Chapter 39: Eliminating Titans, Liberating Productivity

The sun rose, and the heavy snowfall briefly ceased. The snow-covered mountain paths reflected the sunlight, turning the world into a dazzling white.

By this time, several teams had already begun their ascent.

Haruto took one look at the snowy landscape and warned,

"Put on your hoods and cover part of your vision."

The three others looked confused.

Ymir frowned and asked, "Why cover our vision? That'll just slow us down."

Haruto pointed to the barren mountain terrain around them.

"To prevent snow blindness. When moving through snow without a clear focal point, sunlight reflects off the snow into your eyes. It affects vision, and if you're unlucky, you could go blind."

Upon hearing the word "blind," the three immediately and obediently pulled down their hoods.

"You actually know this kind of stuff, gloomy guy?" Ymir snarked.

"You really do seem different from us, Haruto," Historia remarked.

Her words piqued Haruto's curiosity.

"Different? How so?"

Fortunately, the climb was relatively easy since the snowfall had stopped. So, they continued chatting while climbing.

"Well, very different. It feels like you're from a completely different world."

Historia recalled as she spoke, "During both training and breaks, you always seem the same. When Jean or Ymir picks fights with you, you never get angry or scared. And besides... most people wouldn't casually say they want to save humanity. Not that I think it's bad or anything..."

As Historia spoke, she suddenly noticed that all three of them were staring at her.

"What's wrong?"

The girl tilted her head in confusion. Ymir had a bitter expression.

"Christa, you're really paying attention to this gloomy guy, huh? You've been observing him so closely! I'm telling you, he's just a crazy guy, that's why he's different. Don't let him fool you!"

Historia realized something was off. Her face turned red instantly.

"I am not!" she protested, lowering her head.

But to Ymir, this reaction was even more frustrating.

"Gloomy guy, I challenge you to a duel!"

Ymir yelled in frustration.

Haruto shook his head with a smile. He hadn't expected Historia to notice such subtle things about him.

It was mostly because he was quite good-looking.

A tall, handsome guy with black hair and black eyes; what girl in the Training Corps wouldn't steal a few glances?

But Historia had a keen eye and a delicate mind. A single glance made her sense that something about he was different.

So, she paid a little more attention.

"Um... How do you plan to save humanity? By killing all the Titans?"

Daz, who had remained quiet, suddenly asked out of curiosity.

Historia was also intrigued.

In her mind, even if all the Titans were eliminated, that wouldn't truly save humanity. After all... humans would just keep oppressing each other. She herself was a living example of that.

Meanwhile, Ymir had an amused expression, waiting to see how Haruto would respond. Haruto thought for a moment and said:

"First, eliminate all Titans and the oppression they bring, freeing humanity from fear."

"Second, change the political structure, ensure fundamental equality between people, and liberate their thoughts."

"Finally, focus on basic education, vigorously develop technology, and liberate productivity—using production to drive development."

Historia, Ymir, Daz: ???

The three of them were completely dumbfounded.

They had expected to hear something like: expelling all Titans or becoming nobles and distributing money to commoners.

Or, at most, some radical dissatisfaction with the monarchy.

But what did they just hear?

Equality? Liberation? Productivity?

Why could they understand every word individually, yet, when put together, it made no sense at all?

Historia had read many books in her childhood. She could barely understand a little. But precisely because she understood a little, she felt even more shocked and confused.

After a long silence, Ymir asked,

"So... what you're saying is, kill all the Titans first, then start a rebellion?"

Haruto nodded.

"Although the methods differ, that's roughly the idea."

The three of them gasped.

This was the first time they had met someone who spoke about rebellion so casually. As if they were just discussing what to have for dinner.

If these words were spread around, wouldn't his entire family be executed?

Historia anxiously grabbed Haruto.

"This is dangerous!"

The girl tried to warn Haruto, making him realize just how dangerous his words were.

But Haruto only responded with a smile. For the rest of the climb, the group fell into complete silence.

Haruto hadn't just killed the conversation. He had almost talked them to death.

Yet, he remained completely unconcerned.

At noon, they took a break.

They ate some food and drank a little water.

Even though the food and water were stored inside thick clothing, they were still ice-cold. The water hadn't frozen yet, but drinking it felt like swallowing blades.

The food was dry bread; so hard that they worried it might break their teeth.

After a short rest, they set off again.

By the time they crossed the snowy mountain, the sun had quietly set. At the same time, snowflakes began falling from the sky once again. But the terrifying part was that even though the sun had set, they still had nearly half the journey left.

At this moment, the silence between them was not intentional; it was because they no longer had the energy to speak.

Of course, Haruto was still strolling along at the back of the group.

He watched the people ahead of him.

Daz was staggering.

Historia and Ymir weren't doing well either.

Each step they took was heavy and painfully slow.

With the heavy snowfall covering everything, both the road ahead and behind them blurred into a vast expanse of white.

This extreme cold was a true form of torture. It didn't just break the body, it could also break the mind. The mountain was finally revealing its fangs.

Thud...

A muffled sound suddenly broke through the suffocating silence.

It was so heavy and jarring.

Historia and Ymir turned around at the same time. They saw Daz collapse onto the ground, sending up a spray of snow.

"Daz!"

Historia cried out in alarm and quickly ran over, crouching down to try and lift him up.

However, Daz did not respond.

His face was flushed red from the cold.

Historia removed her gloves and touched Daz's forehead.

In this freezing world, it was burning hot.