After confirming the young man and his giant pet had left the district, Hills returned to the rented house and knocked on the door. Casaman, who opened the door, glanced at him to ensure he was not an imposter. Once satisfied, Casaman stepped aside to let him in and then peeked out the door to the left and right.
"Nothing followed me, don’t worry," Hills said without turning his head, but his face had turned quite ugly when he looked at the Sect Hierarch: "There’s a problem. That kid didn’t go to the next district; he got on a public carriage and left."
"What’s going on, maybe he’s just in charge of this area," the Dwarves asked curiously.
"Impossible. I’ve been through several of these inspections before. The other party would at least be responsible for this entire district, not just do a sloppy job on our street... Their intent is very clear. We’ve got a big problem now, Your Excellency," Hills said. He glanced at Casaman: "You’ve escaped their pursuit before; you should know that when they come to check, they purposely have newcomers confirm our presence while their senior members watch from afar. If we slip up, they will arrest us on the spot."
"Yes, Hills, and that’s why I think we are still safe, just like we discussed before. If they had already confirmed our existence, why wouldn’t they just bring a team and surround us here?" Casaman had a different viewpoint — this was the explanation he and Malin had decided on after deliberation.
Moreover, Casaman was also puzzled why the unfolding events were diverging from the plan he had arranged with Malin. It was strange.
"I agree with Casaman’s point. Casaman is top-notch at evading capture," the young Half-human put forth, as Casaman had led him and the Sect Hierarch and others to a miraculous escape last time.
Hills thought for a moment and then nodded somewhat awkwardly: "Right, Casaman is indeed correct. But better safe than sorry. If they are suspicious that we have entered their city, we can’t wait any longer. Upon their return, they will compare records, and in this regard, various departments across the human world that are against us will join forces... Casaman, have you ever used your painter identity?"
"Never. This is the first time I’ve used this identity. Although I studied art at the academy, I’ve never used this identity before, so I have every reason to believe that everything is fine. If things were like you said, at least my identity would not be a problem." At this, Casaman fell silent suddenly, then he and Hills both looked toward the human woman who had not spoken until now.
"Mrs. Richard, what about you?"
"I’ve always used Mrs. Richard’s identity, which is secure. My husband has always been serving the Farol Principality’s royal family, providing various luxuries and spices; this has been clean work."
"That might not be clean anymore." Hills pulled out a newspaper, the Rongma Evening News that had just been sold that night. The headline on the front page blared the news of Baslo Richard, the Merchant, being arrested for tax evasion: "As far as I know, aren’t you Lucy’s model?"
Casaman raised his eyebrows in admiration of this new friend’s deduction.
"I only showed my back!" cried the lady.
"But through the Spell Formation that visualizes everything the young man saw, any person with intent could recognize you from your profile. After all, you’ve also said that Mr. Casaman has painted a very realistic you, haven’t you." As he spoke, Hills changed the subject: "Of course, Mrs. Richard, I’m not blaming you. We couldn’t have foreseen this at the time, and if I hadn’t spontaneously decided to follow up and buy this newspaper, we wouldn’t have thought about it either. So, to avoid being arrested as your accomplices, you must leave."
"Hills, are you going to be alright?"
"Your Excellency, look, I am a successful Merchant. You are simply my tenants according to the records. Before our meeting, we were just members who corresponded through letters, and we did not know each other before that." Mr. Hills said, wearing a confident smile: "The secret passage can be opened by pressing down on the crossbeam wood on the left wall of the basement you just hid in. Go down, and you’ll find the ancient sewers. To the left, the exit is near a train station, in a small building of mine that I wasn’t able to rent out; the mechanism to open it is a deeper-colored brick on the left side. If you press it, it will open. And to the right lies our other target, the transfer center."
"We might not have time to raid that place now," the Half-human indicated with a shake of his head that it was too risky.
"No, I think we can. Right now, they are just suspicious of us. We split into two groups. Your Excellency, you take the high-ranking members without combat capabilities and go. I’ll take some men to see if we have a chance over there. Regardless, we will hurry to join you in half an hour. If we don’t make it, or if you hear gunfire, don’t worry about us; just get on the train and leave," Casaman said, looking at everyone.
"Isn’t that too risky?" Mrs. Richard asked Casaman.
"Thanan people say it best: fortune favors the bold, so we must go. They must have got wind of something today, which is why they came on this inspection to find us. We have to make the best use of our time advantage," Casaman said, turning to look at the Sect Hierarch: "What do you say, Your Excellency?"