You are my Soul

☾hapter XI

Anelise's POV :

On our way here, I received word that thanks to the swift response of the Survey Corps and the Garrison engineers, Wall Rose had once again managed to repel the relentless advance of the Titans. It took an entire day of unwavering effort to eradicate the Titans from the Trost District, with the wall's fixed cannons firing ceaselessly.

High-explosive shells obliterated the majority of the Titans that swarmed the wall, while the Survey Corps valiantly eliminated the few that managed to survive.

In a surprising turn of events, a 4-meter-class and a 7-meter-class Titan were captured alive. However, the cost of this victory weighed heavily on our hearts. Two hundred and seven soldiers were either killed or missing in action, and an additional 897 were left injured and scarred.

While repelling the Titans for the first time in history was a noteworthy achievement, the grim reality was that far too many lives had been lost to allow for any celebration.

After Captain Levi escorted me to the infirmary, he left to attend to his duties. I will express my gratitude to him when I see him again. According to the doctors, I only have bruises on my side; my ribs remain intact. So, it won't take me long to heal. They mentioned that the wound might leave a scar, but it's of little consequence.

I'm expected to leave the infirmary this afternoon. Armin, Mikasa, Ymir, Krista, Annie, Reiner, Bertholdt, Sasha, and Connie all came to visit me. Mikasa was so worried that I had to reassure her numerous times; her concern was truly touching.

Additionally, I had the opportunity to ask Armin about the circumstances that led to Eren's 'death'. I thought angrily about how I'll give him a piece of my mind once I see him again.

But what troubles me is that I haven't seen Jean or Marco yet. A knock on the door of the infirmary interrupts my thoughts.

" Come in !". I said.

It's Jean who opened the door - speaking of him, there he is ! I looked behind him, but I didn't see Marco.

" Glad to see you alive". I told him with a smile.

"I could say the same thing. I heard you kept fighting even when you were injured. You're not careful enough," Jean says with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

" The number of times I've heard that today! So, what's wrong with you ?". I asked in concern.

I saw tears welling up in his eyes. I rose from the chair I was sitting on and hug him.

" Hey, what's the matter, sweetie ?". I inquired softly.

" You told us not to split up. But I ran out of gas and lost sight of him. I found his body this morning. I'm sorry; I should have been more careful". Jean muttered with sorrow.

My eyes widened when I heard that. Don't tell me he's talking about Marco ?

" Are you talking about Marco ?". I wondered nervously.

I prayed that he will contradict me, but the answer he gave me broke my heart...

Jean nodded," Yes, I'm so sorry, Is".

I tried not to cry, but it's impossible. How could I not cry for a sweet soul like Marco ?

" It's not your fault, Jean. Unfortunately, we can't always save everyone, and I'm sure Marco wouldn't want you to blame yourself". I said, trying to comfort the tears spilling from my eyes.

" I found a letter with two bracelets inside. He was wearing the third one. He wanted to give them to us when we went our separate ways as a reminder of our friendship". He told me while wiping his tears.