Inside the Occult Research Club, Rias distributed small, pink, spherical magic items.
"Use these to communicate on the battlefield. They're like communicators. Put them in your ears, and they will automatically affix. They won't fall out, even in the most intense combat."
If all members had completed the contract, this item would have been unnecessary.
No matter how effective this communication tool, which combined magic and technology and was specially prepared for the Rating Game, it couldn't compare to the soul connection that transcended space and time.
"This battle shouldn't be too difficult for any of you, but don't let your guard down."
Given their absolute superiority in strength, Rias didn't devise any specific tactics, intending to crush Riser head-on.
In contrast to the relaxed atmosphere on Rias's side, Riser's expression in the Headmaster's office was much more somber.
He didn't believe his Servants would lose to Rias's Servants, but SS-Class Rias and the highly likely SS-Class Ethan were completely overpowered.
"Although this should be an easy job for you, don't hold back. Quickly and completely crush the arrogant red-haired princess's Servants, and then breach their home base."
Riser put his arm around the curvaceous Yubelluna, commanding the group of specially gathered beautiful girls before him in a deep voice.
Including Ravel, the fifteen beautiful female Servants were carefully selected by him.
Their potential wasn't top-tier, but it was respectable. Crucially, each one represented a non-duplicate character archetype. Together, they covered almost every type of beautiful girl.
Regrettably, apart from Yubelluna, the Queen, he hadn't managed to seduce the remaining beautiful girls.
In fact, when Riser begged Ravel to be his Bishop, it was to fill the missing little-sister and tsundere elements...
It wasn't necessarily about fully conquering all of them, but rather his collector's fetish.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have only managed to win over Yubelluna, the Queen, by now.
In the Student Council office, Sona Shitori constantly adjusted the camera feeds of the two sides.
Almost simultaneously, both groups actively moved toward the enemy's home base.
The shortest path between the Occult Research Club room and the Headmaster's office was through the school courtyard. Since this was a combat-use extra-dimensional space, and there was no concern about damage, both efficiency-seeking sides chose to proceed on a direct path.
All obstacles encountered along the way were blasted into ruins.
No one knew about the increase in strength of Akeno Himejima's peerage. Including Sona Shitori and Tsubaki Shinra, everyone watching the broadcast was puzzled by Rias's decision.
It was understandable for Riser's Servants, with their superior strength, to take the offensive without any elaborate planning.
But why would Rias do this? Not only was her peerage incomplete, but her strongest fighting force, Ethan, hadn't been deployed. Instead, he was sitting back at the home base with Rias and Asia.
Compared to the confused Sona Shitori and Grayfia, the Phenex family members watching smiled disdainfully.
"Is this the next head of the Gremory family? Even though it's her first Rating Game, with this level of performance, I genuinely worry that our family's bloodline will be tarnished."
"Indeed. It looks like Lord Riser will easily win this time."
Since the broadcast was sent directly to their respective families, these Phenex family members weren't worried about Devil King Sirzechs overhearing them.
Not only them, but Riser himself smiled confidently upon hearing the reports from his Servants.
This battle was in the bag!
After dealing with Rias's Servants, he would push forward in one go to attack the opponent's home base.
Given his abilities and the cover provided by his Servants, and the rules of the Rating Game, he truly couldn't imagine how he could lose.
In the school courtyard, Ravel, dressed in a pink Lolita dress, closed her pink fan.
"It seems everyone is here, except for the Red Dragon Emperor's successor and the little nun with healing abilities."
She surveyed Akeno Himejima and the others before her, saying, "While it might seem like we're bullying the few with the many, to end this quickly, I must apologize."
At Ravel's command, fourteen beautiful women with distinct styles orderly launched an attack against the six people in front of them.
Six against fourteen meant each person would face two or three opponents.
In the opposing line-up, besides Yubelluna, known as the Bomb Queen, there was also Xenovia, the Chinese qipao girl with the dumpling hairstyle, whose strength was no less than an average Queen.
Of the rest, aside from Ravel, the nominal Bishop and actual young mistress, even the eight Pawns who hadn't Promoted were quite formidable.
A month ago, Akeno Himejima's group might have been crushed in an instant.
But now, they only hoped their opponents would be sturdy enough to let them fully unleash their drastically increased strength.
Akeno Himejima deployed a magic barrier, easily blocking Yubelluna's magical attack.
"Yuuto, you can handle those two maid ladies, right?"
"Akeno-senpai, don't worry about me. I can certainly deal with these two."
Yuuto Kiba's A-Class strength was the lowest among the six. She didn't overexert herself, greeting the two maid-dressed Servants on the opposite side and opening a separate battlefield.
"Rute and Kalawarna, the remaining Pawns are yours."
Yuma Amano also directed the two to lure away the remaining six Pawns.
Three opponents each, for Mitelut and Kalawarna, who were already S-Class, was not stressful, but rather quite easy.
The stronger the combatants, the greater the impact of the battle.
If they didn't open new battlefields, those with insufficient strength wouldn't be able to withstand the shockwaves alone.
This was especially true for Akeno Himejima and Yubelluna; both lightning magic and bomb magic were large-scale attacks.
To properly enjoy the battle, they needed to stay far away from those two's conflict zone.
Although Yubelluna felt a faint unease, she never imagined that Akeno Himejima's group could have increased their strength so much in just one month.
Thinking about preserving their strength to support Riser later, she cooperated by letting everyone disperse to face their respective enemies.
Koneko Toujou stared at Xenovia, who was also a Rook, for a moment. The opponent was strong. If it weren't for Ethan's help, elevating her strength to the next level, she would surely fall into a bitter struggle, even if she could win.
But now, even with the addition of the other Rook, Isabella, they weren't enough to challenge her.
Wiggling her slender index finger, the white-haired loli walked towards the indoor gymnasium.
This was the battlefield she chose. The Rook piece was all about close-quarters combat, and this place was ideal for unleashing her power.
Sensing the powerful aura that was completely disproportionate to Koneko Toujou's petite frame, Xenovia and Isabella exchanged glances, focusing their entire attention as they followed closely behind.
"Is it just you three left?"
Yuma Amano sighed softly, her pair of purple beautiful eyes quietly glancing at Ravel, who stood nearby watching the spectacle.
As one of the only three people currently contracted with Ethan, her strength was in no way inferior to Akeno Himejima's.
Being left with only three ordinary opponents was truly uninspiring.
"Ms. Ravel, you are a Bishop, aren't you? Aren't you going to participate?"
"Hah? No way. I just put on a new dress. What if I get it dirty?"
Faced with such a capricious Ravel, Yuma Amano was disappointed but couldn't actively provoke her.
From Rias's tone during their last meeting, the blonde, twin-pigtail young mistress seemed quite familiar with Rias, and their relationship seemed to be good.
The Kimono-clad Bishop, Mina and the Knights Siris and Koram surrounded Yuma Amano with unfriendly expressions.
The opponent dared to look down on them so much. They had to severely teach her a lesson later.
"Yuma, don't be careless."
Akeno Himejima spread her slender, dark Devil wings and slowly floated into the air.
Yuma Amano was good in every way, except that she liked to toy with weaker opponents, which could also be called being carelessly overconfident.
In the original timeline, it was this trait that allowed Issei Hyoudou to find an opening and knock her out with one punch.
Now, after a series of events, this trait had improved significantly.
However, since her strength had grown so fast recently, this bad habit showed signs of creeping back.
After Akeno Himejima took flight, Yubelluna, who saw Akeno Himejima as her destined rival, also took to the air with her staff.
The two magic users chose the sky as their battlefield, leaving the ground for the close-combat fighters.
Gazing at the three opponents who were serious and looking for an attack opportunity, Yuma Amano secretly pouted, but corrected her frivolous attitude.
While she didn't think she would lose when separated by two entire realms, this was indeed a bad habit that needed to be changed.
With the battlefield successfully segregated, the broadcast screen simultaneously showed several split-screens.
As the battles began on the split-screens, everyone watching was stunned.
Sona Shitori and Tsubaki Shinra in the Student Council office instantly stood up, barely managing to suppress the urge to immediately find Rias and ask her what exactly was going on.