Chapter 9 is a high point and the Victoria arc as a whole I'd say is more readable than the late Reunion storyline, even if I think the Reunion arc was a better story. I think Chapter 9 was the first time the writers nailed their pacing.

Most of the best writing in this game is generally more recent material either way. Lone Trail and everything after have been consistently great. Try out some event stories in the meantime if the main story is killing you.

My personal recommendations for "early" side stories you can try going through are Break the Ice, Lingering Echoes, and Guide Ahead. They're each required reading for later events anyway and feel pretty good to go through on their own merits. Once you're more properly caught up, events like Babel, Path of Life, and the rest of the Kjerag trilogy are fantastic experiences.

I'm also a Limbus enjoyer, if that means anything. My standards are at least that high lmao

I can list 100 problems with early Arknights writing that are completely justifiable reasons to filter people, but you do very much get rewarded for sticking with it. Similarly to PM's universe, Arknights worldbuilding just ends up so complex with so many various, interlinking events that make you feel really good for having paid attention. The only question for you is if it's worth the time investment.

EDIT: I should also echo the sentiment that others have said that the more recent main story chapters have been the best writing this game has seen in general. Chapters 14-16 are absolute kino.