Noticing the big table in the living room, he gestured for Firrol to remain on top of it while he dashed in its direction and hid underneath it.

The moment his last leg disappeared, he could hear behind him several figures walking through the home with a goal in mind.

"Where is he?" They shouted as several of them rushed into different rooms.

Melvin's heart beat like a drum in his chest as he witnessed all of this, and he gently turned his body around, preparing to act once an opportunity revealed itself.

In an attempt to ease his terrified state of mind, his right hand reflexively grasped the dagger in the back of his waistband, and feeling the strength of the rune coursing through his body he began composing himself.

Although the dagger was already glued to his body, and thus the rune was in effect, every time he touched it, he would feel this rush of power flowing through him.

'Now, isn't the time to freak out!' He yelled at himself, knowing how all of those negative emotions only made the situation all the more difficult.

Paying close attention outward, he sensed that there were three of what he assumed to be guards to his left and two to the right.

If he wanted to leave he would have to run through the two, but he was unsure of their strength.

The earlier encounter with Johnathan Parker had considerably eroded his confidence in his abilities, and although he had always managed to deal with guards, he had an inkling that these particular ones were powerful and it was but a matter of time before they looked under the table.

'I need to move, Now....' He yelled again, and his breath couldn't help but quicken at the realization of what he had to do to escape.

He swiftly brushed his sweaty palms against his clothes and began preparing his body for a run. He clenched his left hand with every fiber of his strength into a fist, until his knuckles turned white, trying to encourage himself even more.

Feeling that the more he thought of it, the harder it became, he pushed all thoughts aside and stood up with astonishing strength and agility. The table flew up and was tossed to the side, but by then Melvin had already started his charge toward the two.

Firrol was thrown away with the table, something he had clearly forgotten, but his flexible body quickly balanced itself in mid-air.

Both the group to his left and the one to his right noticed his existence at the same time. Their eyes widened in disbelief before their bodies reacted and began racing in his direction.

With a hand still clutching to his waistband, Melvin lunged at the two guards with a kick after he advanced in that direction.

The guard on the right deflected his kick by defending with his forearm, and the one on the left who seemed to be a Monk hardened his punch and hammered it into the incoming criminal's face.

In less than a split second, the successful escape Melvin was picturing in his mind crumbled down, and with it, he followed as he fell down to the ground. His nose was broken, bleeding heavily, and he couldn't even feel his upper lip.

Still, he had approached this with a life-or-death battle in mind, and so as much as he was petrified and his senses were overwhelmed with fear, his mind was still sharp, alert, and agile. With a quick move of his hands and legs, he stood upright, eyeing the hallway with the exit door.

Before he could even will his legs to move forward, he felt a kick in the back of his head. It was so strong that his mind blinked shut momentarily. When he came to, he found himself glued face first into the now bloody cold wooden grounds and his dark green beanie in front of him.

A combination of shock, horror, and intense pain made him unconsciously tap into that state of mind of destruction and fury that had always helped him in these situations.

With a swift practiced movement, he kicked the incoming guard he could hear behind him.

Using his astonishing speed, he stood up before the remaining ones were able to close in. He brandished the two daggers out of his waistband and held them close to his heart as he looked at them with a vicious expression.

At that moment, he was no longer a man who was trying to just run away from guards who were doing their job, but a man pushed into a corner, prepared to kill anything that stood in his way.

Karl stood at the side, his expression complicated as if he was contemplating whether to interfere or not. As for the fact that Melvin had lied to him about his actual strength, it wasn't something his mind could register at that moment.

The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

Firrol stood in the center of the hallway leading out, his expression hard to discern, his mouth opened and shut as if trying to say something, his tail still jotting down in nervousness.

The five captains felt slightly threatened by both his strength, and the crazed look on his face. A look that in their dangerous line of work, was understood all too well, and thus their apprehension to approach.

The fact that none of them brought their weapons with them as they were still under the impression that he was weaker than a Novice Tier added to the complication.

They knew that if they weren't able to handle this situation well, there was a very strong chance that one of them might die.

"Jacob," The bald tall captain shouted. Of the five, he was the most striking because every inch of his skin was as rough and dark as a tree bark. His appearance was no longer what one might associate with a human, but a humanoid tree lifeform with arms like thick roots, "You are just making things more complicated for you..." He uttered with a grating voice.

Melvin didn't care for their words that much. His body was still slowly rotating, his eyes focused, ears taut, and mind alert. If any of them moved, he would instantly go for their jugular.

The captain clicked his tongue in annoyance after his gaze brushed with Melvin's for a moment, "Just put down your weapons, and we'll help you."

Melvin's mind started racing, trying to think of the optimal way he could salvage this encirclement.

However, strain his mind as he could, he wasn't able to think of anything. He knew that he just needed a very tiny and good opportunity, and he would be able to make a run for it. From what he observed thus far, his agility was higher than the group, and there laid his chance.

The group of five glanced at each other, and they began closing in on him simultaneously.

Gritting his teeth, Melvin knew that if this continued, although he might really take down one or two, he would be also grievously injured, and thus unable to flee.

His eyes lit up as he thought of his important skill, something that always managed to help him in situations that revolved around humans and their attention, a story.

A plausible plan was already formed in his mind, but there was a big component that would be left to luck. But in the face of what was coming, it was better to try it than just stay put waiting for a gruesome capture.

With his now 8 Charisma, and the +30% Charm effect when recounting a story he'd get a 10.4 Charisma.

Melvin tried to compose his rapid breathing and even faster beating heart and spoke trying to keep his voice cool and collected, "Yesterday, something funny happened."

When the group heard the peculiar and unexpected words, especially in such a tense situation, all of them paused. The group was also dealing with their own fair share of anxiety as they approached, and so finding a good excuse to delay that just a bit further their steps halted.

Melvin continued speaking, and at the same time his body was gently turning around to meet everyone's gaze, "I had just run away from the guards on the roof and I hid somewhere." He couldn't help but unconsciously gulp, his grip tightening even more on the daggers, and he added, "But then I was attacked by a group of killers. They were strange, they had faces shrouded in darkness and they were able to hide in the shadows of one of them."

The group of five all did their best to listen, feeling like there was an underlying meaning that he was trying to convey.

"You know what they told me?" He said with a chuckle, gently shaking his head. Inwardly, Melvin was startled by something. He had found that as he continued feigning calmness, he was in actuality becoming just that. His breath was gradually turning steady and calm, and his heartbeat followed suit.

Upon noticing how all of the guards were indeed paying attention, and their impatient expressions clearly conveyed their investment in what he was saying, he said, "They told me that they came to claim their rich bounty."

The guards were puzzled when they heard that, and that's exactly what Melvin was going for. He snorted loudly out of amusement, and continued, "Naturally, I was as confused as you are. What bounty? I asked. And they were gracious enough to explain exactly what. Apparently, they were a group of assassins who got their money through increasing the bounty of fugitives they were confident in handling. In other words, they were the ones that killed the other bodies around the city, not me."

Melvin quickly noticed that their interest was gradually waning, but he knew that time wasn't quite right yet, he still needed more, so he said, "Look, I know you don't believe me, but I implore you to just look at these facts. Why would I go around killing those people?"

'Shit,' He cursed internally the moment he noticed that the spell they were under previously was about to be broken. He knew that what he said was completely stupid, there were plenty of reasons from their point of view why he would do that.

He knew that he needed something big, something that would make them pause and really start to believe him, this is what he needed, doubt and uncertainty. A lightbulb went off in his head, and he immediately interjected, "Did Chief Dulan tell you that he met me?"

True to his expectations, the moment those words were uttered their attention was immediately piqued once again.

Smiling to himself as his eyes swiftly glanced at Firrol before looking back, he said another shocking statement, "He had saved my life in the royal plaza two days ago." Observing that their intrigue was fully stirred, he continued, "I was attacked by those two Deep Sea guild members that I killed the other day, and the daughter of the Laurelly family." He then sprinkled in some of his conspiracy theories, "Otherwise, don't you think it's strange how a nobody like me would be talked about day after day by the distinguished news that only talk about the very important information of the city?"

Melvin immediately noticed that the moment he had been waiting had arrived, the group's expressions were quite interesting to look at, and he knew that he had given them enough food for thought.

Saying the last line, "At the end of the day, I know that I have wronged. I have killed those people who were sent to threaten and blackmail me, and then I also killed those guild members for trying to kill me without going to the guards. Even the guard that fell from the roof was but an accident, and he fell on his own. Still, I don't deserve all of this treatment." The moment his final word echoed, he followed it with a deep sigh, and he put his weapons down.

"You still have to come with us," The bald captain said with a solemn voice.