New Eridu, Outer Ring.
Across the desolate desert plains, the battered road—ravaged by wind and sand—lay in a state of disrepair, and vehicles traveling it were few and far between.
Countless Companion Hollows were scattered across this wasteland, and the people living here had no knowledge of how to extract ether energy. Most could only survive by relying on outdated energy sources.
This was the outer ring of New Eridu. Because of the terrain, the Security officers couldn't maintain control over the region, turning it into a haven for outlaws and lawless factions.
Chaos, crime, and slaughter—these words were synonymous with the outer ring. In this lawless land, strength was the only truth that mattered.
The ones ruling this region were biker gangs. They were the de facto authorities, made up of people from all walks of life who had eventually banded together into numerous factions.
Some of these groups were weak, barely able to scrape by. Others were powerful enough to control vital resources—like oil—and dictate the rules of survival here.
In this brutal system of the strong preying on the weak, getting into one of the powerful gangs meant you didn't have to worry about safety or daily necessities.
At that moment, along a dusty road through the desert...
Five speeding motorcycles tore across the cracked asphalt. As the view pulled back, it revealed the riders: several young women and a composed-looking man riding with them.
"Bernice! Don't let that guy get away!" shouted a woman riding second in the formation.
The lead rider—a woman with golden short hair, clad in a red-and-black outfit—looked back over her shoulder. Her crimson eyes glowed like flames, and her presence radiated like the midday sun.
"Relax, Caesar! Leave it to me!" she called back with a confident grin.
Facing forward again, she gripped the throttle tightly—and in the next instant, a burst of actual fire erupted from the jet exhaust of her bike.
This wasn't some high-temperature gas. It was real, roaring flame.
Supercharged by the blast, her already blazing speed shot up another notch. At this velocity, a single fall could easily mean death.
But bikers raised in the outer ring didn't worry about things like that.
Within seconds, Bernice had closed in on the fugitive biker ahead.
Clearly, when it came to riding skill, the thief couldn't compare. Even as she closed the gap, Bernice had time to shout, "Hey, you! Better hand back what you stole—or Caesar won't go easy on you!"
The man didn't respond—he just gunned the engine harder in a desperate bid to escape.
But as a newcomer to the outer ring, there was no way he could outrun someone like Bernice, a seasoned veteran.
"Damn it! Are all you Sons of Calydon bloodhounds or what? It's just a few barrels of oil—why are you clinging to me like leeches?!"
Seeing that escape was impossible, the man flew into a rage. He grabbed the oil barrels tied to his bike and hurled them backward with all his might.
"You want it? Take it back, then!"
The barrels shot through the air like rockets. But the women behind him, quick-eyed and steady-handed, caught them one by one—even at high speed.
"Well now, that was the last thing I was worried about," Bernice said cheerfully, flashing a brilliant smile as the barrels were safely recovered.
Then, under the panicked gaze of the thief, she calmly raised a flamethrower.
"Next time, don't steal from the Sons of Calydon."
With that, a torrent of fire erupted from the barrel of her weapon, instantly engulfing the man and his bike in a blazing inferno.
A bloodcurdling scream echoed across the desert until both rider and machine plummeted into a nearby Companion Hollow. Even if he survived the flames, his fate would almost certainly be that of corruption—becoming one of the Ethereal.
With the thief eliminated, the five bikers pulled over and began inspecting the oil barrels for damage.
In the outer ring, oil was everything—your lifeline. There was a saying: You might not have power, but you'd better have fuel. That was how you survived in this harsh land.
"Piper, get all this oil back to base. And this time, no screw-ups," Caesar ordered the youngest of the group.
The girl she addressed—Piper—was a character added to the game at launch. If Zhong Yan were here, he would've recognized her instantly.
"Yeah... got it..." Piper yawned and stretched. She looked visibly worn out, just like her in-game counterpart.
At that moment, a handsome young man stepped forward, taking the barrel from her arms.
"I'll handle it. No need to let Piper do the heavy lifting," he said as he adjusted his sunglasses, flashing a dazzling smile.
This was Lighter—the only male among the core members of the Sons of Calydon. Due to certain circumstances, he had recently been stripped of his original responsibilities... by none other than their leader, Caesar.
"Look at you being all helpful for once. Fine. You and Piper get the oil back. As for the rest of us—we need to find out who sent that guy after us," Caesar said, her tone darkening.
Lately, several factions in the outer ring had been stirring restlessly. Rumors said a wave of criminals had fled from New Eridu, giving these groups a sudden boost in manpower—and confidence.
For what it was worth, many of those exiles had tried to join the Sons of Calydon.
None had passed the test.
The person who set that brutal benchmark? None other than the gang's second-in-command—Lucy, the proud heiress determined to one day surpass Caesar and lead the organization herself.