Bar77.
The old sign swayed gently above the door.
Inside—
warm light greeted them.
A familiar figure stood behind the counter.
Mr. Lee.
He looked up.
Then sighed.
'What a rare sight'
Tia pulled out a chair.
Joshua sat beside him.
Mr. Lee placed two drinks on the table.
Joshua hesitated.
Tia didn't.
He grabbed the glass and took a large gulp.
The bitter taste burned his throat.
Mr. Lee raised an eyebrow.
Silence.
Joshua looked at Tia.
Then looked away.
The atmosphere felt wrong.
Different.
Heavy.
Eventually—
Tia spoke.
Quietly.
"Mr. Lee..."
A pause.
"Do you think I made the wrong decision by coming here?"
Silence.
Tia lowered his gaze toward the glass in his hand.
"The results were clear the moment I entered that white gate."
A bitter smile appeared.
"I saw the signs."
"I just chose to ignore them."
His fingers tightened slightly.
"...I never should have come here."
The words came out suddenly.
Even he seemed surprised.
Joshua blinked.
Tia stared into his glass.
"If I stayed..."
A pause.
"...I could've spent more time with my mother."
His grip tightened.
"At least that would've been better than this."
Silence filled the room.
Even Joshua didn't know what to say.
For once—
he wasn't smiling.
Mr. Lee listened quietly.
Without interrupting
Without pity.
Just listening.
Tia continued.
"How do they expect me to grow when I don't even have the qualifications?"
His fingers tightened around the glass.
No core."
"No spiritual energy."
"I don't have anything."
A bitter laugh escaped him.
"I..."
For a moment, his voice faltered.
"I have dreams too."
Silence.
"I want to become stronger."
"I want to protect my mother."
His eyes lowered.
"But no matter what I do..."
"They've already decided my worth ".
A pause.
"How dare they..."
His jaw tightened.
Then slowly—
the anger drained away.
Leaving only exhaustion.
"...I'm tired."
Years of frustration.
Years of disappointment.
Slowly spilling out.
The room fell silent.
Mr. Lee wiped a glass.
Calm.
Unhurried.
Then he spoke.
"You know..."
Tia didn't look up.
Mr. Lee smiled faintly.
"When I was your age..."
"I had no idea what I was doing."
A pause.
"No path."
"No direction."
"Nothing."
Tia remained silent.
"So I kept waiting."
Mr. Lee chuckled.
"Turns out life doesn't care if you're ready or not."
He placed the glass down.
His gaze moved toward Tia.
"Tell me something."
Tia frowned slightly.
"What?"
"Why did you choose this path?"
Silence.
"You say you want strength."
"You say you want to protect your mother."
Mr. Lee leaned back.
"But why?"
Tia froze.
The old man continued.
"Because if that's all there is..."
"Then the first obstacle will break you."
His voice remained calm.
"The people who keep moving forward aren't always the strongest."
"They're the ones who found a reason strong enough to keep walking."
A pause.
His eyes softened.
"So ask yourself."
"Why did Ming Tia Xu choose this path?"
"And what kind of person does he want to become?"
Silence filled the room once more.