"Eren, you have to be careful once the fighting starts. Don't act rashly. Come to me when the battle gets chaotic. I'll protect you," Mikasa urged him anxiously.
"Huh? What are you talking about? We're not even in the same squad," Eren protested.
"Eren! Mikasa!" A woman suddenly came running toward them from a distance.
"Mom!" Eren exclaimed in surprise.
"Mrs. Yeager, it's dangerous here. Why haven't you evacuated to the rear?" Mikasa asked, deeply worried.
"Mom, how did you get in here? Why didn't you evacuate with the other residents?" Eren was so anxious that he grew furious.
"Eren, Mikasa, I asked someone to find a way to let me in. I have some medicine your father left behind. It could save your lives in an emergency.
"There are painkillers, too. And what about Chen Si? I heard he was injured. He must desperately need this medicine right now! I have to get it to him." Carla's concern for the three children had overridden her reason.
"Mom! Chen Si was taken to the command post. He's not seriously hurt. You're just making things harder for us by coming here! You..." Eren did not know what to do.
Mikasa shook her head, stopping Eren from saying anything more.
Carla knew she should evacuate, but she was far too worried. Especially when she saw Chen Si fighting the Colossal Titan, her heart had leaped into her throat.
"Cadet Ackerman!" Ian, a member of the Garrison's elite squad, approached them.
"Sir, sir! Mikasa is a girl. Could you please keep her from being sent on dangerous missions?" Carla pleaded.
"Ma'am, our superiors have ordered Cadet Ackerman to join the rear guard, which is responsible for evacuating the residents. You needn't worry. And please leave this area immediately," Ian said.
"I believe my abilities would be better suited to the vanguard." Mikasa could not stop worrying about Eren. Carla's request and her duty to protect her family were always on her mind.
"I don't care what you think. I care what I think. You will follow your orders," Ian cut her off mercilessly.
"It's already too late to seek shelter now. We need more elite soldiers around the residents. Even one more will help," Ian continued.
"Mom! Please go!" Eren urged.
Ian was about to order someone to escort Carla away.
"I'll take her," Mikasa said.
Ian nodded, then turned and left.
"Eren, which unit are you going to?" Carla asked worriedly.
"The vanguard," Eren said, lowering his head slightly.
"What? I'll go find that officer and see if he can..." Carla immediately panicked.
"Mom! Stop making a fuss! Humanity's survival is at stake. We can't just think about ourselves anymore!" With that, Eren turned and strode away.
"Eren! You have to survive!" Carla cried in anguish, bitter tears spilling from her eyes.
Mikasa watched Eren anxiously, but then she thought of Chen Si. Gritting her teeth, she took Carla by the arm and led her away.
After Mikasa, Eren, and the others had left, Chen Si arrived at the supply depot.
Few people remained at the depot. After refilling the gas in his Vertical Maneuvering Equipment, Chen Si caught a glimpse of a familiar figure.
"Edward, how are you feeling? Are you any better?" Christa was a little flustered. She had been about to head to the front herself, but when she saw a fellow cadet crying and vomiting, her kind heart would not let her leave him.
"Christa, we're all going to die! What do we do? I haven't even gotten married or had children, and I'm going to die in a Titan's mouth!" The cadet named Edward sobbed, tears and snot streaming down his face.
Who the hell was Edward? Never heard of him. Sounds like someone from the Great Whining Empire.
After a moment's thought, Chen Si concluded that he was a nobody who had accomplished nothing, an extra who was not even particularly popular.
"N-no, Edward. Humanity will win! We won't die!" Christa waved her little fists, encouraging him.
"Christa, I'm going to die without ever having a girlfriend. Could you grant me one wish?" Edward looked at Christa hopefully, an imperceptible trace of possessiveness appearing in his eyes.
"What wish? Tell me, Edward. I'll do my best to grant it," Christa said earnestly, blinking her large eyes.
"Could you k-kiss me..." Just as Edward stammered out his request, a massive iron fist landed squarely on top of his head.
"Ow!" Edward cried out in pain, clutching his head.
"Just a light punch! Christa, Edward loves it when people give someone a light punch! Let me do it for you." Chen Si clamped one hand over Edward's mouth while using the other to forcefully press the swelling on his head back into his skull.
Chen Si gave the struggling Edward a cruel smile, frightening him into silence. When he turned back to Christa, his expression became as warm as a spring breeze.
Looking at Chen Si's gentle, sunny smile, Christa could not help staring in a daze.
"What's wrong, little angel? Am I so handsome that you're speechless?" Chen Si lightly brushed a finger over Christa's delicate nose.
"Of course not! I... I was just thinking, Edward asked for a light punch. Didn't you hit him a little too hard, Chen Si?" Christa glanced at the miserable Edward, feeling sorry for him.
"Oh, you mean that." Smiling, Chen Si delivered another heavy slap to Edward's back. Edward felt as though a sledgehammer had struck him. He nearly spat out a mouthful of blood, only to swallow it back down.
The sight of Chen Si's cruel expression had made Edward instinctively hold it in...
"When Edward trained with me before, this was exactly how hard he liked me to hit him. He said it was the only way he could improve. Isn't that right, Edward?" Chen Si once again wore a harmless smile.
"Yes, yes, yes! I love getting hit this hard by our top cadet, Chen Si!" Terrified, Edward nodded repeatedly.
"Is that so..." Christa gave Edward a strange look. Oh well, everyone's little quirks deserved respect!
Kindhearted Christa quickly accepted the fact that Edward was a masochist.
Feeling Christa's gaze on him, Edward did not dare linger another moment. He ran away in shame.
"It's been a whole day. Did you miss me, Your Majesty?" Chen Si asked with a wicked grin.
"Chen Si! You're making fun of me again!" Christa pouted in displeasure.
Chen Si took two steps forward, leaned down slightly, and breathed against Christa's ear as he said:
"To me, you're the noblest queen of all. Besides, a queen and a commoner... how exciting is that?"
Chen Si was spouting naughty lines again, corrupting the little angel.
Christa flushed bright red, her entire face looking as though it had been cooked through. Anyone who did not know better might have blamed a Titan's steam.