Attack on Titan: Kuklo Unbound

Though buttoned down compared to how Survey Corps expeditions were welcomed back, the audience response, the whole point, was quite favorable. The Vertical Maneuvering Equipment’s capabilities had been conveyed well enough. Jorge’s satisfied expression reinforced the impression. All that was left was for a political decision to be made, and Kuklo would have no say in that. He just had to believe in Jorge and wait.

The team saluted the audience and retreated, with light steps, to the athletic grounds’ outer edges, where the numerous recruits awaiting their turns cast envious gazes upon them─except for Xavi, whose expression was rather one of rage.

“I let you out of sight for a while, and look how good you get.”

A man who looked like the very picture of manliness approached Kuklo as he sat on the ground resting. The soldier in his mid-thirties had a beast’s penetrating glare. On his uniform was a winged emblem, the symbol of the Survey Corps.

Carlo Piquer─that was the soldier’s name. The current commander of the Survey Corps and the very man who’d discovered Ku-klo’s raw talent and recommended his recruitment, Carlo was Kuklo’s savior. If it hadn’t been for him, Kuklo would have died in exile, devoured by a Titan.

“So you came.”

“Of course. I needed to see if the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment is worth using in combat.”

Bowled over by the sudden presence of the Survey Corps commander, the other recruits began to stir. He practically existed on a different plane, so their reaction was natural.

“And what did you think?”

“It passes with flying colors,” Carlo replied immediately. “However, Titans and Titan dummies are two different things, as I’m sure you’re aware.”

“It’ll be hard to aim for their weak spot. I know that.” Having been chased by Titans before, Kuklo wasn’t letting his results against the dummy get to his head. The other recruits showed the same reserve. Seeing the Titans first-hand from atop Wall Maria had paid off.

“I felt like I was watching the future of the corps when I saw all of you. Old soldiers like me are probably going to be shown the door soon.”

“It’s not too late. You just need to train.”

“I would if I could, but I’m a slow learner, you see. It’s too late for me to change my ways.”

Carlo added that the same went for his troops. Their style of combat had seeped into their marrows, and embracing novelties would be difficult.

“I’ll be going, then. Keep at it until graduation.” Carlo began to walk way with confident steps, but he turned around once to say, “The next time we speak, it’ll be as fellow soldiers.”

“Wow, I guess you need to be a force of nature to be the Survey Corps commander.” Cardina was just being honest.

Kuklo felt the same way. Many recruits boasted impressive physiques, including Xavi, but not the aura around Carlo forged by countless battles and brushes with death. Cardina likened the quality to a force of nature, but whatever it was, Carlo had something that attracted others to him. Perhaps it was his largeness as a person.

Rosa had tilted her head now and again, unable to get over her puzzlement. “First the instructor, now the commander. How in the world do you know such people?”

Kuklo had no answer for her, but if he had to come up with one, it was fate.

Because I was the Titan’s son. Burdened with a curse from before he was born, he endured horrible treatment, but as a result he came across people he might not otherwise. When he thought of it that way, his days of abuse seemed to have meaning. Of course, this in no way inclined him to speak any words of thanks to Xavi.

Meanwhile, the preparations for the inspection matches had been completed. The bouts would take place between teams, eight on eight. The recruits would marshal the gamut of the combat techniques they’d acquired to try to disable the opposition. Arms were allowed, but the short swords would feature regular bamboo blades rather than sharp Iron Bamboo edges. As for firearms, toy guns replaced carbines. Both weapons were capable of imparting bruises but not fatal blows.

Ten mock battles would take place at once, with the soldiers switching out for a total of three rounds. Kuklo’s team wasn’t up until the second round, but they had no time to dawdle since the bouts would be decided quickly.

“It’d be so easy if we could use the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment,” Cardina sighed as he looked at the grounds. Ten pairs of teams, a total of a hundred and sixty recruits, braced for battle. Simulated or not, it was quite a spectacle.

“It wouldn’t be a fair fight if we could,” Rosa said, and she wasn’t exaggerating or bragging. She only spoke the truth.

The Vertical Maneuvering Equipment would allow them to move freely through the air. They could just blast away with their toy guns from up above to make the match one-sided. Thus, Kuklo’s team was to engage in the mock battle equipped with just the standard gear. The one difference was that they would each carry two fake blades. Having gotten used to dual wielding, they felt uneasy with just one sword.

The first round of battles finished in about ten minutes, and it was now Kuklo’s team’s turn. Having prioritized their earlier demonstration, they were somewhat tired. They still had some stamina, however, and felt perfectly capable of fighting. They certainly didn’t plan on losing.

Kuklo’s team walked to its designated position on the field.

“Hm? It looks like the big shots are going,” Cardina said. The officers, including Carlo, and the bureaucrats started to leave the grounds, apparently tired of watching recruits spar.

“Maybe they just wanted to see what the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment could do,” Rosa reasoned. She was probably right.

While this served Kuklo’s team, who’d only wanted to promote the device, it had to be vexing for the other recruits who’d hoped to make an impression. In the end, the quickest way to the Military Police was through honest and steady progress.

“This will probably demotivate our opponents,” Cardina said sympathetically.

“Not true. Let your guard down and they’ll get you,” Kuklo said, noticing the naked hostility on their counterparts’ faces. In the center of the opposing team stood Xavi.

“I see, you’re right. One careless moment could sink us.” Perhaps the usually frivolous Cardina sensed that a fierce battle was coming; his expression suddenly turned grim.

“This doesn’t feel like chance,” Rosa said.

“He could have asked for it,” Cardina agreed.

Whatever the reason, they were in for a tough fight. They needed to be ready.

As for Xavi, wasting no time, he issued malicious threats. “An eyesore is what you are. I’ll crush you.”

They had no effect on Kuklo. While he faced a formidable enemy, he wasn’t exactly afraid, and the same went for his teammates. None other than Xavi had created the opportunity for Kuklo’s team to grow so bold. Having incorporated surprise attacks into their training, they had all flirted with death time after time. Each of them could brush off Xavi’s threats like so many specks of dust.

“We’re not going down easily.”

“You want to crush us? You’d better be ready for what’s about to happen then.”

With those fighting words, Cardina and Rosa drew their dual practice swords.

Xavi still seemed to look down on them, and his face was as red as hot steel. “You’re nothing but flunkers…”

“We’re no flunkers.” Kuklo drew his swords. “We’re soldiers!”

He returned Xavi’s glare, and just as their fighting spirits reached a peak, the instructor gave the command: “Commence combat!”

Kicking against the ground, Kuklo quickly closed the distance and slashed sideways with his swords. Xavi stepped back to evade the attack, but it didn’t miss him entirely, the tips of the swords grazing the bottom of his jacket’s collar. If the blades had been made of metal, his uniform would have been damaged; had they been the usual single-edged swords, the material would have torn. Kuklo stepped forward again and thrust his swords, but Xavi swayed to avoid them.

Defeating him won’t be simple. Kuklo knew that much. Among the pool of recruits, Xavi was a highly talented soldier. Jorge conceded the fact, so it had to be true.

Kuklo and Xavi stood apart from each other, both of them glaring at the other.

“I’ll kill you… I swear, I’ll kill you…” Xavi opened his eyes wide and slowly unsheathed the sword at his waist. What emerged was a blade shining silver-white.

That─ Right as the blade’s suspicious gleam gave Kuklo a bad feeling, Xavi brandished the short sword and stormed forth.

While Kuklo craved a straight fight, Xavi’s powerful arms would deal bludgeoning strikes. Pitting his strength against Xavi’s could only end in Kuklo being overpowered and crushed. Given Kuklo’s agility, it would be easy to dodge Xavi’s attacks, but going head to head with an opponent who was all about brawn and defeating him had its special appeal. It would surely leave Xavi’s pride in tatters.

Xavi brought down the short sword he’d raised above his head. The vicious blade sliced through the air, heading toward Kuklo with enough force to snap a bamboo sword in two. Rather than naively try to catch the blow head-on, Kuklo took advantage of his blade’s curvature to deflect it. But something else happened.

This… Kuklo’s eye opened wide. Far from deflecting his opponent’s blade, his practice sword broke cleanly in two, and one look at the damage revealed that it hadn’t been caused by blunt force. His sword had been severed by a sharp edge. In other words, the silvery-white weapon rushing toward Kuklo’s head was a live blade.

No wonder he’d had a bad feeling about it.

So Xavi really meant to kill Kuklo, and he intended to do it in front of a crowd. Yet, considering the guy’s personality, it couldn’t simply be a desperate and reckless act. He had to have some underhanded plan to get himself out of it.

It was too late to evade the blow. Trying to dodge to either side would get him cut down, and jumping back promised the same outcome.

The circumstances couldn’t have been any worse, in fact were panic-inducing, but Kuklo’s mind was as still as a lake. Yes, he had a fear of blades. When he was still in the sideshow, he’d been dealt knife cuts and nearly died from them. Now, though, he had the ability to overcome his fear, to maintain his composure, and to contemplate his next move.

I don’t need to dodge it.

Kuklo lunged forward, straight into Xavi’s space.

Escaping the range of the sword called for distance, but overcoming his fear and stepping in nullified his opponent’s attacks. Since a pummeling at close quarters couldn’t be ruled out, Kuklo had to stay on his toes, but his first priority was to avoid lethal injury.

Sticking close to neutralize the swing, Kuklo drove the pommel of his practice sword into Xavi’s exposed solar plexus.

“Gah.” A moan forced its way out of Xavi’s mouth, the blow having struck a vital point.

Seeing his chance, Kuklo swiftly hurled Xavi’s body away. After being tossed again and again by Rosa during wrestling training, Kuklo knew first-hand that with the right leverage even larger opponents could be thrown.

Xavi must have been knocked nearly unconscious by the initial blow. When Kuklo made a clean, textbook-worthy throw, Xavi didn’t even try to land safely and ended up splayed on the ground. The whites of his eyes showed, and it was clear that he’d passed out.

Kuklo breathed a sigh and looked to the rest of his team, whom he’d nearly forgotten.

“Call it a difference in experience,” joked Cardina, having already downed his enemy.

All of Kuklo’s other teammates had also knocked out their opponents while he’d taken his sweet time. None looked particularly tired or were breathing hard after what must have been child’s play.

Throwing a glance at Xavi’s unconscious figure, Kuklo picked up the short sword that had fallen near him. It was a live, standard-issue Iron Bamboo sword, the notoriously effective real deal.

“An ‘accident’ during the fight, I guess.”

“Huh?”

Cardina pointed to the short sword Kuklo held. “He tried to kill you, didn’t he?”

“Maybe he thought you’d falter if you saw a real one. Like that’d work,” Rosa said without a hint of drama. She probably would have charged straight into Xavi and unleashed one of her flawless throws.

“So, what do we do with him? This guy won’t stop hustling until you’re dead.”

“You can only turn the other cheek so many times, we need to take care of him. He’s a threat to military discipline, to say the least.”

Cardina and Rosa were in agreement that Xavi needed to be handed over.

Meanwhile, Kuklo didn’t care either way. It was safe to ignore Xavi, who could do him neither good nor ill. The problem, if anything, was the hassle that handing him over might entail.

Before long, the other teams put up their own results, and the second round of inspection matches was declared over.

***

The Vertical Maneuvering Equipment’s battlefield debut was still some way down the line, but Kuklo and the rest of his team had definitely done their part.

Though the Training Corps wasn’t deciding until after their graduation, Kuklo’s team did reap some benefits. Their special training had once come at the cost of their free time, but it was now considered a part of regular training. This was a dramatic change. Finishing at the same time as everyone else meant they could eat something other than leftovers. This meant little to Kuklo, whose sense of taste was nearly nonexistent, but a lot to his comrades. More so than their improved diet, it was being treated like everyone else that pleased them, a natural reaction after being groundlessly branded as flunkers for so long. In a telling shift, the remedial lessons were now synonymous with honest effort.

While the erstwhile flunkers’ stock rose rapidly, Xavi was fading into the background. His crushing defeat to Kuklo at the matches hadn’t gone unnoticed. There was hardly any room for sympathy since he deserved his comeuppance.

Only two weeks remained until graduation. Kuklo and the other recruits kept at their training without slacking off.

Soon. We’ll meet soon, Kuklo muttered in his heart as he squeezed his controller. Then, imagining the soaring cypress tree in front of him to be Ogre, he pulled the lever.

About five hundred recruits stood in neat, orderly lines on the grounds. Every one of them wore a tense expression, and they listened closely to the address being delivered by the headmaster from atop the stage.

Thirty minutes had passed since the beginning of the Training Corps graduation ceremony. The headmaster went on tirelessly about his own struggles during his years on active duty. Most of his stories were simple bragging meant to prove his brilliance. In a nutshell, his point was that he belonged to the Military Police Brigade because he was indeed that good. The ceremony was like a final lesson intended to test the recruits’ fortitude, but Kuklo was barely listening in the first place.

“─You recruits graduating today have three options. The Survey Corps, the Garrison, or the Military Police Brigade.” The headmaster continued in his resonant voice, “Of course, only the ten students with the highest grades announced earlier are allowed to apply for the Military Police Brigade.”

In other words, any recruits who didn’t stand head and shoulders above the rest wouldn’t be able to enter the Military Police as fresh recruits. To do so, they needed to produce results as active soldiers. In Jorge’s case, he’d been deemed worthy after many an expedition as the Survey Corps commander and for bringing down a Titan.

“Am I in the top ten, too?” Kuklo whispered to Cardina, who stood on his right.

“Yes. Everyone in our team. The Vertical Maneuvering Equipment must have left that strong of an impression.”

“The Military Police, eh…”

“Do I hear you sounding interested? You work in the interior and get a lot of authority, so you could act important for the rest of your life.”

That much was clear from watching the headmaster, but the Brigade was also home to soldiers like Jorge who gave their all to the nation. Ultimately, it was down to your personality. Inconveniently, an individual with a problematic one had scored well enough to end up in the top ten.

“Xavi’s in the top ten, too…”

“He is talented, after all,” Rosa, who stood to Kuklo’s left, replied to his muttered words. “Let’s just pray he doesn’t take the country in the wrong direction.”

“Right,” Kuklo said, but in reality, nothing would come of Xavi joining the Military Police. Kuklo knew this intuitively as a result of butting heads with him. If he’d felt even the slightest bit threatened by Xavi, he would have done something after the attempts on his life. He hadn’t even felt the need, which meant that Xavi no longer affected him in any way.

As Kuklo chatted with Rosa and Cardina, the headmaster brought his speech to an end. “This concludes the Training Corps graduation ceremony. We will now move on to the recruitment ceremony.”

Taking the place of the headmaster, who had finished bragging about his exploits through his so-called address, Carlo briskly walked up to the stage.

“I am Carlo Piquer, and I have been entrusted with the position of commander of the Survey Corps,” he began. The recruits quickly started whispering amongst themselves. If the commander of the Survey Corps was taking the stage at the recruitment ceremony, it could only mean one thing. “As I’m sure even you recruits know, the Survey Corps, recently reformed, suffers from a perennial lack of personnel. After this ceremony, you will be asked which branch you wish to join. When that happens, I want you to think about us, the Survey Corps.”

Carlo spoke with passion. He was wooing the newly minted soldiers for exactly the reason he gave. More than anything, what the Survey Corps lacked was quality. Putting aside exactly how capable it had been in bygone days, it certainly seemed to fall far short of Carlo’s ideals in its current state. Kuklo, who had snuck along on an expedition, knew this well.

Moreover, because the Survey Corps took on the unique duty of embarking on expeditions, their members were far more likely to die than those in the other branches. A new soldier only had a seventy percent chance of survival on an expedition. While the level of risk differed drastically depending on the nature of the foray and whether or not they encountered a Titan, it was clearly a harsher assignment than working within the walls. Joining them was not a decision to make lightly. Not even the strongest sense of purpose warded off sudden death.

The Survey Corps was like that. Naturally, few recruits volunteered to join them. No one wanted to die. Hoping to provide the last push to anyone who might be just a step away from applying, Carlo himself had come on stage to court them.

“We plan to have recruits from this year join us in an expedition to take place a month from now. If you learn the truth about this world, you will understand why the Survey Corps exists.”

Whispers ran through the recruits once again.

“There is no guarantee that you’ll return alive. If you, knowing this, still want to put your life on the line and venture beyond the walls, stay here. All of you who want to join a different branch, you are dismissed. That is all.”

The moment Carlo finished his speech, the grounds grew quiet, but only for a moment. When one new soldier began to walk away hurriedly, it put the whole crowd in motion. Recruits began leaving one after the other as if an avalanche had been set off.

Cardina said as he watched the recruits practically fleeing the grounds, “That’s no surprise. Why go out of your way to choose a dangerous path?”

“You’re all okay with it? Even after snagging the right to join the Military Police?” Rosa asked everyone.

“I came here to kill Ogre.”

“And I decided to tag along with him… But if he decides he just has to join the Military Police Brigade, I’m not opposed to the idea.”

“I’m only interested in the Survey Corps.”

Cardina slumped his shoulders. “That’s what I thought.”

The recruits continued to disappear before their eyes even as they talked. In the end, only one score of them remained on the grounds. Whether that number was large or small was in the eye of the beholder, but Carlo seemed satisfied.

“You’re brave soldiers. I respect you from the bottom of my heart,” Carlo said calmly to the faces that remained. “Well then, I welcome those standing here into the ranks of the Survey Corps. That is all!”

With that, the recruitment ceremony came to an end.

“Did I join the Survey Corps?” Kuklo asked to make sure.

“I think it’s pretty clear we just did,” answered Rosa.

“Sheesh. Rejecting the Military Police to join the Survey Corps? My father must be rolling in his grave,” Cardina mumbled with palpable regret as one who only wished for a life of debauchery.

“Time to give up,” Kuklo chided.

“Resign yourself,” Rosa said appalled.

“You’re not the only ones who’ve turned down the Military Police,” a voice said. This one belonged to Jorge. “It looks like he’s doing the same to join the Survey Corps,” he said before shifting his gaze.

Kuklo’s eye followed it only to fall upon someone so unexpected that his jaw dropped. “Xavi.”

Among the recruits staying on the grounds was Xavi, who could have exercised his right to join the Military Police. His expression was terribly grim, and his large frame seemed to be shaking a little. The life seemed to have been sucked out from his face, and he seemed unsteady and ready to faint at any moment. Clearly, Xavi’s true wish wasn’t to join the Survey Corps.

“Wasn’t he going to become an MP?” asked Kuklo.

“I thought so, too, but something made him reconsider,” Jorge said, though Kuklo had no idea what could have. “Putting that aside, let’s talk about your future,” the instructor cut to the chase, facing toward his pupils. “As Carlo informed you, you’ll be taking part in the expedition occurring a month from now. And of course, you’ll do so wearing the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment.”

“Will we be killing Titans?” Kuklo asked.

“That will depend. While you have all received plenty of training, you have close to zero combat experience. It will probably be hard for you to take on Titans from the get-go.” Jorge said “close to zero” rather than “zero” only because of Kuklo and Cardina’s skirmish of an encounter. Simply being chased by a Titan beyond the walls was a valuable experience.

“So what should we do, then?” Cardina asked.

“For now, just join the expedition.”

“To get used to it?” Rosa said with a look of understanding.

“Your first mission is to return alive no matter what. You hear me?”

Kuklo and the others nodded in reply.

“The next time I meet you, it will be a month from now. I’ll be watching you from the top of Wall Maria.” With that, Jorge walked off without any further parting words.

“So he wants to meet us in Shiganshina District after we’ve returned alive?” Cardina threw out.

“Probably.”

“Okay. Well, we can’t let him down.”

While Cardina and Rosa continued to chat, Kuklo was interested in something unrelated to his own safe return. He stared at Xavi, who stood there stock-still.

Why would he join the Survey Corps? Xavi hungered for power more than any of the others. Kuklo still couldn’t bring himself to believe that the guy had joined the Survey Corps after all. He had to have some ulterior motive. But what is it?

There was only one way to find out.

Kuklo approached the dazed-looking Xavi and asked him, “Why the Survey Corps?”

“It’s your fault…” Xavi’s voice and body were both trembling. “I’m going to join the Military Police. I’m going to gain power and become greater than my father ever dared to be!”

“Then why not apply to the Military Police?”

“I can’t keep losing to you! I’ll join the Military Police after I settle the score!!” Xavi yelled, glaring at Kuklo with all he had. He looked ready to pounce at any moment, and Kuklo was naturally put on guard by the tense mood, but rather than raise his fists Xavi spun and stormed off.

Chuckling, Cardina walked toward Kuklo. “You know, he might have some promise after all.”

Rosa tilted her head, mystified. “Maybe he wasn’t actually rotten to the core. Or maybe he was reborn after his thorough beating?”

Some change of heart must have visited Xavi, indeed. Yet it was unlikely to affect Kuklo in any way.

Taking his eye off of Xavi’s receding back, Kuklo gazed up at the sky. It looked calm─a perfect day for thinking about the future.

Of course, thinking guaranteed no flash of inspiration, nor was it his part to use his head.

Kuklo simply voiced his desire. “I wanna fly…”

***

The lively discussions mainly concerned the expedition waiting for them the next day: having encountered Titans in certain locations; needing to alter the route this time; getting their hopes up for the new crop of recruits; and so on. The most popular topic of all, however, was the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment. The free movement through the sky it enabled seemed to defy common sense, and even the grizzled veterans present couldn’t help but show some interest. Still, corpsmen had absolute confidence in their tough, honed bodies, which meant that more than a few were doubtful of the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment’s capabilities.

“I guess we need to show them what it can do,” Cardina started in, having eavesdropped on the barroom gossip.

Rosa, who sat next to him, shrugged. “We might not get the chance to use the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment.” Reaching for her glass of amber fruit wine, she took it from the table.

“I’ll be happy just as long as you all come back okay.” This came from Sharle, who sat on the opposite side of the table. She was in her work clothes. The next day’s expedition was reason enough for her to take a day off to travel to Shiganshina District, where the Survey Corps was stationed.

“Jorge did say that our first mission was to return alive,” Kuklo, who was sitting next to her, mumbled through stuffed cheeks.

“It isn’t a good idea to rush straight into battle. We first need to get used to the environment,” Cardina said.

“I can’t imagine getting used to it,” Rosa confessed, shivering a bit at her recollection of the world outside the walls.

Sharle felt the same way. “I don’t think you need to. If you’re just a little nervous, and are hoping to come back alive, you might even get better results.”

“It beats letting your guard down,” Cardina agreed.

“Oh, that’s right. Mister Xenophon had a message for all of you. If you get to fight a Titan, he says to please tell him how the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment handled in actual combat.”

“He should come with us. I bet he’d manage to survive,” Kuklo said.

“He said he had the chance once but turned it down because he was scared.”

“How did he ever develop the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment, with such a mindset?”

“It’s because Uncle Angel went in his place with the old Equipment,” Rosa explained, drawing nods from everyone.

“By the way, the emblem on your clothes changed,” Sharle said pointing at Kuklo’s chest. The new soldiers all wore a fresh set of fatigues that displayed the winged emblem of the Survey Corps.

“It’ll help us become popular with the townspeople,” Cardina joked, but the residents did indeed notice men and women of the Survey Corps. Soldiers who braved the outside world for the sake of humanity in spite of the danger were like heroes to them.

“Except we’re a bunch of greenhorns who’ve never been on an expedition,” Rosa reminded him.

“Ah yes, our spanking new uniforms, a sign that we’re not regular soldiers yet.”

“I’ve heard that appearances matter for Survey Corps troops, though,” the workshop chief’s assistant said.

“Well, the residents expect a lot from us. I guess raggedy uniforms wouldn’t cut it.”

“It’s hard to move in,” Kuklo complained, rolling his shoulders. Though it didn’t really restrict him, the newly tailored uniform felt somewhat strange on him.

“Want to move around in it a bit later?” Rosa suggested. “I’m sure you’ll get used to it in no time.”

“Let’s.”

“Hold on, hold on. Tomorrow’s the expedition. Why not take it easy today?” Cardina grumbled, but Kuklo was already fidgeting. Cardina put his hand to his forehead and groaned, “I can’t believe it. How addicted to training are you idiots?”

***

Still, thanks to their thorough workout, Kuklo’s new uniform now felt natural on him. Outside the walls, he’d be able to fully concentrate on the expedition.

“Oh dear. Did we overdo it a little?” Cardina looked around scratching his head.

He’d been too focused to notice, but it was already dusk. They must have been at it for a few hours. The scarlet rays that filtered through the leaves said as much.

They’d been practicing in a forest a short walk away from Shiganshina District. It was where they always conducted their neverending training.

“I think that’s enough for me and Rosa.” “Why don’t you two take a little stroll first?” Cardina and Rosa teased and walked off before Kuklo could reply.

“Stroll? Through these woods?”

“I guess it’s the right hour, though,” Sharle addressed Kuklo’s puzzlement with a wry smile.

Kuklo gazed through the branches to find the sky a blazing red. He pulled his right-hand controller from its holster and sized up a nearby cedar tree. He estimated it to be about thirty meters tall. Focusing on one of its branches, he fired an anchor at it.

“What are you doing?” Sharle said, tilting her head.

Kuklo embraced her with his left arm. Then, using the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment as an elevator, he brought them up among the boughs and alighted on one.

Despite her surprise and fear, Sharle seemed to enjoy the view from up in the trees. “So this is how you see the world. You spread your wings to make up for all the time you spent trapped.”

“My chains are gone.” Though he couldn’t say since when, so was that annoying phantom sensation of still being manacled. It was proof that nothing held him back now.

But there’s still one thing left. The strange tie that had formed between himself and Ogre─he could not be truly free until he severed that bond. But now the machine he’d mastered promised to let him do just that.

“So tomorrow is the day,” Sharle said.

“Yes.”

“What will you do once you settle everything?”

“Everything?”

“Once you defeat Ogre.”

“Well…” Kuklo had gone to the training academy and learned how to use the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment in order to defeat the Titan. He’d given no thought to what might follow. “I’ll think about it once I come back.”

“That’s one more reason you need to come back safe. Promise me, okay?”

“I know.”

“Good.” Sharle gave a satisfied nod, but her expression suddenly darkened. “I heard my brother joined the Survey Corps…”

“He could’ve joined the Military Police but turned them down. He said he couldn’t keep losing to me.”

“I see…”

“Are you worried?”

“We’re siblings, after all,” Sharle admitted.

“I don’t like him, but he’s strong. He won’t die so easily.”

“I suppose you’re right…” Sharle’s expression remained clouded, her worries hardly banished.

“It’s okay.”

“Huh?”

“If it comes down to it, I will save him.”

The old Kuklo never would have spoken those words, but he had it in him now. I bet Xavi would be mad if he heard me, though… He’d surely fly into a rage and yell that he didn’t need Kuklo’s help.

“Thank you,” Sharle perked up and smiled. “I’ll be praying for all of you to come back safe.”

“Yup.” With a nod, Kuklo turned to look at the town enveloped in twilight.

***

The east sky was gradually growing brighter so the sun must have been rising. The clouds yet refused to budge. The biting-cold outside air turned breaths as white as steam; any precipitation might take the form of snow. The soldiers’ cloaks and hoods kept them from feeling too cold, but their body heat was slowly but surely being sapped away.

It’s almost time… Kuklo looked out at the orderly file of Survey Corps troops from atop his warhorse. At the head of the group was their commander, Carlo Piquer, and the two deputy commanders who assisted him. After them came a column of ten teams, each headed by a team leader.

Kuklo was in Team Ten at the end of the line. All eight of its members wore the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment. In other words, the team consisted entirely of the training academy’s former flunkers, with Rosa Carlstedt serving as leader. The position was normally filled by an experienced and capable soldier, but since no such troops could use the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment, Rosa had been selected as the best overall pick.

To begin with, a team consisting only of first-timers was extremely unusual, and it went to show how unique the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment was. Carlo did not seem inclined to make them hew to the prevailing tactics, either, having granted them permission to move at their own discretion, within reason. Meanwhile, Xavi and the other new faces had been spread among the other teams.

A raindrop landed on Kuklo’s cheek as he waited for the expedition to begin.

“I guess there’s nothing humanity can do about the weather,” Cardina mumbled, looking straight ahead. His expression was mildly tense.

I probably look the same way… The reason was clear: they were vividly remembering the nightmare called being chased by a Titan. Though they weren’t so terrified as to freeze up, it went to show that exiting the walls was no one’s idea of a hobby.

But even more nervous than Kuklo and Cardina were Rosa and the others, who faced their first excursion beyond the walls. While it was in part due to the cold, they looked terribly stiff. As even Kuklo, who had been to the outside world, felt hesitant, faulting them would have been unfair. At the same time, there was no longer any turning back.

Carlo raised his right hand high at the front of the line.

“Forward!” he commanded, and the main gates of Wall Maria roared open even as his voice echoed. Hundreds of frightened birds flapped their wings and took to the air.

The Survey Corps promptly began its advance.

At last… Kuklo grew abruptly more tense, but this was no time to be attending to his feelings, as the town was now at its most defenseless against external foes. They needed to pass through the gates without a second’s delay so that the Garrison troops could close them again. Letting Titans in and losing a place to come home to was simply unacceptable.

The first to respond was Team Leader Rosa.

“Forward!” she called out with vigor, spurring her mount to lead the way. There was no doubt in her expression. The responsibility she felt as team leader must have been driving her.

“Now that’s a team leader for you. She has some guts.” Freed from his stupor, Cardina whipped his horse and quickly began to follow Rosa.

“Right, let’s do this!” Kuklo roused himself and charged forward as if to cast off idle thoughts.

The gates grew closer and closer, as did the bleak expanse ahead of them. Dark clouds literally hung over the land, but Kuklo paid them no heed as he passed through Wall Maria.

***

“Uncovering the secrets of the Titans” stood as their foremost. Titans only showed interest in humans, and only ate humans, and their harmfulness to humanity was a fact.

Whether or not the Titans were true natural enemies, however, remained unclear. Despite surface resemblances to a relationship between carnivorous predator and prey, Titans didn’t actually see humanity as a source of food, as witnessed by their habit of vomiting people out undigested. In other words, humanity did not even know why it needed to be eaten by the Titans.

Where had they come from, and where were they going?

Casting light on Titan behavior was a major mission for the Survey Corps.

That was not their only job, though. Another was to create a map, the current expedition’s objective.

While the outside world looked like a sprawling wasteland, it did have some distinct features. There were rocks, trees, and knolls, but most notable of all were the oases. No other places offered themselves as emergency evacuation areas, and knowing the locations of sources of water was essential to increasing the survival rate on expeditions. Of course, no place was secure in the outside world where Titans roamed, but these foliaged watering spots were perfect both for hiding and for shaking off pursuit. Many Titans moved in straight lines, so weaving through trees could save lives.

The map had been completed for a roughly ten-kilometer swath south of Wall Maria. Three oases existed there: one five kilometers south of Shiganshina District, another seven kilometers to the southeast, and one more ten kilometers to the southwest. During the current expedition, they would survey beyond that perimeter.

“Why a map, though?” Kuklo questioned as they passed the nine-kilometer point.

“Didn’t I just tell you?” scolded Cardina. “Areas with water are important out here.”

“I know, but…” A map was only a map.

“Creating maps is an important duty. Maps of the south are particularly meaningful,” Rosa said. “The Titans come from the south side. That means if there’s something, that’s where. Who knows what that something is, though.”

“Maybe there’s a town where our outsized friends go about their lives.”

“Or some sort of phenomenon that causes Titans to come into existence.”

“I see…” Kuklo muttered, satisfied. “So we aren’t just looking for oases.”

“There’s one more reason for these mapping expeditions. Do you know what it is?” quizzed Rosa.

“One more reason?”

“They’re playing it safe for us greenhorns’ sake,” Cardina answered with a wry smile. “We’ll get accustomed to the outside world as we map it. Call it the corps’ first and last act of kindness.”

“So it’s like a practice run until next time.” Still, they did find themselves beyond the walls, and that fact was enough to keep Kuklo on guard.

The ten-kilometer line came within view. Just then, Team One, which led the advance, came to a sudden stop, bringing them all to a halt.

What happened? Before Kuklo could ask, a red signal flare bloomed in the sky.

“A Titan…”

A red flare, also known as a “Red Star,” signaled the discovery of a Titan. Awestruck, Kuklo watched the red smoke spread like a pool of blood.

Next, three yellow signal flares soared into the air in short succession.

“So we have ourselves a three-meter-class Titan. I really would have preferred to avoid any at all,” Cardina sighed.

…It’s not Ogre.

Kuklo couldn’t immediately decide whether to welcome or to regret the fact that they wouldn’t be facing Ogre. Either way, a monster was now closing in on them.

If they did nothing they were in for a battle, but Commander Carlo’s plans apparently didn’t call for one. Team One made a U-turn and began heading down a new path, probably toward the southeast oasis. The closest one was at the ten-kilometer point southwest, but the Titan seemed to be coming from that direction.

The Titan was about five hundred meters away. In the dim light, its distant form was hard to make out for Kuklo. As it closed in, however, its figure rapidly grew distinct. The Titan had the features of a geriatric. Its back was hunched, seemingly due to old age, and its body was as scrawny as a withered tree. Yet contrary to its appearance it was athletic. Demonstrating a horse-like speed, it charged toward them. Contact seemed like a matter of time, but if they began fleeing right away, they might outrun it.

Snapping his reins Kuklo urged his mount to turn around, but just then, a green signal flare exploded overhead.

“A Green Star?” Kuklo furrowed his brow. Used to signal an anomaly, it was the exact type that had gone up in the course of Kuklo’s unheard-of attempt to smuggle himself along on an expedition. A stowaway certainly qualified as anomalous, but under the circumstances no problem could possibly be bigger than a Titan.

The signal had been fired by the leader of Team Seven, who was about twenty meters ahead. As soon as Kuklo looked his way, his eye opened wide. One of Team Seven’s soldiers was charging directly toward the Titan.

That’s… Kuklo could tell who it was even from behind. “Xavi…”

Letting out a war cry, brandishing his short sword, Xavi sped forth on his mount. Betraying nothing in the way of strategy, his assault amounted to a suicide attack.

He’s going to get killed… Matching power for power was no way to challenge a Titan. While traditional tactics did work against a three-meter-class, it assumed a cohort of trustworthy comrades. Defying a Titan alone was a sure way to die.

“So, what should we do?”

“There’s nothing we can do,” Rosa told Cardina. She seemed stunned by the unforeseen development, but Xavi’s death was a certainty if they did nothing.

“Damn it! I’m going to help him!” spat Kuklo, spurring his horse.

“What did I say about acting on your own?”

Rosa’s voice reprimanded him from behind, but Kuklo had made his decision and was on his way, and couldn’t stop now.

I promised, too. Sharle would grieve and mourn if Xavi died in battle. A despot of sorts, he’d been a constant source of hardship for Kuklo. Still, Xavi was Sharle’s only family, and she wouldn’t want to lose him.

Besides, being eaten by a Titan was the worst possible way to go. Regardless of any cause for resentment, Kuklo felt a moral obligation as a human being to help. Of course, the weak and helpless had the right to run away as fast as they could, but Kuklo had been granted the Vertical Maneuvering Equipment, which made him strong. He couldn’t allow himself to sit back and watch a Titan eat Xavi.

The rest of Team Ten seemed to agree; Kuklo heard the galloping of horses behind him. The other teams hesitated, perhaps unable to move and adapt on the fly like Team Ten. Rescuing one greenhorn acting on his own accord certainly didn’t justify endangering the entire corps. It was only because Team Ten was a living bundle of exceptions that it was able to act.

Reassured and emboldened by his comrades’ backing, Kuklo whipped his horse and hurried toward Xavi, who had already engaged the Titan. Doggedly attempting to aim at its weak spot and moving around it, he hadn’t challenged a Titan without at least some forethought. He was fighting to win. A Titan, however, was no opponent to be facing alone.

Xavi’s short sword sliced at its withered bough of a right arm. The Iron Bamboo sword’s sharp edge lopped it off from the elbow down, but the Titan didn’t falter. With its left arm it grabbed and plucked Xavi off of his mount and hoisted up his body.

“Aaaahh!!” a shriek, probably from the pain, escaped Xavi as the Titan popped open its long, ear-to-ear mouth.

I won’t make it in time… Pulling his controllers from their holsters, Kuklo placed them in his scabbards to extract a pair of single-edged swords. Next, he focused on the Titan’s torso. Can I do it?

But there was no time to think. Xavi’s life was now hanging by a thread.

Kuklo activated his controller’s lever, and an anchor shot out from the firing mechanism and burrowed into the Titan’s body, true to his aim. Though far less secure than a tree, with no other targets nearby he had to make do. In exchange, he’d approach the Titan via the shortest possible route.

Kuklo stood on his saddle and leapt into the air. Guided by the anchor, he pulled into range. He lopped off the Titan’s left arm with one swing of his single-edged blade, then landed on the ground and recovered his anchor. Xavi fell toward the ground together with the Titan’s arm.

Xavi was safe for now, but the Titan was by no means dead. While it now had no arms to grab them with, all it needed was its mouth, and even those arms were beginning to regenerate.