Shen Yu chuckled as he looked toward the Abnormality in the corner.
She wore a tattered crimson cloak covered in scorch marks and bloodstains. Countless patches and seams obscured what it had originally looked like.
Black light armor covered her body, and a terrifying mask painted with sharp fangs concealed her mouth. At her waist hung a Meat Cleaver encrusted with layers of dried blood, gleaming coldly alongside the Hand Cannon on the opposite side. (Image)
She leaned back against the wall, her cloak stirring faintly in the air, the thick aura of blood mingling with murderous intent.
At Shen Yu's words, she opened her yellow eye. Its blood-red pupil swept over him, and a rattling laugh emerged from behind her fanged mask.
"Interesting. You're the first person who's wanted to formally recruit me. But I'm afraid you can't afford my price."
"Don't worry. I'm quite confident about that," Shen Yu replied. Lobotomy Corporation was one of the Wings of the World, after all. Surely it could afford to hire a mercenary.
"Straight to business." Little Red Riding Hood chuckled and slowly held up two fingers.
"200 PE-BOX a day?" Shen Yu held his chin thoughtfully. That was pretty cheap.
"No. 2,000."
Sorry, can't do it, Shen Yu immediately answered inwardly.
2,000? Are you kidding me? Even in the late stages, with all of Lobotomy Corporation unlocked, that's about the maximum daily energy output. If I agree, Angela will send me straight back into the furnace.
Shen Yu composed himself, cleared his throat a few times, and tried to haggle.
"Could you lower it a little?"
"Lower it?" Little Red Riding Hood snorted. "I've already given you a discount. In the past, hiring me would have cost even more."
In your dreams, Shen Yu scoffed inwardly. 2,000 PE-BOX? Even the Wings of the World would have to think twice. Who do you think you are, the Red Mist? Wait, she's very interested in the Wolf. Maybe I can use that.
Shen Yu took a few steps back and said:
"What if I told you I knew about that treacherous... Wolf?"
Suddenly, Little Knight broke free of Shen Yu's arms, drew the Nail from his back, and slashed a pale streak of light through the air.
At the same moment, unprecedented madness and impulsiveness erupted in Little Red Riding Hood's eye. She roared like a wild beast and lunged at Shen Yu.
Clang! Little Knight drove her back with one strike, then landed on the floor. The Nail in his hand, engraved with intricate patterns, hummed as he looked up at the Abnormality before him.
Little Red Riding Hood's hand trembled slightly around her Meat Cleaver. Rapid, savage breaths came from behind her mask, her body creaked, and her crimson cloak billowed. The blood-red pupil within her yellow eye locked onto Shen Yu as she ground out each word:
"Where is that damned bastard? Tell me, or I'll slaughter you right now!"
"Somewhere far away. Without my help, you'll never find him." Shen Yu curled his lips into a smile and told her:
"But information this important doesn't come free."
"Fine." Little Red Riding Hood grunted, glanced at the notch in her Meat Cleaver, and put her weapons away. She folded her arms and looked at Shen Yu.
"What do you want?"
"First, you have to join my company. As for your pay, 200 PE-BOX per time cycle."
"200? Are you making a fool of me?"
"Tsk, tsk." Shen Yu spread his hands helplessly. "You can't even beat the kid in my arms. How much do you expect? Let me tell you, times have changed. Who besides me would hire an old relic like you?"
"You doubt my strength?" Little Red Riding Hood straightened up, drew her weapons from her waist again, and tilted her head at him.
"Do you believe I could cut your head off right now?"
Though she had not seen the outside world in a long time, she still had absolute confidence in her strength.
"No." Shen Yu shook his head and pointed at Little Knight before him.
"If you can block his attacks, I'll reconsider your pay."
"Heh. Your young beast may be quite unusual, but he's still just a cub. The enormous gap in stamina and combat experience isn't something..."
The instant Little Red Riding Hood spoke, void engulfed Little Knight's body, and he unleashed Shade Soul.
Little Red Riding Hood's expression sharpened at once. She immediately swung her Meat Cleaver to intercept it, but the shadow swallowed the blade and tore a hole through her chest without losing any of its force.
Little Red Riding Hood roared and swung her broken blade at him, only for Little Knight to knock it aside with his Nail.
But Little Red Riding Hood immediately raised her left hand, firing her Hand Cannon at Little Knight's head.
But Little Knight turned into a mass of shadow, dodged the bullet, and passed straight through her. He turned and slashed his Nail into Little Red Riding Hood's right knee, severing the joint.
Even with Little Red Riding Hood's constitution, her body lurched to one side. Little Knight seized the opening to unleash Abyss Shriek.
Though Little Red Riding Hood dodged in time, the wall blocked her path, and the suppressor in the Containment Room restricted her. Abyss Ghost still dissolved her right arm.
Little Red Riding Hood pressed her back against the wall, gripping the Flintlock in her left hand as she stared at the child-sized Little Knight before her.
What kind of creature's young is this? Those black attacks can't be blocked? And I clearly hit him just now. Why is he completely unharmed?
Out of the corner of her eye, Little Red Riding Hood saw Shen Yu leaning against the wall with his eyes closed, seemingly resting. In reality, he had entered Third-Person Perspective and was directing Little Knight.
No wonder this guy is so confident and offered a measly 200. If even his young beast is this strong, what must his own power and proper armament be like?
Little Red Riding Hood returned the Flintlock to her waist, reached her left hand into the hole in her chest, and scratched her back.
Looks like I really am old. I can't even beat a young beast.
"I lost. We'll do it your way. But you have to tell me where that bastard is."
Little Red Riding Hood sighed and closed her eye as she leaned against the wall. Blood-colored liquid flowed from her wounds, repairing the hole and her severed arm.
Hearing this, Shen Yu withdrew his consciousness and looked at Little Red Riding Hood as she recovered.
Just like when he had suppressed Spider Bud last time, Abnormalities could repair themselves.
As for Old Lady, he had probably beaten her up first and then smashed open her mental space, so the damage she sustained afterward had far exceeded her recovery. He had also been a little agitated at the time and had missed the details.
"Very good. Now let's discuss the details of your work." Shen Yu set those thoughts aside and began explaining the specifics to Little Red Riding Hood.
"First, I just discovered that you have a serious psychological condition, so you must receive treatment. The treatment fee is 50 PE-BOX, which will be deducted from your pay.
"During treatment, you cannot leave the Containment Room. I know you want to deal with emergencies, but you must restrain yourself. Otherwise, the contract is void, and I'll never tell you where the Wolf is.
"You'll also have to wear isolation equipment such as headphones and an eye mask. Since they're specially made, each piece will cost five points deducted from your pay, and employee insurance will cost ten..."
Meanwhile, his duplicate X, who was in the office, immediately had a batch of isolation equipment transferred over from the company and completely sealed off Little Red Riding Hood's Containment Room.
That way, as long as the Wolf did not escape and Little Red Riding Hood could not sense him, there should be no problem.
Tsk. If she finds out the Wolf is right next door, she'll probably explode on the spot and add me to her list of targets. I'd better resolve her psychological issues first.
X connected to the head of the Training Team and gave her his instructions.
"Hod, this is the manager. Is your employee Psychological Counseling Project still running?
"No, no. I think your project is very effective. Please have faith in yourself. Here's the situation: I have an employee with serious psychological issues..."
Before you continue