In the year 850, the Colossal Titan returned.
Trost District's wall was breached, and Titans poured in.
Chen Si pressed the triggers, firing continuous bursts of gas as he sped toward the front line. He calculated the time in his head. He had wasted too long on that dumbass; Eren's squad might already have suffered heavy casualties.
Chen Si gritted his teeth and increased the gas output, flying forward even faster.
He was no saint and had never expected to save everyone. All he could do was try his best. Three years as fellow cadets had to count for something. Besides, the people in this world really were more genuine, which made them easier to like.
Three Titans came running toward him. Chen Si pressed the triggers again and felt the gas output drop slightly. He added an arc of electricity to maintain his speed, flashed past the napes of two Titans, then lunged straight at the third.
The first two Titans collapsed dead on the spot, steam rising from their bodies. The third had its head sliced clean off.
Chen Si accelerated without looking back. That third Titan didn't seem to die? Whatever. Saving people comes first.
Huh? Chen Si squeezed the triggers and felt the gas output weaken considerably. He seemed to be running low.
He had been fighting almost nonstop, burning through a lot of gas. He had never made a habit of using it sparingly; he always slashed at their napes at maximum speed.
Arcs of electricity began coursing over Chen Si's entire body as he flew toward the front line even faster.
What Chen Si didn't know was that the Titan's severed head had soared high into the air and hurtled toward an invisible man.
Zeyechuan watched in horror as the Titan's head inexplicably came crashing toward him, cursing Chen Si furiously in his mind.
He had intended to follow Chen Si and find a chance to sabotage him, but without Vertical Maneuvering Equipment, he couldn't remotely keep up.
He regretted being so obsessed with women that he had never learned to use Vertical Maneuvering Equipment. He regretted following Chen Si even more.
Watching the enormous head hurtle toward him, he closed his eyes in anguish. Then he felt a gust of wind-and nothing happened. When the head struck him, it passed straight through.
Zeyechuan was overjoyed. Apparently, he was immune to Titan attacks while invisible. A savage expression slowly spread across his face. He could join the battle against the Titans now. He would have Bertolt blow Chen Si sky-high.
"Aah!" An agonized scream rang out.
"Armin?" Chen Si accelerated toward the sound and soon spotted the short-haired blond standing frozen on a rooftop.
In the distance, a soldier from Squad 34 was clutched in a Titan's hand. Eren lay on another rooftop with one leg missing, his fate unknown.
Chen Si landed beside Armin and immediately gripped his sword hilt. He gently closed his eyes, spread his legs, and lowered his center of gravity, taking a stance like a samurai kissing the earth.
"Thunder Breathing..."
"Chen Si?" Armin's eyes trembled. At the sound of his voice, he finally snapped out of his daze.
"First Form..." With his eyes closed, Chen Si continuously locked his Divine Sense onto the napes of six Titans.
"Chen Si, run! Everyone in Squad 34 is finished! This is hell!" Armin shouted at him, tears mingling with snot.
"Thunderclap and Flash..."
"Chen Si, you..." Armin stared, mouth agape, as lightning seemed to envelop Chen Si's entire body, violent arcs crackling in every direction.
"Sixfold!" The instant the words left his lips, Chen Si's eyes snapped open. Blinding blue light burst from them, and his entire body suddenly became a bolt of lightning, tracing six jagged streaks.
Five Titans died instantly.
Chen Si had deliberately avoided the Titan near Eren, the great director. Mainly, of course, it was too far away, would cost too much electricity, and made for a difficult rescue.
The soldier clutched in the Titan's hand had been crushed all over and was barely breathing. Luckily, his body was still in one piece.
As he thrust toward the sixth Titan, Chen Si suddenly spotted a seven-meter Titan emerging and reaching for the unconscious Mina. He forcibly changed targets, making a sharp ninety-degree turn in midair to slash at this seventh Titan.
The forced change of targets left the sixth Titan alive. His mana hadn't replenished in time, and he lacked the speed to do more than sever both of this Titan's arms.
"Armin, stop fucking standing there!" Chen Si shouted through gritted teeth. Unbelievable. How did that fucker Armin get this scared?
Armin finally reacted. He hurriedly used his Vertical Maneuvering Equipment to scoop up Mina, who was slumped against a wall. He looked back at Chen Si, and the sight that followed nearly tore him apart.
With its back to Armin, the Titan lunged to bite Chen Si out of the air. Chen Si's electrical energy was nearly depleted, and drowsiness swept over him.
At the critical moment, Chen Si swung his blade and cut through most of the Titan's neck. Its teeth veered off course, biting off one of his hands.
His momentum carried Chen Si through the glass of a nearby house. He crashed into the room and lost consciousness.
Armin set Mina down and finally summoned his courage. With tears in his eyes, he swung his sword at the Titan, whose head was attached by only a thin strip of flesh.
Steam slowly drifted from the Titan, but Chen Si was nowhere to be seen.
Because his view had been obstructed just then, Armin mistakenly believed the Titan had swallowed Chen Si.
"Chen Si! Chen Si! Where are you? You're all right, aren't you? Chen Si..."
Armin dropped to the ground in horror. Fear consumed his body and mind. He couldn't believe that the incredibly powerful Chen Si had died just like that.
How could this happen... how could this happen... how could Chen Si die...? Armin couldn't believe it.
If Chen Si, lying unconscious inside the house, had been awake, he would have been speechless. Come on, man. At least look inside the house.
Armin's pupils trembled as he sat there dazed. Suddenly, a nearby Titan grabbed him and stuffed him into its mouth.
"Chen Si... Titans, I swear I'll kill every last one of you..."
Seeing Chen Si die filled Eren, who lay nearby, with overwhelming grief and rage. When he saw Armin about to perish, he actually launched himself onto another building with his one remaining leg, rushed into the Titan's mouth, and hauled Armin out.
Flung clear, Armin looked at Eren in despair.
"How can I die here! Titans... Armin... I still have to see the outside world..." Eren stretched out his hand, his eyes filled with attachment to the world and defiance.
"Eren, hurry! No!" Armin screamed, tears spilling from his eyes.
With a crunch, Eren's arm fell out, and the Titan swallowed the rest of him.
An earth-shattering scream of anguish echoed through nearly half the defensive sector.
Most of the soldiers had long since grown accustomed to those screams.
In the rear, Mikasa had just watched Carla pass behind the wall when she heard the scream. She turned to gaze toward the distant front line, her eyes filled with deep unease.
Please be safe, big brother.
"Hey! Armin! Snap out of it, Armin! Where's your squad?" Connie shouted, shaking Armin over and over.
"My squad..." Armin's eyes had lost their focus.
"Why are you the only one here? And why are you all slimy?" Connie asked, rubbing his fingers together.