Under the scorching sun, a long hour passed without anyone of the more than three hundred recruits moving from the place. Without breaking formation, everyone stood for a full hour without moving.
After the instructor who claimed to be Keith Shadis said some opening remarks, he turned on the scolding mode for all those plants that were very tender at first sight, he will train the soldiers one by one and those who only come to look for new experiences are not worthy to be in the same place as the others.
Takashi all he heard from the instructor Shadis was: "We are going to be eaten by Titans!" But knowing part of the story, he doesn't think those words are in jest.
His choice of vocabulary, the way he educates with just a few simple words is incredible.
At first, Takashi knew that this part of the anime only lasted a few simple minutes, but in fact, except for a few people who have seen hell after the fall of the Shiganshina wall, everyone without exception must be scolded again and without any care! There are more than three hundred people in this place, it takes more than minutes for a recruit to be scolded by the instructor!
Takashi looked at instructor Keith Shadis with admiration in his eyes, it has been about an hour since he started yelling non-stop and with a straight posture, doesn't he need to rest or drink water?
However, those questions in Takashi's mind were immediately answered by the actions of the bald instructor Keith, who next moment took out a bag of water and sipped a big gulp, moistening his dry throat.
When everyone thought this hell was over, Keith Shadis had no intention of stopping, he continued to spray saliva wildly.... Oh, this welcoming rite is something essential for everyone, this time the next to be the subject of words was Armin, who followed in the long list this time.
"This is more than important, for young men who don't even have the willpower to stay here after a few small words from the instructor, they are not even ideal to become good soldiers." Takashi thought silently.
Since the truth comes disguised with a hidden cloak, Takashi interpreted that instructor Keith was shouting to everyone: "If you can't stand this, you can leave and live a few more years in peace and quiet. You won't even be cannon fodder for the titans, on the contrary, you only hinder the other recruits!
Keith looked at Armin with a grim face and roared fiercely, "You there, who are you?"
"Sir!"
Armin's body trembled and he immediately made a military salute with his right hand on his left breast, and then answered loudly the next moment, "I am Armin Arlert from Shiganshina, sir!"
Hearing that, Instructor Keith just scoffed and sneered, "Is that so? Your name sounds stupid! Did your parents give it to you?"
Armin was a bit startled by Keith's fierce expression and replied in a cold sweat, "It was my grandfather who chose that name for me, sir!"
"Tell me Arlert, why do you want to join us?"
"To help humanity win, sir!"
Instructor Keith said with great disdain, "Really? That's wonderful, then I'll turn you into big-time food for the titans!"
Then, Instructor Keith twisted Armin's head with his left hand and turned around, "Third squad! Half turn!"
Takashi just watched all this in silence. Soon enough, it would be his turn to be scolded. Suddenly, he felt a vague memory of being scolded by the principal at school. To be honest, now he was really nervous."
Would he, an ordinary human from a world where until recently he considered titans to be more than fiction, be good enough to hunt down those giant, people-eating titans...? Takashi didn't know, but what he did know was that he didn't plan on dying or waiting for a protagonist to save him. What if in this world the protagonist doesn't emerge victorious like the others? This is hell in life, he couldn't depend on anyone but himself to keep him safe.
Without pausing for a moment, the water-sipping instructor Keith spat spittle in front of the recruits, walked aggressively toward the next yellow-haired, thick-browed boy named Thomas, who was the good friend he met recently and who slept in Takashi's upper bunk.
"And you, who the fuck are you?"
The yellow-haired boy with a submissive expression thumped his chest and saluted, replying somewhat nervously, "Se sir! I'm Thomas Wagner from Trost, sir..."
"Say it louder!"
"I am Thomas Wagner of Trost, sir..."
"I still can't hear you, come back and tell me who you are when I can talk like a man."
Not far away, another senior instructor like Keith and a young instructor from the training corps passed in front of the fourth squadron.
The silver-haired, bespectacled senior instructor chuckled and said to the young instructor a few steps behind him, "There it is again, you had to go through this too when you enlisted in the corps, didn't you?"
The young instructor said with a blank stare, "That's right, sir.... It really is kind of nostalgic to witness it again." Even now, he couldn't understand why instructor Keith Shadis was yelling at them all like that.
"Tell me now, who are you?" Keith Shadis asked a slender looking recruit.
"Carolina Mina of Karanes!"
"You're not! You were born in a pigsty and you're not even worth cattle!"
"Yes, sir! I was born in a pigsty and I'm not even worth cattle!"
"Here I'm the one who decides what you are and aren't!"
"Yes, sir."
Mina Carolina was a young woman of slender body and short stature. Her hair was black, voluminous, short, and she wore the ends tied by two light blue ribbons. Her eyes were gray, considerably large.
The young, blank-eyed instructor was also puzzled, when he was a training soldier, he had never received such intense scolding, so he asked:
"What's the point of scaring them like that, what does the instructor want to try?"
The silver-haired instructor smiled and said as he walked, "This is a rite, it completely destroys the memories of what they once were and re-builds them as soldiers starting from scratch."
"It's a turning point for them..."
"Fourth Squad! Turn around!"
The young instructor was still a bit puzzled, when he saw Instructor Keith walk past some people, he didn't lecture them like he did the others.
"There are some people he doesn't say anything to..."
The silver-haired instructor turned his head to look at the recruits who were not lectured by the instructor and said, "For those who have already gone through the rite, there is no need to say much. They have probably experienced hell two years ago, and their expressions are obviously different from those of other children. Very few are aware of the hell they will face later on, and for those who have already lived through that hell, they have nothing to hear from Keith. Well, come on, let's leave it at Keith."
After speaking, the silver-haired instructor and the young instructor walked to other, more secluded places.
And here, Instructor Keith walked up to a dark-haired boy and looked at him fiercely:
"What 's your name?"
The boy is moderately tall, with a wiry but muscular build at the same time. With auburn hair color, he placed his right hand on his left breast and said calmly, "I'm Jean Kirsteim from Trost!"
Seeing Jean's calm expression, the instructor asked, "What are you doing here!"
His voice was so loud that Jean was startled when he was shouted at, but he quickly returned to normal and chuckled: "My wish is to join the military police and live in the inner city."
All the trainers beside him looked with surprise at this boy who was confident that he was going to live in the inner city.
Many people think like that, but few are as straightforward as this young man.
"Wow..." Instructor Keith's face darkened and he said with a sneer, "So you want to live in the inner city?"
"Yes!" replied Jean Kirstein happily, thinking that the instructor in front of him agreed with his choice.
At this point Takashi could only say that he was too naive!
Boom!
With a muffled sound, he was greeted by a headbutt from instructor Keith!
"Woh!" Jean fell to the ground clutching his nose in pain.
As we all know, the nose is the organ of smell and is the main access route for air in and out of the lungs, being a painful place to be hit without care
Instructor Keith just smiled coldly and said, "Who told you to kneel, you'll never make it into the police regiment if it's that easy to knock me down."
Completely ignoring Jean sitting on the ground, Instructor Keith approached the next soldier-in-training, who was still a boy.
"And who are you and what are you doing here?"
The boy had some freckles on his face and looked very honest and obedient, when Instructor Keith shouted at him, he suddenly became nervous.
"I'm Marco Bott from Jinae of the Rose Wall, sir, I came here so I could join the military police and be able to follow the King's orders!"
"Is that so?" Instructor Keith narrowed his eyes, smiled sinisterly and said, "That seems like a noble beginning, good boy."
Halfway through speaking, Instructor Keith's face suddenly came close to Marco's face, looking at him with a grim expression, "But.... Always remember that the King does not want you by his side!"
"They are all different but very identical to the anime illustration, I can slowly remember their faces and names." Takashi thought to himself.
Marco Bott's face turned pale, sweating profusely. Instructor Keith turned and walked away.
Time passed slowly, numerous recruits spoke in front of Keith and Takashi as well as the others, had to wait until it was all over.
Soon, Instructor Keith approached a boy with short shaved hair and an almost bald head, and roared fiercely at him.
"What's your name son!"
The thin, short boy was a little flustered, clenched his left fist tightly and pressed it against his right breast, and replied loudly, "Connie Springer! Born in Ragako, on the south side of Rose's Wall, sir!"
"Twist!"
Connie's body was lifted by Instructor Keith with her head between her palms, and her eyes formed slanted triangles gazing at the young man between her palms at all times.
Connie naturally uttered a groan of pain.
"Listen to me very carefully Connie Springer, I thought I had been too clear! That salute you are making symbolizes that you unconditionally offer your heart to our King! Is your heart on the right side, by any chance?"
It's a bit funny, but Takashi is no longer in the mood to watch Connie's jokes and angrily reminds Sasha, "Sasha, don't eat, the instructor is coming."
Sasha didn't stop eating the sweet potato and said vaguely, "It's okay, steamed sweet potato won't taste good when it's cold."
Takashi covered his face, Sasha was going to be unlucky, what kind of punishment will his food-loving friend get?
"Boom... grunt!"
A crunching chewing sound suddenly came out, and Instructor Keith's face instantly turned ugly. He slowly turned his head and looked at the source of the sound.
Takashi's body unconsciously stiffened, he knew all was lost now. His small attempts to stop Sasha had been for nothing.
She was a girl with reddish-brown hair in a ponytail, her big eyes only looked straight ahead and at that moment she was holding a steaming sweet potato in her mouth.
Eat and swallow like there was no one else! How shameless could Sasha be right now?
Instructor Keith finally dropped Connie who was drowning in his hands.
He approached fiercely, and a cold voice came out of his teeth: "Hey, you! What the hell are you doing?"
Sasha didn't seem to hear for a while, her eyes looked around and she kept shoving food into her mouth for fear that someone would take her precious food away again.
Takashi was speechless, along with the others' eyes widened in surprise.
Being ignored, the veins on Instructor Keith's bald forehead popped, he was filled with anger. He walked towards the girl with the ponytail and shouted fiercely at her:
"I'm talking to you scum! Who do you think you are?"
Sasha was slightly taken aback by Instructor Keith's sudden roar, she swallowed the mouthful of food in her mouth and made a military salute as she replied, "Sir, I'm Shasha Blouse from Dauper south of Rose Wall, sir."
"Sasha Blouse... what are you holding in your right hand?" Instructor Keith asked Sasha with a calm face, waiting for an answer that would leave him in no doubt of Sasha Blouse's mental state.
Sasha looked at Instructor Keith and answered matter-of-factly, "A steamed sweet potato, I found it a while ago in the kitchen, sir."
"In short, did you steal this, why...why are you eating it now?"
Sasha looked at Instructor Keith and said without hesitation, "If they're not eaten hot, they're worthless, sir. This was the best possible decision."
Well, maybe in Sasha's eyes, eating is more important.
Instructor Keith looked at Sasha, his face as black as ink: "That.... Beats me, why are you eating a potato?"
Sasha was stunned for a moment and, according to his own understanding, asked, "Are you asking why people generally eat steamed potatoes?"
Takashi couldn't help but laugh when he saw this, the two were chatting through hidden codes.
Instructor Keith didn't speak with a gloomy face, many people around heard this strange dialogue scene and looked at Sasha curiously.
"Ah..." Sasha suddenly sighed, "suddenly realized", she made a great determination, split the steamed sweet potato in half and handed half of it to Instructor Keith.
Takashi, who knew her, knew that this decision was something Sasha rarely made.
"Here... I give you half." Sasha's face showed sharp pain but she didn't back down from sharing her food.
Instructor Keith unconsciously took half of the steamed sweet potato, a little unable to keep up with Sasha's thoughts.
Takashi, who stood to the side, really couldn't contain his laughter. Covering his mouth with both hands, he couldn't help but hold back the fit of laughter escaping his lips.
"The... Half?" Bald Keith said unconsciously.
Sasha saw Instructor Keith take the steamed sweet potato and thought that he liked sweet potatoes too, and smiled a little stupidly for a moment.
Instructor Keith suddenly flashed a "fatherly" smile: "Sasha Blouse, right? All right! When you run after you finish here, you'll run until you drop dead! Besides, since you love food so much, you'll run out of dinner!"
Ignoring Sasha with a shattered face, Instructor Keith approached Takashi.
"Kid, you laughed so hard just now, why is it so funny? Tell me something to please me so I won't kill you this instant!"