"Grete, is it really okay for us to do this?"
Bud stood among the striking crowd, looking at Grete, a young man a few years older than him.
"It's okay, don't worry. Even if they want to arrest someone, they will only arrest me and won't expand the situation. After all, they still need people to work."
"Wouldn't you be in danger then?" Bud was a little anxious. It was rare to have such a good friend.
"Haha, I have my own way. There's always someone to do these things, right?"
"Alas, in fact, everyone has this mentality. They always want others to stand up for them and just want themselves to not get hurt." Gret said this with some sigh.
"We all try to seek benefits and avoid harm, constantly submitting and not daring to resist. Just like that, we take one step back after another until we give up everything."
Gretel looked at the dazzling sunlight in the sky and blocked some of it with her fingers. A small amount of light poured through her fingers, like a ray of light passing through a dark canyon.
“Individuals are lonely and weak, but if they unite, trust each other, and warm each other, they will gain great courage.”
"I'm not fighting alone."
"This sentence is simple and plain, but it makes me feel extremely at ease. Perhaps this is the power of unity."
Bud looked at Gretel silently. Actually, he didn't quite understand any concepts or principles, but he had also dreamed of being a hero like many ordinary people.
As the bards sang, when crisis strikes and people are in desperate situation, there is always a hero who appears. He is extremely powerful and can break everything, subvert everything, and save everyone.
When he was a child, he often hid in the corner of the tavern, listening to the poets playing the harp telling such stories. Under the dim light, the poets could always tell wonderful stories from their mouths, with dragons, princesses, knights, and magicians. Each character was so vivid, as if they were also sitting in the tavern, drinking beer, and talking about the adventurous life in a relaxed manner.
Unfortunately, such times are long gone. He is no longer the boy who eavesdropped in the country tavern. He came to the big city to pursue his dreams, like a calf hitting a hard rock, with his head broken and bleeding. Only now did he slowly understand how small and fragile he was in this world, and the word "hero" has long gone.
If I hadn't met Gretel, I would probably have been sinking in this loss and confusion, Bud thought.
"Thank you, Gretel."
"Huh? Why do you say that suddenly? Are you leaving first?" Gret was a little surprised. The protest was not over yet.
"Nothing, thank you for helping me get back my stolen salary." Bud looked at Grete and smiled. Although his face was not good-looking, he seemed very natural and honest at this time, which made others not pay much attention to his appearance.
"Well, it's nothing. Aren't we friends?"
"Well, we need to say thank you to our friends as well." Bud insisted a little.
The long protest ended, and the Nissos Chamber of Commerce sent people out to negotiate. At the insistence of Grete and others, the representative finally said that the treatment of employees would be improved, the previous new winery would be closed, and employees who became ill as a result would also receive compensation.
After receiving a satisfactory answer, the crowd protesting the strike slowly dispersed, and Grete was surrounded by everyone, cheered and thrown up, and then dropped again. After that, everyone chose a restaurant to celebrate.
Unfortunately, there were too many people and the restaurant could not accommodate them. In the end, the group simply built a bonfire on the beach and bought smoked meat, fish and wine.
They sat together, some loudly recounting their heroic experiences during the day, teasing and praising each other, and bursts of laughter could be heard from time to time under the night sky.
Bud also sat with them, on the ground, flipping and grilling the sea fish, responding from time to time and laughing exaggeratedly.
The orange-yellow firelight illuminated the excited and proud faces and pairs of lively eyes. These previously dull and numb faces seemed to be dyed with color again, and it was a warm orange.
The browned fish was sprinkled with a small amount of salt, and the fat and lean meat skewers were dripping with oil beside the fire. The aroma of food filled the air, mixed with the fragrance of burning pine wood, making the group of people salivate and their appetites increased greatly.
He took the skewers off impatiently, and they made strange noises due to being burned. Then another burst of laughter sounded, echoing far away on the beach under the night sky.
After they finished eating, they started drinking and singing country songs from time to time, some of them sang along with the rhythm, and they did this until very late.
------------------
After the party ended that night, Bud helped Gretl back to his residence. Gretl was a little drunk at this time and walked a little unsteadily, but at least he was not completely unconscious.
"Bud, have you ever thought about what to do in the future, hiccup~"
"I haven't thought about it in detail. I guess it just means I can live a better life and eat well every day."
Bud thought about it for a moment and expressed his opinion.
"This...this won't do. I...I must have a dream~" Gretel unknowingly went astray again.
"Dream...I don't know, I just want to live." Bud didn't quite understand. After all, survival is the most important thing.
"Phew~ That's because you haven't reached that stage yet."
"One day, you will find that there is something buried deep in your heart, something you think about day and night, unable to let go, and always want to do it."
"By then, you knew your dream." Grete suddenly became sober when she said this.
"Um."
"So, Grete, what are your dreams?"
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com