After the postwar era, a nation once counted among the advanced economies finds itself reduced to an economic colony of foreign powers. The prime minister responds by abolishing all social welfare programs, including livelihood protection, elderly pensions, and medical insurance. Facing inevitable public outrage, the government presents a single relief measure: the Abandoned People Relief Law. Despite its name, this law does not offer aid—it mandates a series of lethal games designed to select citizens deemed “productive.” The losers are eliminated, and elimination means death.

Participants are gathered in a facility beneath a city hall, where they must compete in games that at first seem simple. The first trial is a lottery ladder; the second is a voting game in which an influencer, Nazuna Himemiya, exposes the true nature of the competition. A desperate struggle for trust unfolds between social media charisma and the cunning of a shut‑in. The third trial features a bingo game, where participants face past traumas—most notably the protagonist, a former salaryman named Gojūroku, who must confront his abusive ex‑boss Horikawa. Throughout the story, a cool‑headed strategist, Tsukumo Shakadō, executes quiet physical tricks that upend the flashy schemes of other players. The games escalate in brutality, and the line between savior and executioner blurs as the participants fight to prove their worth—or simply to survive.