The Guide is Actually a Body-Switching Esper [BL]-Chapter 29: Finally, a Trip!

Only three days were needed to completely wash away all the thoughts Lane previously had.

Exciting? Had he really considered the sense of danger that came from Damien suspecting his identity exciting? He must have lost his mind!

Luckily, he now came to his senses and understood it very well. Keeping a distance from Damien was the best he could do. Staying far away enough so that Damien couldn’t trap him, but perhaps still close enough so that he could observe the man, that’s what Lane should do. He couldn’t just let him off his sight until he got rid of all of his suspicions! Who knew what would happen if Damien shared his thoughts with anyone?

The problem was, how was Lane supposed to remain sane in the meantime? When every day, without a fault, he had to pretend to be a moron who couldn’t even get the most basic sword sequence right!

Of course, he could pretend to make slow progress, but that was a risky route. He could control himself during the training not to reveal his skill, but if he were to fight some monsters during a dungeon break or a raid, it would be way too easy to slip up in the heat of the moment. And if Damien happened to witness that... Then all of Lane’s troubles so far would be for naught! How was he supposed to explain himself then?

So, when one morning Damien announced they were going to help up in the Restricted Zone again, Lane couldn’t be any happier. Anything was better than another day of pretending he didn’t know how to use a sword!

"You can take it easy today," Damien told the group, as they arrived at the same parking garage as last time. "We have just received the answer from the Trailblazer Guild last night regarding the inspection, and we will be departing tomorrow morning. The trip is expected to take four days, so pack accordingly. I apologize for the short notice, however the inspection has been long overdue, and we cannot delay it any longer."

’The Trailblazer Guild? I didn’t know they had another dungeon in the area.’ Lane raised his brows in surprise. ’Perhaps it is an undeveloped one?’

The Trailblazer Guild was a rather unusual Guild. Its name felt more suited for a travel agency rather than a Guild, which, in fact, wasn’t far from the truth. The Guild earned most of its income from tourism, and rarely went on raids. Its Guild Leader used to be a travel agent before his awakening as an A-rank Esper with a great offensive ability. He quit his job to join a Guild... And quickly found out that going on raids is not something he’d enjoy. As soon as his initial contract ended, he took all the money he saved, and founded the Trailblazer Guild. He bought seemingly useless inactive Gates from other Guilds for low prices... and turned them into tourist attractions.

Now, after close to six years in business, the Trailblazer Guild owned several inactive Gates located all over the country. They were all high-ranking dungeons with vast territories and beautiful sceneries, from tropical islands, to breathtaking, snowy mountain ranges. After building hotels and developing the infrastructure, those previously dangerous dungeons were transformed into fancy holiday retreats. While people were a bit apprehensive about the idea at first, once they saw others return fully satisfied and in one piece, they quickly warmed up to the idea, until eventually, dungeons became the new ’exotic holiday destinations’. They were so popular that they were all fully booked far in advance, despite the inflated prices.

One of such Gates was located right in the Capital. It was a vast A-rank dungeon with warm climate, filled with forests and lakes. As far as Lane knew, it was the only Gate owned by the Trailblazer Guild in the area...

But the timing didn’t add up. According to the regulations, all the high-ranking dungeons had to be inspected every six months, while the rest once a year. Lane, however, had been on an inspection in that dungeon together with Damien before. While he didn’t remember the exact date, it should have been around three months ago, maybe four at most. It was still too soon to inspect it again.

That was something that a new team member wouldn’t know though, so Lane, not wanting to do anything that might reaffirm Damien’s suspicions about his identity, didn’t say anything, and tried to focus on mining Mana stones.

However, his curiosity won in the end.

"Hey, that dungeon we’re going to," he turned to Ellie, who was working close to him. "Is that perhaps the Eldenveil?"

"Hmm? I think so, why?"

Lane was slightly taken aback, but he quickly recovered and put on a bright smile. "Oh, I was just curious..."

"It is Eldenveil," a serious voice came from behind Lane, making him flinch. Why did Damien have to join the conversation? Lane wasn’t talking to him!

Still, he turned to the man, forcing the corners of his lips to remain up. "Really? That’s so amazing! I’ve always wanted to visit the place, but the prices... Hahah, they’re a bit too expensive."

Damien’s clear green eyes looked at Lane calmly. It was all too obvious what he was thinking. ’Haven’t you been there with me not too long ago?’

He didn’t say it at loud though. Instead, he explained, "The regulations changed after... that dungeon break. All the dungeons ranked A and S have to be inspected every three months. You should have learned it while studying for your exam."

"Oh, is that so? Well, I haven’t done well with that part, haven’t I?" Lane chuckled, scratching his head with embarrassment. A moment later though, his brows furrowed, and he tilted his head, confused. "But, Team Leader, what does it have to do with my question?"

"Weren’t you asking because you wondered why we are going back there so soon?"

"No?" Lane’s brows shot up. "In the first place, how was I supposed to know when it was last inspected? Do they have the inspection dates listed on their website or something? Either way, that’s not something I would remember... I’m mostly familiar with the place because of all the ads, that’s all..."

It was a believable explanation. Living in the Capital, it would be harder not to have at least heard of the Eldenveil, and most people were also aware of the company behind it. So, Lane’s initial question wasn’t in any way unusual. Even Damien couldn’t find any flaw in his words.

"Since it’s the Eldenveil, does it mean we will be staying in a hotel?" Lane asked, changing the topic.

"Yes. The Trailblazer Guild offered us rooms free of charge."

Naturally, Lane already expected that. It was the same the last time they went there. This explained the short notice - the hotel was usually booked far in advance. Perhaps some guests had just canceled at the last minute, and so they wanted to use the empty rooms to get the inspection done and out of the way.

Although he understood the situation well, Lane still widened his eyes in surprise. "Ah, that’s so nice of them... Although I was kind of looking forward to camping in a dungeon," he pouted.

"You will have plenty of opportunities for that in the future. Now, get back to work," Damien cut the discussion. "I know I’ve said you can take it easy today, but I still expect you to get at least some work done."

"Yes, Sir!" Lane sighed, picking back his pickaxe. He was actually relieved that the conversation had ended already. If he knew that Damien would join in, he would have never said anything in the first place...

’So the regulations have changed, huh?’ He struck the wall with a frown. He never paid attention to that sort of thing, so he wasn’t aware of it before. The change was understandable, considering the recent events... It wasn’t good news for Lane, though. With more frequent inspections, dungeon breaks were less likely to happen, even if inactive Gates filled in with monsters again.

’Should I try increasing the amount of the Fertilizer I plant to speed things up? Before anyone catches on to what is going on...’

Either way, something had to be done. Lane already went too far to let all of his plans fall apart, wasting all of his ’hard’ work.