"Hey, hey, hey! Aren't you afraid little Eren will eat you first when he wakes up?" Hange teased, her grin wide enough to rival the sun.
"Eren won't eat us!" Mikasa and Armin shouted together, faces flushed with indignation.
Hange blinked, then chuckled. "What an enviable friendship~"
Turning toward Erwin, she said with mock seriousness,
"Alright, I'll sit here. If Eren turns into an uncontrollable Titan, I'll be right here to kill him instantly."
Carla's face darkened. "My son is not a Titan!" She shoved Hange aside angrily.
Before anyone could stop her, Mikasa lunged forward, grabbing Hange by the collar and landing a solid punch.
But Hange caught her fist easily. "Such terrifying strength! Is this really the power of a normal child?!" she exclaimed dramatically. "Where's Levi when I'm being attacked? Levi, save me!"
She looked around helplessly. Levi, of course, was already sitting in Zeke's carriage, utterly indifferent to the chaos.
"Mikasa," Carla hurried forward, pulling the furious girl into her arms. "Stop fighting! You're just a child, you can't beat an adult. Please, don't get yourself hurt!"
"Can't beat me?" Hange murmured thoughtfully, rubbing her chin. Then, with a sudden spark in her eyes, she stretched out a hand toward the sulking girl. "Hello, little friend~ Would you like to shake hands?"
Mikasa glared. "No."
Hange leaned closer, whispering conspiratorially, "If you shake hands with me, I'll give you a key to unlock this." She pointed at Eren's handcuffs.
Before she could blink, a small but firm hand grabbed hers.
Hange grinned. "Good! Now, push harder!"
Mikasa frowned, squeezing tighter.
"Harder!"
Mikasa's eyes narrowed. She pressed with all her strength, the veins in her small arms bulging.
"Yes! That's it! Use everything you've got, little girl!" Hange cried out gleefully.
Mikasa gritted her teeth, using every ounce of strength she had — the same strength that had once crushed the hands of men who killed her parents.
"Waaah!" Hange shouted in delight, the bones in her hand creaking.
"Alright, stop!" Carla quickly intervened, prying Mikasa away. She bowed in apology. "I'm so sorry! Mikasa has always been much stronger than other children. Please don't provoke her — she doesn't know her own strength!"
Hange shook out her stinging hands, red marks already forming. But her eyes were full of fascination, not anger. "Interesting… Tell me, has she always been this strong? Or did it happen suddenly?"
"One day," Mikasa said softly, "after my parents died. The firewood that used to be too heavy suddenly felt light. I can help Eren carry things now."
Hange smiled and handed her the small iron key. "I see~ Here you go."
Mikasa immediately crouched beside Eren and unlocked the first pair of cuffs. Then she turned back, glaring warily at Hange, her eyes shining like tempered steel.
Hange laughed. "You've suddenly become much cuter~ But I can't give you any more keys. Safety first, after all!"
She then turned to Armin, who had been watching quietly. "Hello, little boy~ What's your name?"
Armin straightened his back and said confidently, "Key."
Hange blinked. "…Excuse me?"
"I said, key," Armin repeated, dead serious.
Hange sighed. "Children shouldn't make so many demands on adults! That's not good behavior!"
"But why did Mikasa get a key for shaking hands, and I didn't?" Armin shot back. "Do you think I'm not good enough?"
Hange froze, utterly disarmed by his sharp tone. "Wh—what? That's not—"
"Afraid to shake my hand?" Armin tilted his head, smiling sweetly.
Hange's pride snapped. "Of course not!" She shoved the key into his hand.
Armin immediately tossed it to Mikasa, who caught it and unlocked Eren's knee restraints. Then he shook Hange's hand, introducing himself with perfect politeness. "Hello, I'm Armin Arlert, ten years old, and Eren's best friend."
Hange melted instantly. "Ohh~ What a polite little gentleman! Go on, use all your strength! Crush my hand!"
Armin smiled pleasantly. "Sorry, I'm not very strong."
Hange stared at him. "Huh?"
"I'm more of a thinker," Armin explained innocently. "Compared to Eren and Mikasa, I'm a little fragile."
Hange blinked, then groaned dramatically. "I've been tricked!"
Watching from the side, Erwin smirked. "A smart kid. He took the key before the handshake, ensuring victory even with no strength."
Then his expression darkened. "But Hange… I just put those cuffs on him. Why are you unlocking them again?"
Hange waved it off with a laugh. "Relax! He's still got the ones on his wrists~ Besides, this is all in good fun, right?"
Carla's hand shot out. "Give me the key, then."
Hange smiled apologetically. "Sorry, ma'am, this is a special event for children only. Adults aren't allowed to participate."
Carla's face fell. "Why not?! He's my son!"
"Because rules are rules~" Hange said, clasping her hands together innocently. Then she looked at her palms — the left perfectly fine, the right bright red from Mikasa's grip.
Her smile faded slightly.
Was that really the strength of a normal child?
"Ma'am," Hange asked suddenly, her tone more serious, "may I ask… have these two children ever received any kind of injection from Dr. Grisha before?"
Carla's eyes widened. "What do you mean by that?!"
The air in the carriage froze. Even the wheels seemed to creak more slowly.
Hange didn't answer — she simply watched Carla's reaction, her sharp scientist's mind spinning.
If Mikasa truly possessed superhuman strength…
Then what exactly had Dr. Yeager been doing in this quiet little town?