With Riser's defeat, the Rating Game was over.
The stadium, which had been buzzing with a mix of awe and disbelief, fell into a hush as Issei's form, no longer cloaked in crimson armor, stood triumphant.
The crowd's murmurs began to grow, a rising chorus of voices discussing the impossible feat they had just witnessed.
A human, a reincarnated devil, had bested a high-class devil from one of the 72 Pillars.
This was unheard of.
This was a victory that would be talked about for generations to come.
Rias, Akeno, Kiba, and Koneko rushed onto the field. Rias's face was a mixture of relief and immense gratitude.
"Issei, you… you did it!"
She exclaimed, her voice thick with emotion.
"You saved me!"
"I told you I would, Rias-sama,"
He said, his voice firm.
"Rias-sama, you shouldn't thank me. You should thank my boss! Without his training, I couldn't have done anything!"
He was about to tell her how much Arthur had helped him when a new voice, laced with a familiar bravado, interrupted him.
"You! You will pay for what you did to my brother!"
It was Ravel Phenex. She stood before Issei, her face a fiery red, not from anger but from a strange mix of emotions.
She had a new resolve in her eyes.
The way Issei had defeated her with a simple flick, the way he had defended Yubelluna from her brother's coldness… it had stirred something in her young heart.
It was a feeling she couldn't name, but she knew she wanted to be near him.
Issei, surprised by her sudden appearance, tilted his head.
"What are you talking about? I didn't do anything to your brother. I just beat him in a fight."
Ravel stomped her foot, a cute, childish gesture that made a few people in the crowd chuckle.
"You… you humiliated him! And me! I will teach you some manners, you brute!"
She declared, grabbing his hand and trying to pull him away.
Aleno, who was watching from a short distance, just giggled.
Rias, however, looked a bit confused.
She was still trying to process Issei's victory.
"You should go with her, Issei. It's important to make a good impression,"
Rias said, a small smile playing on her lips.
She could tell that Ravel had developed a crush on him, and a high-class Phenex having a crush on her pawn would be quite the spectacle.
Issei, however, was still dazed.
"But… I don't want to go with her!"
He protested, but his words were in vain.
Ravel, a girl much smaller than he, was surprisingly strong when she wanted to be.
She dragged him away from the group, her face still red.
"Why aren't you resisting? You are stronger than me!"
Ravel asked, genuinely curious.
Issei just shrugged.
"Why would I resist a cute girl?"
He replied, his voice calm.
Ravel's face turned a darker shade of red, and she let go of his hand.
"You… you are a pervert! I will teach you manners, you hear me!"
Issei just shook his head and watched her.
Arthur had taught him to be a gentle man, to treat everyone, especially women, with respect, but he had never taught him formal etiquette or manners.
Perhaps Ravel could fill that void. He decided to play along, at least for now.
Arthur, his mind a whirlwind of thoughts.
He felt the gaze of the many powerful beings in the stands and knew that Issei's victory had changed the game forever.
The biblical factions would no longer be able to ignore the new Red Dragon Emperor.
But he wasn't thinking about that.
He was thinking about a conversation he had with the two beings in his soul, Great Red and Ophis.
"Can I use a Balance Breaker?"
He had asked them earlier, curious about his own power.
A deep, rumbling voice had echoed in his mind. It was Great Red.
"You can, but not right now. If you try, you might accidentally erase everything around you. Your power is too much for this world. You can use it after you become a Dragon God. And at your current pace, I don't think it'll be too long."
Arthur had understood. The power of a Dragon God was immense, and he was already halfway there.
He didn't need a Balance Breaker to prove his strength.
He was already a force to be reckoned with.
He had ended the mental conversation and turned his attention back to the world.
A new presence was sitting next to him. It was a powerful figure, but disguised as a man.
Arthur could see right through the disguise. It was Kuroka, Koneko's sister.
Sona, who had been with him, was oblivious to the new arrival. She saw a man, not a powerful Nekoshou.
She turned to Arthur.
"I will go check on Rias. She is probably a bit shaken,"
She said, and then she walked away.
As soon as she was gone, Kuroka's playful voice, laced with a bit of a challenge, cut through the air.
"You can see right through me, Nyan."
Arthur turned to her and just shrugged.
"Yes, so what?"
"Do you know who I am, Nyan?"
She asked, her voice a low purr. She could smell Koneko's scent on him, a scent that was stronger than usual.
She knew her sister had been spending a lot of time with him, and she didn't like it. Her little sister was too innocent.
"Should I know you?"
Arthur asked, raising an eyebrow. He was genuinely confused. He knew who she was, but he was playing dumb.
He didn't want to engage in a conversation with her. He didn't have time for her cat-and-mouse games.
Kuroka's face twisted into an annoyed pout.
In a normal situation, she would have played with him, teased him, but this was about her little sister.
She looked at him with a serious expression.
"She is too young, Nyan! Find someone older!"
She blurted out, her words coming out in a rush.
Arthur was truly shocked.
"What the fuck are you talking about?"
He demanded. He had never seen Koneko in that way!
She was a cute, lovely little sister, nothing more!
Kuroka ignored his question.
"Don't you dare lay a finger on my sister! She is mine! I will kill you if you do anything to her!"
She threatened, a spark of dangerous magic flaring in her eyes.
Arthur sighed.
"Listen, you have the wrong idea. Koneko is like a little sister to me, nothing more. I would never do anything to hurt her. She is a lovely girl."
Kuroka's eyes widened slightly. She had expected him to be a pervert, just like Issei, but he wasn't.
He was a gentleman. His words had the ring of truth.
She could see in his eyes that he was not lying. He truly saw Koneko as a little sister.
"You… you are not a pervert?"
She asked, her voice a little softer now.
"No, I am not."
Arthur replied, a hint of annoyance in his voice.
"I am a gentleman, and I would never do anything to hurt a girl."
Kuroka was taken aback. This was not the man she had expected to meet.
He was powerful, yes, but he was also kind and gentle.
The way he spoke about her sister, with such sincerity, made her heart flutter.
The air around them grew tense as Kuroka contemplated the man before her.
She had been prepared to fight him, to use every trick she had learned, but now, she found herself at a loss. Her sister had found a new "Nii-san" and he wasn't a bad person, but a good one.
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[email protected]/phelio (120 more chapters)
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Little Spoiler: Fairy Tail Arc is going to end soon. Ready to vote for the next floor.
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