The Pointy-Eared Titan

"What's that?" Yago stared ahead in bewilderment at a towering, black-haired Titan with teeth stretching all the way to its ears, pointed ears, and solid muscles.

Most importantly, this Titan was slaughtering other Titans. It roared as it smashed their heads apart, one after another. Fifteen-meter Titans were helpless before it, while those under ten meters fell to a single kick each.

"This Titan? No, is this a human like me?" Yago murmured with certainty. This Titan gave him an incredibly familiar feeling.

This Titan-or rather, this had to be a human who could turn into a Titan, just like him.

Bam! The pointy-eared Titan punched an ordinary Titan's head clean off. The head spun toward Yago, but he reacted quickly and dodged at once.

He would leave that Titan alone for now. At the moment, Yago was more worried about his companions.

He plunged straight into the supply station.

The supply station was already packed with cadets: Jean, Mark, Sasha, Reiner, Bertholdt... At last, Yago spotted the figure he had been longing to see in a corner. Seeing that Annie was safe, he felt the weight on his heart finally drop away.

Everyone's attention was completely fixed on the pointy-eared Titan slaughtering Titans outside. Connie pointed at it and said, "That's an Abnormal Titan, one that slaughters other Titans. We can use it to draw their attention, resupply, and then retreat."

Most of them looked shocked, but Reiner and Bertholdt wore somewhat strange expressions. No one noticed, though.

Yago found Armin and asked where the rest of the 34th Class were. He had only seen Armin and Mina in the crowd. He knew Thomas and Ili had died, but what about Eren and Maddie?

Armin lowered his head in guilt and explained everything, blaming himself bitterly.

The cadets of the 34th Class had been tasked with supporting the vanguard in eliminating the Titans. Under Thomas's command, they had narrowly evaded an Abnormal Titan's attack, only to be pinned down by three Titans, including the Abnormal Titan.

One careless mistake had left Armin in the grip of a bearded Titan. In that critical moment, Eren had risked his life to save Armin, only to be eaten himself. Maddie had also been swallowed whole by the Abnormal Titan. While covering their retreat, Thomas had his cable caught by a Titan and suffered severe injuries to his arms and legs. In the end, Ili had withdrawn with the badly wounded Thomas, while Armin and Mina had no choice but to retreat as well. They had become separated in the chaos.

Later, from a rooftop, Armin had discovered their mangled bodies being devoured by Titans. They were Thomas and Ili. They had failed to escape.

"I'm so sorry! It was all because of me! It's my fault for being such a coward!" Armin said through his tears. Yago felt dazed, as though none of this were real. The companions he had spent three years with-humble Thomas, Ili with his wonderful cooking, quiet but kind Maddie, and passionate Eren-how could they just...

Yago sighed softly and patted Armin's shoulder. "Armin, pull yourself together. Don't let Eren and the others die for nothing. You've got the best head out of all of us here. Help everyone think of a way out." Yago had also learned that there were several three- to four-meter Titans downstairs.

After reassuring Armin, Yago walked toward the figure he had missed for so long.

"Annie, are you... all right?" Looking at Annie's haggard face, Yago wanted to say something, but in the end, that was all he managed to get out.

Annie gave Yago a complicated look. "I'm... I'm fine." Yet her face plainly showed how much was weighing on her mind.

Seeing Annie like this pained Yago. He had no idea what had happened, but before he knew what he was doing, he suddenly hugged her.

Annie froze at the unexpected embrace, but once she recovered, she quickly pushed Yago away. A faint blush appeared on her previously pale face.

Yago felt awkward too. There were plenty of people around, so how had he suddenly lost control of himself? To hide his embarrassment, he went over to Armin, who was working out their tactics.

There was no denying that Armin really was brilliant. Their plan was to use the lift and the flintlocks they had found to draw the Titans' attention, then have soldiers lying in wait on the rafters kill them in a single strike.

It was an ingenious plan, but Armin, who had devised it, had very little confidence in himself. Still, everyone's trust brought him a little warmth.

In the end, everyone agreed to Armin's plan. The flintlocks went to several Garrison soldiers and cadets with good aim. Bertholdt alone was equipped with three.

The ones responsible for killing the Titans were Yago, Mikasa, Annie, Reiner, Jean, Mark, Sasha, and Connie.

Yago crouched on a rafter. By the faint torchlight, he could make out the Titans.

The lift descended with a clatter, drawing the Titans' attention. They slowly approached it.

"Hold steady! Don't panic!" A Garrison soldier raised his flintlock and reassured the nervous cadets beside him.

Bertholdt closed one eye and aimed at the eyes of the Titan before him. Although flintlocks like these were considered antiques back home, he could still handle them with ease.

The Titans closed in on the lift. The soldiers could already smell their foul breath.

"Fire!!" At the command, more than a dozen flintlocks fired. Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Flames burst from the muzzles, and the smell of gunpowder instantly enveloped everyone. The Titans' eyes were the primary targets. Bertholdt fired with incredible speed, every shot striking a Titan's eye.

"Roar!! Roar!!" The Titans' howls of pain were Yago and the others' signal to act.

They leaped from the rafters almost simultaneously. Yago's twin blades flashed coldly, and the Titan before him collapsed, blood gushing from its nape.

The other Titans fell at almost the same time, but something still went wrong. Sasha stared trembling at the Titan before her, her blades embedded in its nape. Who could have imagined that her hands would slip and she would lose her grip on them?

The wounded Titan went berserk. Sasha sank helplessly to the floor. "Sasha!" everyone cried, but the Titan had already lunged at her.

Yago rushed toward the Titan, but another figure was faster!

Mikasa brought her blades down, and the Titan fell.

"Mikasa!!!" Having narrowly escaped death, Sasha burst into tears and hugged Mikasa, who had saved her life.

With the Titans eliminated, everyone cheered. There was no time to waste, so they immediately began replenishing their gas.

"Phew." Yago let out a relieved breath too. Once their gas was replenished, everyone could retreat. Now it was time to turn his attention to that fellow outside.

Yago acted at once. After replenishing his gas, he quickly made his way to the top of the supply station and watched the pointy-eared Titan with a grave expression. It was still fighting the ordinary Titans, but its strength was clearly failing, and its body was regenerating far more slowly.

Yago knew these were signs of exhaustion. His hand settled on the hilt of his blade. Since this Titan was slaughtering other Titans, it probably wasn't an enemy of humanity. Perhaps it could become an ally. This power was worth winning over.

Meanwhile, the cadets and Garrison soldiers had finished replenishing their gas and were scrambling out of the supply station to retreat.

Watching the exhausted pointy-eared Titan, Yago slowly drew his blade. It's time to save it. Who could be inside its nape?

Just as Yago was about to act, Mikasa suddenly appeared beside him, and he held himself back.

"Mikasa? What are you doing here? Aren't you retreating?" Yago asked.

Mikasa stared at the pointy-eared Titan. "I just feel that Titan might be hiding a secret. If we learn that secret, we might be able to change the way things are in this cruel world." Of course, there were things she left unsaid. This Titan gave her an incredibly familiar feeling, so familiar that it made her uneasy. She had to come and confirm it.

Yago gazed quietly at the pointy-eared Titan as several Titans pinned it down and tore into it. "Yes, it's hiding a secret."