Yevenko sat on the couch in the viewing car, his dark eyes reflecting the brilliant, dazzling galaxy sprawled out across the cosmos.
He turned to glance around him — the scene that unfolded before his eyes was both familiar and strangely foreign.
There was no doubt: this was the Astral Express.
But… something was off.
Because—Himeko, March 7th, Dan Heng, Welt… even Pom-Pom—none of them were here.
Here, there was only him.
By all rights, there should've been at least two crew members onboard the Astral Express. A situation like this shouldn't be possible.
As for how he got here?
The reason was actually pretty simple. Back in his own world, he'd always been the ultimate non-lucky king—a true "African chieftain" in gacha slang. Yet somehow, during one of his ten-pulls, not only did he hit pity without any off-banners, he got a double five-star — two copies of Feixiao in one go. The excitement had overwhelmed him. The next thing he knew, everything went black—and then he woke up here.
Thinking back on it now, Yevenko couldn't help but sigh.
"They say Europeans must die, but I'm not even European! I just got lucky once, and now I'm dead?"
"Damn it, I spent months saving up those special passes and didn't even use them all. At least let me finish my pulls before I die!"
Still…
It wasn't all bad news.
The good news? It seemed like he was actually inside Honkai: Star Rail now.
The bad news? The only part of Star Rail he had access to… was the Astral Express.
He really wanted to play Feixiao. He'd just drawn her, after all—so why couldn't she be here with him on this Astral Express?
Yevenko pressed his lips into a thin line and downed the coffee on the table in one go.
Thankfully, there was plenty of food and water stocked here. Otherwise, he might've starved to death on this train.
Still, it had already been several days. The sheer loneliness of being the only person here was starting to gnaw at his sanity.
If there were at least something to pass the time, he could manage. But there was absolutely nothing.
Drifting endlessly through the cosmos on the Astral Express, unable to talk to another soul—and with all the unpredictable dangers in the universe, like interdimensional bugs or the Antimatter Legion—he honestly wondered if dying now might be the better option.
A hollow look crept into his eyes.
Almost as if possessed, he found himself walking toward the door of the viewing car. If he jumped, he'd pay tribute to Kars and stop thinking—forever.
Only… unlike Kars, he wasn't some immortal being. He was just a regular guy. If he jumped, he'd actually die.
Yevenko paused in front of the door, hesitation flickering in his eyes.
Was he really going to throw away this second life so easily?
Besides, he'd heard that dying from suffocation was excruciating.
Just then, four pop-up windows squeezed out from the narrow slit in the door—looking exactly like the UI from the Star Rail game.
[Bound: Yevenko]
———[Open Door]
———[Warp]
———[Gacha Draw]
Seeing this, Yevenko's eyes went wide. His mouth opened, slowly at first, then wider and wider, until a classic curse burst from his lips.
"HOLY FUCK!!!!!!"
"So all the train's functions are here by the door?! Good thing I didn't try to throw myself out… Not that I could've broken the window with my noodle arms anyway."
He muttered under his breath, but the weight crushing his chest finally lifted.
To be honest, as an ordinary person dropped into the world of the Astral Express, survival seemed like a long shot. Sure, back in his own world, he was what you'd call a shitposter — someone who lived for memes, chaos, and internet absurdity.
He loved collecting funny stories, sharing them online, sometimes even posting satire in a deadpan tone.
But now, with his feeble real-world physique, there wasn't much room for "fun" aboard the Astral Express.
Maybe… maybe he could follow the Path of Erudition, and become a trailblazer that way?
Yevenko shook his head, brushing away the tangled mess of thoughts.
To hell with the Paths. Whether it's Erudition or something else—
Right now, what matters most…
"I've got a cheat now!"
"Gacha first! I'm pulling everything I've got!!"
Whatever he could summon, he'd summon. This was his key to survival in Star Rail.
As for warping?
That could wait until after the gacha. Even if he ended up warping to the safest corner of the universe, without any power, he'd just be a plump, juicy sheep in the eyes of others. And no one would know the train had already bound itself to him.
At that moment, Yevenko was single-mindedly focused on one thing: pulling.
With a silent chant in his heart, the gacha button on the display shimmered faintly.
Information filled his mind: details about the draw system, and the number of special passes he had.
[Star Rail Special Passes: 61]
Yevenko blinked.
Isn't that exactly how many passes I had left after pulling Feixiao?
Damn it, if I'd known I was gonna transmigrate, I wouldn't have pulled her at all. I'd have saved them for after I arrived.
Back in his original world, pulling was just for fun. Here? Pulling was a matter of life and death.
Sixty pulls, and not even one guaranteed five-star. If he didn't land a powerful enough ally, wasn't he basically doomed?
From what he'd just absorbed, ten-pulls generally yielded common or slightly better items. Only pity rolls would net powerful characters or gear.
Of course, any single draw could be a pity — the mechanism was pretty much identical to the game's.
Still, Yevenko, as a certified non-lucky king, had every reason to distrust his luck. He was confident in how bad it was.
But there were no alternatives now.
I'm not even hoping for a hot and overpowered girl anymore...
Just give me someone strong!
Come on, GIVE ME SOMETHING!!!
Whoosh—
Blue light flickered through the gap in the train doors. After the ten-pull animation, ten bottles of milk appeared at his feet.
[Milk: Why are you reading my description? I'm just regular milk. Just like you — ordinary.]
"Keep going!!" he shouted.
Again, the blue light flashed. Snacks piled up around him. Then some playing cards. Some entertainment items.
...
...
...
[Star Rail Special Passes: 1]
Yevenko: "…"
His hand trembled slightly as he retrieved the final pass. Gritting his teeth, he jammed it into the door slot.
Single pulls birth miracles!
Forget the hot girls, please, just let it be a person!
It was as if the universe had heard his prayer.
In the blink of an eye, golden light burst from the train doors, blinding and resplendent.
Yevenko's eyes gleamed with hope. He stared unblinking at the golden light.
A small silhouette took form inside it, stepping out—
It was a blue-gray cat, about a meter tall, standing upright on two legs. On its right shoulder rested a wooden stick, one end held in its paw, the other tied to a small brown bundle.
Its face was worn with fatigue. Its body was scrawny, cheeks sunken in, tail dragging limply behind it—it looked like it had journeyed a long, hard road.
Then it saw the snacks.
Its eyes popped like springs from their sockets, tongue lolling out as a strand of drool splashed to the floor.
It slurped the drool back, gave its head a little shake, and snapped its gaze toward Yevenko, who was surrounded by snacks.
Its whole expression brightened. The exhaustion vanished from its face, and its cheeks plumped back to normal. It chucked its bundle aside and charged at Yevenko in a blur, legs spinning like a whirlwind.
Its paws latched onto his left leg, and it started kissing—from the top of his foot, working upward.
And Yevenko?
He was still in shock.
Not only had he not summoned a pretty girl—
He hadn't even summoned a person.
It was a cat.
But not just any cat. One he recognized immediately.
In fact, one practically everyone back in his world would recognize.
"…Tom," Yevenko murmured.