death of hope

Chapter 1028 "Psionic Storm" (102) Night of Revelry

"Have you considered that with such a large table of wine, fruit, and snacks, two meal tickets alone wouldn't be enough to cover the bill?"

As Nikolai spoke, he patted Paul on the shoulder and gestured for him to look at the box opposite:
“Throughout the day we sat down, those rich women have been staring at you.”

Paul swallowed hard, and Nikolai put his arm around his shoulder and continued, "Slavic blond heartthrobs are very popular at the host clubs in New Sapporo~"

"Hey handsome young man, come join us in our private room!"

Following the direction from which the sound of the clip came, Paul was so frightened by what he saw that he shuddered.

A wealthy woman, three times his weight, was winking at him, her chubby face and fiery red lips seeming to say, "Come on, handsome young man, I'll take care of you~"

Ando Hideaki laughed and toasted Paul: "To our god of the cowherd, our third meal ticket!"

"What?! I'm not a gigolo..." Paul turned his back, awkwardly avoiding the rich woman's burning gaze.

“My little brother Ando is toasting you!” Nicolai shouted a reminder.

"Uh, sorry, Ando-kun, I don't want to drink alcohol, so I'll return the favor with a cola..."

“You are Ling Island, you call the shots~” Ando didn’t mind, clinked glasses with Paul’s Coke can, and drank it all in one gulp.

·
Everyone had a blast tonight, except for Paul, who was bored.

Like playing miniature golf, they listlessly poked at the genetically modified cherries in the fruit bowl with a fork.

This place was too noisy, too dazzling, and too vulgar. Paul felt out of place and began to miss the parties at the base.

A commotion erupted from the next private room, apparently from someone blowing out birthday candles. Paul glanced over and saw a strangely dressed second-generation rich kid swing his arm and slam a large piece of cream cake onto the face of his companion, who was wearing a birthday hat.

This scene brought Pavel Korchagin's discomfort to its peak, and a nameless anger suddenly surged to his head.

For Paul, a second-generation Red Army scion accustomed to a Spartan-style ascetic life and raised in the revolutionary base, the nightclubs of Shin-Sapporo were a completely foreign planet, even a foreign universe. Their extravagance and decadent lifestyle were incomprehensible to him.

The workers in the base area constantly suffered from stomach aches from eating wild vegetable roots, turnips, and rotten potatoes; the guerrillas drank bitter well water; and the incidence of kidney stones remained high. Any sense of ritual other than survival was a luxury. If a child in the base area could receive a small piece of cream cake on their birthday, they would be excited for months.

In a nightclub in Shin-Sapporo, a 'Lady M' chocolate ice cream cake, which cost the equivalent of half a year's food for a family in their base, was used as a prank, thrown at someone's face with a cream cannonball, trampled on the ground, and swept away by a cleaner and thrown into a trash can.

Paul could not accept such boundless extravagance and waste; he clenched his fists, wanting to punch someone.

"Never mind, Pavlusha, it's just a piece of cake~" Tonya saw through her boyfriend's thoughts at a glance and advised, "You said it yourself, we're about to take action, don't cause trouble."

Paul sighed and loosened his fist: "I hate this city..."

Just as Paul was about to get up and go out for some fresh air, Ando Shuichi took a big gulp of alcohol, emboldened by the liquor, and mustered the courage to stand up and reach out to Takiya Rimi:

“Takiya-nee, could you… do me the honor of dancing a song…” “Let’s go!” Takiya Rimi didn’t even think twice before grabbing the other woman and rushing onto the dance floor. She was almost knocked off Ando’s glasses. Although Takiya occasionally had a crush on someone, she was still rational when it came to feelings.

"That shy kid Ando is finally going to confess his feelings~ Haha~" Nikolai's smile had a kind of old-fashioned kindness to it. He was genuinely happy for his subordinate, like an old man watching a young couple get married.

·
Under the dazzling lights of the disco ball, Rimi Takiya danced a bold Latin dance, while Shuichi Ando couldn't keep up at all, awkwardly twisting and turning like a pitiful little follower.

"These two have completely different personalities, yet they managed to get along..." Tonya looked on with envy and reached out her hand to Paul;
"Come on, Pavlusha, let's dance a little dance too."

"I just danced to several songs, my legs are sore."

"I don't care! I have to dance another song!"

Donya pouted, taking advantage of her drunkenness to throw a little tantrum; "Also, you lost at cards just now, and according to the rules of the base's party, you have to go on stage and perform a show!"

"Okay, okay, a bet's a bet... Can you let me catch my breath...?"

Having said that, Paul shifted his gaze to the corner of the box, where the Eldar Tristana Darkmoon was huddled up like a pitiful vagrant.

No one invites him to dance, perhaps because they think human games are too intellectually taxing, and he never plays cards either.

His pale hand clutched a bottle of Jack Daniel's whiskey, his face full of sorrow, as he silently drank alone, muttering the name of his daughter, Evelyn Darkmoon.

"Old Cui, you never drink, why did you break your vow today?" Paul asked.

"Huh? Are you calling me...?"

Drizzt flinched, and the bottle crashed to the ground, shattering into pieces. Glass shards flew far away. Drizzt looked embarrassed, like a child caught doing something wrong by his parents.

"I was just lost in thought..."

Soon a waiter came with a mop to clean up, and Paul stared at the shards of glass on the floor:

"Old Cui, you've been seeming distracted lately, are you alright?"

"Uh...maybe I was too tired from the previous mission and overused my psionic energy...I'm not feeling well..." Drizzt lied.

As a veteran of the 'Gruu', Drizzt made countless contributions to the organization and saved countless lives of fellow Zers. This alien was indifferent to fame and fortune and did not rise to the organization's high-level positions but remained at the grassroots level. Paul and Nikolai both trusted him completely.
"Thank you for your hard work, Lao Cui,"

As the new alpha wolf of the 'GRU', despite his cold and stern demeanor, Paul is actually a warm-hearted man who cares deeply about the health of his subordinates.

He promised, "Old Cui, after this is all over, I'll give you a long vacation, or you can retire if necessary."

"Thank you... I'm just tired..." Drizzt's voice was hoarse, his eyes bloodshot.
Seemingly filled with the weariness of a century of insomnia, Paul couldn't see the unease and guilt hidden in his eyes, and so he didn't suspect anything.