Chapter 116: The Breach, and the Chief Cadet's Solo Dance!
Eren shot straight for the first 3-meter class Titan squeezing through the breach. His speed was extreme. A flash of blades. SQUELCH!
Before the Titan could even see the city inside, a large, steaming chunk of its nape flew into the air. Its body pitched forward, crashing heavily onto the ground just inside the breach, sending dust flying. It never even had the chance to let out a full roar.
Then the second. The third.
Eren moved at high speed within the narrow breach, zipping back and forth, slashing. Every strike was impossibly fast, aimed directly at the weak spot. No wasted motion. The blades always followed the most efficient path. Chunks of nape-flesh were carved out and tossed aside, one after another. He controlled the pace of the slaughter, using his ODM gear to block the subsequent Titans from pouring in. The moment a Titan was about to step out of the breach, one foot landing inside the city... SHING! A thunderous strike would cut it down.
This wasn't a battle. It was a one-sided massacre. A deadly solo dance performed in the hopeless breach.
To the new cadets on duty, who had just witnessed the Colossal Titan break the Wall, Eren was like a god of war descended upon them. He alone was holding the massive gateway to hell shut.
"Hey… that guy…" Connie gaped, watching Eren cut down Titans like they were nothing, his brain almost frozen. "Is he… not scared at all? Those are Titans!"
Jean was pale, but more than that, he was just stunned. Is he really planning to hold this place by himself? Is he really planning to join the Survey Corps and fight more monsters outside the Walls? The realization made him dizzy.
Just as the new cadets were shocked by Eren's rampage, the sound of hissing gas and a roar cut through the air. "What are you recruits gawking at?! The Colossal Titan has appeared! The operation has begun!"
A member of the Garrison's advance squad landed in front of them, his voice echoing off the Wall, snapping the dazed young soldiers back to reality. "You! All of you, retreat to headquarters for assembly! Anyone who had contact with the Colossal, report the situation to command! That's an order! The advance squad will take over here!"
"Y-Yes, sir! Good luck, sir!" the recruits responded instinctively, preparing to fall back.
However, another dull roar and the thud of a heavy body collapsing came from the breach. SQUELCH!
Everyone's gaze, including the experienced Garrison soldier's, was drawn back to the lone figure fighting in the dust. This time, they got a clearer look.
In an almost anti-gravity aerial spin, Eren flew at high speed over the head of a 5-meter class Titan that was halfway through the opening. He twisted in mid-air, so fast he was just a blur, his dual blades flashing like silver lightning, cleanly severing the nape. Hot blood and flesh sprayed. The Titan's massive body fell forward lifelessly.
The instant he finished the cut, Eren did a mid-air stop and changed direction, completely ignoring inertia, to dodge the thick arm of a 4-meter class Titan swiping at him from the side. As he dodged, he twisted his torso, spun, and landed a backhanded slash. The second Titan collapsed.
The entire process was as fluid as water, dizzyingly fast, possessed of a brutal rhythm. Closing in, killing, evading, and counter-attacking—all in the same second.
A dead silence fell over the Wall, broken only by the heavy footsteps and muffled roars of more Titans in the distance, and the hiss of Eren's ODM gear.
Everyone was completely floored by the sight, which defied all reason.
The advance squad soldier's facial muscles twitched uncontrollably. His mouth hung open as he watched Eren effortlessly dispatch another Titan. He swallowed hard, unable to stop himself from muttering, "You've got to be kidding me…"
He whipped his head around, a look of someone seeing a ghost, at his equally stunned comrade. "That… was that really a new cadet from the Training Corps?!"
His comrade just nodded, his eyes glued to Eren's figure.
The soldier sucked in a sharp breath, his eyes blazing with an unholy light. He blurted out, "My God! Is that kid this generation's Levi?!"
"Levi?!" That name hit the soldiers' hearts like a tidal wave. Captain Levi! Humanity's Strongest Soldier! This kid, Eren, from their same graduating class, was just compared to Captain Levi?!
After the shock, the advance squad leader snapped back to reality. This was no time to be stunned. He knew better than anyone how critical the breach was. If the Titan flood broke through, all of Trost would fall. He understood the strategic value of this "monster recruit." With him here, they could actually hold this breach, or at least buy precious time.
"What are you all standing around for!" he roared again, his voice now hoarse with excitement. "Listen to my orders!"
"All cadets! That's an order! Retreat to HQ and report the situation! Now!"
"Everyone else! Prepare to fire! Aim for the Titans outside the breach!"
"Lay down covering fire! Stop them from getting close! Relieve his pressure!"
"Notify the supply team! Get to the depot, now! Bring all spare gas tanks and blades! You are on resupply duty for him!"
"The rest of you, with me! We'll set up a temporary defensive line on both sides of the breach! We hold this line with our lives and cover him until reinforcements arrive!"
The orders were clear, decisive. And he had confirmed it: the boy massacring Titans in the breach was this year's undisputed top graduate—Eren Jaeger. He'd only glanced at the name on a report before. He never expected him to be a monster of this caliber.
Eren paused slightly at the man's orders. He glanced back, his cold gaze falling on the soldier and on his own retreating comrades. Eren's face was blank, impassive. He didn't respond to the soldier's command. He ignored his comrades' looks. He simply turned back to face the dark, reeking breach. His dual blades, now slick with Titan blood, reflected a cold light. He adjusted his angle slightly, aiming for the next piece of prey about to crawl out of hell, and braced for the next wave.
The soldiers moved quickly under the command. Gunners aimed their cannons, and heavy shells whistled toward the outside of the breach, taking down a few Titans and effectively slowing the advance. The soldiers sent for supplies sprinted off. The rest moved to the flanks of the breach, quickly setting up a defensive line, ready to die holding their ground with their "new Levi."
Everyone moved with an unprecedented tension, resolve, and a hint of fanatical hope.
The retreating cadets stumbled, hearts pounding with fear, but the image of Eren toying with those terrifying Titans was now seared into their minds, impossible to erase. Fear was still spreading, but a strange, new thought was quietly taking root in the minds of some young soldiers.
Maybe… Titans aren't so scary after all?