Hometown Trio

After leaping down from the Abnormal Titan, Xu Yue looked toward the trail again. Hmm, there were signs of the Armored Titan being active nearby. Was it Reiner and the others?

Xu Yue also wanted to recruit the Hometown Trio, who could transform into Titans, into the Survey Corps.

Although they had been indoctrinated by Marley, and had come here to take away the Founding Titan.

They were still at the age when they were most malleable.

According to the story, after hiding their identities and training for several years, they had already begun to waver internally, even developing something close to split personalities.

So long as he wielded the hoe well enough, the chances of recruiting them were not low.

And besides…

Even in the worst-case scenario, he could distribute their Titan powers to others in the Survey Corps, just as Armin would later inherit the power of the Colossal Titan!

Of course, if he could avoid taking that step, Xu Yue did not want to waste such excellent fighting forces.

"More of you? You’re getting a little annoying."

Not long after he had killed the fastest Abnormal Titan, several ordinary Titans had already arrived and surrounded Xu Yue.

Their towering bodies, several stories tall, blocked out the sunlight. Xu Yue raised his unfocused gaze and swept it over them.

Titans were powerful. Even a small army of ordinary people could be scattered by one.

Their strength far surpassed his own.

But unfortunately, they were far too slow and clumsy.

If they could not hit him, then no matter how great their strength was, it meant nothing!

He sidestepped the swipe of a seven-meter Titan. In the next instant, its hand broke away and flew into the air, sliced into fragments.

Then Xu Yue moved like an agile black cat, darting and leaping among the Titans. Without relying on the Omni-directional Mobility Gear at all, he used only his footwork and jumps to move swiftly and kill at extreme speed!

Leap, spring, shave, slice, slash!

It all flowed together in one seamless motion.

By the time Levi and the other two arrived to rescue him, only several Titan corpses had been added to the ground.

And the outcome of their contest no longer mattered.

The number of Titans the three of them had killed together was probably about the same as what Xu Yue had killed alone!

Was the Survey Corps strong?

Strong!

To newcomers, the Survey Corps possessed overwhelmingly superior abilities.

But their greatest strengths were agility and mobility. With the Omni-directional Mobility Gear, as long as the terrain was suitable, every ordinary Survey Corps member could achieve speed comparable to a Chunin.

Yet agility alone did not equal combat strength or killing efficiency. Generally speaking, their main goal was still to avoid Titans.

And they relied too heavily on the Omni-directional Mobility Gear and the terrain.

If he disregarded gas consumption and went all out, Levi’s short-term Titan-killing efficiency would not actually be lower than Xu Yue’s.

But clearly, Xu Yue, who could expend gas without restraint and still maintain efficient kills with his own abilities after running out, held an absolute advantage in endurance.

"You won this time."

Standing before Xu Yue, Levi still wore that cold expression. A loss was a loss, and Levi’s pride would not allow him to deny it.

Even Borchart had nothing to say in rebuttal. He only stared at Xu Yue as though looking at a monster, a trace of fear in his eyes.

Hey, hey, I think I offended this guy. He won’t hold a grudge, will he?

"Haha, not really. We both killed fourteen. Let’s call it a draw."

Xu Yue laughed freely, as if he did not care much about winning or losing.

"Huh? Really? You killed fourteen too? Then we really are tied."

After realizing this, Borchart spoke with a hint of delight.

Although there were three of them against one of him, at least having the same number on paper made them look a little better.

But Petra’s expression changed.

How did he know they had killed fourteen?

Did he still have the spare attention to watch them?

Perhaps even his total number of kills had been deliberately…

No, no, that could not be it. She had watched his movements in the square. These Titans that had surrounded him could not possibly have been controlled by him. It must have been a coincidence that their numbers matched.

Otherwise, he was far more terrifying than he had already appeared!

This was no longer merely a matter of strength…

"Then it’s settled. The outcome is a draw. In that case, I won’t interfere with you in daily life, but whenever I need you, you must obey me unconditionally."

Xu Yue casually glanced at the three of them and simply stated his thoughts.

"We need to ask Commander Erwin about this."

Petra honestly spoke for the three of them.

"No problem. You can head back."

Xu Yue waved it off, indicating that he did not mind. Then, as if remembering something, he asked.

"Oh, do you have any gas canisters left?"

"Oh, yes. I still have some spares."

Petra pulled out two gas canisters from behind her and handed them to Xu Yue. The three of them had always worked together to kill with the least possible consumption, otherwise their total would certainly have been higher.

In her eyes, Xu Yue probably wanted to use the Omni-directional Mobility Gear to return to the wall.

"Thanks. You go back first. I still have something to do."

After taking the gas canisters, Xu Yue raised them and waved at the three.

"Huh? Then where are you going?"

Petra was a little dumbfounded. So many people were waiting on the wall for the result, yet he was just going to disappear?

But before she could finish, Borchart tugged at her and whispered into her ear.

"What are you worried about him for? Do you really think this guy would run into danger here?"

After hearing that reminder, Petra froze, feeling as if her worldview had been shattered.

That was true. Even someone as strong as the Corporal did not dare remain in an area where Titans were active for too long, but this man before her, who did not seem to care much about gas supplies, appeared to be a complete exception.

Even in Titan territory, as long as he did not deliberately seek death, it seemed he could still move around normally…

"There are a few kids I need to find. I’ll be bringing them into the corps too."

As Xu Yue walked toward the edge of the square, he gave them a brief explanation.

That left them rather puzzled.

Looking for people?

Since Wall Maria had fallen, there were probably only a handful of survivors left, let alone children, judging by his tone.

Still, forget it. This advisor was someone they could not understand to begin with, and his strength was enough to command their respect!

The Survey Corps was proud, but they were also more easily won over by those stronger than themselves.

For now, the purpose of Xu Yue’s contest had been perfectly achieved…

Inside a dilapidated, abandoned house, three boys and girls around ten years old were quietly discussing something in a corner.

One was a kid with the face of an uncle who had grown up wrong, one was a blonde little girl with a cold expression, and one was a freckled boy who looked honest but occasionally stole glances at the blonde girl.

They were the Hometown Trio led by Reiner!

Reiner Brown, inheritor of the Armored Titan; Bertholdt Hoover, inheritor of the Colossal Titan; and Annie Leonhart, inheritor of the Female Titan!

In the story, after joining the 104th Training Corps, they had also graduated among the top five with outstanding results!

Although they deliberately kept their voices low, their heated argument could still be sensed.

"Reiner, have you forgotten our objective? Why are you being so hesitant?"

"Why are we still here? We should have infiltrated beyond the second wall long ago."

Annie and Bertholdt both seemed doubtful of Reiner’s decision.

They had received two missions. One was to exterminate the humans here, but the other had even higher priority: bringing back the Founding Titan!

Thus, after breaching the first Wall Maria, they had not pressed their advantage and destroyed Wall Rose. Instead, they had planned to blend in with the refugees, use this rare opportunity to obtain legal identities.

Then they would find a way to investigate information about the Founding Titan.

Yet for some reason, after Reiner, who had disappeared for several days, found them again, he kept urging them to hide and move about as though fleeing terrifying pursuers. Reiner had also been severely injured at the time.

If not for the special physique of a Titan inheritor, he probably would not have survived.

Who knew who had injured him so badly.

"Three extremely powerful humans had been hunting me all the way before. But I should have shaken them off now."

After a moment of silence, Reiner did not answer directly and instead brought up another matter.

When he had hidden in the basement, he had also been one of Yan Jun’s group’s targets for extermination. He had only managed to preserve his life after struggling with everything he had.

"Powerful humans? Those people who fly around with that equipment, the ones called the Survey Corps? But why should we be afraid when the three of us are together? And didn’t you shake them off?"

Bertholdt looked confused.

"It’s not just that. There’s an even more troublesome person, and he’s very likely active within the walls. He also knows of our existence and identities. We cannot take the risk."

"Knows us? How is that possible! Could he be one of the Resistance Army?"

Bertholdt was astonished.

Annie, on the other hand, wore an icy expression.

"Then find him and kill him."

It seemed that killing carried no psychological burden for her at all. She did not look like a girl of around ten years old.

"Girls shouldn’t keep talking about fighting and killing. Be careful, or no one will marry you."

At that moment, however, a voice came from above.

On the edge of the opening in the roof of the abandoned house, a handsome figure wearing Omni-directional Mobility Gear had appeared at some point. He looked down at the three of them with a smile…