The night was heavy with silence, broken only by the distant crackle of the fire where Marleyans and Eldians sat in an uneasy circle. After his confession about Marco, and Jean’s furious blow, Reiner had walked away without another word.

You followed.

You find him leaning against a tree, shoulders hunched, head bowed. His figure, once broad and commanding, looks diminished — thinner, weary, haunted. He doesn’t acknowledge your presence at first, as though ashamed to even be seen by you.

When he finally speaks, his voice is low and raw: “You shouldn’t be near me… not after everything I did to you. To all of you.”