Chapter 48: A Terrifying Expression
Three hours into the pursuit battle.
Su Xiao continued firing with the Shattered Elf, the Investigation Corps pursuing him now reduced to only a few dozen members.
These Investigation Corps members were in a miserable state, having dwindled from over eight hundred to just a few dozen.
This was the price of pursuing without regard for stamina consumption. It wasn't Erwin's lack of wisdom that led to this situation, but rather the suddenness of Su Xiao's ambush at "Rose Wall."
From the moment Reiner was fully exposed to the time they snatched the person and fled, it took less than a minute at most. The Investigation Corps simply had no time to prepare.
The current situation was merely a chain reaction; Su Xiao had seized the initiative.
If the Investigation Corps chose to pursue, they would face the problem of exhausted men and horses. If they didn't pursue, they would be unwilling to give up. This was a vicious cycle.
On the Armored Titan's shoulder, Su Xiao tried to touch the barrel of the Shattered Elf.
Ssss~
It was very hot. If he continued firing for much longer, the Shattered Elf might be ruined.
At most, he could fire a few dozen more rounds. Any more than that, and the Shattered Elf would definitely not hold up—the barrel was too hot.
Su Xiao's gaze gradually sharpened as he aimed the muzzle at Levi.
Bang.
He fired without hesitation.
The warhorse beneath Levi let out a neigh as a bloody hole burst open on its chest. The entire horse, along with Levi, tumbled forward.
Levi was very agile, adjusting his posture mid-air as much as possible.
With a thud, Levi landed, rolling several times on the ground before crouching on one knee.
Although Levi looked quite graceful, his entire body ached faintly. He immediately tried to get up and pursue on another horse, but the sharp pain in his knee joints made him stagger two steps.
Hitting Levi's horse with one shot surprised Su Xiao. He had aimed at Levi's torso~
Indeed, becoming a sharpshooter overnight was a pipe dream.
Still, being beyond the level of "shoot here, hit there" was already satisfactory to Su Xiao. His marksmanship had been embarrassingly poor before.
Levi's fall from his horse signified the complete collapse of the Investigation Corps. The corps members all stopped their pursuit one after another.
There was no point in continuing the chase. The enemy's methods were too "shameless."
Although the Investigation Corps had stopped, one figure continued—Mikasa.
Seeing that only Mikasa remained, Su Xiao put away the Shattered Elf.
Since the Investigation Corps was still nearby, the Armored Titan couldn't stop. If Mikasa still dared to chase after they had run a bit further, she would be walking right into a trap.
Flexing his slightly numb right hand, Su Xiao sat cross-legged on the Armored Titan's shoulder.
Checking the remaining time for the main mission, there were still 12 days and 17 hours. This made him feel vaguely uneasy.
He didn't know how large "Paradis Island" was, but judging by the area of the walled world, it should be considerable. He could only hope that the sea route between "Paradis Island" and the "Marley Empire" wasn't too far.
Su Xiao was faintly worried—whether the main mission's time limit would be enough for him to reach the Marley Empire.
If the internal structure of the walls weren't too small and lacked potential for development, Su Xiao wouldn't have cooperated with Reiner and the others.
The organizations within the walled world included the Training Corps, the Survey Corps, the Garrison, the Military Police, and the strongest of all, the Royal Family.
There was no need to consider the various corps; joining them wouldn't yield much gain.
As for the Royal Family, Su Xiao had even less desire to join. In his view, the Royal Family within the walls wasn't a good choice either. Joining a faction like that was more than ten times more dangerous than joining the CCG in the previous world.
Therefore, Su Xiao thought of the world outside the walls. The Marley Empire was a good choice, especially with Reiner and the others as connections.
Plus, with the basement of the Yeager family, even if he couldn't reach the Marley Empire, there wouldn't be too much loss.
Without Reiner and the others to guide him, finding the Yeager family's basement would be like fishing for the moon at the bottom of the sea. This was the main reason Su Xiao chose to cooperate with Reiner and the others.
Moreover, Reiner and the others served as an additional safety net. Now, Su Xiao had gathered six inheritors of the Titan power around him. This was intentional on Su Xiao's part—a final gain in case the plan failed.
The main issue now was still how far the Marley Empire actually was.
Su Xiao sighed inwardly. He had a vague feeling that the Titan world wasn't suitable for development.
The mission deadlines were too short, the number of missions was very small, the scope of the derivative world was ridiculously vast, the factions were far apart, and there was no fast way to travel.
This derivative world was most likely the one where Reincarnation Paradise wanted him to familiarize himself with small to medium-scale wars.
Suppressing various thoughts, he decided to settle these matters later.
The Armored Titan's running speed gradually slowed, but Mikasa behind them couldn't close the distance. Her warhorse was also slowing down.
Five minutes later, the warhorse beneath Mikasa gradually stopped. No matter how much Mikasa urged it, the horse remained in place.
The warhorse knelt on the ground, foam appearing at its mouth. The rise and fall of its abdomen grew slower and slower until finally, the horse stopped breathing—run to death.
Mikasa watched as Allen gradually disappeared into the distance, the light in her eyes beginning to dim.
Mikasa knelt on the grass, her arms hanging limply. She had exhausted every means to pursue, but Allen was still fading away.
"Allen!"
Mikasa shouted loudly.
Su Xiao glanced sideways at Mikasa. It was a matter of victory and defeat. She had lost this round, and it was lucky she hadn't lost her life.
After being pursued for three and a half hours, Su Xiao finally shook off the Investigation Corps. Although the Investigation Corps looked miserable, the actual casualties weren't significant.
Due to his poor marksmanship, Su Xiao had chosen to shoot the horses. But how many of those eight hundred-plus Investigation Corps members would return to the walls was uncertain.
The Armored Titan, Reiner, ran for another hour before stopping. By then, the Armored Titan's entire body was beginning to steam.
After Reiner de-titanized, red marks appeared on both sides of his cheeks—a sign of overexertion.
"Finally shook off the Investigation Corps."
Reiner lay weakly on the grass. Bertholdt stepped forward and gave Reiner some water to drink.
Su Xiao sat silently on the ground, contemplating something. After thinking for about two minutes, he walked over to Reiner.
"Reiner, how long will it take to return to the Empire from here?"
This seemingly casual question from Su Xiao now concerned the lives of several people.
"At our current speed..."
Reiner pondered seriously.
"About three days to leave Paradis Island. Then, after about eight or nine days at sea, we can return to the Empire. We hid a boat by the coast when we came, so crossing the sea isn't a problem."
Reiner reluctantly sat up.
"Don't you know the way back? How did you get here?"
Doubt arose in Reiner's mind.
Su Xiao calculated in his heart. The main mission's time limit was a little over twelve days, but reaching the Marley Empire would take about twelve days. This included eight or nine days at sea, and if the weather at sea was bad, it would take even longer.
His heart gradually sank. The thing he feared most had happened—the Titan world really wasn't suitable for development. This was indeed the world where Reincarnation Paradise wanted him to adapt to small and medium-scale wars.
"Troublesome."
Su Xiao lightly pressed his forehead.
"Bai Ye, you haven't answered my question."
Reiner's tone became serious. After all, Su Xiao wasn't a spy from their batch, so they wouldn't fully trust him.
"Ah, that question..."
Su Xiao's body gradually tensed. He actually had a good excuse—he could say he came by airship—but now there was no need for that.
"There's a piece of confidential information I haven't told you."
As Su Xiao spoke, he glanced at the captives, including Allen, signaling Reiner and the other two to come closer.
Reiner and Bertholdt exchanged a glance. Based on Su Xiao's previous performance, the two moved a bit closer to him. However, Annie remained where she stood—perhaps it was a woman's intuition.
"I'm actually not from the Marley Empire."
A smile appeared on Su Xiao's face, a cold gleam flashing in his eyes as the Dragon-Slaying Flash appeared in his hand!
Seeing Su Xiao's expression, Reiner's pupils contracted sharply, his face filled with terror.