Chapter 71

Amidst the thunderous gunshots that echoed like deafening roars, Leon, clutching his beloved sniper rifle, strode briskly into the firing range of the Public Security Bureau, ready to rack up more badge points.

Since weapon regulations in the Capital City were pretty tight, truncheons and whips usually sufficed for most cases, so situations requiring firearms were rare. As a result, not many people practiced shooting regularly.

Plus, it being a rest day, the vast range only had three or five positions occupied, with the majority of shooting stations empty.

Empty is good~ Finally no need to queue up for the air reservoirs.

Satisfied, Leon glanced at the empty range, greeted the person responsible for checking guns and handing out ear muffs, then promptly settled down at a target position closest to the storage area with two large boxes of nails in hand.

Though he didn’t frequent the range due to limited free time, Leon was by no means negligent about his badge progression. He would usually come here after work, lying prone and shooting until the sun completely set.

Under his fairly diligent practice, he’d already completed more than half of the 5000 live-fire shots needed for the next level of the shooting badge. With just over two thousand more shots, which at an average rate of 2-3 snipes per minute, would take around thirteen to fourteen hours.

After roughly calculating his progress, Leon didn’t start shooting right away but first looked up at the sky.

Looks like it won’t rain either, so today I can probably shoot for seven or eight hours. After it gets dark, I’ll go home and help Anna pack our stuff, hire a carriage tomorrow morning to move everything to Happiness Apartment, then come back here to shoot for another four or five hours. That should be enough.

Hmm… Come to think of it, the Witch’s Broom malfunctioning couldn’t have come at a better time.

Because of the temporary lack of protective anomalous items, he wasn’t really available for missions, allowing him to come here during working hours to practice shooting. Plus, he could even arrive late in the morning without feeling guilty, using the opportunity to move house. Perfect~ After praising his own good luck internally, Leon wasted no more time and directly raised the little yellow flag representing 500 meters, waving it toward the administrator’s location.

“Ugh…”

Upon seeing the familiar yellow flag, the two administrators exchanged a glance before simultaneously sighed with resignation.

“Don’t just stand there staring, go fetch the targets already!”

The older administrator, squinting toward the figure at the sniper position and confirming it was indeed that troublesome guy, massaged his temples with a helpless expression: “Better bring a cart, you’ll need to carry them in bundles over here. Ugh… ‘Ricochet’ always shoots until sunset, and now he’s here so early, looks like we’re in for a long session.”

“I thought the same thing… ugh… Can you cover for me for a bit?”

Looking toward the distant figure adjusting his ear muffs and calibrating his weapon, the younger administrator couldn’t help but sigh deeply from the bottom of his heart, feeling incredibly unlucky.

…

“Ricochet” was the private nickname the range administrators gave to Leon, because after becoming familiar with the range conditions and improving his accuracy significantly, he almost exclusively targeted the super-long-range targets at 500 meters.

Since nails fired from a nail gun become unstable beyond their maximum range and tumble uncontrollably in the air, the administrator’s term “Ricochet” stuck as a loving nickname for Leon… along with their fervent hope that he’d leave sooner rather than later.

There was no other reason; other shooters left small to medium-sized bullet holes on the targets, requiring only about forty to fifty shots before needing a new one. But when Leon hit the targets with nails rolling erratically after exceeding the optimal range, they left holes the size of a baby’s fist.

Even worse, if the hits were poorly positioned, just two or three shots could split a wooden target in half, forcing the administrators to constantly replace them. Combined with Leon’s alarmingly high hit rate, serving him was ten times more trouble than serving any other ten officers.

Truly… Thought Sunday’s shift would be peaceful, but instead turned into hard labor…

“So, how’s ‘Ricochet’s’ aim today?”

“Shockingly good, nearly fifty targets already shattered, but that’s not the worst part.”

Rubbing his furrowed brows, the older administrator said with great distress: “I just checked with the ammunition department, ‘Ricochet’ picked up two full large boxes of nails today, totaling over a thousand rounds!”

“How many? Over a thousand rounds?! Does that mean he plans to shoot all day?!”

Hearing this terrifying number, the younger administrator sharply sucked in a breath, feeling his head buzz and his temples throb. Through gritted teeth, he cursed:

“Shooting non-stop for eight hours… The stock slamming back will break bones! Doesn’t he care about pain?”

“I don’t know if he’ll feel pain or not, but if he really intends to shoot all day, both you and I are going to die here.”

“…”

“No way! Absolutely can’t let him stay here all day!”

Glancing at the heavy special wood targets on the cart, imagining having to change them hundreds of times today, the young administrator’s shoulders already felt sore. Suddenly standing up with fiery determination, he angrily shouted: “Let’s go! We’ll ask him to change locations!”

None of the content within is from 69 Book Bar, please read carefully!

“…”

So you’re planning to beg, huh? Why so much spirit when begging? Rolling his eyes at his colleague, the older administrator didn’t object but stood up as well, ready to assist in pleading, hoping to pass the buck to someone else and save his osteoporosis-ridden old bones.

However, before the two could leave the control room, something happened at ‘Ricochet’s’ station. A familiar figure approached his shooting position even before they did.

That’s… Isa from the Secret Investigation Bureau? Seeing the female police officer standing behind ‘Ricochet’, looking like she wanted to say something but held back, the two administrators exchanged glances and almost simultaneously recalled yesterday’s rumor.

Yesterday at noon, the beauty of the Secret Investigation Bureau had sat opposite a man with her tray, but he seemed uninterested and even changed seats, rejecting her unexpected favor.

What was even crazier was that Isa, whose last name was the same as a military big shot and whose background was undoubtedly complex, shamelessly followed him, acting like a clingy stalker, shocking quite a few people.

Although they ended up arguing and parted unhappily, with the Secret Investigation Bureau’s beauty getting so angry she even threw her tray, many saw her return, standing at the canteen entrance gazing at him wistfully…

Sss… So that guy… is ‘Ricochet’? It feels like a massive scandal is about to expose its juicy details right in front of us. The younger administrator immediately felt his shoulders and arms stop aching, becoming spirited as he looked toward his equally excited colleague.

“Maybe… we should wait a bit longer?”

“Sure thing!”

(End of Chapter)