Honkai: Man(Sludge) From Future

Horikita Manabu stared at the news and trending topics on his phone.

An invisible, intangible current of suppressed tension was building within Academy City.

Online, the gender freedom announcement had pushed the male-female divide to its absolute peak. People were slinging mud at each other over their respective gender interests, engaging in endless online flame wars.

Some worried about losing their jobs, fearing a surge in competition for traditionally male-dominated, physically demanding roles. Others were anxious about losing their privileged positions, desperately trying to whip up "misogynistic rhetoric" to maintain their "vulnerable group" power dynamic.

Even without reading the actual arguments, Horikita knew exactly what kind of garbage they were all spewing back and forth.

Right now, he was successfully piloting a Stigmata BattleSuit. Unlike Hachiman Hikigaya, who was stuck at Stage Two, Horikita had reached Stage Four of Stigmata BattleSuit synchronization – Imagination.

The stages of Stigmata BattleSuit synchronization were clearly defined:

Self, Signifier, Reality, Imagination, and Symbol – only five stages in total.

This was what Master Otto had taught Horikita. Only by reaching the final stage, Symbol, could one truly become a leader for the new era of humanity.

And only then could one unlock the true power of the Stigmata BattleSuit.

Materializing the spirit – that was the fundamental power source of the Stigmata BattleSuit. And the root of all this pain pointed directly to the most stagnant, rotten parts of society.

Male-female antagonism? Gender freedom? All just basic dirt to lay the foundation for a new social order.

Now, Horikita needed to find someone again.

The man who sat at the very top of the Kengan Association.

… … … … … … … … … …

Yukinoshita Yukino knew it wasn't just her imagination.

She could sense a difference in the Kengan Arena compared to usual.

Ever since gender freedom was approved by the Academy City upper echelons, it wasn't long before an intense public opinion battle erupted between Valkyries and Anti-Entropy labs.

Soon, many aspects related to women's rights were brazenly exposed for all to see. Parts that people had never even noticed before, subtle considerations for women, were all dragged out and put under the harsh spotlight.

This included legal articles, marriage arbitration, family status, company positions, even civil servant jobs – all were being categorized by gender.

Equality, like a cursed headband, was clamped tightly around the head of modern society. When the proletariat used equality to fight against exploitation, they never imagined that the word "equality" itself could become a new bone knife of exploitation.

The internet was a raging inferno, but in Yukinoshita Yukino's reality, everything seemed different. Everyone was acting as if they hadn't seen any of the online chaos, quietly lying in wait for some kind of change to arrive.

Yukinoshita Yukino couldn't have dreamed that she'd witness such a starkly divided phenomenon.

When walking around town, she even considered asking people for their opinions, but they either told her not to bring it up, or just smiled, waved her off, and hurried away, seemingly not wanting to discuss it at all.

It wasn't until Yukinoshita Yukino asked Hiratsuka Shizuka-sensei that she understood the underlying reasons.

People had already made their choice. They were done with this unchanging world. And to shatter this suffocating status quo, they were willing to sacrifice their gender ownership, their reproductive rights, anything.

Anti-Entropy's technology had just pulled the pin on the pressure valve.

At the same time, the real changes were happening in the Kengan Arena.

Yukinoshita Yukino noticed the true shift: even more people were participating in Kengan Association matches. And Kengan Association Stigmata BattleSuits had become the most sought-after "must-have" item.

People's keen eyes had caught on to where the real power was flowing.

Just as Yukinoshita Yukino was observing the changes in the Kengan Arena, the always-closed-off highest point of the arena finally revealed its true form.

The very top level was completely opened up, showcasing all its interior decorations.

Wealth, luxury – at this moment, no one in the Kengan Arena cared about any of that.

Everyone's eyes were fixed on the figure at the highest point.

It was a white-haired young man, looking rather slender and not particularly strong. He stood there, overlooking everyone below, like an emperor surveying his domain.

"Everyone——!"

"Welcome to the Kengan Arena!"

'What the… ? He's not using any electronic amplification, just purely relying on his own vocal cords to project his voice?'

Yukinoshita Yukino was completely taken aback by the scene unfolding before her.

This wasn't about science or pseudoscience anymore. Normally, to produce such a massive sound, one would need incredibly powerful resonance.

Yukinoshita Yukino touched her own neck. With her current strength, she couldn't achieve anything like this. Her vocal cords simply weren't capable of generating such a huge volume.

"You must be very curious as to why Academy City established a place like this, why we use such methods to resolve conflicts."

"Why, you ask? Because Academy City is overflowing with new things. Old laws, old morals, are simply not equipped to handle these problems."

"According to normal human practices, we should already be preparing to organize forces and start wars."

"But I – your Emperor in your hearts – cannot stand to see you suffer such hardship, so I have specially prepared this stage for you to decide the victor of your struggles!"

He spread his arms wide, tentacles extending from his back, lifting his body high into the air.

This made it even harder for the people in the arena to clearly see his face. It was as if some kind of blurring power was affecting everyone in the arena.

What did his face look like? Can't remember.

What was his build? Unclear.

What were his gestures? No idea.

But his spiritual will, through language, through undiscernible waves, reached into everyone's minds.

The ideals contained within captivated and drove them wild.

"The Kengan Association's ideology is simple: Matter is born from struggle, and struggle never ends!"

"Men?! Women?! Gender?!"

Yukinoshita Yukino watched in awe as the figure before her seemed to undergo an incredibly wild transformation. His body contorted like flesh, twisting and shifting until it formed a distinctly feminine figure.

"Those are merely minor tests!"

"Dragons!"

"Pegasus!"

"Flesh!"

"Bone!"

"Tentacles!"

"Whatever you desire to become, there is nothing Academy City cannot create!"

"Liberate your minds, embrace freedom! The value of humanity will be reborn! Your lives reside within those Stigmata BattleSuits!"

Noldrei opened his arms wide. At this moment, he undoubtedly occupied the very center of the entire Kengan Arena.

"Cheer with my ideology!"

"Let the struggle! Never end!"

The Kengan Arena went deathly silent for a moment, then erupted into a tidal wave of cheers and roars.

"Never end!"

"Never end!"

"Never end!"

Yukinoshita Yukino felt it – a blazing hot power detonating from within her Stigmata BattleSuit.

Around her, a sea of cheers and celebration stretched as far as she could see.