Throughout the history of human existence, whether in this reality or another, humans have always expressed their savage nature through war—the desire to have everything, to rule over others, and to claim what someone else has worked so hard to build.
Gale once fought for the hardships of others, his own desire to survive, and his intense determination to change the future he knew.
But now, after having built unimaginable things thanks to the connections within his dreams, he wished to protect with all his strength everything that people had created.
He had thought about it deeply. Without a doubt, innovation was important, but so was mindset, and for a long time now, Gale had steeled his own.
He had explained to himself countless times that in this life, he was achieving things he had never imagined doing before.
And what reassured him was that he was certain many would walk the same path as him if they were in his situation.
The humans of his world were not prepared to become elite soldiers, and even if they managed to, what they could accomplish would still be limited.
That was why Gale did not choose to simply wait to join the Training Corps, because he knew that if he did, he would not make a difference.
But in this place, seeing all the decisions made, Gale believed he was on the right path.
"Come on, Gale, you can do this…" Alone in his room, Gale encouraged himself to keep moving forward.
The weight of the truth that only he knew, the things he had changed, the countless deaths he had prevented—Gale, who only hoped to receive a thank you from someone who understood him, smiled bitterly.
Even if no one knew, Gale knew it had all been worth it.
"Everyone has the right to live their life." Gale was happy to have prevented tragic deaths, but what awaited him now was a path filled with blood, where people who had not died before would lose their lives.
"Boss, everyone is waiting." A soldier informed Gale after knocking on his door.
Gale gave a brief reply and walked out of his room, renewed and full of energy. He hoped that his diplomatic plans would prevent the extinction of the world beyond this island.
…
In the underground shipyard, everyone gathered at the main dock of Ship No. 3.
Special Titans, workers, logistics personnel, and preselected soldiers arrived at the shipyard where the vessel was already completed.
Eren, Armin, and Mikasa, dressed in their uniforms, lined up beneath the chassis of the finished warship.
On the improvised stage stood Erwin, Hange, and an exhausted Gale.
"Commander Erwin is here, which means we're about to set sail, right?" Armin said, nervously rubbing his face.
"Time flies; three months have passed in the blink of an eye…" Mikasa murmured as her gaze drifted toward Gale, who stood at the front of everyone.
"The location has already been decided," Eren said in a low voice. "It's in the region of the Eastern Kingdom. It seems many small countries there have been destroyed by Marley."
Armin reflected on the purpose of this route: "From what I know, we're going there this time to establish a base on the continent and find a way to bring technology from outside the walls to the island. Are we going to win over the people of a defeated nation?"
"We'll find out soon. The next briefing should explain it." Eren said quietly; he didn't know much about the course of action after leaving the island either.
"Eren…" Mikasa whispered his name.
"What's wrong, Mikasa?" Eren asked, slightly confused.
"Your buttons aren't fastened properly." Mikasa reached out and helped straighten the buttons on his collar, her face very close to his, their breaths mingling.
After fastening his belt, Mikasa returned to her original position.
Eren glanced at Mikasa's profile and placed a hand over his chest.
For some reason, his heart suddenly began to race. He felt that… Mikasa had a pleasant scent lately…
On the stage, Erwin began speaking with the help of a megaphone. "Thus, let us begin our first departure meeting."
"The Marley transport ship set sail from the port yesterday, and according to its usual pattern, the next landing on the island is expected to take place within 28 days."
"Therefore, starting tomorrow, we will gradually transport the components of Navy One to the natural port by the sea using large special vessels for assembly."
"The scheduled departure time is in five days, tonight. Now, I will announce the list of passengers boarding. Those whose names are called, please step forward and stand in the empty space to my right…"
Erwin began reading the names one by one and assigning tasks.
Mikasa was in Levi's combat squad, and Armin was in the technical squad.
Eren, along with Mick and Hannes, was part of the Titan squad.
As for Dina, although she was on the list, she would only work in logistics and would not participate in combat-related matters, due to her personal wishes.
At this meeting, Eren Yeager, Dina Fritz, and Gale were designated as the primary protection targets, and their safety was to be the highest priority under any circumstances.
After the meeting, the assembly was dismissed, and the workers were free to do as they pleased.
After working hard for more than half a year, they finally had a period of rest.
The cafeteria prepared a lavish meal that night, including meat, soup, and bread.
Ymir's favorite fried chicken and fries were available in unlimited quantities, and a new condiment had recently been added—ketchup—which she loved.
Considering that once aboard the ship the chances of eating fried chicken and fries would be very scarce, Ymir ate with all her might.
The next morning, hundreds of Titans, under the command of the Founding Titan, transported the forty-meter-long chassis of Navy One to the shore.
The ship had a total of seven layers of hull installed over the chassis.
The larger components were continuously transported and assembled onto the chassis. The Armored Titan occasionally used its hardening ability to bond and reinforce the vessel.
By noon on the fifth day, Navy One was assembled. Hannes transformed into a colossal giant, sixty meters tall, and used the palms of his hands to dig into the sand, pushing Navy One toward the sea.
Before selecting the location of the shipyard, they had measured the depth of the nearby seawater and specifically chose a natural harbor for shipbuilding.
According to calculations, Navy No. 1 had a displacement of 5,000 tons and was equipped with armored gun turrets on both sides of the hull that could rotate 360 degrees, making it a true "armored warship."
This was the warship built on Paradis Island, a project that took nearly a year and required all the nation's resources to complete.
The majestic steel warship stood still among the tides, its fully steel hull resembling a mountain of iron.
Tiny Titans carried sacks of food and ammunition to the warehouse located in the ship's hold. Workers and soldiers walked together through the corridors and rooms of the ship, hanging "Titan miner lamps" in dark places to illuminate them.
By the afternoon, pre-departure checks were completed.
Everyone boarded the ship and stood on the deck of Navy One, watching the sunset.
The sea was dyed in the colors of dusk beneath the red sun. The sun sank below the horizon. Gale looked up and saw seagulls flying across the sky.
The Titan in the engine room began turning the crank, and the gears made the propeller spin.
The bow of the ship pushed aside the seawater, and Navy One began moving across the surface of the sea at a speed of 20 to 30 nautical miles, faster than a large wind-powered sailboat, but not as fast as Marley's steam-powered battleships.
However, using Titans as a power source had unique advantages:
For example, it was clean and non-polluting, required no fuel transport, and could continue advancing across the sea even without resupply.
As long as the feeding compartment was not directly attacked, the likelihood of malfunction was virtually eliminated, and safety and reliability were extremely high.
Eren and Mikasa remained together, holding onto the railing as they gazed at the calm sea.
Mikasa pointed at the sunset and said, "How beautiful!"
The sea breeze beneath the setting sun brushed aside her bangs, and Eren was momentarily captivated by her beauty.
Armin, with good judgment, found Jean and Connie, and together with those two troublemakers, they enjoyed the view of the sea.
In the captain's cabin, Gale and Hange were recording various data after the launch of Navy One.
From the captain's cabin, the Titans in the engine room could be directly controlled. Through an activation mechanism, pressing on the Titan's eyes and nose controlled whether it turned the cranks and the direction of rotation, achieving the same effect as a steering wheel.
Overall, the performance data was perfect. Even though it was an improvised ship, its navigation performance exceeded expectations.
Gale continued recording data until late at night, during which time he inspected and moved through several key areas of Navy One.
"That's all for today. Thank you, everyone. Return to your rooms and rest. We will continue tomorrow," Gale said to the workers accompanying him.
He was in the engine room, where Titans lay on the ground, with their waists, legs, and necks secured by articulated iron buckles.
Behind each Titan was a window that allowed light to enter, with an iron cover that could be opened and closed. At that moment, the cover was open, and moonlight illuminated the giants.
All of them were "Lunar Titans" capable of moving at night. Moonlight is a reflection of sunlight, and a small number of aberrant species can move under it.
These Titans were "rare species" selected from tens of thousands of Titans living within the walls.
Even at night, they tirelessly turned the cranks to power Navy One.
After dismissing the workers, Gale returned to his room and lay down on his bed.
Although the space inside the ship was very limited, he still had a private room with his own study.
He was very tired today, so he lay down and quickly fell asleep.