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The tale begins with the death of an ancient, colossal being known as a Wyrm. From its corpse, a new being emerged: The Pale King. He arrived in a cavern filled with mindless insects and granted them "the gift of mind," expanding their consciousness and building the majestic kingdom of Hallownest. However, this land was not empty. Before the King, the bugs worshipped The Radiance, a primordial goddess of light who ruled through a collective hive mind. As the bugs turned to the King, the Radiance was forgotten, fading into a mere memory.

But a god cannot be so easily erased. The Radiance began to reappear in the dreams of the citizens, manifesting as a literal plague known as The Infection. It bled through their eyes as a glowing orange light, stripping them of their free will and turning them into violent husks.

Desperate to save his fading empire, the Pale King turned to a dark, ancient substance called The Void. He and the White Lady birthed thousands of "Vessels"—beings of Void intended to be completely hollow, possessing no mind to think and no soul to be corrupted by the Radiance. Most were discarded in a deep pit called the Abyss, but one was chosen: The Hollow Knight.

The King raised this chosen vessel, and when it reached maturity, the Radiance was sealed inside its body. To ensure the seal stayed shut, three powerful beings—the Dreamers—committed to a permanent magical sleep to act as locks on the Temple of the Black Egg. For a time, there was peace.

However, the Pale King made a fatal error. He had shown the Hollow Knight affection, instilling a "bond" within it. This tiny spark of emotion meant the Knight was no longer truly hollow. The Radiance exploited this flaw, eventually breaking the Knight's will from the inside. The Infection leaked out once more, and Hallownest collapsed into a silent, decaying graveyard.

Eons later, a small, nameless Knight—another discarded vessel that had wandered into the "howling cliffs" outside the kingdom—is drawn back to the ruins of Hallownest. Guided by a faint calling, you journey through the remains of the kingdom, defeating fallen heroes and uncovering your own dark origin.

In the end, you face a choice: replace the failing Hollow Knight and prolong the kingdom's slow death, or find the strength to enter the world of dreams, confront the Radiance herself, and use the united power of the Void to extinguish her light forever, finally bringing true rest to the ghosts of Hallownest.