Honkai: Man(Sludge) From Future

Sakiko Toyokawa lost her job.

It wasn't because she didn't work hard enough, wasn't serious about her life, or had lost a lover or anything like that.

She lost her job simply because the customer service system she worked for had integrated Academy City's AI quantum computer system. Through a cloud service, a cheap AI could now do Sakiko's job.

She was unfortunate enough to live in an age of global turmoil, ideological chaos, and profound social injustice.

Noldrei hadn't been joking when he said Academy City was like a modern dam holding back a flood. The technological power unleashed by Schicksal and Anti-Entropy's joint efforts alone was enough to send a crushing, top-down shockwave through society.

The deployment of quantum computers combined with AI systems, with just a slight intervention in the internet, had led to the current state of affairs.

And then, this happened.

Unemployment.

The miserable girl returned home to find only her alcoholic father and a dim, futureless house.

Maybe this house will be gone soon, too, Sakiko Toyokawa thought. What's the difference between a father like this and a psychiatric patient?

The thought reminded her of a news story she'd seen recently. Apparently, someone in the Middle East was trying to establish a mental health center for all of humanity.

They even provided room and board!

"Hah, as if something that good could ever happen... I'm home, you scumbag father."

Sakiko Toyokawa's routine greeting received no response. She looked at the man on the floor, mumbling incoherently, dead drunk.

"Could a place that treats mental illness really exist? Academy City doesn't seem that reliable either..."

But if she didn't find a way to get this man under control, she feared there would be no way to improve her own situation.

Academy City had once offered a path to survival, but as the application process became more difficult, that path was now blocked.

It had reached the point where even if she wanted to sell herself to a research institute there for experiments, no one would take her. In this world, there were far too many people willing to do anything for money, for a bite to eat, who were desperately trying to get into Academy City.

Even if Sakiko Toyokawa wanted to compete, she couldn't out-hustle them. Besides, she was genuinely terrified by the rumors about Academy City.

No matter how hard life was on the outside, at least she wouldn't just suddenly disappear one day, right? As long as she was alive, there was always hope.

But Sakiko didn't know that there was once another tragic hero in a famous Shenzhou story, also named Xiangzi, whose hopes were much like her own. In the end, his luck was not so good.

And to her misfortune, this time the entire idol and entertainment industry had been utterly decimated by the hardcore tech leaking out of Academy City.

Whatever little hope Sakiko still held for an idol band was crushed by the overwhelming tide of change, leaving her stranded on the beach.

She had just been laid off today, carrying her last bit of severance pay home. As an underage child laborer, she didn't even have a contract that could properly protect her.

The girl hugged her knees, curled up in a corner of the room. Her eyes stared blankly at her broken father. Her phone cast the last speck of light in the house.

She fumbled for the phone, her head bowed, hoping to find any new job listings. Even washing dishes would be fine, as long as it was a job that could sustain her.

[Seeking individuals from all walks of life, especially families of psychiatric patients. Academy City is in need of a large number of patients.]

[This includes those with cognitive-based mental illnesses. Academy City guarantees their safety and health.]

[To better serve the people of the Far East, Heaven-Defying Inc. is offering generous compensation for participation in this mental health study.]

[For more details, please refer to the official website...]

The rest was just a repetitive ad, seemingly designed to entice people to sell off their mentally ill family members as quickly as possible.

Can news like this... even be trusted?

Sakiko Toyokawa couldn't dare to imagine such a good thing falling into her lap.

She scrolled through the news when a shocking headline caught her eye.

[Teruyuki Kagawa Accused of Sexual Harassment]

[Toyota Terminates Contract with Teruyuki Kagawa]

[Teruyuki Kagawa Signs Documents to Undergo Mental Treatment at Academy City]

["I've always had mental health issues. I'm going to get proactive treatment!"]

Not only did Teruyuki Kagawa receive the corresponding benefits and subsidies from Academy City, but he also evaded legal punishment and was sent directly to the Middle East?

Sakiko Toyokawa had long known the world was a dark place, but she never imagined it could be this dark.

[...subsidy may reach ten million yen...]

She stared at the number in shock, then looked back at her father.

"They treat mental illness... and... and they pay you for it?!"

The girl's worldview was hit by a wave of insanity. With trembling hands, she opened the official Academy City website.

She tried to click the contact link several times. The moment it jumped to her messaging app, a chat window from an electronic customer service agent popped up.

[Hello, I am Xiao Xiang, a receptionist at the Jerusalem Mental Health Center. How may I help you?]

[Is it a relative of yours, or do you have a personal history of mental illness?]

...

[If you require assistance, please fill in your detailed address and personal information.]

...

The bright text on her phone screen made her incredibly nervous.

"Aah!!"

Sakiko Toyokawa screamed and threw her phone away as if she had seen a demon.

No, no, I can't. I can't sell out my own family.

What are you thinking? Is he even family anymore?

"Get out!"

That's money. With it, you can pay off your debts, go to school happily, and you won't have to suffer through unbearable jobs. Your education, your future...

"Get out! Go away! I don't want to hear it! Shut up!"

It's painful, isn't it? Being a customer service agent who gets mocked and vented on by angry customers! It's humiliating, isn't it? The strange looks from your classmates! Send it! Send the application! All those problems will disappear!

"No! They won't! I absolutely won't do it!"

Sakiko's struggle had some effect. She picked her phone back up and immediately closed all the programs.

Just then, perhaps because her voice had been too loud, or because the effects of the alcohol had worn off slightly, her father staggered to his feet and began rummaging around. Eventually, he spotted a sake bottle that had spilled all over the tatami mat.

He picked up the bottle, slurped up the very last drop, then casually tossed it into a corner.

The bottle rolled and rolled until it came to a stop at Sakiko's feet.

"Sakiko? Where's the money?"

His eyes locked onto the last bit of cash in Sakiko's hand.

Sakiko Toyokawa's heart suddenly stopped cold.

Her father staggered to his feet and lurched toward her, reeking of sickeningly sweet alcohol.

The girl had never felt he could be so strong. No matter how tightly she clutched the envelope containing her last funds, it was still snatched away with ease.

"Gimme that!"

He took with him the last shred of familial love she had clung to.

Watching her father, dazed and ready to go out and get drunk again, Sakiko Toyokawa was left with no other means of survival.

This time...

She just numbly opened her phone again and reopened the web browser.

The phone's battery was still full. Plenty of power for her to write a very detailed message.

A message that could contain everything.