Fate's Slave - Shadow Slave X Honkai Star Rail

Sunny did not even try to hide the way his gaze lingered.

It was not exaggerated, nor was it particularly subtle, but there was a certain deliberateness to it that made it impossible to mistake for anything accidental. He took his time, eyes tracing over every detail with the same meticulous attention he applied to combat, because if something existed, then it could be observed, understood, and appreciated regardless of context.

And Dan Heng, unfortunately for him, currently existed as something... noteworthy.

Sunny’s mind drifted, unbidden, toward the memory of the Second Nightmare, toward the vessel Dan Heng had taken within that fabricated illusion, and the faint sense of disappointment he had experienced upon returning to reality and realizing that the version of him that had lingered in Sunny’s thoughts had never actually existed.

That disappointment had been genuine.

It had also been deeply inconvenient.

Now, however, as he stood there and examined the current situation with a level of focus that bordered on inappropriate, Sunny found that the gap between expectation and reality had narrowed considerably.

The light pink lipstick contrasted just enough with Dan Heng’s natural features to draw attention without overwhelming them, the subtle sheen catching the ambient light in a way that made it difficult to ignore. The hair extensions, carefully matched to his original color, flowed seamlessly with the rest of his hair, adding length and volume that shifted his overall silhouette in a way that was... effective. The eyeliner, though minimal, sharpened his already defined eyes, giving them a clarity that felt almost intentional rather than decorative.

And then there was the matter of his chest.

Sunny’s gaze lingered there for a moment longer than necessary, not out of impropriety, but out of genuine curiosity regarding the logistics involved, because whatever March had done, it was convincing enough to pass at a glance while still maintaining a certain structural... inconsistency upon closer inspection.

It was, in its own way, impressive.

March noticed.

Of course she noticed.

Her camera lowered slowly, the rapid clicking coming to an abrupt halt as she sent Sunny a long, unimpressed look, one brow raising slightly as she assessed him with the kind of skepticism that suggested she was reconsidering several of her life choices.

”...You do know he’s still a guy, right?”

Sunny did not look away.

If anything, his focus sharpened, as though her comment had only solidified his stance rather than challenged it.

”It isn’t gay to appreciate another man’s beauty.”

The statement was delivered with complete seriousness.

Both March and Dan Heng stared at him.

There was a brief, almost painful silence.

Then March blinked, her expression shifting into something that hovered somewhere between disbelief and secondhand embarrassment.

”That’s not what I said.”

Sunny waved a hand dismissively, already turning away as though the conversation had lost all relevance the moment he had spoken, his attention shifting toward more pressing matters with the kind of ease that suggested he had not considered this interaction significant in the slightest.

Dan Heng remained where he stood, his posture rigid in a way that implied he was enduring this rather than participating in it, while March continued to stare at Sunny’s retreating figure with a look that suggested she was seriously considering whether or not she should be concerned.

Sunny, meanwhile, had already moved on.

As he walked, his thoughts briefly touched upon the earlier events, piecing together the likely outcome of their excursion with minimal effort. The fact that both Dan Heng and March were present, relatively unharmed and not currently being pursued by an angry mob or a contingent of lizard people, suggested that Bailu had been delivered without incident.

Dan Heng’s identity had remained concealed.

No accusations had been made.

No complications had arisen.

It had gone... smoothly.

Which, in itself, was somewhat surprising.

Still, there was a faint tension in Dan Heng’s expression that Sunny had not failed to notice, something subtle but present enough to indicate that the situation had not been entirely without consequence. He filed that observation away without pursuing it further, because whatever had occurred was unlikely to affect him directly, and he had more immediate concerns to address.

By the time he reached his room on the second floor of the party car, his focus had already shifted completely.

The door closed behind him with a quiet click.

Without hesitation, Sunny summoned the Covetous Coffer.

The chest manifested before him with its usual unsettling presence, the surface shifting slightly as rows of teeth revealed themselves in a slow, deliberate motion that resembled a grin far too wide to be considered natural. The interior space expanded beyond physical limitation, a void-like depth that held far more than its exterior suggested.

Sunny reached in.

His hand disappeared past the threshold, grasping at items that existed somewhere within that distorted storage space before emerging once more with the contents he required.

Shopping bags.

Five Transcendent Soul Shards.

The antlers of the Abundant Ebon Deer.

He placed them carefully, each item given its own space as he prepared for what came next, because this was not something he could afford to approach carelessly.

Up until now, his experience with crafting Memories had been... limited.

The Shadow Chair barely qualified as an accomplishment, considering that he had only applied Spellweave to an already existing object rather than constructing something entirely from scratch. It functioned, certainly, but its purpose was trivial, its complexity minimal compared to what he now intended to attempt.

A Transcendent Memory.

From nothing.

Sunny exhaled slowly, then raised a hand.

Shadow Manifestation responded instantly.

Darkness spread outward, forming walls that sealed off a section of the room with precise control, isolating his workspace from the rest of the environment. The shadows thickened, solidifying into structures that served specific purposes, an anvil taking shape with a density that could withstand immense force, a massive hammer forming beside it, its weight calibrated for crushing rather than finesse.

A table emerged next, its surface smooth and stable, designed for more delicate work.

He paused.

Then frowned slightly.

This would take too long.

The solution came immediately.

Two additional pairs of arms formed from shadow, extending from his back with fluid motion, their presence settling into place as though they had always been there. Six arms, each capable of independent movement, each responding to his will with perfect synchronization.

Now, he could begin.

The accessories remained in their bags for now, set aside until they were needed, while the fabrics and Soul Shards were arranged on the table in a manner that allowed for easy access. The antlers, heavy and dense with residual power, were placed upon the anvil, their presence alone enough to distort the air around them slightly.

Then, Sunny reached for something else, stuffing his hand back into the Covetous Coffer’s gaping maw.

The Golden Needle.

It could interact with Spellweave, manipulate it with precision that few tools could achieve, yet it lacked the Permanence that a proper Memory would provide.

That needed to change.

He selected one of the Transcendent Soul Shards.

The process began.

Threads of Essence extended from his fingers, weaving together in intricate patterns as he constructed the framework necessary to bind the needle into something more than it currently was. His extra arms moved in tandem, accelerating the process to a degree that would have been impossible otherwise, each motion deliberate, each connection formed with careful intent.

Time passed.

Ten minutes, perhaps more.

By the time he finished, the difference was clear.

The Golden Needle had changed.

No longer was it simply a tool.

It was a Memory.

Weaver’s Needle, was the name he decided to assign it.

Its structure stabilized, its existence anchored within his Soul Sea, capable of being summoned and dismissed at will while possessing a durability far beyond its previous state. The Spellweave that composed it was simple, intentionally so, designed solely to be a Memory, yet the use of a Transcendent Soul Shard ensured that its foundation was anything but fragile.

Sunny examined it briefly.

Then nodded.

That would be enough.

Turning his attention back to the materials before him, he allowed himself a single moment to prepare, his mind aligning with the task at hand as he considered the scale of what he was about to attempt.