Blockade to freedom.

He woke up to the sounds of metal, coming from the lantern swinging caused by the wind above him, and the sunlight leaking through the tight yet differently shaped holes created by the leaves of the tree. It was a new morning, the others had already started working and it is a miracle that "Whipper" hadn't found him slacking and avoiding work under the shades of the tree. Frei quickly got up thinking that he might get whipped anytime soon if he didn't start work soon.

During work, the temperature was scorching as the ray of the sun would light up Frei's entire body and all of its fibers,"Whipper '' shouting at the slaves could be heard even from a mile away. His ragged and torn up shirt was wet from all the sweat piling up from all the hoe swinging. As he continued the hunger and thirst became less apparent. All he could do is think about the stories told by "Gloria" and the familiar scene he dreamt about. He couldn't help but feel excited imagining it, the sheer scale and size of the Holy Empire, the powerful almighty Holy Knights protecting its homeland, the Legendary heroes that roamed on the streets of the empire and the great families. Frei wanted to hear more from her and see the view for himself.

Yet in his head lies a lingering thought, the dream. What was it? What significance did it hold? The connection between it and the first dream. Frei could not understand it. The familiar depressing feeling gripped Frei's heart tightly, almost like for him. Was it memories? He thought.

As he tries to recollect pieces of the dream. He recognizes the feeling, the reason for its depressive nature and its familiarity. It's all around him. They all have the same face as the man in the dream, anxious and afraid, never-ending workload and lack of healthcare. Perhaps that's the reason for the dream. Frei concluded, thinking that those around him are the reasons for the dream.

After work, it's evening. Everyone returned to the stables tired and hungry, even if "Whipper" had already given them food, the portion isn't enough to feed a full grown human. But nobody complained, no one had the bravery to. As for Frei, that wasn't an issue because the dream is all that occupies his mind right now.

He stood on the field staring into the distant blankly and hands loosely holding the stick of the hoe, thinking. He just couldn't put his finger on it, he thought he knew the reason already. Then he heard something calling him from behind.

"Kid! Come here!" a man's voice shouted.

Frei turned around and saw it was Johnny, holding the same book he held last time. 

"What are you doing there, staring into the distance like that? It's like you've been haunted by a ghost!" Johnny said energetically, a face completely different compared to what Frei had seen around him.

"Johnny?" 

"Come here!" Johnny beckons him.

Frei follows him as Johnny walks over to the same hill they once sat at. Johnny brought up his book and opened it to show it to Frei.

"You see these drawings? I drew them as a hobby when I was far away from this place."

"I thought you couldn't bring anything?" questioned Frei.

"I had to hide them, in my clothes and some illusionary magic. Buttt, the magic wasn't really needed anyways, as they wouldn't check a stinky and lowly slave eh?" As Johnny showed him a little magic using his hands. "Cool Right?"

"Woah! How'd you do that?"

"Prayers and pictures book kid. Anyway look at the drawings" As Johnny points at the countless drawings of houses, horse carriages, mountains, forests and weaponry that he discovered in his past.

"What is this.. Stick cross thing?"

"It's a sword. Frei. A big one too. It's called the Zweihander, it is as tall as you and probably twice as thick as you, and this is a house, it is comfortable unlike the stables we live in."

"It looks so different, it feels like it feels warm inside it." 

"Yeah that's what home is. No matter what happens to you or where you are, home is always there to help and support you. Too bad we don't have that luxury anymore." said Johnny while he looked at the setting sun, his face yearning for that home. 

"Why? There's the Holy Empire. I heard the place is like heaven, welcoming all sorts of folks in there. Doesn't your journal have drawings about the mountains and houses?"

Johnny looked at Frei, dumbfounded by his remarks. "Look, I would if I could, but even if I go out there again, where would I even go? The Holy Empire? I highly doubt they would invite an imperian let alone someone like me. Besides, no one would welcome me anyway, life at this place is hell, but outside is just a slightly better hell."

"What is hell?"

"..." Johnny again was slightly dumbfounded but amused at Frei's question. "It's uh. Those who kill and commit bad crimes Frei. It's those who betray the expectation and will of the lord."

"Oh? So does that mean that we committed bad crimes?" Frei asked curiously

"Some of us, yeah. But some are just… Well some of us are just unlucky." With sadness in Johnny's eyes, then curiosity. "Frei, have you ever thought of escaping? Escaping from this place? From Mane and CornWell, live and be free outside of this cramped place? Without any brutal works or unfair whippings?"

"N-No. Not really Johnny. I never really thought about that. I was just simply moving alongside you guys. I don't really know how to escape or anything." Frei was slightly startled by this question, without any reason, just instinctively.

Johnny stood up. "Come with me." As he dragged Frei along with him to the top of the hill. On top of it, Frei saw a pinkish and orangish sky mixed together like a crayon, with the pink on top and orange below, then he saw something in the distance. In his perspective,he saw a short rectangular shaped object covering Freiheit from left to right with no end in sight, blocking some of the orangish sky.

"You see that? That's a wall covering this place. A brick wall. It's around 7 meters tall, and it's very thick .You can escape from here if you cross that wall, if you ever need to. Just be careful when you do."

"What about you? Johnny?"

"No… Not now anyway. I don't have that motivation for now, but if I do get it, maybe I will." Johnny looked over the wall, nothing can be seen except the sky. "Well, just in case you ever escape from this place. Let's pray?"

"Mhm. Okay."

They stood the both of them, eyes closed and hands interlocked, facing the wall and they prayed. For a minute there, Frei felt protected and warmth in his heart. 

"Did you feel the effects?"

"Yeah I did! I feel comforted by something."

"O-Oh really? That's good. I-I guess." Johnny stuttered over his words. "Well Frei, I'm going to be completely honest about something. I wasn't religious."

"Religious?"

"Yeah, I learnt that habit from a friend of mine. He would keep on praying everyday, hoping that the next day would get better. I thought of him as a fool, worshiping something that probably doesn't exist. I would always ask him why? Why would he do something like praying?"

"He would usually answer the same thing. To find comfort, that one day he would be free and released from the misery and torment he has endured."

"And in the end…he did." Johnny paused for a moment before continuing again. "Fortune beyond imagination, he got. Enough to retire for the rest of his life. The guy immediately left work after that… haha. Coincidence or not, but I believed it was the compassion of God."

"And after thattt. Well, I asked him to educate me on that matter. Though I still haven't received any rewards for my faith, that's all I can do now. Only prayers and blessings can help us. Only God can."

Johnny said that with remorse and regret in his eyes even despite the smirk he gave.