The world returned to its normal state.
"…to you?"
I looked at Isabell then back at Iris.
She was frowning as she looked at me.
My brain quickly assessed the situation.
'Iris and that woman did not go to Huntress. Were they aware that someone was going to come here?'
'I need to escape'
It was strange how Iris felt familiar yet unfamiliar at the same time. One part of me recognized her while the other didn't.
'Resonance'
'Eth, are you there?'
No reply came.
Despite the strange situation I only felt an overwhelming desire to escape.
"I didn't expect you to come here, Iris."
I raised both my hands.
I immediately gave up the idea of using force to escape.
A high ranker can kill me dozens of times even before I knew, and the one standing against me was a monster even among them.
This was not a fight I could win.
Nevertheless, losing was not an option.
"I don't think I gave you permission to call me by my name."
When Iris entered there was a smirk on her face as if she had won. Yet, now she was frowning while looking at me.
Her strange behavior was unexplainable.
At the same time, I was looking at Isabell from the corner of my eye.
She was the only one who could save us from this situation. The only chance we had was Huntress.
However, Isabell could not use the intercom in front of them.
There was no way to call for help without alerting them.
"Would you mind telling me what are you doing here, Mr. Pepe?"
"I didn't know where to go in this darkness. Before I knew it I was here."
Iris was releasing her pressure.
It slowly wrapped around us, constricting our movement.
In a few seconds, Isabell and I will be rendered immobile. Then even if Isabell wanted she wouldn't be able to call for help.
A dangerous plan started appearing in my head.
It was a gamble but I knew that it was my only chance.
"What about the dead guards on the way here?"
"They attacked me first."
The pressure suddenly increased by many folds. My knees almost gave out.
This was my last chance.
"Are you a pathological liar? I'll ask one last time what are you doing here?"
"…I guess I can't lie."
Fwosh-
I turned toward Isabell who was only at an arm's length from me.
Grabbing her hand I pulled at her.
When her balance was in disarray, I swept my leg below her feet causing her to trip.
She fell quickly.
I moved to her back and grabbing her other hand I twisted it behind her back.
Bam-
Isabell fell onto the cold hard floor with me pinning her to the ground.
My sudden actions made Iris raise her eyebrows in surprise.
"What are you doing?"
"What I came to do here…."
I looked straight into Iris' eyes.
"Catching the ones responsible for stealing 'item'."
Isabell growled at my response.
"Y-You! When you said that you didn't want the item but something else, you meant this?! Is that why you came here?!"
? She tried to shake me off but I was using my body weight to keep her pinned down, making her efforts useless.
Iris' gaze alternated between me and Isabell.
With one hand I was pinning Isabell's arm behind her back. My other hand was near her right ear as and I was pressing her head against the ground.
'Please, don't use biometrics to work.'
Secretly, I pressed the intercom in Isabell's right ear. Praying that the intercom could be used by anyone and Huntress could hear me now, I spoke in a loud and clear voice.
"I knew about the raid that the Goliaths were going to do today. This was the reason I came here. To stop them and help you, the Sword Maiden. This is why I caught Seer."
Isabell understood what I was trying to do.
She started using less strength to shake me off, just enough to make it look like she was trying.
I was about to speak again when Iris cut me off.
"Haaa…stop it. I don't want to hear whatever crap you are going to come up with."
She pointed to the woman behind her with her thumb.
"Her stigma allows her to detect lies."
That was all she said but it was enough to thwart my entire plan.
'Dammit, I wanted to say that my goal was to establish an amicable relationship with Sword Maiden by helping her catch the intruders.'
Swoosh-
Iris disappeared and instantly appeared in front of me.
A droplet of blood slid down my throat onto the blade that was pressed against my neck.
"How about we start with the introductions again?"
I nodded.
Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!
'I don't even know if the intercom was activated and now the only way I came up with to stall time was busted!'
I had no other choice but to obey her.
"First of all, how about your name Mr. 5th Irregular?"
'Why is she asking for my name? Can she find my real identity with it?'
I was looking for a way out when my eyes landed on the woman who came with Iris.
Something about the fact that the woman was hiding her face bugged me.
'Is she 'Mordred'? The only Seat that didn't show up in the novel?'
It was said that she died on a mission while Leon was in his 2nd year. It was after her death that Iris became a proper villain and Round Table truly became a Dark guild.
However, she felt …familiar.
Purple hair, lazy attitude, katana, the stigma to detect lies, and dies next year.
I knew a person with all these qualities.
That person was teaching in Ward. Also, the only thing I knew about her from the novel was that she was in Ward on behalf of someone unknown.
'Mia.'
Mia was going to die on a mission issued to her by Ward and Aegis.
'Is that woman Mia?'
Gulp-
Iris increased the force behind her blade.
"I don't like to ask twice."
'Fuck! If she is Mia then I'm busted the moment she hears my name!'
Mia knew about the 'stigma' I was using in Ward. Moreover, when I first interacted with Mia, I essentially declared that I could surpass Susan by next year.
At that time she dismissed my claim as rambling from a crazy person.
Or so I believed.
'Is that why Iris only asked for my real name when we first met?'
I felt a chill crawl up to my spine.
This whole time I was only inches away from having my identity busted.
Gulp-
"My name is Nathan…"
'It's all or nothing.'
"…Nathan Meights."
Iris turned towards Mia.
"He is saying the truth."
It was only for a moment but I saw Iris having a confused expression. That definitely meant that they were suspicious of my real identity
An inaudible sigh escaped my lips.
I wasn't 100% sure that my name from my previous life would work.
But it worked.
"Remove your mask. We are going to have the face reveal next."
Just as I was sighing in relief Iris released the next set of commandments.