Ravel nodded expressionlessly to the group, signaling them to quickly begin the contract verification.
The blonde girl's aloof attitude gave the initial impression that she was hard to get along with, but Ethan knew this was just an outward shell she used to conceal her true personality.
Blonde twin pigtails, coupled with a loli physique, made the aloof persona seem highly unlikely.
Unlike Mitelut, because of her status and position, Ravel often had to maintain a high and mighty attitude.
Knowing that Ravel was from the Phenex family and an opponent in the Rating Game, the girls didn't find her attitude strange.
Soon, with the cooperation of Maria and Ethan, Grayfia registered the contract and confirmed Ethan's participation slot.
Ravel observed the entire process without offering any opinion.
"There is one thing that needs to be mentioned: non-conventional combat power is forbidden in the Rating Game."
The silver-haired beautiful wife followed the procedure strictly, "For example, illegal drugs, mutual annihilation moves, and so on."
Ethan frowned. Sona Shitori was right.
Grayfia didn't say it explicitly, but she was clearly targeting his Juggernaut Drive mode.
He wanted to speak up and ask, but seeing Rias offer no objection, he eventually held back.
"No problem."
Ethan nodded. This rule was mutual. Relying solely on conventional combat power, he didn't think Riser could beat his side.
"Originally, as a contracted Servant outside of the chess pieces, there should have been a limit on Ms. Rias's peerage count."
Grayfia added, "However, Ms. Rias's peerage members are far fewer than fifteen. After discussion among the Devil Kings, the number of participants will not be reduced this time."
"Then we will take our leave. We look forward to everyone's performance in the match."
After Grayfia teleported away, Ravel immediately followed suit.
The blonde loli girl was basically nonexistent throughout the process, even more perfunctory than the procedural Grayfia.
Ethan had initially worried that she would demand an on-the-spot contract verification and was thinking about how to fake an aphrodisiac-induced state.
But the other party didn't bring it up at all.
"President, what was the deal with Ravel?"
The timeline had been distorted to an unknown extent, and Ethan wasn't sure what attitude the blonde, twin-pigtail Devil princess held now.
"Ravel is Riser's biological younger sister, the fourth child of the Phenex family, and the youngest, most beloved daughter."
Rias explained with a smile. Putting aside the engagement, the relationships between the Four Great Pure-Blooded Devil families were not bad.
After all, they had survived such a brutal war together, so there was some camaraderie.
However, in order to preserve their strength, they devised the Rating Game system for promotion, which greatly benefited the Phenex family, whose bloodline talent was Immortality through Rebirth by Fire, leading to a rapid expansion of their power.
Conversely, the Gremory family was struggling to connect generations, and coupled with the necessity of maintaining pure-blooded Devil births, the parents of both families secretly arranged the engagement.
"Ravel originally didn't want to come. Although she had a good relationship with Riser when they were children, she hasn't cared much for her brother since he became dissolute..."
Since Ethan was able to participate, Rias was much more relaxed, half-jokingly sharing some gossip known only among Devil nobles.
"I heard that Riser had to beg her profusely to get Ravel to be his Bishop. In the end, Ravel only reluctantly agreed because Riser used to play with her a lot when she was a child."
"The Phenex family needed one person to witness this contract registration, otherwise, arguing about it afterward would be very troublesome. However, sending someone of too low or too high a status wouldn't be appropriate. After much thought, only Ravel was deemed suitable."
Ethan instantly realized the reason. Ravel was not only Riser's biological sister but also his Servant, making her a relatively suitable witness.
Moreover, with her presence, Rias's side didn't have to worry about the Phenex family reneging on their agreement afterward.
Even if they needed a scapegoat, the other party certainly wouldn't push Ravel forward.
This wasn't a matter of deep-seated hatred that demanded a total loss of honor.
"By the way, President, are Sacred Gears forbidden in the Rating Game?"
Rias shook her head, "No, only the Juggernaut Drive mode is forbidden. If you can master the Balance Breaker mode, you can use it."
"Huh?"
Ethan was very confused, and only understood after Rias's explanation.
It turned out that Grayfia wasn't specifically targeting him; it was a genuine reminder.
The original purpose of the Rating Game was to reduce casualties among Devils. Temporary battle enhancements with immense side effects and a lack of control were universally prohibited.
In the Rating Game, if an opponent was incapacitated, further attacks were not allowed.
Conversely, an incapacitated person could recover and re-enter the battle.
Furthermore, those who voluntarily forfeited and those who were severely injured would be directly teleported out of the space to receive treatment.
Because of this rule, the Phenex family, with their super self-healing ability, naturally held a huge advantage in the Rating Game.
There was a saying about the Phenex family having immortality, but in reality, the rebirth ability after death had a very long cooldown time.
However, the super self-healing ability had no cooldown.
Unless a fatal wound was inflicted, a Phenex family member would immediately regenerate regardless of the attack, making them virtually unbeatable.
There was only one way to incapacitate a Phenex family member: drag the fight out until their stamina and magic power were exhausted.
Or, through absolute combat power overwhelming them, making the dignitaries watching the battle unanimously agree that the Phenex family had no hope of winning.
It was due to this rule that Riser had participated in many Rating Games, winning all of them except for two where he forfeited for family interests.
With the confusion cleared, Ethan quickly dismissed the matter.
He hadn't planned on using Juggernaut Drive anyway. Azazel was Devil King-class, and Ethan was only S-Class at the time.
As for Riser, judging by his brief skirmish with Rias that day, he seemed to be only S-Class.
Even with the advantage of the rules, SS-Class Ethan could still playfully defeat him in various ways.
...
On the other side, after Ravel returned to the Phenex family estate, Riser immediately asked, "Little sister, did the successor to the Red Dragon Emperor really sign a master-servant contract?"
"Stay away from me, it's disgusting."
Ravel looked at her third brother's disheveled clothes and the purple lipstick marks on his face, her cute face filled with disdain.
Although only Yubelluna, the Queen, had a relationship with Riser, she knew that her brother had never given up on his intentions toward his other Servants.
If he hadn't cared about the feelings of his own sister, he probably would have gone after all of them long ago.
Hmm, if it ever came to that, Ravel would certainly not continue to be Riser's Bishop.
Riser awkwardly stopped. His sister truly became less and less cute as she grew up.
However, rather than lamenting his cute sister's transformation, he was currently more concerned about Ethan's participation.
Riser was very angry that Ethan had ruined Rias's purity, but he had to admit one thing: this time's Red Dragon Emperor successor was terrifyingly strong.
Since even the Fallen Angel Governor Azazel was defeated, he wasn't arrogant enough to believe he was stronger than a Devil King-class being.
"What's wrong? Are you scared?"
Ravel didn't answer directly. Instead, she mocked, "If you're scared, then don't compete. You were never worthy of Sister Rias anyway."
"Ugh..." Riser was almost in tears. "It doesn't matter if I lose face, but this engagement concerns our entire Phenex family."
"Hmph..."
The blonde, twin-pigtail Devil princess snorted lightly and stopped her harsh words.
"The Red Dragon Emperor's successor will participate, and you should also have noticed that Sister Rias already has the strength of an Ultimate-Class Devil."
"So it's true..."
Riser recalled the moment Rias gripped his wrist and he couldn't move. His expression immediately became grave.
"However, since Juggernaut Drive is not allowed, coupled with our immortality, our chances of winning are still quite high."
Ravel said nothing, turning to walk towards her room.
Before leaving, she said coolly, "In addition to the Phoenix Tears, you had better prepare a few more things."
No matter how much she disliked him, he was still her biological brother. She had to help when necessary.
Riser pondered for a moment and decided to go to the family treasury to select a few Sacred Gears.
Longinus class was out of the question, but the Phenex family was not short of regular Sacred Gears.
Since he was bringing equipment, he might as well bring some combat-boosting potions and magic scrolls too.
These one-time items were technically skirting the rules, but which family didn't have some foundation?
However, to ensure victory in this match, Riser decided to bring them along.
It would be best if he didn't have to use them, but if he absolutely had to...
At worst, the match would be terminated, which was still better than losing.