death of hope

Chapter 1051 "Psionic Storm" (124) A Cunning Old Man
29th, night,
In the heart of New Sapporo, on Second Street, a location some distance from the floats;
The parade convoy suddenly stopped.

"What happened over there with the floats? It was too far away to see clearly."

"I heard from them that someone shot at the senator; there was an assassin."

"Shino Tsunesaki...did that old woman get her head blown off?"

"I don't know, the floats were surrounded by bodyguards, so we couldn't see them."

"Even if she wasn't shot in the head, that old woman who was injured is definitely going to die. She's so old."

"Who cares if she's dead or alive? She promised a free McDonald's meal when I came! I don't want to come all this way for nothing!"

"Haha, that's well said. Even if we're going to die, let's finish giving out free fast food before we die!"

In the violent city of Shin-Sapporo, shootings are commonplace, and coupled with the economic crisis, public opinion is largely negative towards the inactive Z-men.

People were not flustered at all, with the mentality of watching the show and not caring about the situation. Some conservative (Red D) supporters wearing red hats even made sarcastic noises and boos.
"Good! The old lady Shiye is kicking her own grave and going to meet the King of Hell! The Green Party is finished! Long live Duke Donald! Long live the Red Party!"

·
Suddenly, someone shouted, "Look over at that unfinished building! Flames! There's gunfire!"

"There are more assassins!" someone shouted through a pre-prepared megaphone. "It's a large-scale attack! Like 9/11!"

"Ouch! I'm doomed! I'm going to die! I'm going to die!" Someone let out an exaggerated, shrill, and distorted scream.

Someone was deliberately stirring up trouble, and the public started to panic as they looked around. At that moment, without any warning, someone fired a shot into the air, the sound coming from several hundred meters away.

A thunderous gunshot rang out, like the starting gun in a track and field competition.

Suspicion and fear spread rapidly outwards from the float like a bomb shockwave.

One second the people were jubilantly receiving free fast food, the next they were a pack of beasts trampling and tearing each other apart.

Screams erupted as onlookers scattered and fled, trying to escape the scene of chaos.
With over 100,000 people surging like a tidal wave, the colonial sheriff was utterly unable to maintain order, and all security lines were breached.

Second Avenue is an eight-lane road in both directions, with sidewalks and green belts. It is spacious enough and has many high-rise buildings and branching alleys.

The space is ample enough for over 100,000 people to pass through quickly and then be 'diverted' to other safe areas of the city. Even without crowd control, there is no risk of overcrowding or stampedes.

But at that very moment, a bizarre operation that defied common sense occurred.
A group of federal agents set up roadblocks on the road, used large construction vehicles as walls to block the crowd, locked the entrances of shopping malls along the street, and blocked alleys and alleys with iron plates.

The once spacious passageway was narrowed into a funnel.

People could only escape through narrow gaps between the blocked vehicles or break windows to get a breather in the shops along the street, but this was a drop in the ocean; the space was simply not enough to evacuate more than 100,000 people.

The more crowded it is, the more panic grows, and the scene becomes chaotic.

The holographic image was interfered with by the signal, emitting a piercing electronic sound; various sounds intertwined together.
Screams, cries, curses, the cracking sound of bones breaking—someone tried to climb up the drainpipe, only to be pulled back and trampled by the ankles by others.

The casualties were heavy...

What was originally just a senator's show turned into a chaotic free-for-all.
In stark contrast to the chaos and disorder on the streets, the senator's bodyguard team seemed to have been well-prepared.

They calmly deployed their troops and erected multiple shield walls to protect the floats.

Inside the shield wall, inside a missile launcher-converted float, the spacious cargo hold was filled with their own people.
The senator no longer needed to put on a populist act. He simply tossed aside the cheap necklace, replaced it with a priceless "Heart of the Ocean" necklace, lit a "Seven Stars" cigarette, and calmly asked:
"How's it going outside?"

"Successfully, everything is proceeding according to your plan." The secretary nodded and bowed.

"A detailed report."

“Our plainclothes agents stirred up panic in the crowd, then opened fire to cause a commotion and flee. Federal agents set up roadblocks to intercept them, causing a massive stampede. Judging from the situation, at least several thousand people will die.”

"The more people die, the better, since it'll all be on the Red Party's tab anyway~"

The senator's seemingly kind smile now appeared particularly eerie;

"Are the media outlets ready?"

The secretary nodded: "It's ready. XNN, MSNBC, the New Sapporo Times, and hundreds of other media outlets have all received the articles we provided. They will go all out to spread the story and portray the incident as being orchestrated by the Red Party."

"We have to thank Paul and his gang of G-society bastards for using them as pawns. This scandal of assassinating our political opponent, even if it can't bring down that old guy Donald right away, will be enough to give the Red Party a hard time."

If they can't clear their name, then under immense pressure, we'll have a chance in next month's House elections. Our Green Party will definitely have a majority, and the Senate will bow down to us.

The secretary bowed deeply in the Japanese style: "Congratulations in advance, Lord Shiye. You are about to hold immense power and become the true 'Empress' of the Terra Federation."

"Oh, your words are sweet as honey, thank you for your kind words~"

"Oh, right, there's something I haven't told you yet. We can't get in touch with Dr. Joseph, who provided us with the assassination intelligence. The Psionic Research Institute is locked up tight. We don't know what's going on inside. Should we send someone over to check it out?"

“No need to send anyone, just watch the show.” The senator smiled and shook his head. “I know what’s going on. Dr. Ryan Elson can’t wait to betray his mentor.”

The subordinates exchanged shocked glances, utterly incredulous: "How is this possible... those two aren't just ordinary master and apprentice... Ryan... he's like Joseph's godson..."

"What's so strange about it? There are plenty of cases of princes killing their rulers in history. Besides, this is just his godfather, not his biological son. Joseph is a bad-tempered old man with low emotional intelligence. He beats and scolds his students at the drop of a hat, showing them no respect whatsoever. The seeds of hatred have long been sown, and this is just the surface."

The senator flicked off his cigarette ash and continued:

"The deeper reason is that both Sakura and Sony, the two major Japanese conglomerates, have their eyes on 'Project Zero' and want to make a big splash in the field of psionic research. The two conglomerates are launching an offensive with money and women, trying to sow discord between the master and apprentice. It would be strange if the two didn't fight!"

The secretary scratched her head, puzzled, and asked, "Uh... sir... so which one should we cooperate with in the future?"

"Silly girl~ You've been following me for so long and still haven't learned it~" The senator smiled, raised his wrinkled, aged hand, and gently flicked the secretary's forehead:
"Just like a few years ago, when Tetsuya Yamagami, the young master of the 'Sanno-kai,' and Isao Kondo, the leader of the 'Kyokushin-gumi,' fought each other, here's what I did~"

"Sit on the mountain...watch the tigers fight..." the secretary replied, "and then collect the political tribute from the winning side..."

"That's right~"
It doesn't matter whether it's Joseph or Ryan, the one who survives will naturally come to pay protection money.