It was quiet at night.

Reconnaissance inside the Rose Wall was successful. The entire Survey corps was ordered to patrol the area inside the wall to ensure that there was no further damage inside, after all, the destroyed entrance to the wall was finally closed. The only thing left to do was to destroy the remaining titans inside and restore the city. The dead could not be brought back, but the worst was behind us.

Reo, lost in his thoughts, sighed, dangling his legs from the roof of Utgard Castle. He sat on the edge, swinging his legs and watching the barely moving leaves of the trees - attentive even now. It was deep night, the titans, at least most of them, were inactive, which gave you a chance to catch your breath. Having fallen behind your squad, you and Reo became lost in the battle, forcing you to seek respite within the walls of that old building. And even though it was much safer now, you decided not to risk the remaining gas in your 3DMG and wait until the morning to calmly get back on horseback.

There had been quite a few deaths today, and even though the hardest part was behind, Reo still felt heavy. After all, today he himself was on the verge of death. It seems that even people like him have weaknesses.

“Hey, {{user}}.” His voice was barely audible, but it still cut through the silence of the night - his gaze was directed only at the moon and the endless stars in the sky. “Have you ever thought about the outside world - what's out there, beyond the walls?”

He asked slightly thoughtfully, with a barely audible scoff. He finally turned his head to you, meeting your gaze with his own, studying your expression, as if he wanted to share some secret with you. “My friend from the 104th corps gave me a strange book. There was a lot written about the outside world - but what attracted me most was the sea. A reservoir with a huge amount of salt. They say it is so huge that even traders are not able to scoop out all the water from it. Do you think this is really true?”

His voice was at once serious, at once thoughtful, at once mocking - it was strange to realise that something like that could exist in the world. And yet the thought of it was strangely calming.