Attack on Titan Episode 8: Hearing the Heartbeat: The Battle for Trost (4)

Jean leads the cadets toward Trost HQ while Mikasa, Armin, and Conny lure the mysterious Titan—which has been killing other Titans throughout the district—to the headquarters. The Titan engages the other Titans outside while the cadets execute a strategy to clear the supply room.

Inside HQ, Jean struggles with the weight of command after witnessing cadets die in the previous battle. When he discovers soldiers hiding in shock rather than fighting, his frustration boils over and he punches one of them. However, Marco reassures Jean that his quick thinking saved their lives.

Armin devises a tactical plan to retake the supply room. The cadets use an elevator and muskets to execute a coordinated assault: they lower themselves to draw the seven Titans inside toward them, then use rifles to blind the Titans' eyes before leaping from the rafters to kill them at the nape. Reiner makes a crude joke about the Titans' weak spot, calling it their "butt." Most cadets succeed in their kills, though Sasha and Conny initially struggle before Mikasa and Annie come to their aid. Reiner comments that he's relieved Annie wasn't hurt.

After refueling their gas tanks, the cadets notice the mysterious Titan outside collapsing from exhaustion after killing the remaining Titans in the area. As they watch, something extraordinary happens: **Eren Jaeger emerges unconscious from the Titan's nape, alive and healed.** Mikasa and Armin weep with joy upon realizing Eren survived, having believed him dead. The revelation that the Titan they've been relying on is actually Eren—transformed into a Titan himself—shocks the group, leaving them uncertain about what this means for their future.