The Guide is Actually a Body-Switching Esper [BL]-Chapter 245: Heavy Rain

After grabbing breakfast with Damien, Lane headed straight toward one of the Gates that were at risk of being confiscated by the Association. He already had weapons and the clothes to change into prepared in the spatial bag he had on him, since the Forbidden Zone trip he went on with Damien, thus there was no need for him to stop by his apartment. He just jumped in his car, and drove to the site.

He had spent too much on it to just hand it over to the Association without getting anything (that is, the fun of taking part in the raid) out of it. Not to mention, he couldn’t pull something like that - buying the rights for the Gate, only to leave it uncleared - too often, or else the Guilds under him might get in trouble, losing their rights to take part in the Gate auctions...

But, oh well. Luckily the other Gates he purchased were still doing okay, with quite some time left, so he still had them to look forward to, even if he failed today. He’s make sure to keep a good track on their status from now on.

He started with the A-rank Gate. Since he didn’t know if he’d be able to get both under control in one day - it was the first time he was trying to do something like that, just reducing the monster population without causing too much damage and leaving suspicious traces - he naturally wanted to start with the one he cared more to keep. Besides, both Dragon Claw and Red Streak were similar in strength, so there was a chance Dragon Claw might be able to deal with it on their own, since they had a much easier task on their hands.

It could even be treated like a test. See how much the Guild was truly capable of. It’d be good to know how well his forces (or, well, just a tiny part of them in this instance) could mobilize on a short notice.

The A-rank Gate was located in a small park in the West part of the Capital. Lane parked his car in a shopping mall nearby, and walked to the park on foot, activating his cloaking ability when he was out of sight, hidden behind some bushes, to change into his ’secret organization’s Boss’ clothes - military boots, black pants, a black jacket with hood, and black mask covering most of his face. All made from specially crafted, dungeon-related materials, of course! Dressed like that, with his real identity hidden, he finally approached the Gate - or the metal shed built around the Gate, to be precise.

A member of Red Streak Guild was already there, waiting by the shed. They were alerted that the Boss would be coming, thus they had someone keep guard at all times.

"Password," the guy asked, observing Lane suspiciously. He was all dressed in black, with no identifying features, after all, so it was impossible to tell who he was.

But when Lane answered in a low voice, "Toasted marshmallow waffle with bubblegum chocolate," he quickly bowed down.

"Good morning, Boss!" he greeted, speaking to the ground. He was just a young recruit, who had never personally met the Boss before, but had heard he was very powerful, thus he couldn’t help but be nervous... Even this ridiculous password sounded serious and low-key terrifying when coming from such a figure! He would never see waffles the same way ever again.

"Mn." Lane nodded his head in acknowledgment. "How’s the situation?"

"Our top raid team has been fighting inside for... around thirty hours now."

"And how’s the progress?"

"I... I’m so-sorry... I don’t know..."

"No matter," Lane waved his hand, not wanting to torment the poor guy who was shaking terribly. "I’ll be going in now, keep up the good work."

"Yes!" the guy exhaled with relief, opening the door for Lane. Lane then entered the shed, and a second later, vanished within the colorful darkness of the Gate, crossing to the other side.

It was raining heavily inside, the rain splattering on the large, waxy leaves of the weird dungeon trees, and falling on the ground, turning it into a squelchy, clay-like mire. Lane immediately sank three or four inches deep, the ruddy mud covering his black boots before he so much as took a single step.

The weather was not in his favor today, it seemed.

Well, no matter. At least the temperature was pleasant, Lane didn’t mind getting a bit wet. As for the muddy ground, it wasn’t anything that couldn’t be solved with his Sky Step! He immediately activated the ability, running up, quickly tearing through the treetops to get a look at the area. The visibility was reduced due to the rain, as well as the thick forests covering most of the area, but with just a bit of running, Lane was able to assess the situation.

It was... doable. Red Streak Guild listened well, and they made some decent progress. As long as Lane helped them out, they would be able to keep the Gate rights for another month at least. That should be enough for now.

He pulled his twin daggers, and descended right in the middle of one of the nests of horned hedgehog tigers, instantly launching an intense attack at the unsuspecting monsters. He mainly restrained himself to fighting with daggers, using his other abilities, such as electricity or Toxic Ooze, only as support. He couldn’t leave too many traces of his abilities, after all - it could cause some issues if the scout from the Association noticed them, and was sharp enough to realize they didn’t match the profiles of Red Streak members...

Slash and stab marks, however, were universal. Everyone left them, even the Guides! Thus, Lane could swing his daggers around to his heart’s content, splashing the blood around, the roars and groans made by the wounded monsters drowning in the pouring rain... The rest of the jungle remained blissfully unaware, hiding in their burrows and nests.

Until it was their turn.