"I'm exhausted…"
Liuke sat hunched forward, shoulders sagging under an invisible weight. His voice barely carried through the dim silence of the room.
"Is this the price of being an orphan?"
His fingers tightened around the edge of the table, knuckles pale.
"I'm only twenty, and yet, here I am, standing on the edge of death."
A bitter laugh escaped him, more air than sound, as if even his laughter had lost strength.
"Did I do the right thing—becoming a soldier?"
The question hung in the stale air, unanswered by the world itself.
"Brother!!! Brotherrr, Liuke!!!"
A sudden voice shattered the stillness. Footsteps followed, hurried and uneven, echoing through the bar entrance.
"Seems like I did," Liuke whispered.
His lips curled faintly, not in joy but in exhausted acceptance, like someone admitting defeat after a long war.
"Klane—what are you doing here? In a place like this?"
He tilted his head slightly, eyes heavy as they landed on the small figure rushing toward him.
"I overheard people talking outside. Did they fire you?"
Klane stood just a few steps away now, breathing fast, her concern spilling out before she could hide it.
Liuke let out a hollow laugh.
The sound of glass clinking against wood echoed sharply as he set his drink down on the bar counter, almost carelessly.
"Yeah, Klane… that's why I'm here, drinking myself numb."
He stared at the liquid for a moment, as if it might answer him.
"Honestly, my entire life has been nothing but exhaustion."
His gaze drifted downward, unfocused, like he was speaking more to the floor than to her.
"But people like you… you're the reason I became a soldier."
For a moment, his expression softened, almost nostalgic.
He looked at her properly now, tilting his head slightly.
"By the way, you're far too young to be sneaking into a bar. How did the bartender even let you in?"
Klane crossed her arms lightly, trying to look confident but failing under his stare.
"I snuck in," she said softly, brushing his question aside as if it didn't matter at all.
"But why did they fire you?"
Her voice tightened at the edges, concern sharpening into urgency.
Liuke's expression darkened immediately.
The light in his eyes dimmed, as if something inside him had shut down.
"Maybe it's because of my solar energy. Commander Elvis dismissed me… said I was in a 'Burnout State.'"
The words felt heavy even as he spoke them, like ash falling from his mouth.
"Burnout State? What does that even mean?"
Klane leaned in slightly, confusion written clearly across her face.
Liuke's jaw tightened. His hand curled around the glass again, but he did not drink.
"It means my body can't hold solar energy anymore. I'm no longer capable of being a proper solar soldier."
He exhaled slowly, like releasing something painful he had carried too long.
"If I push myself to fight or try to manipulate solar matter… I'll collapse. Permanently."
Klane's eyes widened in shock. Her small frame stiffened as the words settled in.
"So… you can't protect the other kids from those ice monsters anymore?"
"I can't speak for the others," he said with a faint, bitter smirk, though it carried no real humor.
"But there's one girl I saved… and I think I did a good job."
His gaze drifted away, distant, as if remembering something far out of reach.
"Otherwise, no one would even bother checking on a lonely orphan like me. Hahaha."
The laugh cracked midway, dissolving into silence.
"I'm not that special… but I really worry about you," Klane whispered.
Her voice was small but steady, like she refused to let the moment collapse completely.
"What will you do now, Liuke?"
He stared at the drink for a long time before answering.
"I don't know," he replied.
The glass trembled slightly in his hand, a subtle shake betraying him.
"I have some money saved up from all those years of service, but I never really thought about the future."
A pause stretched between them.
"Maybe… I'll just wait for death."
The words landed softly, but heavily, like snow falling on stone.
"That's rare… for someone so young to reach Burnout State."
A new voice entered the space. Calm. Old. Measured.
From the shadows near the bar wall, a frail old man stepped forward, holding a glass of wine. The dim lamplight traced the lines of age across his face.
"What do you mean, rare?" Liuke asked, frowning sharply at the stranger.
"Rare," the old man repeated, stopping a few steps away, his tone unwavering.
"A young man's body doesn't usually reach Burnout. In all my years, I've never seen a case quite like yours."
"I… I don't understand," Liuke muttered, looking down at his hands as if they might explain it.
"All I know is that I feel completely drained every time I try to use my solar energy."
"My name is Oon," the old man said.
He took a slow sip of wine, watching Liuke carefully over the rim of his glass.
"Hmm?"
"I think your case is special. You're a former solar soldier, retiring at only twenty?"
His tone sharpened slightly, as if calculating something unseen.
"Since death is drawing near, have you thought about what comes next?"
"Are you talking about my money? Or… marriage?"
"Both," Oon said sharply, without hesitation.
"Don't you think all of that will go to waste once you're gone?"
Liuke let out a bitter laugh and pushed himself up from the stool. The chair scraped loudly against the floor.
"What does it matter to you? I'll do whatever I want with my money."
He turned away, already done with the conversation.
"Let's go, Klane. I'm done here."
Outside, the night air hit them like a blade, cold and sharp against tired skin. The streetlights flickered faintly above empty roads.
"You know," Klane said quietly, walking beside him, her steps small but steady, "that old man was right. You're so alone…"
"You should find someone to be with in your final days."
Liuke scoffed, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he looked away.
"Who would want to be with me? Who could ever love someone like me?"
His voice carried no anger, only exhaustion shaped into words.
"It looks like I'll spend what's left of my life alone in some cheap hotel room."
"You should try talking to girls. Slowly. Build a real connection," Klane said.
Her tone softened, but there was firmness underneath it, like advice she refused to take back.
"You've spent your whole life saving children… now it's time to think about yourself."
"You deserve a little happiness for once."
Liuke's lips twitched slightly, forming the faintest ghost of a smile.
"Hahaha… Klane, I don't even feel like I'm talking to a young girl. How do you know all this?"
"I've watched carefully," she said with a small, knowing grin.
"I've seen how my parents talk to each other. That's how I learned."
Liuke shook his head slowly, as if the idea itself felt too distant from his reality.
The weight of the long night finally settled fully onto his shoulders.
"Alright, Klane… it was good talking to you. I'm heading back to my room."
"I'm exhausted… more than I can ever remember. I need to sleep."
"Already? I thought you'd take me to the toy shop first?"
Her voice suddenly brightened, breaking the heaviness for a moment.
Liuke paused, then exhaled softly.
"Alright then, let's go get the toys first."
They walked together through the quiet streets, eventually reaching the shop. The glow of the store lights softened Klane's face as she picked her things carefully, holding each one like a small treasure.
"Bye-bye, brother!"
Her voice echoed warmly as she stepped away, disappearing into the night with her new toys clutched tightly.
"Take care, Klane," Liuke replied, lifting a tired hand in farewell.
Back at the hotel, Liuke trudged up the narrow staircase, each step heavier than the last, like the building itself was resisting him.
"Time to sleep," he muttered.
He collapsed onto the bed without removing his boots, the mattress barely reacting to his fall.
Sleep swallowed him instantly.
Deep within that silence, something shifted.
A dream began to form.
He was wandering through a vast, endless desert.
The sun hung overhead like a burning verdict, crushing everything beneath its gaze.
His throat burned. His skin felt cracked with dryness. Every breath scraped through him like sand.
There wasn't a single drop of water in sight.
He ran.
His feet sank into the shifting ground, each step a desperate refusal to stop.
"Is this heat… this desert… mine?"
The thought echoed inside his mind as the world stretched endlessly in every direction.
"Then why… why am I on the edge of death here?"
His pace faltered.
His body grew heavier, as if the desert itself was pulling him down into sleep.
His knees hit the sand.
"Am I… dead?"