Times have changed

After switching [Crimson Scar]'s template, Shen Yu returned it to his waist with satisfaction. Then he checked [Frost Shard] again.

F-01-37 Snow Queen Attunement Rate: 60%

E.G.O. emergence: customizable E.G.O. template appearance

E.G.O. manifestation:

[Ice Spear]: consumes 15 Sanity to throw an ice spear, freezing the target. Cost: while charging, the wielder takes damage from the cold.

[Frost]: causes [F-01-37-1] frost to fall within X meters of the wielder, reducing the speed of all units designated as enemies within range by 30%. X equals Sanity. Cost: the wielder's mind suffers the pain of being pierced by shards.

E.G.O. liberation: unlocked at 80% Attunement Rate

Due to the unique nature of E.G.O., Shen Yu had learned how to use it the instant his Attunement Rate increased.

Tch. I went into the Abnormality's world and defeated its true form, and all I got was 60% Attunement Rate. Yet the moment Hornet picked it up, hers shot straight to 60%.

Perhaps because my Attunement Rate with Hornet reached 50%, I could actually inherit her increase in Attunement Rate with Frost Shard. Should I let the other Hollow Knight characters hold it and see what happens?

I'll think about that later. Still, those two really do have a lot in common, Shen Yu mused, recalling the Snow Queen's Abnormality story:

The queen lived in an ice-crystal palace devoid of life, beneath an eternal winter night.

She had frozen a child named Kai. Later, a child with a powerful heart overcame countless hardships and finally found him. Flowers began blooming all around, and then spring arrived.

The warm spring sun melted the Snow Queen's cold palace, and the mirror shard in Kai's heart dissolved without a trace.

In the end, only the Snow Queen remained, all alone...

In Hollow Knight, within the deep darkness beyond Malkuth, there was a queen who had fallen asleep to seal Radiance. She became a Dreamer, bound within that eternal, maddening dream of light.

Likewise, there was a child with a powerful heart. She guided Little Knight to break the seals and helped him devour the God of Light completely, ending that eternal radiance.

The Dreamer, too, vanished entirely within the dream, finally able to rest.

Hornet had three queen mothers: the Deepnest Queen, who gave her life; the White Lady, who raised her; and the Hive Queen, who taught her skills. But that also meant she had always moved from one place to another.

Even before Little Knight arrived, Hornet had been searching tirelessly for a way to end the plague and protect that lost land-the ruins of Hallownest.

No one knew how many years she had endured or how far she had traveled. Even after Hallownest had fallen into ruin, she kept walking, kept searching, until the eternal winter passed and spring arrived.

Only a heart that strong could truly liberate the essence of [Frost Shard].

Perhaps she taught me her skills not just because she was afraid I'd embarrass her, but because she wanted to leave one more trace behind. Those combat techniques combining silk spells and her Stinger were proof of her entire life.

Shen Yu sighed and walked up to a massive blue heart.

"Let's test the firing rate first," Shen Yu said, raising the blood-red rifle.

As Shen Yu pulled the trigger, a tongue of flame spat from the muzzle. Bullets charged with bloody energy shot out, shredding the heart in an instant.

Blue seeds burst out of the heart, only to be torn apart by the bullets before they could hit the ground. The blue blood that splashed out then seeped into Shen Yu's body.

When Shen Yu lowered the gun to inspect himself, he discovered a thin blue membrane covering his skin, shielding his flesh.

(Karas) "Art thou ready?" Godseeker frowned at Shen Yu and urged him on impatiently.

"Yeah." Shen Yu nodded, then spoke to Godseeker after a moment's thought:

"Why not find a commentator? Someone who can explain the opponent before each fight. It would give things more of a ceremonial feel, too. Look, Little Knight brought those fools in because he wanted to liven things up, right?

"And remember to find someone who talks more or less like me. Don't have him use Bug Language. Just use that soul voice you people talk about, so he won't get drowned out by the noise."

Godseeker's eyes shifted a few times at his words, then she nodded.

(Karas) "As thou wishest."

With her answer secured, Shen Yu nodded, turned, and walked through the doorway ahead.

Ding!

Beneath the dim dome, Godseeker gave instructions to a rather plump member of her kin below her:

(Kalai) "Lasi, we have already given our instructions. The role of commentator shall fall to thee. Do not disappoint the God of Gods."

Lasi nodded and replied through the soul voice:

"No problem. I witnessed the God of Gods' battle of ascension myself. I won't fail you."

While Lasi was speaking, a burst of light flared before Shen Yu. A long brown bug wearing a white crown appeared, muttering, "Gorb... Gorb..."

Lasi immediately turned and expanded the range of the soul voice to cover the entire arena before beginning the commentary:

"The combatant appearing now is Ascended Gorb. He can attack with Light Nails while flying and possesses the ability to teleport. An opponent without high mobility will struggle to deal with him."

Looks like that's the commentator I asked for. Shen Yu glanced over, dodged a Light Nail with a Backstep, and pulled the trigger at Gorb.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh..." A tongue of flame spat from the muzzle, followed by a barrage of blood-red bullets. Gorb shook under the impacts, sparks of light bursting from his body.

Gorb immediately teleported away, but Shen Yu merely turned his wrist and aimed the muzzle at him again. The dense barrage wove a bloody net through the air, enveloping him.

The fools around the arena clutched their heads and cowered behind the seats in front of them, complaining nonstop:

(Sika) "What the hell is that guy? Even an Ancient Aspid can't shoot that much!"

(Kari) "Didn't you see? He isn't spitting those projectiles out. They're coming from the weapon in his hands."

(Kasi) "What the hell kind of thing is that?"

Meanwhile, Godseeker's tribe was hardly faring any better. They, too, hid behind their chairs, not daring to poke their heads out.

On the left, the Fool King propped up his head and caught a stray bullet flying toward him. After a brief inspection, he chuckled:

(Kalai) "An interesting weapon. I'll have to make one myself when I have time. Hmm... I'll use an Ancient Aspid."

Although Gorb did his best to keep changing position through teleportation, Shen Yu only had to turn slightly and aim to land precise hits on him again.

Meanwhile, Shen Yu easily evaded Gorb's Light Nails with the combat techniques he had already mastered.

"Gorb!" Gorb roared, unleashing wave after wave of Light Spikes to cut off his opponent's escape routes.

Shen Yu immediately used Aerial Thrust, slipping through a gap between the light needles while firing [Crimson Scar] at full blast.

Under the relentless assault, the Dream Essence forming Gorb's body kept dissipating until it could no longer maintain his shape and abruptly shattered.

Ding!

Light burst forth and the scene changed again, but this time Shen Yu knew where he was before he even opened his eyes.

That "heroic" presence was simply too strong.

As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but a sea of dung. Excrement of every shape, size, and color filled his vision, some scattered about, some piled together.

Dung balls two or three meters across lay everywhere, their surfaces full of pits and bumps. A suffocating, pungent stench filled the air. The nearby fools immediately began vomiting violently.

Just then, the sea of dung beneath Shen Yu's feet began to bulge. A red figure burst out of the ground, spun through the air, and landed, beating his chest as he shouted: (image)

"Ah~ Fanda~"

As soon as the paralysis caused by the battle cry wore off, Shen Yu gripped the middle of Frost Shard with one hand, stepped half a pace forward with his left foot, and leaned back, gathering energy in his waist and abdomen.

Ice crystals rapidly formed along the spear's edges, radiating a bone-piercing chill. A thin layer of ice had already formed on the ground.

"Phew..." Shen Yu exhaled and looked at Fandango ahead.

Times have changed, knight.