Honkai: Man(Sludge) From Future

"Hachiman, this is my sister."

"Ah, this is..."

The moment Hachiman Hikigaya returned to the Academy City, he went to see his good friend, who promptly brought his sister over.

How ridiculous. Were they really siblings?

Miyuki Shirogane was actually just as curious, having the same doubts about Hachiman and his own sister.

But given his sister's attitude, and the fact that only someone who truly has a sister can understand their least adorable aspects, the two young men felt a sense of mutual appreciation. Only those who truly know their sisters don't become siscons.

That was the thought, anyway. But if there were advantages to be had, they had to be taken.

Everyone said Miyuki Shirogane had gotten in through the back door, so he was definitely going to use Hachiman's connections.

After all, a certain apocryphal tale circulated in the Academy City about why Hachiman Hikigaya insisted on preserving his embarrassing middle school past.

"Hello, Hikigaya-senpai. My name is Kei Shirogane. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Kei Shirogane looked at Hachiman with curiosity, which only intensified when she learned that his current face was the result of genetic modification. The Academy City was rife with modifications, but Hachiman was the only one who, after becoming handsome, could revert to his original appearance through sheer willpower.

He was clearly a remarkable individual among the New Humans.

"Ah, um, there's nothing much to teach. Besides, I'm mainly here to discuss official business with your brother."

After saying this, Hachiman ignored the sweet-looking girl. He wasn't good at talking to women anyway. In fact, Hachiman was hoping the Academy City would turn everyone into cute femboys; that would be even better.

"Shirogane, the situation over there is a bit strange. Let me first explain the specific problems."

Miyuki glanced at Kei. "Is it okay for my sister to hear this?"

"It's fine. It'll all come out sooner or later anyway," Hachiman said, unconcerned about a minor information leak. There were many problems over there that needed to be shattered and rebuilt from the ground up.

"It's different from the Far East Academy City. That place focuses on mental research, or rather, the connection between genes and information. It's like studying how the phenomenon of brain activity and life arises from different molecular structures. Under the control of different information, the expression of genetic information with different molecular structures also differs. This includes issues related to dreams, Stigmas, and their mutual influence with Honkai factors."

Hachiman had a very clear understanding of the situation there. He had personally witnessed how Theresa handled people with mental problems.

By borrowing the power of the Herrscher of Reason, Theresa could maximize her ability to devour dreams. This allowed her to eliminate the suffering in these people's minds. After the elimination, she would observe the changes in their bodies and related physiological activities to reverse-engineer the technology behind the mutual influence of genes and thought.

Therefore, the foundations of the Second Academy City and the Far East Academy City were completely different.

Kei Shirogane listened, mesmerized. She never imagined that another Academy City held such a fascinating world.

"Are you saying that the main research I'll be participating in over there is this process?" Miyuki asked, sounding a little worried. He hadn't studied these things in depth and knew nothing about the so-called "genetic information structuralism."

"You don't need to worry about that. It's a completely new path, so the people above you won't be that far ahead. Not to mention all the so-called new technologies. It's just like when a new field of study is born; this is the easiest time to make a name for yourself."

"Even someone like me, with no real scientific spirit, might be able to say something useful there. A dedicated person like you, who puts in the effort, goes without saying. Besides, the benefits are really good. It looks like its future development will be in a state of opposition and complementarity with the Far East Academy City."

Hachiman wasn't entirely sure, as he felt the other place was more like something out of a cyber-psycho sci-fi story. Compared to the biopunk chaos of the Far East Academy City, Hachiman preferred a more cyberpunk world.

It was probably because that worldview was closer to his current mechanical, android-like body.

"I see. No wonder they weren't so picky when selecting people."

Miyuki felt a sense of relief after hearing this from his old friend. He had been worried that if he stayed there too long, it would be difficult to get back to his old work.

"But I think they're investing heavily over there, too. It might even be... It's hard to explain, but it's like the Honkai crystals produced by a Honkai Fission Bomb. The mental-related research they're doing is somewhat chilling. The deeper you go, the more you feel yourself getting addicted."

"Let me think of how to describe it. Take this water cup in my hand, for example. In the real world, we all know this cup was created by a third party. The cup existed first, and then you perceived it to know it's a cup. But in the mental world, it's different. You first have the concept of a cup, then you create the cup, and as a result, you observe the cup you created."

"The world inside is inverted. You will create things you know but have forgotten. They might even appear in your mental world in a form you've overlooked. You'll feel a sense of familiarity but have no memory of them."

"And this phenomenon will persist for a long time in the motion of the mental world..."

"So, you need an external third party to help you stabilize a 'mental anchor' to keep your sense of self from getting lost."

Hachiman described some of his work there. His job was to make sure that the people coming out of this mental world didn't go off the rails. After waking up, these people would be in a dazed state for a long time. In short, they were too deep in character and hadn't snapped out of it, and would long to return to the mental world.

"Sounds a bit like early 'internet addiction'," Miyuki said. He knew about this. The "internet addiction" he referred to was the temporary state of people who first encountered the internet, unable to extricate themselves from a novel explorer's mindset.

"Something like that. But in that world, most things are created based on your own needs. Until your needs are completely 'mediated,' and you realize you can't create anything more. At that moment, you'll feel a sense of utter boredom."

Hachiman's words helped Miyuki find a suitable analogy.

Miyuki nodded. "I get it. It's like a gamer suddenly realizing they can't change the game's code, only control the character's actions. You want to do more, know more, but no one teaches you. You can only experience what others want you to experience. That sense of helpless, absurd repetition. Based on what you're saying about the Stigma Space mental world, it sounds something like a state of 'Stigma impotence'."

Hachiman nodded in pleasant surprise. A research talent indeed—even his analogies were so vivid.