When Matthew saw the sun once again, it had been at least a month since the last time.
"Finally got out of that iron coffin alive!" Matthew thanked the mercy of the All-Father for allowing him to survive, rather than suffocating to death in the metal cabin.
But soon, the pain from the whip on his back brought him back to reality. He dared not linger and continued to move with the large group, dragging his shackles forward.
Matthew was a convict from the Punishment Camp, who had just arrived at the Northern Territory after sailing from the Empire’s mainland for a month.
A month’s time and the harsh conditions in the cabin left only just over eighty of the original hundred people alive, with a death rate exceeding 15%.
But for Matthew and the other convicts, this was only the beginning of their miserable life.
Their sentence was completely three years, and now they were stepping onto the Northern Territory with trepidation and unease, and fear for the future, not knowing what lay ahead.
Or perhaps they would die in some unknown way.
"I heard the winters in the Northern Territory are so cold that your jaw could freeze off, and when you pee, you’d better have a stick to prevent your thing from freezing too quickly!" One convict was sharing the news he had heard with the others.
Hearing his words, the others couldn’t help but show worried expressions, and someone anxiously said, "We won’t just freeze to death, will we?"
"There’s a chance you won’t live until winter and die from exhaustion first. Don’t forget, we’ve been assigned to the Punishment Camp. You’re here in the Northern Territory to be a laborer! Instead of worrying about freezing to death, think about how to survive till winter!" Clearly, someone saw through the situation more thoroughly and also felt despair about their future life.
After all, the Empire compared to which even beasts are considered humanistic in comparison, exhausting a few convicts to death is nothing.
In other words, if the Empire really cared about their lives, it wouldn’t let them die by one-tenth on the ship.
Thus, it’s very understandable why these convicts feel despair about the future.
Compared to the others, Matthew had a relatively more stable mindset. He wasn’t feeling despair for the future, but rather had given up.
The reason was simple, because Matthew was among the first batch of convicts thrown into the Punishment Camp. He even knew why the Punishment Camp existed and had participated in the tavern incident back then.
At that time, Matthew was in the tavern where drunks attacked Perfikot. He witnessed firsthand how those drunks attacked the seemingly harmless noble lady, causing all of Langton’s gang members to suffer the consequences.
Fortunately, Matthew was lucky that day. When Beifa started hacking people, he woke up in fright and escaped through the window.
Due to this, he wasn’t sealed in the tavern by Perfikot, nor was he immediately thrown into the Punishment Camp by the Guard Army and City Guard. He even had to build the prison where he was held.
But his luck stopped there. Afterwards, during the joint operation by Langton City Guard and police, he was swept up and thrown into the Punishment Camp along with a large number of gang members.
After squatting in prison for several months, Matthew originally thought that was it. With some luck, he might serve a bit longer and then get out.
After all, offending the nobility can be a big or small deal. Since he wasn’t killed on the spot, things probably wouldn’t be too much afterwards either.
If worse comes to worst, he could try escaping. Langton’s prison is known to be escapable, with plenty of ways if you wanted to escape.
Especially since the prison they were held in was newly built, with some parts incomplete and loopholes being normal. The most update n0vels are published on N0velFire.ɴet
But... soon Matthew realized he was too naive.
It’s true the prison was easy to escape from, but once the escape was discovered, what awaited was the most brutal punishment, being impaled alive on a stick, dying slowly in pain.
Note that this "impaling" wasn’t being pierced through instantly. The stick would be oiled, and then shoved in from behind, forcing you to slide down due to your body weight as the stick slowly penetrated deeper into your body.
Ultimately, when the stick emerged from the convict’s mouth, the execution would be considered complete, though the person had already died from the pain much earlier.
The corpse wouldn’t be taken down immediately but would remain exposed for a period of time, serving as a deterrent to other prisoners from trying to escape.
It’s undeniable that this horrific punishment was very effective. After all, obediently staying in jail might not lead to death, but escaping would end up impaled on the stick.
Afterwards, they were brought out of the prison, shackled and packed into the freight ship heading to the Northern Territory, enduring nearly a month of living hell in the cargo hold, and finally reached the Northern Territory.
At the cost of one-tenth of them dead.
Bear in mind, the cargo hold of their transport ship had never been opened throughout this journey, so the corpses of the deceased remained among them, rotting and stinking as the voyage continued.
Of course, typically the corpses wouldn’t wait until they’d rot and stink.
Due to the lack of food during the journey, the corpses usually disappeared before they rotted and smelled. As for where they disappeared to...
Thus, for Matthew, the hope of survival was so slim, how could he not feel despair or be resigned?
But even so, life must go on, or rather, living is better than dying. As long as you’re not dead, it’s better than just dying.
Moving with heavy steps, letting the shackles under his feet drag across the ground with a grinding sound, Matthew pushed his body forward.
He didn’t know where he was going, but at least he knew he was still alive now, and that was enough.
As for freedom? Matthew no longer thought about it.
Although he knew his sentence was only three years, in an environment where they’re treated inhumanely, hoping to survive for three years? Matthew didn’t think his life was tough enough for that.
Especially since they came to the Northern Territory as Punishment Camp convicts, clearly here to do labor, not to be pampered.
In a sense, they were being used as disposable tools.
Now, Matthew only hoped that those using them as tools in the Northern Territory would "cherish" them a little so they wouldn’t wear them out too quickly.
This was the humblest wish of someone wanting to survive, but in another sense, it was indeed a luxury.
After three exhausting days and nights of walking, several more convicts died, their feet rubbed raw with blood, before they finally reached their destination, a settlement under construction.
And this would be the place where Matthew and the others would work for a while.