👁️ Chapter Sixteen: Reiss
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A servant boy calmly walked by Kenny and his men, as Kenny merely glanced at him, it was natural for a country boy not to know the,m but still...he must be rather loyal to still attend his duties.
The 'servant boy' calmly threw off his servant's uniform, now fit in a crisp black blazer and black pants as he walked towards the room. "I swear this stuff is destroying my conscience, I should do some good acts after this," Kaelen said out loud.
Rod Reiss didn't see it coming.
One moment, he was standing in stunned silence—watching the blood pool beneath Alma's throat, watching Kenny leave, watching his cowardice take root again—
Then the pressure returned.
That impossible, suffocating pressure.
And those eyes, he knew that face, posture, and bored attitude all too well, after all, his searching did bear fruit.
Kaelen.
Rod barely gasped before—
CRACK.
The back of his head slammed into the floor. His world went dark. Kaelen massaged his hand, with no guilt as usual.
...
Kaelen stood over the blood-soaked floor. His eyes scanned the scene like an artist contemplating a half-finished painting.
Rod—unconscious.
Historia—wide-eyed, silent in shock, she was doing the weird thing where people are stuck in shock. Her father didn't bother to help her, as Kaelen expected.
Alma—still breathing, just barely. Her chest heaved, lungs rattling as air bubbled through her half-slit throat.
He knelt beside her; he wasn't good at all the healing and medical stuff, but he had plenty of knowledge.
One hand to her neck, fingers checking the angle of the wound.
Still salvageable, what a shame...seems he can't give her up now.
He glanced to the side.
Found a candle.
Lit. Flickering.
"Well," Kaelen muttered with a grim smile, "this is going to hurt."
He knocked her unconscious with a sharp, clinical tap to the side of her temple.
Then gripped the base of the flame.
Pain didn't faze him.
He pressed the wax-soaked fire to her wound.
Sssshhhhhkkk.
The smell of seared flesh filled the air.
Alma didn't scream.
But the room did.
Kaelen exhaled, "And now Mother will have a wonderful friend while I'm gone...that's a good act for sure!" Kaelen said calmly, as he looked around...and a horrible idea went through his head.
...
He turned—
And saw her.
Historia.
Still frozen.
Staring.
Her lips slightly parted, chest shaking, she seemed just as terrified as before, but meeting a friend lifted her spirits.
"…Kaelen?"
He didn't respond; the pale blue eyes seemed to enjoy her fear, mostly because that meant she wouldn't hate him in the slightest.
Just walked up slowly and touched her forehead.
Tap.
Her world faded to black, it was a simple command, 'mind tricks' if you will, and on someone whose been through this much? It was practically child's play.
He set her gently in a chair.
Crossed the room.
Took Rod's wine glass and filled it with cold water.
Then—
Splash.
...
Rod Reiss awoke coughing, soaked, and dazed.
And what he saw nearly made him vomit.
Kaelen sat in his chair, his eyes now vacant as if he wasn't looking at Historia but inside her, as if trying to figure out...exactly what was special about her exactly?
The high-backed, gold-trimmed seat of the Reiss estate, Kaelen sat on it, clearly distracted on something else.
And in his lap—Historia, unconscious but unharmed, cradled in Kaelen's arms.
Casual.
Intimate.
Wrong.
Rod scrambled to his feet.
"You—!"
Kaelen looked at him.
Rod froze.
A sudden coercion gripped his heart, causing him to nearly fall back down again.
There was no malice in Kaelen's gaze.
No anger.
Just a calm, clinical command.
"You lost your right to be a father," Kaelen said flatly. "Long ago."
Rod swallowed, his mind racing, he had to think fast, clearly judging from the situation, this was a ransom.
"…You're a Yeager?"
Kaelen didn't smile, simply snapped out of his focus,
"That's the name they gave me. Kaelen Yeager. Convenient, right?"
He shifted Historia slightly, brushing her bangs aside with care. She truly was a wonderful friend; it was as if every time he thought she was worth it, she magically refreshed.
"But I think Kaelen Reiss sounds better, don't you?"
Rod's knees buckled.
"…R-Reiss…?"
Kaelen tilted his head.
"The original royal line. The true heir. The big secret that very few knew, yadda yadda." Kaelen said mockingly, he was surprisingly amazing at this acting thing, he knew pretty little besides the little tidbits, but it held one thing he needed.
Rod's breath stuttered.
"But… the Founding Titan—Grisha—did he…?"
Kaelen raised his hand, but he didn't get many chances to show off.
Fingers straightened. Then, slowly pressed down through the air.
Rod blinked. This was oddly familiar, just like the pressure back at Reiss Chapel, but far stronger.
"What are you—?"
Then felt it.
Weight.
His spine screamed. Knees shattered to the floor.
It wasn't physical.
It was like the air itself obeyed him.
Like the world bent.
Kaelen leaned forward.
"Vile, isn't it? That the Founding Titan's power is kept by the Royal Family, why can't people who need it use it, huh?" Kaelen said calmly, the pale blue eyes mocking Reiss's pain.
His eyes slid toward Historia, happy like a child that found his favourite toy.
"Luckily, I've got a little royalty nearby."
He turned back to Rod.
"Just like you, right? When Father killed off the rest of your line. Just like with Frieda." Kaelen said the unfamiliar name.
Rod's eyes widened.
"You know about that?"
Kaelen chuckled, lying easily.
"Please. I know everything."
The pressure lifted.
Rod collapsed, gasping.
Sweating. Shaking.
Kaelen stood, gently placing Historia back in the chair.
He walked over slowly.
Rod didn't move.
Couldn't.
Kaelen stopped in front of him.
"From now on, you will acknowledge me as Kaelen Reiss, your dear Founder."
Rod's voice broke, GOD was born once again...as his greatest and sworn enemy.
"…Y-Yes, Founder."
"I will enroll Historia and myself into the 104th Training Corps. You will provide the paperwork and cover story. You'll leave behind documentation proving that Kaelen Yeager is a bastard descendant of the Reiss bloodline."
Rod nodded quickly. "Of course. Anything."
Kaelen crouched down beside him.
Rested a hand on Rod's shoulder.
Smiling.
Almost kindly.
"Good. Because I'd hate to kill such a useful person."
His eyes narrowed.
"So stay useful, Rod."
Rod swallowed hard.
"Y-Yes, Founder."
Kaelen stood again.
Straightened his sleeves.
Looked at the carnage.
The blood. The ruined dignity.
The girl who would now become Krista.
And the noble who bent to a ghost.
"Consider your life… paid for, my lovely friend," Kaelen said, voice soft.
He turned his back and walked into the dark hallway.
Behind him, Rod Reiss remained on the ground.
Breathing. Alive.
But never again in control.
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[Auther: I lowkey wasted time writing this...I could have done more and finished this faster.