Half the world was sinking into sleep, while the other half was still busy with daily activities. But absolutely no one was aware of the impending doom.
"Damn it!"
In the Paths, the long-haired young man seemed to lose his composure, slamming a fist down onto the storm-ridden sand. His eyes pierced through space and time, witnessing the world and civilization on the verge of destruction.
He saw it once again.
He didn't know since when, or if this loop fundamentally had no beginning or end.
The young man saw it once, again, and again, countless times more...
So many times that his heart had become callous, and he no longer counted the repetitions.
However, he was still surprised to lose his composure like this. Perhaps it was because this wasn't just the last opportunity, but it had also almost succeeded?
He had done everything he could.
And so, the bitterness displayed by the young man vanished. He bowed his head slightly, and his standing body suddenly slumped down.
Time is a terrible thing, beyond the understanding and control of anyone.
Are the changes one thinks of as "changing" the past, future, and time real? Or has that "change" fundamentally been an immutable part of time from start to finish? Only beings with weak perception like humans believe that "changing" is actual change. Everything is just like a pre-written script that one can only walk upon.
That is...
"... The Predestination Paradox."
In the cockpit, Asahi almost ground out each word. From the moment that young man presented him with a part of the truth, and the abstract image he saw then. The image of the serpent biting its own tail, along with the reversal of the cause-and-effect relationship between the future and the past... wasn't that just another way of presenting the Predestination Paradox?
The Predestination Paradox, a time travel paradox often used in sci-fi films on the subject. Simply put, if time travel has the ability to affect the past, why hasn't the past changed? The reason is, of course, that the "change" coming from the future was fundamentally an unchanging part of history, whether intentionally or unintentionally. Because the past was determined that way, the future that created the "change" in the past could exist, simultaneously creating the "change" to shape history into a perfect loop with no beginning or end.
In Asahi's world, this was just a theoretical paradox without any real empirical basis. But as someone who had experienced spacetime more than once, he could confirm this was true. Asahi called this the Integrity of Time.
Time tends to preserve its own integrity. The collapse of infinite possibilities into a single result is the most common manifestation.
At a higher level, it is the collapse of infinite possibilities into infinite results.
But in this world, time is excessively bizarre. It exhibits the unchanging nature of a complete timeline, yet contains eternal repetition.
"It's the Paths. Only that place could do such a thing."
Asahi thought to himself, but he was powerless, as he fundamentally had no chance of touching the Paths. His only hope lay with that young man, but the signals transmitted had become intermittent, vague like a rock sinking to the bottom of the sea, which was enough to understand that turmoil was occurring even within the Paths itself.
Suddenly....
"Asahi..."
"She... has created... an incarnation at Wall Maria..."
The young man's voice echoed and then vanished, as if he had expended all his strength to speak it.
An electric current flashed through Asahi's brain, giving him a new idea. He remembered that in the past, he had once connected with Frieda's will to forcefully enter the Paths. That was the only time he touched it without needing anyone else to guide him in. And he could do that once again!
Frieda, or more accurately the Founder, only needed to stand in the coordinate and control the plan, but going to create a physical incarnation—wasn't that providing him with a perfect opportunity?
And also... the last chance.
But the colossal Titan army was about to attack. He needed to find a way.
"Can we help?"
Outside the cockpit, a sound of movement echoed. Asahi looked up and saw the remnants of the Survey Corps, including the injured Erwin, who had used his Omni-Directional Mobility Gear to reach them.
"Asahi, things have reached this point, and there is no turning back. Please let us contribute our last, small effort."
Erwin spoke sincerely, and Asahi remained silent.
"Alright."
As soon as he finished speaking, the head of the Jaeger opened a passage. Asahi removed the equipment on his body, returning the Jaeger to an unpiloted state. He looked at the nearby Survey Corps team and said grimly.
"Your mission will be to pilot this giant, and hold out here."
Asahi didn't elaborate on the consequences, nor did he offer any comforting words, because this was a path to death. Against such a colossal number of Titans, no matter how strong Gipsy Danger was, it would eventually collapse. But someone had to stand here, continuing to maintain this machine, maintaining the Founder's attention. Otherwise, he didn't dare gamble on whether she would truly mercilessly slaughter everyone inside Sina.
After all the calculations, Asahi still shook his head.
She would still do it.
The Founder no longer had a "heart," so being ruthless or not was irrelevant. What she was doing now was merely following Frieda's final wish, and continuing the loop.
He would not let that happen.
"Alright, how do we do it?"
"Two compatible people are needed to connect to the central server, otherwise, the overload will cause brain death. After that, you just operate as normal."
"Then I'll go first!"
Levi ignored the wounds from the previous battle and stepped forward, starting to put on the classic suit to connect himself to Gipsy Danger. As soon as he wore it, he felt an immense pressure weighing down on both his mind and body. It took great difficulty just to adapt.
It wasn't that Levi was weak; he had simply never been specifically trained for this. In the other world, Jaeger pilots also had to undergo extensive training before actually sitting in this super-luxury war machine. Levi could adapt so quickly because he was exceptionally strong.
Therefore, when someone else was about to step into the second suit, Levi hurriedly stopped them.
"Don't! This thing... needs someone at least comparable to me in combat strength. Otherwise, we will all die!"
His intuition was correct.
The two pilots are not merely controllers. They also act as the Jaeger's right and left brains. They must be synchronized, compatible, and harmonious. If one side collapses, the whole will collapse with it.
But finding such a person was too difficult at this moment, even Erwin. Where could they find someone like that now?
Just then, another heavy, weary sigh emerged. Everyone turned their heads simultaneously, seeing a warrior whose armor was ragged and half-shattered, revealing a middle-aged face that was solemn like still water, filled with cold determination.
Kenny Ackerman.
Everyone, including Asahi, thought he had died during the escort and deceptive imprisonment of Frieda Reiss. But no, he was still alive.
"Let me take that spot."
"Old man..."
Levi paused, but Kenny interrupted him.
"I'm your uncle! Are you doubting my abilities!"
"We, the Ackermans, we have the blood of warriors flowing in our veins, stronger than anything else! Even the Titans."
"Perhaps, we were born for this moment..."
By the final sentence, Kenny's shout turned into a mumble. No one stopped him, not even Levi. He proceeded to put on the second suit. Gipsy Danger activated, lighting up once again.