Fate's Slave - Shadow Slave X Honkai Star Rail-Chapter 480: Marble Shell

Sunny did not react immediately to the appearance of the new Attribute, nor did he allow himself the luxury of a quick conclusion. Instead, he remained where he stood in the hollow stillness of the abandoned structure, his back resting lightly against fractured concrete as his gaze unfocused. The absence of the Mantle lingered in a way that felt almost physical, like a habit carved into muscle memory that refused to fade simply because its source had been erased. For a fleeting moment, he half-expected the familiar weight of onyx armor to settle over his shoulders again, summoned not by will or Essence, but by sheer stubborn refusal to be gone.

Nothing happened.

The silence remained intact, heavy and unyielding, and Sunny exhaled slowly through his nose as he shifted his attention inward. The lattice of runes responded at once, unfolding with precise indifference as his focus settled upon the newly acquired Attribute.

Attribute: [Marble Shell].

Attribute Description: [In the deep darkness of the Underworld, a prideful Daemon forged seven suits of splendid armor for his favorite creations. The intricate shells were both a boon and a test since only those worthy of his regard could unlock the mantle’s true potential and bear its weight.]

Sunny read the description once, then again, allowing each phrase to settle rather than skimming past it. His expression sharpened by degrees, subtle tension gathering at the edges of his gaze as the implications began to align.

A prideful Daemon.

Seven suits.

Favorite creations.

His thoughts did not need to wander far to complete the connection. Nether — the Daemon of Choice, or Destiny, depending on interpretation — had never been a creator of mere tools. He had shaped an entire lineage, a manufactured existence forged with intent rather than chance. That much had already been clear from fragments, from whispers, from half-remembered knowledge that refused to fully cohere.

Now, the outline sharpened.

Saint.

The memory did not arrive as a clean recollection but as a layered impression, pieces of a moment reconstructed through sensation rather than clarity. A lone figure clad in black, standing amidst devastation that should have erased her long before she reached that point. A battlefield filled with corpses that did not belong to her, creatures that should have consumed her without effort. Yet she had endured, not through superiority, but through refusal.

And then she had died by his hand.

Saint had not been exceptional among her kind. She had been the lowest tier of something far larger, a soldier left behind when stronger counterparts had already fallen. That realization settled into place with quiet inevitability, and Sunny tilted his head slightly as he stared at nothing in particular.

If she had been a foot soldier, then what existed above her in that hierarchy must have been... excessive.

Transcendents would have been common.

Supremes were not unlikely.

And if one allowed the scale to extend further, then the possibility of Sacred-ranked entities existing within Nether’s forces no longer felt absurd.

An army composed of such beings would not merely challenge the Gods.

It would force them into conflict.

Sunny exhaled slowly, the sound soft and measured, before allowing his attention to return to the Attribute.

His gaze moved downward, and additional information unfolded with quiet precision.

Attribute Traits: [Living Stone], [Feather of Truth], [Stalwart], [Underworld Armament], [Mantle], [Shell], [Bound].

He stared at the list for several seconds, letting recognition settle into place. Then, gradually, a dry chuckle escaped him, the sound muted by the stillness of the ruined building.

From the depths of his Soul Sea, a familiar voice stirred.

[...You seem relieved, Benefactor.]

Sunny did not flinch, nor did he outwardly react, as the presence of Tingyun threaded through his awareness. Their connection was no longer something he consciously acknowledged each time it made itself known. He could see her as clearly as if she stood before him, could hear her voice with the same clarity, and she, in turn, perceived him just as thoroughly. All he had to do was summon her into his Soul Sea, and transmit his thoughts through the connection he had with his Shadows.

Which explained the Puppeteer’s Shroud. Though, she did say she disliked its appearance.

He would need to address that eventually. Who said he wasn’t an accomadating host?

Sunny exhaled quietly, responding through the silent channel that bound them.

’Something like that.’

The first four were familiar. They had existed within the Mantle, externalized as enchantments, but now they were something else entirely. They were no longer separate constructs that required invocation through an object. They were integrated, embedded within his being in a way that blurred the line between tool and self.

His attention settled on [Stalwart] first, noting the subtle but significant shift. The protections against physical and elemental damage remained unchanged, but the resistance to soul and mind-based attacks had increased from moderate to high.

That alone justified the transformation.

Such forms of damage were notoriously difficult to mitigate, often bypassing conventional defenses entirely. Having that resistance ingrained directly into his existence rather than reliant on equipment was not a minor advantage.

It was a fundamental improvement.

The remaining Traits required Essence, as expected, but the method of application had changed. Instead of channeling power into an external construct, he directed it inward, into his own body.

The sensation was unfamiliar, but not unpleasant.

It felt... natural, in an unsettling way, as though this had always been a latent function waiting to be unlocked.

His gaze shifted downward to the final three Traits. [Mantle] [Shell], and [Bound].

The [Shell] was the passive state.

Sunny glanced down at himself, then dismissed the outer layers of his clothing without hesitation. Fabric dissolved into nothingness, leaving him bare-chested in the dim light of the ruined building, though he made no effort to remove the rest.

There were boundaries he preferred not to cross, even in solitude.

His skin had changed.

The difference was subtle at first glance, but unmistakable upon closer inspection. It was smoother, almost unnaturally so, and carried a faint gray undertone that gave it the appearance of something carved rather than grown.

He pressed a finger into his arm.

At first, the flesh yielded as expected, soft and responsive. Then, as pressure increased, resistance formed abruptly, the texture shifting into something far more rigid.

Marble.

Not literal stone, but close enough that the distinction felt academic.

Tingyun’s laughter echoed faintly within his mind.

[It seems that you’ll have a hard time finding women willing to hit a statue.]

Sunny’s expression flattened slightly.

He drew his arm back and struck his own jaw, commanding the Shell to become weaker. The impact landed cleanly, pain blooming in a familiar, manageable way as his head tilted slightly.

A bruise formed.

His lips curved faintly.

’You were saying?’

Tingyun did not respond.

A flicker of Essence activated [Living Stone], and the damage receded, flesh restoring itself with quiet efficiency. He noted immediately that the effect was surface-level, not extending to deeper injuries, but it was sufficient for what it was.

Next came [Feather of Truth].

The shift was immediate.

Weight crashed down upon him, compressing his stance as the ground beneath his feet strained under the sudden increase. Then, just as abruptly, the sensation reversed, and he felt himself become light enough that gravity seemed almost optional.

He bent his knees and pushed off.

Too much force.

The ceiling rushed toward him, distance collapsing as he shot upward, colliding with the underside of the Overworld’s foundation. The impact was dulled by his reduced weight, and he descended moments later, landing without difficulty.

A quiet breath escaped him.

’Adjustment will be required.’

He experimented briefly, shifting between extremes, allowing his body to adapt. Control came quickly, guided by instinct rather than conscious effort.

One moment, he leaped dozens of meters into the air. The next, his arm was so heavy that he physically couldn’t move it.

Both states were equally accessible.

His attention turned to [Underworld Armament], and understanding followed naturally. The effect remained the same in principle, but the application had changed.

There was no separation now.

The Shell was him.

Which meant any enchantment applied to the armor extended to him as well. The same could probably be said for his shadow augmentations.

Sunny stilled, gaze dropping. The Silent Mist remained.

For a moment, he simply stared, the realization settling in with quiet clarity.

The Marble Shell existed beneath armor Memories, bypassing one of the Spell’s restrictions. One cannot wear two armor Memories or two garment Memories at a time. Only one of both. Now, though, his skin has effectively become a second armor.

’I can layer them.’

The grin that followed was slow, deliberate, and entirely unrestrained.

His attention shifted to [Mantle], understanding its function without immediate testing. It was the active form, manifesting the armor externally without Essence cost, though it required the dismissal of any existing armor.

A limitation, but not a severe one.

Finally, there was [Bound].

The meaning was clear, considering his Master held the same Trait on their armor.

The Marble Shell would scale with him, tied directly to his Rank and Class, growing as he did. It was a permanent construct, not something that could be lost or destroyed through conventional means.

At the thought of AR-26710, Sunny’s expression shifted subtly.

The connection remained.

Faint, distant, but persistent.

He did not remember them clearly.

But the impulse remained.

He wanted to find them, just as greatly as he wanted to find his ’sunset’, whatever that meant in actuality. To keep them with him until the very end. It was a force that drove him despite his lack of understanding, one he didn’t know if he trusted.

He wanted to kill them. He wanted to reclaim his freedom, to keep his chains to himself. The more rational side of him wanted to terminate the threat of AR-26710’s existence, or perhaps run and hide, hoping that he wouldn’t encounter them. Impossible, considering Fate.

Those two urges were in conflict with each other. In the end, he just had to wait and see what he’d do when the inevitable day came.

His gaze turned inward once more, settling on the final change to his list of Attributes.

The Attribute that had replaced [Pathstrider].

[Deviant].