The border region between central and eastern Australia.
On this continent, civilization had diverged to two extremes due to geography—the prosperous and flourishing eastern coast, the barely habitable western ports, and the vast, uninhabited central region.
It was in this desert zone, at the juncture of civilization and non-civilization.
Four heavy trucks, kicking up dust and sand beneath their wheels, were driving along a highway shrouded in deep night.
"Uncle Bell, how much longer until we arrive?"
"At our current speed, another 13 minutes and 57 seconds... if nothing unexpected happens."
The cab of the heavy truck was quite impressive.
It wasn't just spacious enough for the driver and co-driver; you could fit twice as many people in with room to spare—even a mid-sized RV might not have an interior as large as the truck's cab.
The one who asked the question was a young woman sitting in the co-driver's seat.
Of European descent, fourteen or fifteen years old—an age when that heritage was at its most vibrant and beautiful—her sun-kissed, wheat-colored skin looked full of vitality. Her brownish, medium-length hair just brushed her shoulders, and the sweat trickling down her cheeks gave off a particular, youthful allure.
Her 'frontal armor' was so ample it could be called substantial, its scale unusually exaggerated. The curve that cinched abruptly at her waist formed a stark contrast with the resilient flesh of her thighs, which were indented by white thigh-high stockings paired with laced boots.
Her bold red-and-brown attire—the adjective referring to its scantiness—complemented the night-shrouded wilderness perfectly, without diminishing her beauty in the slightest.
Traveling at night.
Bell, who had traveled extensively, seen all sorts of nightlife, and been single for over fifty years, should have been fully focused on driving, yet he couldn't help but glance at his niece in the co-driver's seat.
No matter which aesthetic standard, Eastern or Western, one applied, his elder brother's daughter was undoubtedly a "beautiful girl."
"Such a pity..."
Bell sighed softly in his heart.
Although she acted no different from an ordinary person, Bell knew that Ange—his niece—probably didn't have long to live.
Bell's job was by no means a good one. He was a member of the "Australian Truckers' Association," primarily responsible for transporting goods between cities.
It was manageable if he only operated between the cities on the East Coast.
But once it involved leaving the "Safe Zone"—Australia considered all areas outside the six eastern cities as dangerous, merely varying in degree of danger—he could face life-or-death choices at any moment.
This trip was no different.
If not for the government's mandatory assignment and the Truckers' Association's full assurance—that for some unknown reason, the number of Honkai Beasts in the surrounding central-eastern border region had drastically decreased—Bell would never have led a team on this mission.
And then there was the fact that...
They were paying far too much.
This trip would take a month at most, but the pay was equivalent to a full year of Bell's hard work.
No one could refuse such temptation.
Not to mention "morality" backing him up—Bell had seen videos of the government distributing "relief supplies" to the Gathering Points (formed by refugees who couldn't enter the eastern cities). He had initially thought it was just political posturing (since they hadn't even let the people in), but now it seemed to be true.
He was engaged in just such a "righteous act."
Having checked the supplies, Bell knew very well the value of the cargo.
In this era where chaos and order coexisted, those things were enough to drive ordinary people mad.
If he didn't have to rely on the protection of the cities to survive, his flexible moral bottom line might have led him to do something—of course, such unavoidable dark thoughts in an ordinary person would rarely be put into action.
As for the reason he brought Ange along...
When his niece knocked on the door of his trash-strewn, messy "home," the scene of her "removing her clothes" had caused a surge of adrenaline in Bell, who had seen those adult manga from across the ocean. However, the appearance of purplish-red "demonic veins" on her otherwise beautiful curves quickly sobered him up, even making him a little fearful.
"Honkai Sickness."
Ange's request was simple, and Bell agreed very quickly.
Perhaps it was that lingering thought in his heart, the desire to get back at his elder brother who had always overshadowed him in everything since childhood, that made him do it. He didn't notify anyone and, just before setting off, directly took Ange on this dangerous journey.
While still alive, see some different scenery... that was all.
Time passed quickly.
The obscuring dark clouds slowly dispersed.
The light of the stars and moon illuminated the road ahead, as well as a faint yellow halo hidden behind a sand dune.
And wisps of cooking smoke that seemed to want to connect heaven and earth.
"That's..."
"The Gathering Point, we'll be there once we cross this hill—"
Seeing that the convoy was about to reach its first destination.
Bell's tone and expression unknowingly relaxed.
Not having seen a single Honkai Beast along the way gave him a new sense of confidence about the smoothness of the trip.
"Bang!"
Just then.
A muffled bang echoed out, along with the sound of brakes screeching from behind!
"Hey!"
"Pino, what's wrong!"
Bell immediately picked up the walkie-talkie—fortunately, the annoying static didn't last more than a few seconds before a reassuring voice came from the other end:
"It's nothing!"
Old Pino's voice held no anxiety.
"Looks like something punctured a tire. You guys go on ahead, I'll have it fixed in a jiffy!"
"Make it quick."
Bell felt a weight lift from his chest.
"I can already see the Gathering... Point..."
As the convoy leader, Bell had already driven the lead truck to the top of the sand dune.
However, his relaxed tone came to an abrupt halt.
The situation not far off was completely different from what he had imagined.
There was no cooking smoke at all; the firelight and smoke faintly visible hundreds of meters away were the traces of wooden shacks and makeshift canvas tents burning fiercely.
Men's roars, women's screams.
And gunshots, made exceptionally clear as the engines gradually idled down, all echoed within the "canyon" marked on the map.
Indeed, there was no threat from Honkai Beasts here.
But the presence of some things was, for humans, more despicable and hateful than Honkai Beasts—
"Bandits!"
"Vroom!!"
While shouting a warning into the walkie-talkie, Bell immediately turned the key to restart the engine!
But it was too late.
"Bang!" xN
The sound of definitely large-caliber gunfire echoed through the wilderness.
As the vehicle shook violently, its thick, sturdy tires were shot out one by one in a short period!
"Get out of the truck!"
Bell's mind was still clear.
Although he didn't know where these bandits got their information, since they hadn't destroyed the trucks directly but had targeted the tires, their objective was undoubtedly the cargo.
The goods couldn't be saved.
But at least the people still had a chance to survive!
Seeing Ange in the co-driver's seat frozen in fear, Bell roared at his niece again, startling the dazed girl awake—
"Run!!"
Bell yanked open the truck door and, stepping onto the somewhat soft sand, charged out...
"Bang!"
"Thump."