AOT: It Was My Choice Chapter Forty One: The Armored Titan [Part 1]
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Author's Note: As for all of my books, I'm planning to increase the Word count to 3-4k words per chapter from now on so my Updates are going to be slow... Don't forget to give me Power stones daily!
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We were back on the road again, the carriage hitting against the rocks of the bad road that we were expected to ride through on the way to Derl town.
Armin had told me everything and surely, Three nights from now, The warriors would strike me and fail... But still, Armin overhearing everything was a bit much? They even made a bit of talk about the Founder, Ymir. Something Armin could not understand.
But the fact was that their plan was happening in three nights from now and as we rode the Carriage, I had to plan for them.
I turned back and stared at my Squad, my purple orbs casting a penetrating gaze upon them. One that seemed to instill fear in their hearts before I smiled.
"Ohh, Just admiring your faces," I said, my cold gaze transforming into a warm one within a matter of seconds.
I turned ahead, There was no way I was going to put in my Squad: The Future Queen Of The Walls, The Jaw Titan, The Afraid one, and Determination Jaeger up in the battle against the Titans... That would be suicide.
Armin was still feeling afraid of sitting down in the same carriage as Wanda, after all, she was plotting the downfall of her friend and that was something he couldn't ignore, there was no way he would ever be friendly with her.
Wanda wasn't stupid, She knew that something was wrong with Armin since he was being more TIMID than he was supposed to be around them. Sure, there could have been a lot of things but she noticed his gaze shifting to me... Something that sparked a bit of suspicion in her but she still shrugged it off, As long as he wasn't aware of the plan, She was satisfied... She didn't want to have to kill more than she had to.
I continued holding the reins of the horses as they shot forward, the morning sun shone in the sky, a strange mist covered the Forest path... There had been a storm last night and this was the aftermath... A light fog.
"This is really a perfect place and time to attack an Opponent," I commented on the fog that was growing thicker, "Alright Defensive force, position yourself on the top of the Wagon,"
Ymir, Krista and Wanda were quick to respond. Their ODM gear was already equipped and their reaction time was quick, They climbed atop the Carriage in a matter of seconds, bringing out their ODM blades in a defensive stance.
The rest had invigorated the entire team as they reacted more quickly, Eren was feeling energetic in his seat and although he was always energetic... He was more energetic than usual.
Time seemed to go on as a dripping silence stabbed deep into the fog, nothing could be heard other than the rolling of the wheels and the sounds of the feet of the horse as they pushed forward as well as the occassional neigh of a horse.
Then something struck the still silence, The sound of a hook engraving itself in a tree and then zipping sounds echoed through the air as well.
'Shit, Looks like 5 of them,' I thought.
My enhanced senses had further improved over the years and I could perceive their exact positions too.
"Armin, Eren, Join the defensive!" I ordered and the two sprung to their feet, Eren had determination in his eyes as he assumed a defensive position at the top of the Wagon and as for Armin, He had disappeared into the fog leaving everyone looking at him with a little bit of shock.
"3... 2... 1," I counted down, my voice a testament to the inevitable collision between the Cadet forces.
As soon as I reached one, Hooks attached themselves to the wooden carriage as multiple cadets descended, their ODM blades drawn out.
…
The battle had been gruesome... and there I was, sitting in the carriage and navigating our route to the next place.
Eren had stabbed someone in the leg with his blade, and Ymir had gotten slashed across her right palm rendering it in bandages for the time being until we got to a proper hospital, As for where Armin had run off to, He had gone ahead and dealt with the Carriage so the others didn't really find any fault with his behavior.
I couldn't help but sigh in relief as Krista had only sustained minor scratches, although I wish I had the Hydrogen Peroxide that existed on Earth so I could deal with these wounds accordingly.
Oh Yeah and before I forget, I didn't only deal with meat... I also planted some fruits and vegetables in my Sub-space as they had a 20% higher growth rate there.
"So how was it?" I asked.
"Exciting," was Eren's reply.
Ymir was frowning, she didn't like the fact that she had been wounded but she had controlled her healing power so it wouldn't heal instantly, If anyone found out about her Titan powers... She might be attacked on the spot and probably already hated more than she already was by Krista.
"Armin, It's your shift," I said.
Riding a horse hadn't been part of the agenda in the Boot Camp YET but at least Armin learned the basics from watching me do it.
Armin nodded and we switched places, As I entered the carriage, Wanda's mood seemed to change but I ignored her, instead I focused on Ymir's wound and sighed.
"Give me your hand," I said, "If I don't patch you up properly, You might become a burden to the entire Squad,"
Ymir reluctantly brought her hand out and I smirked.
"I thought you weren't straight," I said with a little chuckle.
"Damn you, I just want to be patched up properly, If Krista gets wounded because I can't protect her, I'll never forgive myself," Ymir said.
"Keep dreaming, When could you protect her?" I asked with a shrug as I took Ymir's hand.
"I don't need protecting," Krista complained with a pout.
I laughed as I took out a roll of bandage wraps from my pocket and unrolled them, wrapping the white bandages around the injured section. She had been bandaged before but we had to ensure that no air entered the wound because we were going through Forest as well as Mountain areas which had quite a bit of disease in them, no matter how natural they were. For that reason, I would have to bandage her wound and prevent it from opening.
While restraining her healing factor, She could get sick!
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We parked the Carriage at the side of the road, within a large bush where it would be hard to find and made a large clearing our camp. As for sleeping, We would take turns at shifts for two hours each.
"Alright, Ymir and Wanda, You guys should go search for some dry wood," I said, "Eren and Armin, do the same and then I and Krista will handle the food,"
I couldn't pull out things from my inventory here and I certainly couldn't bring out meat so I would have to manage with some foodstuff we bought from a vendor.
The plan to put Meat in my Inventory instead of trapping the animals in my sub-space was integrated because I didn't want to go through the stress of killing them all over again.
First, I brought out a pot from the Equipment section of the wagon. It didn't disturb the other equipment so I kept it there and then a large plastic bag.
Now, The resources of this world were limited because of the fact that the Eldians CLAIM to have lost a lot of land to the Titans. When I heard this, I sighed. You still have two fucking walls, Wall Rose and Wall Sina. They could recuperate their resources.
"Eldians, Humans, no matter what name they give themselves. They're as lazy as fuck," I said with a sigh.
"Huh, Aeron... What did you say?" Krista asked with her innocent blue eyes shining in the bright moonlight.
"Wanna kiss?" I asked, pushing my face closer to Krista's face.
A blush crossed her face but she didn't resist, she puckered her lips like she was waiting for a kiss... but it never came.
Instead, I touched her forehead.
"Let's get to cooking before the others find us slacking off," I said.
"Meanie,"
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The fire had gone down until it was mere sparks of a flame that was inevitably going to vanish, I was on first watch and it felt nice. I would get some chance to shine, As I mentioned earlier, My enhanced senses were great at perceiving everything... Three people were zipping in on ODM gear at amazing speed.
"Shit, I'm too lazy to use the ODM gear," I said and burst forward, my figure blurring until it vanished in the bright moon.
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Two girls and a single boy, each wearing the Scout regiment uniform were zipping through the air. Their expressions were stoic and their eyes were focused on their target... The group they had been tailing all morning while keeping a considerable distance.
"Once we find their wagon, We will finally be able to advance to the next town peacefully," The boy said, his expression changing to that of a smile.
They were survivors, hanging to their thread with all of their being... but that wouldn't be enough.
Their hooks were suddenly released and they fell to the ground.
"The Fuck?!!"
"What's happening?!!"
"Shit!!"
A purple blur moved through the night sky as they fell, They could see it but it kept blurring but one thing they were aware of is that it was some sort of monster. It appeared beside the boy that was free falling.
The girls watched in horror as the boy crashed against a tree, his face engraved in the bark of the tree and blood stained the bark.
I narrowed my eyes at them before appearing behind their backs, applying pressure at their necks with a chop and they lost consciousness. I caught them and laid them at a corner.
"I never knew I was capable of that kind of speed," I said to myself as I shot forward, heading for their Wagon.
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Another wagon was still moving, even in the stillness of the Night. Two people were positioned at the top of the wagon with their ODM equipped, they drew their blades not because they could see someone coming but rather to prepare for anything.
"Elliot and the girls still haven't returned," One of them said.
"I hope they're safe,"
A still wind crossed their faces as the Wagon pulled to a complete stop, much to their surprise, They moved slowly to see their driver only to find his body slumped on the chair.
Shock crossed their eyes as the boys moved to assume defensive positions but it was too late, I was behind their backs and then chopped their necks. They fell forward and slammed against the wagon.
"So is it that there's no one else on this route?" I muttered while jumping down and crushing their equipment.
It won't be long till we get to Derl town, in at least a week, we would be there and see the other team but alas I would have to go through the Titan shifters too.
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Two days have passed since then and this was the Third afternoon, much to Armin's shock and surprise, I have been behaving like absolutely nothing was going to happen to me while knowing that the Titan shifters were going to strike.
"We are nearing Derl town," Armin notified me as he pointed to the map, "It might just be 2-3 days away,"
"We haven't faced anyone on this route yet, Were those people the last?" Ymir asked.
"Probably," I said and shrugged, "Or they're all cowards, not wanting to face the great Aeron,"
"You give yourself too much credit," Ymir said.
"A man's gotta give himself credit," I said, "Or else he won't be able to show off to the women that way,"
"Huh? Showing off?" Wanda muttered.
"You'll understand when you're older," I said with a little bit of a chuckle.
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And that was the last peaceful conversation I had with them, The day had passed quickly and soon it was Night time. I equipped my ODM gear and looked at the others.
"I'm going to survey the route just to be sure that there's nothing in the way," I said and then shot off, releasing a burst of gas as well as propelling the hooks into a strong branch, taking myself into the air in a matter of seconds.
"Krista, keep my food warm!"
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Zip!
I was zipping through the air, the hooks of the ODM gear sticking to the branches and my gas constantly being drained but alas, A good thing was that I could never run out of gas.
The buff was that I could duplicate the gas in my ODM gear, resulting in my tank always being full. If my ODM gear got busted, I could always bring another one out with the Combat system.
[Mission has been detected]
"So it's begun huh?" I wondered.
[Main Mission:
Defeat the Armored Titan with or without using your Titan form.
Rewards:
Harden Ability
Calculating...
Punishment:
Capture]
The mission was peculiar, The objective was to defeat the Armored Titan with or without using my Titan form, this meant that Bertholdt wasn't transforming and Wanda wasn't too... but why was Annie not here? Maybe she got eliminated or rather she didn't want to join?
She had been the one to target me from the start and she should be here, No need to complain about it now though. It lifted a lot of weight from my shoulders, As for now, I'll just change my demeanor a bit before I act too calm about the fact that I'm going to be attacked.
The sounds of a fellow ODM gear user was not obscured by the forest, rather they were made heard as if to instill fear into him. It didn't take long before Wanda, her figure hidden within a large black cloak descended upon me, her blades aiming for my neck.
Alas, I propelled myself forward using more gas in the process and landed on a branch. Fear was in my eyes.
"Why are... you attacking me?" I asked with a little bit of a stutter.
Wanda didn't answer, but that cloak, it looked pretty convenient. If I wanted to see her face, it was near impossible.
Another ODM gear could be heard in the distance, due to my enhanced senses.
"Did I do something bad?" I asked again but the cloaked figure didn't answer.
Now someone was running toward the tree I was positioned on, the sound made as the person's feet hit the ground made it easy to deduct that this person was the Heavyweight Reiner.
Wanda didn't talk, she didn't want to. She didn't know what to say, She was going to target the person that had taken care of her over the mission... The person that had cooked for her... She didn't know what to feel anymore.
"It's for Bertholdt's sake," She muttered, her eyes shaky.
Reiner was almost at the tree, on his left hand was a sharp pocket knife he liked to use for situations like these... His determination to kill me shot through the roof and his blood started boiling.
He slashed his palm and blood sprayed on his face, his blood began boiling more, a pulsating lightning filling his body up with energy.
The sky rumbled in unison with the action of Reiner and a golden bolt of lightning descended, crashing down on Reiner and the ground as a result.
Dust was kicked up but I couldn't mistake the figure of one thing that stood in the dust, The Armored Titan!
It let out a vicious roar and lunged forward, aiming at the tree I was standing on only to see that I had disappeared... instead, I was sitting on it's hair with a slight bored expression on my face.
"I'm really tired of acting," I said with a stretch.
The Armored Titan's eyes widened in surprise and the same thing happened with Wanda but Bertholdt was already nearby, right behind me with his ODM blades out.
He slashed at me and he was sure to hit, only to see I had vanished. Reiner crashed into the tree, kicking up another series of dust and spraying sand everywhere.
Bertholdt hooked himself to a tree and stared at me.
"Now can you guys tell me what faction you're from? Garrison or Scouts, no offense but the M.P can't pull off those kind of skills with the ODM gear," I said and then stretched my blades, "But If you refuse to talk, I guess I could always pierce your necks with my blade until you did, That sounds like a reasonable offer. No? Alright, How about cutting your heads off?"
"And you, Armored Titan, You were the one that destroyed the Inner gate of the Shiganshina district, unleashing the titans upon the whole of Wall Maria," I said, "Don't you feel any regret at the amount of Human lives you've trampled on? Many people died because of that,"
There wasn't any specific emotion in my voice, neither was I speaking in a monotonous voice. I was just unfeeling.
Without saying another word, I grabbed the hilt of my blades and turned them behind, Just like Captain Levi.
And then my hooks shot forward, hitting and engraving into a tree deeply.
"I'll kill you!"
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Author's Note:
The first time I wrote 3k words in a single chapter, I won't be able to update for a week I think so expect another chapter at this time NEXT WEEK!
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