Hello, Drinor here. I'm happy to publish a new Chapter of Attack on Titan: A Warrior of Devils
If you want to Read the Following TWO Chapters, Search 'Patreon.com/Drinor' on Websearch
Chapter 31, and Chapter 32 are already available for Patrons.
Jaime's fingertips dug into the spongy Titan flesh as he clung to its shoulder, a morbid surfboard riding the waves of chaos. Wind whistled past his ears.
Fifteen—no, seventeen Titans now—lumbered through the forest toward where Annie's scream had come from.
Flashes of blue and green caught his peripheral vision—Survey Corps uniforms and cloaks streaming in the opposite direction, abandoning the center. Abandoning Annie.
The Titan behind him suddenly jerked its head, nostrils flaring as it caught his scent. Those dead eyes, usually vacant as an empty well, focused.
"Shit."
Not the most eloquent last word, but it would have to do.
Jaime fired his anchors into the nearest tree trunk, letting momentum carry him in a tight arc that narrowly missed the Titan's grasping fingers. Three years of training had made the ODM gear an extension of his body, but Kenny's lessons had made every movement a dance with death.
'Learn or die, brat. No third option.'
The memory of Kenny's voice was always there when death brushed close enough to kiss.
Safely perched on the high branch, Jaime looked down at the chaotic scene unfolding below. Approximately fifteen Titans had converged at the capture point, their massive bodies piling atop one another in a frenzy of feeding. At first, the writhing mass made it impossible to see what they were consuming, but then he spotted it—a slender, feminine arm being torn away, its pale skin unmistakable even from this distance, the same arm he had seen on Annie's Titan form.
His heart seized. "Annie..."
For one terrible moment, his mind went blank with fear. The image of Annie being devoured, her small body torn apart like...
Jaime shook his head violently, purple eyes narrowing as reason reasserted itself. Annie wasn't suicidal. Everything about her was calculated, precise—like her fighting style, like her rare smiles that she rationed so carefully they felt like victories when earned.
"I don't have a choice," she'd told him in the forest. Her voice had been firm, but her eyes had been fixed on something beyond him, beyond this mission. She intended to survive this.
His tactical mind clicked into gear, assessing the battlefield. That's when he saw them, the specialized cannons scattered throughout the trees and on the ground had fired not explosive shells but heavy-gauge steel cables—a trap. They'd immobilized the Female Titan, pinning her in place for extraction.
Jaime scanned the feeding frenzy below, understanding blooming with crystal clarity. Annie had been trapped, unable to move, with Survey Corps soldiers closing in on her location. In desperation, she'd let out that scream, calling Titans to her position. Not as allies, but as tools.
"You clever, ruthless girl," he whispered. "You risked your own life to escape."
But where would she go? Jaime's eyes traced the direction of fleeing Survey Corps members, then back to the oncoming wave of Titans from the north. Annie was too methodical to run blindly. She'd have calculated her options, just as he was doing now.
North was impossible—she'd run straight into Commander Erwin's forces. West and east were exposed, easily visible from high vantage points. That left only south, or perhaps southeast, where the forest grew denser and tracking would be more difficult.
Jaime felt a strange vibration in his chest, something beyond normal intuition. It reminded him of the day he'd awakened his strange power, when everything had suddenly sharpened like the world had finally come into focus.
"Alright, Annie," he murmured, rising to his feet and readjusting his remaining blades. They felt heavier than they should, weighted with what he might have to do with them. "Let's see if I know you as well as I think I do."
He fired his hooks into a distant trunk and launched himself forward, leaving the feeding Titans behind. The wind whipped tears from the corners of his eyes as he flew—from the speed, he told himself. Just from the speed.
Jaime moved southeast through the forest canopy, the ODM gear's gas hissing softly as he navigated between massive trunks. The distance between each anchor point was precise—never too far to risk a failure, never too close to waste fuel.
The forest had gone eerily quiet. No birds called, no animals rustled in the underbrush. Only the occasional distant crash of Titans still feeding at the capture site broke the silence.
He paused on a thick branch, closing his eyes to listen more carefully. Nothing.
Then it came—not a sound, but a sensation. A current running through his body like electricity, making the hairs on his arms stand up. The same heightened awareness he'd experienced during training when everything had suddenly slowed down around him. His instincts pulled him southeast.
There.
He propelled himself forward, the sensation growing stronger with each passing moment. After another minute of rapid travel, he spotted a figure standing in a small clearing between the trees. They were short, their Survey Corps cloak making identification difficult at this distance, but the way they held themselves was instantly recognizable.
The figure raised a flare gun skyward and fired.
Jaime landed on a branch thirty meters away, the wood barely creaking under his weight. "Annie," he called.
She whirled around, the hood of her cloak falling back to reveal pale blonde hair and piercing blue eyes. For a moment, neither moved.
"Annie," he said again, softer this time.
"Jaime," she answered, her voice carrying the same careful neutrality she'd always maintained around others. But he knew better—had learned to read the minute changes in her tone, the subtle shifts in her posture.
"Why are you here?" she asked, her hand still gripping the flare gun.
"I believe I owe you an apology," Jaime said.
Her eyebrows drew together slightly. "Your apology?"
A sad smile touched his lips. "You told me not to play hero. I'm afraid I can't help myself."
"You were always stubborn," Annie nodded, a flicker of fondness crossing her face before disappearing behind her usual mask.
Jaime took a careful step forward. "Why are you doing this, Annie?"
She backed away, matching his movement precisely. "I can't tell you that."
"Is it for your father?" Jaime asked quietly. "He's the only person you've ever spoken about with genuine affection."
Annie's eyes widened fractionally—enough confirmation for someone who knew her as well as he did. Her silence was more revealing than any words could have been.
"It's not too late," he continued, taking another careful step. "You've killed people, Annie. But if you surrender now, cooperate, share what you know—"
"I can't do that," she cut him off, her voice hardening. "I have my mission. My responsibilities as a Warrior."
Jaime paused. "Warrior? Not soldier?"
Annie's lips pressed into a thin line, but she offered no explanation.
"You should go," she said, her stance shifting subtly into a defensive position he recognized from their training days. "If we fight again, I won't hold back this time."
There was a moment of silence between the two; eventually, Jaime spoke. "This is why I love you, you know," Jaime said, the words falling between them like stones in still water, his words made her eyes widen in shock. "Your determination. Your fearlessness. The way you always spoke your mind." He shook his head slightly. "It was the most beautiful thing about you—what made you Annie. You were never like anyone else."
A single tear traced its way down his right cheek, but his voice remained steady. "But I am a soldier of humanity, Annie. And I will stop you from taking humanity's last hope."
Regret filled her face. Her right hand moved to the ring on her left, revealing the small blade hidden within. Before Jaime could close the distance between them, she slashed her finger.
Blood sprayed into the air, hanging suspended for a fraction of a second before golden lightning split the sky. The thunderclap that followed shook the forest as Annie's body disappeared in a blinding flash.
When Jaime's vision cleared, the Female Titan stood before him, fifteen meters of muscle and focused intent. Steam rose from her form as she settled into a familiar fighting stance—the same one Annie had taught him during late-night training sessions, adapted to her Titan's proportions.
Jaime fired his anchors into a tree twenty meters up, pulling himself to safety as he assessed his opponent. Her blue eyes—still Annie's eyes—tracked his movement with the precision he'd come to respect and fear.
"So this is your answer," he said, though he knew she couldn't respond. Or perhaps wouldn't. With Annie, it was sometimes hard to tell the difference.
He drew his blades, the steel catching the filtered sunlight. Four left. It would have to be enough.
The Female Titan's stance widened slightly, her weight shifting forward. Jaime recognized the preparation for a lunge. He'd seen it countless times in the training ring—usually right before she put him on his back.
This time, he wouldn't be caught unprepared.
The Female Titan lunged, her fist whistling through the air where Jaime had been a fraction of a second earlier. He twisted mid-flight, gas hissing from his ODM gear as he arced around her extended arm. His blades flashed, carving twin furrows across her bicep before he shot past.
Steam erupted from the wounds, obscuring his vision momentarily. Jaime reoriented himself, anchoring to a massive oak forty meters away. Through the dissipating steam, he could see Annie already turning to track him.
She's faster than before.
Jaime had enough time to think about his first encounter with Annie to know that she had been holding back against him during their first time; it seemed she was not holding back as much this time.
Jaime launched himself again, this time aiming for her shoulder. Annie anticipated the move, her massive hand swinging to intercept him. He adjusted mid-flight, releasing one anchor and firing it into a higher branch, altering his trajectory just enough to avoid her grasp. His remaining blade connected with her trapezius, cutting deep.
Instead of trying to grab him, Annie's fist slammed into the trunk of a nearby giant tree. The impact shattered the outer bark, sending wooden splinters exploding outward like shrapnel.
Jaime twisted his body, narrowly avoiding the largest fragments, but several smaller pieces caught him across his left side. One particularly sharp splinter sliced through his uniform and into his upper arm. He gritted his teeth against the flare of pain and kept moving.
Clever. Using the environment when direct attacks fail.
He circled higher, reassessing. Annie tracked his movement, her blue eyes never leaving him even as steam rose from her various wounds. Her right shoulder had already begun to regenerate, the muscle knitting itself back together. He needed to be more strategic.
He needed to exhaust her, to create an opening.
Jaime fired his anchors into parallel trees, using the tension to slingshot himself toward her exposed back. As expected, Annie spun with speed, her hand already rising to protect her nape. But that was exactly what he'd anticipated.
Instead of going for the killing blow, he slashed at her eyes, temporarily blinding her. Annie staggered back, one hand covering her regenerating eyes while the other remained fixed protectively over her nape.
Jaime pressed his advantage, cutting rapid, shallow wounds across her arms and torso. None were debilitating, but each required energy to heal. A war of attrition.
Annie recovered more quickly than he'd hoped. Her eyes cleared, fixing on him. She crouched slightly, then exploded upward, her hand reaching for a thick branch directly above her.
Jaime realized her intention a moment too late. Annie's fist closed around the massive branch and wrenched it free from the tree with a deafening crack. She swung the improvised weapon in a wide arc, forcing Jaime to dive sharply to avoid being crushed.
As he dropped, Annie's other hand shot out with perfect timing, nearly catching him. Her fingers brushed his cloak, tearing the fabric but missing his body by centimeters.
Too close.
He fired both anchors into the trunk of a distant tree, pulling himself out of her immediate reach. Annie didn't pursue. Instead, she placed her back against one of the larger trees, minimizing his angles of approach.
For several seconds, they remained in stalemate—Jaime perched high above, Annie in her defensive position below. Through the dissolving steam of her healing wounds, he could see her studying him, calculating just as he was.
Jaime noted with grim satisfaction that her regeneration had slowed slightly. The wounds on her arms and face were closing more gradually than the first ones he'd inflicted. But his own resources were limited—two blades remaining, and gas that wouldn't last forever.
He circled higher, searching for a new angle of attack. Annie tracked his movement, her posture tensed for his next approach. When it came, he struck not at her nape but at the hamstring of her right leg, severing the tendons with a precise cut.
Annie's leg buckled, forcing her to one knee. Jaime immediately redirected, coming around for her exposed flank. But even compromised, her reflexes were extraordinary. Her hand crystallized into a hardened blue shell an instant before his blades connected. The impact reverberated up his arms as his steel scraped ineffectively against the crystal.
The crystallization receded as quickly as it had formed, conserving her energy. Annie pushed herself back to her feet, steam pouring from her regenerating leg. Her movements were minutely slower now, the cumulative damage beginning to take its toll.
Jaime felt a similar fatigue creeping into his own muscles. The constant maneuvering, the precise control required to evade her attacks—it was draining his reserves. If the battle continued this way, it would come down to who faltered first.
Annie's fist suddenly slammed into another tree, this one directly above Jaime's position. He launched himself away as an entire section of the trunk splintered and fell, showering the area with debris. Through the falling wood and leaves, he glimpsed Annie already repositioning for her next attack.
We know each other too well, Jaime thought as he circled back around.
Eren Yeager
"What the hell is that?" Gunther's voice cut through the tense silence as the squad flew closer towards the fighting.
Ahead of them, the unmistakable sounds of combat echoed between the massive trees—the crash of splintering wood, the distinctive hiss of ODM gear, and the thunderous impacts of Titan movements.
Eld signaled a halt, raising his hand. The squad pulled their horses up short, listening intently.
"The Female Titan," Oluo whispered, his face paling. "I thought she was captured!"
"She must have escaped somehow," Petra said.
Eren pushed his horse forward, straining to see through the dense foliage. "Someone's fighting her," he said, his voice rising with recognition. "It's Jaime!"
"The prodigy from training?" Gunther asked, squinting in the direction of the combat.
"We have to help him," Eren insisted. "He can't take her alone!"
Petra grabbed his wrist. "Eren, no! Our orders are to get you safely to the extraction point."
"She'll kill him if we don't do something!" Eren wrenched his arm free.
"Eld," Petra turned to their acting commander. "We need to move now. The mission is to protect Eren at all costs."
Eld's eyes narrowed as he assessed the situation. "Petra, take Eren and head for the extraction point. Oluo, Gunther, and I will assist Jaime and defeat the Female Titan."
"That's not going to work," it took everything for Eren not to shout at them; he didn't want to appear like he was losing it. "Look at her. Really look. She's regenerating every wound he inflicts. You think three more soldiers will make the difference? You need my Titan form."
"Your control is still unstable," Gunther pointed out. "The last thing we need is two rogue Titans in this forest."
"Oh please," Oluo scoffed, folding his arms. "The brat can barely throw a punch without falling over. He'd just get in the way."
Eren's eyes flashed dangerously. "Why don't you trust me?"
This made the others go quiet.
"When she was chasing us earlier," Eren continued, his voice gaining strength, "I wanted to transform. To fight. But I followed your orders instead. I put my life in your hands because you asked me to trust you." His fists clenched at his sides. "Now I'm asking you to trust me."
Gunther and Petra exchanged uncertain glances. Oluo looked away, uncharacteristically quiet.
"He's right," Eld said finally. "We're asking him to be a soldier when it's convenient, then treating him like a child when it's not. That's not how a squad works."
"But Captain Levi said—" Petra began.
"Captain Levi isn't here," Eld cut her off. "I am. And I say we fight together." He turned to Eren. "Can you control it? Truly?"
Eren met his gaze steadily. "Yes."
"If you lose control, I'll cut you out myself," Oluo warned.
"Then let's move," Eld said, drawing his blades. "Petra, left flank. Gunther, right. Oluo, with me for the initial distraction. Eren, transform once you see the opportunity and hit her with everything you've got."
As they prepared to launch, Petra caught Eren's arm one last time. "Don't make us regret this trust," she said quietly.
Eren nodded, a fierce determination in his green eyes. "I won't."
With a synchronized hiss of gas, Levi Squad launched from their position, blades gleaming in the filtered sunlight as they moved to join the battle.
Jaime
Jaime grunted as he yanked a particularly deep splinter from his shoulder. Blood seeped through his torn uniform, but the pain was manageable—a minor distraction compared to the increasingly complex battle calculations running through his mind.
He perched on a high branch, catching his breath as he assessed his opponent. Annie's Titan form showed signs of fatigue, her left arm hanging slightly lower than before, steam rising from dozens of intersecting wounds. She was still dangerous, but her movements had become more precise, more economical—conserving energy where she could.
This cat and mouse game can't continue indefinitely.
Movement in his peripheral vision confirmed what he'd suspected—reinforcements had arrived. Their green cloaks identified them as Survey Corps, specifically a small squad. He recognized Levi's handpicked team and... Eren.
Annie hadn't noticed them yet, her eyes fixed solely on Jaime. Good.
He launched himself directly at her. As expected, her hands came up to grab him, her full attention narrowing to track his trajectory.
She never saw Eren's Titan form coming from her right flank.
The punch connected, catching Annie squarely in the jaw. The impact sent her massive body crashing through two ancient trees before she hit the ground, sending tremors through the forest floor.
Jaime altered his course, swinging wide to avoid the falling debris. He landed beside Petra, who'd positioned herself on a branch overlooking the battle.
"Are you alright?" Petra asked, her eyes quickly assessing his injuries.
"I'm fine," Jaime replied, wiping blood from a cut above his eye. "But she's stronger than she looks. Watch the crystallization—it can shatter blades."
Below them, Annie was already regaining her footing, her blue eyes narrowing as she evaluated the new threats. Eren's Titan roared, charging forward with more fury than finesse. Behind him, Eld and Oluo circled to flank position while Gunther approached from above.
Annie sidestepped Eren's clumsy punch, using his momentum against him. As he stumbled forward, she delivered a precise kick to the back of his knee, sending him sprawling. In the same fluid motion, she spun to face Gunther's approaching attack.
"She's keeping Eren at a distance," Jaime observed. "She knows his inexperience makes him vulnerable."
Petra nodded grimly. "And she's avoiding letting us get too close to her nape."
They watched as Annie systematically neutralized each threat. When Oluo slashed at her hamstring, she hardened the area seconds before impact, shattering his blades. When Eld coordinated a simultaneous attack with Gunther, she ducked lower than should have been possible, causing them to narrowly avoid colliding.
A fatal error occurred below. Gunther, attempting to capitalize on an apparent opening, swung too close to her right hand. Annie's fingers closed around him.
"No!" Petra cried out.
Annie squeezed Gunther's lower body, the sickening crack of his leg bones audible even at a distance. Then she flung him away like discarded trash. His body hit a tree trunk and fell limply before his ODM gear caught, leaving him hanging unconscious.
Something in Petra snapped. With a scream, she launched herself directly at the Female Titan, all tactical consideration abandoned in favor of raw fury. Her blades flashed in wild arcs, scoring superficial cuts across Annie's forearm as she defended.
"Petra, don't—" Jaime started, but she was beyond hearing.
Annie's counterattack was inevitable. As Petra exhausted her initial burst of rage-fueled strength, a massive fist rose to swat her from the air.
Eren's Titan intercepted the blow meant for Petra, his shoulder taking the impact with a sickening crunch. The fury in his green eyes intensified as he grabbed Annie's arm, attempting to hold her in place. She twisted free, crystallizing her knuckles before delivering a devastating punch directly to Eren's face.
The impact sheared away most of his Titan's head, leaving a grotesque, steaming mass of exposed tissue. Eren's body slumped forward, temporarily incapacitated as his Titan began the slow process of regeneration.
With Eren down and Gunther out of commission, Annie turned her attention to Petra, who had retreated to a nearby branch. The Female Titan's eyes narrowed, arm drawing back for a strike that would shatter the tree.
Jaime fired his anchors into Annie's shoulder, using her own body as a swinging point to build momentum. As her fist began its forward motion toward Petra, Jaime slashed deeply across her bicep, severing enough muscle to disrupt the attack's force.
Annie's fist still connected with the tree, but at reduced strength. The trunk cracked but held, giving Petra time to escape to a higher position.
Eld and Oluo regrouped around Eren's regenerating form, their expressions grim as they assessed the deteriorating situation. Four experienced soldiers and a Titan shifter, and they were barely holding their own against a single opponent.
Jaime landed beside them, breathing heavily. "We need a new strategy," he said. "Conventional attacks aren't working."
As he spoke, Annie shifted her stance, preparing for what looked like a final, decisive assault. Her eyes scanned their diminished group, calculating her own odds.
That's when Jaime heard it.
The sound registered with Annie a fraction of a second too late. She whirled, instinctively crystallizing the nape of her neck as a dark blur shot past her shoulder.
Jaime seized the momentary distraction, launching himself directly at her face. His blades connected with her right eye. Annie recoiled, one hand rising to protect her damaged eye as she tried to capture him with the other.
Her fingers closed on empty air as Jaime pivoted midair, firing his anchors into a nearby trunk and pulling himself out of range. Through the steam rising from her wounded eye, Annie caught a glimpse of the new threat—Captain Levi, moving so fast he seemed almost to disappear between tree trunks.
Before she could track him, a flash of steel sliced across her left eye, blinding her completely. Annie staggered backward, both hands now raised defensively as steam poured from her ruined eyes.
"Her nape is still crystallized," Levi stated flatly as he landed beside Jaime. "Conventional extraction won't work."
Jaime watched as Annie's mouth began to open wide, her head tilting back slightly. "She's going to scream," he realized. "Call more Titans."
Levi was already moving, his ODM gear propelling him in a tight spiral around her throat. His blades flashed, cutting through her throat. Annie's attempt at a scream emerged as a wet gurgle as Levi severed her Titan's vocal cords.
Jaime's eyes fixed on Annie's mouth, still partially open as she struggled to produce sound. "Yes," he said. "If we can't get her out through the nape..."
He didn't finish the sentence, already firing his anchors toward her face. Using the momentum of his swing, Jaime shot directly into the Female Titan's mouth, narrowly avoiding her teeth as he passed her lips.
"Annie!" he shouted, the sound echoing in the cavernous space of her Titan's throat. "Come Out!"
He slashed furiously at her throat like a beast, cutting more muscle, tissue, and meat. Through the steam and gore, he caught a glimpse of fabric—Annie's uniform.
"I found you," he whispered.
Jaime grabbed the material and pulled with all his remaining strength. There was resistance, then a sickening tearing sound as Annie's human form came free from the dissolving Titan flesh.
They fell together through the open mouth of the collapsing Titan, Jaime twisting midair to absorb the impact as they hit the ground below. Annie rolled away from him, disoriented but still conscious.
Jaime moved fast. His blade flashed twice, and Annie's hands fell to the ground, cleanly severed at the wrists. Her scream of pain was real and human.
"I'm sorry," Jaime said softly, looking down at her.
"Don't apologize to the enemy," Levi scoffed as he landed beside them. Without hesitation, he punched Annie's temple, rendering her unconscious. "You did well," he added, giving Jaime an appraising look. "Unorthodox approach, but effective."
The Captain turned to the remaining members of his squad. "Eld, secure the prisoner. Petra, help Gunther. Oluo, check on Eren. We move immediately." His eyes returned to Jaime. "Mission accomplished. Let's go home."
As they prepared to depart, Jaime looked down at Annie's unconscious form, her severed hands already beginning to steam as they slowly regenerated. He had won, had done his duty as a soldier of humanity. So why did victory feel so hollow?
The Female Titan's massive corpse continued to dissolve, steam rising into the forest canopy like a funeral pyre.
Note: The reason why Annie was able to fight three from Levi Squad and Eren in his Titan form is because Annie, in this story, does not underestimate them. Annie, in the Manga, until she faced Levi Squad, all the others from Survey Corps, she killed them all easily, so I think in the Manga, she was not paying much attention, thinking it would be easy, until they kicked her ass, and she barely won against them, then Levi Solod her and he would have won if it wasn't for Mikasa. In this story, because Jaime fought her and defeated her in their first encounter, sure, she was not giving it all, but he still showed her that she cannot take this easy; otherwise, she can lose, so in this fight against Eren and three from Levi Squad, she knew right away to give it all.
At least that's what I think. I might be wrong, but this is why Annie was not defeated right away when Eren and the Levi Squad entered the picture.
If you want to Read the Following TWO Chapters, Search 'Patreon.com/Drinor' on Websearch