Chapter 87: Armin's Magical Female Titan!
Wall Rose, The Plaza.
Rubble was scattered everywhere. The last rays of the setting sun shone through shattered windows, casting dappled shadows on the ground. The air was filled with dust, the faint smell of smoke, and a strange, magical aura.
Eren and Levi had Annie cornered in the center of the plaza. The green and blue magical glows still lingered around them, not yet fully dissipated. The hooks of their ODM gear were deeply embedded in the surrounding broken walls, a testament to the intensity of the recent chase.
Annie was panting, the ice-crystal light of her armor flickering. Her eyes were exhausted but held a fierce resolve.
I just want to go home.
That single thought sustained her as she desperately searched for an opening, besieged by two of humanity's strongest fighters.
"Annie!" Eren's voice was distorted with anger. "You still have the nerve to talk about going home?!"
Levi said nothing. His dead-fish eyes held only pure, unadulterated killing intent. Action was his only language.
Hange had already used her ODM gear to move to the top of a relatively intact building. She held a pair of binoculars, her expression one of fanatical focus, as she recorded this unprecedented sight: humans transformed into Magical Girls, engaged in a battle that defied all logic.
Just then, a figure stumbled out from the shadows at the edge of the plaza. It was Armin. He was still in his Survey Corps uniform, his face covered in sweat, looking extremely anxious. His gaze darted between Eren, Levi, and Annie, finally settling on Annie.
"Armin?" Eren paused, his anger still simmering. "What are you doing here? It's dangerous!"
Levi shot him a glance, his brow furrowing almost imperceptibly.
When Annie saw Armin, a complex emotion flickered in her eyes for a split second before she became wary again.
"Annie…" Armin's voice trembled. He looked at his former comrade, now his enemy. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, it came out as a pained question.
"Why… are you running away? You killed so many people! Do you think you can just walk away from it all?!"
His tone was accusatory, confused, and filled with the pain of being betrayed by someone he had trusted.
But it was just a pretense.
However, his words resonated with Eren's own fury. "You hear that, Annie?! Even Armin is saying it!"
Annie remained silent, just tightening her crystal-clad fists.
Armin walked toward her, step by step, his eyes filled with an internal struggle. He looked as if he wanted to stop her, to bring her to justice for their fallen comrades. But his steps were hesitant, as if a great battle was being waged within him.
"Stay, Annie," he said, his voice echoing in the empty ruins. "Face your judgment. It's the only way you'll survive."
Just as he was about to reach her—everything changed.
Armin stopped abruptly, raised his right hand, and bit down hard on his own thumb.
"Armin?!" Eren stared in shock.
Levi's pupils contracted.
Annie's face was a mask of disbelief.
BOOM—!!
A blinding, sea-blue light exploded from Armin's body. It was completely different from the golden lightning of a Titan transformation. This light was purer, more focused, yet it contained an even more dangerous energy. A pillar of light shot into the sky, dyeing the setting sun a strange, ethereal blue. A terrifying wave of energy swept out in all directions.
The dust and light slowly settled. A massive figure now stood between Annie and the others.
A fifteen-meter class Titan. Its silhouette was strikingly similar to Annie's former Female Titan form.
But what was that?! The Titan's body wasn't covered in flesh or hardened skin. It was covered in a bizarre "outfit" made of pure, sea-blue energy. A giant, light sea-blue dress top, a giant white pleated skirt, giant sea-blue short boots—there was even the outline of a giant, energy-construct beret on its head. Golden energy trim flowed across the "outfit," emitting a soft yet powerful glow.
"What the hell is that thing?!" Eren was completely bewildered, the green magical light around him flickering wildly. He had seen Armin bite his thumb, seen the light, seen the Titan—
"Armin… turned into… the Female Titan? A Titan wearing a dress?! A Magical Female Titan???"
Levi's face darkened. "Is that how Annie was able to transform before?" The power of the Female Titan… the power of a Magical Girl… It seemed Armin had used that "contract" to take it from her.
"Oh my god!" Hange trembled with excitement in the distance, the tip of her pen nearly piercing through her notebook. "Titan power! And an outfit made of energy?! Is it a fusion? An overlay? Or a completely new type of mutation?!"
Annie stared up at the massive, familiar-yet-alien being before her. Shock, understanding, and bitterness swirled in her eyes. She could clearly feel the power of the Female Titan, once her own, now radiating from this "Armin Titan."
So the reason I couldn't transform was because it was really taken from me. In a way I couldn't possibly have imagined. Safely… extracted.
By Armin.
[Annie…] a voice echoed deep in her consciousness. It was Armin.
[Armin… so it was you,] Annie responded in her mind, her voice tired, but with a hint of resigned relief. She was starting to understand. Had he wished to take her power in order to save her? Or was it—
[For the survival of those within the Walls, I need this power, Annie.]
[But I heard your wish—you want to go home.]
[…] Annie was silent. Was this trust? Or another trap?
[In the coming fight, I will do my 'best' to stop you.] Armin's voice continued. [But I've only just acquired this power. My control is… 'terrible.' How far you get… is up to you.]
[—Why?]
[You… were willing to believe me once, weren't you?]
[So this time, I'm choosing to believe you. To believe you when you say you just want to go home to your father. To believe you when you say… you won't be a part of this war anymore.]
[I swear on my father's name,] Annie replied without hesitation. [I will never set foot here again.]
[Then—run.]
Outside, the Armin Titan moved. Its massive body turned toward Annie, and its giant hand, wreathed in blue energy, shot out to grab her. The movement looked powerful, but it was clearly clumsy and uncoordinated.
"Armin! Get her!" Eren roared, his green light flaring as he prepared to provide support.
Levi's figure had already become a deep blue meteor, cutting in at high speed from the side, his blades aimed straight for Annie.
A flash of determination in Annie's eyes. The ice-crystal light at her feet exploded. Her figure blurred, and she shot past the Armin Titan's fingertips by a hair's breadth, simultaneously dodging Levi's fatal slash by a millimeter.
"Tch!" Levi twisted sharply in the air to regain his balance, his eyes growing even colder.
The Armin Titan, seemingly having "lost its balance" from the missed grab, stumbled, its massive body "accidentally" blocking Levi's path as he tried to accelerate again.
"Armin! What the hell are you doing?!" Eren yelled in frustration.