The Guide is Actually a Body-Switching Esper [BL]-Chapter 479: Co-parents

Chapter 479: Co-parents
Every trace of amusement instantly vanished from Lane’s face at the sound of the voice, as if it had never been there to begin with. He stood motionless, not even throwing a single glance in the direction the voice came from, with hopes that if he didn’t acknowledge the man, he wouldn’t come over...
Hopes that were, obviously, futile.
"Guild Master!" Unlike Lane, Austin greeted Miles with a rather awkward smile. Had he just committed a blunder? And by blunder, he didn’t mean confusing his daughters, but rather not recognizing Guild Master Allen’s son and acting somewhat rude towards him... Then again, in his defense, until now, he hadn’t had the slightest idea that Guild Master Allen had a son!
"A-ah! I thought you looked familiar!" he laughed, trying to cover up his mistake, and patted Lane on the shoulder. "You’re a spitting picture of your father!"
Lane’s eyes twitched, and so did Miles’ brows, but neither of them said anything. Lane because he didn’t want to make a scene (he had promised to behave!), while Miles because... Well, probably for the same reason. After all, reputation!
Meanwhile, Austin just kept on going, "So you’ll be coming to the wedding as Damien’s plus one? Did I hear it correctly? Does that mean you two are dating, or...?"
"Yes," Lane forced a smile, trying his best to ignore the unpleasant presence right next to him. "We’ve been together for ten months now."
"More like nine. At most," Clara corrected, to which Lane rolled his eyes. It was over a year, actually, but since Lane started dating Damien as ’Xavier’, he couldn’t exactly say it out loud.
"Ah, is that so?" Austin’s expression froze for a moment, as his ignorance about his children’s lives was once again publicly exposed. In the end, though, his skin was too thick was the shame to fully sink in (because of course it was, otherwise he wouldn’t have left his wife alone, in debt, with ten kids to raise on her own!), and he just laughed, "Ooh, does that mean that Guild Master and I might be co-parents-in-law in the future?"
Lane blinked a few times, taken by surprise by this comment. He had yet to propose to Damien, he didn’t even have the ring yet, but...
He glanced at his father. Miles’ expression was cold, as always, but there was a hint of displeasure in his eyes. The others probably wouldn’t be able to notice it, but Lane, who had been raised in the Allens’ mansion, could tell. Miles clearly disliked the idea. Not necessarily because he was against being Damien’s in-law, or even that he was annoyed at Austin’s loud behavior (although that was partially true), but simply because he disapproved of Lane. He always had, and always would.
This wouldn’t deter Lane, though, quite the opposite. He curved his lips in a mysterious smile, and lightly shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe. Time will tell."
Next to him, Clara let out a loud scoff. Lane immediately rolled his eyes, preparing for the incoming argument...
However, to his surprise, Clara’s scoff wasn’t aimed at him.
"Co-parent-in-law?" she lifted her brows, repeating her father’s words in a mocking tone. "You’ve never even been much of a father, and now you want to play an in-law?"
"Pfft!" Lane bit his lip, trying to stifle a chuckle that threatened to escape his mouth.
Well, well. Who would have thought. It seemed that compared to her father, Lane was a lesser evil.
Then again, that was to be expected. After all, the reason why Clara had been so harsh and hostile towards Lane was because of her father, to begin with. Since Lane seemed like a player (and he kind of was, or rather, had been), she was worried that he would cheat on Damien, leave him heartbroken, and all.
While Lane could laugh, not being the target of Clara’s snarky comments for once, the overall atmosphere got even more uncomfortable. Austin still had his stupid smile on his face, but even he looked visibly awkward, not knowing how to get himself out of the situation. Clara was one of the oldest among the Lennox-Moore siblings, second after Damien, so Austin was somewhat familiar with her. He might not have remembered her name, but once she spoke, he recalled her sharp tongue...
And he instantly knew that anything more he said would be turned against him. He might not have been personally affected by it in any way, since he didn’t really care about his children’s opinion on him, but Guild Master Allen, his BOSS, was right next to him. And the Guild Master’s son, who turned out to be dating his son...
No one wanted to be embarrassed in front of their boss. Not even someone like Austin.
Suddenly, Austin regretted approaching his daughters. He had spotted them earlier and decided to come over on an impulse. Just because he had heard they were doing well, so he thought it would be a good idea to reconnect. In case he needed some help (meaning: someone to leech off) in the future.
But now that it seemed unlikely to happen...
"Haha, what are you talking about? You have always been such a jokester, Sarah!" he forced a laugh. Getting the wrong name again. Before anyone could say anything, though, be it correct him or add another insult, he turned to Miles, "Guild Leader, if you’ll excuse me. I think I should go find my Team Leader now."
"Yes. You should go," Miles nodded his head. Naturally, he didn’t care about the Lennox-Moore family issues, nor was he annoyed at Austin for causing a scene. Austin was attending the gala incognito, as one of the people asked to attend just to make the event more crowded and lively. As such, he wasn’t wearing the Allen Guild emblem, and whatever he did wouldn’t be connected to the Guild, therefore not affecting their reputation.
And that was Miles’ main concern.
Seeing Austin walk away, Lane exhaled softly with relief. Now that the man was gone, surely Miles would leave as well, right? He most likely approached them so that Austin wouldn’t say anything that could potentially compromise his plans to scout Damien (and possibly Clara as well), and since that had been dealt with...
Either way, even if he stayed to talk to Clara, it had nothing to do with Lane. He took a sip of his champagne, glancing around to figure out the best way to quietly make an escape. Staying near Clara wouldn’t do him any good, whether Miles stuck around or not, since it was way too easy for them to turn even the most casual conversation into an argument, and Lane was supposed to behave!
Thus, it was better for him to find someone else to hang out with. Ava was likely with some scientists, busy engaging in science talk (boring!), so she wouldn’t do, but if Lane could find Arlo, Cora, and the rest of the team’s residential gossipers, he should be able to kill some time. Alternatively, he could just escape from the ballroom for a while and find a quiet spot to play some games on his phone...
Unfortunately for him, though, fate (and his father) had other plans.
"It’s great to see you’re doing well. Your mother and I have been very worried about you since the accident in the Gate..."