"Sir! There's a child!" a Middle Easterner soldier shouted in panic.
"What? A child?" The Middle Eastern officer hurried to the firing slit, and what he saw made his eyes widen in disbelief—a child in a small-sized Marleyan uniform was rapidly advancing across the battlefield, using one shell crater after another as cover as she closed in on their fortress.
When the officer saw the large bundle of grenades in the child's hands, he sucked in a sharp breath.
"Have the Marleyans completely lost their minds!? They're even sending children to the battlefield? Despicable!"
The Middle Easterner soldier with his finger resting on the machine gun trigger looked hesitantly at his superior.
"Then… what should we do?"
The officer's face twisted viciously. "Open fire! Tear apart every Marleyan soldier trying to attack!"
The soldier stared in shock. "B-But that's just a child!"
The officer exploded, grabbing the soldier by the collar and roaring without any regard for dignity,
"To hell with a child! There is no mercy on the battlefield! If you want to play saint, then pull up your pants and get out of the army to kneel in some old temple! This is a battlefield! Your kindness here isn't worth a pile of dog shit! Get over here!"
He forcibly shoved the soldier's head out through the firing slit and pointed at the constantly advancing Gabi.
"Look! Look at what that brat is wearing! And what's in her hands? Those grenades are more than enough to blow you into ashes! What kind of bullshit mercy are you talking about? What do you think you're doing? If you don't kill that little demon, then someday it'll be your child crying over your ashes!"
The officer's words made the soldier tremble uncontrollably.
"Now! Tell me what you're supposed to do?!"
The soldier immediately switched off the safety on the machine gun and aimed the sights at the moving Gabi. Shooting at a child who didn't even look ten years old went against his conscience—but when he looked at the grenades in her hands, the reluctance in his eyes faded. His officer had been right. If he didn't fire at this child now, then one day it would be his own child who would be the one crying.
After silently murmuring an apology in his heart, the soldier pulled the trigger.
...
As Gabi pushed deeper into the battlefield, Falco could no longer sit still. Ignoring the danger and taking advantage of a moment when the nearby Eldian soldiers weren't paying attention, he suddenly leapt out of the trench and sprinted desperately toward Gabi.
The Eldian soldiers had been completely focused on Gabi and never expected Falco to dash out as well. Before they could even react, another blur shot past them—white-haired Zofia had also rushed out. She couldn't just watch her good friend walk into danger alone.
Three children in a row had slipped out of the trench right under the noses of several Eldian soldiers. The soldiers were on the verge of collapse. What was going on? What was wrong with kids these days? Some of the younger Eldian soldiers even started thinking maybe they shouldn't get married and have children in the future—who on earth could handle raising kids like this?
Soon, led by the panting Udo, the anxious Colt and the expressionless Yago, along with Serena and Airi Ambers, arrived at the front line.
The moment they got there, they saw the Warrior candidates running across the battlefield.
Colt immediately spotted his younger brother Falco, the second one charging across the field. His vision went black for a moment, nearly unable to catch his breath. As soon as he recovered, without a word, Colt prepared to jump out of the trench to save his brother.
But just as he stood up, he felt a tremendous force from behind. A hand that seemed light as air yet heavy as a mountain pressed down firmly on him.
Startled, Colt struggled before turning his head. It was the indifferent Yago restraining him. Colt quickly pleaded,
"Commander Loya! Please let me go! Falco and the others are in danger! Let me bring them back!"
Yago's reply crushed him.
"You can't. You've been designated to inherit the Beast Titan. As a future Marleyan Warrior, you must take responsibility for your own life."
"But! Falco and the others are Warrior candidates too! Commander Loya! Please! Let me save them! I'm begging you!"
Yago's answer remained cold. "No."
Held down completely, Colt could only watch as his brother Falco's figure grew more and more distant.
On the other side, Yago—still restraining Colt—felt a trace of complexity in his heart. He silently watched those receding figures. Charging so brazenly across a battlefield—those children had already stepped halfway into hell.
But so what?
What did their life or death have to do with him?
In fact, Yago even faintly hoped those children would die on the battlefield. Cruel as it sounded, the memories of older Eren had influenced him too deeply. He simply couldn't accept that twisted version of Gabi.
So he chose to stand by and watch.
But the people around him were far less composed. Airi Ambers looked moved, even unable to bear it—the children had treated her kindly on the train. The surrounding Eldian soldiers also showed varying degrees of reluctance. Only Serena was as calm as Yago; she had never felt the slightest fondness for these so-called Warriors and Warrior candidates.
Udo was firmly restrained by several Eldian soldiers, or he might have rushed out as well. This time, though, the soldiers had learned their lesson—fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice? Did they look like idiots?
At that tense moment, movement erupted from the Middle Eastern fortress. The shriek of machine guns rang out, and countless deadly bullets poured down like a waterfall.
Charging at the very front, Gabi clutched the grenades tightly. Her eyes were completely fixed on the enemy fortress. In her heart and mind, one phrase echoed over and over: Blow it up! Blow it up! Blow it up! I will become a Marleyan Warrior! Blow it up! …
Her obsession seemed to grant her boundless strength as she sprinted toward the fortress.
The roaring wind in Falco's ears drowned out all other sounds. Running at full speed, he felt sharp pain in his lungs from gasping for breath, and his head swam—but he was almost catching up to Gabi! He could already see her back! It was too dangerous—he had to bring her back!
Then, in a flash, Falco saw tongues of fire erupt from the enemy fortress.
They were firing!
Like being struck by lightning, Falco felt a surge of strength from nowhere flood into his body.
"Gabi! Look out!!"
That sudden burst of power allowed him to catch up to her in an instant and tackle her to the ground. The two of them tumbled into a shell crater.
Da-da-da-da!!
The machine gun bullets nearly grazed past them. Falco's vision blurred; his chest burned as if on fire, and he could barely breathe. He clung to Gabi with all his strength and said with difficulty,
"Gabi… it's too dangerous! Don't charge anymore."
But Gabi turned to look at him coldly.
The icy look in her eyes snapped Falco fully awake. The girl in front of him felt completely unfamiliar—there wasn't a trace of emotion in her gaze.
She said only one sentence.
"Don't get in my way!"
Then she shoved Falco aside and dashed out alone.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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