Christa's secret

Christa was dragging Daz along when she suddenly lost her footing and fell into the snow. Ymir hurried to help her up.

"Whew... thank you, Ymir." Christa's little face was red from the cold, and she sounded exhausted as she thanked her.

Ymir honestly had no idea what to say to this girl. She barely had any stamina herself, yet insisted on dragging a burden along. Worse, Ymir was right beside her, but she stubbornly refused to let her help.

Ymir was just about to say something when a noise from the slope above startled them both. They looked up to see an avalanche charging straight toward them.

"Christa!" Ymir cried, hurriedly wrapping her arms around her. Fortunately, the avalanche looked more frightening than it actually was. By the time it reached them, it had lost its momentum and merely knocked them down. Daz, who had already been lying unconscious on the stretcher, was flipped over as well.

Ymir hauled Christa out of the snow and brushed her off. With a rare look of seriousness, she said, "Enough, Christa! You weren't really trying to save Daz, were you? You just wanted to die, didn't you?"

Christa froze, her expression stiffening. "Ymir, wh-what are you talking about?"

Ymir leaned in until their faces were close. "You want to die here, don't you? Christa, I always thought you were a good girl. How could you do this? You could at least put on a more convincing act and pretend you wanted to save Daz's life."

Christa's eyes widened, her little mouth falling open. Ymir continued speaking into her ear. "You want to be a hero? You want everyone to think you died saving someone? Even so, you shouldn't drag Daz along and make him die with you. That's something only a bad girl would do."

"No! That's not it! I just wanted to save Daz!" Christa protested fiercely, tears already glimmering in her eyes.

"Why deny it? So, Christa, you're that illegitimate daughter they were trying to kill, aren't you?" Ymir said with certainty.

Christa froze. "How did you know?"

"So it really was you," Ymir said. "I only overheard it by chance. Back then, I was at a church, surviving by stealing whatever I could. How ironic. A noble father wanted to kill his illegitimate daughter to keep her from inheriting his power. Later, they agreed to spare the girl if she changed her name and lived under a new identity. They planned to send her to the Training Corps."

Christa's expression dimmed. This was something she had always refused to face. "So did you come to the Training Corps to find me? If you did, why?" She looked at Ymir with a hint of hope in her eyes.

Under Christa's gaze, Ymir's face reddened slightly, though it was barely noticeable. "Why? Maybe because we're alike."

"Alike?" Christa asked. "Do you have the same sort of past as me?"

"What? More or less," Ymir said. "No, we're different. You can't even compare us. We both got a second chance at life, but I didn't change my name. If I did, wouldn't that prove I was afraid? I'm keeping my name! I'm going to live the best life I can. That's the only way I can get revenge!" A trace of hatred crept onto her face as she spoke.

"What about you, Christa? What are you trying to do? Kill yourself here like a coward and let the people who ruined your life laugh behind your back? If that's really what you're doing, why not put that passion into living instead?" Ymir demanded sharply.

Christa was clearly at a loss. "I-I don't know. I can't do it. Now we might all die here..." She began to sob softly.

Seeing her like this, Ymir couldn't quite bear it. After thinking for a moment, she seemed to make up her mind. "There's a way. Come with me."

Christa wiped her tears and followed, dragging Daz along. They reached the edge of a cliff, and Ymir pointed down. "The camp is right below this cliff. There's only one option now: throw Daz down. Whether he lives or dies is up to fate. Unless a miracle happens, both you and Daz are going to freeze solid!"

"No!" Christa said. "If he falls down there, he'll definitely die!"

"Shut up. You're too loud. I'll handle it, so get moving!" Ymir scooped Christa up and flung her into a snowbank on the other side of the slope.

"Ymir, don't!" Christa struggled, but it was useless. She was tossed straight into the snowbank.

Ymir turned and walked toward Daz. A bolt of yellow lightning flashed past.

Christa climbed out of the snowbank, only to find that Ymir and Daz had disappeared.

While Christa stood there bewildered, she suddenly felt the ground tremble beneath her feet. Crash! Something seemed to heave the snowbank upward. She lost her balance and landed hard on her backside with a cry of pain.

Snow showered down. Christa raised her head and found a pair of enormous crimson eyes staring at her. Clumps of snow clung to black hair, and the huge mouth could have swallowed two of her at once. Terrifying, sharp teeth crowded its jaws. A Titan's head stared right at her.

"Aaaah!" Christa let out a piercing scream.

The Titan seemed startled. "Roar!" Its even more terrifying bellow sent Christa fleeing. Then came a thud! In her panic, she ran headfirst into a tree and knocked herself out.

Even the Titan seemed stunned by what she had just done and remained motionless. Then its entire head lowered, steam billowed out, and a figure tore through the flesh at the nape of its neck.

Yago freed himself from the Titan's body, panting heavily. He clenched both fists, feeling a strength several times greater than before.

As he stepped out, the Titan's body began to evaporate. Clouds of steam melted the surrounding snow, and the blood and slime on Yago's padded coat began to evaporate as well.

Yago looked at the unconscious Christa. He was rather confused himself. He had been buried by the avalanche and lost consciousness for a while, only to look up and see her.

In her daze, Christa suddenly opened her eyes. "There's a Titan!"

"What nonsense are you talking about, Christa?" As she came to her senses, she realized she was being carried on someone's back. It was Yago.

"Yago? Why are you here? And I just saw a Titan! Ow, my head hurts!"

"What Titan?" Yago asked. "Christa, did you fall and knock yourself out? When I found you, you were lying facedown in the snow. As for me, I got lost earlier and only just found my way back."

Christa looked confused. "What? Did I really knock myself out in a fall?"

With Christa on his back, Yago soon returned to camp.

At camp, Marco asked hesitantly, "Annie, Reiner, are we really going to sneak out without telling the instructor and search for Yago and the others?"

Annie silently put on her padded coat, while Reiner fastened his gear. Eren and Mikasa were already ready to leave, along with Thomas, Mina, Ili...

Ymir stood anxiously at the camp entrance. Meanwhile, Daz was wrapped in a blanket, shivering.

"What's going on? Why hasn't Christa come back yet?" Ymir was clearly growing worried.

At last, just as everyone was about to set out, two figures appeared before them. Yago carried Christa toward camp, one step at a time.

Christa waved to everyone.

"Hey! Don't even think about taking advantage of Christa!" Ymir sprinted toward Yago as though she were running a hundred-meter dash. She swept the petite Christa off his back and eyed him warily.

"I'm fine, Ymir. Don't get the wrong idea about Yago. Where's Daz?"

Ymir carefully checked Christa's clothes and replied offhandedly, "Inside, having soup." Christa wanted to ask more, but their friends had already crowded around them.

They had all been worried about Yago and Christa's safety. As Yago rubbed his nose and bragged about how difficult it had been to carry Christa down, he suddenly felt a chill. Turning his head, he found Annie's beautiful blue eyes fixed on him.

Yago's heart sank. This isn't good.