Okabe Hajime stood before the ITA Workshop.
He blinked at the surreal building in front of him. "Such a place exists?" he muttered under his breath.
The man beside him smirked. "Yup. And I'm the boss here. Come on."
From the outside, it looked like a standard industrial warehouse tucked behind an abandoned train yard. Rusted signs. Cracked asphalt. A cat watching from atop a dented shipping container. But the moment he stepped past the heavy sliding door, the world peeled open.
Inside was infinity.
Glowing highways twisted in the air like celestial spaghetti. Trucks of all shapes and sizes floated in docking stations. Entire construction platforms drifted lazily through dimensional space. The deeper his eyes tried to follow, the more impossible the space became — it was alive, humming with diesel and raw dimensional energy.
"Welcome to the Workshop," said the manager, voice echoing beside him. "This node connects to every known dimensional highway in the multiverse. Every truck passes through here eventually — for repairs, fueling, or memory purging."
Hajime couldn't speak.
"This way."
They walked past glowing pit stops, energy-fueling zones with swirling vortexes of blue flame instead of gas pumps. Robots — or maybe humans in suits — welded parts to airborne haulers. A whole section was dedicated to truck customization: it looked like a madhouse, with mechanical limbs, glowing truck skins, and a wild-eyed girl with goggles shouting at a sentient wrench.
"That's Omi," said the manager. "Don't ask too many questions. She built half these rigs from scratch."
Eventually, they stopped in front of a black truck.
It sat dormant, scarred with a single massive dent in the front — the fatal impact.
"This one belonged to Driver #86. You'll be inheriting it."
"Do I get to name it?" Hajime asked softly.
The manager gave a small smile. "Only after the ritual."
Truck Inheritance Ritual
A glowing platform rose beneath his feet. A ring of symbols — part mechanical, part arcane — shimmered around the truck. The system's voice chimed in:
[Initializing Dimensional Binding... Standby.]
The truck shuddered.
For a brief moment, Hajime felt something push back. Not physically — emotionally. The truck remembered its last driver. Pain. Loyalty. Loss. He winced as a vision flashed across his mind: a burning road, a final mission, a scream.
[Driver Registration Accepted. Welcome, Hajime Okabe. Truck #86 is now bound to you.]
The glow dimmed. The keys floated toward him — shaped like twin cylinders engraved with runes. As he reached out—
[Error Detected... Scanning DE Signature...]
[.....]
[Issue Resolved. Proceeding.]
The manager frowned.
Tutorial: Welcome to the System
The moment Hajime touched the keys, a bubbly GPS-like voice popped into his ears.
[Hello, Driver! 🚛 Welcome to your Initialization Tutorial. I'm D.I.N.A — Dimensional Interface Navigation Assistant. Let's get you licensed, skilled, and back on the road! 💨]
"…This is our system?" Hajime muttered.
"Yes," said the manager without flinching. "She grows on you."
"Eventually."
[Tutorial 1: Skill Imprint. Please proceed to the Test Track.]
The test track was its own floating island — a strip of road that curved into void. Three glowing gates hovered at intervals.
"Step in," said the assistant.
Gate One: Stealth.
Hajime gripped the wheel. The moment he activated the skill, the entire truck shimmered — and vanished.
[Skill Confirmed: Stealth – Cloaking active.]
He passed the first gate.
Gate Two: Masquerade.
Illusions. He blinked, and suddenly the track was full of traffic — honking, screeching, all fake. But real enough to test his nerves. He drove through like a ghost.
[Skill Confirmed: Masquerade – Illusory Projections active.]
Gate Three: Analyze.
This wasn't supposed to be part of the test. But as his eyes locked onto a floating orb nearby — a soul being processed for isekai transfer — everything changed.
[Analyzing Entity... Processing DE Signature...]
⚠️ Unauthorized Memory Channel Accessed. Logging anomaly…
He gasped. A voice.
Whispering. Ancient. Familiar. A soft chant — words he couldn't understand but that knew him. The truck's interface flickered.
Then, silence.
The system recovered.
[Skill Confirmed: Analyze – Latent information recognition active.]
Far above, back in the main node, the manager looked at his screen.
"…That's not normal," he muttered.
New Driver Assignment
"Yo!"
A cheerful voice called out as Hajime stepped off the platform. A young man with messy hair, bright eyes, and a ridiculously shiny ITA badge jogged over.
"This your first run? I'm Rin! They told me to be your wingman for a bit."
Hajime studied him carefully.
"Nice to meet you."
"Man, you're lucky. Getting a bound truck right away? Must be crazy DE on you. Sometimes I wish I had that kind of spark, y'know?" Rin laughed nervously.
"…But anyway, you'll do great. I can feel it. Just don't mess up too bad or…"
He leaned in, smiling.
"They say if you mess up big, the Instructors come for you. No second chances."
Something in that smile wasn't friendly.
A ping in Hajime's mind.
[Analyze Result: Subject Rin – Ulterior Intent Detected. Masking Emotional Output.]
Hajime narrowed his eyes.
"Good to know," he said.
And the truck behind him rumbled to life.
End of Chapter 2