The Guide is Actually a Body-Switching Esper [BL]-Chapter 276: Re-Testing

Damien sat on a chair in the rank assessment room, still gasping. Not so much from physical exertion, but rather from the nerves caused by the situation. Just as he feared, they got entangled in bed for too long, and had to rush afterwards, leaving the apartment with wet hair and clothes barely thrown on.

Not to mention the way they left! Through the balcony window. Lane grabbed Damien in his arms, activated his cloaking ability, and jumped down, slowing their fall with Sky Step, so that he wouldn’t break his legs - falling over a hundred floors was a lot even for an SS-ranker such as Lane. Then, they ran together toward the Association Headquarters, Damien at his full speed - which was super fast, and attracted a lot of attention.

His life had never been so chaotic, not until he met Lane.

Not that he complained. Even if he disapproved of some things, he still loved the man.

The Association member conducting the test finished setting up the machine, and nodded at Lane. "It’s your second time, right? You must already know how to do it... However, just as a reminder. Please press your hand here... Then activate your Mana, as if you wanted to use your ability at full power. The Mana stone will suck all of your Mana, so you don’t need to worry about anything."

Well, it wouldn’t actually suck everything if Lane were to activate his full SS-rank power, but he wasn’t going to do that now. After all those years and multiple identities, he was very skilled in managing his Mana levels, so he pressed his hand against the Mana stone panel, and activated his ability, aiming for a solid A-rank.

"Congratulations!" the machine operator exclaimed a moment later. "You’re an A-rank... huh?" he paused, blinking, as his eyes fell on the information on the screen. "Umm... Sir? It says here you’re registered as an F-rank Esper..."

"Yes, that’s correct," Lane confirmed.

"Uh..." the operator paused again, confused. He stared at the screen blankly for a good while, before finally muttering, "There must be some sort of mistake... I’m sorry, Sir, but I think you will need to take the test once again."

"Why, you want me to pay another 5,500?"

"This... I will have to ask my superiors first... But, since it was our mistake, then perhaps the second test will be free of charge..." the operator explained hesitantly, his face deathly pale. He was probably worried he might have to cover the costs himself, if it turned out to be his mistake. Did he perhaps grab a used panel, thus this overblown result?

"It’s not a mistake," Damien spoke up, joining the conversation.

"What? I’m sorry, Team Leader Lennox, but..."

"I guarantee it."

"Uh, Sir, but this is..." the machine operator scratched his head. He had worked at this job for years now, and had overseen multiple retakes. And the result was always the same - the Mana values only slightly increased. Usually, staying within the same rank, or in rare cases, advancing one rank. It would be one thing if this Lane Allen here tested as a D-rank, but an A-rank? That was impossible, no matter how much he thought about it! It was far more believable that he had made a mistake while being distracted, and had installed the wrong panel!

Unless... Unless there was something sketchy going on here.

"Team Leader Lennox, Sir. I’m sorry, but I still think it is necessary for me to talk to my superiors first," he said, trying to sound confident. "Those results... are simply too unusual. I think we might need to take a better look at this case..."

That was exactly what they were worried about, but Damien remained calm (at least on the surface) and firm.

"I understand your concerns, but there’s no need for you to do that. I will personally discuss it with our superiors."

"With Section Leader Bowen?"

Damien paused for a moment, before he said, "No. With Director Torres."

Director Torres? Both the operator and Lane looked at Damien surprised. Director Torres was the leader of the whole Association, and the only other current S-rank member aside from Damien. Normally, a mere Team Leader couldn’t contact him directly, skipping over all other ranks between them... It was different for Damien, as thanks to his rank, his status within the Association was much higher than his position as Team Leader might suggest... But that didn’t change the fact that it was very much against the protocol.

And using his power to bend the rules wasn’t something Damien would typically do. He was known for his strict and upright attitude.

And yet, there he was, announcing that he was going to go over his superior’s head, and speak to the Director directly. All for that pink-haired man?

"Besides, Lane will be joining the Association from now on," Damien added. "So there will be plenty of time for us to examine his case." ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com

"I... I see..."

"Are there any other problems, or can we proceed to the second part now?"

"Ah, yes. Of course. Please follow me." The operator stood up abruptly, knocking off some tools, that scattered on the ground with a loud noise. However, he only gave them a blank look, and headed toward the door. He could clean it up later. Now, he just wanted to get it all over with... Why did he have to get such an odd, suspicious case to deal with?

"Sir Allen. You were previously registered with a physical enhancement ability. Is that still correct?" he asked, as they entered the ability testing room.

"No. It’s air manipulation now."

"I see... Then, please show me what you can do," the operator just nodded his head, taking notes. He was no longer even surprised.

Lane presented his so-called air manipulation ability, in similar way he did it in front of Diana, using Sky Step, Wind Blades, and several other abilities to support it. As expected, the operator didn’t notice anything odd - if Diana, an SS-rank ability user, didn’t, then it would be weird if anyone else did! They finished the rest of the testing without any further issues.

"Ah, just one more thing," Damien said, as they were about to leave. "I believe you remember that people’s ranks and abilities are highly confidential data, right?"

The operator flinched, before fervently nodding his head. "Y-yes, of course!"