Making an entrance
Ten minutes earlier, as dusk fell, a silver plane roared past above the clouds. Inside the cramped cabin, everyone sat upright. The planes currently available on Paradis Island were nowhere near as advanced as those in the Far East, so the flight was mostly turbulent.
It was just a little bumpy, nothing to the elite Paradis Island Soldiers who had been trained in Omni-Directional Mobility Gear. They all remained calm, and Erwin and the others also looked indifferent.
But the two old generals from the Orient and the three "land ducks" (referring to Aili) couldn't take it. The two old generals were alright, after all, they were tough soldiers, and their self-control was still able to barely suppress their discomfort. But for Aili, this trip almost killed her.
She vomited up both bowls of beef noodles she ate before leaving, and when there was nothing left to vomit, she kept dry heaving. Her once healthy face was now deathly pale, and it seemed like countless little stars were spinning in front of her.
"We're almost there! The Icarus City is just ahead. According to our Volunteer Army's intelligence, the Marleyan meeting should be held in the underground of that St. He Hospital. Yago-san, get ready!" Onyankopon shouted loudly. If he hadn't shouted, no one in the cabin would have heard him.
At that moment, Yago opened his eyes, stood up from his seat, stretched his body slightly, looked at the crowd before him, and said with a smile, "Alright, it's our turn to take the stage. Our friends from Marley and other countries must be getting impatient, right?"
As Yago stood up, the others immediately followed suit. Several Paradis Island Soldiers, their faces solemn, began to check their Omni-Directional Mobility Gear. Then, someone took out a set of belts from a pre-prepared box and put them on.
With the help of Annie and Hange, the already weak Aili, who could barely get up, was helped to put on a belt set and then tightly tied to the belt set on Annie's body. The other two old Orient generals followed suit and were tied to two Soldiers from Paradis Island.
What's going on here? Trying to emulate the Marleyan' past "Marley’s Wrath" airborne attack? No! That's way too tacky. As a representative of the Eldians, the entrance should be full of Eldians characteristics, so that friends from the outside world can feel the Eldians' enthusiasm!
So what exactly are the distinctive features of the Eldians?
Whoosh! The cabin door was flung open instantly, and the powerful pressure difference immediately flooded the entire cabin with a large amount of air, filling everyone with the whooshing sound of the wind.
Without the slightest hesitation, Yago strode towards the cabin door and leaped out of the plane. The passengers on board remained calm and did not seem shocked.
The next second, click! Through the cabin window, the originally dim environment was suddenly illuminated by a dazzling golden light, and streaks of golden and scarlet lightning flashed among the clouds. At the same time, the aircraft began to shake violently, and an eerie whistling sound rushed into the cabin.
As the Golden Thunder disappeared, a pair of extremely imposing scarlet eyes could be seen intermittently through the cabin.
"Attack!" Levi gave a brief order, and the Soldiers of Paradis Island immediately walked to the cabin door in an orderly manner, jumping off the plane one after another. Erwin and Hange had also put on their Omni-Directional Mobility Gear at some point. They exchanged smiles and jumped off the plane as well.
Onyankopon didn't turn around but still shouted loudly, "I wish you all success!" The two remaining Paradis Island Soldiers slammed the cabin door shut again, and the plane quickly turned around and returned to Hope City.
In Icarus City, a full division of Marley Soldiers had already been stationed near the St. He Hospital, where the Joint Conference was being held. Countless weapons Cannon were pointed at the sky, ready to fire. Every Marley Soldiers was fully armed, and all civilians within a few miles had been forcibly dispersed to guard against any possible attacks.
But as the meeting continued for several hours, the Marley Soldiers gradually began to tire. Humans aren't made of iron, and no one can maintain a high state of alert for several hours at a time. Inevitably, some Marley Soldiers would slack off and become lazy.
Sure enough, the group of Marley Soldiers responsible for the top floor of St. He Hospital started slacking off, and even the artillerymen in charge of the anti-aircraft guns left their positions to warm themselves by the stove.
A Soldiers, smoking with some hesitation, asked his captain, "Sir, is this really a good idea? What if we get caught by the Military Judge or the enemy attacks?"
"Bah! Shut your mouth, how could it be such a coincidence? How many times have we been on edge? Everyone says to be wary of attacks from the Far East people, but until now, we haven't even seen a Far East soldier. Why are you scaring yourselves? This damn weather is so cold!" Captain Marley cursed as he stood up, preparing to grab two more pieces of firewood to add to the fire.
Suddenly, a huge whooshing sound came from the sky, as if something was rapidly approaching them.
Captain Marley frowned, looking puzzled. The sky was dark, and he couldn't see what was in the sky, but as the howling sound grew louder, his vision became clearer.
Thud! The firewood fell to the ground. Captain Marley's face contorted in extreme shock, as if he had been frozen in terror for a moment. The next instant, a piercing scream echoed from the rooftop, "Enemy attack!! Titan! Titan!! Quick! Quick! Anti-aircraft guns!!"
In the dim light, the Marley Soldiers saw the colossal figure in the sky—a Titan, a winged Titan! Its sharp feathers gleamed brighter than the newly risen moon, its entire body covered in layers of bone armor that resembled works of art. Its scarlet, glowing eyes were clearly imprinted in the eyes of every Marley Soldiers. That Titan! And something seemed to be hanging from its body—a human! A human was hanging from Titan's body!?
The Marley Soldiers, who had been slacking off, were now running frantically toward their posts like dogs. The anti-aircraft gunners, out of fear, even used all four limbs to run toward their guns. But it was too late. The Titan flapped its wings, and its massive body was faster than lightning, reaching the top floor of St. He Hospital in the blink of an eye.
Bang!! The Titan slammed down with both feet, and the entire rooftop was struck as if by a heavy blow. An invisible shockwave immediately spread outwards, scattering the Marley Soldiers on the rooftop. One or two unlucky ones were even blasted away, and several menacing anti-aircraft cannons were also directly overturned.
As the Fate Titan slowly exhaled a breath of steam from its mouth full of sharp teeth, the people clinging to its body using the Titan Omni-Directional Mobility Gear took the opportunity to land.
"You!!" The dazed Marley captain had just stood up when, before he could even draw his pistol from his waist, a slender yet powerful leg delivered a thud that sent Marley sprawling to his feet.
Compared to the elite Soldiers of Paradis Island, these Marley Soldiers were no match for them. Seven or eight Marley Soldiers next to Levi had their joints dislocated and lay on the ground groaning in pain.
In the blink of an eye, a Marley squad of more than ten people was completely wiped out.
Annie didn't even glance at the Marleyan she'd kicked unconscious, but instead looked worriedly at the massive Titan crouching on the rooftop. "Yago! Are you alright?"
Annie was met with the Fate Titan's fist, which instantly Hardening. Bang! Bang! The Fate Titan raised its Hardening fist and slammed it into the floor in front of it. Perhaps it wasn't enough, as it raised its hand, white light condensed, and a sharp Hardening Giant Pickaxe appeared. With a roar, it slammed down with all its might.