At the critical moment, Chen Si exhausted every ounce of strength left in his body. A faint arc of electricity flickered in his eyes as he burst forward, his fist smashing viciously into the tall man's jaw.
The tall man had been standing by the door watching. The instant the fat trafficker went down, he had thrown a punch at Chen Si. Chen Si shoved the incoming arm aside with his left hand and drove his right fist up into the man's jaw. The tall man collapsed backward onto the ground, his fate unknown.
Chen Si had spent all his strength. The backlash from overusing lightning struck him hard.
Damn it… there's still one left…
He fell to the floor, eyes fixed desperately on Mrs. Ackerman.
Mrs. Ackerman thought Chen Si had been struck by the fat man's punch. The ax-wielding trafficker was startled and reached toward Chen Si.
Chen Si tried to stand, but his body would not respond. His consciousness began to blur.
Mikasa stood frozen, terrified and helpless, tears filling her eyes.
Seeing this, Mrs. Ackerman struggled desperately and bit down hard on the ax man's hand, tearing flesh. He cried out in pain, eyes turning bloodshot, and swung his axe in rage.
The blade fell.
Mrs. Ackerman's body trembled and collapsed to the floor. Blood poured from her mouth. Even in her final moments, her eyes remained fixed on Mikasa—filled with hope and regret.
Tears fell onto the bloodstained floor.
Before losing consciousness completely, Chen Si saw Mrs. Ackerman's lifeless body… and Mikasa's hollow eyes.
The light in them was gone.
Overwhelmed by pain and deep regret, Chen Si blacked out.
Mikasa noticed Chen Si collapse. A faint spark returned to her eyes.
The ax man bound both Chen Si and Mikasa with rope. He shook the unconscious fat man awake, while their other companion remained unresponsive.
Seeing the Ackermans dead, the fat man shouted, "Why did you kill the woman? She could've sold for a good price!"
"So what? We've got an extra Oriental boy now," the ax man replied carelessly.
"That kid's strange. Does he have a weapon?" the fat man asked warily.
"Weapon my ass. Just strong. You were careless. Kids raised deep in the mountains are wild," the ax man said dismissively.
He hadn't noticed the burn mark on the fat man's neck. If he had, he wouldn't have spoken so lightly.
"Is that guy dead?" the ax man asked, glancing at their unconscious companion.
The fat man checked his breathing. "Still alive. But he probably won't talk or eat properly again."
He cast a wary glance at the "unconscious" Chen Si.
(Chen Si was actually just sleeping.)
The two traffickers relocated Mikasa and Chen Si to another cabin, dragging their half-dead companion along.
Not long after they left, Grisha Yeager and his son Eren Yeager arrived at the Ackerman home.
Grisha knocked on the door.
"Mikasa is the girl who lives here. There aren't many children around—try to get along with her," he told Eren.
"Mikasa? That depends on her attitude," Eren replied stubbornly.
"Eren, that's why you only have one friend," Grisha sighed helplessly.
"No one home? Mr. Ackerman? It's Doctor Yeager."
A metallic scent reached his nose.
Blood.
Grisha pushed the door open.
What greeted him was a massacre.
"Father? What's wrong?" Eren asked.
Grisha checked their breathing.
"They're gone… Eren, did you see a little girl named Mikasa nearby?"
Then he ordered firmly, "Stay put. I'll get the Military Police to help search. Wait at the foot of the mountain. Do you understand?"
Eren's pupils trembled. For the first time, he was confronting the darkness of this world.
Meanwhile, inside the traffickers' hideout—
"Can we really sell these two? We killed their parents just to bring them here," the ax man muttered.
"Look at their faces carefully," the fat man replied.
The ax man kicked Mikasa onto her back, inspecting her. "Not bad. But she's just a kid. Not my type."
"I don't care what you like," the fat man snapped. "They're Orientals. Long ago, humanity had many races. Her family descended from the Oriental clan that fled inside the Walls. Take them to the Underground in the capital and auction them to the nobles. Most Orientals are nearly extinct. They'll fetch a high price."
"The father didn't look Oriental. She's not pure-blooded," the ax man sneered.
The fat man stomped angrily. "The truly valuable one was the mother! And you killed her out of fear!"
"She fought back! She bit me!" the ax man retorted defensively.
At that moment, the boy lying on his side opened his eyes.
Chen Si was awake.
After sleeping, his strength had fully returned. His mind was sharp. He now understood—his lightning's side effect was simply exhaustion. Sleep restored him completely, without lasting harm.
His gaze hardened.
In this world, killing was not a sin.
It was survival.
He glanced at Mikasa. She was conscious, eyes empty.
Pain stabbed his heart.
Killing intent rose within him.
"Anyone here?"
The door creaked open.
A familiar voice.
Eren.
Chen Si briefly wondered why he had no language barrier—everything sounded like Japanese, yet he understood it effortlessly. Was he speaking Chinese or Japanese? He didn't know. It didn't matter.
The traffickers stiffened.
The ax man shoved open the door.
"Brat! What are you doing here?!"
"I—I got lost in the forest…" Eren said, tears welling.
So this is Eren's first kill, Chen Si thought. I won't steal it from you.
The ax man tried to coax him.
"Don't be afraid. There are wolves in the forest. Stay with your uncles and—"
Before he could finish, a knife plunged into his chest.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
"Die, you piece of trash," Eren snarled.
In the same instant, Chen Si snapped the ropes and lunged at the seated fat man. The wooden floor exploded beneath him. He struck with a blade-like chop to the neck.
Under full force, his hand pierced straight through flesh.
The fat man clutched his spraying throat, unable to comprehend what had happened. He collapsed, writhing, suffocating.
Eren rushed forward and stabbed him twice more.
"Die! You monster! Die!"
"Damn, that's messy," Chen Si muttered, wiping blood from his hand against the wall.
He rushed to untie Mikasa.
"It's alright. Don't be afraid. I'm here."
He hugged her tightly.
"Hey! You're scaring my sister!" Chen Si snapped at Eren.
"I'm Doctor Yeager's son. You're Mikasa, right? You've seen my father."
Then he looked at Chen Si. "And you?"
"I'm Mikasa's brother. Her guardian now," Chen Si replied.
"Guardian?" Eren frowned.
Mikasa stirred.
"Brother… there's one more!"
Of course there is, Chen Si thought. In the original story, Mikasa awakens her Ackerman power here. Should I let it happen? If her bloodline doesn't awaken, she won't be able to protect herself. This world won't allow her to remain innocent.
At that moment, a tall man emerged from the next room and seized Eren by the throat.
"You little brat! You did this?!"
He squeezed hard.
"Mikasa," Chen Si said, his back to her, "in this cruel world, fighting is the only way to survive. They killed Uncle and Auntie. They're scum. Let's fight. Let's struggle to live in this damned world."
Even as Eren choked, he felt the weight of those words—and shouted the phrase that would define his life:
"Tatakai!" (Fight!)
Mikasa trembled.
They killed Father and Mother.
I have to live.
I have to protect Brother.
She picked up the knife, hands shaking.
"I… I don't think I can…"
Chen Si placed his hand over hers, gently guiding her grip, steadying the blade in her trembling fingers.