NOVEL NEXT Chapter 16: Allergic Reaction
"Wait!" Damien called out, grabbing Lane's arm.
"Huh?" Lane flinched, tensing up involuntarily. Did Damien notice something?
He quickly calmed down though, and looked back at Damien, lightly raising his brows. "Is there anything wrong, Team Leader?"
"You… You're bleeding."
"Hmm?"
"Your ears are bleeding."
"Ah." Lane raised his hand, touching his earlobe. He was indeed bleeding a bit.
It wasn't anything particularly surprising. After all, the body he was currently possessing was that of a civilian. Weak and frail. Although he could still use all of the abilities he plundered, only his real body was capable of handling them all. Attempting to use his abilities in any other body - especially of a non-Awakened - frequently resulted in Lane suffering some sort of backlash. For example, with the abilities he had been using to plant the Fertilizer today, his ears stung, he was a bit dizzy, and his right wrist was getting numb.
It seems that he had pushed himself a bit too much though, and overused the hearing ability. Noah Murray's body was even more frail than he had expected.
"Let's go. You need medical attention. We don't have a healer on our team, so we have to get you out of the Gate… Can you walk? No, I should probably carry you instead…"
"Wait, hold on," Lane lifted his hand, interrupting Damien. "There's no need for that. Don't worry, Team Leader, I'm okay."
He didn't want to be taken to the hospital. And most definitely he didn't want to be given a checkup by any doctor specializing in treating the Awakened. If that were to happen, the fact that his bleeding was the result of a Mana-induced injury would be immediately revealed.
"What?" Damien furrowed his brows. "But…"
"It's really nothing. It happens sometimes. I've already had it checked. It's, ugh, an allergic reaction…" Lane quickly tried to explain.
His words were meant to reassure Damien. However, for some unknown reason, the man's reaction was… weird.
"…An allergic reaction?" he repeated, staring at Lane.
Ah.
Now that he thought about it, didn't he use a similar excuse with Damien in the past as well? Back when he was Evan Greene, he once suffered a heavy backlash from overusing one of his abilities, and Damien happened to witness it. Only that at that time, the ability he used was Mana Scan, and he was bleeding from his eyes instead…
Well, he clearly didn't think it through. He just blurted out the first thing that came to mind. To be completely honest, he had no idea if such bleeding could be caused by any kind of allergy in the first place!
But since he had already said it, the only option was to stick to it. Trying to change his story would only come off as more suspicious. So, Lane nodded his head. "Yes, it's a rare condition, but my doctor said it's nothing to worry about."
It wasn't enough to satisfy Damien. "Is that so? Why wasn't it mentioned in the medical records submitted to the Association then?" he asked, his tone stern.
After joining the Association, Lane had to submit his - or Noah Murray's, to be precise - medical records in order to be able to work in the field. Naturally, any medications he had to take, or conditions such as allergies had to be included. Those were all for safety procedures, to ensure his needs were met. And, as his Team Leader, Damien Lennox had access, and undoubtedly had already carefully read through them - he always paid attention to all the details, after all.
But those were all Noah Murray's real records - of course they didn't include the lies that Lane had just come up with!
Still, Lane widened his eyes, acting surprised. "It wasn't? It should have been! There must have been some sort of mistake… I'll make sure to check and correct it after we're back!"
Damien stared at Lane in silence for a while longer, before finally letting out a sigh. "Make sure that you do. It's very important."
"Of course! I'll take care of it as soon as I can!"
What was bribing a doctor or two to get some fake certificates? It wasn't anything particularly new to Lane!
"Are you sure you are alright, though? We still have two more spots to check… If you're feeling unwell, I can ask one of the Espers to escort you out of the Gate," Damien proposed, but Lane just dismissively waved his hand.
"Don't worry, Team Leader, I'm really okay. I wouldn't want our inspection to be disrupted in any way."
"If you're certain about it." Damien didn't insist. It was already so late. Anything that might delay them further was best to be avoided. Although Damien didn't care how long he had to work himself, he felt bad for having his subordinates work long hours just because they had too many dungeons to inspect.
"Stay close to me. And if you start to feel unwell, let me know as soon as possible," he just instructed Lane as they walked back to the rest of the team.
"Okay!" Lane smiled cheerfully.
Looking at his Team Leader's muscular frame, he was a bit tempted… What if he said he was feeling dizzy? Could he ask Damien to carry him back then? If he worded it right, then perhaps he might succeed… He had all the experience from his life as 'Evan Greene', he had some ideas on how to talk to the man to get what he wanted!
In the end though, he just shook his head. Damien still looked unwell. No matter how hot he was, perhaps it was better to give the man a break.
Maybe he could pick a different target then? Arlo was fairly good-looking as well… Not as handsome as Damien, but Lane wasn't a picky man.
In fact, he was a rather simple person. Usually, there were only two major things on his mind - fighting and flirting (flirting that led to sex, of course!). And, since he was currently a Guide and fighting was something that he couldn't really have, he could only resort to flirting to entertain himself. It was just his nature.
Having decided on a new prey, Lane felt a spark of excitement rise within him. He hooked his lips, and shortly after rejoining the group, he shifted to the B-rank Esper's side, initiating some light chatter.
He didn't even notice Damien's eyes, whose eyes seemed to be inexplicably drawn to Lane at an increasing rate…