Early the next morning, the sun had yet to rise, but the world was already bright. Bai Yu and the others set out again. They were not far from where Ming had stayed behind to cover their retreat, and they should be able to reach it today.
After a night's rest, everyone had recovered their strength, but Levi glanced at Bai Yu beside him.
They were moving a fair bit faster than yesterday, though not excessively so.
Two more Pure Titans appeared ahead, near the edge of the forest.
"Should we kill them?"
Xiate looked at the Titans some distance away and asked Bai Yu.
"Leave them alone."
Bai Yu took one look, then turned his gaze away.
"But we're encountering Titans a little more often now. We've already run into six this morning."
That was several more than yesterday, when they had encountered only six Titans over the entire day.
"The farther inland we go, the more Titans we should encounter. Marley is under attack by Titans right now. We don't know the details, but judging by the Colossal Titans' footprints, they probably landed in the northeast and moved out from there. Even if Marley was routed, they would have kept resisting as they fell back, so the closer we get to where the two sides met, the more Titans we'll find."
Bai Yu seemed to have figured this out long ago. He paused briefly before continuing.
"What I can't understand is why Marley, with its airships, couldn't beat the Titans. Unless..."
As he trailed off, Bai Yu narrowed his eyes slightly, a sharp gleam flashing through them.
"Unless what?"
Levi did not quite understand.
But Bai Yu shook his head gently.
"I'm not sure yet, either. But one thing is certain: airships have an overwhelming advantage over Titans.