Chen Si looked at the command building before him and walked inside. None of the guards stopped him along the way; they must have been notified beforehand. When he reached Pixis's office, he knocked on the door.
"Come in." A voice came from inside, sounding somewhat aged but steady and strong.
Chen Si stepped closer and saw the bald old man with a drooping mustache and an extraordinary presence. He had always had a good impression of Pixis. The man was a fine leader.
Chen Si glanced to the side and saw Anka, a chestnut-haired female staff officer. Well, aside from helping Pixis piss and shit, she pretty much did everything for him.
"Hello, Commander Pixis. Need any hair-growth tonic?" Chen Si opened with a critical hit.
"Hahahaha! I stopped caring about such things long ago. You young people still have to spare some attention for your appearance, though. All an old man like me needs is wine." Pixis wasn't offended. He took a sip as he spoke.
"Miss Anka, you're so pretty, yet you spend every day beside this old man. Thanks for all your hard work," Chen Si said.
"Huh? You know me? Oh, it's nothing. I'm happy to help lighten the commander's burden." Anka found the compliment quite flattering, and her impression of Chen Si improved a little.
"This isn't the time for small talk. Once the fighting is over, I'll sit down for a proper drink with you. Now, back to business. I hear you fought the Colossal Titan. Did you discover anything?" Pixis's perpetually narrowed eyes suddenly opened, his presence becoming imposing.
"I discovered that the Colossal Titan couldn't beat me," Chen Si said.
"Er... could you be more specific?" Pixis was getting a headache too. This boy seemed to be a troublemaker like Levi. He wondered how Erwin usually managed to keep someone like that in line.
Chen Si had joked around enough. He still needed to return to the front as soon as possible, and he was worried about the Jaw Titan, whose whereabouts remained unknown.
"Whatever you do, don't be frightened by what I'm about to tell you." Chen Si took a deep breath and grew serious.
The sudden disappearance of Chen Si's playful expression made Pixis turn serious as well.
"Go ahead. I've been dealing with Titans for decades. There's nothing I can't accept," Pixis said calmly, taking another sip of wine.
"Titans are transformed humans." Chen Si never seemed satisfied unless he said something shocking.
"What?!" Anka's mouth fell open beside them.
Pixis's eyes widened sharply. His grip on the wine bottle suddenly slackened, and it fell to the floor with a clack, spilling a few drops. Apparently, he had already drunk most of it.
"Didn't you say you wouldn't be frightened?" Chen Si said, speechless.
"This isn't fear. Is this a deduction of yours, or did you witness it yourself?" Pixis asked. Deep down, he felt a faint hope that a theory he had shelved long ago might finally be confirmed.
"I saw it myself." Chen Si lied. It was the truth anyway, and he happened to be the only person who had fought the Colossal Titan so far. Everyone else could only take his word for it. Besides, Pixis and Erwin were clearly among the first to have sensed the truth.
"Just as I was about to slice the flesh out of the Colossal Titan's nape, he suddenly vanished. Then I caught a fleeting glimpse of a human figure near the gate," Chen Si added.
"Could you have been mistaken?" Anka questioned. She still couldn't believe such an absurd revelation.
"Miss Anka, you can look up my scores in every subject. There's absolutely nothing wrong with my eyesight, and I doubt many people have better eyesight than I do.
"Besides, a human figure stands out quite clearly among a crowd of Titans," Chen Si said unhurriedly.
"Erwin, the current commander of the Survey Corps, and I once considered that possibility. It seems this world is still shrouded in fog to us. If that's the case, things will become difficult." Sharp glints of insight flashed through Pixis's eyes.
Titans possessing human intelligence was a terrifying prospect. Could humanity withstand them? At that thought, Pixis stroked his mustache and looked at Chen Si again.
He nearly sliced out the Colossal Titan's nape? Pixis kept stroking his mustache.
"Would you be interested in joining my Garrison and entering my elite squad? Even making you squad leader in the future wouldn't be a problem." Pixis began trying to recruit him.
"Commander, the Garrison's duty is to hold our defenses, but I believe the best defense is a good offense. Would the elite squad undertake expeditions beyond the Walls?" Chen Si asked.
"In principle, the Garrison's elite squad is responsible for eliminating enemies that invade the Walls. It doesn't conduct expeditions outside them," Pixis said.
Chen Si actually didn't think joining Pixis's elite squad would be much of a problem. The issue was their differing ideals. The members of the Survey Corps willingly went beyond the Walls to face death. Even the Garrison's elite soldiers might not be willing to do that.
That meant if Chen Si wanted to explore beyond the Walls, he might find no one willing to follow him, leaving him a commander without any troops. He would still have to work with the Survey Corps in the end, so he might as well join them.
After all, Chen Si could only grow stronger by killing more Titans. What the hell was the point of staying inside the Walls every day? Was he supposed to keep waiting for Titans to breach the Walls before slaughtering them? That wasted time and carried risks. Chen Si preferred to take the initiative.
"Commander, forgive my bluntness, but I think the Military Police Brigade and the Garrison, as they're currently organized, are pretty damn useless when it comes to fighting Titans. If the Survey Corps suffers massive casualties, it'll still need replacements.
"Those replacements will have to come from the Garrison and the Military Police Brigade. If the Survey Corps is wiped out, the Garrison goes next. If the Garrison is wiped out, the Military Police Brigade goes next. At least in my opinion, devoting so much effort to dealing with internal matters before the external enemy has been eliminated...
"Is far too foolish," Chen Si said slowly.
Pixis narrowed his eyes slightly. This young top-ranked cadet was no ordinary boy. He saw clearly through the situation and politics within the Walls. How could Pixis not be aware of the problem himself? The Royal Government was the greatest obstacle facing the military.
"We won't discuss that issue for now. You have plenty of ideas. You must have been injured fighting the Colossal Titan, right? Go rest in the infirmary first. I thought you'd be carried here, but you actually walked over yourself," Pixis said.
"There's no need, Commander. I still have to fight. I won't abandon my comrades and leave them to fight alone. Besides, honestly, Titans are too weak," Chen Si said dismissively, his words brimming with disdain for the Titans.
Anka stared in a daze at the outstanding young man before her.
Pixis suddenly felt as though the hot-blooded days of his youth had surged back into his heart. He remembered how, even then, he had aspired to fight his way beyond the Walls and reclaim territory.
"Hahaha! Good, very good. Whatever happens, my Garrison will always welcome you. No matter which regiment you join, we'll have opportunities to work together," Pixis said with a laugh.
"Commander, if you and Commander Erwin ever plan any major moves, let me know. I'll stand firmly on your side," Chen Si said, as though he saw through everything.
Pixis's pupils contracted slightly. With a faint smile, he said:
"No problem."
"Commander, this wine of yours isn't strong enough. If I get the chance, I'll let you try something better." Chen Si picked up another full bottle from the desk and took a swig.
"Er, that's the commander's prized bottle..." Anka reminded him.
"Oh, is that so? Well, I'll be off, then. Remember to treat me to a drink another day, Commander." Noticing Pixis's body trembling, Chen Si walked straight to the door and made his escape.
Two seconds after leaving, Chen Si poked his head back through the doorway:
"Commander, drink today while there's wine today!" With that, he vanished again.
After Chen Si left, Pixis continued trembling.
"Commander, are you all right?" Anka asked anxiously, steadying him.
A smile soon reappeared on Pixis's face, though he still looked thoroughly exasperated.
"Oh, well. Drink today while there's wine today. Anka, come pour me a glass, and give the rest to the soldiers on the front line." Pixis let it go as well. He had found a new goal.