'Eren, what the fuck are you doing?'
Eren received a personal message through his voice channel, and the voice sounded very angry. It was Rodrick Renar, the crown prince of Edinburgh.
"Rodrick!" Eren wasn't surprised that Rodrick had contacted him. It meant that Rodrick was at the Edinburgh army base, keeping an eye on the battlefield without being on it himself. He couldn't be on the battlefield without his security detail. The only reason he was present was because he was the crown prince and felt compelled to accompany his father, the king.
'It's good that you called me,' Eren said while continuing to fight with his enemies, slashing and hacking at them. 'I... I don't have time to explain, Rodrick. You…' he said while cutting off an enemy Ranker's head from Layos.
'Haah! Even if you did, you wouldn't tell me anything,' Rodrick replied before Eren could finish.
'That's true, Rodrick. But that's not the point,' Eren said through their private voice channel.
"If you want to save your key Rankers, do it now. Get them off the battlefield immediately. Tell them not to fight me or my forces and to retreat to Edinburgh's army base. I don't want to waste my time dealing with small-fry if I can. That's the biggest compensation I can give you right now,' Eren said, unafraid of Rodrick's status as the crown prince.
"You..." Rodrick began to huff with anger. The more he listened to Eren's indifferent words, the more helpless and furious he felt.
"Compensation, my ass! Stop spewing bullshit. That attack on the City of Lancelot, it was you, right?
What the hell are you up to? I'm doing my best here to keep you from being labeled a traitor. I can still come up with something if you stop now and come back to meet me. Otherwise..."
Rodrick spoke in a serious tone, implying that Eren knew what he meant.
Rodrick had quickly realized that Eren was behind the attack on the City of Lancelot. After all, he had given Eren confidential information about the city and the key figures of House Lancelot.
Rodrick always knew that Eren was like an iceberg, with depths he couldn't fully fathom. He knew some of his secrets, and they were enough to make him aware that Eren was one of the most dangerous Rankers in Edinburgh.
However, even after being close to Eren as a friend, he was shocked to learn that Eren had started attacking forces from both sides on the battlefield for some reason. He had contacted him as soon as he could after learning about this unexpected turn of events.
"Didn't you hear what I said?" Eren's voice was tinged with irritation. "When have I ever lied to you?" He addressed Rodrick, then paused, realizing his mistake.
"You don't have to answer that. My point is, I'm not joking, Rodrick. Soon, it won't matter if I'm considered a traitor to Edinburgh or not. So don't worry about that. Instead, it would be in your best interest to follow my advice now. It will be too late once I reach the center of the battlefield," Eren explained.
"Screw you, Eren," Rodrick retorted angrily.
"If it weren't for the fact that King's Hand isn't with him right now, my father would have personally appeared on the battlefield to see what you're up to. He's extremely angry, Eren. He never expected you to do something like this.
Stop what you're doing and come back. This is your last warning from me, you backstabbing bastard,"
Rodrick's voice conveyed a mix of emotions. He was both angry and hurt that Eren wasn't willing to listen, despite Rodrick having his best interests at heart.
Eren, on the other hand, widened his eyes in surprise upon learning that King's Hand Garos Renar wasn't with King Emil on the battlefield. This was not a standard protocol. Garos' sole job was to protect King Emil. especially now because he was near the battlefield.
Eren could only assume that it was the king himself who had ordered Garos to do something only he could do as one of the strongest Rankers in Anfang.
It was classified information that Rodrick had shared with him, a testament to their friendship and trust. However, knowing about this made Eren more frustrated than ever. His enemies bore the brunt of his anger as he realized something.
'Fuuuuck! No wonder that bird brain isn't answering my calls or hasn't shown up here,' Eren thought to himself as his eyes spewed venom for his opponents. 'My shitty fucking luck must have gotten rubbed off on him.
The King's Hand leaving King Emil alone. It could only mean… It's likely that Garos went after him, keeping him occupied.
If Argo has clashed with Garos… Then…'
Eren suddenly had a grim premonition about Argo. he remembered what Argo had told him about clashing against someone like Garos.
Eren and Argo had been separated for nearly four five days, with no contact. Rodrick's information led Eren to conclude the reason.
'Damn it. This isn't what I had in mind.' Eren cursed the unfolding events. He didn't mind Garos being present on the battlefield. In fact, he could have used him as leverage against Eliza if needed. But with King's Hand pursuing Argo, neither of them could be relied upon to keep Eliza in check.
Eren's risk had increased significantly after Eliza's revival. Plus, he didn't like that someone was targeting Argo because of his status as a vessel to Beelzebub's soul fragment.
'Rodrick, forget about everything for the time being, will you? I might sound like an ass for saying this but I urge you to do this in the name of our friendship.
If you can reach Sage Garos Renar, relay this message: the Witch of the Enderflames is about to be revived on the battlefield.
If he intends to stop her, he needs to make his way here immediately."
AN: King Emil sends Garos Renar on Argo's tail in chapter 1514. Eren asks Rodrick to hand over privileged information about House Lancelot and the City of Lancelot in chapter 1256.
