I Became the Villain of Attack on Titan

"..Still just a bunch of kids, huh?"

Reiner said with a tone of disappointment, watching the series of events unfold.

Reiner and I were about two years older than Jean and Eren.

At this age, even a one-year difference is pretty significant.

Already, Reiner and I looked like adults to others, though I admit we both were a little rough around the edges.

"Well, I guess it's a good thing, though. After a fight like that, they probably won't be fighting for a while."

Reiner let out a small chuckle, and I smiled back at him.

"By the way, Reiner, where's Bertolt?"

"Oh, he skipped breakfast today. Said he wasn't hungry."

"Bertolt skipping a meal? That's odd…"

Bertolt usually had a big appetite, so it was strange that he'd skipped breakfast.

I wondered if he was feeling sick or something.

Well, I figured he had his reasons. I picked up my spoon and continued eating.

Suddenly, a name popped into my head.

"Wait a second… what about Annie?"

"Was she even here this morning? I don't really remember."

Since we joined the Cadet Corps, I hadn't spent much time with Annie.

We occasionally took the same classes, but other than that, we didn't really hang out.

Come to think of it, had I eaten with Annie in the past few weeks?

A vague memory of eating together came to mind, but it was unclear whether it was from the old days or more recently.

Maybe it was because so much had been happening lately.

I rubbed my aching head.

Well, we had shared a few classes. Surely, we had eaten together at least once.

I shrugged and took another bite of my food.

* * *

"Uh... Hey..."

Bertolt spoke hesitantly, addressing the girl who was sitting in the training ground's chair, almost as if hiding, having skipped breakfast.

"Annie... do you skip breakfast every day?"

Annie, who had her hood up, turned her head to look at Bertolt.

"Yeah."

"Aren't you... hungry?"

"Not really."

Bertolt gathered his courage to speak, but the response he received was brief.

He thought for a while about how to continue, then cautiously spoke again.

"Well... if you're okay with it, how about eating together? I don't know about the others, but Shiniro and Reiner should be fine, right?"

Bertolt said, sounding genuinely concerned about her.

Every time he went to the cafeteria, he always checked to see if Annie was there.

While Reiner and Shiniro seemed indifferent, Annie often skipped meals or ate alone in a corner.

Seeing the frail Annie skip meals made him worry that she would get health problems.

With the tough training, who knew if she might overexert herself and faint.

"Or... I mean, if you're okay with it, I could get you some food...?"

He had thought about bringing her food once, but hesitated, afraid she might dislike it.

His style was to avoid actions that would make others uncomfortable, especially when it came to someone like Annie.

But Annie, without listening to Bertolt's full words, answered shortly.

"I prefer being alone."

She finished her sentence and turned her head away.

Bertolt, taken aback by her cold response, fumbled for words and couldn't find anything to say.

Not long after, Annie stood up and left the seat.

Bertolt watched her walk away, not able to stop her.

He let out a deep sigh, almost as if blaming himself.

"Sigh... What did I do... idiot..."

Bertolt thought to himself that he might have made things worse.

Had he made Annie uncomfortable and pushed her further away?

For some reason, it felt like they had become even more distant than when they lived in the northern farmland.

At least back then, they lived in the same house and exchanged a few words regularly.

But after becoming trainees, even those opportunities disappeared.

Bertolt tried his best to fight against the sinking feeling in his heart.