Groom Leo into the next Maou!
The idea had only just taken root in Sirzechs's mind.
Before this, he'd simply viewed Leo as a future pillar of devil society. His intent had been to cultivate an exceptional talent for the Underworld's sake, which was why he'd been shielding and supporting Leo all along.
Because the Leo of before, talented as he was, had still been a fledgling in Sirzechs's eyes. A new-generation devil who hadn't yet reached the point where he could stand on his own.
But now, Leo had unfurled those twelve devil wings right in front of him, and in that instant Sirzechs realized the young man before him was no longer some chick that needed his protection. He was a powerhouse capable of representing devilkind.
Twelve wings. The indisputable mark of the highest-ranked devil. A vast number of devils who'd survived since antiquity, including many high-ranking officials second only to the Four Great Maou, had never reached this tier. Yet Leo already had.
If he didn't qualify to represent devilkind as a top combatant, then who did?
And that wasn't even accounting for his status as a Sacred Gear user, a Longinus wielder at that. The Longinus he carried was Zenith Tempest, a top-tier Longinus that no Sacred Gear in existence could surpass save for True Longinus itself.
Already the highest-ranked devil with Maou-class power, and wielding the world's second-strongest Longinus on top of that. Sirzechs could say with certainty that Leo's current strength placed him among the very top of all devils in existence. He could crack the top five, standing just below the Four Great Maou.
And this monster of a devil was still absurdly young, hadn't even formally debuted yet. Combined with that miraculous Servant Conversion trait, anyone with eyes could see that this young man would continue to grow rapidly, reaching heights others couldn't begin to imagine.
It was this realization that planted the seed. Sirzechs now genuinely wanted to groom Leo as his successor, to make him the next Maou.
Once this incident wraps up, Leo's official coming-of-age debut won't be far off.
When the time comes, I can rally the Four Great Maou along with the Gremory, Sitri, and Phenex Houses to fund the reconstruction of the Eligos territory, help him restore his family, and secure his position as head of a pureblood devil house.
As long as he holds that legitimate noble title, nominating him as the successor to the Maou seat at a high council meeting shouldn't face too much resistance.
The more he thought about it, the more excited Sirzechs became. The more feasible it seemed.
Originally, the Underworld's leadership had been planning to hold a debut battle for this generation of new devils when they officially came of age. A series of Rating Games to push their growth, showcase their abilities to a wider audience, and help them establish themselves in devil society.
The reason this idea had come about was that this particular generation of debuting devils was exceptionally special. Multiple scions of prestigious noble houses had appeared among them.
Bael House, bearing the title of Great King, ranked first among the Seventy-Two Pillars.
Agares House, bearing the title of Archduke, ranked second among the Seventy-Two Pillars.
Gremory House, the house of origin for the current Maou Lucifer.
Sitri House, the house of origin for the current Maou Leviathan.
Astaroth House, the house of origin for the current Maou Beelzebub.
Glasya-Labolas House, the house of origin for the current Maou Asmodeus.
Maou, Great King, Archduke... the top three positions in devil society all had heirs debuting in this generation. Every single one was a successor to their house's leadership. Add in Leo, a special existence in his own right, whose peerage included a young lady of the Phenex House, and this was nothing short of a clash between the great houses. A golden generation representing the future of devilkind.
Because of this, the new generation had attracted enormous attention before they'd even debuted. Countless devils were watching this cohort with keen interest. Even the news channels had taken special notice, bringing it up again and again, and the entire Underworld was gradually buzzing with anticipation.
It was for this reason that the Underworld's leadership had been forced into multiple behind-the-scenes discussions, ultimately deciding to build this generation up as a golden era. They would hold a grand debut battle to put these young devils in the spotlight.
Among them, Leo was a figure of particular interest. His unique mutation trait, the world's second-strongest Longinus, two Longinus wielders in his peerage, and multiple servants with outstanding potential. His future was, by any measure, extraordinarily promising.
Many of the higher-ups were genuinely excited to see what this special young devil could accomplish in this golden generation's debut.
Especially those who knew just how special this generation's Bael heir was. They were all waiting with bated breath to see what kind of sparks would fly when that heir and Leo clashed in a Rating Game.
But now, that anticipation was likely going to come to nothing.
There was simply no helping it. Leo and the entire Eligos peerage had grown too fast. So fast that it defied the Underworld's comprehension.
Forget Leo himself. Even the rest of the Eligos peerage had turned heads among the Underworld's leadership with their performance during the summit incident.
These girls, not one of them older than eighteen, had independently faced the Khaos Brigade's Hero Faction and driven them back. That record was too outstanding, too exceptional. The leadership couldn't help but be stunned.
Consider this: the Old Maou Faction, which stood on equal footing with the Hero Faction within the Khaos Brigade, had required Sirzechs and Serafall, two Maou, to personally take the field before being subdued. Yet the Eligos peerage had repelled the Hero Faction on their own. That record didn't just turn heads in the Underworld. It shook the angel and fallen angel factions as well.
Once word of their achievements spread, the Eligos peerage's reputation truly exploded across all three factions. Many had already revised their opinion of these girls, no longer viewing them as mere new-generation devils.
And now Leo had returned with two newly recruited servants, further strengthening the Eligos peerage. He himself had become a twelve-winged devil of the highest rank. How could anyone still call him a new-generation devil?
If Leo brought the Eligos peerage into the debut battle, the other participants might as well not bother showing up.
Sirzechs could already picture the scene at the next high council meeting. Plenty of pureblood devil houses would be objecting, demanding that the Eligos House be excluded from the debut battle roster. Bael House, Agares House, Astaroth House, and Glasya-Labolas House in particular would certainly push for it.
Could anyone blame them?
They weren't about to sit there and watch their heirs get publicly demolished, humiliated in front of the entire Underworld.
They were all nobles, and prominent ones at that. None of them wanted to see that happen.
So Leo's debut battle was likely going to be scrapped...
But that wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
After all, if the major devil houses were demanding the Eligos House be excluded, they'd need to offer some form of compensation. Otherwise it wouldn't be an exclusion. It would be public discrimination and backroom dealing.
Sirzechs already knew exactly what to do...
"This time, your Eligos peerage's stand against the Hero Faction was a tremendous contribution. It deserves commendation."
Sirzechs looked at Leo standing before the desk and dropped his bombshell with a smile.
"I'm going to nominate you for promotion to Ultimate-Class Devil. At the same time, I'll nominate your Bishops Yukinoshita Yukino and Shiina Mahiru, your Rook Kasumigaoka Utaha, your Knight Yuuki Asuna, and your two Pawns Ram and Rem to sit for the Mid-Class Devil examination."
The room went silent. Then it erupted. Even Leo's eyes went wide.
"Promotion to... Ultimate-Class Devil?"
Leo stared, dumbfounded.
"Brother?"
"Sirzechs-sama?"
Rias, Sona, Akeno, and Tsubaki were all equally floored.
The "Ultimate-Class" being discussed here wasn't about combat power. It was about official rank and standing in devil society.
In the Underworld, the devil hierarchy was rigidly defined. From highest to lowest: Maou, Ultimate-Class Devil, High-Class Devil, Mid-Class Devil, and Low-Class Devil.
Until now, the Eligos, Gremory, and Sitri peerages had all been the same. Only the Kings, Leo, Rias, and Sona, held High-Class Devil status. Everyone else was a Low-Class Devil.
Ravel was the exception. As a daughter of the Phenex House, she'd long held High-Class Devil status. She simply hadn't chosen to receive Evil Pieces and debut as a King in her own right.
In the Underworld, reaching High-Class Devil meant you were considered nobility.
As for Ultimate-Class Devils, they were either the backbone of major devil houses, genuine high-ranking officials of the Underworld, top-tier stars of the Rating Game scene, or distinguished public figures of special standing.
In short, below the Maou, Ultimate-Class Devil was the highest rank in devil society.
In the future, the Underworld would introduce a Special-Class Devil rank between Maou and Ultimate-Class, but that was a matter for another time.
And now Sirzechs was telling everyone he intended to nominate Leo for Ultimate-Class Devil?
How could anyone not be shocked?
"What's the matter?" Sirzechs smiled and turned the question back on them. "Surely you don't think Leo lacks the qualifications for promotion to Ultimate-Class?"
Everyone exchanged glances, then fell silent.
Did he qualify?
Thinking it through, Leo absolutely did.
In terms of power, he was already a twelve-winged devil of the highest rank, Maou-class or perhaps beyond. How could he possibly not qualify for Ultimate-Class?
What he'd lacked was merit. Achievements and accomplishments.
Once those were in place, his qualification for Ultimate-Class would be beyond dispute.
And now, it seemed his merits had cleared the bar.
At the summit that would determine whether the three factions could coexist in peace, he and his peerage had single-handedly confronted the Hero Faction and repelled them. That accomplishment alone was considerable, massive even.
Beyond that, Leo had already racked up plenty of prior contributions. Killing Lafei Trix. Rescuing the Gremory and Sitri peerages. And most recently, defeating the fallen angel cadre Kokabiel single-handedly, preventing a conflict that could have spiraled out of control. All of it was real, documented merit.
The same applied to the Eligos peerage. Apart from Ravel, who already held High-Class status and hadn't yet accumulated enough for the next tier, every other member's performance in this incident alone was sufficient to earn a nomination for the Mid-Class Devil examination.
Sirzechs had decided to seize this opportunity and push it through. Elevate Leo's standing in the Underworld as quickly as possible, putting him in a position to become his successor.
He was confident the leadership would be on board.
As long as Leo was promoted to Ultimate-Class Devil, he'd no longer be eligible for the new generation's debut battle, would he?
Surely no one expected a dignified Ultimate-Class Devil to go bully a bunch of High-Class Devils who hadn't even debuted yet.
With that, the other houses wouldn't even need to search for excuses. They could simply announce the news publicly and remove the Eligos House from the roster, sparing their families any controversy.
That would also serve as their compensation to Leo and the Eligos peerage.
"Go home and prepare yourself." Sirzechs smiled at Leo. "The formal notice for your promotion ceremony should arrive soon."
Hearing this, everyone finally managed to digest the bombshell.
"Congratulations, Leo."
Sona pushed her glasses up and offered her heartfelt congratulations.
"I can't believe you're being promoted again so quickly. It's unbelievable."
Rias let out a rueful laugh.
Leo himself felt a touch of disbelief as he recalled his last promotion ceremony.
That had been, what, half a year ago?
Back then, he'd barely scraped together enough merit for the promotion and had spent a full fifteen years just reaching the threshold of High-Class Devil power. He'd finally been able to formally promote, receive his Evil Pieces, and enter noble society.
He'd been happy then. Relieved, too.
His thinking at the time had been simple: he could finally relax, enjoy the perks of being a noble slave owner, and muddle along respectably in the Underworld.
Who could have predicted that a mere six months later, he'd be up for promotion again?
And this time, it was to Ultimate-Class Devil.
Even his servants were getting the chance to advance.
Life really was... unpredictable.
"You need to step it up too, Rias."
Seeing his little sister still wearing that rueful smile, Sirzechs couldn't help but prod her.
He hadn't forgotten his plan to have Rias poach from Sona's people...
Granted, ever since meeting Leo, a certain someone from the Phenex House had gone into hiding, keeping an extremely low profile. The matter of the engagement had grown increasingly vague under the tacit understanding between Sirzechs and the Phenex head. But letting it drag on indefinitely wasn't a solution either.
Now Leo was about to be promoted. He wouldn't be participating in the debut battle. In all likelihood, he'd be heading back to the Underworld to rebuild his family territory. If Rias didn't start making moves soon, it would only get harder down the line.
Maybe he should send Rias as the Gremory House's representative to help with the Eligos territory reconstruction?
Hmm... worth a shot!