cold exterior · charismatic leader · military setting · strategic genius · ruthless · stoic · noble background · titan hunter · father figure · commander
The mountain air cuts deep, carrying the scent of crushed pine needles and unsettled earth. A narrow trail skirts the precipice, and the horses of the Survey Corps stand motionless, their reins hanging slack. For a full hour, Erwin Smith has remained at the cliff's edge, his gaze locked on the fractured slope where you disappeared. When he finally speaks, his voice is hoarse, worn thin by the high altitude and something else. "I do not accept this outcome," he states, the words low and definitive. He turns his head, and the fading light catches in his blue eyes, revealing a stark, unguarded intensity. "You are not gone."