1605-1606 eng

1605 Memory Boutique

The Silver Bell rang once more, and a new customer walked in. Sunny was idly wondering what they would order when he noticed who it was. A moment later, his eyes glistened with professional interest.

It was a young woman wearing light armor and a white cape... an Awakened. Her elegant beauty and golden hair were lovely, but her expression was cold and composed, creating an uninviting impression.

Sunny did not really care about what she looked like, though. The aloof Awakened was important because she was one of his clients, and had come to retrieve a Memory. More than that, she was a Legacy. Which meant a hefty commission and a great boost to the Brilliant Emporium's reputation.

Plus, she was a passing acquaintance from Sunny's former life. Even though they had only met a few times, hers was still a familiar face.

He smiled and bowed politely.

"Awakened Telle. Welcome."

The young woman glanced at him sternly and nodded.

"Master Sunless. I'll be leaving Bastion soon, so I wanted to check on your progress. It would be convenient if you procure a suitable Memory before I depart."

He couldn't help but widen his smile a little.

"It is good that you decided to pay the Brilliant Emporium a visit, my lady. In fact, I have just recently acquired something that might be of interest to you."

Sunny did not make a big secret of the fact that he could craft Memories, but he was hiding the extent of his abilities. So, for the more demanding commissions, he pretended to be a mere merchant. Very few people knew what he was really capable of.

For most, it seemed like he simply possessed a network of connections that allowed him to find and purchase suitable Memories in a timely fashion.

Sunny signaled Aiko to hold down the fort and invited Awakened Telle to follow him downstairs. Passing through an ornate wooden door, they

descended a set of stairs and entered the spacious basement of the Marvelous Mimic.

There, a large chamber was illuminated by the soft light of enchanted lanterns. The furnishing was luxurious, but tasteful, exuding elegance and class. Various Memories were displayed in glass cases that were attached to the walls, sharp steel glinting on dark velvet. No sound from the upper floor reached this silent place, creating a solemn atmosphere.

...In short, Sunny had nothing to do with designing how the Memory Boutique looked. It was all Aiko's work.

The petite girl possessed much more knowledge on how to actually sell Memories, both because she had been close to Stev, the caretaker of the Bright Castle's arsenal, and because she had run the actual operation of Sunny's Brilliant Emporium in the past. Plus, she was generally savvy when it came to business.

Aiko had explained her rationale well to make Sunny sign off on all these expensive furnishings.

There were much more Awakened now, but good Memories were still quite expensive. In that sense, they were much closer to luxury goods than to common tools. Therefore, a Memory shop had to cater to a luxurious clientele in order to seem reputable. The classier it looked, the more inclined affluent clients would feel about spending their coins here.

Although Aiko had complained that the Brilliant Emporium had only sold one Memory in the last two months, it was actually not that bad of a result. In fact, Sunny only had to sell a Memory once in a while to keep the business afloat... selling one every month, meanwhile, would be more than enough to turn a large profit.

Right now, the main problem he faced was not weaving Memories, but actually crafting them. Since Sunny did not want to reveal his secrets, he was reluctant to partner up with external specialists. Therefore, he did everything alone, playing the role of a blacksmith, jeweler, tanner, tailor, carpenter, and so on himself.

He was surprisingly good at it... well, actually, it was not very surprising.

Sunny had learned the basics of craftsmanship a long time ago. Every Awakened knew how to survive in the wilderness, which included maintaining their equipment, constructing shelter, sewing up wounds, and many other things. Additionally, he deepened his knowledge of all

kinds of crafting while learning to weave Memories.

That knowledge was then put to the test when he lost access to the Nightmare Spell and had to survive in the remote regions of the Dream Realm alone for three years.

Most importantly, though... Sunny was a weaver. His ability to craft weaves of essence strings made all other forms of craftsmanship seem accessible. He also had a golden touch due to consuming Weaver's phalanx.

Lastly, he was a Transcendent. His dexterity, physical coordination, and precision were unrivaled, his senses were vastly superior to those of mundane humans, and his mental acumen was far beyond the norm.

In short, Sunny had put a lot of effort into mastering his trade, and was confident that he would not lose to the famed forgemasters of Clan Valor when it came to the quality of his craftsmanship.

Although... he was somewhat envious of all the tools and resources they had access to.

Awakened Telle could not see it, but there was more than one chamber in the basement of the Marvelous Mimic. Sunny also had an expansive workshop hidden behind the boutique, containing everything he used to do work, from a forge and a kiln to a pottery wheel and a sewing machine. There was also a large storage room where various materials, mostly sourced from the carcasses of Nightmare Creatures, were kept.

It had not been easy to arrange a proper workshop in the basement of the Marvelous Mimic, let alone an opulent boutique. The interior of the Shadow was somewhat of a separate dimension, after all, and although Sunny had managed to alter the weave of the original Covetous Coffer to make it capable of containing living things, it wasn't really suited for it.

Above ground, the problem was easily solved by having the Marvelous Mimic manifest windows, which could let in air and light. Below ground, though, things were a bit tricky.

In the end, Sunny had to create enchanted lanterns for illumination and heat plates for warmth. The air, meanwhile, was supplied by inferior copies of the Quintessence Pearl placed strategically here in there. The Marvelous Mimic supplied the essence needed to keep these enchanted items working itself.

That arrangement had the side effect of turning the interior of the

Marvelous Mimic into an isolated environment that could sustain human life... or any kind of life, really... even if the Shadow was buried deep underground or fell to the bottom of the ocean. Even drowning in a volcano was not going to present much of a problem.

But that was beside the point. Sunny had no intentions of drowning in volcanoes any time soon. or better yet ever.

Walking to a rich mahogany display table, Sunny put on black woolen gloves and retrieved an elegant lacquered box, placing it down carefully.

Then, he opened the lid and smiled at Awakened Telle politely.

"Please, take a look."

Inside the box was a Memory that he had recently finished crafting.

1606 Belated Apology

Inside the lacquered box, an intricately engraved vambrace was laying on black silk. It was forged from a light silvery metal and decorated with a pattern resembling interlaid feathers. The vambrace emanated a feeling of restrained power, and just from a passing glance, one could tell that it was an extraordinary item.

Awakened Telle, however, seemed unimpressed.

Well... from what Sunny could remember, she always seemed that way. The young woman raised an eyebrow.

"Master Sunless. From what I remember, I commissioned you to procure a suit of armor."

He smiled.

"Your memory is stellar, my lady. But don't be concerned... this vambrace possesses a rare enchantment that allows it to unfold into a full plate of impregnable armor, just like what you wished to purchase. The process only takes a second, and consumes very little essence. While such a trait might bring a slight inconvenience in case of a sudden attack, it also makes this Memory uniquely adaptable."

Telle's eyes gleamed.

"...I assume that it can be used by a Saint?"

Sunny nodded.

"Indeed. It can accommodate any type of Transformed creature up to about fifty times the size of an average human. The speed with which the vambrace unfolds remains the same. Of course, the essence expenditure grows in proportion."

He continued to smile, but really, Sunny wanted to cry on the inside.

That was because it took him an incredible quantity of magical alloy to create the damned vambrace. The thing looked small, but he would have had to bankrupt the Brilliant Emporium in order to purchase the materials needed to forge it... if anyone would even sell them to him. In the end, he had been forced to track down and kill a dozen Corrupted Beasts with metallic carapaces to complete the commission.

Which meant that Sunny had not suffered a loss... but he could have sold all that Transcendent steel, instead!

His heart was bleeding.

In fact, he was even lamenting the cost of the expensive lacquered box with silk furbishing that Aiko had made him buy for the vambrace.

'But it is for a good cause.'

Sunny had to remind himself why he had put in extra effort to make sure that this Memory was particularly potent and durable.

Awakened Telle finally showed a hint of satisfaction. She studied the Memory for a few moments, then asked in a slightly warmer tone:

"You have conducted a thorough study of its other enchantments, of course. What are they? Oh, and what is its name?"

Sunny carefully picked up the vambrace and began the description:

"My lady, this Transcendent Memory of the Fourth Tier is called the Belated Apology. Apart from the unfolding enchantment, it also possesses three others. One vastly enhances its physical durability. The other grants the person wearing it greatly increased protection from elemental attacks. Finally, the third enchantment might interest you the most. It allows the master of the Memory to make it as light as a feather."

Unbelievably... a smile appeared on the young woman's stern face.

Well, of course it did. That set of enchantments was almost perfect for an armor-type Memory.

"That's perfect! That is exactly what my father needs!" Sunny hid a smile and put the vambrace back in the box. Then, he asked, pretending to do it only out of politeness: "Oh? And how is Saint Roan doing?"

...Indeed, the young woman in front of him was Lady Telle of the White Feather clan. She was the daughter of Saint Tyris and Master Roan... although the latter was also a Transcendent now.

Sunny had bumped into her a few times in the Sanctuary of Noctis, and later in Falcon Scott. To his shame, though, he had never known that the standoffish girl was actually the daughter of his benefactors, mostly because of how young her parents looked. Determining the age of Awakened was a messy affair.

It was only after coming to Bastion that Sunny realized his mistake. Telle smiled a little.

"He's doing well, apart from lacking a good Transcendent armor... and still being in the doghouse because of having challenged the Third Nightmare against mother's wishes..."

She fell silent abruptly.

"W—wait, why am I telling you this?"

The young woman looked at Sunny with wide eyes.

Then, strangely enough, she blushed a little and looked away.

"...Well, in any case, both of my parents are fine. They are awfully busy, of course."

Sunny was a bit perplexed by her reactions, but just shrugged mentally.

'Unsurprising.'

There were very few Legacy Clans being led by two Saints. The White Feather's prominence had risen greatly since their exile to Antarctica —and therefore, so had their duties. No one could discard them anymore.

Sunny smiled and lowered his head with respect.

"That is good to hear. I wish them all the best."

***

Young Lady Telle of White Feather ended up purchasing the Belated Apology and leaving the Brilliant Emporium in good spirits. Aiko was happily counting the money, as well.

And since Sunny knew that the Memory he had painstakingly created would serve Saint Roan well, he was in a good mood, too.

Not long after that, evening came. More customers visited the Brilliant Emporium to enjoy tea and snacks after a long day of work. The evening crowd receded, and the sun disappeared beyond the horizon. Moonlight and darkness enveloped the streets of Bastion, and the city slowly grew quieter.

Aiko left, leaving Sunny in the empty cottage.

He cleaned up the dining hall, and then went to the porch to breathe some fresh air.

Looking at the thriving city surrounding him, full of countless people... Sunny felt painfully alone.

Especially today, he couldn't help but feel it sharply.

Sunny remained on the porch for a while, watching the pale moon slowly move across the starlit sky.

Then, he sighed and went inside.

'I'll clean up the kitchen, then go to bed. Everything else can wait until tomorrow.'

This day had been strangely eventful.

He was busy washing the kitchen utensils when the Silver Bell suddenly rang again. Surprised at the appearance of a late customer, Sunny raised an eyebrow and walked into the dining hall.

"I'm sorry, but we are about to close..."

The words died on his lips.

Out there, in front of him, stood a delicate young woman in a seawave cloak. Her hair was like a cascade of pale gold, and her eyes... were hidden behind a strip of blue cloth.

Despite the blindfold hiding her eyes, the young woman's ethereal, otherworldly beauty was simply breathtaking.

She lingered for a moment, then turned her head in the direction of Sunny's voice.

"Oh... I am sorry. I'm afraid I'm a bit late, then."

Sunny remained silent, trying to overcome his shock. 'What... what is she doing here?'

He suppressed his emotions and put on the polite smile of a humble shopkeeper.

"No, no. It's no trouble. What did you want? I'll prepare it quickly."

The young woman tilted her head a little, then said hesitantly:

"My name is…"

He interrupted her, trying to put an appropriate amount of respect and reverence into his voice:

"I know who you are, Lady Song of the Fallen. Who in Bastion doesn't? I am Master Sunless, the owner of the Brilliant Emporium. It's an honor to meet you."

Cassie sighed, then nodded curtly. Eventually, she said:

"...I heard that you can procure rare Memories. Or make them."

Sunny froze for a moment.

'Ah.'

One of the Fire Keepers must have recommended him to her. And knowing Cassie, it must not have taken her long to discover that the owner of the Brilliant Emporium did not just sell Memories, but also crafted them.

But why would she come to him? All the enchanters of Clan Valor were at her disposal.

Sunny took a deep breath.

"Are you interested in commissioning a Memory, my lady?"

She nodded again.

"In a way."

He smiled. Now, he was in familiar territory.

"Great! I am sure that you won't be disappointed in my services. Just today, a member of the renowned White Feather clan purchased a Memory from our stock. They were extremely satisfied with its quality."

Cassie smiled, then shifted slightly as if looking around.

"That is good to hear. The Memory I want you to make must be of the highest quality."

She lingered for a few moments, then turned to him and added in a neutral tone:

"Oh, and by the way..."

Her smile wavered a little.

"...Happy Birthday."