Colorful streaks of light flickered through the steam as Eren's mangled hands regenerated before everyone's eyes.
He roared furiously, straddling the Female Titan, fists pounding down like thunder. The Female Titan, however, met his wrath with unnerving calm. Her piercing blue eyes shone through her short blond hair, unreadable and steady.
Even as Eren's Titan form pressed down on her, she didn't panic — she simply waited, calculating.
"I'll kill you! I'll kill you!" Eren bellowed, his fanged mouth twisting in rage. From within his Titan's nape, his real body glowed faintly as veins pulsed with fury. His regenerated hands clenched, eyes blazing a fierce green.
In a flash, the Female Titan twisted her body, clamping Eren's head between her feet. Using the momentum, she flipped him over and, supporting herself with one hand, drove a brutal kick into his abdomen.
The Attack Titan crashed into a massive tree, splintering it on impact. Steam hissed from his wounds as Eren struggled to move.
The Female Titan straightened, assuming a combat stance, every movement precise and cautious.
Across the clearing, Eren rose, letting out another guttural roar as steam poured off his body. He lunged forward first, his anger driving him to attack without restraint.
Compared to her, he was pure chaos — all instinct and rage.
Eren's fist whistled through the air. The Female Titan tilted her head slightly, dodging effortlessly. Her right hand hardened instantly into crystalline armor, and she countered with a clean right hook that slammed into Eren's face.
His jaw dislocated, spinning grotesquely as his body hit the ground with a crash that sent gravel and dirt scattering.
Around them, trees trembled and cracked, the earth itself shaking from their clash.
"I'll kill you… all of you!" Eren roared again, his voice shaking with desperation.
Steam rose from his wounds as his jaw rapidly healed. He charged once more, reckless, swinging his knee upward.
But the Female Titan moved like a dancer — smooth, composed, deadly. She stepped back with lightning speed, letting Eren's strike tear through empty air. His knee obliterated a tree five men wide, splintering it like matchwood.
The impact crippled Eren momentarily, his knee crushed from his own strength. As he struggled to recover, the Female Titan hesitated — only for a moment — then made her decision.
She stepped forward, her right foot glowing faintly as hardening energy gathered. With a swift spin, her hardened heel sliced through the air — and Eren's head was severed cleanly from his shoulders.
The Attack Titan's head shot through the air like a cannonball, slamming into a distant tree and exploding into steaming flesh.
Calmly, the Female Titan approached the fallen body, tore open the nape with her teeth, and revealed Eren's unconscious form inside.
High above, hidden in the treetops, Lucien Graves watched silently. He made no move yet.
It wasn't time.
Soon, Levi and Mikasa would arrive — they would weaken the Female Titan. That was when Lucien planned to strike.
As expected, the sound of Vertical Maneuvering Equipment echoed through the forest. Mikasa appeared first, her eyes widening in horror as she saw the Female Titan holding Eren's limp body.
"Stop!" she shouted, her voice cracking. "Give Eren back to me!"
The Female Titan turned, seemingly ignoring her. That only made Mikasa's fury boil over.
She had only one thought left — kill her and save Eren.
"Mikasa, where's Eren?" Levi's voice came from behind, calm but urgent.
"In her mouth!" Mikasa snapped, her voice shaking with rage. "Eren's not dead. He can't be."
"Calm down," Levi said, eyes narrowing as he matched the Titan's movements. "She's slower than before."
The forest fell silent. Even the wind held its breath. Levi's body tensed, waiting for the perfect opening.
Then — the Female Titan turned her head and threw a punch.
"Now."
In an instant, Levi's form blurred. His blades flashed like lightning, slicing through her arm. Before she could react, he zipped upward, spinning midair and slashing toward her nape.
It was a feint — she raised her hands to block.
Levi moved again, faster than the eye could follow. He darted across her vision, twin blades stabbing straight into both eyes before arcing downward to sever her Achilles tendons.
Blinded and crippled, the Female Titan fell to one knee, blood and steam erupting from her body. Levi's every move was fluid — a deadly rhythm of precision and speed.
"I can finish her," Mikasa said coldly, already moving in.
"Stop!" Levi's tone cut through the air like a blade. "She's not a mindless Titan."
Mikasa didn't listen. Her blade struck the hardened nape — and shattered on impact.
A shadow loomed. The Female Titan's massive hand swung toward her.
"Move!" Levi shouted.
He appeared beside her in a blur, shoving Mikasa away. The impact caught his leg instead, the sickening crack of bone echoing through the forest. Despite the pain, he struck once more, slicing open the Titan's cheek and pulling Eren's unconscious body free.
"Eren!" Mikasa cried, reaching for him.
"Let's move," Levi said through gritted teeth. "He's alive."
His injury slowed him, and exhaustion was creeping in, but retreat was the only option. The Colossal and Armored Titans could appear at any moment — staying meant death.
Mikasa nodded, following without hesitation. She had calmed down now, though her eyes still glistened with fury and relief.
If they hadn't saved Eren, she would never have left.
In the trees above, Lucien watched them disappear into the distance. Then, his gaze shifted downward.
The Female Titan — Annie — lay slumped against a tree, her body steaming as she regenerated slowly.
Lucien raised his hand, summoning a faint golden screen in the air.
A small vial materialized before him.
[Item Acquired: Ymir Bloodline Potion]
[Description: Grants half the bloodline of Ymir (Eldian) without side effects.]
Lucien uncorked the bottle and drank it in one motion. The taste was metallic and foul — like blood — but he didn't flinch.
No rejection. No pain. Only a strange warmth spreading through his veins.
He leapt down silently from the treetop, landing before the steaming Titan.
Annie's regenerated eyes widened slightly when she saw him.
"Yo, Annie," Lucien greeted casually, waving his hand.
Her expression shifted instantly — from shock to hostility. She raised her arm to strike, the ground trembling beneath her feet.
But before her attack could land, Lucien vanished.
She blinked — and suddenly, he was hovering in front of her eyes, floating effortlessly in midair.
He hadn't used any maneuvering gear. How was he doing that?
Light flared in his hands as twin adamantine Nichirin blades formed, shimmering with shifting hues under the sunlight.
In the next heartbeat, a brilliant arc of light cut through the air.
The Female Titan's mouth — and half her head — split open cleanly, flesh and bone sheared away before she could even react or harden.
"Pfft…" Steam and blood burst outward. Annie screamed from within as her Titan form convulsed.
Lucien appeared above her nape, blades flashing again. In one clean motion, he severed her arms and bisected her body at the waist.
Her upper torso fell heavily to the ground, still regenerating as steam hissed from the wounds.
Lucien landed beside her, expression cold, and pulled out a syringe filled with glowing fluid — Titan spinal serum.
He knew what would happen next. Annie could harden herself, just as she had done in the original timeline. That's why he'd removed her limbs and split her body, ensuring she couldn't move or encase herself again.
Even now, she was recovering — slowly but surely — her energy entirely focused on regeneration.
Fear flickered in her eyes.
The man standing before her was more terrifying than Levi himself.
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Happy new month, Ladies and Gents 🍁
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