– Wait a second… – Nasturtium scratched his head. – You're the girl we had to capture!

– Uh… yeah. Hi.

– Master Gladiolus! I found the girl!

– I'm… pretty sure he's already seen me.

– Shut your mouth, heretic! Get ready to feel the force of a thousand tons!

Katsumi squealed and readied her knife.

– H-Hey, can I get a minute to ready my – Nasturtium clenched his fist – oookay, I take that as a no. Well in that case I'll just ru-…

– Not so fast!

A ball of black clothes fell into the arena. It wore a small yellow crown on top. It rushed towards the giant and hit his arm.

– What is this thing? – Katsumi aimed the knife towards the ball.

– Thing? – the source of this flamboyant voice gained a form as from the ball emerged a small fat man. – La-Da-Da! You just enjoyed the majestic voice of the tribe's chief tenor! Pra-la-la-la-laaa!

Katsumi didn't flinch, she still had her weapon aimed at the man's throat.

– Approach me and I'll fucking kill you. – she said menacingly.

– Liatris! – Nasturtium yelled with the small titan, spitting all over his oversized black robe. – What is the meaning of your interference?

The small ball of fat straightened his black beard. A boastful smile captivated his tiny face. His girly voice was unfitting for such dangerous aura.

– Momo Katsumi! Your abhorrent behavior can't go unpunished! Disrespect stinks from every single word of yours! Therefore I, the most beautiful finger of Madonna, challenge you to a fight in this arena!

– No.

– What is that you say?

– No, fuck off. – she grabbed Glechoma and slowly made towards the exit.

– H-Hey! Stop right there!

– Tch, like what you gonna' do, roll around or something? – Katsumi smugly smiled before a blast of wind hit her, almost blowing both her and Gladiolus away.

The small singer had an ominous grin on his face. He had his palm held into the air. A smokish steam came from his sturdy palm. It was hot.

– What did you just…

– Although I take pride in my oral skills, I cannot dismiss what my hands can do.

– That's… ew.

– My name is Liatris, but others know me as – he struck a proud pose – 'The Godslap'.

– Hah! Good to see there are way worse titles than 'The Battlecook'! Well, cya! – she waved and continued towards the exit but another blast made her fall to the dusty ground.

– You have fifteen minutes to ready yourself. Don't worry, I won't kill you. Just teach you some manners. – he winked before setting off.

– Fucking fat fuck… – Katsumi hissed and disappeared behind the gate.

She found safety in one of the storage rooms. Many different types of weapons occupied both the floors and walls. Maces, axes, swords of unique kinds, all that a warrior could ask for.

Katsumi laid Glechoma down on a wooden bench. She put his head on her thighs, this way his bald head won't catch a cold. She summoned her pot and three apples. A soup began to boil.

– Are you in there? – Katsumi put her hand on the titan's forehead.

– You… saved me…

– That's a yes. Listen, I'd gladly get all sentimental and shit, but I'm pretty irritated at the moment and I have a battle coming up. Be a good boy and enjoy the nursing.

– Who are you up against?

– Some small freak.

– Liatris? – his eyes widened.

– Y-Yeah. What's wrong? He can't be any worse than the giant!

– No, that's… you're right, he isn't.

They sat there in the silence, listening to the steam escaping from the pot. Katsumi was lost in her thoughts, gazing at the titan's wounds. Glechoma's expression spoke of shame. He let both himself and the girl down.

– Who's that slave you fought for? A friend?

Glechoma tried to escape the girl's eyes, but couldn't. He was mostly paralyzed from the neck down which made it pretty hard to do.

– One of the boys Nasturtium captured. Unlike the others, the adults that he ate, he was left alive.

– That monster is keeping children as his slaves?

– Just one. This is the first time he got his hands on a small boy. To imagine how he got all those purple and green wounds that fester his body… that poor boy…

'A little kid… just like Aeren…'

– You felt sympathetic towards him?

– No.

Katsumi froze from the unforeseen answer. The titan's eyes had no shame.

– Then why did you do it?

– You went against all of titankind because a little girl asked you to?

– Well yeah, but that's a bit more complicated...

– I wanted to know why.

They both stopped, the titan waiting for an answer and Katsumi searching for one.

– And you went against that monster just to understand why…

– Yes.

– Holy shit, you got some balls. Do you regret it now?

– I only regret not getting a chance to understand your goals. The fight ended before I could. It ended all so abruptly.

– That's not your fault, that's…

– I know. But what can you do? I lost and now my body will get devoured.

– No… I won't let you die!

– Heh, too late for that now. There's nothing we can do.

– Yes there is.

– And what may that be?

– Double or nothing.

Glechoma didn't understand what Katsumi said, and as such, he raised his nose.

– What are you doubling?

– Both the risk and the reward. I ask for the slave and your life.

– He'd never bet with a fresh prize.

– Yes he would if that meant getting another.

– Huh?

She raised her shaky hand where her heart resides.

– I will bet my life on the next match.

This shocked Glechoma. He tried to sit up but couldn't and Katsumi fast helped him back on her thighs and poured the soup into his mouth.

– Shhh, eat up now!

– What? Why? You can't win against that monster! You're only killing yourself with a bet like this!

– So?

– What so? You have a child to protect!

– How can I defend anyone if not the ones that come to me? You begged for my help and I listened. That's why I'm here. To protect the ones in need. To protect the weak.

Her determined look had an effect on the titan. His eyes gained a color they only met a long a time ago. It was the color of inspiration. Courage. Determination. Justice.

Katsumi sighed and chuckled.

– Or whatever. I'm just trying to look cool. I want to beat some baddies and be a kick-ass hero. A girl can dream, right?

– You…

But he stopped. There was nothing left for him to say. After all, the girl knew exactly what he felt just by looking at those eyes.

The sound of a gong echoed through the halls. Katsumi gently put the titan's head onto the bench and went for the door.

– Well, looks like my time is up! Wish me luck! Not like I'll need it much. If there's one thing I learned this week, it's that the universe hates me. I guess my skills will do. I have a few.

– Wait! – Glechoma tried raising his arm. – There are two things you need to know before the fight!

– And that is?

– Liatris was the only finger who never directly fought in the war. He stayed with the old Gladiolus and watched over the captured prisoners. It only turned out later he did a bit more than just lock them up. He enjoyed torturing people by practicing his vocal range on them.

– Oy-oy, what does that mean? He sang so loud they went deaf?

– Not just deaf. He can kill a man just by screaming into his ear.

– What? How is that possible?

– Training. Lots and lots of training.

– Holy shit… what a beast!

– The other thing you need to know: although his slaps are lethal, he cannot aim them. People tried to curse him with imprecise singing, but all of them failed and coincidentally weakened his fighting ability.

– Is it because of his training?

– Yes. It seems like a curse can be defied by skills or a strong soul.

– Huh… well, thank you. I'll try to keep that in mind.

– Just one more thing before you leave!

– Hm?

– Why do you help people? I tried to kill you and even then, you came to help me. What gave you such a strong moral?

Katsumi stood in the door for a bit, lingering in her thoughts. She shrugged and turned away from the titan. Her knife was in place. Her pot was ready to be summoned again. She left, but not before giving a half-answer…

– When I saw you crawling on the ground… it made me remember someone I used to know.

Without further elaboration, she went to the arena.

– – –

'I used to always sit in the back of class. I felt security in corners. On my left was the beautiful freedom behind an invisible wall. Behind me were tons of books ready to be read. In front of me sat some dumbasses, but they were too busy looking at the teacher or the cool kids to ever notice me.

And then on my right… well… whoever sat there never really bothered me. I was kinda like a voiceless shadow. People used to pick on me, but I just stayed silent and did my best to ignore their remarks. This way, I was safe from any harm.'

– Hey did you hear that...

– Yeah, the weird girl is…

– No way! Did she really…

'I used to hear tales about things I've never done. Some told others I was a complete slut, while others told rumors about my disgusting acts with older men. In truth, I didn't do anything remarkable. After school, I went home and watched anime, read some books, studied and went to sleep.'

– What a creep…

– No way! Tell me more…

'Was that because of my unique interests, like anime or cooking? Or perhaps because I never went to parties? Well, maybe I won't ever get an answer to any of these questions, but for some reason people never really wanted to be my friends.'

# Ding! You have a new message from: Mom

~ Just one more week and Mommy's going to be famous! I'm so nervous!!! =3=

'My only friend was my own mother. Not like she wasn't cool or anything. Her cooking skills helped her get on national television. That was a huuuge step for her carrier. Granny was really excited about the whole event and knitted a shit-ton of shirts. But like… why? She can't wear them! They will give her a special uniform! Granny, you were such a goofball…'

– Wait… he of all people?

– Yes and… well… just watch.

'That was one week before mom… yeah. That was also the day when I met HIM. Not all people had a beard back in high school, but he did. A short black beard. The girls went frenzy whenever he leaned back in his chair and those defined abs showed themselves for even a split second. Yeah. He was also the son of somebody I didn't know about back then. On the other hand, he had full knowledge about who my mom was.'

– Hello! Are you Momo Katsumi?

– Huh? H-Hi, yes! Can I help you?

– My name is Judea. Would you like to be my friend?