Chapter 71: Iris is the New Magical Girl.
They ran down the hallway while the alarm continued blaring and Iris glanced at the numbered markings on the walls.
"We have to get to Section C."
"What’s there?"
"An exit that leads to the laboratory building."
"Won’t it be full of students?"
"Not at this hour."
Noah pulled out his phone while running and tried to text Luna, but the screen showed an extremely weak signal.
’No connection?’
The hallway walls were blocking the signal, so he couldn’t call for help. On top of that, he hadn’t told Yume or Luna where he was.
’That was a bad idea.’
A door opened ahead of them and one of the intruders appeared from another corridor.
"Stop right there!"
Iris slammed on the brakes and Noah nearly crashed into her.
The woman pulled out a small metal rod, and an electric current crackled across its surface.
Noah activated his Refuge Barrier, and a transparent layer of energy appeared in front of them both.
The intruder attacked, but when the rod struck the barrier, the electricity spread across the surface without reaching them.
Iris’s eyes widened.
"Was that magic?"
"I told you the truth."
Noah pushed the barrier forward and the agent lost her balance.
Iris grabbed his arm again.
"Right."
They sprinted down another corridor.
"Why didn’t you tell me you could do that?"
Iris asked.
"I tried to explain that magical girls exist."
"But you’re not a girl."
"I’m not saying I’m a magical girl."
"Then what are you?"
"I don’t know exactly."
"That doesn’t answer anything."
"This isn’t the time to discuss it."
Iris opened another door, which led into a small room filled with electrical panels and camera screens.
She closed the entrance and moved to a terminal.
"What are you doing?"
"I’m going to lock the doors in the north corridor."
"They can break them."
"I only need to slow them down."
Iris entered several commands while Noah watched the screens showing the three girls moving through the hallways.
Iris studied their routes.
"They split up."
"Is that bad?"
"Not necessarily."
Iris opened two access points and then closed a third.
"One of them is heading toward the lab."
"How do you know?"
"It’s the shortest route to our position."
"Then she’ll find us!"
"Not if we’re not here."
Noah looked at her.
"But we are here."
"Just watch."
Iris picked up a communicator connected to the panel, pressed a button, adjusted her voice to match the woman who had spoken to them earlier, and transmitted a message over the hallway speakers.
"The target is heading toward the east exit."
Noah’s eyes widened.
"What are you doing?"
"False information."
On the screen, two of the girls changed direction. Iris switched off the communicator.
"It worked."
Noah studied the floor plan.
"How did you manage to copy that woman’s voice?"
"I watched a tutorial while waiting for a match to start."
"From just a tutorial!?"
"If you practice, it’s not that hard."
Noah stayed quiet. She didn’t just know the building; she had also analyzed the intruders’ team and their positions.
’Her analysis and learning ability are impressive.’
Noah remembered how she played Crystal Kingdom.
Iris controlled the map, calculated routes, and forced her opponents to move exactly where she wanted them.
Now she was doing the same thing in real life.
One of the intruders on the screen stopped moving and Iris frowned.
"She figured out the lie."
"How!?"
"She’s coming back."
The door behind them took a heavy hit and the metal bent.
Noah stepped closer.
"We have to get out."
Iris checked the floor plan.
"There’s a service duct behind that panel."
She pointed to a section of the wall and Noah tried to open it, but it wouldn’t budge.
"It’s locked."
"It needs a tool."
The door took another hit and a crack appeared around the frame.
Iris searched the drawers and found a metal wrench.
Noah used it to release the panel’s latches and the access opened.
It was narrow.
"You go first."
Noah said. Iris looked at him.
"And you?"
"I’ll be right behind you."
She crouched down and entered.
Noah followed.
The duct was barely wide enough to crawl through. They heard the door to the room shatter behind them.
"They’re inside."
Noah said.
"I know."
"Where does this lead?"
"To an emergency stairwell."
"Is it open?"
"It should be."
"Should be?"
"As you might have noticed, I don’t usually take this route."
Iris kept crawling forward until they reached the end.
Iris pushed against a grate, but it didn’t open. Noah felt a fresh wave of worry.
"Is it blocked?"
"Yes."
"Great."
"That isn’t very helpful."
Iris searched for a side latch but couldn’t find one.
Noah looked back and saw a light appear at the far end of the duct.
The girls were following them.
"Iris."
"I’m trying."
"We don’t have much time."
Noah rammed the grate with his shoulder. It didn’t move. He hit it again and the frame finally gave way.
They both tumbled out and landed inside a storage room filled with shelves of cleaning supplies, boxes, and tools.
Iris got to her feet.
"This room only has one door."
Noah checked his phone, but there was still no signal.
They heard footsteps in the duct. Iris scanned the room.
"We can block the entrance with the shelves."
"I don’t think that’ll be enough."
"There are chemicals."
"We’re not setting off an explosion inside the high school."
"I wasn’t going to suggest that."
"Good."
"We could make smoke."
"I think that would be worse."
Iris frowned.
"Then you suggest something."
Noah took out the crystal brooch.
"This."
Iris looked at it.
"Again?"
"You need to take it."
"Now?"
"Yes."
"We’re being chased and you want to give me jewelry."
"I told you it’s a magical item."
The storage room door took a heavy hit, signaling that the intruders had found the exterior entrance.
Iris glanced at the door, then at the brooch.
"Noah, this isn’t the time for jokes."
"I’m not joking."
"What’s supposed to happen?"
"You’ll awaken your powers."
"That doesn’t make any sense."
"You just saw me create a barrier."
"That only proves you have powers."
"The item was made for you."
The door shook again, and one of the hinges started to come loose.
Noah held out the brooch.
"Take it."
Iris didn’t move.
"What if it’s dangerous?"
"It’s not."
"How do you know?"
"Because I’ve already seen similar items work."
"Seriously? With who?"
Noah didn’t see any point in hiding it anymore.
"With Yume and Luna."
Iris’s eyes widened slightly.
"They have powers too?"
"Yes."
"And you work with them?"
"That’s right."
"Is that why you were looking for me?"
"Of course."
The door took a third impact and a hand punched through the wood.
Iris stepped back, but Noah activated the Refuge Barrier again. The energy covered the entrance.
"You have to take it now."
Iris was still hesitating.
"I don’t understand any of this."
"I’ll explain everything later."
The door finally broke open.
The first intruder entered and struck the barrier with her electric rod while two more women appeared behind her.
Noah felt the pressure of the attack. The barrier held, but a crack of energy appeared in the center.
"Hand him over, kid!"
The agent ordered. Iris looked at Noah.
"They’re only after you."
"I know."
"You could escape if you leave me."
"No."
"I have nothing to do with this."
"They’ve seen you now."
"That doesn’t mean they want to take me."
"I’m not risking it."
The woman attacked again, widening the crack.
Noah took a step forward and positioned himself fully in front of Iris.
"Stay behind me!"
She watched him as Noah extended an arm to keep her away from the barrier.
"When it breaks, run back into the duct."
"And you?"
"I’ll let them capture me."
"Why!?"
"I won’t let them hurt you."
Iris stood frozen.
’Is he really going to do it?’
Noah was trembling from the effort while the barrier continued taking hits.
"They’re only after him."
He could have left her behind, but Noah kept protecting her.
’He meant it.’
Iris looked at the brooch that had fallen to the floor and noticed the crystal’s light growing brighter.
Noah turned his head slightly.
"Iris."
She raised her hand.
"If this explodes, it’s your fault."
Noah almost smiled.
"Fine by me."
Iris took the brooch. For a second, nothing happened. Then the crystal emitted a blue light.
Iris’s eyes widened.
The energy flowed through her fingers and up her arm as the brooch floated above her hand.
The agents stopped attacking.
"What is that?"
"That wasn’t in the report."
The light filled the entire storage room and Noah felt the barrier disappear.
The energy surrounding Iris began forming geometric shapes, and crystal fragments appeared around her body.
Her clothes changed.
A light armor in white and blue tones covered her torso. A layered crystalline skirt appeared over her legs. Transparent gloves protected her hands, and several floating pieces positioned themselves behind her back.
Iris’s hair lifted with the energy as her eyes glowed. She looked at her own hands.
"This..."
A crystal appeared above her palm and Noah felt relief wash over him.
"It worked."
Iris raised her gaze toward the three girls, and the surprise vanished from her face.
Her expression turned cold again, but this time something was different.
"This confirms it was all true."
She said as one of the intruders advanced.
Iris moved her hand, and a wall of crystal erupted from the floor, completely blocking the entrance. The girl slammed into it.
The others tried to retreat, but a second structure appeared behind them.
They were trapped between the two barriers. Iris observed the formation.
"Distance of five meters."
She moved her fingers.
"Approximate thickness of thirty centimeters."
The agents began striking the crystal, but they couldn’t break it. Iris turned toward Noah.
"You’ll explain everything to me later."
Noah nodded.
"Yeah."
"You’ll also explain why Yume and Luna aren’t here."
"That’s going to be complicated."
Iris narrowed her eyes.
"Stop being so vague."
Noah glanced at the trapped intruders.
"We should leave before more show up."
Iris scanned the storage room and then checked the emergency floor plan posted on the wall.
"There’s a service exit to the south."
"Can you lead us?"
"Yes."
Iris started walking and Noah followed.
Before leaving, he looked back at the three girls, who were still trying to smash through the crystal walls.
Noah understood that the goddess had chosen correctly. Iris didn’t just possess power; she had the intelligence, control, and analytical ability needed to become a vital part of the team.
The third magical girl had just awakened.