Smile

"Riiip!" The Mother Spider screeched, flailing her eight legs and stabbing wildly in every direction.

But Shen Yu had already dodged with a Backstep, slipping into the tunnel in a flash.

An ordinary person, or even Shen Yu before this, would have suffered an immediate mental breakdown and fallen into panic at the mere sight of her.

But after attuning with Hornet, Shen Yu had gained another ability unrelated to combat or movement:

[Hornet's Protection]: The child of three queens shall protect your mind, keeping it from being torn apart by the light of madness.

Judging by how he had encountered the Mother Spider twice without panicking, what that description meant in Lobotomy Corporation was immunity to the panic caused by an Abnormality's fear level.

Praise our lovely Miss Hornet. Shen Yu chuckled, looking around at the violently shaking, writhing cave.

Sure enough, disrupting the main entity's mind also destabilized this space.

Then the enraged Mother Spider regained her sight and pursued Shen Yu. Hearing the restless noises behind him, he unconsciously quickened his pace.

Since the other three employees did not have his [Hornet's Protection], they would probably panic the moment they saw the Mother Spider. It was better to leave them somewhere safe.

Amid hissing and crackling noises, the surrounding Spider Silk gradually pulled taut. Small spiders crawled along the webs, blocking the lower part of the cave ahead, while the Mother Spider came into view behind him.

"Your encirclement needs work." Shen Yu chuckled and leaped into the air, using Aerial Thrust to pass through the upper part of the cave. Turning around, he switched his flashlight on again, aiming it at the Mother Spider, who had only just recovered.

As dazzling light flooded her vision again, the Mother Spider opened her mouth and stood frozen in place. She desperately wanted to close her eyes, but spiders had no eyelids.

Then the entire space began shaking again.

When the Mother Spider recovered her vision for the third time and charged into an open cavern, she found the human standing quietly ahead. His mouthparts opened and closed, producing sounds:

"Have you ever seen a move that descends from the heavens..."

Before he finished, a thunderous roar came from above. A dazzling streak of pale light plunged down and struck the Mother Spider's head with a bang!

The powerful impact forced the Mother Spider's enormous body down, bending all eight legs at once. Before she could rise, a mass of void bored into her body, dissolving everything around it.

Then a tiny figure jumped away, landing in front of Shen Yu.

The Mother Spider pushed herself upright. A hollow opening had melted through her back, and countless crimson eyes swiveled to stare at the rag doll-like being before her.

Then a bright light shone for the fourth time, directly into the Mother Spider's eyes.

While the Mother Spider screeched, Shen Yu found a rock to sit on and concentrated, directing the Little Knight to sit on his shoulder. He removed Dream Wielder, the Charm radiating dreamlike golden light, and replaced it with a brown Charm covered in spiraling patterns, resembling a snail shell.

As in other games, the enhancement items known as Charms in Hollow Knight had a maximum capacity of eleven points. Different Charms occupied different numbers of points.

Dream Wielder cost one point, while the snail shell in the Little Knight's hands-the Shaman Stone-cost three.

So when Shen Yu tried to have the Little Knight equip it, purple patterns erupted and knocked the Charm away.

But Shen Yu pressed it into place again, only for the purple patterns to repel it once more. On the fifth attempt, the purple patterns shattered like glass with a clatter, and the Shaman Stone was successfully equipped.

All the Charms began trembling, however, enveloped in purple light.

Overcharmed: The Little Knight takes double damage.

"I didn't expect this to reset here." Shen Yu sighed in wonder. Double damage? Then I'll just have to avoid getting hit.

Next, Shen Yu directed the Little Knight to jump off him and unleash Shade Soul at the Mother Spider.

As void enveloped the Little Knight, ancient markings burst from the spirals of the Shaman Stone on its chest, instantly doubling the size of the shadow it spat out.-Shaman Stone: spell enhancement.

When the Mother Spider finally recovered her sight, she saw a huge shadow with pale eyes hurtling toward her, melting one of her legs.

Then the rag doll rushed straight at her, weaving left and right to avoid her legs while pale motes gathered around its Nail.

The moment the Little Knight slipped beneath the spider, it used Cyclone Slash, becoming a whirling blade that sliced through her legs. The instant Cyclone Slash ended, it followed up with Abyss Shriek.

Enhanced by the Shaman Stone, countless enormous black-and-white ghosts erupted, engulfing half the Mother Spider's body.

But to Shen Yu's surprise, countless little spiders crawled out of the cocoons overhead. They landed and burrowed into the Mother Spider's wounds, healing their mother.

"Ugh, what a pain. I'll have to do it again." Shen Yu sighed at the swarm of spiders, returning part of his attention to his own body. He transformed the Scythe in his hand back into a book and spoke in a hoarse voice:

"Little spiders, it's time for your bedtime story."

As he chanted the kindly yet eerie words, black dust drifted through the cave again, dissolving the little spiders below.

The Mother Spider screeched and lunged forward to kill Shen Yu, but the Little Knight fired a Shade Soul, severing a descending leg. Her body lurched violently, tipping over onto the ground.

At Shen Yu's command, the Little Knight immediately used Cyclone Slash to sever another joint. After drawing in enough soul, it Dashed directly beneath her and unleashed Abyss Shriek.

With all the nearby Spiderlings killed by Shen Yu's story, the Mother Spider could no longer heal. She could only switch her target to the Little Knight, attacking repeatedly with her remaining legs.

But the Little Knight evaded her attacks effortlessly, changing direction with downward slashes and slipping easily through the gaps, drawing in soul and casting spells.

Sensing her life nearing its end, the Mother Spider decided to raise her fear level to its maximum. All her eyes released a chilling, bloody light at once, weaving an illusion that devoured life as a terrifying aura swept outward.

Shen Yu: [Hornet's Protection]

Little Knight: No mind to think.

Shen Yu looked at her illusion-like eyes, considered briefly, then said, "Oh." He transformed his E.G.O. into a flashlight again and shone its powerful beam into her eyes.

Mother Spider: Despair-lost 60% of her nonexistent Sanity.

"Um, shouldn't we go help him?" Ayla asked, looking at the two men ahead.

"Heh." The middle-aged Jonah shook his head. "You saw what happened earlier. We'd only get in his way."

"Oh, I'll shleep a bit firsht," said the yellow-haired Sam, covering his face as he lay down to one side.

How humiliating. I was actually slapping myself and laughing. If only there were a hole I could crawl into.

Still, he had no intention of quitting Brain Coffee Peptide. After all, it was his only pleasure in this hellish life. Only in his hallucinations could he go home, back to the home where his family lived.

Then exhaustion and sleepiness washed over him. A ramshackle house appeared in his mind, and he once again heard his mother softly humming that old nursery rhyme, familiar yet strange.

Heh. At least dying peacefully wouldn't be so bad.

A violent rumble instantly shattered Sam's sweet dream. He rolled upright and opened his mouth to curse:

"I just wanted to fucking die in peash..."

But he only got halfway through before the remaining words froze in his mouth.

The center of the entire space had been torn open, and countless pitch-black void tendrils emerged from the deep fissure.

Those tendrils ripped the space into fragments as easily as tearing paper. The fragments gradually melted and flowed forward, gathering in one spot.

And at the very center, the forbidden being devouring the entire space was actually a cute rag doll.

Then the whole space collapsed, and endless darkness enveloped them.

"Holy shit!" Sam stood up in shock. After looking around, he realized he was inside the Containment Room. The Mother Spider and all her Spiderlings had vanished, leaving only a few strands of Spider Silk drifting in the air.

"I'm out?" Then that means... He turned to Shen Yu. This man had defeated the Mother Spider, who could drive him insane with a single glance!

At the same time, he noticed that Shen Yu was holding the being that had devoured the entire space.

"Um, Mr. Shen Yu." Ayla looked at him cautiously. "Could you tell us what just happened? And... that little one you're holding, that being... what exactly is it?"

"Ahem." Shen Yu covered his mouth and repeated the story he had used to fool Harvey.

"What?" The yellow-haired man widened his eyes and pointed at the Little Knight.

"You're saying that cold-blooded Manager injected himself with Cogito to extract this little one and suppress the Abnormalities, all to protect us?"

"Yes." Shen Yu nodded. "The Manager was also the one who ordered me to rescue you. However, this goes against company regulations, so I hope you'll keep it secret."

"Otherwise," Shen Yu chuckled, "you'll be disposed of too. All right, go get some rest."

"Understood." The three nodded and left the Containment Room one after another, while the yellow-haired man clutched his head and muttered, "Unbelievable."

Once they had left, Shen Yu had the Little Knight spit out part of [Spider Nest]'s essence. With his Attunement Rate now raised to 60%, he "molded" [Spider Nest] back into existence.

Then Shen Yu grasped [Spider Nest]'s core and began forming an idea. The core writhed, transforming into a pair of gloves covered in countless crimson eyes.

E.G.O.: Red Eyes

Template: Other Attribute: Physical

Attack power: 1-2 Speed: Fast Attack range: Long

E.G.O. budding: Equipment template/customizable appearance.

E.G.O. manifestation:

[Red Eyes]: The wielder releases fear through the eyes. The fear level depends on the wielder's tier of existence and degree of inhumanity. Cost: Extreme sensitivity to light while active.

[Spiderling]: Generates four [T-02-43-1] Spiderlings around the wielder to assist in combat. Cost: Loses an equivalent amount of flesh and blood.

E.G.O. release

Initial release: Unlocked at 80% Attunement Rate.

Shen Yu put on the gloves. A strand of Spider Silk shot from his palm, dancing according to his will.

At the same time, the Godtuner vibrated, and information entered his mind.

"Silk Thread" acquired.

[Thread Dance] (Beginner) unlocked: Transforms silk threads into sharp blades (silk thread damage +5), slicing surrounding objects (each silk thread deals damage 5 times within 2 seconds). Also grants control over silk threads (currently 2).

[Needle Throw] (Beginner) unlocked: Wraps silk threads around a weapon to control its attacks.

Shen Yu chuckled at the information, glanced at the frightened spider above, and walked out of the Containment Room. "Take me to the Intelligence Department's Rest Room," he told Harvey.

The Mother Spider watched his departing back. A cloudy "tear" fell with a patter, followed by a second and a third. The droplets spread across the floor, reflecting countless human thoughts before sinking into the ground.

At the same time, barely perceptible strands of silk emerged from the gloves and flowed along Shen Yu's blood vessels, adding another layer of cobwebs to that dust-covered heart.

After reaching the Rest Room, Shen Yu found a reclining chair and lay down, reconnecting his thoughts to the light Doppelganger in the office.

Then he saw an unforgettable smile.