As the smoke cleared, Rian's figure emerged once more amidst the drifting dust—standing casually, completely unscathed.
The air around his body shimmered faintly—the effect of Infinity bending light like distorted glass, as if reality itself refused to allow any foreign force near him.
Rian lifted his gaze, eyes narrowing slightly toward the source of the attack.
"Ah… so you're all still standing, huh? Good."
With that, he stepped through the shattered window and slowly descended.
His body moved smoothly through the air, supported by the infinite layers of his Infinity.
To control his movement, Rian invoked Blue—creating a gentle field of attraction that pulled him down gracefully, as if even gravity had chosen to obey him.
He landed elegantly before the Phoenix Peerage, who now stood in formation, faces twisted with anger.
The heat radiating from their bodies was palpable, yet Rian only looked at them blankly—his head tilted slightly downward, like a predator calmly assessing its prey.
Rian's gaze immediately locked onto Riser. "Hey… you there," he said casually, tapping his own chin.
"I'm pretty sure my punch was strong enough to break your jaw. So tell me—why do you look like nothing happened?"
His words instantly drew laughter from Riser's entire peerage. Mocking chuckles and scoffs echoed through the air.
To them, Rian was nothing more than a foolish human—an overconfident mortal who had no idea who he was up against.
From behind Riser, a man with fiery orange-red hair and a long coat stepped forward, a smug grin curling on his lips.
"Pathetic human," Riser sneered. "You really don't know anything, do you?"
"You're standing before Riser Phoenix, a direct descendant of the noble Phoenix family. Wounds, broken bones, even a shattered body—none of that matters to us."
Then Riser touched his chest with a graceful motion. "Eternal regeneration—that is the blessing of Phoenix blood. We can't die from something as trivial as a human's punch."
Mocking laughter once again echoed from Riser's peerage. Some even flaunted their fiery wings with pride, scattering sparks of heat into the air.
Ruvel grinned, his eyes filled with disdain as he looked at Rian.
"If you think you can bring down the Phoenix family with just your fists, I suggest you wake up from that pathetic dream of yours, human."
"You've got quite the sharp tongue, huh?" Rian replied casually, his gaze shifting from Ruvel to Riser. "Riser… and you too, ojou-chan."
A few members of the Phoenix peerage were visibly taken aback by the way he addressed them, but Rian simply smiled faintly and clapped his hands together as if he couldn't care less about the rising tension.
"But still…" he continued, lifting his shoulders in a relaxed shrug, "thanks for the explanation."
His tone sounded sincere, but the irony laced through every word made it clear his "thanks" was nothing more than a subtle mockery.
"At least," Rian said, "now I know your arrogance doesn't come from confidence… but from the fact that you can't die."
He blinked slowly, a hint of mockery hidden beneath his calm voice. "In that case, good. I won't bother holding back anymore."
On the other side, from the shattered window, Rias and her team had gathered—Akeno, Grayfia, Koneko, Kiba, Issei, Gasper, and Asia stood side by side, watching from above.
Their expressions varied—a mix of concern and curiosity.
Rias looked anxious, yet she couldn't hide the intrigue in her eyes as she watched the human who dared to stand alone against a noble devil family.
Grayfia, on the other hand, observed Rian without blinking. Her gaze was calm and analytical, like that of an observer evaluating an unexpected anomaly.
"So this is the human who trained Gasper?" she thought, glancing briefly at Gasper standing behind Asia. "Now I'm curious… just how far does his power reach?"
Meanwhile, in the courtyard of Kuoh Academy—right in front of the Occult Research Club building—Ruvel stood at Riser's right side, quickly issuing orders to his teammates to form up.
To Riser's left stood Yubelluna, the Queen and the sorceress who had previously launched a fireball at Rian.
Beside Ruvel stood Mihae, the Bishop, while in front of them two Knights—Karlamine and Siris—took their positions, gripping their magic swords tightly.
The two Rooks—Isabela and Xuelan—stood firmly on the flanks, like immovable pillars ready to seal any opening in their defense.
Finally, at the front line, the eight Pawns—Ile and Nel, Ni and Li, Marion, Bülent, Shuriya, and Mira—stood in a staggered formation.
{Notes: I'm too lazy to describe each character in detail. ~hehe}
Their formation almost resembled a line of chess pawns, poised to make the first move onto the battlefield.
Rian observed the lineup with a calm expression before removing his sunglasses and storing them inside his Void Ring—allowing the Six Eyes to fully open.
"Not a bad formation," he murmured softly, raising his right index finger. "Go on then. Don't bore me."
Ruvel frowned. Rian's taunting tone was irritating, but he restrained himself.
Without hesitation, he signaled the eight Pawns to charge forward. It wasn't cowardice—it was strategy.
Ruvel knew Rian wasn't an ordinary human. That man had managed to punch Riser hard enough to break his jaw and throw the entire Phoenix Peerage out of a room effortlessly.
That meant Rian wasn't just strong—he was a threat, one that even Riser couldn't afford to underestimate.
That was why, despite his mocking words, Ruvel Phoenix never truly underestimated Rian.
On the contrary—behind his sharp gaze, he was carefully calculating every move, every possible outcome.
Meanwhile, the eight Pawns advanced in a zigzag formation, attacking Rian from multiple directions with remarkable coordination.
Ile and Nel swung their chainsaws, the blades screeching as they unleashed a barrage of savage slashes.
Ni and Li followed up with rapid strikes imbued with magic, while Mira swung her staff, channeling bursts of enchanted energy.
The rest attacked from different angles, forming a storm of blows that left almost no room to breathe.
And yet, in the middle of that onslaught, Rian moved effortlessly.
Without even activating Infinity, his body flowed gracefully—sidestepping, spinning, and weaving through every strike with movements as smooth as a dance.
There was no strain on his face, only calm composure, as if he were dancing through a storm rather than fighting for his life.
Each motion was so precise, so elegant, that even some of his opponents—especially the two Knights and Mira—couldn't hide their awe.
Their expressions shifted—what began as determination to defeat him slowly turned into something closer to respect. Some even blushed faintly.
It was no surprise. Rian was undeniably handsome, and the way he fought was more captivating than terrifying, especially since he clearly had no intention to kill.
Meanwhile, from behind the formation, Riser watched with a scrutinizing gaze. The arrogant grin on his face gradually faded, replaced by genuine curiosity.
To his right, Ruvel—who had been fuming moments earlier—found herself frozen, her eyes fixed on Rian.
"This human…" she thought silently, her blue eyes widening a little. "…he's absurd. But… somehow, he looks really cool. Those blue eyes… they're beautiful."
The thought slipped through her mind uninvited. For a brief instant, her heart skipped a beat. It was only a fraction of a second, but enough to bring a soft flush to her cheeks.
Instantly, Ruvel lowered her head, trying to hide the expression she herself couldn't comprehend.
'What on earth are you thinking, Ruvel!!' she screamed inwardly in panic. 'He's the enemy—a lowly human who's supposed to be taught a lesson!'
{Note: Ruvel is a bit of a masochist.}
Fortunately, everyone was far too focused on Rian to notice the subtle change on the Phoenix girl's face.
Everyone… except one human.
Rian Andromeda noticed everything—the sudden spike in her heartbeat, the faint rise in body temperature, even the small, flustered motion when Ravel hurriedly looked away.
A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips. Situations like this were nothing new to him.
'Her aura's similar to Riser's,' Rian thought calmly. 'So they're blood-related, not Reincarnated Devils. Interesting… though that sharp tongue of hers will still need some punishment later.'
Finally, Rian decided to stop playing around and get a little serious. In a single swift motion, he snatched the wooden staff from Mira's hand.
"I'll borrow this for a moment," he said with a friendly smile. "And… sleep well."
In the blink of an eye, he vanished—using Blue to pull himself behind her—and struck the back of Mira's neck with a precise blow.
Mira collapsed instantly, unconscious.
Before anyone else could react, Rian blurred again, moving like lightning, knocking out every remaining Pawn one by one until all of them were down cold.