The guy who escaped into the lake is an excellent swimmer.

By the time Ronald and the others re-docked their boat, the traces Costate had been tracking had already extended a long distance in the lake, covering nearly a third of Waterfall City's length.

If they were still investigating the first scene, there was no way they could find any trace of the other party.

The final result would only be like Nicole in the afternoon.

Returning to the hotel helplessly.

...

Following the trail, Ronald and the other two jumped from the boat back onto the ground of Waterfall City. But before continuing the pursuit, Costate threw a questioning look ahead:

"Sir, there's a question."

"If we continue forward, we might encounter ordinary citizens of Waterfall City."

"..."

Hearing Costate's question, Ronald bowed his head and pondered for a few seconds.

Even if the secrecy of the spell was no longer intact.

But Costate knew Ronald's character, so he still had to inquire about this. The crucial question now was whether Ronald wanted ordinary people to see their pursuit actions.

When this journey began, the sky had already darkened.

Now, of course, it was nighttime.

However, Costate's water manipulation spell didn't have much concealment.

Even though there were few pedestrians on the street.

It was almost certain that they would be discovered as soon as they walked onto the street.

In the end, Ronald made a somewhat bold decision:

"Let's keep following, we have no reason to give up here."

"But try to keep it as quiet as possible, and avoid being noticed if you can."

As soon as Ronald voiced his decision,

the look in Nicole's eyes by his side carried a trace of gratitude.

The maid naturally expressed no opinion, she continued to manipulate her spell and started the next phase of tracking.

However, considering Ronald's instructions,

Costate optimized her spell accordingly.

She didn't insist on completely replicating the human form with water flow, but instead, when they entered the street, she dispersed most of the water flow and instead looked for footprints on the ground to proceed with tracking.

The streets of Waterfall City were sparsely populated at night.

The people of Entrode aren't fools either.

Recently, multiple forces have been openly and covertly fighting in this city, and there was even a major incident that destroyed an entire district. In such circumstances, anyone with a bit of sense wouldn't choose to wander the streets in the dark night.

So compared to Ronald's last nighttime stroll in Waterfall City,

now in Waterfall City, apart from patrolling military and law enforcement personnel, only a small number of citizens who really have urgent matters to handle or casters would risk walking the streets at night.

"You guys!"

"Right now, it's not allowed for unauthorized personnel to cast spells in Waterfall City at night!"

It was like karma.

Ronald and the others had just followed the trace out for a short while when several men in thick wool coats blocked their path and started pointing at Costate's spell:

"And made such obvious traces."

"Young girl, do you know you're in big trouble..."

Following the spell trail, one of them naturally cast his gaze at Costate.

But upon seeing the quiet and beautiful appearance of the maid before him,

his voice immediately lowered:

"Guys, it seems we've hit a big catch..."

"Shut up for me!"

This guy obviously had some extra thoughts, but when he attempted to suggest something to the others, their leader directly stopped all his actions:

The reason was simple—

Unlike this short-sighted subordinate, their leader, upon seeing Costate, immediately cast his gaze on the only man among the three—Ronald.

That was intelligence he had seen a month prior.

But with his caution, the leader still recalled from that trace of familiarity what this face represented.

"Excuse me... Are you Mr. Ronald Adler?"

Ronald nodded generously to admit:

"Yes, I am."

"We are currently tracking a dangerous person. If there's nothing else, please make way."

Ronald's polite tone greatly relieved the leader.

Although he didn't know why this formidable figure would appear in his jurisdiction, he understood one thing now—getting the other party out of his jurisdiction as soon as possible was the best solution.

Even if the other party had no ill intent.

But with someone of this caliber, if any incident happened and he got entangled, it wasn't something someone of his level could handle.

"Mr. Ronald, you and your companions can move freely."

"If necessary, we can provide as much assistance as possible under legitimate and appropriate circumstances."

After a few pleasantries, the man pulled his subordinates back, clearing the path for Ronald and company.

During this time, Ronald also observed the expressions of the others.

Even though they spoke politely of "offering help," their attitude honestly expressed 'you guys hurry up and leave'.

Possibly out of awe for the strong, or perhaps because the current state of affairs in Waterfall City was exhausting.

In any case, they genuinely didn't want to be involved in any trouble.

"Hehe..."

Ronald chuckled lightly and answered in accordance with their wishes:

"No need, our tracking is going quite smoothly."

"Costate, continue."

...

After the brief encounter, Ronald and his companions resumed tracking using Costate's spell.

But after being questioned by those people.

The official forces of Entrode quickly received the intelligence, and while Ronald and his companions' activities continued under surveillance, they faced no further disturbances.

Just a quarter of an hour passed...

The two water-patterned footprints controlled by Costate's spell finally halted at the entrance of a building.

It was just a two-story house, something common in Waterfall City.

The only distinctive feature was a banner-like sign hanging at the entrance of the house, carved with tree-shaped patterns.

"That's a doctor's sign." Seeing the sign on the building, Nicole quickly reminded softly beside him, "Doctors in this area of Entrode seem to prefer using herbs for treating diseases, so they also habitually use such patterns to indicate their profession."

"I see..."

Ronald nodded to Nicole in gratitude, then stepped forward to knock on the door.

Knock, knock, knock—

"Excuse me, is anyone there?"