Annie was startled. It was already too late to change her move—
Chen Si suddenly pulled back the force of his punch.
"With a face as pretty as yours, how could I possibly hit you?" he said with a bright grin.
A faint blush flickered across Annie's cheeks before quickly disappearing. Gritting her teeth, she twisted her body violently upward, spinning 180 degrees in midair and flinging Chen Si away.
Chen Si was caught off guard. Thinking the fight was already over, he reacted a split second too late and was thrown. In midair, he executed a backflip to absorb the force, landed in a one-handed crouch, then slowly stood up and spat out the blade of foxtail grass he'd been chewing.
The pose was undeniably cool.
"Chen Si is so handsome! And such a gentleman!" one female trainee sighed.
"Yeah! He's strong in combat too. A man like that makes you feel safe," another added.
Though the match was technically a draw, anyone with eyes could see that Annie had already lost the moment Chen Si pulled his punch.
"On the battlefield, you can't let beauty influence you," Reiner said, gripping Chen Si's shoulder like a disappointed elder brother.
"So that's his weakness… But Annie's hand-to-hand skills are really impressive," Eren muttered thoughtfully.
Chen Si rolled his eyes. What he didn't know was that, not far away, Mikasa's killing intent was already surging sky-high.
"I learned from my father," Annie said calmly. "But this kind of training is pointless. Fighting other people doesn't earn you any points."
"The only ones who really take it seriously are you honest types… and a few idiots."
Chen Si and Eren glanced toward Sasha and Connie.
Sure enough—
One was imitating a praying mantis punching. The other was practicing an eagle's stride.
"And only the top ten can enter the Military Police," Annie continued. "In this world, the more capable you are at fighting Titans, the further you get to stay away from them. Have you ever thought about how ridiculous that is? That's human nature."
Chen Si understood her meaning. He even agreed. But he still spoke slowly:
"What matters has never been the rules — it's people's choices. When the majority's choices run contrary to the rules, those choices become the new rules.
"You're right. The most capable people heading to the Military Police is absurd.
"But it's precisely that aspect of human nature that pushes soldiers to unleash their potential. They fight desperately for the chance to live better lives in the interior.
"And the people inside the Walls keep moving forward for freedom and a better future.
"When there's enough hope for tomorrow, even children and women would charge at Titans with kitchen knives. What we soldiers need to do… is bring that hope."
It was rare for Chen Si to speak so seriously.
Annie was shaken.
She thought about the power of hope. If everyone inside the Walls truly held onto hope, then the entire population would become soldiers — an unbeatable force.
Wasn't she here because of her father's hope, too?
She fell silent.
Eren, too, felt shaken. For the first time, he sensed the contradiction within the system.
Chen Si then added gently, a spring breeze smile on his face:
"Your father must be a thoughtful man. I'd love to meet him someday. Maybe we'd become good friends despite the age gap."
Annie froze.
She looked deeply into Chen Si's eyes. He met her gaze steadily.
"How about a bet?" he said with a smile. "That your father and I would get along. And that, aside from you, the rest of the top ten will all join the Survey Corps."
"What's the wager?" Annie asked quietly.
"If I win, you join me. If I lose, I owe you a favor."
"My father would be upset if I lost like that," she said coolly.
"Then this," Chen Si said calmly. "If I win, you join me. If I lose, you get a favor from humanity's future strongest soldier."
Annie paused.
Considering his record-breaking scores, the claim didn't sound entirely absurd.
She didn't fully understand what "join me" meant.
But she didn't refuse.
Silence — which meant agreement.
While Chen Si and Annie had been fighting, Mikasa had been watching from the shadows. At one point, she accidentally used too much force and sent another male trainee flying.
When she saw Annie throw Chen Si, anger flared.
When she heard the other girls praising him, she felt oddly pleased—
And even more furious.
Mikasa strode forward and stepped between them.
"I'll fight you," she said coldly to Annie.
Annie did not back down.
The trainees quickly gathered around. Two of the strongest female soldiers facing off — who would win?
"Who do you think will win?" Connie asked eagerly.
"Of course it's the beautiful Miss Ackerman," Jean said dreamily.
"Mikasa will win for sure!" Eren declared, unusually agreeing with Jean.
"Hard to say. Annie was extremely strong just now," Armin analyzed seriously.
"Chen Si, what do you think?"
He thought for a moment.
"Hmm… I think Instructor Shadis will win."
"???"
Everyone stared in confusion.
Just as Mikasa and Annie were about to clash—
"What are you brats doing sitting around?! Leonhart! Ackerman! Where are your squadmates?! All of you — two hundred laps! Now!"
Instructor Keith Shadis appeared out of nowhere, face like a demon's, roaring with fury.
Only then did everyone understand what Chen Si meant.
Later That Night – Training Corps Mess Hall
"Got it? If you use inertia like this, you reduce gas consumption. Not everyone can do it, but if you want to enter the Military Police, you should remember it," Jean was explaining confidently.
Mid-sentence, he glanced sideways—
And immediately covered his eyes in pain.
Mikasa was wiping sweat from Chen Si's forehead with a handkerchief.
The two had finished their two hundred laps first and were already eating.
"Ah! It would be such an honor to work beside the King!" Marco said sincerely after listening to Jean.
Jean smacked him on the back of the head.
"Cut it out. You just want a safer, more comfortable life in the interior."
"The interior? Five years ago, this was the interior," Eren said from the doorway after finishing his laps.
"Jean, livestock are comfortable anywhere. Why insist on the interior? You already live more comfortably than livestock," Eren said calmly as he joined Chen Si and Mikasa's table.
Reiner and the others couldn't help laughing.
"Isn't it ridiculous? Learning how to kill Titans just so you can avoid them?" Eren continued.
"What's the point of spouting crap like that now? If it benefits me, then this stupid policy should stay," Jean shot back.
At a nearby table, two fifteen-year-old girls whispered:
"What are they even arguing about?"
"No idea… sounds intense though."
Chen Si nearly spat his soup back into the bowl.
When did they start talking like that?
He realized — some of the slang and curses had spread from him. His modern phrasing had gradually been imitated by the 104th trainees. Some words he'd explained.
Others… he absolutely had not.
Even though no one fully understood them, they sounded forceful — so they stuck.
Eren suddenly grabbed Jean by the collar.
"Stop it, Eren!" Armin shouted.
"Stop," Mikasa said, calmly pulling them apart — then gently wiping soup from Eren's hand with the same handkerchief she'd used for Chen Si.
Jean had tolerated Mikasa's closeness with Chen Si.
But this?
He snapped.
"What the hell is your problem, you idiot?!" Jean yelled.
"Let go! You're going to tear my clothes!" Eren shot back.
They hurled half-understood, newly learned curses at each other with full conviction.
Chen Si's hand trembled slightly as he held his spoon.
Eventually, Eren realized the argument was meaningless. He saw a reflection of his former powerless rage.
Without warning, he executed the shoulder throw Annie had taught him.
Jean hit the floor.
"While you were slacking off, I trained hard to learn this. Can you even call yourself a soldier?" Eren said, standing over him.
Annie glanced sideways at Eren — her technique had worked.
Mikasa looked at him too — seeing that he'd grown.
Silence fell.
Then—
The mess hall door creaked open.
A face like a wrathful demon appeared in the doorway, eyes wide and blazing.