"Come on, load everything."
"Civilians who are not traveling must return with the refugees!"
"We have to finish everything before dawn!"
Everyone was busy that night because the next day, they would all leave this place.
The workers labored through the entire night by candlelight and firewood, trying to assemble as many weapons as possible and produce ammunition.
They were filled with passion and indignation.
Hange told them that what they were doing had meaning, and that they would undoubtedly return victorious for them.
The defeat of the Military Police was the greatest encouragement. This victory raised the workers' morale. They worked shirtless under the suffocating heat of August, sweating profusely but without hesitation.
Gale wasn't idle either. With his superior experience, he worked in the weapons assembly plant, where he was responsible for checking their quality and finish.
Historia, on the other hand, did things like serving tea and water to the workers or wiping the sweat from Gale, trying to do the best she could.
As the night went on, Historia still couldn't get used to such an inhuman work schedule.
Gale only slept four or five hours a day there, and Historia rarely managed to stay awake until he fell asleep. Usually, she couldn't hold on any longer and returned to her tent first.
But tonight she was unusually persistent, and no matter how much Gale tried to persuade her to rest, she refused to go to sleep.
"I want to do my part too!" There was an indescribable determination in Historia's eyes; as the future queen, she had the spirit needed to rule.
That was how she found a way to survive. She wanted to live in this world like Gale, so she worked hard. It made her feel that her life had value and that others needed her.
When Eren, Armin, and Mikasa arrived, they saw Historia running around the factory, handing out water to the workers and carrying heavy boxes of spare parts.
The dim firelight illuminated her profile, and her blonde hair was soaked with sweat, clinging to her cheeks and forehead. She clenched her teeth and persevered.
Eren had just woken up. Transforming into a Titan required great physical effort, and every day he felt exhausted before he could return to his human form.
During the day, Eren transformed into a Titan as usual, transporting iron ore and wood. And at night, he collapsed into his bed to rest and had barely woken up when Mikasa and Armin informed him that the Survey Corps would head to the capital the next day.
The list of people departing this time had already been written and was composed almost entirely of members of the Survey Corps.
Hannes and other Garrison soldiers who had joined them, as well as the workers, would remain at the factory.
Mikasa and Armin were children, so they were not on the list. The only children who could go were Gale and Historia.
"Gale! I've heard about the operation, and I'm going too!" Eren shouted enthusiastically. "I can transform into a Titan; I'll definitely be useful at a crucial moment!"
"Eren… you should stay!" Armin pleaded, afraid that his friend's exposure as a Titan might cause trouble. "It's a battlefield. It's very dangerous."
"Yes, Eren." Mikasa also didn't want Eren to be in danger. "Let's stay here."
"No!" Eren clenched his fists. "I finally gained power! I'm going to fight!"
"EREN, you just mentioned combat, right?" Gale set down the pistol he was holding, took off his gloves, took the glass of water Historia handed him, and drank a sip.
"That's right! I'm different from Mikasa and Armin. I'll definitely be of great use!" Eren's gaze was firm.
Hearing this, Mikasa and Armin lowered their heads slightly and pressed their lips together.
"No, Eren, you can't be on this mission." Gale shook his head.
"Why?" Eren stepped forward.
"Of course you can transform into a giant, but our goal this time is to quickly seize power in the capital." Gale lowered his voice. Even though they trusted each other, he was still careful not to be overheard by anyone unwanted.
"For that, public opinion is also a very important factor. Imagine what would happen if a fifteen-meter-tall Titan suddenly appeared inside the walls without anyone knowing?"
"But!" Eren was still unwilling to give up.
"Eren, don't be impulsive." Gale shook his head, placing his hand on Eren's shoulder. "Your mission is to protect the factory. Even if this operation fails, as long as the factory still stands, we can come back stronger."
"The Survey Corps will take almost all of their assault rifles, and the defenses here will be greatly weakened. The place that truly needs you isn't us—it's the factory!"
Gale reasoned logically and convinced Eren.
He and Hange had already discussed it and decided that Eren could not accompany them on this mission.
First of all, aside from his ability to transform into a Titan, Eren was simply an untrained and temperamental child.
The key to this operation was to quickly rescue their allies and seize the capital; they did not need the power of Titans to clear the way.
Moreover, Pixis and Erwin were unaware of Eren's existence. If Eren suddenly transformed into a Titan, Pixis might draw a different conclusion, perhaps believing that Eren was allied with the Colossal Titan and the Armored Titan, and therefore launch an attack against them.
Gale's goal was to seize power with the fewest possible losses; he did not want too many people to die in the coup d'état.
Most people were simply deceived by the central government and the nobility.
The Central Military Police obeyed the government's orders only because they had been raised that way; in reality, they knew very little about the truth.
On Paradis Island, human resources were quite scarce. For future construction and industrial development, every person was a valuable labor force—especially these literate soldiers who had studied in military academies.
With proper training, any literate soldier could become a qualified teacher and a squad leader.
Wasn't that the case in the original story?
Erwin and Pixis seized power with almost no bloodshed, and the Military Police shone under the new political system.
Many of them even took part in the recovery of Maria and fought against the Beast Titan.
Although necessary sacrifices were inevitable, Gale hoped to kill as few people as possible, both on their side and in the capital.
The only ones who truly needed to be eliminated were the parasites feeding off the people.
"Eren, I understand how you feel," Gale said, looking at Eren's resigned expression as he tried to persuade him. "But leave this operation to us. There will be many more opportunities for you to use your abilities in the future, so don't complain about being tired then."
"Alright… fine…" Eren finally let himself be convinced.
Although Eren was not entirely convinced by the others, he was convinced by Gale. He had witnessed everything Gale had done in recent days, from the ferris wheel to the Survey Corps and the weapons factory.
Eren felt inferior to Gale because of what he had accomplished and took his words very seriously.
"You must be very tired from working as a Titan these days, so get some rest." Gale smiled and turned his head toward the others. "Mikasa, Armin, I'll leave Eren in your care. We'll celebrate together when the harvest is ready."
"Yes, Gale, you have to be careful." Armin nodded.
"I wish you the best," Mikasa said with a blank expression.