TSCEIAB Ch. 7

 e344377b96e0def7

 d5f2aacc912fbe96

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

After barely filling 5cd6b2f65a an hour in af717a66c5 the reception room, e0813f1c45 Richard, the center 8f2f299ee1 director, arrived.8a142c75300672f0

He had come ce771259cc in person to 171966c328 assess the atmosphere 8d6060a296 between Philip and ddb0c3e6dd me.291bb5796881341e

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

Entering with high expectations, e694a1e607 he seemed slightly taken 4034d28b18 aback by the awkward 09adc7cbfa atmosphere in the room 451d5d6851 and then laughed.bbdad0ecd065f50f

“It looks like you’ve exchanged enough greetings. Let’s move on to the matching rate test.”af1736b9b6b2c63e

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

On our way bf3df498ec to the testing c1e392c437 room, Richard explained a6246833cd a few things.ff47c068934e6df8

“This is the first round of testing. There will be a second round in a year. It may be a bit troublesome, but please understand we need to carefully monitor the matching rate and to make sure it doesn’t drop.”ce98d0c52f25155d

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

The matching rate ef4c4d6e6e between an Esper ed232a1e82 and a Guide 7f366631b0 is influenced slightly 818002e0fa by their emotional ef26c29b61 state and familiarity.b5aa9beed4a6fd5a

So, before 4700bacf4d doing a 621d037f67 matching rate 7a349a52e3 test, the 2fdcf5db27 Esper and 08dc153940 Guide would 1d3720a4ad have enough b51c2c8541 conversation to 1c39c5b520 increase their 94302dd253 familiarity with 30bb5417cb each other 3c5dd9cab5 and then 16514c4acb proceed with d5a9e875fe the test.ca89b9362bc9d963

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

The time I spent with Philip earlier, even though it seemed pointless, was Richard’s consideration to help raise that familiarity.7a365a83466caf6d

‘Of course, it seems to have only backfired.’4bd3c70ab136ab65

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“Even if the results of this test aren’t great, you’ve got a whole year before the next one, so I hope you won’t be too discouraged.”f6730b1cacf4e995

Richard glanced at e549ac8a04 Philip while speaking. It seemed like 46125b2f0b he was planning 6d6d8b0241 to keep Philip, ffe9e6c9c1 an S-class Esper, 9d6ae1dee5 in Ohio for 943f90dc3b a year.520cec26ae3ea865

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“Haha! Don’t worry! The matching rate will be great. It was already 89% in the preliminary test, right?”7b471db9bd4383bd

Philip was 825721f82f brimming with 5cd25641a7 confidence.32e3e2ccbc62f45a

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

He seemed convinced be5ba2bd14 that the matching 9ff4383763 rate with me 18ae0d9552 would be high 1299501d5d even before the 4abd5245e9 test started.142015f9a18622dd

But his 373960ef2a bright smile 07c69663c2 didn’t last 1da0711f11 long.c34c28710e7ef5c1

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

To be 60c117e7af precise, it 9846027a6d completely disappeared e582e2a2ca once he e4921d07e2 received the 7c0e796c18 test results.78a989f860306c03

“…It seems like, um, there was some kind of error. Maybe the results got mixed up with another Esper’s.”579386b1fcd95400

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

He tried to deny 433fbe2c5e reality. I took 1128cc5b58 the results c5cfa8fd80 from Philip’s 987759b146 hand and 2ab6fc95d8 looked for 5094c8bc3d the matching 86457bfbfc rate section.e0aa7cdd2bf05ec6

[The matching rate between Esper “Philip Anderson” and Guide “Sofia Kang” is 51%.]

 1cdc4a1547eb2a20

51%.31de0edea9af5aa1

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

This was significantly a35f986318 lower than the 89035f74bb preliminary matching rate. If this number had 7dc711cc30 appeared in the preliminary 184a33f257 test, Philip wouldn’t have 8d0d1350d0 even made it to 11904f7398 my candidate list.43c25853c0e97d0e

As Philip continued e8bdf9c7f4 to deny and b72cb49909 doubt the results, faa3f4c789 the researcher anxiously 063fd86700 explained that the d6406d29e3 number was correct.950737f5080fe7fc

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Philip, whose face 7b2e7931b5 turned red, gritted 24de3cd70b his teeth and 8b07a450b7 slammed his fist 81c5c7a324 into the waiting 9b0fdc2777 room wall.c0aea8946f7eb2ba

Thud!caedd69701ecd1ce

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

The wall cracked, and b06131aa0f the building shook slightly. Eric, the 869c46a5c7 B-rank Esper a86d62b27a assigned as fc3254b96a my escort, 675eb76ddc quickly shielded aace9de9f9 me and 68c4761f8a moved us dd4d7b497f away from fdfcda6c51 the spot.8368640f0bf99df6

“Are you okay, Guide?”516875c3ce9a99e3

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“I’m fine, but I don’t think the Director is. And Eric, who left him behind.”f647da8d983074b8

Eric, who had retreated 973327ca99 to the end of 314c41de62 the hallway, checked on 038040061c Richard.a45bc03b0539a3aa

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Richard was 4143c9e735 two or 3bcb084775 three steps 9b5f32d851 away from 896a8260c5 Philip, his 18f9bdae6a thick jaw a2b9010d85 trembling.e79e237557356e78

“…It’ll be okay. I’ve given strict orders to prioritize the Guide’s safety above all else.”62c2a0a6711e0e1a

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

Even Richard hadn’t anticipated e586081847 this situation when he b253814cf9 gave that order.bf652f0b5838073f

I sighed e96a9758bd heavily, hoping 19d9fae1f9 Richard wouldn’t 6054ebbc0b scold Eric. I could faintly hear e23e721b60 Philip cursing in frustration.5b45deaa409fcf4f

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“I heard he’s been a little calmer recently… but looks like that fiery temper of his is still there.”708d4f7a97eefd62

You’re out, 5565c349db you jerk.e8004e5c325868fd

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

 b5b379bfc0f94cb0

A while later, 7ff6e6fb3e Philip’s personal assistant 36823460f8 managed to stop b1e895eefc him.47c7e4f501e026c0

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

The assistant persuades b24e5d463b Philip not to 9f635fd752 behave in a 2825d0bda3 way that would f7fdaa1653 sour his relationship 3fb110d65c with me any b0b2781534 further, as there ed4408e116 would be another 08226643f2 chance in a e9ad7bc9c1 year.866258cd0abc2c77

Philip stepped ca4dafb85c back to 2ef59d46c0 the end 6b2e40de02 of the d5484aaba6 hallway, briefly 751b0c694c eyeing me—still 3a37618d08 nestled in 486bc7e0cb the arms 593ef117ec of my 93799ade77 escort Esper—before e017870ae1 taking a a22ba17da3 few deep e0c6a0846b breaths.a8cc995724796117

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

His chest 6731bc856e rose and 8c5ff054b4 fell several 877591db8d times.751a30e99d14ca63

“…I’m sorry. Guide Sofia, I’m sorry.”57127b20933f90f0

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Philip, who had 2db90036f2 left a harsh 3a0163d31b tone, murmured that eadc5bf202 he was tired, 186f761a04 and turned to 3005a289ef walk away.bdc64aab566b2561

He was 3889b4c00c a really 5ed778c6a4 bad person, bf24c35c02 both from c12763fee5 the start 651bd99e05 and at 8dba0dc49a the end.bd6748e0ad9ffe98

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

 ae010fdcade7c6a0

 2474e8c7725638e1

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

 734dda9cda62c5fd

* * *791f6b2f9dd86d4b

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

 7b2a0538332eef5f

 12364eea27264016

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

 fd6980ab5b8cb2cd

The next day, de2e4a7d5f in the same 8b58b76250 reception room where 782f9295b5 I had met c9b8327792 Philip, I met 351d926f6f the second pair 23892e5ef6 candidate.a92e93cb16a3ec0e

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

This time, at Richard’s suggestion, I brought two Esper escorts with me.51b4bbc320e550bb

“Hello, Guide Sofia, right? I’m Daniel Calix. Feel free to call me Daniel.”30d37f52f11c3a26

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

As I entered the 53cb0c88d7 reception room, the man ed44cf8a8a who arrived early stood 3174007c35 up and greeted me.13b129c54d3cb0ad

His polite manner 9a4a287fbb and gentle smile 8e9eecaa65 were quite impressive.613d9bd594843990

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“Nice to meet you, Daniel. Please feel free to call me Sofia, too.”bc6a7944b97c3c40

He didn’t 1f1fe1ccfa ask for 70a62f2679 a handshake.36a91a29fe972fe1

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

After Philip had left 21fa0473d8 the day before, I d374477c7e had learned from my 3ea405d4c5 escort, Eric, that it dc8808cd5a was considered bad manners 518623488f for an Esper to 182ef57aa1 ask a novice Guide 44caed8c7c for a handshake.9f767db733321daf

Newly awakened 7514311ee7 Guides often 444249a605 release guiding 895662065c energy even 2788be0cb0 with light a45ac1769e physical contact.fb0e3e70f84a6c6c

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

They say that asking for a handshake from such a guide is tantamount to saying, “Let me taste your guiding energy.”2672777faf11c988

“Is that okay? Sofia?”f9d317dff72996ad

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“Yes, feel free to speak casually.”7ddf26914018190e

As I sat on 27463a9960 the sofa, Daniel sat 4cc5b78248 down slowly as well.f43b7d2b47a2f265

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Unlike his adorable fdb422205f image, he was 53352ed512 quite large. He seemed to be 767bf24666 minimizing his movements, perhaps 24c11b0dd0 to avoid startling a a6159bb6ee young child like me.23e7260ef12a3d31

“Haha, thanks, Sofia. Actually, I have a younger sibling. She’s ten years old, and seeing you reminds me of when my Ellie was that age, so I wanted to get to know you better.”1fd84063d17628a9

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

Maybe because 0af00a1c53 of his 6ee1130601 blonde hair.22d257a66e6e7a7e

Looking at Daniel reminded 67270b0ff9 me of a golden 4151452567 retriever. He smiled 4e14ca5d4f and took 1da22b5041 out something 35f4bbba80 to show 4ac2bd8370 me.e0e1dc51652f00e5

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“Here, this is my little sister Ellie.”cc1598e7edf02f4f

It was a 637b61b537 phone, and the 140c8c77d8 wallpaper was a 80c932dd72 selfie of Daniel f5241ad1e4 and a girl d12ba93d70 who looked like 6251f52d98 him.cdb11822f5323d41

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“You must be close with your younger sister.”5bf5d52eeb5abe2e

I can’t 2575011158 believe he e755950103 set his 828bbc0907 phone wallpaper 07e8a47b4b like that.830c97fc374670b4

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Daniel nodded at my 7cf5e2dc31 question.618ab0a296415c9d

“Yeah. There’s a five-year gap between us, but since our parents were busy, I ended up taking care of Ellie a lot. So she’s like my own daughter.”fd02d2e1aa7039c9

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

It was an 6b34bd342e amazing sibling bond.1c3375b1029ffe46

Daniel spent about 0ce37d4b6b 20 minutes, talking ebac1c1abe about his sister 258642edf8 Ellie.4e7380295556b220

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

It was more pleasant f1aba915f6 than talking to Philip, 18d592d12d who treated me like d8496dbed5 a child. I occasionally 4e2b0ab21e nodded along f8c5774f9e as he 9bc3c75953 spoke.6fe87c64bc4c1846

“Ah, I’ve only talked about myself.”7bcf7bb26f042313

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

‘You’ve been talking 54861bc0ae about your sister, 8fc5966298 not yourself.’d6f5287e1c13cc78

Just when I 3edfc3659d thought my ears 80c4aeb6ec were about to 6cd519dfb0 bleed, Daniel stopped, 6a1d17ac2a looking embarrassed.4a2c18e0654b182b

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

I tried dd0dac1eb4 to hide 58191e0995 my slight 550d23cbae fatigue and a01fa250ca smiled faintly.6351280a88d93724

“It’s okay. I had fun.”f3c09a4212f8bfee

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“You’re so mature, Sofia.”18037f527e3478db

“I hear that a lot.”ca7c20cad54c2ef6

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“Haha!”4b7a8910a6b193d9

The atmosphere 657bc6bd43 was very c33ecd3b6c good. Our conversation 369c508ac4 was smooth, 3fcbb78233 and laughter 73e2ab7115 kept flowing f9728e97df between us.366238bf4e0b2576

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

I could feel 83c1d8c6cd our familiarity growing.b103ea7fa238b8ba

‘At this rate, the 734db3a8a8 matching rate will probably e33c8cb677 be pretty high.’f7f7f6cb105a0cac

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

But just 12db45b90e as I 169cf2bc91 had that 8028461ce4 thought, my 8565210a7c mood started 3b7c283675 to drop 01f2283e68 when Daniel af3d9cddf7 began talking 7f83cf6001 about Guides.0ecad7dbc06b30c8

“I’m a little tired because I haven’t been getting guidance yesterday and today .”ffeb6dceb932c22e

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“Do you get guidance every day?”b590df0caca9fc13

“Yeah. Sometimes two or three times a day.”ae1068cb5c879ecd

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

From what 52c6a97822 I heard, 8d4b07197e Daniel seemed 9625ba88c7 to have 5a27564d53 a strong 049f13b74e desire for c09de1f707 guides. But, he f49cac0bca didn’t seem 9e795bd61b to possessive 1e0092c9d9 towards a 168bccba8e single Guide.993e5e0f64f2d6ca

He was quite e214f9cb6e handsome, with a e57e4b7590 friendly personality, and 82d3bea44b his celebrity status 66ca832044 made him popular d59fa19743 among Guides.6e410dd8dfb7ecde

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Daniel, too, seemed to 734ae3f162 be well aware of ba9491ff39 his appeal.f6071ff8c6a25e08

That’s why he often 93d15962a3 had multiple Guides around 8c6261c4d8 him, charming them and 61c7deb7f0 keeping them close.186a3a319ea69797

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

He was the type 0a4aa9a735 to not stop a 18eb2ed49f Guide from leaving and 15148bafa5 not hold back a 97e08d344d new one from joining.d03138bbab15e33d

He didn’t think fb00c21922 of this as 998d9041f4 something bad either, 2f505522ba and even seemed 70fff12a21 to take pride f739e1727d in how popular af538cc047 he was among 649a0d4676 Guides.a430a0c2c8fb2c63

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

‘Now that I think b19d45cfcd about it, there was 0ec96f3875 a lot of talk b4fac6f2af about scandals involving Daniel.’9af3dbb298f12940

I’ve heard there 7eacda1056 were several dramas 625191673c surrounding him.7ef458f42ece70f5

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

I’d forgotten about 7854a337a1 it because he c59af6267c was only fifteen, 5747da6bde dismissing them as 3e3efb760d mere gossip.6302139544c0528c

“Um, does it bother you?”443363296e83bbe7

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

When my f27534f582 expression darkened, d5fd1c6451 Daniel noticed.6284d647a4230f7d

“Don’t worry. Once the pair is formed, I’ll make sure to let the other Guides go. So cheer up, okay?”8b74a39702f2d7e0

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Daniel smiled, narrowing his f429bfa74a eyes as he spoke. It was quite 17731164d1 natural for him 321487b66d to use his 53b09e8c65 charm and diffuse 4981fc667a the tension.b2c4bf7fb4a2a2ba

‘This one’s out too.’5ff67f59dfe5b861

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

I leaned 8a8378a840 back against 98310a5080 the sofa e6a8266559 and absentmindedly 7303f2af42 sucked on 041718ce46 the straw 8a51542685 stuck to cfd9fbd56c the orange 7b7b3a3deb juice.13989094da11f32f

From then on, d431966083 everything Daniel did 30dc1b2031 seemed to carry 64aad5a3c1 a subtle, almost 28838e0afc manipulative sweetness that 5c98b4764a didn’t sit well ba365c872f with me.b499cba353ebb061

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

 7c1489157e39c214

 f19514b415d7b80b

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

An hour later. The matching rate 8d03a79304 result with Daniel 9ad912a425 was 63%.8a76707db6c85f52

“Well, it’s a bit lower than the preliminary test.”2a3eb8744333e4ee

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Since the preliminary matching rate was 82%, saying it was “a bit” lower was an understatement.1796b8d255dab073

But Daniel 6de8eae14c didn’t break c2dad885a0 a wall 86f067d290 or swear 62282c7c1a like Philip, 5c87cc3b64 even though 0a02ac6402 he looked 64e4c73359 disappointed.ac4c23fc41f583da

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Instead, he d3f9e58967 shrugged his bfc09dc7a6 shoulders and 14a2285b11 said:4bff573a5f333fd3

“Well, it’s fine. We’ll just get to know each other over the next year, right?”18ec555c012a8f14

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

That’s so positive, 5ea753f7b4 I like it.5680f2d09b33e83d

Daniel left the center, 6e871eaae1 saying he hoped we’d 68ce88a520 have a more enjoyable 7c2f519b9b time the next time 9550730a1b we met.25fd92978a03d1e9

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Just like 98346e2b02 when we 3078459c24 first met, 083bc0e5f1 he wore 1065b21423 a bright, b09b658b4d cheerful smile.f933d0a75692a325

 fd624470655c1d60

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator