CHAPTER 564: CHAPTER 330: SIR, THIS WAY

"Damn those stingy bastards, may the Paladins hang you all soon!"

After a whole day of toil, the dock worker, Bali, couldn’t help but curse after settling his day’s earnings.

He was docked twenty copper coins due to laziness, too many bathroom breaks, and excessive rest time, a quarter of the day’s wages he should have earned.

Although this wasn’t the first time, Bali still found it hard to get used to, or more accurately, increasingly difficult to tolerate, especially after often hearing about the workers’ treatment across the sea, which only made his heart yearn more.

As far as he knew, on the Holy Land across the sea governed by the glorious Holy Dragon Emperor, even lowly mud leggers like him could live proudly like people of status.

Even in doing the same unloading work, the brothers across the sea received wages at least five times more, enough to cover all family living expenses and still have leftovers, so much that they could move into spacious, bright, and clean houses after saving up for just three years.

What kind of wonderful life is this, even in dreams, Bali could never have imagined it. Initially, Bali didn’t believe it, but as each dignified person from across the sea spoke to him, Bali gradually pieced together a beautiful world akin to Divine’s Eternal Immortal realm.

Thus, Bali’s dreams at night became rich with material. In his dreams, he was an honorable worker, no one dared to look down on him, even the Nobles would respect him and wouldn’t call him a mud legger scornfully.

The foreman who came to the dock to assign him tasks would affectionately call him Brother Bali, instead of derogatory names like scoundrel or lowlife.

He had various handy tools that allowed him to easily unload and complete various tasks with ease, only needing to work eight hours a day including lunchtime, allowing him to leave the dock before the Sun had set.

He didn’t need to settle his wages with the foreman every day; he was no longer the kind of day laborer called upon at will. His job at the dock was stable, no one could fire him without special reasons.

Thus, his wages were settled monthly instead of daily. Even though he couldn’t see the money in hand every day, Bali didn’t fear it in his dreams because he knew no one dared to dock even a single copper coin from him.

If he discovered any exploitation or wage docking, he could immediately report it to the local labor office, and silver-armored, great-sword-bearing Paladins would immediately arrive, ascertain the reasons, find out the swindler who dared to exploit the workers, and punish them immediately without mercy.

Unfortunately, his beautiful dreams stopped right at this point. Bali couldn’t dream up more because his imagination about the beautiful land across the sea stopped here.

Thus, this ordinary and common dock worker gradually developed a grand dream in his heart. He wanted to take his family and set off on a ship heading across the sea. He wanted to take his family to become truly alive.

However, Bali buried this dream deep in his heart. He had spoken of it to others but was met with ridicule each time, even his wife and children couldn’t understand him.

Because a ship ticket was too expensive, even a lower class cabin on a cargo ship was beyond the reach of ordinary dock workers.

Actually, the dock worker’s wages weren’t too low. At least in port cities, a hardworking dock worker could, every now and then, go to a tavern with companions to drink the cheapest ale for leisure.

But that’s the limit. The idea of saving the ale money to buy enough ship tickets for the whole family to cross the sea is indeed too difficult, as life is so simple and oppressive that every person at the bottom struggles to breathe.

Earning and saving money are two entirely different matters. The money earned minus essential living expenses is what can be saved, but this money can’t withstand even the smallest unexpected trials, disappearing with the slightest storm.

"I don’t know when I’ll be able to go across the sea?"

Looking at the fading sunset about to sink below the sea horizon, Bali sighed.

In his dreams, as a dignified worker, he was able to walk lightly and happily to the dock under the bright sunshine, complete a day’s workload, and leave the dock under the still bright sunlight.

But in reality, he had to arrive at the dock before the Sun rose to compete for relatively better jobs with other dock workers.

By the time he finished his day’s work, the Sun was nearly gone, and his only option was to rush home using the remaining bit of daylight.

"Alas!"

Reluctantly, Bali took another look at the sea about to be fully engulfed by the night sky, turned around, and prepared to quicken his steps home.

But at that moment, the dock worker stopped in his tracks because he saw a bit of golden light appearing at the increasingly dark point of junction between the sea and sky.

"What is that?"

Bali couldn’t help but stop, stretch his neck out, a strong impulse driving him to move in the direction away from home, closer to the dock and closer to the sea, just to see more clearly, to see clearly what that bit of golden light was.