Honkai: Man(Sludge) From Future

Tesla had a nagging feeling she'd forgotten something.

She replayed her earlier conversation in her mind.

"Wait a minute… something's not right!" She suddenly realized what she'd overlooked.

Mei was startled by Tesla's outburst. "What's wrong, Dr. Tesla? Did something bad happen?"

Tesla gave Mei a strange look, scanning her up and down. "Mei, have you forgotten something, too?"

"What?" Mei was completely lost.

"Not just me, but Kiana, Bronya, even… Fu Hua. Don't you think we've all forgotten something?" Tesla listed everyone's name.

Her words silenced everyone. They all started racking their brains, trying to remember what they'd forgotten.

"Bronya, do you remember the last time you had your period? Weren't your legs paralyzed before? You should remember it vividly, right?"

Tesla's reminder jogged Bronya's memory.

"Oh yeah! It's been a while… hasn't it?! Wait, when did it stop?!" Bronya was so shocked she even dropped her usual verbal tic.

Her monthly periods, combined with her paralysis, had always been agonizing.

Yet, she'd completely forgotten about them.

Fu Hua paused, then realized she'd experienced something similar.

"It must be because of Noldrei's modifications. What else could it be? Since getting this new body, I've been eating well and feeling great. No worries at all. Even reproduction is now… single-celled. Speaking of which, I…"

Kiana thought everyone was overreacting. Noldrei could fix this kind of thing easily.

"I think, maybe because of my age, or all the hardship I went through as a kid, I was always malnourished and never… you know. I guess Noldrei probably modified me preemptively."

She gave Bronya a sympathetic look.

"Dummy Kiana! What's with that look?!" Bronya snapped.

Thinking about it, Tesla began examining her own body. She hadn't considered this before, but now she realized Noldrei was a true Ally to women.

If he had offered these modifications earlier, those women wouldn't have opposed gender freedom.

Forget opposing, if he had offered this technology, anything he said would have been law! Tesla genuinely believed many women would have crowned Noldrei emperor, especially given his handsome, conventionally attractive male form.

Tesla quite liked that face.

Not because it was exceptionally handsome, but because it was microscopically clean.

As everyone discussed the mysterious transformation of their reproductive organs, Tesla was the first to figure out what had been changed.

"Wow, I can't believe it! He actually modified it this way?!" Tesla exclaimed. "It's like having a cat's uterus installed! So cool!"

Mei couldn't believe Tesla's words. She instinctively touched her lower abdomen, suddenly afraid she'd develop a feline estrus cycle.

"Don't worry, Mei. He just changed the implantation method and a few other things. It's still a human uterus, not some… weird mutation… it's just… wait… I…"

Tesla finally understood the problem.

Her face flushed as she realized why she always craved Noldrei's tentacle whips as a reward.

Human sexual repression is different from animals'. Most animals rely on periodic estrus cycles to release their pent-up urges.

Humans, however, combine the worst of all worlds. Besides stimulus-induced arousal, human reproduction had become a brutal competition for nutrients. Even ovulation and implantation were troublesome, making menstruation a disadvantage for women.

But altering menstruation, while reducing pain and inconvenience, would also affect arousal.

"This doesn't make sense. The three of them are too young to understand this. But Fu Hua… why don't you have the usual frustrations of an adult woman?" Tesla suddenly directed her question at Fu Hua.

Fu Hua didn't expect such a direct question. After a moment of thought, she explained, "Actually, I'd like to know that, too. But I spend most of my time training and expend a tremendous amount of energy. I don't have much left for… that sort of thing."

"And… I've lost so many memories. Even if I had a lover or husband in the past, I might have forgotten how to… do those things, and even the pleasure they bring."

Fu Hua spoke calmly, but Tesla thought her situation was tragic. Had she even forgotten the feeling of pleasure?

The three girls had never received such… explicit education. Even though they knew the basics of biology, they never expected Tesla to bring up this topic so directly.

Now they all knew they had something akin to a cat's uterus. What were they supposed to do with that information?

They couldn't ask Noldrei to change them back, could they?

The thought of it made Kiana feel squeamish. She vaguely remembered Noldrei… handling her reproductive organs.

Kiana coughed. "I think we should just pretend nothing happened. It's not like you can't use it. It's your body, after all. Making things easier for yourself isn't a bad thing."

Mei and Bronya stared at her with blank expressions.

Six months later, the issue Tesla raised suddenly affected the two girls.

They hadn't expected to be affected by Noldrei after so long.

They thought turning into ponies was strange enough, but becoming human again came with unexpected and somewhat embarrassing benefits.

Tesla pondered for a long time, then said thoughtfully, "I think I can replicate and modify this. I wonder if I can create a universal replacement sexual organ."

That night, Bronya stayed up all night playing games. Mei, on the other hand, had a nightmare.

She dreamed she was lying on an operating table, a white-haired young doctor personally performing surgery, replacing her uterus. He congratulated her, saying she would never have to worry about periods again.

The girl's new day began with a deepening melancholy.