Concealed by the white mist, Annie used her ODM gear to break through the Survey Corps' encirclement.
Marco's gear had long since been disposed of by her.
The set she was wearing had been stripped from the corpse of a Soldier she killed on the right wing at the very beginning.
Annie had chosen it specifically, so it fit reasonably well.
Not only that... Annie took out the flare gun from her waist and loaded it with a green flare.
"Bang!"
A green trail of smoke rose into the sky.
Because of the ambush just now, she had lost track of the squad Eren was in.
This was her only way to try to lure them out.
"Bang!"
Not far away, another green flare rose, seemingly in response to her.
"Having only ever fought Titans their whole lives, they really have no sense of caution at all."
Annie tossed aside the flare gun, pulled up her cloak's hood emblazoned with the Wings of Freedom, and drew the twin blades at her waist.
She began to rapidly approach the direction wfrom whichthat flare had originated.
Soon, she spotted the squad that had deliberately slowed down specifically to wait for her.
Annie also saw Eren, surrounded in the middle of the squad.
She accelerated and pulled level with the squad from the side.
Someone in the team immediately noticed her.
"Captain Levi? No! Who are you?"
Annie kicked off a tree trunk, rapidly changing direction in mid-air to dash in front of the man. She swung her blade, slicing his throat, and then quickly vanished from everyone's sight.
After putting some distance between them, she observed that they hadn't lost their composure due to the loss. Instead, they decisively chose to abandon their comrade's corpse and continue escorting Eren away.
They must be elites of the Survey Corps.
She followed the squad in silence, knowing that she wouldn't be able to succeed with a sneak attack like that again.
Fine then, let me see your strength in dealing with Titans!
Annie bit her index finger, and in an instant, countless golden sparks of electricity overflowed from her body.
Responding to the call, a massive bolt of golden lightning struck down from the sky, hitting her with precision!
Countless bits of flesh and bone were transmitted to her through this golden lightning.
They perfectly formed a 14-meter-tall Female Titan.
"Boom!"
The Titan landed perfectly, and Annie began to sprint, continuing her hunt.
The speed of the Female Titan at full sprint was beyond what ODM gear could match; Annie quickly caught up.
The others also knew that running was futile.
Aside from Eren, the other three chose to step forward and intercept her.
Annie reached out with her right hand toward the first person to approach.
The opponent seemed to have anticipated this, instantly slowing down and retreating while black smoke billowed around them, obscuring Annie's vision.
Her hand grasped at empty air. Before Annie could react, two figures burst from the black smoke and slashed her eyes with lightning speed.
Her vision went completely dark. Annie stopped and retreated, protecting her nape with both hands as she leaned against a tree trunk.
Are these the elites from within the walls who deal with Titans?
They are indeed strong.
But the stronger you are, the more you will be bound by your past experiences.
Annie allowed them to slice the tendons in her shoulders and upper arms, concentrating her energy on regenerating her eyes.
It usually takes a minute for a Titan's eyes to recover; these guys surely know that.
But she could control it to recover only one eye, which wouldn't even take half a minute.
Her arms could no longer be raised, but Annie's right eye had already recovered.
Feeling a grappling hook pierce her neck, Annie instantly snapped her right eye open and bit down on the person who had already flown in front of her.
With a forceful snap of her jaw, she easily bit the person in two.
She spat out the lower half of the body, her right eye catching sight of a female Soldier retreating at a low altitude.
With her arms hanging limp, Annie leaned forward and sprinted, closing the distance instantly and crushing the woman to death with one foot.
Only one left... A grappling hook pierced her rear shoulder. Annie chose to directly harden the skin on her nape.
"Clang!"
The opponent's furious strike only shattered their own blades.
Annie sent the opponent flying with a high kick.
She looked up at Eren, who was rapidly approaching in the distance.
"Come on, Eren!"
"You shouldn't be the type of person who watches his comrades die for him and then runs away alone, right?"
Light enveloped Eren's figure.
Golden lightning connected heaven and earth, and a massive figure appeared within the light.
His furious roar echoed through the entire Forest of Giant Trees.
"What kind of Titan are you, exactly?"
Annie watched him charge straight at her, her expression devoid of any emotion.
"Could the Coordinate be within you?"
"It doesn't matter, though. I just need to take you back."
White steam rose from her wounds; Annie knew it would still take some time for her arms to recover.
Sidestepping the punch Eren threw as he charged, Annie landed a front kick squarely in his abdomen.
Eren tanked the hit without falling. Annie's expression shifted as she tilted her head again to dodge his fist.
Retreating to create distance, Annie barely managed to maintain her balance.
Eren's Titan body was clearly stronger than the Female Titan's; he could suppress her through pure strength alone.
Stall for time first, wait for the arms to recover.
Watching Eren charge again, Annie retreated while dodging.
Eren swung another punch. Annie dodged, and the fist struck the tree trunk behind her.
"Bang!"
Leaves showered down as Eren's right hand was completely ruined.
But Eren didn't stop; he spun and threw a left hook. Annie ducked, and his fist slammed into the tree trunk again.
With both of his hands useless, Annie kicked and broke Eren's right lower leg as he tried to kick her, then spun and kicked his chest, finally forcing him back.
Both sides stood still, staring at each other while waiting for their injuries to heal.
Her left eye was healed, her arms would soon be... Annie watched in shock as Eren charged again.
"How is his recovery speed so fast!"
But in just an instant, Annie calmed down.
Annie's footwork was steady as she retreated, bobbing her head left and right to dodge Eren's series of jabs.
Once her arms had recovered, Annie found an opening and struck his jaw with a hardened fist.
Annie's fist punched right through both of Eren's cheeks.
But this meant her punch had missed its mark.
Her expression changed. She shielded her abdomen with her left arm, but she was still sent flying by a full-power uppercut from Eren.
"Bang!"
As she hit the ground, Annie thought back to when she sparred with Lock.
It was just as brutal, but Lock was clearly more ruthless and precise than Eren.
She couldn't drag this out any longer; the Survey Corps was likely on its way back. Even if it meant exposing her identity, she couldn't hold back anymore.
She stood up and took her classic fighting stance.
The skin on the surface of her right shin was quickly covered with a layer of Hardening.
Ignoring the change in Eren's expression, Annie took advantage of his momentary daze and delivered a high roundhouse kick that sliced through his neck like a steel blade.
The headless Titan's body slumped to its knees. Annie walked over slowly and used her teeth to tear away the outer layer of the nape.
Eren's real body appeared in Annie's field of vision.
She bit down, taking his entire body into her mouth and holding him there carefully.
Eren Yeager had been successfully captured. Now, as long as she could run out of this forest, the mission would be a success.
She would be able to go back soon...
---
A/N: Advance Chapter Has Been Uploaded. Please Check It Out. It will really help me out and will keep me motivated to continue.
Support: patreon.com/Narrator_San