Angel used the "Falsehood" ring to restore her face to Irene Watson's, nodded lightly, and opened the door to the living room.
Sherman put away his revolver and followed her.
"You've become an Instigator?"
Angel found a chair in the shabby living room and sat down as she asked the question casually.
She had learned from Lola's letter that Sherman was preparing to advance to Instigator. When she had arrived through the Mirror World just now, she had deliberately made a little noise, and Sherman had indeed grown alert. He had reached Sequence 8 and gained sharper senses.
Unfortunately, like almost every Beyonder, he had also come to rely more on warnings from his Spirituality. When his senses and spiritual premonitions conflicted, Sherman instinctively trusted the latter, so he had failed to react at once.
That was why Angel had warned him not to trust his spiritual intuition too much. He needed to use the Assassin Pathway's extraordinary sharpness as well, or he might fall into the trap of an enemy capable of Anti-Divination.
"Yes, Miss Irene. Ms. Lola gave me the Potion formula and... taught me the Acting Method. I successfully advanced to Sequence 8 two months ago."
Sherman found two teacups, brewed some black tea, and set them on the table before sitting across from her.
He knew the woman before him probably would not drink this cheap tea. But as an Instigator, he knew that even if she did not drink it, he should still offer it.
"Tell me about East Borough."
Angel watched the tea leaves floating in the cup. In the end, she picked it up and took a sip out of courtesy.
"After that terrible Catastrophe, East Borough's population fell by a full tenth. Just as many people lost the ability to work and