Attack on Titan: The Strongest Newcomer

"Reiss is the royal family's surname, and my true identity is the illegitimate daughter of the current king... an abandoned member of the royal family…"

Krista gathered all her courage to finally reveal the secret she had been carrying for so long.

Ryo sat up from the grass, but instead of reacting with shock or fear, he simply smiled. Wrapping his arms around her from behind, he said, "So what if you're from the royal family? Unless you look down on me, a country bumpkin!"

He knew exactly what Krista was afraid of. She worried that her identity would bring danger to those close to her. After all, her own father had ordered assassins to kill her mother. If not for a moment of mercy from the assassin, Krista would have died that day too. That horrific memory had never faded from her mind.

For years, she had lived in fear, constantly looking over her shoulder, convinced that if she let anyone get too close, they would be dragged into her misfortune. Hiding her real name and joining the Training Corps had been her way of surviving, of keeping herself away from the reach of the royal family.

But then Ryo came into her life, and suddenly, that distance she had carefully maintained no longer seemed possible. Now, she was torn between staying silent to protect him or telling him the truth and risking losing him forever.

"Ryo, you're not… afraid?" Krista's voice wavered, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.

"What's there to be afraid of?" Ryo chuckled, pulling out a handkerchief to wipe her tears. "Don't cry. Our little angel is the most beautiful when she smiles."

"But you don't understand… The royal family is terrifying!" Krista insisted, her grip tightening on his sleeve.

And for the first time, she told him everything.

She was born as Historia Reiss, the illegitimate daughter of Rod Reiss. Because of this, she was never acknowledged, never allowed to be a part of the family. Her existence alone was a disgrace, and her mother despised her for it. Krista had grown up in isolation, locked away in a distant manor under strict supervision.

Whenever she tried to make friends with other children, they would throw stones at her, call her names, and threaten her. She had no one—no one except books. The manor had an extensive library, and within its pages, she found an escape from her loneliness.

But she hadn't been entirely alone. There was one person who cared—her half-sister, Frieda Reiss.

Frieda would sneak into the manor to visit her, teaching her how to read and encouraging her to be kind, to grow into someone people would love. Those moments with Frieda had been the happiest in her childhood. Yet, they felt distant, like memories slipping through her fingers. No matter how hard she tried to recall them, they were always just out of reach, coming back only in dreams.

Then, one day, everything fell apart.

Rod Reiss sent assassins to kill her mother. The man who carried out the order was Kenny Ackerman, the most feared killer under the royal family. After slaughtering everyone on the estate, he had turned to her.

And yet, he hadn't killed her.

Krista never understood why, but she suspected he had his own reasons—perhaps some scheme against the Reiss family. Whatever the reason, he let her go.

Alone and without a home, she had fled beyond the royal city, beyond Wall Sina, eventually arriving at Wall Rose. But she wasn't the only one.

The fall of Wall Maria had sent a flood of refugees into Wall Rose, overwhelming the cities. To manage the crisis, the government forced many people into work camps to farm new land and increase food production. Krista, now just another nameless refugee, had been sent there as well.

But even that wasn't enough. With too many mouths to feed, the government launched a doomed operation to reclaim Wall Maria—knowing full well it would fail. Over 200,000 people were sent to their deaths, just to ease the strain on food supplies.

It was in that same year that the Training Corps began recruiting the 104th Cadet Corps. Krista, having nowhere else to go, enlisted—choosing a new name, a new identity, and a new life.

She had been running ever since.

Now, as she finished her story, she looked up at Ryo, waiting for his response. Waiting for the fear, the hesitation, the distance.

Instead, he simply smiled.

"So your real name is Historia Reiss, huh?"

Krista nodded slowly.

"Well, that doesn't change anything," Ryo said. "You're still Krista to me. The same Krista who helps others, who always puts her friends first, who lights up every place she walks into." He brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "And no matter what name you go by, you're still my Krista."

Krista's heart clenched. All the fear, the anxiety—it melted away in an instant. The tears she had been holding back finally spilled over.

She threw her arms around Ryo, burying her face in his chest.

"Thank you…" she whispered, her voice trembling.

Ryo held her close, his grip firm and steady. "Always."

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(A/N: Advance Chapters Available On My Patreon)