Chapter 5

"Calm down, calm down."

In the distance, Titans were approaching.

The Titans, who seemed to be smiling as if they were looking at a buffet full of food, had bodies, especially around their mouths and chests, stained with red liquid.

Probably... human blood.

[People eaten by Titans: 794 / 50,000]

The status window highlighted the numbers for me. But that's not important right now. What I needed was luck and maneuvering skills to attract the Titans' attention rather than the death toll.

Ignoring the numbers displayed by the status window, I turned around and looked at the soldiers.

50 soldiers evaluated as elites in the Military Police.

They are talents who will become high-ranking officers in the Military Police in a few years.

They were a group I had led almost like my private army, thanks to Darius Zackly's request.

In front of these talents, standing as their commander, I had only one thing to do.

"Everyone, let's see each other alive."

"Little lady, in times like this, it's better to say 'Dedicate your hearts.'"

Speaking unusually seriously, Nile grabbed my shoulder and gave me advice. He was smiling faintly, perhaps because he liked the plans I had devised as a competent advisor in this situation.

He, who could be called the epitome of a soldier, was suddenly being nice. But why call me little lady? If you're going to do it, say something like beautiful... No, let's stop this nonsense and focus on the task at hand.

"Our goal is not complete defense. It's a delaying action."

Remembering Nile's advice deeply, I started speaking to everyone again.

"We will make noise to lure the Titans away, allowing people to evacuate."

Minimal engagement is crucial. The steadily rising death toll made my head spin. In my dizzy state, I decided to emphasize once more to myself.

'My goal is not to save civilians but to avoid femininity corruption.'

If the number of Military Police decreases by trying to save one more person here, it will lead to the deaths of hundreds.

And if among those hundreds there is a supporting character who plays a crucial role in the original story, that would be unacceptable.

In this cruel world, there were only a few things I could do.

"Ignore people who are about to be eaten by Titans. If a soldier dies trying to save that person, hundreds who could be saved later will die."

Discard the losing cards and save the winning ones.

But what should I say now?

No more ideas come to mind.

No, I didn't expect to have to give a speech suddenly. But I must finish the speech.

That was my role as a commander.

"Oh, whatever... just fight and survive! That's it! Whether you dedicate your hearts or not, I won't! Let's go, first squad! Over there for now!"

Ending with a completely unorthodox conclusion, I urgently grabbed Nile's arm.

Staying here any longer would be embarrassing...

...

The gate was broken. The powerful wind generated by the shockwave from the broken gate sent debris flying high into the sky.

Unfortunately, the debris that flew up into the sky began to fall towards Shiganshina District.

From head-sized chunks to massive boulders that could demolish houses. Various debris hit Shiganshina District, turning the city into chaos.

And finally, through the central road between the houses, visible from afar, Titans entered through the wall.

Eren was speechless at the sight.

"...Ah..."

Such an overwhelming size.

Such overwhelming power.

Even Eren was stunned by the sight that could be called the god of destruction.

"Th-the wall... it has a hole…?"

"..."

Armin and Mikasa were the same. No, Armin knew.

He knew that Titans would continue to enter through that broken wall.

It wasn't just Armin.

"R-run!!"

The entire Shiganshina District was in panic.

It was like an obsession in everyone's minds that Titans would enter through the broken gate. People started fleeing in the opposite direction of the broken gate.

"Guys, let's run! We have to hurry! Titans are coming!!"

Armin shouted, grabbing Eren and Mikasa's arms. He was trying to lead them to the gate heading to Wall Maria, not Shiganshina District.

But Eren shook off Armin's arm and walked in the completely opposite direction from where people were fleeing.

There was only one reason for Eren's actions.

"No... it can't be?"

The smoke rising from the debris was precisely pointing towards Eren's house.

The giant boulder falling on the house where Eren lived could only mean one thing.

"Eren?!"

Eren shook off Armin's arm and ran towards his house.

The only thought in Eren's mind was this.

'It couldn't have fallen on the house… they must have evacuated…!'

Hoping that his mother Carla, who would be in the house, was safe, Eren ran into the alley.

He heard screams from people pinned under debris. Blaming himself for not being able to save them, Eren continued running.

'Just around this corner… the house will be just like usual… just like…!'

Turning the corner of the alley, Eren saw his house.

The place where a guest was having a meal and where they were seeing off his dad's trip just a while ago.

"Damn…! Mom!!"

A giant boulder had crushed it. The house was buried beyond recognition.

"Mikasa! Lift that side! We need to find her!"

"Yes…!"

Eren and Mikasa hastily began clearing the rubble.

To rescue Carla, who would be buried beneath.

With the hope that she would come out if they cleared the rubble and the urgency to save her before the Titans arrived, Eren's palms began to sweat.

But no matter how much they cleared, Carla was nowhere to be seen. At this point, she was either deeply buried or had escaped.

"…What are you two doing?! Run away now!"

"Thank goodness! Mom, we need to run away quickly!"

That's because she was right behind them.

Carla's ankle was pinned under a small piece of debris.

Carla's ankle, crushed beyond recognition, meant only one thing in this situation—an unfortunate outcome.

"Leave me and run away. Mom can't run with this leg!"

"Mikasa! Come and lift this!"

Eren insisted they go together and tried to lift the boulder crushing Carla's ankle. Knowing her situation better than anyone, Carla tried to push Eren away with a sorrowful voice.

[Thud…]

"…!"

A blonde Titan turned the corner and looked at the three.

Like it had seen a delicious meal, the blonde Titan started walking towards them with a wide grin.

The ground shook with the Titan's footsteps. As the sound grew louder, Eren desperately tried to save Carla.

Carla pushed Eren towards Mikasa. Mikasa caught Eren.

"Mikasa!! Take Eren and run!"

"Mikasa, let go!"

Seeing the approaching Titan, Carla persuaded Mikasa with a sorrowful voice.

Her son, who refused to listen and was in danger of dying with her, broke Carla's heart.

She begged them to leave her and run. With Carla's pleading voice and the blonde Titan just steps away, Mikasa fell into a panic.

'What should I do? How can I save both Eren and Aunt Carla…?'

Seeing Mikasa unable to choose, Carla felt even more pain.

The cruel reality that she would cause the death of two children overwhelmed her.

The blonde Titan reached out towards the three. Just as it was about to grab them, a soldier stood between them with ODM gear.

"Uooooooo!!"

It was Hannes. He slashed the Titan's fingers with his blade and pushed it away.

The Titan, whose fingers were cut, flailed helplessly, unable to grab anything.

"I won't let my benefactor's family die!"

Was this the same Hannes who always drank? In this crisis, Hannes stood up to protect his benefactor's family.

He remembered how Grisha had saved his family during the plague. Hannes had sworn to repay that kindness, gripping his ODM gear tightly.

"Hannes!! Take the kids and run!"

"Don't underestimate me, Carla! I'll kill this Titan and save all three of you!"

"Please!!"

Ignoring Carla's desperate cries, Hannes charged at the blonde Titan.

As he did, he pondered Carla's words.

Would he abandon her and save the two children?

Would he keep his vow?

Hannes's thoughts continued.

'Will I certainly save two lives or take a gamble by fighting the Titan?!'

What Hannes was about to do was a reckless gamble.

Biting his lip, he gave it one last thought.

'Will I follow Carla's request or repay the kindness?'

The answer was obvious.

'I am!'

A human standing against immense power.

'I am…'

Small and insignificant,

'…'

Ultimately, he lost the will to fight.

Of course, there were exceptions.

Like now.

"Hey! Run now!"

With the soldier's shout, part of the Titan's face exploded.

Seeing the Titan's face explode right in front of him, Hannes turned towards the source of the voice in disbelief.

There were several soldiers standing there. In their hands were the boom bombs.

"Hey! If you want to live, run now! Garrison, go save that woman!"

It was the third squad of the Military Police, created by Nike, who were supposed to carry out operations in the rear.

They temporarily incapacitated the Titan by destroying its sight and then headed back to the rear.

...

"Wow… they keep coming in despite this?"

[People eaten by Titans: 1694 / 50,000]

The number kept rising exponentially.

I knew it was inevitable. But who would enjoy seeing people die?

On the broken wall, the second squad was continuously making noise with their guns to lure the Titans.

The first squad, following me, was continuously blocking the Titans' movement paths.

However, a few aberrant Titans broke through, gradually widening the front line.

Judging by the silence, the second squad seemed to have run out of bullets.

The situation was worse than I had planned. It wasn't just the Garrison's incompetence, but also the significant impact of the aberrant Titans.

I could understand why many soldiers died because of the aberrant Titans.

Moreover, the Molotov cocktails and bombs we had were almost depleted.

We had been lucky to survive so far, but pushing further would result in casualties.

Should we retreat? As the situation became increasingly difficult, the option of retreating seemed more appealing.

"...Hey, little lady. How should we deal with that?"

As we continued burning things to hold the line, Nile came over and asked me.

Being carried by a soldier with ODM gear, I threw a boom bomb at a nearby tower and looked in the direction Nile pointed.

At the end of that direction stood a completely new Titan.

"The Armored Titan…"

A Titan covered in armor.

And the Titan that would destroy the last defensive gate leading to Wall Maria.

I was certain that the moment had finally come.

For me, the Armored Titan meant one thing.

"First squad, retreat now. Nile and I will handle it."

It was the damned Titan that would deliver the final blow to collapse Wall Maria.

To give the Armored Titan a big blow in this battlefield, I took out the special boom bomb I had made.

"Nile, I'm giving you an order."

"What is it, Commander?"

Commander, huh? I laughed lightly at Nile's joke and pointed at the Armored Titan.

"Let's hold that thing's foot."