#ive seen that even someone who knows nothing about arknights can read it and get really invested

[kurozu501]

genuinely feel like the rhine lab record of originium manhua is a better arknights story then the games main plot tbh lmao.

An actual focus on curing originium through the story of ifrit's condition in the past, and trying to save the darya girl in the present. A discussion of medical and scientific ethics vs a "results at all costs" perspective. The story is simultaneously about a lot of big picture arknights lore stuff like the columbia scientific community, the secret military project ifrit represented, the sarkaz shard she was implanted with, etc, but its also this really small personal character story about silence, saria and ifrit forming a tiny happy found family in a den of vipers. How they were eventually torn apart by both the lies others told them and their own actions. The constant flashes between the past and the present creating an incredible contrast and mystery as we slowly uncover how things got this way with some of the best writing ive seen in ages. its fantastic.

i really feel like its a much better introduction to the world and themes of arknights then the game itself.

like at the end of the manhua when silence calls herself powerless but then valiantly swears to someday find a cure to originium, to save ifirit, joyce, and all the others suffering, THATS the first time i actually felt invested in the supposed overarching goal of finding a cure to the disease. that's supposed to be the whole plot reason rhodes island exists? but in the games actual story our main characters doctor, amiya, and kaltsit are always too busy running around fighting terrorists and sarkaz royalty. There's zero focus on actually finding a cure. and thats fine, that stuffs not bad, its just kinda funny to me that if we do ever reach a point in the story where they achieve a cure, im gonna be happy for silence, not amiya.