The airship was flying slowly through the clouds. The first excursion outside the small world that Traute was living in, was actually quite exciting. Right now, she was very glad that Kenny picked her out to be the leader for this mission. Suddenly, one of the navigators cried out, so that he could be heard over the sound of the engine.

"I think I see the land!"

"Where?"

"It's right there, look!"

Indeed, once the pilot lowered the flight altitude, they could see that among an endless ocean, a rocky patch of land appeared on the horizon.

"Prepare for the landing!" Traute exclaimed, buckling her gear up "remember, we are in the enemy territory! It is imperative that we aren't seen!"

The soldiers picked out for this mission were trained both in stealth and fighting. However, they weren't supposed to engage the enemy in combat this time. Their main goal was to get as much intel on the enemy as possible.

The queen provided them with basic information about Marley and the world. This global superpower was their main concern, and they were prepared for the long, covert operation to provide the queen with much needed detail that would later prove useful to the cause of the islanders.

Traute cursed under her nose. It wasn't that long ago that she believed the people of the walls were the last of humanity. The first time she heard of the notion that they were actually a race of monsters, hated by the entire world, she thought that it must've been a joke made by the high command. However, as the time passed more and more information would reach her disbelieving ears and eventually, even the queen herself confirmed this.

And now, she was supposed to start up the intelligence network in an enemy land. Truly, the female missed the times when their only obvious enemies were the titans. However, in a way, nothing changed, as their main concern was still lurking within the outside world.

Slowly, the air vessel lowered itself to the ground.

"This terrain is flat enough!" The pilot cried out "initiating the landing in three…!"

This was the moment of truth. No going back now.

"…two!"

The woman steeled herself for all that would soon come.

"…one!"

And then, the airship touched the flat surface of enemy soil.

"How are you today, Traute?" The shopkeeper asked her with a smile.

"Oh, I'm fine, thank you" the undercover lieutenant responded with the sincerest smile she could give the friendly woman "the usual, please."

"Coming right up!"

A few months had passed ever since they've first set their feet on the continent. And during that time, they have learnt many disturbing facts about the hostile country of Marley.

"Actually" Traute spoke after a moment "I'm having a special guest today."

At that, the shopkeeper suddenly brightened up.

"Oh, I get it!" She exclaimed, while reaching for some extra supplies "is that special guest a man?"

"Yeah…" the lieutenant said, this time with an honest blush.

"Well, he's a lucky guy! Here's everything you need!"

"Thank you. Bye!"

"Come again!"

The people of Marley weren't actually all that bad. While they clearly benefited from their country's status and actively hated the Eldian race, usually they were quite friendly. It was amazing how little they actually knew of those 'devils' as they called the inhabitants of the island of Paradis.

After a short walk through the port town of Kapsburg, the undercover lieutenant finally reached the secret hideout. As she was standing in front of a wooden door, Traute knocked on it three times.

"No unappointed meetings!" Yelled out a voice from behind the door.

"It's me" she said with a stern voice "open up."

As she entered the hideout, Traute immediately noticed a lot of commotion happening there.

"They are waiting in the office" the guard explained as she set the supplies down.

"They?"

The female lieutenant slowly walked over to the office. She was aware that the scheduled visit of her captain would take place today, but who could be so important that they would feel the need to accompany him?

At last, Traute pulled on the doorknob.

Inside the room, she found two very important people.

One of them was Kenny. He was supposed to come here today, so she wasn't surprised to see him standing next to her desk.

However, what was quite shocking was the presence of the very person, who was sitting in her chair as of right now.

"Welcome, lieutenant Caven" Frieda exclaimed with a smile "please, come in."

The flabbergasted MP slowly made her way inside. Why would the queen be here? Wasn't she vital to the security of Paradis?

"Your majesty" the female spoke, saluting the monarch "with all due respect. Why did you decide to come to Marley?"

In response, she saw a small grin appear on the woman's face.

"Oh, sitting around in the palace while my soldiers are performing the most important duty all by themselves is quite excruciating" the queen explained "I couldn't simply wait until I got a report, so I decided to join captain Ackerman for this little excursion."

Traute gulped upon that. The Eldian monarch was almighty. The feel she was giving off, was beyond overwhelming. On her own, she defeated the invaders that had broken down wall Maria all by themselves. Moreover, many of the MPs feared for their lives and positions because of her anti-corruption attitude. If this wasn't enough, her captain, the infamous Kenny the reaper, looked like a beaten puppy every time she was around.

"The report states as follows" Traute started after a moment of hesitation "the enemy has a big technological and military edge over us. Their army consists of over a million soldiers…"

At that, the queen widened her eyes in shock. Indeed, such a number was only a little smaller than the entire population of Paradis.

"They've also perfected the warfare with the use of titans" the lieutenant continued "both their own shifters, warriors as they call them, and the pure titans, which they use mostly as a weapon of mass destruction."

Reading the news about Marley decimating yet another country with this deadly force was really devastating for their morale. The queen was powerful, but she couldn't possibly stand her ground against such an enemy.

"One of the warriors, Zeke Yeager, has a special ability of summoning his own pure titans."

Upon hearing the name Yeager, Traute saw a flicker within the eyes of the queen. Not really knowing what it was about, she decided to just quickly finish up her report.

"Aside from the beast titan which Yeager possesses, they have the cart titan at their disposal. The mysterious war hammer titan is in the possession of a wealthy family named Tyburs. It is unclear who currently has it. From a formidable number of their own airships to a powerful navy, the Marleyan army remains unchallenged."

As all of this information settled in, Traute watched the different reactions of her superiors. While Kenny was desperately trying to keep a straight face, it was clear that he felt a great unease. On the other hand, the queen wasn't even trying to hide her shock. Nervously tapping her fingers against the wooden desk, she was keeping her eyes closed, presumably trying to cope with all the devastating facts.

"We're screwed…" The old Ackerman whispered after a moment of silence.

"Not yet" the queen responded all of a sudden "not if I have something to say about it."

At that, Kenny widened his eyes.

"You want to use…?"

"No" Frieda sternly rebutted "I am still a god to all Eldians around the world. What kind of god kills their own people?"

These claims held some truth to them. While Traute was sure that at one point in her life, Frieda Reiss was a simple human, everything changed once she was given the power of the founding titan. And right now, this power was their only hope.

"That's too bad, because those folks of yours are just a bunch of cowards!" Kenny yelled in frustration, all of a sudden.

Surprisingly, such an outburst wasn't met with anger from the queen, as it usually would. In fact, the monarch somehow lightened up.

"You're right" Frieda said, looking the man in the eyes "how about I make them otherwise?"