Just hearing those words was enough to accelerate Xan's heart. Those guys had attacked him more than enough to know what would come next, so if he wanted to keep the maps, he would have to think fast.

"These are some maps the guards' leader has asked me to deliver to the Irongrain Family area." He said, trying to act as naturally as possible.

Sadly, he had a poor talent for acting, so the bully arched his eyebrow as soon as he heard those words.

"And why would he even ask you to do that? Aren't there more capable people to do that kind of job?" he said as he neared Xan, to the point where their faces were just a few centimeters from each other."I don't buy it, so you better tell me something more credible."

Knowing that admitting the lie would be a great mistake, Xan tried to continue with it.

"I'm telling you the truth..." he said as he took a few steps backward." If you don't believe me, you can come with me, and you will see how I deliver them at the Irongrain Family's door."

The bully looked at Xan's face for a few seconds with his eyes half closed, as if he was trying to look directly into his mind to know if he was lying.

"Fuck it. I'm going with you. I hope you are not lying because if I'm walking all the way there to know you lied to me, I'm going to break your legs." he gave up in the end.

After hearing that, Xan smiled slightly.

He was still in danger, but if he played his cards well, there wouldn't be any problem.

As he had been there yesterday, the servant in charge of the door already knew him, so if he went there and gave him the maps saying they were for Freya, he wouldn't ask any questions that could raise suspicions. After that, he would return to his room and wait until tomorrow to go to the Irongrain Family's area to get his cultivation technique.

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'Come on, Xan. There is no way you can screw this up. You only need to walk for a minute or two.' he thought.

But as they began to walk, they heard another voice from the side.

"Where the hell are you two going?" Blorg shouted a dozen meters away.

He neared them swiftly while he examined them.

"Well, this little shit has some maps, but he said they were for the Irongrain Family, so I'm going to accompany him to check if he lied to me, and if he had done it, beat him until he is half dead." the bully said as he punched the palm of his hand.

"Maps? Why would anyone ask him to deliver some maps? He is lying. Let me check those things immediately." he demanded as he extended his hand.

'Act natural. I don't have anything to fear. I'm just delivering some maps.' Xan thought as he gave the maps to Blorg.

As soon as he got them, Blorg began to scrutinize them, trying to find any clue that indicated that Xan was lying, and for a while, he didn't find any.

"Well, everything is in order, so you can have them back," Blorg said with a broad smile as he returned the maps to Xan.

Xan sighed in relief, seeing he had managed to deceive those two bullies.

But as he was about to grab the papers, Blorg moved his hand, making him miss them.

Suddenly, a little thread of smoke appeared between the maps, and in a few seconds, they were already cinder.

Seeing that, Xan couldn't do anything else that wasn't looking with his eyes wide open. The situation went from one favorable to the worst possible scenario in just a few seconds.

Before reacting, he felt how someone slapped him with great strength.

"Are you fucking stupid? Your mother's signature was all over those maps. I don't know why you were carrying those things around, but they were some maps you inherited from your mother, meaning they are yours and not an official item that you truly had to deliver." he reasoned as he smiled.

"I'm sorry..." Xan said crestfallen.

"You are lucky I have to attend an important meeting because I would beat you until you couldn't move for a few weeks. But next time you lie to me, things will end pretty ugly," Blorg said before leaving the area with the other bully following him.

In the meantime, Xan stood still, looking at the ashes of what had been his great opportunity.