death of hope

Chapter 1045 "Psionic Storm" (118) Take Your Positions

Dazzling RGB neon lighting effects, sky-covering holographic projections, and retro synthesizer electronic music—this night is destined to be noisy.

In downtown Shin-Sapporo, the entire district was immersed in the frenzy of the parade.
A grand event that doesn't charge admission and even provides free drinks and snacks naturally attracts a large number of poor people from the downtown area to watch the excitement. The crowds fill the sidewalks and even deform the guardrails.

In stark contrast, the dilapidated building that symbolizes the hidden dangers of the capitalist world, the towering unfinished building that seems like a forgotten castle ruin, is avoided by lights and crowds, leaving only a huge, gloomy shadow.

·
On the 91st floor of the unfinished building, atop the scaffolding made of steel pipes and planks, a sniper hides under a tarpaulin, the massive barrel of a heavy electromagnetic sniper rifle protruding through the gaps in the tarpaulin, its dark muzzle visible.

The sniper's face was painted with shadow paint, and she was placed under two layers of thick kraft paper packaging from a Panasonic refrigerator. Her back was covered with camouflage netting from ruins. Her cheek was pressed against the cheek rest of the rifle stock, her eyes were pressed against the high-powered scope, and her right index finger hovered over the trigger guard.

Several hours passed, and Takiya Rimi remained motionless in that position. In fact, she had been lying in ambush at this firing point for a day already.
They eat and drink only concentrated fruit juice and compressed protein biscuits, and their feces and urine are all discharged into the biological enzyme degradation system built into their tactical pants. When they are sleepy, they lie down and take a nap. When they wake up, they rub their eyes, open the scope and observe their surroundings. Occasionally, they chew a piece of 'Wrigley' gum with added caffeine and taurine to keep themselves awake.

Perseverance and willpower are rare and excellent qualities, but they can only be considered basic skills for a sniper.
Rimi Takiya, who has won two Olympic shooting medals and has extensive combat experience, is a GOAT (top-level) sniper and an elite member of the 'GRU' special agents' of the commune organization.

Her previous targets were all small fry, but this mission filled her with a long-lost excitement. Only high-end prey deserved a top-tier hunter.

With the mission deadline fast approaching, no slackening was allowed; not even the slightest movement in the target area could escape her aim.

·
On the scaffold next to the sniper, the spotter, Dmitry, put down his Texas Instruments high-powered electronic telescope, rubbed his sore and stiff neck, and complained through his throat communicator:
"Damn, it feels like a stiff neck, my cervical spondylosis is about to flare up..."

Takiya Rimi's eyes never left the scope as she silently transmitted messages using her throat communicator;

"With your performance, you'll be eliminated by the instructors in the first round of the sniper assessment."

"I'm not a sniper!" Dimitri retorted indignantly; "Besides, you little brat, you're only a few years old. I'm old enough to be your father. When you get old, you'll have cervical spondylosis, rheumatism, and arthritis all coming your way."

"To be honest, Uncle Di, I don't think I'll live to see that day."

Rimi Takiya spoke in a relaxed tone, as if she were joking.

·
Dimitri shook his head, feeling helpless and sad, unsure of what to say. After a few seconds, to ease the awkwardness, he made conversation by saying:

"Hey Xiao Gu, we're less than five meters apart, I could smell your farts, why do we need this crappy throat communicator? We can just talk directly."

"Uncle Di, have you ever seen a hitman yelling that he's going to kill someone? I'm the sniper and you're the spotter. Since Director Zero has assigned you to my team, you have to obey my orders."

"Hmph, if it weren't for the boss insisting on this arrangement, I wouldn't want to be this damn observer. I've been stuck in this dilapidated 78 unfinished building for two days now, and I can't even go to the toilet. It's so frustrating."

·
The two were chatting idly when suddenly the magnetic voice of the operation commander, Pavel Korchagin, came through the channel:
"Sniper team, please speak."

"Received. As expected of Brother Paul, even his voice is so handsome~"

"Ahem... The convoy has entered Third Avenue. How are things going on your end?"

"It's so boring. We haven't spotted any enemy activity around this unfinished building, and there's not even a target to practice shooting at."

"Everything is fine, except that Ms. Takiya is wearing too many clothes; it makes me sleepy."

"Well…"

"Hahaha!"
First came Paul's helpless mutterings on the channel, then Sergei's gruff laughter, and finally Nikolai, the head of the New Sapporo branch, shouting furiously:

"You son of a bitch! Dmitri! You better be serious! Stop spouting nonsense!"

Dimitri said innocently, "Watch your manners, old Lai, why are you cursing like that?"

Sergei laughed and said, "The organization requires us to be serious yet lively. A joke is harmless. Next time we have a cooperative mission, let Takiya and Donya wear bikinis. It will effectively boost team morale."

"Hey! Paul! Control your men!" Nikolai's tone clearly indicated that he was about to lose his temper.

·
Paul sighed with a wry smile. Although he held a high position and was the most popular successor in the organization, he was too young and lacked charisma, which gave him a headache dealing with the unruly "veterans" under his command.
"Shut up, Lao Xie... Lao Lai's face's turned green with anger... Stop fooling around... Be serious... Ahem... How's it going with the technical team?"

The channel came through the voices of Donya and Ando Shuichi, who were trying not to laugh: "The path... haha... the path dynamic prediction model has been uploaded to the information terminal. The reconnaissance drone is working normally. Targets and high-threat units will be displayed in highlighted frames on the AR interface."

"Well done! How's it going with Lao Cui?"

A deep, hoarse voice came through the channel: "I'm on the first floor of the unfinished building...no threat detected...that's all for now..."

"Old Cui, unless absolutely necessary, don't use your abilities. The senator's bodyguard team has genetically modified psionic detection hounds."

"clear…"

"Everyone has worked hard. As the commander, I, Lao Xie, Lao Lai, and I are in position. Hopefully, we won't be needed..."

·
"You gentlemen, just relax and watch the show. Watch as I, your little sister, rip that old hag's skull off with a single sniper shot!"

"Tsk tsk, what a damn flick shot... You think you're playing Counter-Strike?"

"Little Gu! And Old Di! You two, stop messing around! We're on a mission! Don't talk about things unrelated to the mission in the channel!"

Nikolai sounded like he was about to explode with rage, so Paul quickly changed the subject: "Stop it, everyone... The convoy has entered Second Avenue, sniper team, be on alert."

"I see it. That float is really cool. The target is within range. The ballistic computer is ready. My sights are on the senator's head."

"Don't fire, there's a shield. The technical team is preparing to interfere."

"The electromagnetic pulse bomb is fully charged and the drone can be dropped on the target airspace at any time."

"Don't forget, there's also a physical shield inside the energy shield."

"It's okay, I have large-caliber depleted uranium armor-piercing incendiary rounds here. The 'self-sharpening' effect of depleted uranium, combined with the high initial velocity of the electromagnetic sniper rifle, will pierce through the armored vehicle. The incendiary warhead will directly turn that old senator's bones into roasted pig."

"666, Takiya is so confident! Look, Sisi's sniper team has taken care of the whole mission. We guys can just slack off and wait to get off work~"

"That would be perfect..."

·
On a pedestrian overpass on Second Avenue, amidst the crowds watching the parade of floats...

Paul Korchagin pulled up his coat collar, his bright blue eyes scanning the float carrying the senator, and thought anxiously:
(It's going too smoothly... I feel like... something's not quite right...)