The year is 842.
I was lying down, staring at the ceiling, pondering to myself.
"Three years left…"
"Until what?"
Levi, with his sharp hearing, heard my quiet muttering.
"Uhh… Three years until the tenth anniversary of my mother's death?"
I came up with a random excuse on the spot, and Levi seemed to believe me.
"Ah, sorry."
"I don't mind. After all, most of us down here are like that, right?"
Levi nodded and solemnly stared at his teacup.
Breaking the awkward silence was Furlan, knocking on gas canisters with a frustrated look on his face.
"Seriously, out of gas already?! I guess we have to make another trip to the Commercial District."
"Eh?! But didn't we go just last week?!"
Isabel complained while making a fuss.
"Since we've been targeting a lot of high-profile merchants recently, it's only natural we ran out so quickly."
"But I hate going to that place, it's so sketchy! Isn't that right, Lucian?"
"Hm? You don't want to go? I was thinking of sending only you and me this time."
"Wh-what do you mean?! I mean… since you're forcing us to go… I guess I have no choice."
"Furlan, you know it's too risky to send those two alone. You know what could happen, right?"
As Levi was talking, Isabel began muttering to herself with a flushed face, and she glanced at me briefly.
"A d-date with Lucian…"
'What is she saying? I can't hear her.'
"You're right… I'm sure you guys have realised that Yakun's men have been tailing us recently."
"Huh… So how can I go on a date now?!"
"Date?"
She looked disappointed all of a sudden. I thought she didn't want to go.
"We can. But we have to travel discreetly. We can't have them finding out who our supplier is."
"Instead, all four of us are going. Lucian and I will deal with anyone following us."
Levi chimed in.
"Sounds good to me."
***
We were walking through the Commercial District in cloaks with our ODM gear hidden underneath.
"Do we really need to stay like this? I just wanna fly there already!"
"Isabel… Did you forget that we have to keep a low profile?"
"Yeah, but— Ow!"
"Watch where you're going, you little brat!"
A man bumped into Isabel.
"Hey! You bumped into— Mmph!"
I covered her mouth and dragged her away to avoid causing a scene.
"Lucian! What are you doing? That guy messed with me first?!"
"Calm down, that's one of Yakun's men. I'll deal with him when we're in a quieter spot."
I whispered.
But despite us walking away, the man and his buddy were still agitated.
A scrawny man came out of his stall to warn us.
"You guys should just apologise. Those are Yakun's men. It's better not to get on their bad side!"
"Yeah! You heard what he said! Don't piss your pants now."
One of them began walking up to us, with his hand drawing out a flintlock.
"Grr! I can't hold back anymore! Do you really think we're scared of you?! Lucian over here will beat you guys up without even lifting a finger! Why don't you come and try us!"
I facepalmed. It's like she wants to cause trouble.
The moment he pulled out the flintlock, I sprang into action.
[Enhanced Evasion]
With my skill active, I pushed Isabel out of the line of fire.
Then, with Quickstep, I lunged onto the gunman and took him down with my blade pointed at his throat.
Meanwhile, Levi leapt into the air and drew out his blades.
A grappling wire spiralled out of its compartment on the ODM gear and into a wine barrel beside the head of the other henchman.
"Aah! P-please! We're sorry! Forgive us! We were just following orders!"
They got up and scurried away.
Since we were in the Commercial District, I didn't want to cause an even bigger scene by killing them. We come here frequently, after all, so I let them go.
The scrawny man from the stall looked shocked.
"What are you guys…"
"Tsk, let's go. Those guys ruined my mood."
Levi walked away first, and then the rest of us followed as we continued walking towards our original destination.
But a group of people caught my eye. Or rather, my Vigilance skill detected them for some odd reason.
Since my skill alerts me of any reasonable threat, these guys must be well trained.
"Who are they?"
When I looked closer at them, I saw a face that looked all too recognisable.
'Erwin.'
Why is he here so early?
Did he just come to investigate the rumour?
I felt nervous for some reason.
When Erwin noticed my glance, he seemed surprised at first but quickly covered his face and continued walking.
***
After seeing Erwin, I was anxious for the rest of the day.
His appearance practically solidifies the fact that I'm gonna end up in the Survey Corps.
What makes my anxiety even worse is that after three years with the ODM gear, my skills are quite mediocre.
I decided to look at my status to try and ease my tension.
[Name: Lucian Edelhart]
Level: 9
HP: 20/20
SP: 40/40
Stamina: 10/10
Skills:
[Quickstep]
[Backstab]
[Conceal]
[Enhanced Evasion]
[Vigilance (Passive)]
[Pilfer]
[Blackjack]
[Shadow Veil (Passive)]
EXP: 1280/12800
Attributes:
Vigor: 4
Focus: 3
Endurance: 2
Strength: 1
Dexterity: 2
]
"Sigh. Without Titans, levelling up will take forever."
It's been three years, and I could only level up once.
What makes matters worse is that even if I surpass level ten, I won't gain any more new skills.
My latest skill, Shadow Veil, is simply a stealth skill. It erases my presence from whoever's shadow I'm in.
Anyways, it's getting harder and harder to get XP down here.
At only level nine, I'm not in a position to rely on stats if I run out of SP.
Meaning I'll have to train my real skills with the ODM gear until I can kill Titans to level up.
And so that's exactly what I did.
In the middle of the night, I snuck out of the base to train my sword skills.
"Didn't Levi do a reverse grip?"
Trying to imitate Levi, I put the blades in a reverse grip and started spinning.
I hooked onto a building and pressed the trigger on the blade with my pinky finger.
Gas whistled out as I spun.
But I soon went out of control and went face-first into a wall.
"Ahh! Shit, that hurt!"
I got up and tried again. And this time, I decided not to use the ODM gear.
Only focusing on going through the motion of spinning around.
I probably looked like a complete idiot as I twirled like a ballerina.
I hope no one catches me doing this.
"Pfft! What are you doing?! Haha!"
Isabel suddenly appeared behind me, laughing.
"…Where did you come from?"
***
I continued training secretly every night.
And before I knew it, another two years passed in the blink of an eye.
Nothing major occurred.
The only thing that's worth mentioning is that my skills with the ODM gear went from mediocre to respectable.
But it's already the year 844. It really isn't enough to instill any confidence in me.
Lately, I've been having poor sleep from the stress.
Some days, I felt like running away, but I've been with them for five years already.
We shared meals, stories, and forged a close bond through various jobs.
I would be heartless to leave just like that.
Even Levi has softened towards me.
Anyway, the four of us were returning to the base, but the presence of a wealthy-looking old man stopped us.
"What's up, old man? You want something?"
Isabel was the first to speak up.
The old man closed his golden pocket watch.
"You're here. I've come for a job request."
"Didn't you come to the wrong house? This is not a handy shop."
"I promise you a reward."
"Go home!"
Levi's patience wore thin, and he yelled at him.
As we walked by him, he uttered, "I've already paid the deposit, though."
"Are you kidding? This is the first time we've seen you."
Furlan scoffed at him.
"Sure… but not him."
He gestured towards his carriage, where they were loading up Jan, who could no longer walk without assistance.
"Jan?!"
"His leg is already past its limits. He needs treatment at a hospital on the surface, isn't that right, Levi?"
"What's the meaning of this?!"
"I told you, it's a job request. Willing to hear me out now?"
"Fine, then."
He led us to the stairway towards the surface, and the guards nodded at him and waved us through.
As we were walking up, I felt dread.
"Psst, Lucian, do you think this guy is trustworthy? He seems sketchy to me."
"There's no way he's trustworthy, but what other option do we have? He already took Jan, didn't he?"
"I guess so…"
Eventually, we made it to the end of the staircase, and what greeted us was a fat nobleman in an elegantly ornate carriage.
The glint of his glasses reflected in the sunlight.
"Are these the guys?"
"Yes. I heard they're excellent."
"Who the hell are you?"
Levi couldn't hold back his question.
"I understand you're wary. But you'll learn to trust me. Actually, the very fact I'm here says everything. I'm taking a big risk coming here in person."
"Have you received our deposit?"
"I don't know how things work on the surface. But in our world, that's called taking a hostage."
"Don't worry, when you finish the job, you'll receive a large sum of money. And most importantly, you'll receive citizenship to the surface."
I decided to speak up. I was growing impatient. I already know he wants us to join the Survey Corps.
"So what do we have to do then? Tell us already."
"It's simple. When the time comes, accept Erwin's offer to join the Survey Corps and retrieve the document from him and kill him. If you do that, citizenship to the surface will be all yours."
"Who's Erwin?"
Isabel voiced her question.
"He's the section commander of the Survey Corps. Soon, he will come to recruit you whether you accept our deal or not."
"That's enough. When the time comes, I hope you'll make the right choice."
His carriage left, and we made our journey back down to the Underground.
Furlan was the first to speak up.
"Don't worry, I'll have our guys on the surface investigate him. If he's the real deal, then we'll go through with it."
***
A day after the meeting.
"We've got confirmation on Jan. He's at a first-rate hospital. And the identity of the man is also confirmed. What do you think, Levi, Lucian?"
"We'll continue as we usually would. And if the target makes contact as he said he would, then we start the job."
"What about you, Lucian?"
"I… I'll do what Levi said."
We settled back down at the base, and the next few days passed by quietly.
I sat there alone, thinking about when Erwin would come.
As I was worried, Furlan spoke to us.
"There's rumours that a merchant is coming through the Fifth District."
"Let's go then! What are we waiting for? It's been so long since our last job. I was getting bored rotting away in here."
Isabel was the first to get up and put on her ODM gear.
The rest of us followed suit and headed out.
We were flying over the dilapidated houses of the Underground.
"There they are."
Levi spotted them first and promptly gave out instructions.
"Lucian, you distract them. The rest of us will focus on the loot."
"Got it."
I separated from the group and landed on the ground.
I approached the merchant and aimed my sword at his throat.
"I'm gonna have to stop you here."
"What do you think you're doing?!"
His guards surrounded me and pointed their rifles instantly.
Activating [Enhanced Evasion] and [Backstab] simultaneously, I rapidly went from guard to guard.
Knocking all four out with the [Blackjack] skill.
"…Huh? How are they all down already… Oh no! Military Police! Somebody help me!"
As he was screaming in fear, the rest of the gang swooped by and stole all the loot.
I used that as my cue to escape, and I rejoined the rest of the gang.
"Yahoo! We did it!"
Isabel celebrated, but it seems like she was a bit too early.
"Levi! Lucian! The pursuers are here after all."
"Heh. The Military Police again? They haven't learned their lesson, have they? Lucian, wasn't that a cool line?! Huh? Why do you look so worried?"
"I-it really is them…"
"What do you mean?"
"Looks like you noticed it too, Lucian."