Honkai: Man(Sludge) From Future

Kiana scratched her head.

After a great deal of effort, she had finally dealt with the sakura-haired girl.

She tied the girl to the bed and used timed tentacles to keep her "motivated," ensuring she maintained a stable state of Makkapakka.

What's that? Why not use other methods of control?

Because this was the only subduing attack Kiana knew, a skill taught to her by Noldrei.

"He wants me to go out and solve these problems. But where do I even start?"

Kiana thought for a long time but couldn't figure it out.

Suddenly, her eyes lit up. An idea struck her, and she called one of her subordinates.

"Hei, mobilize your people!"

---||---

Hachiman Hikigaya never expected to run into this much trouble just by visiting Shin Nakamura's old place. He was so shocked he didn't know what to do.

He had always thought the upper echelons of Academy City were a hastily thrown-together, amateurish operation.

He still thought so. Even though the head of the security team was a short little girl, she could surf the net at will and possessed formidable combat abilities.

He just didn't know if the security team had any work to do at a time like this.

How could they? The security team has no emergency response capability for this kind of combat...

Hachiman was part of the security team; he knew better than anyone what their main training focused on. It was primarily for crowd evacuation and protection, and their main targets were Honkai Beasts and Great Eruptions.

But no one ever said a Honkai Herrscher could deliver such a massive, targeted surprise to Academy City's entire power grid.

That's right. Hachiman didn't believe for a second this was a power company oversight. That left only one possibility...

The enemy had already taken control of the power grid in advance.

"This is bad. The security team really has become a useless bunch that only shows up after the fact."

Should I go out and join the fight? But before that... what about my sister and my family?

The battle escalated much faster than Hachiman had imagined.

Chaos struck first at the heart of Academy City's administration: the council's office building.

Overseer Otto was drinking wine, singing songs, and discussing with his granddaughter where they should go to play tomorrow when a grenade came flying toward the building.

The aim was impressive, but it wasn't enough to worry Otto.

Theresa had already charged out, Judah in hand. In the past, she used it to smash Honkai Beasts. Now, she might have to use it to smash people.

But what appeared before her was...

Locals from the Far East government, all members of the civilian self-defense militia. How many of them were relatives of Yokohama citizens was impossible for Theresa to tell.

"Eastern Army, 12th Brigade, assemble!"

What appeared before Theresa was... a rogue faction of the Self-Defense Forces, determined to protect their Far East territory from being carved up by outsiders.

A huge question mark popped up in Theresa's head.

Why are they doing this?

She didn't know why these people dared to appear here. This location had been approved by a resolution of the world's nations, with the specific purpose of allowing Academy City to control the rampage of Honkai Energy outside its walls.

In the past few months, Noldrei's actions had been remarkably effective. Honkai Eruptions around the world had been pushed back as humanity lost the potential to become Herrschers.

In other words, the Far East had no grounds to refuse, and its government's upper echelons had largely been bought off by the immense benefits of Academy City's technology.

There was no way they would antagonize Academy City and jeopardize their own future power and interests.

Naturally, Theresa was reluctant to fight against human forces. But the enemy didn't even know how to use quantum technology to transport their weapons into Academy City.

"Oh? Even the local Self-Defense Forces have shown up? It seems someone wants to use them as human shields."

Otto saw through their purpose at a glance. Whether the leaders of the Self-Defense Forces were even their real leaders was another question entirely.

When technology reached a certain level, it was entirely possible to create a perfect substitute for someone.

Otto had sensed a hidden power at work back when he was the Overseer of Schicksal. Now, Academy City's actions had finally forced their hand.

The Stigma? I knew it. A power this potent and enduring couldn't possibly exist without someone trying to control it. Who in this world would just leave such a high-growth potential ability for the benefit of future generations?

"Alliance Leader Yang, what's your take? Do you think we should go out and talk? Or... should we summon our mechs and kill all these rebels?"

Otto's question made Welt Yang's heart sink.

He pondered for a long time before shaking his head. "No. We don't know how many of these Self-Defense Force members have blood ties to people in Academy City. If we start killing, it will likely have negative repercussions and shake the foundations of our future development."

"Diverting so much of our energy to have our people heal the emotional wounds of the locals would be extremely troublesome. So..."

Otto just smiled, watching the hesitant Theresa outside.

He was very curious to see what choice his granddaughter would make if the path humanity itself had chosen became an obstacle to fighting the Honkai.

"Theresa is so kind; it's hard for her to make these choices. So, I'll have to clear some obstacles for my dear granddaughter. Letting the locals deal with the locals has nothing to do with us, does it?"

Alliance Leader Yang then remembered that Otto had cultivated an excellent student from the very beginning of Academy City's establishment.

And that excellent student now held a pivotal position in the Kengan Association.

What was the Kengan Association?

Give these people weapons, and they become bloodthirsty maniacs. They were not people who could be controlled by ordinary means.

Otto smiled and poured Welt Yang another glass of wine. "They're here..."

Theresa had intended to show her face and negotiate, but the negotiations didn't happen as she had expected.

It was a one-sided slaughter.

Mechs, firearms, and individuals charging into the crowd, fighting wantonly.

These people weren't trained like Schicksal's Valkyries. From the moment they appeared, they were an organization born to serve the interests of the new humanity.

Unlike the Valkyries, who hesitated for a long time before killing, their choices were simpler and more direct.

This was different from fighting Honkai Beasts. Right now, Theresa was witnessing firsthand how humans dealt with other humans.

Simple, efficient, and... ruthless.

A bright flare shot up into the sky, not to give the enemy a chance to escape, but to completely seal off any possibility of their departure.