Chương 32: Rias Gremory vs. Riser Phenex
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The Satan and Mage watched as Rias's peerage began by sending Koneko, Issei, and Kiba out first.
"That's a needlessly meticulous strategy," Takauji commented.
"Care to elaborate?" Sirzechs asked with intrigue.
"They're probably going to the gymnasium first to hold the center and prevent Riser's Pawns from promoting. But from what I'm seeing Riser's probably just going to stall them out with his fodder pieces, and send his stronger ones at the last moment to take Rias's out."
He pointed to Riser's approaching subordinates on the various screens, using all four of his eyes to monitor each of them.
"The match just started. Don't you think you might be jumping to conclusions?"
The Lucifer's tone didn't seem to contain any doubt, but rather plain interest.
"It's possible. But honestly, my contractor should have a little more faith in her pieces, even if all of Riser's pawns end up promoting the match won't be swayed at all."
"Then if you were in charge what would you have done?"
Besides taking out Riser and his peerage on his lonesome.
"Have Himejima-san and Yuuto-kun rush down Riser, and have everyone else simply focus on either defending or taking out Riser's other pieces so those two can fight him unperturbed."
"You think those two are enough to take Riser down on their own? If that doesn't work, then the entire strategy you proposed would fall apart wouldn't it?"
"They're more than enough. If you take into account Riser's record, ability, and numbers difference. It probably wouldn't be a stretch to assume the Phenex's overconfidence might also be at play."
Sirzechs chuckled a little, finding it amusing that Takauji didn't know how accurate he was.
"I will admit, Riser isn't exactly the most level-headed person out there."
Takauji raised a brow.
"Then why pair him with your sister?"
"That wasn't my decision."
"It wasn't?"
The Satan shook his head.
"When I became a Satan, I cast aside my status as a member of the Gremory household hence the change in last name. All four of us need to do this to ensure that there's no bias or underhanded intent going into the decisions we make as leaders of the Underworld."
"But even if you cast aside your name and status, there's probably still going to be a good amount of sentiment between a Satan and their household. Wouldn't they just favor their household anyway?"
"It's possible. But the practice makes it so there's hardly any benefit in doing so besides sentiment, also we Satans like to keep each other in check so there's a balancing act in play on top of that."
"I see."
Takauji relented, returning his attention to the screens alongside Sirzechs.
["All of Riser Phenex's Pawns have been eliminated."]
"Haha, looks like you were right." Sirzechs exhaled.
The Mage could only shake his head with his arms folded, knowing exactly what was about to come next.
[BOOM!]
They heard a massive explosion from the screen, the Gymanisum's roof having been blown to bits by a woman with flowing purple hair floating above it.
["Rias Gremory's Rook has been eliminated."]
"I'm going to assume that's his Queen?" Takauji asked.
"Indeed, her name is Yubelluna. Commonly known as the Bomb Queen."
Takauji observed her through the screen for a few seconds before completely losing all interest.
"He did well to use his Pawns as bait to take out one of Rias's stronger pieces, but he should've gone for Issei-kun instead of Toujou-san."
"And why is that?"
The Mage simply pointed at the screen.
[BOOST!]
"The longer Issei remains in the game, the worse it gets for Riser. If he can make it to Riser alongside Himejima-san and Yuuto-kun, then it's game over."
"Sound reasoning," Sirzechs nodded approvingly. "But Rias might also end up taking a combat position as well. Wouldn't she also have an impact on the game?"
Takauji could only shrug.
"She's the only one I'm unsure about."
"And why is that?"
"I've never once seen her fight or use her power, so I don't know what kind of approach she might take. My contractor, has the [Power of Destruction] like you correct?"
"Yes. However, not to belittle my sister or anything, right now she still has a long way to go before she's at my level."
No shit. Comparing a High-Class and Super Devil is like an ant against a planet.
"That's fair. But do you think your sister is at a point where she can harm Riser with her strength?"
"I suppose that would depend on how she coordinates her battle against him. Riser's [Immortality] is a rather troublesome technique to deal with all things considered."
"That it is."
Naturally, both of them could render it useless in a matter of seconds.
"Oh, it seems my sister's Knight is about to get some action."
One of the screens showed Kiba in front of two women, one wearing some sort of Chinese dress, and the other wearing a half-broken opera mask.
Is he using that wind-generating sword? That's a rather strange tactic.
The Knight was the one to make the first move.
["Riser Phenex's Rooks have been eliminated."]
Takauji could only chuckle, watching as Kiba blitzed through the Rooks in an instant, taking them out before they even had the chance to react.
"What is it?" Sirzechs asked, wondering what Takauji found so amusing.
"It's nothing."
His laughter quickly died down, causing the Satan to raise a brow.
"If you say so."
That was [Mana Step], or more accurately Yuuto-kun's own version of it. I guess for him it'd be called [Wind Step] or something. The fact that he was able to copy it without my explaining the technique means his eyes are better than I thought. Not bad Knight-san, not bad at all.
"Yuuto-kun now has a straight path towards Riser since his Queen has no chance of catching up, or keeping up with his speed."
"But he can't move just yet can he?" Sirzechs noticed.
"If he goes on his own, he would most certainly be setting himself up for defeat. He needs to link up with Himejima-san, speaking of which…"
Both of their ears twitched as they focused on one of the screens, hearing the sound of what could only be described as a thousand birds chirping in unison.
Looks like she's already bringing [Holy Lightning] out. This should be interesting.
"Have you seen that technique before?" The Satan wondered.
"I've seen her [Holy Lightning], but not this application of it."
Akeno's entire body had been shrouded in her own lightning, the presence around her adopting a certain weight to it as her skin crackled.
Like a [Lightning Cloak].
["Riser Phenex's Queen has been eliminated."]
There wasn't a single contestant in the game who could follow her movements, to them all they heard was the sound of a loud bang followed by Grayfia's announcement.
"Akeno Himejima, the Lightning Priestess." Sirzechs mused. "If she can keep that level of growth up, it won't be long before she becomes a High-Class Devil. She might even get a special recommendation for it."
"Special recommendation?"
"Yeah, the High-Class exams are normally a scheduled event. However, if a Devil racks up enough achievements, and shows a truly exceptional level of prowess, they are allowed to take a private exam instead of having to go through normal channels."
Good for you, Himejima-san.
Takauji narrowed his eyes, paying closer attention to the state of Rias's Queen.
"You've noticed, haven't you? That technique seems to take a massive toll on her stamina," Sirzechs observed.
"She's going to need Yuuto-kun or Issei-kun to support her even more if that's the case, without her natural advantage on the field they won't be able to beat Riser."
["Rias Gremory's Pawn has been eliminated."]
Their eyes widened, looking at the sight of all of Riser's pieces besides himself and his Queen having ganged up on Issei.
"It seems he was aware of the threat of keeping Issei-kun on the field for too long. Now it really is all up to Yuuto-kun."
"This match seems to be moving pretty fast."
Sirzechs expanded one of the screens, bringing up a rooftop of one of the buildings. A blonde-haired youth with a red blazer standing on one side of it, and Akeno with her [Lightning Cloak] active as she floated above him.
Let's see if this Riser guy is anything special beyond his bloodline.
The fight started with no words exchanged between the two.
Akeno's speed proved to be too much for Riser to follow, allowing her to hit him with a solid bolt of [Holy Lightning] right to his face.
Why is she being so aggressive when they're clearly at an advantage? Don't tell me she's trying to take him out on her own.
"If she pulls it off, then that special recommendation will become a guarantee. Riser is held in high regard both politically and strength-wise in the Underworld."
"Hopefully she knows what she's doing," Takauji leaned towards the screen.
Despite Riser having a good chunk of his face blown off, flames started to cover the injury and regrow the lost flesh within seconds. Putting his [Immortality] on display.
"The properties of her lightning should make it exceedingly costly for Riser to repair his injuries Mana-wise. But Himejima-san's also running low on stamina by making use of that technique she created."
"In other words, it's a war of attrition," Sirzechs added.
"Precisely, Riser's other pieces will also be coming to his aid now. And Yuuto-kun probably won't be able to intercept them, so if Himejima-san wants to beat him she has to do it now."
"Mhm. It seems like she shares your sentiment."
An enormous Magic Circle appeared in the air, filled with bright yellow radiance as dark clouds started to rumble above the Queen and King.
Good luck.
Wings made of raging flames sprung out of Riser's back, coating him in their warmth as they sought to protect him.
[BOOM!]
An eastern dragon made entirely of lightning made its presence known from the clouds, shooting forth like a bullet train and crashing directly into Riser.
But neither Sirzechs nor Takauji's expressions had changed in the slightest.
"There's no announcement, he survived it."
["Rias Gremory's Queen has been eliminated."]
Taking advantage of Akeno's fatigued state, Riser had to exert very little effort to use his remaining strength to take her down.
"What a shame, he's pretty much on his last leg from that attack. If she had just managed to do a little more damage his Mana would've run out first."
Takauji smiled.
"No, I think your sister's going to be the victor here."
A blade was driven through Riser's heart, the Phenex having been too weakened to notice the current fastest figure on the field.
Splendid work. Yuuto-kun.
With the Phenex having no way to defend, Kiba used his improved speed to hit him with an absolute onslaught of slashes, none of which he could defend from.
His arms.
His legs.
His torso.
His neck.
His head.
Kiba didn't even stop for a second, ruthlessly tearing away at the Phenex and offering up a considerably gruesome sight for the camera.
Riser's mental state continued to dwindle cut after cut, being forced to experience the sensation of having his limbs ripped apart endlessly.
Both his Mana and his fortitude could not hold out against that.
"I'm glad, I wouldn't want my sister marrying someone like that in the first place."
["Riser Phenex has been eliminated, the match goes to Rias Gremory and her peerage."]
Both Sirzechs and Takauji stood up.
"Shall we go congratulate them?" The Satan asked.
"Sure."
You didn't even need to move a muscle contractor, good for you.
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Word Count: 1967
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