New Novel: TWD: A Ranch at the End of the World
Chapter 90 - The Church
In the Reiss territory, among the ruins of a church, Gale gazed at the newly rebuilt structure standing over charred stones.
A great fire had swept through this place, nearly destroying everything and reducing the surrounding vegetation to ashes. But just over a year later, seeds had taken root and sprouted from the soil, and weeds had begun to grow everywhere once again.
On this land where all of Gale's plans had been conceived, he now set foot once more.
"Kael, I've returned…" Gale knew this place well. He had grown up in the Reiss territory and worked as a butler's assistant, frequently traveling between different areas of the land.
Of course, he had been to this area before.
That church was the private place of worship where the Reiss family held their services, and it was also the only church in the entire territory.
On important holidays, the lord would distribute large amounts of food near the church and secretly carry out religious activities with the followers of the Wall Church.
But beneath the church lay another world—the place where successive Kings of the Walls held their ceremonies of power transfer.
When the previous King of the Walls reached the end of his life, the chosen successor would be injected with Titan serum in the underground chamber of the church, transforming them into a Titan that would devour their own blood relatives.
"Let's go in." Gale and the others broke into the church, searching for the entrance to the basement.
Just as Rod had said, they found the entrance near the priest's altar. After using Rod's key, they opened a door, behind which was a staircase leading underground.
"It's very dark… Logistics team, go get the kerosene lamps," Hange ordered, looking toward the deep passageway.
"No need for kerosene lamps," Kenny said, waving his hand. "Come with me, there's plenty of light and space down there."
"I understand it's spacious, but will the basement really be lit?" Hange scratched her head, somewhat confused, but quickly realized what Kenny meant.
A bright ray of light emanated from below.
Kenny pushed open a door, and his shadow reflected on the steps.
The group exchanged glances, set aside the kerosene lamps they had brought, and followed Kenny down the stairs.
The moment they crossed the threshold, everything became clear and bright.
It was an enormous underground cavity.
Looking upward, they could see walls and ceilings dozens of meters high. They were not made of ordinary stone, but of a kind of transparent crystal that glowed in the darkness.
The crystal enveloped the entire underground cavity, with numerous thick crystal pillars supporting the space.
At first glance, it seemed quite vast, and the glowing crystals illuminated the place with the same intensity as daylight, creating the sensation of stepping into a dreamlike world.
Hange touched one of the crystal pillars. "This feeling… It's very similar to the hardened shell of the Female Titan… Could all of this be… remnants of the Titans' hardening process?"
"It must have been created by the King of the Walls." Gale looked up and said calmly, "These stones can be embedded into glass after extraction and used as a source of light at night, but we'll deal with that later. First, let's find the instrument the previous king mentioned."
"This place is too large. Let's split up and search. Everyone, form groups of three," Hange shouted excitedly and warned, "When you find the metal box, bring it to the entrance."
"Yes."
The soldiers spread out, and about twenty of them entered the underground space.
Hange felt it wasn't enough, so she called for twenty more soldiers from the hundred stationed on the surface to assist in the search.
At the same time, she had someone use a hammer and nails to chip off some crystal fragments, which she then examined on the spot.
Gale took Eren to look around the notable areas; the scenery was beautiful, impressive, and grand.
"I've seen this in my memory…" Eren stopped and looked toward the platform.
On that elevated platform were iron shackles and leg restraints. It was clear that the previous King of the Walls would be bound there during the succession ceremony.
"Based on the last 100 years, at least six ceremonies have been held so far."
"My father… attacked the Reiss family here…" Eren's expression stiffened. "With a single blow, he crushed two boys about my age, trampled Lord Reiss's wife and the child in her arms to death, and finally strangled a teenager with his own hands."
"He crushed those small children as if he were killing insects…" Eren's hands trembled. "That feeling… I can still feel that sensation in my hands…"
"Gale… tell me… what will I become?" Eren's breathing quickened.
"Eren, calm down. You shouldn't be thinking about that right now." Gale didn't know if Eren was trying to manipulate him, but he was prepared for it and said, "If you feel uncomfortable, follow me."
With Gale's help, Eren took several deep breaths and finally calmed down.
At the entrance, someone delivered a report.
"The instrument for producing Titan fluid medicine has been found."
Gale and Eren arrived at the entrance, where Hange was sitting on the ground, fiddling with the metal box.
The outer casing of the metal box had been dismantled, and Gale crouched down to examine the structure with her.
In reality, its structure was not very complex. It used numerous air tubes inside. When the lever was pulled, the hollow drill would pierce the spine. Once it came into contact with the cerebrospinal fluid, air pressure would extract it, mix it with other materials, and inject it into a special container.
"With our technology, we should be able to restore this structure, and I even think we can improve it further," Hange reflected, looking at Gale, who was observing silently.
"Let's run some experiments first," Gale suggested, then said coldly, "Eren, transform into a Titan."
"Alright."
Eren transformed into a Titan in the vast space, then emerged from the back of its neck, leaving behind the shell of a Titan that was constantly evaporating.
The soldiers used knives and hammers to dismantle the Titan's spine.
Following the formula given by Rod, Hange added the materials into the small funnel of the instrument, then aimed the drill at a vertebra and turned the lever with a crack.
Before long, it became clear how it worked internally.
The silver cerebrospinal fluid from the Titan's spine was extracted, mixed with crushed herbs and mineral powder, and finally injected into a syringe-shaped container.
"It's a success!"
"It seems that manufacturing a sealed container is more difficult than the instrument for extracting the cerebrospinal fluid itself." Hange regretted what she had said earlier.
"It shouldn't be too difficult. We should be able to achieve mass production before next month," Gale thought differently.
"However…" Hange sighed after her initial excitement, "Is it really okay to do something like this?"
"We just need to strictly monitor the production and transportation channels," Gale said. "This is about turning people who were originally going to be executed into Titans for labor production."
"That's the problem… If this potion is accidentally lost, it will be a huge issue…"
"That's a matter of internal management. Once the purge is complete, we cannot allow the government to have management problems." Gale would only use this method temporarily.
"Well…" Hange sighed, "Forget it, I don't care anymore. Go discuss this with Erwin. First tell me the quantity for the advance order. How many do you plan to request?"
"It is initially estimated that approximately three thousand doses of Titan fluid will be required."
"Three thousand…" Hange exclaimed, breathless, and asked, "Do we have that many death row prisoners?"
"The estimated figure of three thousand is a conservative estimate of the number of people who will be sentenced soon; in reality, it should be higher."
"Aren't our laws a bit too strict?"
"They are already quite lenient. After all, last year was very chaotic, so it's only natural that the number of criminals increased." Gale had not shared with Hange his idea for using the Titan fluid.
"As Grisha's notes were made public, people with ulterior motives have also appeared…" Hange's expression was complex. "Did we really do the right thing?"
"There simply was no other choice."