Screams, cries, wails, explosions, gunfire, and the roars of Titans intertwined, blanketing the entire venue. This small arena had, in a short time, turned into hell.
Puchi! A long hardened arrow pierced through the neck of the Airwing Titan, but it was still struggling, indicating that Litt inside the nape hadn't been harmed.
Seeing this, the War Hammer Titan discarded its crossbow, raised a hand, and with a gathering of white light, a massive long-handled spiked hammer over ten meters long began to form.
The War Hammer Titan lifted the long-handled hammer high and swung it down with tremendous force. The savage spike hammer even produced a sonic boom mid-air.
Meanwhile, the Airwing Titan, impaled by a hardened crystal pillar, struggled several times but couldn't move at all. As the War Hammer Titan's spike hammer came crashing down, in that critical moment, the Airwing Titan suddenly raised its sharp claws.
Without the slightest hesitation, it cleanly slashed at its own neck—cutting off its own head. Brutal as it was, the decision came just in time, because in the next instant, the War Hammer Titan's long-handled spike hammer struck. Boom!! The sheer force directly blasted half of the Airwing Titan's chest into minced flesh.
Just as the grotesque head of the Airwing Titan was about to hit the ground, countless brilliant golden arcs of electricity erupted, mixed with threads of red lightning.
Amid the surging steam, a pair of massive flesh wings reappeared, and a brand-new Airwing Titan opened its crimson eyes.
"Ugly creature, die!" The War Hammer Titan spoke in human language, turned, and swung its hammer again, the terrifying spike hammer smashing toward the Airwing Titan once more.
But this time, the Airwing Titan seemed prepared. It opened its mouth and unleashed an unparalleled shriek. The piercing sound was so intense that even the air itself trembled.
The surviving humans in the venue all clutched their ears in agony. Some even bled from their ears, their eardrums shattered by the vibration.
Faced with this sudden attack, even the War Hammer Titan staggered, and the power behind its swinging hammer dissipated. Seizing the opportunity, the Airwing Titan flapped its flesh wings and shot straight into the night sky.
"Stop the Paladin Titan! All anti-Titan artillery, fire immediately!" Magath ordered decisively as he watched the Paladin Titan charging straight toward the Fortress Titan. He knew full well the power of the combination between Fortress and Paladin—so it had to be stopped.
"Roar!" The Claw Titan, with its crimson eyes, threw aside the steaming flesh in its hand. Watching the Paladin Titan charging wildly, Porco understood that it couldn't be allowed to make contact with the Fortress Titan.
Pieck naturally understood as well. The Cart Titan dashed to the Claw Titan's side and spoke in human language,
"Porco, follow me. Stop the Paladin Titan. I'll distract it by attacking its eyes—find a way to cut off its legs."
The Claw Titan nodded, and the two Titans charged toward the running Paladin Titan simultaneously.
"What's wrong with that bastard Reiner? Why didn't he control Litt and Bazel? Could it be…?" Inside the nape of the Claw Titan, Porco suddenly recalled what Pieck had told him earlier.
"War Chief Zeke has already betrayed Marley."
Porco: "No way!? How could the War Chief…?"
But the absence of both the Beast Titan and the Armored Titan made Porco genuinely begin to doubt.
Bang! Bang! Boom! Boom! Anti-Titan artillery shells slammed into the Paladin Titan one after another, quickly blasting its entire body into a bloody mess. A perfectly aimed shell even shattered half of its head. If not for that layer of white bone-like armor, its entire head would've likely been reduced to fragments.
But Ivanor inside the nape understood that if she couldn't reach Bazel's Fortress Titan in time, her Paladin Titan wouldn't last much longer either.
Standing at a full thirty meters tall, the Fortress Titan was the most eye-catching presence in the entire venue. Yet no one paid it much attention, because it moved incredibly slowly. Its entire body was like an impenetrable fortress, making it impossible for anyone to deal with.
Even so, every step it took made the ground tremble.
The venue wasn't large, and the Paladin Titan quickly closed the distance to the Fortress Titan.
Inside the nape, Ivanor shouted excitedly, "Got it! Airi! I'll avenge you!!"
But before the Paladin Titan could celebrate, a Titan on all fours, carrying steel armor on its back, suddenly burst out beside it. As a quadrupedal Titan, the Cart Titan's speed wasn't much slower than the Paladin Titan's—especially now that the Paladin Titan had been blasted into a near-death state by artillery fire.
"Chariot Squad! All units, target the Paladin Titan's eyes!"
"Understood!"
The steel-mounted weapons on the Cart Titan's back immediately spat out a barrage of bullets. The battle-hardened Chariot Squad, seasoned from long campaigns with Pieck, lived up to expectations. Despite the small size of the Paladin Titan's crimson eyes, they successfully shattered them while the Cart Titan was in motion.
Ivanor's vision went dark.
"Damn it!" She immediately realized the danger—but it was already too late. The Cart Titan lunged forward, opening its massive jaws and biting down directly on the Paladin Titan's hoof.
"Porco!" Pieck shouted from within the nape.
The Claw Titan appeared right on cue, sliding beneath the Paladin Titan with a sweeping motion. Its claws slashed, spraying blood, and in an instant, two of the Paladin Titan's legs were severed. Its entire body lost balance and began to collapse.
The Cart Titan released its bite and then slammed into it with force. The Paladin Titan crashed to the ground.
"Porco! Get Ivanor out!" the Cart Titan said, turning its head.
Understanding immediately, the Claw Titan pounced toward the nape of the Paladin Titan.
Meanwhile, the War Hammer Titan once again formed a longbow in its hand, firing hardened arrows into the night sky. The Airwing Titan shrieked, unable to approach the ground, forced to constantly evade the arrows.
Boom!! The already fragile gates of the venue suffered another devastating blow. This time, they could no longer hold and collapsed along with the surrounding walls.
Amid the rising dust, a pair of yellow eyes emerged.
"The Armored Titan! It's the Armored Titan!" a soldier shouted in shock.
Magath immediately raised his binoculars. Sure enough, the figure with massive shields formed over both arms—it was Reiner's Armored Titan.
But that wasn't all. Accompanied by a piercing scream—
"Ebson!! You deserve to die!!"
Golden lightning surged skyward as the Crimson Flame Titan, filled with rage, let out an earth-shaking roar toward the heavens!
"Report, Commander Magath! As ordered, we successfully found the imprisoned Crimson Flame Titan Newt beneath the Louis family manor, and we've completely secured the estate! All resisting guards have been eliminated, and all other personnel have been detained!" a soldier ran over to report.
Magath's expression didn't change, but the tension in his heart eased. Now, everything was finally stabilized. Ebson shouldn't be able to stir up any more trouble.
Would Ebson think so? Standing in the stands, Ebson still appeared calm and composed, as if strolling leisurely. It seemed he wasn't on the verge of collapse as Magath had expected.
Ebson looked at the fallen Paladin Titan, the Airwing Titan flailing in the sky, and the Fortress Titan that hadn't even advanced fifty meters yet, slowly shaking his head. Then he turned his gaze to the newly appeared Crimson Flame Titan and Armored Titan.
"Bill, it's your turn to take the stage."