Why do people suffer? Why is there sadness? Why is there pain? Someone should do something. But not me; I’m nobody. People with power should have that responsibility. Why do they let the world go on as it is? Don’t they know that they can make the world a better place? Like I said that’s not my responsibility. I would help if I could. Why don’t I try? I can’t; it’s better to just give up… just give up… get up… What?

“I said get up! Damn kid!” A voice exclaims from above.

“Ugh…” Siyu opens his eyes and sees Sister Delaine standing over him with a sandal in her right hand, ready to strike.

“Get up, kid! We have customers. Do your job and serve them.” Sister Delaine commands. “If I didn’t come in to grab some ingredients for the kids’ morning meals you might’ve slept all morning!” She exclaims.

“Yes, Sister,” Siyu says with a groan, before putting on his uniform and leaving his room.

His name is Siyu Grey. He was an orphan who worked at the orphanage’s restaurant. He doesn't get paid, but he is provided shelter and food. He doesn't think it's so bad. It’s a pretty normal life, and he knew it could be much worse.

He's always been grateful for Sister Delaine who took him in as a baby. She told Siyu that his godfathers brought him in from who knows where, but they haven’t visited up till now. For all Siyu knew, they were just kind strangers who dropped him off at the orphanage. Who knows?

He didn’t care about that. It was Sister Delaine who raised him, and who he truly owed his gratitude for all of the good things he had. Like it was said previously, in some places, Siyu could be considered rich, and he would rather not forget that fact. As he saw it, he didn’t have much to be bitter about.

And so Siyu worked at the restaurant, which he thought was pretty good; he was doing something to assist Sister Delaine with her restaurant and he could live life casually with no worries.

“Oi, Little Siyu. The eggs and bacon for table one; go on.” Prodder says, pointing at the plate on the counter.

“Yes boss!” Siyu say as he grabs the plate and goes to table one where a young man in a traveling coat was sitting and tapping his knuckles on the table impatiently.

“What took so long?” The young man says, stopping his knocking knuckles while giving Siyu a stern stare.

“I apologize for the wait sir,” Siyu says as he places the plate before the young man. “Do you want anything to drink with that?” He asks.

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“Grab me some water. Hurry! The sooner I’m out of here, the better it’ll be for you.” The young man says, shooing Siyu away.

Siyu hurriedly bows and steps away from the table. He walks over next to Prodder and starts to pour a glass of water from the pitcher.

“What’s up with that guy? Why is he acting so high and mighty?” Siyu asks Prodder as he pours the water.

“I’d wipe that expression off your face. That there’s a cultivator.” Prodder says as he continues to prepare the next meal.

“Cultivator?” Siyu asks, thinking of where he's heard that word before. "Aren’t those the people with magical powers who defend the country from monsters?" He asks.

“Yeah. See that badge on his chest with the wreathed globe? He’s a cultivator of the Earth Path.” Prodder says, flipping a pancake.

“Earth Path? What’s that?” Siyu mumble as he fills the cup, and walks back to table one.

“Your water, sir,” Siyu says, placing the cup on the table.

“Good. Now go.” The young man says, continuing his meal.

Siyu bows once again and steps away, walking back to Prodder.

“What’s the Earth Path?” Siyu asks Prodder as he waits to deliver the next meal.

“Kid, are you dumb? You’ve been stuck in this place for too long if you don’t even know that. The Earth Path is one of the three Path Archetypes of cultivators. The other two are the Heaven Path and the Hell Path. When one begins cultivating they reach out to their deity, and their whole Cultivation Path for the rest of their lives depends on which path their deity resides on.” Prodder explains as he sets the pancake on the plate and starts cooking some more bacon.

“Wow, how do you know so much?” Siyu asks, waiting.

“Don’t you know, kid? A long time ago, I opened the way for me to start cultivating the Heaven Path.” The man says with a small amount of pride before his expression turns bitter. “But I failed. After the path was opened, no matter how hard I tried I could not progress. It was only after a long time did I realize that even though the path was opened, it was not the path I was meant to walk. I could only move forward in my own way.” He says with some melancholy.

Siyu stays silent, watching Prodder reminisce about his past. Prodder places the bacon onto the pancake and points to table two. Siyu picks up the plate and begins to deliver the food to table two.

“Oi, kid.” Prodder says after Siyu had started to walk away. “You forgot the milk.” He says with a shake of his head.

“Hah, sorry. I must still be a little sleepy.” Siyu says, settling the meal down to pour some milk before hurrying to table two.

…

…

“No, no, we’re closed. Come back tomorrow; people have to rest!” Prodder says, slamming the door on the would-be customers.

“Good job kid.” Prodder says as he turns around, patting Siyu on the shoulder as he walks by.

“Good enough for a copper?” Siyu asks with a sly grin.

“Ha!” Prodder laughs. “There are better uses for copper than on a bugger like you!” Prodder teases before beginning to walk to his room.

“Hey, Prodder,” Siyu asks, running up to Prodder's side. “How does one become a cultivator?” He asks.

Prodder stops and turns to him, sighing deeply, before looking at Siyu solemnly. “There are two ways. One way is to consume an Awakening Drug and find your deity that way, and the other way is only for those with Foresight. Either way, you must enter a meditative state and find your deity in the depths of your mind. When you find your deity, you ask for a seed and their name. Once you have the seed, the path to cultivation is open, and with their name, you can find your way forward on that path.” Prodder explains.

“Hmm…” Siyu murmurs in contemplation.

“Don’t think too hard on it kid.” Prodder says, patting Siyu on the shoulder. “Sure, some cultivators have magical powers, but everyone is cultivating some sort of life. As long as you know who you are and what you need to be, you’ll be fine. Now go on, get to bed. Tomorrow, the work continues.” Prodder says with a chuckle, giving Siyu a light push.

“Haha! Good night, Prodder.” Siyu says as he makes his way to his room.

…

…

Siyu goes to bed, lying down and looking at the ceiling. Find your deity in your mind, eh? Ha! There’s no way there’s a deity in my mind! Who wants to be a cultivator? The path must be long and hard, and it must be a struggle to get those abilities. I’ll just mind my business and live a quiet life.

Siyu's eyes close as the weight of the day’s work pulls him into sleep.