In a damp rainforest, the sound of a horse neighing echoed, along with the sound of hooves hitting the ground, splashing through puddles.
Mist billowed, making the figures of the group of horseback riders appear blurry. However, it was still vaguely possible to see that all of them were wearing dark green cloaks, along with an emblem of two crossed wings of different colors.
"Squad, prepare for combat!"
"There is only one objective! Eliminate it and establish humanity's first camp outside the walls!"
A man, seemingly the commander, said gruffly while the heavy rain poured down. His trench coat flapped open, revealing a strange device installed at his lower back and on his two legs.
The people behind him were all extremely serious and focused. Suddenly, another man shouted.
"Target sighted!"
Following those words, a giant figure suddenly emerged from the forest, the same height as the large trees. Although it looked like a human, its skin was gray, its body naked. Its appearance was clearly male, but it lacked sexual organs.
A bizarre... thing.
Even though it moved sluggishly and slowly, the commander seemed to be facing a great enemy. He waved his hand. The squads behind immediately recognized the signal and split up right before a gigantic tree hollow.
"Divide into five directions! Remember the strategy!"
"We will distract it! Assault team, prepare to go!"
One man let go of the reins, took out two hand-held tools connected to the device on his body, and pulled the trigger.
Two cables with sharp hooks at the end shot out from small holes on the sides. The hooks dug into a nearby tree trunk as anchor points. The device behind smoothly combined gas expulsion and cable retraction, propelling the user into the air.
They combined shooting cables, gas expulsion, and body rotation to adjust, continuously moving and dodging in the air at high speed.
"Approach its flanks!"
Swish!
The sound of metal grinding against metal echoed. One person inserted the hand-held tool into the canister on his thigh, drawing out a shiny blade that cut through the rain. He swung over a tree, circled around to the nape of the giant's neck, and spun his whole body to slash down.
"Taste the power of humanity!"
Bang!!!
Rain flew up. A chunk of flesh from the giant's nape was sliced so cleanly that the whole piece was flung out. The giant stumbled, collapsing its massive body onto the wet ground.
Boom!
"Awesome!"
"Well done!"
A few shouts of praise for the person who had just struck emerged from the surroundings. And then, smoke began to rise.
It originated from the giant's corpse. In some miraculous way, its body began to smoke and dissolve. The people wearing green cloaks with the winged emblem were not at all surprised. But the scene that followed did surprise them.
"Wait, it looks like... someone is there!"
"Don't joke. Where would we find anyone else besides us here?"
A man with neatly combed blonde hair and a serious face approached the dissolved abdominal area of the giant. And he witnessed a human lying motionless on the ground, completely naked.
"Could it be someone who was eaten during the previous reconnaissance mission?"
He wondered, raising a finger to the nose to check, although he didn't hold out much hope. Suddenly, his pupils contracted.
"He's alive! This person is still alive!"
"Eren, it's time to wake up."
"I'm sorry for placing this burden on you, but only you, only we can break this curse."
"Eren! You must..."
"The man..."
"White..."
"Save... everyone..."
Eren was groggy, feeling a hand placed on his shoulder. He started, waking up.
The sound of birds chirping through the leaves woke him. Eren looked around frantically, only to realize he had been napping under a familiar tree on a small hillside, where he could look out at the colossal wall on his left.
And right in front of him was a black-haired girl, wrapped in a red scarf and a pale pink blouse.
"Mikasa?"
"It's time to go home."
"Why are you... here?"
"You fell asleep turning away and are you still dreaming now?"
"No... it's like someone snuck into my dream and wanted to say something..."
"Curse, the man, white, freedom..."
"I can't remember it all..."
Mikasa ignored Eren's rambling, put the wooden frame bundle of firewood on her back, and turned.
"Eren, stop standing there blankly. Let's go home quickly."
"Ah... yeah..."
He vaguely picked up the firewood, put it on, and followed Mikasa home. His mind kept constantly thinking about the mysterious voice in the dream. He had a feeling that what he just heard was extremely important.
"Little Eren, why do you look so haggard today?"
"Uncle Hannes!"
Standing in front of the two children was an uncle with a face flushed from alcohol, wearing a shirt embroidered with an emblem of two crossed roses. His hands were on his hips.
Eren looked at the drinking table of the other uncles in the distance, disgustedly covering his nose.
"Don't come near me. You reek of rotten alcohol."
"Haha, want a shot, kid?"
"Don't joke, Uncle. Aren't you supposed to be working?"
"Yeah, gate duty. I've been working hard since morning, so I'm having a drink to cheer up a bit. It doesn't affect anything."
Saying he worked hard, but his utterly relaxed expression left Eren speechless. If this person was called a soldier, he'd walk upside down.
Mikasa stood silently beside him, already knowing Eren's personality. She was sure they would argue soon.
And it was true. A serious young boy and a drunken uncle began their annual argument.
The cause of it stemmed from a colossal wall surrounding the entire city where Eren, Mikasa, and Hannes lived. And a strange species called Titans.
"What if the Titans manage to breach the Wall and get in? You people are too careless!"
"Eren, don't say things like that too loudly..."
"Is that Doctor Yeager's son? The kid has spirit."
Another uncle stepped out from the drinking table, speaking nonchalantly.
"If they manage to breach the Wall and get in, we will certainly do our job."
"But you know, it's been a hundred years, and those things haven't gotten in anywhere. Rest assured."
"But... but..."
Hannes sighed, turning his head toward the distant, majestic wall.
"Every time I climb up there, I see the Titans wandering outside. They are very large, but they are far from being able to reach over the 50-meter-high walls."
Hearing this, Eren couldn't help but lose interest, angrily huffing and walking away. Mikasa quickly followed.
Although he had lived inside these Walls since birth, he still couldn't stand this feeling. It was stifling and incredibly uncomfortable. The Wall was a protective shield, but in another sense, it was no different from a cage holding humanity captive.
Having enough to eat, enough to live, just carrying on until death... how is that any different from livestock?
"That kid's head must have some issues."
"Haha, Titans getting in here. What an absurd fantasy."
"Enough, don't talk anymore, you'll ruin the fun. Come on, let's drink!"
Hannes sobered up slightly. Looking at the backs of Eren and Mikasa gradually disappearing behind the houses, he couldn't help but worry.
"Does he want to... join the Survey Corps?"