On the azure-blue sea surface, layers of waves rolled endlessly. The waves washed up onto the golden sandy beach, splashing into sprays of foam. The salty, damp sea breeze blew toward their faces, carrying with it the unmistakable scent of the ocean.
By the edge of the beach, soldiers wearing the uniforms of the Survey Corps were already standing everywhere. Almost all of them were excited, yet cautious, as they touched the seawater before them.
Armin took off his boots and gently stepped onto the sand that had just been washed over by the sea. It was strangely soft, and between his toes he could even feel a faint itch. This unprecedented and wondrous sensation made Armin's eyes sparkle.
"Eren! Mikasa! Everyone, come try it—stepping on this feels so good!" Armin waved his arms and shouted.
The Survey Corps soldiers, who could be said to have never seen the ocean before, immediately followed suit. Waves of shouting and cheering began to erupt across the beach.
"Eren, wait for me!" Mikasa was a little nervous, walking carefully in the seawater. Eren, on the other hand, wanted to hurry and meet up with Armin, so he took the initiative to grab Mikasa's hand as they walked, saying,
"Mikasa, let's move faster. Later we can have Armin tell us stories about the ocean."
But Mikasa's attention wasn't on that at all. Her cheeks were flushed red. At this moment, she was completely immersed in the thought: "Eren took my hand on his own! ?(?^o^?)?"
Sasha dipped her finger into the seawater and put it into her mouth. Her eyes lit up as she shouted,
"Wow, this water really tastes salty, like salt was added!"
Connie scratched his head and said, "Sasha, how can you dare to taste everything?"
Sasha pointed at Armin and said,
"Armin said this is a salt lake. I didn't expect the water to actually be salty. If it were all salt, that would be worth so much money."
"Aren't you afraid of getting poisoned?"
"How could lake water be poisonous?" Sasha said, hands on her hips, full of righteous confidence.
Just then, Jean Kirstein happened to pass by barefoot and laughed with ill intent.
"Sasha, you just came down, didn't you?"
Sasha nodded, and Jean pointed at the piles of Survey Corps soldiers by the shore and said,
"Everyone else went down barefoot before you. So, Sasha, that means you just drank… foot-washing water?"
Hearing Jean Kirstein's words, Sasha's little face turned pale. She stiffly turned her head to look at those soldiers.
"No!!"
On the other side, Levi also walked onto the beach with his subordinates. Although the fine sand sticking to his legs made the germophobic Levi frown slightly, seeing the happy smiles on his subordinates' and soldiers' faces, even the cold Captain showed a faint smile.
"Ah! Ouch, ouch, ouch! What is this thing!?" Hange suddenly raised her hand and screamed. On her finger, a creature she had never seen before was clamping down tightly.
"Is it a sea crab?" Not far away, Yago noticed what was on Hange's hand and couldn't help but find it amusing.
Standing beside Yago was Annie. For Annie and Yago, the ocean wasn't some rare, first-time sight, so the two of them weren't as surprised or excited as the Survey Corps soldiers.
Annie was mostly quietly gazing at the vast sea, thinking about how her father on the other shore might be doing right now. For no particular reason, a trace of emptiness appeared in her heart, and she subconsciously wanted to move closer to Yago.
Yago also noticed Annie's movement. Without a word, his loving embrace was already open.
The two of them sat on a rock together. Without realizing it, Annie's head leaned against Yago's shoulder, and Yago wrapped an arm around Annie's waist.
What an enjoyable feeling, Yago thought to himself. Even the sound of approaching footsteps didn't disturb Yago and Annie.
"Commander, this really isn't good. When you see a couple getting close, can't you just not come over to bother them?" Yago teased. Of course, he didn't loosen the arm around Annie—old acquaintances already, what's there to be shy about?
Erwin, who was being teased, merely smiled and said nothing. After all, seen this way, it really was his fault. Instead, the person standing beside Erwin awkwardly took a step back.
Yago glanced over and spoke up.
"Captain Mike? Have your injuries recovered?" That's right—the one standing beside Erwin was Captain Mike, who had recovered from his injuries and returned to duty, humanity's second-strongest soldier!
Still wrapped in some thin bandages, Mike nodded somewhat stiffly, but said sincerely,
"Yes. Speaking of which, last time I should thank you and Annie for saving me from the Titans."
Yago waved his hand and said, "It was only right. Only right."
"Speaking of which, Yago, you once said that the land we live on is completely surrounded by the ocean before us, right? Then what lies across the sea?" Erwin asked meaningfully.
"Across the sea?" Hearing this familiar question, Yago froze for a moment, then smiled and asked Erwin in return,
"Commander, what do you think lies across the sea?"
Erwin raised his head and looked at the Survey Corps soldiers densely spread along the shore, saying quietly,
"Across the sea, there are still humans. But Yago, do the humans of the outside world truly harbor deep hostility toward the people inside our walls?"
Yago didn't answer Erwin's question directly, but instead said,
"Humans and Titans are enemies—but who says humans and humans are companions? Commander, across the sea… is the world."
The same question was also asked from Eren's mouth.
"Armin, Mikasa, what lies across the sea?"
Armin looked toward the distance, the excitement in his eyes still not yet faded.
"Across the sea? There should be many amazing sights, right? Flowing flames, frozen plains, snowy fields of sand…"
"Is that so? Even more beautiful scenery…" Eren fell silent, because he thought of his father's notes in the basement—the country called Marley, and that brother he seemed to have, whom he had never met, Zeke Yeager.
Sensing Eren's low spirits, the usually shy Mikasa didn't know where she found the courage. She took the initiative to hold Eren's hand and said hesitantly,
"Eren, no matter… no matter what's across the sea, I'm here too. Please let me go and see it with you."
Eren widened his green eyes, looking at the hand Mikasa was holding, and murmured,
"Go see it together?"
"Mm, together," Mikasa lifted her head and met Eren's gaze.
Slowly revealing a smile, Eren nodded and said, "Alright. We'll go see it together."
Armin stood there on the spot, inexplicably feeling like he was a bit unnecessary.
...
At the same time, a Marleyan escort warship was drawing closer and closer to its destination, Paradis Island. As night fell, a group of more than ten people had quietly gathered on the deck of the warship, with Yelena at the front.
Yelena handed a signal pistol the Marleyan soldiers had never seen before to one of the soldiers.
"Lus, it's up to you. Use this to contact the Eldians on the island. The speedboat is already prepared. You're one of the finest soldiers among our volunteers—I believe you can complete the mission."
The soldier named Lus gave a solemn salute and said, "Please rest assured!"
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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