"This is bad. Things aren't looking good. There are two fifteen-meter Titans." Connie gritted his teeth, his voice tense.
"No, that Titan seems hostile toward the other one," Mikasa said, vaguely feeling that he looked familiar.
Armin stared at the Titan skeleton on the ground, steam rising from it.
Chen Si glanced at Armin. It seemed Armin already had his suspicions. He was pretty sharp. People who could accept the truth were often those who could face the absurd.
Before everyone's disbelieving eyes, Eren's Attack Titan raised his fists into a fighting stance-a guard only a human would use.
"Then it's pretty obvious, Armin. Be bold with your theories and careful with your evidence. This Titan is clearly human," Chen Si said slowly.
"A human turning into a Titan... That's..." Armin wanted to say it was impossible, but he, too, had noticed how unusual Eren's Titan was.
"No way, Chen Si. How could a human be a Titan?" Connie clearly disagreed and couldn't accept the idea.
"We're still missing one piece of evidence," Chen Si continued.
"What evidence?" Armin asked.
"The nape," Chen Si said calmly.
Even spoilers had to sound reasonable. Chen Si needed to make it seem as though he had deduced everything himself, then let Armin think it through.
A flash of insight struck Armin. As if he had realized something, he fixed his eyes on the Titan's nape.
"The nape is a Titan's weak point. If a human really transformed into one, then the human must be hiding in its nape," Armin said.
"Smart. One hint was all you needed," Chen Si praised him.
"Chen Si, did you know all along?" Armin looked at him in confusion.
"That's right. I saw a human figure emerge from the Colossal Titan's nape with my own eyes," Chen Si said.
"What? That actually happened?!" Connie gaped in shock. Everyone knew about Chen Si's battle with the Colossal Titan and saw no reason to doubt him, since he was the only one who had fought him.
"Did you get a clear look at who it was?" Armin leaned toward Chen Si's ear and asked quietly.
Chen Si narrowed his eyes slightly, then shook his head and said:
"I didn't get a clear look, but I have a rough idea from his build. Still, that doesn't count as evidence, so I can't just throw accusations around."
Armin nodded in agreement.
Indeed, if Chen Si named someone, even as a mere suspect, the people within the walls would certainly rather kill an innocent than let a threat escape. The suspect would be arrested without question, and Armin didn't want to falsely accuse one of their own.
Chen Si, however, was only afraid that Bertolt would lash out in desperation. He had a nagging feeling that someone must have helped Bertolt escape his grasp back then. He needed to find a way to flush that person out.
Eren's battle with the Pure Titan was a foregone conclusion.
Eren slapped the Pure Titan's head clean off, then crushed its nape underfoot.
"He... he hit its weak point. Does this Titan know the other Titans' weakness and use it to kill them?" Armin said, astonished once again.
"Not only that, he has no intention of attacking us at all," Chen Si added.
"And this Titan can even use human fighting techniques," Mikasa said, observing him closely.
"That just means this Titan is an Abnormal Titan, doesn't it? If Titans were intelligent..." Connie's expression darkened.
"Or perhaps he's human," Mikasa said, watching the Attack Titan.
"Mikasa, does this Titan feel familiar to you?" Chen Si leaned toward her ear and whispered.
"Yes. I keep feeling..." Mikasa nodded hesitantly.
"Exactly. I feel it too, and I'm certain it's him," Chen Si said firmly.
Mikasa's pupils contracted slightly. She didn't doubt Chen Si's words in the slightest.
"It really is him. How could this happen..." Mikasa was utterly stunned as well.
"We can't worry about all that now. Let's do our best to protect him when the time comes," Chen Si said.
Eren's Titan gradually walked away.
"Let's go. We need to keep moving," Chen Si said.
"Huh? What the fuck?" Chen Si squeezed the trigger, only to discover that no gas was coming out behind him.
"This is bad. One set of Vertical Maneuvering Equipment carrying three people must have used up what little gas was left," Armin said grimly.
"Then that means someone has to stay behind," Chen Si said.
"I'll stay. With Chen Si's skill at handling the equipment, Connie's remaining gas should be enough for him to take Connie and Mikasa," Armin said, struggling with the words.
"What? Trying to prove yourself by dying? Want to keep Eren company on the road to the afterlife?" Chen Si asked with a smile.
"Armin, we won't leave you behind," Mikasa said firmly.
"But..." Armin still blamed himself, afraid he would drag Chen Si and Mikasa down with him.
"Enough. Quit the nonsense. I'll carry you and run. When have I ever picked a fight I wasn't sure I could win? Remember when we were kids and I took on five guys, and you stood in my way? How did that turn out?" Chen Si said with a smile.
Looking at Chen Si, Armin remembered the first time Chen Si had come to borrow books from him. Five punks had surrounded him, and when Chen Si tried to deal with them, Armin had desperately tried to stop him.
Then... Chen Si had knocked all five to the ground while carrying Armin on his back...
"Do you think we could lure this Titan to headquarters and have him deal with the Titans gathered there, then..." Armin had only just begun speaking.
Arcs of electricity began crackling all over Chen Si's body. Once again, he adopted that sword-drawing stance like a samurai kissing the earth, his eyes gently closed.
Connie stared slack-jawed at Chen Si, whose whole body was discharging electricity.
"Chen Si, you... What's wrong with you? Did you get electrocuted? There hasn't been any thunder today!"
"Don't worry." Despite her words, Mikasa drew her blades, ready to support Chen Si at any moment.
It was that move again. Armin stared in awe at Chen Si's crackling electrical arcs.
"Then let's all help Chen Si!" Connie gritted his teeth and drew his blades too.
"I think... we might not need to," Armin said uncertainly.
"Huh? Armin, what are you talking about? There are four Titans over there! If we each take one, we can defi-" Connie shouted.
"Thunder..." Chen Si called out sharply.
"What?" Connie stared at Chen Si in confusion and shock as lightning engulfed his entire body.
"Fourfold!" Chen Si's eyes snapped open, shooting out two streaks of electric light. His entire body turned into a bolt of lightning, tracing four zigzagging arcs before he landed on the rooftop opposite.
Blood spurted from all four Titans' napes at once, the backs of their necks charred and mangled. The four Titans collapsed and began emitting steam.
Eren's Attack Titan froze for a moment, then looked around in search of a target. Finally, his gaze settled on headquarters in the distance.