"After all, I can't provide you with something I don't possess myself."
Eren welcomed the appetizers to his table as he talked with Kirin. Crostini, deviled eggs, ham and cheese rolls, bacon-wrapped jalapeno peppers, beetroot and cheese salad, and lastly, a spinach dip with bread.
The restaurant staff had come to realize that Eren and Kirin were ranked entities just by the quantity of the appetizers they had ordered. This was not their first time seeing something like this. A lot of rankers liked to mingle with mortals this way. So they didn't say anything and served the couple well.
Kirin chuckled when she saw the amount of food Eren had got for himself. She only took a small portion of the appetizers for herself and took the first bite of her Crostini before replying to Eren's question.
"Safety? Was I really safe there? You wouldn't have been able to penetrate the Oni dungeon if there was such a thing as absolute safety."
Eren smirked when Kirin put her point of view forward. What she was saying was his ideology as well. It was just that he had come to adopt it after living a life of misery and hell.
Kirin on the other hand lived a relatively better life. At least he liked to think that she did. And still, she came to the same conclusion. Eren could only conclude some intersection truths would be obvious to people leading different lives.
Kirin took a few more bites before continuing.
"The idea of absolute safety is just a figment of imagination people willingly create for themselves. So that they can stop themselves from pursuing what they truly want. Because that pursuit will require them to give it all they have. That pursuit will require sacrifices. Something they are not willing to do.
What if it breaks them? What if it cripples their future? People are often stuck in various what-ifs of their lives.
An ever-fleeting sense of safety in exchange for suffocating restrictions and unquestionable obedience is not worth it. I have seen that most rankers make these choices because they have the option to choose. They take their freedom of choice for granted. They take their freedom for granted.
They happily sign contracts with various establishments and get bound by the rules set forth by them. As if their freedom meant nothing to them. As if it was just another commodity they had in abundance.
Most of them don't even try to break the bindings they have. They get comfortable in their cages. Their shackles become the life-saving rope they can hang onto to keep them from falling into the pit of uncertainty."
Eren raised his eyebrows when he heard Kirin's words. He was surprised by how much their thinking matched each other. It was as if he was listening to himself. But there were a few points he didn't agree on.
"Not understanding the true value of freedom, huh? If you ask me, Kirin, it's not the rankers' fault that they are raised this way. They are the product of a society that is governed by its rules.
Restricting individual freedom is minimizing overall chaos. Which establishment would want to invite anarchy in its wake? So it's not their fault either.
Almost every ranker, whether they join any organization, choose to stay mercenary, or become a cultist to experience a greater illusion of freedom, is subjected to shackles of their own making.
Even if they are given choices, they don't really mean anything. Because they would be bound by a set of rules designed for that particular group. Regardless of what they choose, the imposition of rules cannot be skipped.
By the time they are aware of this truth, they are already chest-deep in the quagmire. The freedom of choice is just an illusion, Kirin.
You have keen eyes. I'll give you that. But you can't judge the rankers based on what you see on the surface."
Eren said as he drank the refreshment he had been served. He wanted Kirin to understand that things weren't as black and white when it came to rankers' society as she was making them out to be. Even with her keen perception, she was bound to remain oblivious to some truths that couldn't be seen unless one had lived a life like him.
Kirin pondered for a bit before nodding a bit. But she couldn't help putting what was on her mind.
"I can agree that freedom of choice can be an illusion here, Eren. But I didn't even have that illusion to count on when I was in the Oni dungeon. My entire society was based on absolute obedience.
All I want to say is that rankers who haven't seen anything other than the world of Anfang don't understand what you strive for. But I do.
Freedom to be free. Freedom to pursue what you want on your own terms.
Only after seeing you interact with this world like oil to water did I realize the true importance of striving for something seemingly unachievable. You have managed to carve out a piece of freedom for yourself in the pursuit of your goals.
People are not after you, Eren. Not really. They are after that piece of freedom you have for yourself. And they don't want that piece for themselves either. They just want to destroy it so that nobody can claim that for themselves."
This was the first time since his second chance in life that Eren felt beaten in an argument. Kirin was very articulate in expressing her inner feelings. And in doing so, she had tried to put him on a higher pedestal than the rest of the rankers.
The butcher smiled mirthlessly and looked at Kirin. He placed his hands over the table and reclined on his chair. The butcher looked at the half-elf with a playful look on his face before speaking up.
"All I can say is that I'm glad that we are together, Kirin darling. I now understand why you gals like being praised. This shit can be addicting. Haha."
The butcher then narrowed his eyes and looked at the chandelier that was hanging from the ceiling before continuing.
"As for people wanting to destroy the piece of freedom I have for myself. They must be ready to forfeit all they hold dear including their lives if they hope to target it."
