CHAPTER 366: ADJUSTING REPORTS

The alarm rang out of the sudden, disturbing Lane’s peaceful sleep. He let out a displeased groan, and tried to snuggle into his pillow to escape the noise...

But his pillow stirred underneath him, threatening to move away. So, what could a guy do, but to summon the source of the annoying noise, and make sure to shut it up?

By swiping the screen to turn the alarm off, of course. No matter how tempted he was to do it, he wouldn’t actually destroy Damien’s phone or anything.

His pillow lifted and fell under him with a sigh, as a hand gently tugged on him, trying to move him away. "Lane, I need to get up..."

"Mmm... Just five more minutes..." Lane muttered, and clung to Damien’s chest tighter. He wanted to enjoy his pillow a bit longer... After all, he didn’t get to sleep on it for so long! Back in the dungeon, Damien might have allowed Lane to use his lap, but the chest was a no-go. It was a step too far, too inappropriate to do in front of other team members... Especially since they had still been at work...

The lap pillow and the chest pillow, while both great, couldn’t be supplemented for each other. Of course Lane had to enjoy the chest pillow to his heart’s content, now that he finally had the opportunity!

Damien sighed, tugging on Lane once again. "You don’t have to get up if you don’t want to, but I truly have to go..."

Now that was a stupid suggestion. Not get up with Damien, and miss the breakfast made by him? Yes, Damien would still leave a portion for Lane, but then it would have to be reheated. It would still be good, but not the same as when fresh, eaten together with Damien.

So, no, Lane still had no intention of letting Damien go.

Seeing that it wasn’t working, Damien tried again, "The sooner I leave, the sooner I might be back. Then, perhaps we can spend some time in bed together in the evening..."

Lane’s ears perked up. Now that was an alluring vision...

"Ugh..." Although still a bit unwilling, Lane slowly released his boyfriend from his clutches, lifting himself up on the bed.

"You can sleep a bit longer," Damien suggested. "You’re off today, after all, and we didn’t get much sleep..."

But Lane only dismissed him with a wave of his hand. Yes, they didn’t sleep long, but it was still enough for an S-ranker like Damien to get a decent rest, let alone an SS-rank Esper such as Lane. That’s just how high-ranking Espers’ physiques worked, they had recovered much faster from any wounds and injuries, as well as from tiredness. Not to mention, Lane had never had trouble getting up early - back when he was a teen, before his awakening, he had often got up early to go for a run before school (or skipping school). He no longer did it these days, but once he was no longer cuddled up to Damien, his unwillingness to leave the bed had disappeared, and he jumped out, full of energy.

It was a bit of a contrast with Damien, whom, despite being the one who urged Lane to let him get up, now stood up from the bed with a heavy sigh.

Damien might have been getting up early in the morning for years, but he wasn’t a morning person. That part of his nature seemed stubbornly resistant to change, and it’s only thanks to his determination and being strict with himself that he managed to maintain this schedule.

His grogginess didn’t last long, though. Once he was up and went to the bathroom to splash his face with cold water, he was quickly able to chase the remaining sleepiness away. He went to the kitchen and reached for the apron...

Only for his cheeks to flush in a deep shade of red as his fingers made contact with the somewhat tacky, hot pink fabric.

He still hadn’t fully recovered from that time they had sex with Damien wearing nothing but this apron. It had been washed a few times since then, but no matter how clean it looked and smelled, it still reminded Damien of their night activities...

And he couldn’t possibly cook in that state. Being distracted when using knives, fire, and other kitchen stuff, was a potential safety hazard! If his thoughts were to stray like that, then it was better not to use an apron at all.

Which was what Damien had opted for. Between being distracted and not using the apron, the latter was naturally much better. It was still important for him to buy a new apron when he had a moment, though. An apron for everyday use...

While the pink one would be for Lane. Maybe not for Lane to wear (Damien didn’t have any of such kinks), but for Damien to wear with nothing underneath when he wanted to please Lane...

He downed a glass of ice-cold water to cool himself down (it was summer after all, and the kitchen was particularly hot... Even though he hadn’t started cooking anything yet, and there was great air conditioning in the whole apartment), and quickly started his breakfast preparations. He wasn’t actually expected in the office for another three hours or so... But he wanted to go through all the paperwork first, especially preparing his report from the mission. And fixing Lane’s map, so that it didn’t have his scratchy handwriting on it, since the man clearly wanted to keep the extent of his involvement in it a secret!

It didn’t take long before he emerged from the kitchen, carrying a tray with two plates with savory French toasts piled up on them, with some fresh veggies on the side, and two cups of coffee, one black for himself, and another super sweet for Lane, with cream on top, and pumps of a few different syrups added in. Syrups Damien had ordered himself, just to cater to his boyfriend’s sweet tooth...

He put one of the plates and the cup in front of Lane, before taking a seat opposite him.

They ate in silence, both deep in their own thoughts. The atmosphere between them was still a bit awkward after the conversation they had had the night before, because Lane had hidden the truth, and Damien knew that he hid, and Lane knew that he knew, but neither had said anything... That’s not to say that the mood was bad, or that they were at odds now, absolutely not, it’s just that... A bit of discomfort remained, on both sides, as the issue was still unresolved.

It was only when they were almost done, that Damien finally asked, "By the way, just to make sure... How much of what had happened on the mission do you want to keep a secret?"

A part of it should be kept a secret, as not to attract any suspicions, but what exactly should be concealed, they hadn’t discussed.

Lane thought about it for a moment, before answering, "Just that I was the one leading the scouting mission, and that I drew the map alone. It’s best to put it as me and Clara working together with all that we’ve got, combining my ability to scout from the bird’s eye view with Clara’s experience and knowledge. As for the rest... It can’t be hidden anyway, can it?"

Damien slowly nodded his head. Indeed, it would be hard to hide the rest. Even attempting to do so would backfire, as there were witnesses, including four other Team Leaders... Luckily, there wasn’t much to hide, just Lane’s over-eagerness to hunt monsters, and rushing to the front (or up to the sky) without Damien’s prior order or permission. Which was... against the rules, but not a serious violation. It could still be dismissed, as long as Damien claimed that Lane had asked him for permission, even if no one had heard it... It would be a bit of a stretch, but it could work. The bigger problem was...

"What about what happened by the Lapis Lake, before we entered the Gate?"

"...Ah." Lane paused, only now realizing it. So much had happened afterwards, that it had slipped his mind completely...

He tapped his fingers on the table. It was indeed a problem... Well, he was mostly concerned about the Allens, worried that they might figure out that he was hiding his true rank, but they needed to give some excuse to the Association as well. And while Lane was an expert when it came to hypnosis...

All of his experience came from CASTING hypnosis. As for how to resist hypnosis, he only had general knowledge. Would it be possible for him to resist the S-ranker monsters’ hypnosis for so long, when all of the other A-rankers had long succumbed to it, just because of some pain in the ass? If it was a debilitating pain, then perhaps, but in such a case, he wouldn’t have been able to move so well. Both before they had entered the dungeon, and then when he had gone on the scouting mission, and hunted monsters...

"Do you have to detail it in your report?" he finally asked. "Who had succumbed to hypnosis when."

"No, I don’t. I can just list you as one of the people who were hypnotized. But if Wagner mentions it, they are likely to ask me for details."

Lane nodded his head. As expected, Ethan was still the biggest problem. He should have just eliminated that damned Guide the moment he set his foot in the Association...

But, oh well, it was too late for regret. They had already left the dungeon hours ago, so Ethan’s report must have long reached the Allens. Even if something happened to him now, Lane’s beloved parents could relay the information to the Association in his stead.

The only good thing was that Ethan was just a Guide, a temporary member of the Association. He would discuss it with the Allens, his bosses, first, and only after that he might submit his report to the Association. Or might even not do it, depending on what approach the Allens decided to take.

"Alright," Lane sighed. "If they ask you, then just say that I was the last one to get hypnotized, and as for the cause... We suspect that it might have been because I was in pain, which helped me keep a clear mind. I’ll try to find a better excuse, though. So, check your phone often, I’ll contact you if I’ve got anything!"

"Mn. I will," Damien nodded his head. Although he had always ignored any messages while at work, not wanting to deal with his private matters, technically speaking this was work related, so it was fine, right? And even if it weren’t... Since it concerned Lane, he was willing to make an exception.

"Great!" Lane smiled, and stuffed the last piece of the toast in his mouth. The situation was far from great...

But it would all work out, surely.

It always somehow had.