Chapter 70: Iris and her suspicious knowledge.
Noah decided he could no longer keep delaying the delivery of the brooch.
He had managed to get close to Iris thanks to video games, but he still hadn’t explained the real reason he had been trying to talk to her for days.
The goddess had been very clear: Iris needed to awaken her powers.
The problem was finding the right moment.
Noah didn’t want to hand her the brooch in the classroom, and he couldn’t do it in the cafeteria either, where too many people might see the transformation.
After classes, Iris had told him she planned to go to the old section of the high school to play a match before heading home, so Noah decided to go with her.
He didn’t let Yume or Luna know, since he didn’t want both of them showing up and scaring Iris.
Yume would probably ask too many questions, while Luna would watch Iris’s every move and might interpret any approach as a threat.
’This will only take a few minutes.’
Noah walked beside Iris down one of the less-used hallways.
She was holding her phone in one hand.
"Are you going to play again?"
Noah asked.
"Just one match."
"You said the same thing yesterday and ended up playing two."
"The first one ended way too fast."
Noah smiled, so Iris glanced at him sideways.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"You’re smiling."
"I just find it funny that you come up with an excuse to justify every match."
"I don’t need to justify it."
They reached the small indoor garden area where there was no one around.
Iris sat on her usual bench and took out her phone.
Noah stayed standing with the crystal brooch inside his pocket.
’Now!’
He slipped his hand into his jacket.
"Iris."
She looked up.
"Yes?"
"There’s something I need to give you."
Iris stopped opening the game.
"Again?"
"This time I’ll actually let you see what it is."
"I don’t want gifts."
"It’s not a normal gift."
"That sounds worse."
Noah took out the brooch and the crystal caught the light in the area.
Iris saw a small object with several symmetrical points and a transparent center.
"What is it?"
She asked.
"It’s for you."
"That doesn’t answer my question."
Noah sat down on the other end of the bench.
"I need to explain a few things to you."
Iris didn’t take the brooch.
"Does this have to do with why you were following me?"
"I wasn’t following you."
"You followed me through several buildings."
"I was trying to talk to you."
"That doesn’t change the fact that you were following me."
Noah accepted that he didn’t have a good defense.
"All right, yes, it’s related."
Iris looked at the brooch again.
"Is it some kind of phone accessory?"
"No."
"A USB?"
"No."
"A piece of jewelry?"
"It looks like one."
"Then it’s jewelry."
"It’s a magical object."
Iris looked straight at him. Noah waited for a reaction, but she stayed silent and then picked up her phone.
"I’m going to play."
"I’m being serious."
"So am I."
"Iris."
"Noah, if you didn’t want to tell me what it is, you could have just said no."
"I’m not making anything up."
She opened the game, but Noah held the brooch in front of her.
"This object can awaken magical powers."
Iris kept looking at the screen.
"Sure."
"There are magical girls."
"There are also dragons in plenty of games."
"I’m not talking about a game."
"Then you’re joking."
Noah closed his eyes for a second.
’This was a lot easier with Yume.’
Yume had accepted the key without asking too many questions because she was busy thinking about the wedding expenses.
Luna had also taken the gem and immediately discovered an ability that scared Noah.
Iris, on the other hand, was analyzing every word and rejecting any explanation she didn’t consider logical.
Noah was about to insist when he heard the sound of footsteps coming from the main hallway.
Noah quickly put the brooch away and Iris lifted her head.
"No one usually comes around here."
The footsteps stopped and then female voices could be heard.
"The target is nearby."
"Confirm the signal."
"Confirmed."
Noah tensed up and Iris turned off her phone screen.
"Target?"
Noah stood up and three women entered the garden. They weren’t wearing high school uniforms.
They wore dark jackets, fitted pants, and gloves, and each had a small silver emblem on their chest.
Noah recognized the design, it was the symbol of the Great Mother’s organization.
’They found us.’
The woman in the center raised a device whose screen showed a red dot, and that dot was right in front of her, right where Noah was.
"No doubt about it. He’s Noah Reed."
said the stranger. Iris slowly stood up.
"Who are you?"
Noah took a step back.
"We need to go."
One of the agents moved toward the side exit while the other blocked the main path and the third kept advancing.
"Noah Reed, come with us."
"I’m going to have to decline."
"It’s not an invitation."
Iris looked at Noah.
"Do you know them?"
"Not personally."
"Then why do they know your name?"
"It’s complicated to explain."
The girl in the center extended her hand.
"Come willingly and we won’t need to use force."
Noah remembered what Nozomi had told him: all units were supposed to capture him alive, since whoever succeeded could keep him as personal property.
’I’m not going with them.’
He looked around, but there were only two visible exits and both were blocked.
Noah thought about using the Refuge Barrier, but he didn’t know if these girls had magic and he didn’t want to reveal his abilities too soon.
Iris observed the uniforms, the tracking device, and the positions of the three women.
"Are you looking for something from him?"
she asked. The woman looked at her.
"That’s none of your business."
"We’re inside a high school."
"Step aside."
Iris lowered her gaze to her phone and Noah noticed her moving a finger across the screen.
"You should listen to her."
he said.
"Leave."
Iris didn’t respond, so the stranger advanced, but Noah positioned himself between her and Iris.
"Run!"
Iris pressed something on her phone and an alarm began sounding throughout the building while an automated voice came over the speakers.
"Security alert. Unauthorized access detected in the old block."
The three girls stopped and Noah looked at Iris.
"What did you do?"
"I activated the maintenance alarm."
"How?"
"The school’s internal app has controls for student representatives."
"Are you a representative?"
"No."
"Then why do you have access?"
Iris put her phone away.
"The system’s security is bad."
In the distance, the sound of approaching police sirens could be heard, which distracted the intruders.
Iris grabbed Noah’s arm.
"This way."
They ran toward the side exit before the third woman could block it and entered a narrow hallway.
Noah followed Iris.
"Do you know where we’re going?"
"Yes."
"How?"
"I’ve spent a long time looking for places to play without being bothered."
They turned left and, behind them, one of the agents slammed against the door.
Noah looked back.
"They won’t take long to get through."
"I know."
Iris opened a small unmarked door and behind it was a maintenance hallway.
The walls were gray and several pipes ran along the ceiling.
"Get in."
Noah obeyed.
Iris closed the door and moved a lever, causing an internal lock to drop into place.
"You know how this works too?"
"I checked some of the building’s blueprints."
"Why?"
"Because I found it by chance while looking for quiet places."
Noah didn’t have time to ask more, but he understood that Iris was not an ordinary girl.