NOVEL WEB Chapter 156 - Death From Above
Chapter 156 Death From Above
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Even after the game ended, the aftermath lasted quite a while, leaving viewers frustrated.
This wasn’t just true for the busy teams or the ICARUS branches and advertisers. It also affected the twenty selected players who were supposed to be resting.
“Hey, why are you just staring at your phone when you’re here to hang out?”
“I’m watching ads, ads. Aren’t these shoes nice? We have so many sponsors and ads coming in that it’s overwhelming. Should I ask if they can send more so we can share?”
“Oh, that’s awesome… Wait, you have a shrimp allergy. You have to decline this one.”
“That’s right.”
Each of the twenty had their own struggles, likes, and dislikes. Because there were twenty of them, their preferences varied greatly.
Thus, advertisements like shoes, gloves, and other items, which had individual differences, required approval from ICARUS, the teams, and ultimately the players. The recent food sponsorship was an example.
Even ICARUS and the teams didn’t monitor every aspect of the players’ personal lives, especially when it came to preferences. Hence, a situation like this occurred. What might be acceptable to most could be declined by a particular player.
This issue also varied by gender and physical conditions.
An example of this was:
“Hey! Who sent every pants advertisement offer to Yoo Jin without checking? Are you out of your mind? Are you going to spend your own money to alter and repackage them before sending them out again?”
“Oh, sorry! I’ll resend the emails with the confidentiality agreement and the players’ physical conditions included. Once we get responses, I’ll narrow down the list of companies that agree to the conditions and send a detailed email.”
“Submit it by 3 PM. If you’re sleepy, drink a glass of water and get back to work. Your salary comes from managing the players. Pay attention to every detail.”
“Yes, understood.”
This situation was one of the better ones.
Yoo Jin was one of only a handful of EM-level manifesters worldwide, and almost the only one in South Korea. Many people didn’t even know such individuals existed.
So, even though the message was sent incorrectly, the fortunate part was that the recipient didn’t check it because she was streaming. After resending the emails past 3 PM, they were finally relieved.
Fortunately, such mistakes weren’t frequent, and female players were listed separately. Of course, the national team only had Yoo Jin and Dice as female players, with two more in the preliminary ranks at 33rd and 27th.
The advertisements and sponsorships tailored to each player were directly distributed to the teams or players, and it took several steps to get approval.
Counting the national team of 20 and 20 more in reserve, it totaled 40. Adding the headaches from preparing for the KTM, the workload and timeline increased further.
In addition to sponsorships and ads, there were TV interviews, pre-briefing hall rentals for the Asia preliminaries, and coordination with branches in Japan, China, Taiwan, and Russia.
These people earned as much in three days as others did in a month for a reason.
Meanwhile, Yoo Jin couldn’t avoid this situation either.
“Advertisements, huh…”
Up until now, whether intentionally or not—actually, it didn’t matter if it was intentional or not—she hadn’t revealed her real appearance. But the higher up she went, the harder it would be to hide.
Moreover, the finals would require her to travel to the US due to ping issues, meaning she had to go herself. Numerous interviews would follow. Anyway, that’s how it felt.
It wasn’t particularly burdensome. If it had been, she wouldn’t have promised Harmony in reality. So now, she just thought of it as the borderline.
Of course, not everything would be disclosed. It would likely only be revealed to those participating in the Asia preliminaries. Even if she didn’t mention it, a non-disclosure order would likely be issued.
In reality, it would probably be discussed before leaving for the finals. Anyway, it seemed like everyone would be happy. Come to think of it, some people even shot vlogs. Maybe she’d do the same for commemoration if she traveled.
It wasn’t a serious suggestion. She was the type to handle minor details as they arose, having only a rough outline.
Anyway, that was secondary.
“Coach. I think we can resume now, should we rest a bit more?”
“Harmony, you reveal your true self later.”
“Oh, hehe.”
“Let’s start. We’re almost there.”
The mission to establish the Tidal Basin Forward Operating Base.
In other words, it was nearing the end. Being the second-to-last mission, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say it could end today. Plus, the final mission was connected, so there was no need to split it rigidly.
So, they finally reached this point. The main mission, which had dragged on for over a month, was finally concluding. Except for the tutorial-like UN General Assembly, every difficulty was fixed at very hard, and the only players were her and Harmony.
There were tournaments in between, making it lengthy.
It was time to put a period on everything.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes!”
After checking their firearms, ensuring the thickly padded ammunition and grenade pouches were secure, and confirming nothing was missing, they started the mission.
From far-off New York, all available aircraft and amphibious assault ships dropped cargo and combatants. As containers landed at Ronald Reagan Airport, they separated, revealing automated assembly machines one by one.
However, it was impossible to avoid losses due to the remaining air defenses. Anti-aircraft guns, like whips, decorated the air, occasionally filled with SAMs. Flares discharged from the aircraft lit up the sky brightly.
The missiles and anti-aircraft guns were fired from across the river and from far-off places like the U.S. Congress, Roosevelt Island, and Arlington, areas we hadn’t been able to touch yet.
In short, they had hurriedly brought in LAV-ADs and other equipment from somewhere to desperately fill the massive gaps in their defense. The remaining anti-air defenses were because of these.
All of this was due to the fragmented U.S. military, which had turned into warlords because of the Omega Virus.
Meanwhile, an enormous cold snap, the likes of which hadn’t been seen in decades.
The insane temperature that wouldn’t rise above -25 degrees Celsius had frozen Tidal Basin solid, where anti-aircraft guns and SAMs were deployed.
It was an ice sheet, utterly unsuitable for operating tracked or wheeled military vehicles, but they had placed them there as if they had no intention of retrieving them later.
As I observed, a voice continued.
[ISO: The anti-aircraft guns and SAMs are distracted elsewhere. Anyway, good news. Due to the previous neutralization of the air defenses, higher-ups believe this level of anti-air defense is enough to support aerial firepower.]
[ISO: We will send the MQ-20 Avenger. Thanks to the engineers’ hard work, we could attach four additional CBU-110s to the external weapon bays. Although the RCS value increased significantly, we hope you use them all before getting shot down.]
[ISO: The callsign is Skyfire. As I mentioned, it carries eight cluster bombs. Please don’t hit the landmarks. I’d prefer to see them intact.]
[ISO: I have sent the GRG reference chart for the operational area. The current standby airspace is Lima. Good luck.]
Firepower support! Firepower support! Firepower support! Firepower support! Firepower support! Firepower support!!!!!
Are you showing the 9-Line? Are you showing the 9-Line? Are you showing the 9-Line? Are you showing the 9-Line? Are you showing the 9-Line? Are you showing the 9-Line? Are you showing the 9-Line?
Oh my god, I feel like I’m going to come already!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No way, if you neutralize the air defenses, you get stuff like this? Was it a linked mission???
Fire falling from the sky!!!!
“Wow! 9-Line! Should I bring popcorn?”
“…Do as you wish, do as you wish.”
Alright.
It was time to roll my tongue once again.
“Skyfire, this is Alpha 1. I will verify readability.”
[ISO: This is Skyfire. Readability is good. I will designate the frequency. Switch to 3.7.3.]
“Switching to frequency 3.7.3. Readability check confirmed.”
[ISO: Readability is good. Mission number 0466. Air support time is 50 minutes. The targeting pod is AN/DAS-1 MTS-B. The abort code is Firestorm.]
“Mission number 0466, air support time 50 minutes. Abort code Firestorm. Received. I will update the battlefield situation.”
Oh my god, I’ve been wanting to see this!!!!!!!!
His English pronunciation is so artistic ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
Damn, I was listening in a daze and spilled beer on my pants damn damn damn damn
This is legendary, seriously ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
But do we really have to go this far?ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
Sigh.
When I exhaled, a plume of cold breath erupted.
Lately, I’ve been climbing the Washington Monument often. The high elevation provided an excellent vantage point. Methods like attaching a drone to the barrel and firing it into the air to scout the surroundings were effective.
The difference from last time was that Harmony was climbing with me today. She was tasked with sniping in case of any MANPAD threats. I wasn’t sure if there were still forces left. Could she aim at a dot 10km high?
Anyway, I continued speaking.
“The target locations are Section 6 ANC, the entire EPP, USC, and TRI. Friendly positions are on top of WM. Currently, they are over 800 meters away from all targets. No clouds. Do not fly below 25,000FT. Requesting Type 1. Are you ready for the 9-Line?”
[ISO: This is Skyfire. Ready for the 9-Line.]
“Approach from IP Bluemont. Direction 90. Distance 3.3. Elevation 42. Multiple infantry and LAV-AD, SAM. DK 424866. Lines 7,8 N/A. Continue to loiter in that airspace.”
[ISO: Received. Confirming target values. Approaching from the north to the south at direction 10, will loiter upon reaching IP Bluemont… Damn, bombing the graves of our ancestors, this is awful. The code for weapon release is Steel Rain. Did you confirm?]
“Confirmed.”
Hyeeeung Hyeeeung Hyeeeung Hyeeeung……….
Ahhhh Noona, I’m dying from tactical excitement ㅅㅅㅅㅅㅅ
Damn, the bombing site is a national cemetery ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
Isn’t this true disrespect to the deceased?????
Look at these guys being ruthless ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
DK 424866, or Section 6 ANC.
Arlington National Cemetery.
Today, I didn’t need to specify the exact location. Because all the bombing targets were landmarks in the U.S. capital.
The enemies had gathered their remaining forces at places like Roosevelt Island, Arlington National Cemetery, East Potomac Park, and the U.S. Capitol. No wonder Skyfire was dumbfounded coming to bomb these places.
Meanwhile, glancing at Harmony,
“Wow…!”
“…What’s wrong?”
“You’re really cool. Do you know how many times I’ve watched this on replay? I even saved this part as a clip on Yourspace.”
“…”
Sigh, seriously.
Anyway, there was something more important left to say.
“Skyfire, this is Alpha 1. Before entering the IP to attack NN 722216 and NN 762001, give me a heads up. I will guide you precisely with a laser.”
[ISO: This is Skyfire. Confirmed. Reaching IP Bluemont. Entering from the northeast. Identified bombing location, confirmed target values.]
“Alpha 1 to Skyfire. You are cleared to engage.”
[ISO: Skyfire to Alpha 1, Steel Rain. Approaching the second IP in 20 seconds.]
Steel Rain, the code for weapon release, confirmed.
At the same time, I shifted my gaze across the Potomac River.
One cluster bomb dropped from the sky, scattering like glitter bursting in the air. The next moment, a massive explosion echoed, even audible from several kilometers away, turning everything to ashes.
If this footage were uploaded to Yourspace, viewers from the U.S. would be horrified. Arlington National Cemetery had been utterly destroyed.
Though checking the BDA (Bomb Damage Assessment) wasn’t necessary, I did it out of habit. Seeing the enemy strength indicator on the UI drop from 100% to around 70% confirmed the hit.
It was time to clear the largest central area.
The process was the same, but this time there were two coordinates. The vast area of East Potomac Park required a thorough sweep of the clustered enemies. After launching a drone and recalculating the coordinates, two CBU-110 bombs sliced through the air.
───Boom! Boom!
“Oh, the wind reached here…!”
“That’s just because the wind is strong right now… ugh, it’s cold. Standing still, it’s colder than I thought….”
“Wow! Chubby Anaconda, ahhhh!”
“Whose fault do you think that is?”
One of my weird nicknames, Chubby Anaconda, was coined by this person. As she wrapped her tail around my neck and shook it, a strange noise escaped my mouth.
Harmony’s neck was warm in many ways.
Anyway, the chat went wild at every little thing.
ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
Look at her balancing fun and tactics ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
Oh, it’s falling!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wow, Yoo Jin noona wrapping her neck with her tail? That’s a high-level play ㅜㅑ…….
No, don’t ruin the cool tactical Anaconda image we just had ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
Sigh.
Anyway, after several minutes, the MQ-20 Avenger, which had been gliding for a while, dumped all remaining bombs, turning East Potomac Park, Tidal Basin, the U.S. Capitol, and Roosevelt Island into rubble before returning for rearmament.
In the meantime, a donation came in.
Normally, the goal is to teleport around for two hours and manually clean up all remaining forces ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
“SapsapKimSapsap, ah. SapsapKimSapsem, thank you for the donation. Usually, the clever lazy people know how to make their lives easier.”
Of course ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
CleverO LazyX
The most diligent person here talking ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
Your jokes are funny today, Yoo Jin. // Copy and delete up to here
Oh my ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
Sigh, these unruly people.
Anyway, it was time to descend. ISO’s familiar voice came through.
[ISO: Well, it’s time for the grand finale. Let’s head to the White House and see what’s going on.]
There was no response.
Finally, the time had come to put an end to the main mission.
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