Fate's Slave - Shadow Slave X Honkai Star Rail

Laying on his bed, Sunny first checked AR-26710’s — also known as Fading Fyrefly — Attributes. He wasn’t doing so out of mere curiosity, but instead did it in order to learn more about his possible enemy. That wasn’t to say that he wasn’t interested in what their runes contained, but it wasn’t his driving motive.

Summoning the Endless Spring, he took a swig of the useful Memory, redirecting his attention back to the runes. Similar to himself, they had the ability to have multiple Cores. Sunny wanted to find what the two of them had in common, as that would allow him to figure out how one was able to do so.

Even if he couldn’t figure that out, there were pages within the Vessel of Remembrance he had not yet read. Considering how vast the information within it was, he would be surprised if there wasn’t anything referring to having multiple Cores.

Unless his past self also hadn’t figured it out. That would be the worst case scenario.

With a sigh, he scanned the runes before laying his eyes upon the Attributes section. Something else he noticed was that AR-26710 was quite bare when it came to Memories. Considering that Sunny had quite a lot himself, he was surprised that they hadn’t ordered him to simply hand over his Memories...

...Not that he trusted them or anything.

Attributes: [Soul of Cinder], [Knight’s Temperance], [Flame of Divinity], [The Fire], [Fyrefly Type-IV Strategic Assault Mech].

Seeing the last Attribute, Sunny almost choked at the length of the Attribute’s name.

Ignoring it for now, he immediately recognized [Flame of Divinity] to be a lesser version of his own Attribute, [Essence of Divinity]. His eyes were also drawn to [The Fire], wondering if his suspicions were true. He focused on the Attribute, bringing up it’s description.

[The Fire]: ”You have inherited the lineage of Sun God.”

’Another Divine Lineage...’

Currently, Sunny only knew of [Blood Weave] and [The War], both of which were his own Attributes. Coincidentally, his master was also a carrier of a Divine Lineage. The one that belonged to Sun God.

Sunny almost laughed at the irony. He, a divine shadow, was a slave to the heir of Sun God. At this point, he was almost completely certain that his [Fated] Attribute was to blame for this.

There were three more Attributes, which Sunny was completely unfamiliar with. He guessed that these were most likely the innate and Aspect-related Attributes.

[Soul of Cinder]: ”As the last Fragment of Cinder, you have inherited your comrades will, completing your own.”

From Sunny’s lacking education, he knew that the word ’cinder’ was related to fire. With that knowledge, he guessed that this Attribute gives an affinity for fire. Unfortunately, he couldn’t understand the entirety of the Attribute’s description, as it seemed to emphasize ’will’.

He couldn’t figure out how that correlated to fire, but he wasn’t going to dwell on it. He’d simply remember it in case it becomes relevant later on.

[Knight’s Temperance]: ”You are naturally skilled in all forms of combat.”

This Attribute was relatively straightforward, and gave them a talent for combat. To be honest, Sunny was quite jealous of such a convenient Attribute...

...Well, he had [The War] and Shadow Dance to help him in that regard, so he wasn’t too jealous.

Sunny focused on the last Attribute; the one with the ridiculously long name. Once he did, his eyes almost bulged out of their sockets at the amount of information he saw.

[Fyrefly Type-IV Strategic Assault Mech]: ”Your soul has been engraved with the armor of the Iron Cavalry.”

Attribute Traits: [Incinerating Blade], [Incinerating Armor], [Flame Propulsion], [Complete Combustion], [Chrysalid Pyronexus], [Module α: Antilag Outburst], [Bound].

Sunny wanted to pull his hair out at the absurdity. Since when did Attributes have multiple facets?!

Taking a deep breath in order to prevent him from throwing something, he looked at the Attribute Traits... one... by... one.

[Incinerating Blade]: ”You can create a soulbound weapon.”

[Incinerating Armor]: ”You can create a set of soulbound armor.”

The first two were very self explanatory, as they allowed for the usage of both a weapon and an armor. However, what drew Sunny’s eyes was the fact that they were soulbound.

If he were to guess, it most likely meant that it functioned similar to Serpent, who’s class was equal to his own.

[Flame Propulsion]: ”While in the armor form, you can expel flames.”

So far... Sunny wasn’t very impressed with the Attribute as a whole. It provided the same things that he would expect from a Memory, with the only difference being that these progressed with the user...

’...Wait.’

If that was the case, wouldn’t that mean that this Attribute would be extremely dangerous? If these Traits were obtained at the Dormant or Awakened rank, then these simple abilities would be fatal at Ascendance...

...Sunny groaned, realizing that this simple Attribute might be more of a problem than he thought. He hadn’t even gotten to the Aspect yet!

[Complete Combustion]: ”By using the flames of your soul, the armor will undergo an evolution, fueled by your will. In this state, you can simultaneously summon a pair of soulbound weapons.”

’How would that work?’

Sunny wondered what it meant when it referred to the ’flames of your soul’. Maybe it simply needed Essence to fuel the transformation, but he felt that this wasn’t the case.

His intuition usually was right... at least, he thinks it is.

[Chrysalid Pyronexus]: ”While in the Complete Combustion state, the armor will be able to absorb heat to enhance itself.”

At this point, Sunny was sure that he was dealing with some sort of juggernaut. With a scowl on his face, he realized that this ability had great synergy with [Flame Propulsion].

[Module α: Antilag Outburst]: ”While in the Complete Combustion state, your flames can burn the will of others.”

Narrowing his eyes at the unclear description, Sunny decided to write it off as a mental attack of sorts. Just like with the [Soul of Cinder] Attribute, the word ’will’ popped up again, showing that it was more important than he thought.

With a quick read of the last Trait, Sunny confirmed that this Attribute does grow alongside AR-26710. He also guessed that [Bound] might also be able to provide new Traits as well...

...The thought somewhat horrified Sunny.

Anyways, he had learned quite a bit of information. At the same time, he had also found that they did in fact share something in common.

They both had Divine Lineages.

’Does this mean that Divine Lineages can let you have multiple soul cores?’

Despite the evidence, something within him was telling him that this wasn’t the case. That would mean that members of Great Clans all have multiple Cores, which was a ridiculous notion.

Sighing, Sunny checked the one thing that he was the most interested in:

Their Aspect and Flaw.

In a conflict between Awakened, the one who knew their opponent’s capabilities better would have a clear advantage. Doubly so for those who knew their flaw.

Unfortunately, AR-26710 was most likely already aware of all his abilities and tools. Fortunately, he could even out the field by learning what they can do as well.

There was still the matter of Shadow Bond, but as long as their flaw was equally fatal, he might still have a chance.

Aspect: [Fairy Knight].

Aspect Rank: Divine.

Sunny choked on literal air.

***

There it was. The thing that allowed the two of them to create multiple Cores, allowing them to go beyond the limits of humanity.

It was the fact that they both had Divine Aspects, unheard of before now.

Sunny was in disbelief. He wasn’t arrogant enough to believe that he was the only Divine Aspect holder in this vast universe, but he couldn’t possibly think that he was directly connected to one.

Unlikely things really did happen around him...

Reading the Aspect’s name, he immediately drew a connection with the [Knight’s Temperance] Attribute. If he were to guess, Sunny assumed that the [Soul of Cinder] attribute was their Innate Attribute, similar to [Fated].

However, Innate Attributes were those that one carried their entire life, outside of the Nightmare Spell’s grasp. Considering what the Attribute described, it didn’t seem like something a mundane human would have...

Shaking his head, Sunny read the Aspect’s Description:

Aspect Description: [You are a warm spirit of fire, encased in a fearsome inferno of molten steel. Your will burns brightly, but you long for a purpose to wield your blade.]

Innate Ability: [Burning Determination].

Ability Description: [Your abilities get more powerful when you are fighting for something dear to you.]

Seeing the word ’will’ once again, Sunny could guess that this was most likely a core part of AR-26710’s Aspect. The Innate Ability seemed to be quite useful in a fight that matters.

After all, most fights have a person fighting for their life.

Sunny didn’t know anyone who didn’t value their life, so it was basically a free boost in power.

A bit bitter with having been stuck with Shadow Bond, he went to look at the Aspect Abilities. Considering the rank of the Aspect, he was bracing himself to see something ridiculous...

Aspect Ability: [Reforge].

Ability Description: [Your indomitable will produces a flame that can both draw out an armament’s latent potential and restore flesh.]

Aspect Ability: [Flame Manipulation].

Aspect Description: [You can bend all fire to your will.]

Aspect Ability: [Extinguished Soul].

Aspect Description: [When the flame of desire is extinguished, your flame burns brighter.]

Sunny thinks he understands how the first two Abilities worked. Reforge allowed for them to augment any weapon or armor, while also being able to heal a person. It matched the duality of a Fairy Knight, as they represent a mix of kindness and violence.

The second Ability had to do with controlling flames around them. An ability like this was made purely for combat, which brings Sunny to believe that they could manipulate the flames produced by Reforge to burn away enemies from afar.

It was quite the deadly combination.

However, Sunny couldn’t quite understand the last Ability. He wasn’t sure what the flame of desire was, but he assumed that once the conditions were met, AR-26710’s Aspect would get a boost.

Although he was slightly disappointed due to not being able to learn much about their Ascended Ability, he quickly grew excited once he saw the last set of runes.

Before becoming even more disappointed than before.

”...That’s it?!”

Sunny was completely dissatisfied. He read the last set of runes, which revealed AR-26710’s Flaw. Instead of finding an exploitable weakness however, he instead found something that seemed less like a Flaw, and more like a minor inconvenience.

Hell, Sunny was sure that there was people out their who would actually be assisted by this flaw!

’I guess that’s out.’

Out of curiosity, he checked what Memories AR-26710 had. Strangely enough, there was only a single garment Memory of the Ascended Rank. It had the ability to dampen an Awakened’s presence. It was definitely not something that would be used in combat.

Now that he knew that exploiting AR-26710’s flaw wasn’t an option, he figured that their was only one thing he could do to prepare.

Sunny sighed, lost in thought as he was creating multiple plans of attack. Counters against their Aspect...

’Hm. Now that I think about it, aren’t fairies usually girls?’

Sunny didn’t know much about the

subject due to his upbringing, but he was pretty sure that fairies were usually girls. Not only that, but the garment Memory seemed to be a dress of some kind. Wouldn’t that mean that AR-26710 was probably a girl?

Strangely enough, the thought sounded right to Sunny.

Not that it mattered much. His enemy was his enemy, and that was all there was to it...

He imagined countless scenarios in which he could counter thei— her Aspect and Attributes. He didn’t even think about her Flaw, since it was basically useless from a tactical and personal standpoint.

...Now that he thought about it, he supposed that their were a few ways to exploit her flaw.

Once he was done, he thought a little more about AR-26710’s identity. The information he had learned was extremely familiar, as if he had learned of it just a few minutes ago...

’...Weren’t those guys saying something about a Molten Knight?!’

Everything clicked. Firstly, the theme of a knight matched up quite well with what he learned about AR-26710. The incorporation of fire was also something that connected the two identities. What really sealed the deal however, was that Sunny was told that he had fought against Stellaron Hunter Sam himself!

Sunny had an inability to lie. Unless the Awakened who had provided this information lied to him for whatever reason, then it must be true.

Now, Sunny was completely sure that AR-26710 was his enemy. She must have figured out his True Name and enslaved him! Considering that he wasn’t currently being ordered around, he guessed that he had somehow escaped before it could be used against him.

Unfortunately, that didn’t explain the loss of his memories, nor why his past self had told him that she wouldn’t use his Shadow Bond against him.

Not wanting to think about it any longer, Sunny decided that now was a good time to get some sleep. He didn’t feel like going out to hunt any Nightmare Creatures, so until he could use the gateway again, he decided that he might as well get some rest. A lot has happened, so he was quite grateful for this dreamless slumber...

***

After getting some long needed rest, Sunny exited the Dream Realm with the gateway in the Sanctuary of Noctis. He felt his soul being pulled back to his physical body, the experience being something he couldn’t ever describe.

Sunny cracked open his eyes, taking in his current surroundings before sighing.

As he looked around, he found that the only person nearby was March 7th.

With a groan, he sat up from the couch he was laying on. March, who was standing nearby, noticed as she greeted him with that same happy-go-lucky expression.

”Hello there~”

Sunny tiredly waved, every part of his body feeling like it was in agony. He didn’t seem to have any wounds — nothing that he could see externally at least. Still, he felt like he had taken quite a bit of damage.

’Soul damage?’

Sunny wondered if the beam of energy unleashed by the Doomsday Beast could inflict soul damage to someone. If so, maybe it was even more dangerous than he had thought.

Not a lot of Awakened had access to soul protection after all.

However, that wouldn’t make much sense. If he had taken soul damage, he would have still felt the pain within the Dream Realm.

’Well, it doesn’t matter.’

He turned to March, who was looking him up and down. He raised an eyebrow, feeling slightly uncomfortable from her gaze. She seemed to be searching for something.

After around a minute of awkward silence, March nodded to herself before looking back into Sunny’s eyes.

”Not bad. It would’ve been even better if you didn’t faint. But thanks to you, we were able to take down a Doomsday Beast! I didn’t know you had a cool Echo!”

Shaking his arms in attempt to get some feeling back into his limbs, Sunny asked:

”Did anything happen while I was asleep?”

”Not really. After getting rid of the Doomsday Beast, we all got some rest... Oh! Himeko wanted you to find her once you were ready.”

Sunny didn’t know what the woman wanted, but he didn’t see any reason for him not to go see her. As he was about to get up, March suddenly seemed to come to a realization.

”You should give me your number. If you get lost or anything, just text me, okay?”

Sunny blinked, scratching the back of his head for a moment. He came to the conclusion that she was referring to a phone number, but he shouldn’t have one on him. Just to be sure...

Sunny hesitantly patted down the pockets of his pants, realizing he really did have a phone in his pocket. He pulled it out, excited to have something that was rare to find in the Outskirts. As a child, his family shared a single cracked phone.

Once he looked at it, all hints of joy drained from his face. The screen was damaged, the power button didn’t work, and he could even see segments of circuitry peeking out.

He must have broken it while going against the Doomsday Beast.

Noticing his downtrodden expression, March quickly tried to save herself from this awkward situation.

”...If you want, I could go and try to get this fixed — I’m sure there’s a phone expert or something somewhere on the space station!”

Not even bothering to look her way, Sunny handed over the damage phone. He stood up, never taking his gaze off of the floor.

’I wonder how much it cost to get that phone...’

The mere thought of money felt like an arrow through the heart.

Before she left, March paused for a few moments. She didn’t turn around, but she suddenly spoke to Sunny.

”Uh... thanks for earlier.”

With that, she left Sunny behind before he could even ask what she was referring to. He wasn’t the type of person to help another for free, and he was sure he hadn’t done anything of the sort recently!

’Whatever.’

It didn’t matter, just like most things didn’t matter to Sunny. Right now, there were only three things he desired to do.

’Get stronger. Kill AR-26710. Survive.’

She was an Ascended Terror, which was a rank and four classes above him. As it stands, he didn’t have a chance of defeating her. He’d probably have a better chance fighting the Doomsday Beast on his own!

This wasn’t even taking into account that she could simply tell Sunny to kill himself.

The only way to defeat her is with a sneak attack. However, if he didn’t have the strength to do so quickly and without a counterattack, then he’d immediately be restrained with Shadow Bond. If she spoke even a single sentence to him, it would all be over.

Of course, Sunny was willing to destroy his ears. He can’t be commanded to do something if he didn’t hear the command in the first place.

With the issue of being a slave out of the way, he needed to think of the best ways to actually become stronger. He was getting close to saturating his Shadow Cores, which would lead to him growing a new one. This would grant him another shadow that he could use to augment himself, increasing his strength to that of four Sunny’s.

Unfortunately, that wouldn’t be enough. He needed to also increase the rank of his shadow cores, which would give him a new Aspect Ability in the process. To do that, he would need to locate a Nightmare Seed within the Dream Realm, and challenge the Second Nightmare.

Putting that idea on hold, he thought about the other avenues he could take. One of which was progressing Shadow Dance, which would increase his mastery over the battle art, while also being able to receive more Legacy Relics. He could also get more Memories, and maybe even another Shadow — one like Serpent.

From what he read in the Vessel of Remembrance, he was able to convert Echoes into Shadows — that was how he had created Saint. However, he couldn’t find anything that told him how he could get her Shadow Fragment counter up.

The thought of obtaining another growing companion brought an excited grin to his face. Sunny wondered if he should just live in the wilderness of the Dream Realm, slaughtering Nightmare Creatures for Memories and Echoes. His soul arsenal could use some more Ascended Memories.

Although he was filled with thoughts of grand power, he had another task that was more apparent in the current moment. He still had to go talk to Himeko, and he wasn’t willing to burn any bridges just yet.

Friends were a liability, but allies? His situation was still very unclear, so he would need to tread carefully.

’Just need to figure out what I need to do after.’

He was homeless. Although he didn’t need to worry too much over basic necessities in the Dream Realm, he wasn’t willing to lose his physical body due to starvation just yet.

He was on the Herta Space Station with no recollection of how he had gotten here. There was a four year gap in his memories, he seems to be associated with an annoying gremlin, and he got caught up in an Antimatter Legion attack.

Without a home or stable income, Sunny might be living his life in the real world the same way he did when he was a kid. The only difference would be the fact that he had powers now.

He assumes that he isn’t backed by any clan, organization, or nation — so his priority would be to gain a semblance of stability.

If his guess was correct, then his sudden appearance on the Herta Space Station was the most likely reason for Himeko to want to talk to him.

Or maybe it wasn’t. It’s not like Sunny could read minds or see the future.

***

Around a minute later, Sunny had located Himeko thanks to the assistance of his shadow helpers. He found her within a room near the master control zone, alongside a large and alien machine.

In the outskirts, Sunny never saw any technology on such a complex and sophisticated level, so he was naturally amazed by it.

Once he stepped in, Himeko turned in his direction, a polite smile gracing her features.

”You’re awake. I had March and Dan Heng stay by the Express to keep an eye on things.”

What they called the Astral Express fascinated Sunny, as he had never heard of a train that could travel through space. The concept was mind boggling, and caused him to question the logic of the universe.

Ignoring such thoughts, Sunny decided he should cut to the chase.

”Is there something you want from me?”

She shook her head.

”I don’t want anything from you personally, but I wanted you to meet someone who might be able to help with your... situation.”

Sunny guessed that March and Dan Heng must have explained to Himeko that he had ended up on the space station with no clue on how he had gotten here. Grateful that he wasn’t forced to explain anything, he noticed that a shadow was approaching.

One that was unfathomably deep and powerful.

Sunny shuddered at the sensation his shadow sense brought him. It felt like the shadow was connected to various points, so numerous that he couldn’t locate all of them. Some were simply out of range, but he sensed plenty within the Herta Space Station itself.

The shadow was an anomalous entity, as it felt like it was connected to something on a higher plane.

Out of unease, Sunny prepared to dive into the shadows in case the shadow approaching was hostile.

A couple of moments later, Sunny saw what seemed to be a young girl step through the door. She had ash-brown hair and purple eyes that fades to a lighter shade. She wore a dress alongside a strange hat that Sunny couldn’t quite describe. He had never seen anything like it in the outskirts, but it might have been common knowledge here.

Despite this, the strangest part about her was that she wasn’t human.

She was actually a doll.

’An Aspect? Maybe a Memory or Echo?’

This must have been why Sunny felt the more metaphysical aspects of her shadow stretching beyond just her body. She must have had countless dolls spread across the space station, with many more outside of it.

Even more alarming, was that she had the unmistakeable presence of a Saint; a quality that is engrained into the very world itself.

The mysterious doll glanced at him with interest, before turn turning towards Himeko.

”I’ve only been gone, what? A few months? And the space station is already in this state?”

”Welcome back, Herta.”

Himeko turned towards Sunny, introducing the Saint who shared the same name with the space station.

”This is the true master of the space station — Genius Society number 83, Herta.”

The doll rolled her non-human eyes, as if offended.

”At least give me a proper introduction! Genius Society number 83... Of all my outstanding achievements, that’s what you want to mention?”

’Oh... so she’s that type of person...’

Sunny could tell that he wasn’t going to like this lady. However, he wasn’t stupid enough to let out any negative thoughts he had about her — he still wanted to live, after all.

”...My name is Sunless.”

Herta raised an eyebrow, seemingly deep in thought.

”Huh. I think I’ve heard that name before... Well, if I forgot it probably wasn’t important. I’m more interested in that Stellaron inside you.”

Sunny still didn’t know what a Stellaron was, nor how it could be inside him. He figured that it was dangerous, so he was naturally alarmed that it was supposedly contained within his body... if her words could be trusted of course.

”Uh... what’s a Stellaron?”

Herta shrugged, offering a clinical explanation. The amount of... disassociation she had when explaining sent a wave of nervousness through his spine.

”Stellarons — also known as the Cancer of All Worlds — don’t have much known information on them. They spread like a cancer throughout the universe, and bring drastic changes to a world’s ecosystem and civilization. They aren’t really a good thing.”

Sunny paled, he turned towards Himeko who nodded in affirmation. If he really did have one of those inside of him, how was he even alive? A cancer that targets worlds shouldn’t be able to be contained by a mere Awakened.

Stating that she had things to do, Himeko left the two of them, leaving Sunny alone with Herta. Based on the things she said, a few things weren’t adding up.

Out of confusion, a question formulated in Sunny’s mind; one that he would ask of the Genius Society member before him.

”How did you know?”

Herta tilted her head, not understanding the question for a moment. Sunny continued:

”I mean, how did you know I have this... Stellaron inside me.”

After explaining the question to her, Herta simply pointed to her eyes.

”It’s a Dormant Ability.”

Sunny scratched the back of his head.

”You can... find things?”

Herta let out a ’hmph’, as if appalled by the simple description of her Aspect Ability. Instead, she began to go on a rant... which let Sunny catch a glimpse of the horrifying scope of her Aspect.

”Your soul has a completely different structure than the normal Awakened. It’s fluid and malleable, and there seems to be the remains of snuffed out souls held in it. You have something that can’t be considered Soul Essence, but it seems to serve the exact same functions. Instead of having the singular Soul Core every Awakened human has, you instead have two of those unusual ones. You aren’t corrupted though, so I’d assume that only your soul isn’t human. You have an affinity for shadows, so I could assume that your Soul Cores and Essence are a derivative of that. Shadow Cores? Shadow Essence, maybe? You also have two Divine Lineages flowing through you, one of which is incomplete. The incomplete one is of unknown origin, while the other is from War. Your blood is extremely tenacious, and your mind is... sharp? Not only that, but your strange Cores are deeply connected to your shadow... oh, you have two of them. Does the amount of cores you have represent the amount of shadows you have? They even seem to perfectly match your qualities like an exact copy of you, despite not being made of flesh and blood. Your Essence is more potent than an average Awakened as well... it might be on the level of a Master in terms of quality. It’s flowing through these coils on your arm. It’s alive? A strange Echo, perhaps? No, it has a different composition... and it’s even bound to your soul. On to more mundane things, you don’t have a heartbeat, but blood is still able to flow through your body. Has the Stellaron taken the place of your heart? It’s hidden somewhere in your soul, so that’s unlikely. Based on your brain patterns, it seems that the amount of forces within your body is causing a fluctuation of sleep patterns. I’m no doctor, but I’m sure that you’ve developed some form of narcolepsy. And if I take a glance at your Aspect... this potential is astounding! It has to at least be of the Supreme rank! I’ve never seen anything like this...”

Sunny stared at Herta in horror, the latter of the two was still observing him in great interest. He had severely underestimated her Aspect. The worst part was that this was simply a Dormant Ability. She still had an Awakened, Ascended, and Transcendent Ability that she hasn’t revealed...

Still deep in her curiosity, Herta suddenly paused with a perplexed look on her face.

”...If I was right about your Soul Sea carrying... what looks like the shadows of those you’ve terminated, how come you have a Great Devil in there?”

Sunny blinked... he didn’t have such a thing in his Soul Sea, right?

”Uh... I’m not too sure about a Great Devil, but I’m pretty sure the things I’ve killed do go in there.”

Taking a look at his head, Herta let out a sound of realization.

”Amnesia, huh? Well, I am curious how an Awakened can kill a Great Nightmare Creature, so I might just have to make a cure myself...”

Although the idea of a cure to his memory loss would be great, he had more pressing matters to concern himself over.

Sunny was pressed into a corner. Basically everything about him was exposed, so he was essentially an easy target if anyone were to learn this information. It’s basically like telling a person how to effectively kill you. He scowled at the doll, losing all pretense of politeness.

”What are you going to do with this?”

Herta blinked.

”Nothing much. I just want to learn as much as I can about you. I mean, everything about you is just... so interesting. You’re a walking anomaly, one that graciously landed in my lap.”

Herta paused for a second.

”Oh. You don’t have to worry about me exposing this information. I just want to understand you is all.”

Looking as if she was thinking about something, she continued.

”Actually, I’ve heard you don’t have a place to stay from... what was her name? Anyways, if you let me conduct research on you, you can get a pretty nice place on the space station.”

Despite the fact that he was extremely vulnerable right now, Sunny grew somewhat interested in her offer. Of course, he was still skeptical.

It was in his nature after all.

”...What type of research?”

”Eh. Nothing too crazy. Mainly testing all your capabilities as an Awakened, with a few biological examinations.”

That... didn’t sound too bad actually. All he had to do was run some tests, and he would have a roof over his head. Unfortunately, he still needed to grow much stronger than he was now, and such a life might lead his progress to stagnate.

”Will I get paid?”

”Sure.”

That basically sealed the deal for him. Just as he was about to agree, Herta sent a blank stare at a wall for a few moments. She sighed before turning to him.

”The lady from the Astral Express has her own offer for you. That train is pretty useful, so I don’t want to get you to agree without at least informing you about it.”

Sunny’s eyes widened slightly. If the Astral Express went around fixing problems like what had happened on the space station, wouldn’t that be the perfect way to get stronger in the real world? He’d be able to go to the Dream Realm once he slept, which would give him a full day of pure combat!

He was still disappointed that he couldn’t live a cushy life in the space station, but he was in dire need of power. Once he killed AR-26710, he might just retire from such an eventful life and stay on the space station — assuming that he could still do so.

Noticing the look on his face, Herta called out to him.

”Even if you do go with them, you can still come back here for some experiments. I’ll still pay you, and you’ll still have a room for whenever you stay here.”

’That... works out just fine too.’

Sunny nodded, allowing Herta to continue.

”Anyways, since you’re here, why don’t you be my guinea pig for this project.”

Not expecting to already have something to do, he asked:

”What project?”

The doll pointed at the large machine that Sunny had saw when he came in here.

”Currently, I’m trying to learn more about Aeons. They’re mysterious beings that have become a higher existence, beyond even the Ranks of the Nightmare Spell. Some of them were normal humans like us, but they have somehow evolved into something much greater. Aren’t you curious about it?”

Sunny would be lying if he said he didn’t. Of course, he couldn’t lie in the first place.

”Yeah, I guess I am.”

Herta walked over to the machine, motioning with her wooden hand for Sunny to follow her. They stood right infront of the massive machine.

”This right here is an artificial universe, made with the combined Aspects and technology of four geniuses of the society. The only difference is that it’s more customizable and streamlined. I call it the Metaverse!”

Sunny frowned in confusion.

”That name... I’m not even sure what it’s supposed to mean.”

Herta shrugged.

”Fine. My partners complained about the name too. Let’s just call it the Simulated Universe.”

She fiddled with a panel near the Simulated Universe.

”Anyways, it’s extremely realistic. We were able to create actual life in it, so you’ll mainly encounter Nightmare Creatures and a few Awakened. Thanks to a crafting Aspect, you can even get some Memories in the full version! Not a lot though, since they can’t work twenty-four seven.”

The thought of being able to obtain Memories, while also honing his skills in combat was enticing to Sunny. With a final click, a soft hum started to spread throughout Herta’s office — surprising considering the sheer insanity of the machine in front of him.

Sunny himself couldn’t believe that an entire universe could be created and controlled in such a way.

”Now go and experience it for yourself. I will guide you in the Simulated Universe to make sure nothing happens to you! I’ll even give you a substantial reward.”

Gulping out of nervousness, Sunny stepped right in front of the machine. Herta started to mumble to herself.

”...Yes, just stand there and the computer will read your brainwaves, then automatically generate an immersive simulated experience...”

The next few moments passed in a flash to Sunny. He felt his mind disconnect from his body, while everything went black. The next moment, he saw a very familiar mountain range.

’Huh?’

Here he was, back where it all began. His hands were chained up, linked to other slaves. He felt the cold seep into his skin — although it was to a much lower degree. As he looked around, he recognized the slaves around him: Shifty, Scholar, and even the Heir of War and Auro of the Nine!

’What the hell is this?!’

[Hello? Can you hear me? If you do, just think about sending a thought to me.]

Sunny heard Herta’s voice, meaning that he was just inside the Simulated Universe.

[Yeah, I can hear you.]

[Good. Your body is still sitting in the office. This is a Simulated Universe generated from your memories. This is only the Alpha test server, where the features are not fully available. You won’t be able to get Memories or saturate your cores just yet.]

’Did that mean that the Simulated Universe couldn’t construct original scenarios?’

[Anyways, I need you to break those chains and go on a bit of a slaughter. I just need to make sure is working right, and that your unique situation isn’t messing anything up.]

’A slaughter, huh...’

With a sigh, Sunny’s eyes glinted with murderous intent.

’...I can do that.’

With a snap, the chains in his hands shattered from the strength of an Awakened Monster. He heard shouts around him, but he ignored them. This was even more of an illusion than his First Nightmare.

Summoning the Midnight Shard in a show of light, he held the tachi within his right hand. He ignored the slaves, dashing straight towards two Awakened soldiers. Of course, they had unsheathed their blades the moment he escaped. Although they were prepared and reactive, they were still confused. Auro muttered:

”How did...”

Sunny didn’t give him time to finish, as he swung the Midnight Shard diagonally, attempting to slice off his arm. Unfortunately, Auro reacted fast enough to block the attack with his own blade, the screeching of metal sounded across the the chilly mountain.

Sunny moved his empty left hand towards him, which Auro attempted to block with his free hand.

Auro suddenly shouted in pain, alarming the Blessed of War who was sprinting towards them.

Auro had a stiletto stabbed into his arm, drawing quite a bit of blood. The Moonlight Shard’s ability to appear instantaneously was quite useful. Due to the pain, his grip on his sword loosened, allowing Sunny to push harder in order to cleave right into him. As red blood and gruesome gore splattered onto his body, Sunny augmented himself with both of his shadows, allowing him to slice Auro in two.

His upper body slid off of the lower body, in a clean diagonal cut stretching from his shoulder to his hip. Sunny couldn’t revel in his kill however, as the Blessed of War was already upon him.

With a quick Shadow Step and a flick of the Midnight Shard, he had decapitated the Blessed of War from behind. He looked towards all the slaves, who were staring at him in fear and awe...

”...Sorry, but since you’re not real, it’s fine if I just...”

Not even a minute later, Sunny had dealt with all of the slaves. If everything went the way it did in his First Nightmare, then the Mountain King should appear later on. By getting rid of the slaves, he wouldn’t have to worry about any spawns being created.

Unfortunately, he didn’t want to wait until night for it to arrive, so he instead dove into the shadows. As his silhouette traveled up the mountain with terrible speed, he found the location of the Mountain King. The Awakened Tyrant was asleep.

Sunny guessed that it must have been nocturnal, but he wasn’t an expert on Nightmare Creatures.

Appearing in front of it, Sunny augmented the Midnight Shard with both of his shadows. He stabbed it forward, piercing it’s skull and brain. Once he pulled the blade out, he dismissed it, watching as the Mountain King flinched a few times as blood and brain matter leaked through it’s skull.

Sunny felt a pull at the back of his mind. A moment later, and he was out of the Simulated Universe.

***

Sunny blinked, feeling somewhat disoriented. He turned towards Herta, who was staring at the console with a look of curiosity.

”Uh... weren’t we supposed to find out things about the Aeons?”

Herta nodded.

”We did.”

Confused, Sunny asked her to elaborate on what she meant.

”In the Dream Realm, there hasn’t been a single piece of evidence that Aeons exist. In fact, the most that Aeons ever interact with the Nightmare Spell is when creating Emanators — choosing those whose Aspects are compatible with their paths. I had given you the role of Akivili, which meant that if any Aeon noticed you, they would have definitely approached you.”

Catching on to what she was hinting at, he asked:

”Aeons can’t interact with the Dream Realm?”

Herta nodded, a greedy glint in her eyes.

”I’d go as far as to say that Aeons never existed in the Dream Realm’s history, and are only exclusive to our Universe. That means that there has to be something about our Universe that makes it possible for them to exist.”

Despite all the lore he was getting, their was a glaring question in front of him.

”Wait. I wasn’t in the Dream Realm though. It was just my First Nightmare. Aeons can create Emanators once they are being appraised after their First Nightmare, so wouldn’t they be able to interact with me anyways?”

Herta shrugged.

”It’s just how the Simulated Universe works. Nightmares and the Dream Realm are considered to be the same thing in there.”

’...So it’s just a matter of laziness.’

Herta continued, interacting with console at the same time.

”Anyways, I got some pretty good data from here. Your shadows can enhance your physical capabilities and your Memories, and you can sense others by their shadows. You have the ability to move through them too...”

Still fiddling with the console, she asked him:

”Out of curiosity, how did you defeat the Awakened Tyrant when you were an Aspirant?”

Sunny tried to figure out a way to answer that in a way that would downplay his capabilities. However, when he realized that she basically knew much more about him than even he himself knew, he gave up.

”I bled a little on an altar, which caused me to accidentally wake up a dead god; the one who created death, to be specific.”

Herta stared at him in shock. He was surprised that the doll could display this much emotion.

”...I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised, considering the rank of your Aspect.”

”I also woke up another god after killing their blessed.”

Herta stared at him in disbelief for a moment, before smirking.

”Maybe you’ll be able to hold onto my interest for a long while...”

Despite the seemingly innocuous statement, Sunny was starting to fear for his life.

”I set it so that it will only use memories that take place in the real world. This time, you should be able to encounter an Aeon.”

With a nod, Sunny stepped in front of the Simulated Universe again.

***

Sunny now found himself... in the Herta Space Station?

He found himself surrounded by the Antimatter Legion, causing him to summon his sword. He didn’t have much trouble dispatching them, but it was a bit time consuming since he was alone.

Once he had cleared the area of them, he... found himself somewhere else.

’What?!’

Nothing felt right. He didn’t feel like Sunny. Instead, he was some amalgamation of identities, forged into one. His mind hurt. He could feel himself losing everything that made him Sunny.

’Am I... going insane?’

Sunny tried to affirm who he was to himself. He was the Shadow Slave, blessed by the god of shadows. He was the one who stole a fragment of War. He was the heir of Weaver’s forbidden lineage. Most of all, he was a cockroach. A rat. A mongrel. A weak creature who lives off of the lies and misery he brings unto others. All of this...

...Made up Lost From Light.

Sunny gasped, feeling his mind escaping the endless transfiguration brought upon it by the countless perspectives. Everything was extinguished from his mind, only leaving behind Sunny.

He saw an... entity. Something that he couldn’t truly comprehend with his mind. Yet, he was still able to grasp it. It took a shape that he himself could understand.

There was a murmur in the amber sky. It was dusk. Sunny looked up and found countless copper ore, amber and opal falling from the sky. This was a wondrous mineral rain. In the steam, the colossal thing stretched THEIR spine from the mantle with a sledgehammer gripped in THEIR broad palm. Sunny opened his eyes and realized that this was actually Qlipoth, the Aeon of Preservation!

Sunny didn’t know anything about Aeons, yet he was able to easily recognize the one before him. He instinctively felt that he was looking at that which should not be gazed upon.

There was a huge roar around THEM – this was a warning for him. Then, THEY disappeared before his eyes.

Sunny blinked, listening as Herta’s voice spoke. The next second, he was back in the fabricated space station, tumbling on the ground.

[Our calculations are correct. Qlipoth, the Aeon of Preservation, has really appeared.]

Herta’s voice suddenly sounded, and she let out an ambiguous giggle.

[The Aeon of Trailblaze, Akivili’s revival has attracted an old friend.]

Sunny stood up, walking through the halls of the space station. He asked Herta why he had to take the identity of an Aeon.

[What you saw was the simulated Aeon carefully cultivated by Ruan Mei and Screwllum. The simulated Aeons will ignore us just like the real ones, so I set your simulated identity as Akivili, Aeon of Trailblaze, to attract THEM.]

Herta clicked her tongue.

[Now it seems that my judgment is correct. Next time you run into the Aeons, try to get something out of THEM.]

Sunny nodded as he thought about the mysterious Aeons.

”Anything in particular?”

[Myths of the Aeons, anecdotes, love stories, the origin of the Universe... Anything will do! Just think of something!]

Herta seemed quite annoyed to Sunny. That was when her voice disappeared from his mind, leaving him alone in a gauntlet of enemies.

***

Sunny panted, taking a gulp from the Endless Spring. He took a few glances around, seeing that there aren’t any enemies detectable by sight or shadow sense. Exhausted, he fell onto the ground, spending some time in order to rest and regain Essence.

He had killed dozens of the Antimatter Legion — enough that he would have gotten a third core in the real world. Unfortunately, the part of the Simulated Universe that made the enemies become truly real wasn’t in use yet, so he couldn’t grow any stronger here.

There was a long silence, before Sunny suddenly heard a deep sigh from Herta.

[I was expecting THEM to appear. Never mind. I’ll switch off the Simulated Universe then. It’ll only take a second and you won’t feel a thing. Let’s chat back in reality.]

With a nod, Sunny stood up. However, he felt a disturbance within reality. Everything grew cold, like he was stuck in a frozen memory. He couldn’t move, he could hardly even think. All he knew was that he was being gazed upon...

[THEY... came!]

Sunny heard Herta’s stunned words.

[No, not THEM... It’s another Aeon! It’s...]

Her voice suddenly drifted off. He had a strange feeling about this, as if Herta’s words solidified and the whole Simulated Universe became somehow unreal.

Sunny saw a blurry figure made of mirror fragments, and THEIR facial features were repeatedly refracted by the prism to form a mystery. Countless memories sprang up before his eyes.

He saw Kafka. Her body was stretched, deformed, and rubbed together with the umbrella in her hand, turning into water droplets and falling at his feet.

’Kafka?’

The woman seemed familiar. So very familiar. And yet, Sunny couldn’t quite place who she was.

He found himself becoming a weeping Adlivun baby with an uncut umbilical cord. He remembered that there was a golden scar on his body, and golden blood flowing on the dying planet. He found himself dark-skinned and wearing a robe on the wasteland. He found that he was a swift shadow across the abyss, reaching out to catch a shooting star.

Then, THEIR voice suddenly came...

”The robe flutters and wraps around your dark skin, you laugh at exploration. The silk threads spin, overlap, and weave into oceanic words...”

Every word THEY said is connected to each other like a whisper. Before Sunny could say anything, THEY suddenly disappeared.

Just like with Qlipoth, the perspective in which he interacted with the Aeon was not his own. However, by reminding himself of his True Name, he was able to latch onto his identity.

[We did it!]

Sunny flinched as he heard Herta’s excited voice. Before he could say anything, she continued:

[That was Fuli. THEY thought you were the fallen Akivili, so THEY actively started a conversation with you. Fuli is valuable for our research because THEY have the memories of all beings and know almost as much about everything as Nous does! Come on out, Sunless, I want to upgrade the Simulated Universe. You need to stay in there even longer in the future!]

”Uh...wha—”

Before he could finish his question, Sunny felt his belly button being pulled and his entire body tumbled in a circle. The next moment, he was back in Herta’s office. As disoriented as he was, Sunny felt like he was about to pass out. Herta had her eyes glued to the screen of the console.

”Success! I have to tell this news to Stephen right away — Sunless, don’t just stand there. Go in and see if you can get a few more words out of them or something...”

She glanced at Sunny, then grimaced. He was sprawled on the floor foaming at the mouth. It was a miracle that he was still conscious.

”...Or not.”

***

Dismissing the Endless Spring, Sunny was finally coherent again. He was still in Herta’s office. The Saint in question was in the midst of informing him of some particular issues he has.

”When I analyzed your body earlier, I found that you have Narcolepsy. Basically, it means that you might fall asleep at random moments.”

Such a problem was quite concerning for Sunny. As an Awakened, he would go to the Dream Realm whenever he slept. This meant he always had to stay asleep for eight hours before he could leave again. This could be fixed by becoming a Master, as an Ascended would have the ability to enter or leave the Dream Realm manually, without the need to sleep.

”Obviously, that isn’t a good thing for you. The only cause I could locate is that the Stellaron isn’t reacting well with that strange lineage of yours; the one that makes your blood tenacious.”

While she was explaining this to him, she was writing down notes while using her Dormant Ability to scan him.

”Speaking of the Stellaron, your situation is unheard of. Keeping it inside you might be extremely dangerous... it might explode or create a Fragmentum at any moment.”

Sunny blinked.

”Fragmentum?”

”It’s the spread of a Stellaron’s influence. The space station is still affected by it in certain zones, but it won’t expand. I’d say it’s similar to the corruption, but it only shares a few similarities.”

Herta sighed, tossing the notes to the side.

”Anyways, we should talk about what would be best for you right now. Despite my original offer, I can’t keep you here at all times. The researchers might be in danger if something went wrong. Your best choice would be to go with the Astral Express, since you might be able to find a way to safely remove the Stellaron.”

Sunny didn’t want to explode, nor did he want to be even remotely similar to a horrendous Nightmare Creature. From the start, he had decided that going with the Express was the best decision. It would be the best path for his progression.

And if he was to be honest, the thought of seeing sights that he couldn’t even imagine in the outskirts was quite tempting.

Leaving Herta’s office, Sunny used his shadows to look around the master control zone. Once he had found who he was looking for, he walked in that direction.

Himeko came into view, noticing him as she was drinking from a cup of tea. Although he wondered where she had gotten it, Sunny noticed March and Dan Heng next to her. Approaching them, he informed them of his decision...

***

Sunny stood infront of the grand train. He wasn’t sure trains were supposed to be this large, but he wasn’t complaining. The others had already boarded the Astral Express, and were currently waiting on him. As he was about to step onto the train, he was interrupted by a... bunny with a hat?

”Hey, you over there looking dumbfounded. Yes, Pom-Pom’s talking to you.”

’Uh... is this for real?’

”Himeko told Pom-Pom about your situation. Now listen up, Pom-Pom will only say this once: Pom-Pom’s sure there have been lots of people telling you how special you are lately, but this is the Astral Express, and everyone on here has their secrets. Since you chose to board, you can abide by the rules. You’re not the only special one here. You’d best remember that!”

The bunny-like creature huffed.

”I’m Pom-Pom, the conductor. Just come find me if you have any trouble.”

Sunny wondered if the red outfit was supposed to be a conductor uniform. He’d never seen one, so he wasn’t sure. Anyways, there was something else that caught his ears.

”Why do you talk in the third-person perspective?”

The creature that called itself Pom-Pom tilted it’s head in a way that Sunny would admit is... cute.

”What do you mean? Pom-Pom always talks like this. I don’t see anything wrong with it.”

Sunny shook his head.

”It’s just... your name... I just can’t explain it. Don’t worry about it.”

Interestingly enough, he could avoid telling answering a question as long as he didn’t know how to convey it. As long as he tried to do so, the compulsion would loosen.

Patting the conductor’s long hat, much to it’s dismay, Sunny hopped onto the steps of the carriage. He found himself in a grand room, filled with red-cushioned couches, multiple tables, a floating device that he couldn’t decipher, and what seemed to be a music machine.

He looked around the carriage, only seeing Himeko and a brown-haired man with glasses. March and Dan Heng must have been doing something else.

Recognizing the brown-haired man as the one who had calmed the Stellaron inside him, he walked over to him, planning to introduce himself. It would be weird if he didn’t know the passengers he would be traveling with.

”Hello. You’re... Mr. Yang, right?”

The man turned towards him, seeming like he had just noticed him. However, despite his phenomenal capabilities when it came to sneaking around, he knew that better than to think that Welt couldn’t have sensed him. Adjusting his glasses, Welt replied with a welcoming smile and a nod.

Maybe Sunny was imagining things, but there seemed to be some recognition in his eyes.

”Oh, it’s you. How do you feel?”

Sunny blinked, thinking about how he should optimally answer that question. He didn’t know if Welt was referring to anything in particular, so maybe he should just state that he’s fine? It’s the truth, and it doesn’t draw any attention.

”I feel like what I feel like all the time.”

Sunny paused. That didn’t come out right. The random statement brought Sunny to a philosophical question. What does he feel like most of the time? Happiness? Sadness? Anger? Did he truly even understand the objective definitions of such concepts? Were there objective definitions in the first place? For all he knew, maybe happiness is a completely different sensation for each person, resulting in the same effect. What could be soothing for Sunny, might feel like agony for another!

Welt coughed, dragging Sunny out of the rabbit hole he dug himself in. Speaking of rabbits, what is Pom-Pom? And why exactly did he keep hearing Sunny-Bunny in the back of his mind?

...Maybe he wasn’t fine.

”...I’ll just assume that you’re fine. In any case, I have to thank you for saving March.”

Sunny scratched the back of his head, wondering what he could be referring to. Unfortunately, he drew a blank.

”I... don’t think I did anything of the sort?”

Welt shook his head, a knowing smile on his face.

”No need to be so modest. If it wasn’t for you, she might have not been able to survive the Doomsday Beast’s attack.”

’Oh.’

Now that he thought about it, he did end up in front of that final attack. However, it was definitely not on purpose. He simply fell right in front of the beam’s trajectory. That must have been why March thanked him earlier as well.

Well, if they wanted to believe he had performed a heroic deed, he wasn’t going to stop them.

”Anyways, as long as that Stellaron is in your body, you should be careful what you do. I don’t know if I’ll be able to suppress it again. There should be some time until the next warp jump, so feel free to walk around and familiarize yourself with the environment.”

And familiarize he did.

Sunny stared at the door in front of him. He raised a hand, getting ready to knock...

”Who is it?”

Dan Heng’s voice echoed from the other side of the door. Sunny froze his movement, staring at the door in disbelief. Was Dan Heng lying about his Aspect?!

That was Sunny’s job!

”I didn’t even knock yet!”

”I’ve gotten used to people coming in here unannounced — you can come in.”

Opening the sliding door — which scratched a certain part of Sunny’s brain — he stepped into Dan Heng’s room, expecting whatever a normal teenage boy would have in their room. Despite being a teenage boy himself, he wasn’t quite sure that this was what he should expect.

Maybe Sunny was the weird one?

On the left and right walls were a complex machine, that took up most of the wall’s space. The machine had plenty of slots? At least, that was the best way that Sunny could describe it. Between gaps of the machine were book shelves, that contained... books.

There was a small bed laying on the floor — the floor itself was made of glass, and seemed to have water below it. Right next to the bed was a pod; the ones Awakened use when they’re about to go to the Dream Realm for long periods of time, allowing for their real bodies to be taken care of while they’re asleep.

...Sunny wasn’t jealous.

Staring back at the bed, he wondered how it was possible to sleep on something that seemed so hard.

”It’s good for your back. A soft bed could hurt you.”

He must have had mind reading abilities!

”No, you just made it really obvious that you were thinking about my bed.”

Sunny stared at the bed.

”...If I had a bed like that, how much taller do you think I’d get?”

Dan Heng shrugged.

”It all comes down to genetics. Besides, you probably wouldn’t grow anymore after Awakening.”

Sunny stared at the ceiling in dismay. A tear streaked down his face, before he turned around and exited the room — closing the door behind him. He went to the next room, which had an influx of pink in it. However, before he took a peek, he walked back to Dan Heng’s room, opening the door again.

”Would you say that your room is typical for a teenage boy?”

”...I’d assume not?”

”Thanks.”

’I knew it! I’m not weird at all!’

Going back to March’s door, he took a quick peek inside, finding the room unoccupied. Out of curiosity, he stepped in. The influx of bright colors almost made him cover his eyes, but he persevered. To his left was a wall of photos, each of them completely unique from the other. Sunny assumed that these were taken on their previous journeys.

To his right was a desk littered with even more pictures. Next to it was March’s bed, which had pink sheets and a few stuffed animals. Next to the bed was another pod just like the one Dan Heng had. Of course, what really interested him was what was directly infront of him. Two things, to be precise.

There was what seemed to be a floating chair, one that had a stuffed bear seated in it. Sunny wondered if the bear knew how lucky it was to be in such a comfortable position, surrounded by all sides with pillows. He was jealous of the bear.

The second thing that caught his eye was the cushioned windowsill, that provided a view of the interior of the Herta Space Station. He guessed that in the vastness of space, the view would be quite amazing.

Just as he was about to exit the room, March barged in, acting like she owned the place.

On second thought...

”Ah!”

March stumbled back, not expecting him to be standing around in her room. Sunny nodded in her direction, having found a newfound respect for this room. Despite the bright colors.

”Hey March. Nice room you have here.”

”...You can’t just barge into someone else’s room without permission. Especially a lady’s!”

Sunny narrowed his eyes, looking her up and down. He looked at her like she had grown a second head.

”I don’t see any ladies around here. Aren’t they supposed to be pretty and refined?”

The room grew colder, causing Sunny to shiver slightly. Maybe he should watch his words more closely... he didn’t want to get hypothermia.

”...Anyways, I wanted to compliment the one who decorated this room; you wouldn’t happen to know them, right?”

March blinked, before smiling proudly to herself. The cold receded, causing Sunny to think that she might not be able to discern between empty and genuine praise.

”Yeah, everything here was all part of my flawless design!”

March’s smile disappeared, as if confused by something. She tilted her head in curiosity.

”Actually, I would have thought you would be more into something dark and broody. Like Dan Heng.”

Sunny frowned.

”Even though the colors are a bit too bright for my liking, it seems comfortable. I’ve never had a room before, so even this is pretty amazing.”

Although she seemed to have questions, she didn’t ask him any. March promptly kicked Sunny out of her room, saying that it was a bit messy and that he could see it later.

”It didn’t seem messy though?”

Sunny spoke to himself out loud in confusion. He didn’t bother checking Himeko and Welt’s rooms, mainly due to March’s words earlier. Although, he wondered when he would be able to get his own room.

Walking back to the parlor car, Sunny took a seat on the cushioned seats. He looked out the window, wondering where his life would ultimately end up taking him.

The probabilities of his life were in constant chaos, as he was [Fated]. Nothing was for certain, as only the most unlikely of scenarios would occur around him. One day, he might accidentally kill an Unholy Titan, just for another, stronger Unholy Titan to appear.

With a sigh, Sunny noticed Himeko approaching him with an embarrassed look on her face. Looking up at the Express’ navigator, he asked her what the issue was.

”Well... we don’t actually have a room prepared for you yet, so you’d have to stay with either Dan Heng or March. Or out here in the Parlor Car, if you’d prefer.”

Sunny deadpanned. It seemed that no matter what he did, his fate as a homeless bum wasn’t something that he could escape.

’At least I got promoted to roomless racoon. Wait, that doesn’t sound much better...’