Once the crowd thinned, Angel emerged from a mirror. Her appearance changed as she moved: her long hair turned chestnut, and her features shifted until she looked like an ordinary young woman.
She straightened her casual dress, bought a museum ticket, and followed the crowd into the exhibition hall.
Since she would not be making a move today, Angel simply trailed William Sykes and his female companion from a distance. Now and then, she stopped to examine the exhibits behind glass, read their detailed histories, and wander through a thousand years of the Loen Kingdom's past.
"Compared to the golden toilet at the Emperor Roselle Exhibition, that 'symbol of the brilliance of human civilization,' artifacts shaped by collective human wisdom carry so much more weight of history..."
Angel's gaze passed over a five-hundred-year-old oil painting as she offered an assessment based on her astonishingly limited knowledge of history.
"I'd argue that the occasional flash of invention or improvement matters far more than history repeating itself. The steam engine, for instance, or the Patriotic Health Campaign..."
A somewhat familiar voice came from behind her. A flicker of spiritual intuition and a sudden memory made her newly rounded cheeks twitch before she turned.
Dwayne Dantès stood behind her with a modest smile. He wore a half-top hat, tucked a cane beneath his arm, and had rather pleasing features. Beside him stood a thin man of about forty, presumably his butler or personal servant.
"Approaching strangers out of the blue isn't very gentlemanly by Loen standards."
Angel raised an eyebrow and kept some distance from Klein as she spoke.
"Humility and respect for personal space are virtues, but when discussing scholarly matters, sincerity and conviction come first." Klein touched the brim of his hat and bowed slightly. "I'm Dwayne Dantès, a merchant from