The Guide is Actually a Body-Switching Esper [BL]
Chapter 331: Troublesome

Chapter 331: Troublesome

In the end, Lane didn’t suffer any consequences for slaughtering the civilians.

It wasn’t just him being lucky. There were also other Espers, mainly from the Guilds, but also a few from the Association, who had decided to fight the people infected with the monster parasite with all of their might, even if that meant killing them. Or, to be precise, completely obliterating their bodies, as a simple ’killing’ wasn’t enough to deal with the parasites, which could still carry on for a long time, even if their host had suffered grave injuries. With so many Espers taking a part in the ’killing’, it would be hard to convict them all, as it would be hard to clean up the new restricted Zone... The ’culprits’ were mostly high-rankers, after all, they were indispensable to keep the situation under control.

Not to mention, after examining the monster parasites, the researchers from the ManaTech came to the conclusion that once someone was infected, there was no cure. The parasites overtook their hosts’ bodies, affecting all the life functions, and the moment they were gone, whether they transferred to another host or were forcefully removed, their host would die within a few minutes at most.

It was just like Lane had said. They were already dead. Exterminating them was the only viable course of action.

Thus, the Association swept it under the rug.

As for Lane rushing ahead without asking for Damien’s approval first... The issue was also buried. Damien didn’t want to reproach Lane in front of the team, especially when Ethan was now one of the members, spying on them. He just warned Lane in private to be careful next time. Only Hallie and Arlo had witnessed his actions this time, so it was still okay, but if Ethan were to see it, he might use it to cause trouble for Lane...

Lane just obediently nodded his head. Of course, he knew that he had to be careful around Ethan, but wasn’t it fine as long as the Guide did not know? Besides, he had a more pressing issue on his mind than the spy sent by the Allens...

After this dungeon break, his mailbox, the one he had as the Boss of the secret organization, had been flooded with emails.

***

It was troublesome, really.

First of all, his investigation had hit a dead end. The unknown Gate that the monsters had come from was located in the basement of one of the residences. The couple who had been living there had perished at the claws and fangs of the monsters as soon as the dungeon break happened... Thus, it was generally assumed to be careless negligence.

But the timing when they had moved into the house didn’t add up. It was only less than two months ago when they had bought the house. Although there was no specific time as to how long it took for a dungeon to become overpopulated, as it varied from dungeon to dungeon, but two months was still too short, especially for a high-ranking Gate. Which meant that the Gate was likely there even BEFORE they had bought the house. How come they haven’t seen it when they were about to move in? It wasn’t that it was particularly hidden or anything, the scouts had reported that it was right in the middle of the basement.

Of course, it could be that it was a similar case as with that Gate with the teddy bear monsters, when the monsters were chased out of the Gate by the intelligent creatures. It would all be confirmed once they had ventured into the dungeon. However, Lane found that option unlikely - there weren’t many such Gates around the world, what were the odds that two of them had appeared in the Capital within the span of just a few months?

And if that wasn’t the case, then the dungeon break must have been DELIBERATE. Someone had purposely hidden the existence of the Gate, by locking the basement and paying off the couple not to enter. It was just an assumption, but...

The previous owner was missing. As for the couple, no one really knew much about them.

How was it not suspicious?

But that was about all that Lane had managed to find out. And investigating any further... would be challenging. He had assigned a few people to gather information, but...

He didn’t have much hope for it.

The reason was simple. He suspected that Blanc might be behind it. And if he was right... Then all the traces would have been long erased. Blanc had a thing for cleanliness. He liked his clothes and environment all clean... And when he executed his plans, then he always made sure to wipe all the evidence clean. Including everyone who might implicate him.

And investigating him would be nearly impossible as well. Blanc was a B-ranker with a very tricky ability... That is, mind reading. If anyone less powerful than him attempted to spy on him, he would know it immediately, and adjust his actions accordingly, thus limiting Lane’s options to the high-rankers. And even then that was unlikely to work - aside from his ability, Blanc was also very smart, and knew how to read people. Not many would be able to trick him...

Honestly, even though Lane had recruited the man personally, he was often tempted to throw him out. Except that Blanc was a current leader in the Forbidden Zone No. 74 for a reason - without him, the whole structure would collapse. No was as good as him in managing all the different departments, from the personnel, to the finances and the Forbidden Zone’s economy... Lane needed him, but at the same time, he was his greatest foe.

At least now he was. Things had been fine before, but ever since Lane had started slowing things down, refusing to proceed with the plans, the tension started growing... While Lane wanted to hold back, Blanc was pressing on him.

Just like with his last report, detailing how the current situation in the Capital made the city suitable to turn it into a new Forbidden Zone...