Year 848
The Royal Government launched the operation to retake Wall Maria, but as its true purpose was to send people to their deaths and reduce the population, the outcome was inevitable.
Armin's grandfather, the kindly old Arnold, never returned.
Of the 250,000 refugees who went with him, only a few hundred came back.
Armin knew full well that his grandfather would never return. He grieved, but there was nothing he could do.
Arthur and the others often comforted him, helping him slowly come to terms with his loss.
At the cost of 250,000 lives, the food crisis finally eased.
But the Royal Government did not treat the survivors any better. Instead, it introduced a land reclamation policy, leaving them to clear wasteland and grow their own crops.
At least there was enough food to go around now. People no longer starved to death or fought over something to eat.
Over the next few years, Carla's injured foot healed. Mikasa, Eren, and Armin turned twelve, while Arthur, two years older than the three of them, turned fourteen.
Mikasa had grown into a graceful, pretty young girl. Eren had grown taller and more handsome, but his hotheaded streak had not changed.
Armin had grown a little taller, though, perhaps because of his personality, he looked more and more like a girl.
As for the fourteen-year-old Arthur, he had become increasingly mature with age. Handsome and dashing, he was a true heartthrob (just like all you readers).
At 1.7 meters tall, he also stood head and shoulders above the rest.
On an ordinary day, Arthur was out in the fields, swinging a hoe to turn the soil.
Mikasa stood beside him, pulling weeds so they would not steal nutrients from the crops.
Eren and Armin were watering the crops a short distance away.
"Arthur, have some water." Watching Arthur work so hard, Mikasa took out a waterskin and handed it to him.
"Thanks, Mikasa." Arthur accepted it with a smile, uncorked it, and took a gulp to quench his thirst.
"Arthur, let's take a break," Mikasa suggested.
"Sure." Arthur agreed.
They walked to an open patch of ground and sat down. Then Mikasa took out some bread, keeping half for herself and giving the other half to Arthur.
Arthur accepted the bread without saying anything more and began eating.
Mikasa watched him eat with a sweet smile.
"Mikasa, is there something on my face?" Puzzled by her constant staring, Arthur touched his face.
"No, nothing." Realizing Arthur had noticed her watching him, Mikasa blushed and hurriedly shook her head.
"Mikasa, why is your face so red?" Utterly clueless about romance, Arthur thought she might have a fever. He brushed her hair aside and pressed his forehead against hers.
Their foreheads touched. Mikasa's breathing grew unsteady, and her heart pounded. She had never expected Arthur to do something so intimate. She felt as though she might faint from embarrassment.
"You seem fine." Arthur scratched his head in confusion.
"It's probably just the heat." Mikasa did her best to calm herself as she explained.
"Oh, okay." Arthur nodded without questioning her.
Just then, Eren and Armin ran over.
Eren called out to Arthur.
"Arthur, I've made up my mind! I'm going to join the Training Corps and become a soldier!" Eren dropped his bombshell.
"What?!" Arthur and Mikasa were both surprised. Neither had expected Eren to suddenly decide to join the Training Corps.
"It's not just me. Armin wants to go too." Eren pointed at the shy Armin beside him and dropped another bombshell.
"Huh?" As though they had heard something unbelievable, Arthur and Mikasa turned their startled gazes toward Armin.
Armin was clearly a little embarrassed by Arthur and Mikasa's stares.
"Yes. I've made up my mind too. I'm joining the Training Corps."
Arthur looked at Armin with a sense of wonder. It seemed losing something important really could change a person.
"Aren't you afraid Aunt Carla will spank you?" Arthur tried to intimidate him by bringing up Carla.
"I... a real man keeps his word! I'll tell Mom when I get home." Eren was clearly still a little afraid of Carla, but he refused to back down.
"Well, if that's what you're doing, I might as well go too." Arthur shrugged.
"What?!" All three were startled to hear that Arthur wanted to join the Training Corps too.
Mikasa was the most shocked of all. She had never imagined Arthur would decide to join the Training Corps along with Eren and Armin. Absolutely not.
"Arthur, are you serious?" Eren asked in disbelief.
"What? You can go, but I can't?" Arthur gave him a look and teased him.
"No, no, no! It'll be great if you come with me!" Eren had clearly never expected Arthur to join the Training Corps too. Once he was sure he had heard correctly, he was delighted. With Arthur's abilities, he would surely rank first in the Training Corps.
"If Arthur's going, I'm going too."
"Mikasa, you should stay out of this. You said you wanted to stay alive, remember?" Eren had not expected Mikasa to want to go too, so he tried to dissuade her.
"I'm going to keep you all from getting yourselves killed." After saying that, Mikasa shot Arthur an irritated look.
Arthur scratched his head sheepishly.
"All right, then." Knowing he would never convince Mikasa, Eren let her have her way.
"Then we're counting on you for this, Eren." Arthur suddenly made a cryptic remark.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Eren was bewildered.
"You'll be the one telling Aunt Carla that we're all joining the Training Corps. She is your mother, after all," Arthur said with a smile.
"What? You can't do that!" Eren roared.
"Come on, Mikasa. Let's go for a walk." As though he had heard nothing, Arthur smiled and took Mikasa's hand.
"Of course, Arthur." Mikasa smiled sweetly and followed him away.
"Hey, Arthur!" Eren watched Arthur walk farther and farther away, feeling thoroughly distressed.
Then he turned toward his best friend, Armin. The moment Armin saw Eren looking at him, he knew Eren wanted his help.
"I'll leave this to you, Eren!" Armin gave him an awkward smile and fled, leaving a dumbfounded Eren standing there alone.
"What lousy friends I've got!" Eren shouted in exasperation.
Although he was terrified of Carla, Eren eventually secured her permission, at the painful cost of a swollen backside and ears pinched red.
Overjoyed to have her permission, the four of them planned to head to the registration office the next day and sign up for the 104th Training Corps.