The first rule of surviving in a world full of man-eating giants was simple.
Don't let the people with swords think you're one of the man-eating giants.
Daniel Cross was beginning to suspect he'd overlooked that particular detail.
"WAIT!"
His roar shook dust from the rooftops.
Three soldiers stood at the entrance to the alley, their blades drawn, their faces caught somewhere between professional determination and the kind of terror usually reserved for discovering a spider in your underwear.
The youngest one was visibly trembling.
Daniel raised both hands.
It seemed like the reasonable thing to do.
Unfortunately, when a four-point-eight-meter-tall creature made of exposed muscle raised its hands, it looked less like surrender and more like the beginning of a particularly unpleasant murder.
"Don't move!" the soldier in front shouted.
Daniel froze.
"Excellent idea," he rumbled. "Nobody move. I especially won't move. Moving is overrated."
The words emerged as a deep, distorted growl.
The soldiers exchanged horrified looks.
The youngest swallowed.
"It... it spoke."
The man beside him tightened his grip on his blades. "I heard it."
"But Titans don't speak!"
"Would you like to explain that to it?"
"No, sir!"
"Then shut up!"
Daniel watched their exchange with growing despair.
Wonderful. I'm going to die because nobody here has considered the possibility that a giant might be having a perfectly reasonable conversation.
The system chose that moment to intervene.
\[WARNING: HOST'S TRANSFORMATION IS APPROACHING COLLAPSE.\]
\[TIME REMAINING: 00:01:36.\]
Daniel's stomach dropped.
He had a minute and a half left.
A minute and a half to convince three armed men that he wasn't their enemy.
He'd had job interviews that were less stressful.
"Listen," he began carefully. "My name is Daniel. I don't want to hurt anyone."
The soldier in front stared at him.
Then he raised his blade.
"All Titans want to eat people."
Daniel blinked.
"That's a rather sweeping generalization."
The soldier lunged.
"Oh, for—"
Daniel twisted aside.
The blade cut through the air where his neck had been. He stumbled backward, crashed into a stack of wooden crates, and sent splinters flying across the alley.
The second soldier attacked from the left.
Daniel caught a glimpse of the movement and jerked his head away. Steel scraped across his cheek, leaving a thin, steaming cut.
Pain flared.
Real pain.
Not the dull ache of a dream. Not the distant discomfort of watching someone else get hurt.
His own pain.
Daniel stared at the soldier.
"You actually cut me!"
The man looked just as surprised.
The wound began to close.
Muscle knitted together beneath the skin, and a curl of steam drifted from the injured area.
The soldiers went pale.
The youngest took a full step backward.
"Captain..."
"I can see it."
"No, I mean—"
"I SAID I CAN SEE IT!"
Daniel pressed a hand against his cheek.
Right. Regeneration. Of course. Why wouldn't I have regeneration?
He was almost grateful.
Almost.
Then he noticed the captain's gaze shifting toward his neck.
More specifically, toward the place where the nape of a Titan's neck would be vulnerable.
Daniel's relief vanished.
The captain knew where to strike.
And Daniel had no idea how much damage his human body could sustain inside this thing.
"Nobody needs to die here," Daniel said.
The captain's expression hardened.
"You're a Titan."
"Technically, yes."
"Then you're a threat."
"Technically, I'm also a person!"
"Prove it!"
Daniel opened his mouth.
Closed it.
Opened it again.
"How?"
The captain hesitated.
For one glorious second, Daniel thought he'd found a way through.
Then the captain shouted, "Cut it down!"
The youngest soldier fired a grappling hook.
The cable shot toward Daniel's shoulder.
He saw it coming.
His body reacted before his mind did.
He caught the cable in his right hand.
The soldier's eyes widened.
Daniel stared at the wire stretched between them.
"Oh."
He pulled.
The soldier flew forward with a strangled cry.
Daniel's eyes bulged.
"OH, NO—"
He released the cable.
Unfortunately, momentum was a cruel mistress.
The soldier sailed through the air, struck a pile of hay beside the alley, and disappeared into it with a muffled whump.
Silence.
Daniel slowly turned toward the remaining two men.
"I would like to formally state that I did not intend to do that."
The second soldier looked at his captain.
"Sir, permission to run away?"
"Denied."
"Permission to reconsider?"
"Also denied!"
The captain launched himself into the air.
His maneuvering gear hissed.
Daniel barely had time to duck before the man swept over his head, blades flashing toward his nape.
Instinct screamed.
Daniel threw himself forward.
The captain missed by inches.
But the movement sent Daniel crashing through a wooden fence and into a neighboring courtyard.
The impact rattled his bones.
He lay there for a moment, staring at the sky.
A woman stood in the doorway of a nearby house, holding a cooking spoon.
She looked at Daniel.
Daniel looked at her.
Her gaze traveled from his face to his enormous chest, then to the broken fence behind him.
She slowly raised the spoon.
"Get out of my garden."
Daniel blinked.
Of all the things he'd expected to hear while transformed into a Titan, that hadn't made the list.
"Ma'am, I'm being attacked."
"I don't care if you're being married. Get out of my garden!"
She shook the spoon at him.
Daniel scrambled to his feet.
"Yes, ma'am!"
He ran.
Behind him, the woman continued shouting about her fence, her cabbages, and the appalling state of public security.
For one strange moment, Daniel almost laughed.
Then the captain's blade sliced through the air beside his head.
He remembered where he was.
And kept running.
### The problem with being a Titan
Daniel had never appreciated how inconvenient it was to be enormous.
Doorways were suddenly enemies.
Stairs were theoretical concepts.
And turning around in a narrow street required the sort of spatial awareness usually possessed by military generals and people who could reverse a truck without destroying a neighbor's fence.
He knocked over a cart.
Crushed a barrel.
Nearly stepped on a man carrying a basket of eggs.
The man screamed something about compensation.
Daniel would have apologized if he'd had the time.
Instead, he vaulted over a low wall and landed in an abandoned courtyard.
His knees buckled.
A wave of exhaustion swept through him.
\[WARNING: TRANSFORMATION COLLAPSE IMMINENT.\]
\[TIME REMAINING: 00:00:48.\]
Forty-eight seconds.
Daniel staggered toward the far wall.
He needed somewhere hidden. Somewhere quiet. Somewhere the soldiers wouldn't immediately discover him.
A drainage passage opened beneath a pile of broken timber.
It was barely large enough for his Titan body to fit through.
Daniel stared at it.
Then he stared at his hands.
"Well, this is humiliating."
The captain landed behind him.
"End of the road!"
Daniel looked over his shoulder.
The man was breathing hard, but his blades remained steady.
He wasn't panicking anymore.
That was bad.
Panic made people unpredictable. Training made them efficient.
"Listen," Daniel said. "I know how this looks."
The captain advanced.
"You're an abnormal Titan that speaks, regenerates, and deliberately avoids killing humans."
Daniel paused.
"Actually, when you put it like that, I sound rather impressive."
"You're also destroying half the neighborhood!"
Daniel glanced at the ruined courtyard.
A broken cart lay on its side. A fence had collapsed. Several chickens were running around in a panic.
He winced.
"That part is harder to defend."
The captain's expression didn't change.
"Who are you?"
For the first time since the fight began, Daniel sensed something other than hostility in the man's voice.
Suspicion.
Curiosity.
Perhaps even a little fear of the unknown.
Daniel seized the opportunity.
"My name is Daniel Cross. I don't know why I'm here. I don't know why I can transform. But I swear to you, I'm not here to eat anyone."
The captain stared at him.
"And you expect me to believe that?"
"No. But I'd appreciate it if you didn't cut my head off before we finish the conversation."
The captain raised his blades.
"Then give me a reason not to."
Daniel's mind raced.
He could tell the truth.
He could explain that he came from another world, that he knew the future, and that a mysterious system had given him the power to become a Titan.
The captain would probably kill him.
Or worse, hand him over to the military for experimentation.
Daniel had seen enough of this world to know that being interesting was not necessarily a good thing.
Before he could answer, the system chimed.
\[EMERGENCY EVOLUTION AVAILABLE.\]
Daniel's eyes widened.
\[OPTION: SACRIFICE CURRENT EVOLUTIONARY ENERGY TO STABILIZE TRANSFORMATION.\]
\[COST: 10 EVOLUTION POINTS.\]
He stared at the prompt.
He had ten points.
Exactly ten.
The reward for consuming the fox.
"You're joking."
\[SYSTEM DOES NOT POSSESS A HUMOR FUNCTION.\]
"Yes, yes, I've heard that before."
The captain took another step.
"Answer me!"
Daniel clenched his fists.
If he accepted the offer, he might be able to stay transformed long enough to escape.
If he refused, his Titan body would collapse in the middle of an armed confrontation.
Neither option was particularly appealing.
"All right," he whispered. "Spend the points."
\[CONFIRMED.\]
A surge of heat rushed through his body.
His muscles tightened.
The trembling in his legs subsided.
The pressure building behind his eyes eased, and his breathing steadied.
\[TRANSFORMATION STABILIZED.\]
\[EVOLUTION POINTS: 0\]
Daniel exhaled.
"Thank God."
The captain attacked.
Daniel moved sideways, caught the man's forearm, and pushed him away without striking him.
The soldier landed awkwardly, rolled, and sprang back to his feet.
He looked stunned.
Daniel looked at his own hand.
He had barely used any force.
Yet the captain had been thrown several meters.
I need to learn how strong I am before I accidentally turn somebody into a stain.
The thought was interrupted by a sudden shout.
"CAPTAIN! MORE SOLDIERS ARE COMING!"
Daniel looked toward the courtyard entrance.
At least six figures were approaching.
Several carried blades.
One had a rifle.
The captain's jaw tightened.
Daniel's stomach sank.
Six soldiers.
A rifle.
Zero Evolution Points.
And a Titan body that was apparently being held together by supernatural credit.
He had to get out.
Now.
### An offer nobody wanted
Daniel turned toward the drainage passage.
The captain noticed.
"Don't even think about it!"
Daniel thought about it.
Then he did it.
He lunged toward the opening, dropped to his knees, and shoved his shoulders into the narrow passage.
His Titan body scraped against stone.
For one horrifying moment, he got stuck.
He was a giant wedged beneath a pile of rubbish.
The universe had officially become a comedy written by someone who hated him.
"Move," he growled.
He pushed harder.
The timber above him cracked.
A board fell across his back.
Daniel snarled and forced himself forward, dragging his enormous body into the darkness.
Behind him, the captain shouted orders.
A grappling hook struck the wall beside Daniel's head.
He crawled faster.
The passage sloped downward, leading beneath the buildings. It was cramped, damp, and smelled strongly of stagnant water.
Daniel had never been more grateful for a sewer.
After several seconds, the passage widened into a small underground chamber.
He stumbled inside and collapsed against the wall.
His transformation timer appeared.
\[TIME REMAINING: 00:00:19.\]
Daniel stared at it.
"Nineteen seconds? Are you serious?"
He scrambled to find somewhere to hide.
There was a narrow gap between two stone supports, barely large enough for a human body.
Daniel squeezed toward it.
His enormous shoulders scraped against the walls.
The system chimed.
\[WARNING: TRANSFORMATION COLLAPSE IMMINENT.\]
"Yes, I KNOW!"
Heat flooded his body again.
His muscles contracted violently.
The world seemed to fold inward.
Daniel screamed as his Titan form began to dissolve, steam bursting from his skin in thick white clouds.
For several seconds, he could see nothing.
Then he hit the ground.
Hard.
He lay facedown in the dirt, coughing and gasping.
His clothes were damp with sweat.
His body felt as though he'd been dragged behind a carriage for several miles.
But he was human again.
He was alive.
And, as far as he could tell, he hadn't accidentally killed anyone.
Daniel rolled onto his back.
A laugh escaped him.
It grew louder.
Soon he was laughing so hard that his ribs hurt.
He didn't know whether it was relief, exhaustion, or the beginning of a complete psychological breakdown.
Probably all three.
"Four-point-eight meters," he wheezed. "I was four-point-eight meters tall, and I got stuck in a hole."
He covered his face.
"If anyone ever writes my biography, leave that part out."
A notification appeared above him.
\[QUEST PROGRESS UPDATED.\]
\[SURVIVE THE NEXT SEVEN DAYS.\]
Remaining time: 6 days, 18 hours.
Daniel groaned.
"Six days and eighteen hours. Fantastic."
He sat up slowly.
His shoulder ached where the fox had attacked him, and his throat felt raw from shouting.
He needed water.
Food.
A place to sleep.
And preferably a new identity.
Something boring.
Something that wouldn't attract attention.
Perhaps a baker.
No. He'd already destroyed enough property around one baker.
A carpenter?
He could barely assemble furniture from a box.
A farmer?
He'd probably get eaten by a cow.
Daniel sighed.
"Maybe I should've stayed dead."
The system chimed.
\[STATEMENT ACKNOWLEDGED.\]
"That wasn't an invitation to respond."
\[ACKNOWLEDGMENT COMPLETE.\]
He stared at the empty air.
"I swear, if you ever develop a personality, I'm going to regret it."
\[PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT: NOT A CURRENT PRIORITY.\]
Daniel dropped his head into his hands.
Somewhere above him, boots pounded across the street.
Voices echoed through the drainage passage.
"Check the houses!"
"Look for steam!"
"It can't have gone far!"
Daniel went still.
The soldiers were searching.
He couldn't stay here.
He needed to move before they discovered the entrance.
He rose carefully and followed the underground passage toward a faint patch of daylight.
As he walked, he examined his status screen.
He had expected a detailed character sheet, perhaps something with strength rankings, experience points, and a satisfying list of abilities.
Instead, the interface offered a surprisingly unhelpful summary.
\[HOST STATUS\]
Name: Daniel Cross
Species: Human
Primary Ability: Evolutionary Titan
Acquired Traits: Enhanced Olfactory Perception
Evolution Points: 0
Transformation Control: Unstable
Psychological Integrity: Unassessed
Daniel frowned.
"Psychological integrity? What does that mean?"
No answer.
"System?"
Silence.
"Of course."
He dismissed the window.
Then he noticed something peculiar.
The scents.
They hadn't faded.
Even in his human form, he could smell the damp stone, the stagnant water, the old timber, and the faint traces of people walking above him.
He could distinguish one person's sweat from another.
He could smell fear.
And beneath all of it, there was a strange, metallic scent drifting from somewhere deeper in the passage.
Daniel stopped.
The fox's warning returned to him.
You're not supposed to be here.
He closed his eyes and concentrated.
The metallic smell grew stronger.
Beneath it was something else.
A familiar scent.
Blood.
But not ordinary blood.
It smelled ancient.
Stale.
Like something that had been buried for years and had only recently begun to breathe again.
Daniel opened his eyes.
"Please tell me that's a dead rat."
\[SYSTEM RESPONSE: UNKNOWN.\]
He almost laughed.
Almost.
Then a voice echoed through the darkness.
"Daniel."
He froze.
The voice was faint.
Human.
And unmistakably familiar.
Not because he recognized the speaker.
Because he recognized the way it sounded.
It was the same voice he'd heard from the fox.
Daniel backed away.
"No."
The voice came again.
"Daniel Cross."
He turned toward the passage behind him.
Nothing moved.
The darkness remained empty.
But the smell of ancient blood grew stronger.
"Who are you?" Daniel whispered.
A soft scraping sound came from the darkness.
Then the voice answered.
"The question is... who are you?"
Daniel's heart hammered.
He had heard that question before.
Not in this world.
In his previous life.
A memory stirred at the edge of his consciousness: headlights, wet asphalt, the blaring horn of a truck.
And a man standing across the road.
A man Daniel had never seen before.
A man who had looked directly at him and smiled.
Daniel staggered backward.
"No. No, that's impossible."
The memory shattered.
He clutched his head, struggling to hold on to the fragments.
He remembered the street.
He remembered the headlights.
He remembered falling.
But the man—
The man's face remained a blank space.
The system flashed.
\[SUPPRESSED MEMORY DETECTED.\]
\[RETRIEVAL ATTEMPT BLOCKED.\]
Daniel stared at the notification.
Then he looked into the darkness.
"Tell me what you know."
For several seconds, nothing happened.
Then the voice whispered:
"You shouldn't have eaten it."
Daniel's blood turned to ice.
The fox.
He had eaten the fox.
But the voice had known that before Daniel had even understood what he'd done.
"What was it?"
The darkness seemed to breathe.
And then the voice answered.
"Your first mistake."
A violent tremor shook the passage.
Dust rained from the ceiling.
Somewhere far above them, people screamed.
Daniel pressed himself against the wall.
The system appeared again, its blue light flickering erratically.
\[EMERGENCY ALERT.\]
\[UNKNOWN TITAN SIGNATURE DETECTED.\]
\[LOCATION: WITHIN THE WALLS.\]
\[THREAT LEVEL: UNCLASSIFIED.\]
Daniel stared at the final message.
Within the walls.
Not outside.
Not beyond Wall Maria, where the Titans were supposed to roam.
Inside.
He swallowed.
"How many?"
The system hesitated.
For the first time, the interface seemed unable to produce an immediate answer.
Then a final notification appeared.
\[MULTIPLE SIGNATURES DETECTED.\]
Daniel felt his stomach drop.
Above him, the bells began ringing again.
Once.
Twice.
Then all at once.
And from somewhere beneath the city came a sound that made his blood run cold.
A Titan screaming.
Not the mindless roar of an ordinary giant.
Not the bellow of a starving monster.
This scream sounded furious.
It sounded human.
And it sounded as though it had been waiting a very long time to be heard.
Daniel looked toward the faint daylight at the end of the passage.
He had arrived in this world believing he knew its future.
Now he wasn't even certain he understood its present.
The system flashed one last time.
\[HIDDEN QUEST UPDATED.\]
\[THE THING BEHIND THE WALLS.\]
New objective: Locate the source of the anomalous Titan signatures.
Warning: The Host is not the only evolutionary entity in this world.
Daniel stood motionless in the darkness.
Then, very quietly, he whispered:
"Oh, we're absolutely screwed."
END OF CHAPTER 3