to kill, but now that that's gone, I've been meaning to ask you."

The spaces between Erwin's brows creased. She sounded serious. Unease slowly crept inside him as he anticipated her question. "What is it?"

"What happened to your face?"

The question was unexpected enough that Erwin had to make a double-take.

"Your face," Isanna continued, stepping forward to inspect his face. "It's swollen. There's even a bruise on your eye. What happened?"

Ah.

Subconsciously, Erwin found himself swallowing a lump in his throat. "I'm fine."

"I didn't ask you if you're fine," she countered, voice thick and with an edge to it. Erwin could see a dark glint in her eyes as she stared straight at him. "Were you hit? Who the fuck—"

Isanna couldn't finish because she was interrupted by the growling of her stomach.

In the silence that followed, Erwin watched as the fury in her face washed away and was immediately replaced with embarrassment. The tip of her ears reddened.

Erwin wanted to smile, but that wouldn't be a very gentleman move on his part.

"Perhaps we can talk later," he suggested. "What do you want to eat?"

It took Isanna a few moments to collect her embarrassment.

"...Turkey."

•

After cleaning up on the wall, the entire squadron was allowed their rest after a long day. There was still the whole bit about Historia's crowning, but the military heads decided to have the ceremony after three days considering the turn of events that had occurred for the last few days. With the subversion of the Fritz monarchy and its noble supporters, the military needed to organize the mess first before inaugurating a new queen.

According to what Isanna gathered from Erwin, his trial in the king's chamber had gone by without a hitch. Baldrick had testified against the royal family as well, mentioning how they had been deliberately holding back the advancement of technology instead of helping mankind fight against the titans with better weaponry.

"I think it was the room where they'd been manufacturing all these secret equipment," Isanna said. Currently the Scout veterans were in a meeting back in HQ, and she was relaying what she'd seen back at the Reiss Chapel. "But there wasn't anyone there. Just advanced machinery that I wasn't familiar with."

"I had Moblit and a squad head there," Hanji said. Her wound was slowly healing and she had already ditched the arm sling, but still wore bandages on her arm. "I hope we can salvage something useful out of it."

Levi who'd been silent for a while piped up, looking at Isanna. "You said there were labelled bottles?"

"Yeah. I remember reading an Armor, Jaw.." Isanna trailed off, counting off her fingers. "Crystal.. and a Mammoth. There were other bottles, I just couldn't get to read all of them before the room collapsed."

"Before Eren turned into a titan and saved us in the crystal chamber," Levi started, "he said he swiped a bottle labelled 'Armor' from Rod Reiss' bag. He drank it before he transformed and did the hardening." When he finished, he was already looking at Erwin, waiting for the commander to connect the dots.

"So we can deduce that Eren's hardening ability stemmed from drinking that bottle," Hanji concluded, the usual excited glint in her eyes whenever she was close to reaching a revelation.

"Hold on." Isanna raised a palm, catching everyone's attention. "So.. if Eren drank all the bottles down there.. does that mean he can manifest some other titan ability?"

There was a silence, then, "Possibly," Hanji said. "But you said they were all destroyed when the room collapsed."

Isanna deflated. There goes their chance of making Eren the most overpowered-ultra-mega titan in existence.

"That manufacturing room is most likely where they created this syringe," Erwin finally spoke after being quiet for a while. He gestured to the black box sitting on the table in front of them. Inside the box was a syringe filled with strange liquid. Apparently, Levi got it after scouting the Reiss Chapel for a second time after the commotion dwindled down. He never told them where he specifically got it, though.

"Yeah," Isanna agreed. "The tech in that room was pretty advanced enough. That explains where Rod got his titan syringe collection."

"What about the nobles who supported the old monarchy and the ones responsible for the manufacture?" Hanji asked after a pause as she turned to Erwin. "What happened to them?"

Erwin looked like he was thinking about something unpleasant, Isanna noted, judging by the way his brow twitched and the look in his eyes.

He cleared his throat. "General Zackly has expended every possible means to interrogate them, but they refuse to talk. It seems we're on our own from here on out."

The silence reigned in the meeting room, the four soldiers mulling over their current situation. The old regime has fallen, replaced with the new one led by Historia and the military. Humanity had turned over a new leaf, ready to embark on a different path.

Erwin was the one who broke the silence.

"Nevertheless, the military is still in the middle of setting up the new administration—we will discuss this over with the other heads when things have finally settled down." He proceeded to order Hanji to take care of the other discovered equipment and work to create other weaponries they could use.

When Levi and Hanji exited the office, a comfortable silence trickled into the air. Isanna reclined in the couch and shot a glance at Erwin's way. The bruises on his face had already faded, which was a good thing—because Isanna would have raided the MP's HQ otherwise. She will forever hold a grudge against the Interior MPs for what they did to Erwin.

When a sudden thought struck, Isanna momentarily paused. "Erwin."

Her call pulled him out of his thoughts as he looked at her. "Hm?"

She wasn't sure how to word this. "You know.. about your dad.."

She noticed the inquisitiveness in his gaze as he waited for her to continue.

"I met someone," Isanna started, avoiding his gaze. That Interior MP she took and interrogated had already been sent to the camp together with nobles and supporters of the old monarchy. She had later learned that Abel Sannes was the younger brother of Djel Sannes, who was coincidentally the one Levi and Hanji had kidnapped and tortured for information on the Reiss family.

Would telling him even change anything? "I think.. he was there when.. he was one of the few people who saw Alwin-sensei before he died," she said.

She risked a glance to see Erwin's expression, whether he'd be furious at the mention of his father's killers, but all she saw was his usual calmness.

"What did you do?" he asked in a still voice, and even then Isanna couldn't hear any trace of anger.

She bit her lip. "Honestly. I wanted to kill him. I was about to," she corrected. "I don't even know why I stopped. That bastard doesn't deserve my mercy at all."

She remembered the feeling of the dagger's hilt burning in her palm. She remembered swinging the blade towards the soldier. She had stopped just a few inches away. Isanna could literally have slit his neck and nobody would have batted an eye.

When she looked back at Erwin, she was surprised to see that instead of anger, there was a different kind of softness in his eyes.

"Killing the one responsible would not bring my father back," Erwin said. "You don't have to dirty your hands for me."

Isanna looked at her hands and lightly scoffed. "What are you talking about? They're already dirty." A wry smiled formed. "There's no such thing as a soldier whose hands are clean from blood."

"You fight to protect," Erwin countered, "that's different."

She looked at him and held his gaze, staring at the sincerity in him. Chuckling, she shook her head.

"I can never verbally win against you," Isanna said in lighthearted defeat, before she stood. "I'm hitting my bed for the night. You get some rest too, Commander."

Erwin hummed in response and watched as Isanna exited the commander's office.

•

If Historia were to be honest, she found her current situation more daunting than when she killed her dad's titan.

Now she stood in one of the rooms of the royal palace, in front of a mirror. The room was vast and expensive than anything Historia had ever stepped foot in her entire life. Luxurious furniture decorated the place, and all four walls were painted lustrously. The ceiling and floor shone as if newly scrubbed. She felt as if the very act of standing here was a grave crime.

Reflecting in the mirror in front of her was a blonde girl dressed in royal robes and a red cape. Her hair was tied, and Historia swore this was the most regal she'd ever seen herself.

She swallowed a nervous lump and balled her fists.

My crowning ceremony.

This was the day where she would be appointed as queen of the walls.

Historia teared her eyes from her reflection and looked around the room. For a space so vast, it was awkwardly hollow. She was left here earlier and was told to wait until someone would come get her for the ceremony.

An hour had already passed since then, and Historia's nerves were getting the best of her.

It wouldn't hurt to take a hike.

Warily, she crept to the tall double doors with ornate handles. Historia slowly pulled one door opened and peeked outside.

The hallways were empty and quiet. Ceiling-length windows ran on the adjacent side, and a red carpet filled the entire floor. After making sure there was no one, Historia took a brave step out of the room and quietly closed the door behind her with a clack.

Glancing left and right, she pondered on her choices. She'd been led here from the left, so it would be a nice change of scenery to go for the right.

Historia turned right and began softly padding down the hallway, the ends of her robe dragging across the red carpet. Streams of light filtered past the glass windows, and she took appreciation of the scenic garden outside.

It didn't take long for her to read something coming from one of the rooms. The door was left open wide, and Historia could hear voices of two people talking inside.

The voices were familiar.

Slowly, Historia stepped closer and sneaked a peek inside.

"How long does it even take to prepare yourself? Is the General gelling his non-existent hair or something?"

"Isanna, watch your tongue."

Historia blinked. It was the Commander and the Sergeant Major. The room wasn't that grand as the one she'd been staying at, but it looked cozy enough. The Commander was sitting on one of the couches, sipping from a cup, while Isanna was standing by the large window with her arms crossed. She looked quite impatient, Historia noticed.

"We've been waiting for an hour, Erwin. Did you see the crowd gathering outside?"

"Complaining won't make the General arrive faster."

It took Historia a moment to realize that they were talking about General Darius Zackly. So he was the reason why the ceremony hadn't started yet.

Isanna huffed and leaned against the wall, then muttered, "Bet he's gelling his hair. But your eyebrows have more hair than his entire head, so it doesn't make sense."

Historia's eyes widened in surprise. Is she allowed to say that? The Sergeant Major just basically insulted both the Commander and the General-in-Chief in one breath. She always thought Captain Levi was the only one with a tongue sharp enough to do that.

To add to her shock, Erwin cracked a subtle smile behind the cup he was drinking from.

The Commander is smiling!

Never in Historia's entire life did she ever expect to see the Erwin Smith, the man known to have the facial expression of a brick, smile.

For a moment, he actually looked like a normal guy. So miracles do exist, she thought.

"Historia?"

A little squeak left her when Historia realized she was caught eavesdropping. Isanna and Erwin were now looking at her, equally shocked at seeing her outside the room.

"What are you doing here?" Isanna uncrossed her arms and strode over. "I thought you were waiting a few rooms down."

Historia glanced at Erwin, who was now also watching her from his seat. She gulped. "I was.. I thought it would be nice to walk around the palace before the ceremony."

She watched the Sergeant Major scan her dress and suddenly felt conscious with how she looked.

"You look stunning," Isanna said, grinning with a proud gleam in her eyes.

Tongue-tied, Historia felt her face heat up. "Oh. Thank you, Sergeant." Somehow, her compliment made her feel flushed.

Isanna ushered her inside the room and made her sit on the couch right across Erwin. She even offered Historia a cup of tea, but she politely declined.

"You okay?"

"Yes," Historia said. "Just. A little bit nervous. It feels surreal." All this time Historia had been living a life where she couldn't be true to herself. Now that things behind the walls have changed, she was just moments away from facing a crowd she was expected to lead under her true name, as the queen of the walls. Of course, the military was there to back her up and do most of the work, but it did not change the fact that she was going to be the face of the new government.

"I get where you're coming at."

Historia turned to Isanna, who had sat down beside her.

"If I were suddenly told to be queen, I'd be nervous too." She reclined in the couch and gave her a reassuring smile. "But you'll be fine. It's not like we'll leave everything in your hands. The other heads will be there to assist you all throughout. Right, Commander?"

They both faced the Commander who was just sitting and silently listening to their conversation.

"The military will give their support," Erwin said, nodding towards Historia. He paused for a second, probably pondering what he should say to give her encouragement. "And Historia. You've already proven yourself capable when you went up against Rod's titan. You will do well."

When Historia first enlisted into the Scouts, the last thing she imagined was seeing the Commander and Isanna give her a pep talk. Especially the Commander. He always seemed so distant from the others, and the only times she ever heard him talk were when he was giving out orders.

Maybe it was because she was overwhelmed with the future she was about to face, or maybe it was the absence of a normal parent in her life, but she soon found her vision blurring with tears.

Alarmed, Isanna sat straighter and held her shoulder. "What the—are you alright?"

Her comforting gesture only made the longing in Historia larger. She shook her head and wiped her eyes. "I'm alright. I'm sorry. I just got emotional for a second."

She saw Isanna shoot an accusing look at Erwin's direction. "You just made the queen cry, Erwin. Shame on you."

The commander blinked confusingly, and the whole situation was funny enough that Historia ended up laughing. She waved her hands. "No, it's not the commander's fault."

"It's okay, Historia, you don't have to sugarcoat," Isanna said and leaned into her ears. "Do you want me to punish him? You have the power to demote him into a cadet, you know."

She made an attempt to whisper, but it was still loud enough for Erwin to hear.

The look on the Commander's face was the last straw and Historia bursted out laughing, still wiping the tears that had gathered in the corner of her eyes. But instead of longing tears, they were now tears of laughter.

"I'm sorry for laughing," Historia said. When she gathered her breath, she gave the both of them a smile. "Thank you, Isanna-san, Commander Erwin. I feel better now."

"You're thanking him for making you cry?"

"Isanna," Erwin warned.

When Isanna mumbled an apology and dropped the subject, Historia's smile broadened. It was but a passing moment, but perhaps, she thought, perhaps this was what it felt like to have parents.

A soldier came and informed them that all the military heads were present and that the ceremony was going to begin. As the three stood from their seats, Historia turned to Isanna and asked for a favor.

As Isanna waited for her, she gathered every ounce of bravery, then finally asked, "Can I hug you?

It took her a few moments to register her request, and when it did, Isanna softly smiled and spread her arms for her. Historia took a tentative step forward and wrapped her arms around her, relishing in the warmth.

When Historia let go, she gave one last grateful bow at the both of them before she followed the soldier out of the room.

When they were left alone, Isanna turned to Erwin, grinning, then jokingly said, "She's going to demote you, by the way."

He blankly looked back at her. There was something commanding in that look alone that Isanna had to drop her gaze.

"Am I that fun to tease?" Erwin said, a thick brow raised as if challenging her.

"Sorry." She cleared her throat. "Geez. It's because you almost never react. Maybe if you didn't have the facial expression of a brick you'd win more ladies."

Isanna realized a second later that she made a mistake.

Because she soon found herself trapped between a wall and him, Erwin's large frame towering over hers. She gulped as she saw the look in his eyes. Her breath hitched at the close proximity.

Erwin leaned his face closer to hers, almost closing the gap.

A one-armed man was not supposed to intimidate her this much.

"I don't see the necessity of winning more women's hearts when I've already won yours."

Isanna then felt something warm on her forehead, before realizing that it was his lips. Erwin pulled back, took one look at her face, and stepped back in smug satisfaction.

"The crowning ceremony will begin," Erwin said, gesturing for her to leave the door first. "After you."

Isanna stared at him for what felt like eternity, still processing the bold move he'd just done on her. That was not Erwin Smith.

Nevertheless, she cleared her throat and straightened her military uniform from the imaginary wrinkles.

"You're so sadistic sometimes," she commented with a frown as she walked past him and through the door. Erwin did not say anything but followed her out.

Historia's crowning was done on a platform right outside the royal palace. Citizens had gathered to witness the appointing of the new queen, and humanity welcomed the change that opened a new road for their future.