Time passed day by day.
Rayan and his two squads did what they could, completing their respective tasks well, and gradually earned some reputation among the people. Many people in the Stohess District recognized them, especially Rayan, a distinctive figure who was particularly liked.
And in this period of about half a month, the contribution everyone made to public security exceeded the total contribution of the previous Military Police for several months or even half a year. They had arrested thirteen or fourteen murderers alone, and countless other petty thieves. However, they hadn't encountered any large robber gangs.
On the one hand, after the last gang was wiped out, the others seemed to have gotten wind of it and fled into hiding. This made it extremely difficult for Rayan to find them. Even with the information Klaus from the underground city of the royal capital had given him, it was still somewhat insufficient.
Most importantly, after the last incident, the Branch Commander specifically issued a new order: any officers above the rank of squad leader must report dangerous operations to the higher-ups in advance! Otherwise, it would be regarded as a violation of military orders!
Clearly, this was specifically directed at Rayan. The latter was dissatisfied but helpless. His identity as a "warrior" could at most prevent the Branch Commander from casually moving against him, but if he disobeyed military orders and gave him an excuse, then this identity wouldn't work.
But in this way, if they really discovered any gangs again, reporting it in advance might lead to deliberate delays, and then people would be secretly notified. This kind of thing existed everywhere. They could easily find reasons like "don't act yet, gather more people for a joint raid" to stall. By the time a motley crew was gathered and sent over, the place would be long gone.
"Speaking of which, the Survey Corps will be going on an expedition outside the walls next week. I heard they'll be taking that monster with them this time. I wonder if it'll be useful."
In the Military Police mess hall, the new recruits were talking while eating.
"Who knows, I doubt it. Besides, it's not clear whether that monster is really on our human side."
"Yeah, I don't know what President Zackly was thinking, actually handing him over to the Survey Corps."
"I think we should dissect him..."
The "monster" in everyone's mouth was naturally Eren. In fact, most people still had a hateful attitude towards Eren. After all, the psychological shadow that Titans cast on humanity was too great. Even though Eren had sealed the wall, he still didn't receive a proper look.
Rayan said nothing about this situation.
He naturally wouldn't publicly oppose it. After all, to be honest, this view wasn't too harmful and would gradually change in the future. And if Rayan kept refuting it, it would only quickly reduce his prestige, a loss that wouldn't be worth it.
Just then, a series of rapid footsteps suddenly sounded from outside the door.
"Thump thump thump!"
Everyone looked over together and saw Baker running in, covered in sweat, reaching Rayan's side, panting heavily. "N-not good! Captain, another gang of robbers has struck!"
"What?!"
"Where?!"
"Let's go catch them!"
Upon hearing this, everyone immediately dropped their bowls and chopsticks, filled with excitement. Clearly, the success of the last time had given them more confidence, and the unbroken string of successes under Rayan's leadership during this period made them even more eager to handle some big cases again.
Rayan frowned slightly at Baker at this moment. "Where did this news come from?"
"Someone reported it!" Baker stammered slightly, flustered by Rayan's gaze. "Someone reported... said... robbers..."
"Alright, you come with me to the Branch Commander's office."
Rayan interrupted him, stood up and walked towards the door. Baker immediately followed, and the two of them went to the Branch Commander's office. The latter was looking at some documents at the moment and asked what was the matter when he saw them arrive.
"Branch Commander, Baker said he received a report that another group of robbers has appeared in the Stohess District."
"Oh?" The Branch Commander's expression changed. He asked Baker, "Is the information accurate?"
"Accurate!" Baker said loudly. "It was residents living nearby who came to report. They said they saw a group of people carrying knives going up the mountain."
"..."
The Branch Commander pondered for a moment, then looked at Rayan. "Rayan, you have experience. Can you handle this matter with your squad?"
"I'll take people over there immediately."
"Alright, be careful."
Rayan and Baker turned and left the office. The former said to the latter, "Go and tell them to gather fully armed at the gate."
"Yes!"
Baker turned and ran towards the mess hall. Rayan watched his back, then turned his head to glance at the closed office door, a thought flickering in his mind.
Are they going to make a move...?
At the headquarters gate.
The twelve members of the two squads had all arrived. The expressions of the crowd showed more excitement than nervousness, as if they felt they had another chance to earn merit. Even if the credit didn't ultimately fall on them, they were still very happy.
Looking at their appearance, Rayan reminded them, "This time is different from the last time. This group of robbers will definitely be more cautious and dangerous. Therefore, without my order, no one is allowed to act without authorization. Understand?"
"Understood!"
"Let's go."
...
Ten days ago.
Christa curiously entered from outside the Commander's office, looked at Erwin sitting upright behind the desk, and was somewhat puzzled. "Commander, did you want to see me?"
"Christa, please sit down."
"Oh..."
She sat down on the chair opposite Erwin, feeling a little nervous. "Commander, is it because my training performance wasn't good?"
"No," Erwin looked at her with appreciation. "You've performed very well. In fact, the instructors of all subjects have praised your focus and effort."
"I'm glad..." Christa was a little embarrassed.
"Don't feel any pressure, relax. I asked you to come here because I wanted to talk to you about Rayan Kafka."
"Rayan?"
"Yes."
Erwin looked at the puzzled Christa, stared into her eyes, and said directly, "Before we begin talking, I'd like to propose a hypothesis first. Then, based on this hypothesis, think and answer my questions."
Christa: "Hypothesis?"
Erwin: "The hypothesis is 'Rayan Kafka is an intelligent Titan hiding within the walls.'"
Whoosh!
Christa stood up instantly upon hearing this, looking at Erwin in disbelief. "Commander, what... what are you saying? How could Rayan possibly be a Titan!"
"Don't get agitated," Erwin said calmly. "This is just a hypothesis. Christa, whether this hypothesis can be true or not, your testimony will be important corroborating evidence. We naturally hope that the hypothesis is not true, but, currently, he is indeed very suspicious."
"Impossible... Commander, you must be mistaken!"
Christa stubbornly retorted. Even though the person in front of her was the Survey Corps Commander they respected the most, she couldn't tolerate such... words.
"Christa, this is not the time to be emotional," Erwin said, not at all bothered by Christa's attitude, his tone very calm. "I know you have a very good relationship. Precisely because of this, if you believe he is not a Titan, then you should cooperate even more actively and help us clear his suspicion, shouldn't you?"
"...I understand."
Christa sat down, looking at Erwin with a complicated expression. "Commander, ask away. I'll tell you everything I know."
"Very good."
Erwin nodded and immediately asked, "In your memory, have there been times when you felt Rayan was very strange? Besides you and Ymir, does he have any other friends he talks to often? Regarding his superhuman strength, has he ever mentioned it on his own? Has he ever talked about things outside the walls?"
Erwin asked a series of questions, and Christa answered each one based on what she knew.
She said that Rayan had been very solitary from the beginning, always alone and without many friends. Then she talked about the snow mountain training when he was bitten on the arm by a wolf to save her, and it was after that that the three of them gradually became familiar. As for the topic of strength, Ymir had also asked, and Rayan said at the time that it was innate. Regarding things outside the walls... she said she didn't know and only found out about his participation in the retaking of Wall Maria after reading the newspaper; he had never mentioned it before.
Afterward, Erwin asked a few more questions, and Christa answered them all.
Having received these answers, Erwin nodded and said, "Alright, your words have been very helpful. Thank you for your cooperation. You may go back."
"Then Commander, is Rayan really..." Christa couldn't make a judgment based on Erwin's calm expression at all and could only ask directly.
"Unfortunately, with the information we currently have, we cannot make an accurate judgment."
"..."
Christa was silent for a moment, then said somewhat excitedly, "Anyway, I believe he definitely isn't a Titan! If he were, why would he have saved me back then?
Aren't Titans supposed to exterminate humanity?"
Erwin said nothing.
Christa bit her lip, gave a salute, and turned to leave, but accidentally knocked over the chair behind her.
She hurriedly bent down to pick up the chair, and as she bent over, something fell out of her pocket.
The moment Erwin saw that thing, his pupils suddenly contracted!
It was a piece of candy.
"Christa."
He suddenly spoke, and at the same time, he walked out from behind the table, walked over, picked up the thing on the ground, and looked directly into the girl's eyes.
"This... where did it come from?"
Christa looked at the thing Erwin was holding, her face slightly red, seemingly not understanding why the Commander was asking about this.
"It, it's something Rayan gave me before. I... I haven't eaten it yet..."
Christa said, seeing Erwin's solemn expression, feeling somewhat puzzled.
"Commander, is there something strange about this candy?"
"..."
Erwin was silent, then turned and walked to his desk, opened a drawer, and took out a few pieces of candy from it.
Christa was immediately surprised to see them. Those few pieces of candy were exactly the same as hers. She wondered if Commander Erwin also liked to eat candy? Uh, it seemed a bit strange...
However, Erwin's thoughts at this moment had completely drifted back to a month ago.
Before they left the walls, the little girl handed over the note in the flower... she said someone had given her a few pieces of candy... Later, Erwin specifically found that girl and took her to a candy store, where she identified the style of those few pieces of candy.
"Christa, before you leave, I need to ask one last question," Erwin finally said. "Rayan, does he usually like to eat candy?"
---------
Need More Chapters
Every 300 Power Stones
2 Bonus chapter
Every 500 Power Stones
4 Bonus chapter.
------------
Try Other Fics I Have
•SAO: I replaced him?
•Anime: I Want Harem
•DxD: I am S man
•Anime: Curse Of Immortality
•Genshin Impact: I have Broken System