The Start of Depression 8

Everything inside the Hollows was chaotic and disorderly. Without a Proxy or Carrot Data to guide him, Morel could only rely on luck to find his daughter.

Of course, with [Strong Luck] on his side, luck was also his only support.

Along the way, steel covered in dense Ether crystal clusters, rubble, and sand lay everywhere. Those terrifying Ethereals had yet to appear, but Ether corrosion was unavoidable.

As time passed, his breathing grew more and more labored, his vision began to blur, and it felt as though his entire body was slowly being wrapped up and permeated by a layer of grimy gray filth.

Yet he kept going, because he knew Claire must be waiting for the Starlight Knight to save her. And he was his daughter's hero—the Starlight Knight who would save her.

Just as his consciousness was about to fade into a haze, Morel suddenly saw something.

A glimmer of starlight flickered faintly in the distance.

Was that... a light?

The sudden discovery jolted Morel awake. Had he finally found her? He slowed his pace, keeping close to cover as he gradually approached the light.

It was a camp, with four or five tents set up inside. A road about two meters wide, wide enough for vehicles to pass through, stretched out from the camp and into the distance.

Several modified vehicles were parked in the open space, while Hollow Raiders—or people who looked like thugs—gathered in groups of two or three.

Some stood guard with weapons in hand, while others sat on cars with liquor bottles, chatting and laughing as they drank straight from the bottle.

Of course, that was not the important part. The important part was that several cages stood in one corner of the camp, holding children of various ages.

Morel's pupils suddenly