Honkai: Man(Sludge) From Future

Kiana did her best to inspect this Academy City.

The thought of becoming the emperor of a new world filled her with anxiety. She had no idea how to handle it!

How on earth was she supposed manage so many strange people?

Just today, while walking down the street, Kiana saw that androids were already out and about. She just didn't know if they were out shopping or working independently on the streets.

To be honest, Kiana felt that simply using the potential to awaken a Stigma as a criterion to determine whether an android was a living being was a bit inadequate.

She always felt that these androids were just like real people. Just by standing there, they could replicate the expressions created by the 42 muscles in the human face. The expressions of these androids were even more moving. Kiana had rarely seen such touching smiles on the faces of real people.

Not just in the Far East, but all over the world. To be able to appreciate the world with lively eyes and a constant smile was an expression that only a very special person would have.

A person in this state made Kiana subconsciously assume that they were indeed an android.

That's right, because such behavior was extremely rare among humans.

Kiana's gaze briefly swept over the android's limbs, and after seeing the ball joints she was looking for, she was even more certain of her guess.

She curiously approached and asked, "Hello, are you... an android?"

Others also wanted to approach the android girl, but many involuntarily stopped themselves. They even subconsciously gave the android a wide berth, a zone of non-contact.

"Ah, hello. I am indeed an android."

"Huh? Do you have a name? Are you the same as the one at my house?" Kiana's question seemed to slightly surprise the android, as if she hadn't expected someone who already had an android at home to be curious about the ones outside.

"It's just that I've rarely seen an android like you. Hmm, how should I put it?" Kiana thought for a moment and said, "I feel like your personality isn't quite the same as the typical android setting."

"Ah, it's probably because my master designed my personality a bit differently," the android lady replied with a smile.

"My name is Kiana. What's yours?"

"Sayu. Sayu Ogiwara. You can just call me Sayu. Actually, you might not believe this, but I'm not an android. I just found a special research institute to have my body modified to look like an android's. Including the muscles on my face and the way my limbs move, everything has been improved."

Hearing this, Kiana's smile froze on her face.

She seemed completely unprepared for such an answer.

"I thought, since so many people are looking for and needing androids, maybe I could try becoming one and experience the life of an android. If it doesn't work out, I can always use my ID to have my body modified back."

Although Sayu Ogiwara said this, she seemed to particularly enjoy her identity as an android.

"Uh, are you really... a normal person?"

"Ah, just kidding. I've just been set with this personality. I occasionally say some shocking things to scare people. Sorry, I have something to do, so I can't chat with you right now, Kiana."

She vaguely cut off Kiana's question and left on her own.

Leaving Kiana standing there alone, lost in her confusion.

A person... turned into an android?!

Kiana shuddered. She had thought of many possibilities, even scenarios like a machine uprising. But she had never imagined that someone would envy the emotional status of androids among humans.

Is what she said true or false?

Kiana's gaze swept over the departing android's body, but her eyes couldn't see any significant difference. Currently, Heliopolis Life Sciences Pharmaceutical had two types of androids: a biological type and a mechanical structure type. Both were re-simulations of the human body.

She couldn't quite tell if this android was a real human. Even her external temperature was set to mimic a human's.

"Phew..."

Kiana took a deep breath, calming her emotions, and temporarily filed away the name Sayu Ogiwara in her mind.

I feel like I've heard that name somewhere, but I don't seem to have remembered it.

Kiana felt even more uneasy about the chaos of this Academy City.

How did a fake, simulated android like this actually appear?

She vaguely discovered some problems with androids. It seemed that androids were more easily accepted by humans than humans themselves. This more direct power relationship and attitude made it very easy for humans with emotional needs to let down their guard against androids.

Kiana temporarily filed away her observations about androids. She believed that at this stage, the androids had not yet fully revealed all their potential power.

---||---

The young girl had never experienced such a change in human social relations before. She was now on her way to find her "real father."

Kiana's feelings for Siegfried were very complicated, especially after learning that he had lost his own biological daughter to save her.

And then...

Kiana saw "Cecilia" at Siegfried's residence.

She closed the main gate, looked up at the name and number plate outside the house, and after confirming that she hadn't come to the wrong place, she opened the gate again.

And then, she really saw "Cecilia."

This was an android "Cecilia," but not the real Cecilia.

"Hello, you must be Kiana, right? Please come in."

"No, let me take a moment." Kiana stopped in her tracks. She asked doubtfully, "Who are you? My dad shouldn't be the type... who likes androids."

"That's a long story. I'm an android created by Mr. Raiden Ryoma, who sought out people from Heliopolis, based on the personality model of Cecilia provided by Overseer Otto."

She paused, giving Kiana time to process. "To put it simply... I am an android specially created to temporarily take care of Mr. Siegfried's life."

Kiana sucked in a cold breath, feeling that the world was changing a little too fast.

She had never imagined that androids could be used in this way.

What if that silly old dad takes it seriously?

Kiana pressed on, "No, where's my dad? Why isn't he coming out?"

The silver-haired android woman said with a bitter smile, "Mr. Siegfried couldn't accept it for the time being, so he ran out. I can only stay here by myself."

The white-haired dumpling scratched her head in shock, feeling that the situation was becoming a bit incomprehensible. Are you sure you're just an android, and not an android stepmother?