It was unclear whether Zolgear was truly terrified of the Gremory family or simply hadn't realized that Mio Naruse was currently hiding in Kuoh Town. After all, when Ethan had moved to eliminate the scouts, he had been swift and decisive, leaving no survivors to report back.
A full month had passed since Mio transferred to Kuoh Academy, yet there wasn't even a whisper of pursuers.
With only two days left until Basara Tojo was set to transfer in, Ethan had been planning a welcoming party. However, those plans were derailed by the sudden arrival of a challenge letter.
"President, has that golden-haired bitch finally lost his mind?"
Ethan tossed the letter onto the table, his brow furrowing. "Even Azazel isn't a match for me anymore. Where does Riser get the confidence?"
"I'm not sure," Rias replied with a shrug. "You can refuse, of course. But if you win, obtaining the Phenex family's bloodline talent will become a much simpler task."
A challenge was just a challenge; Ethan had no real obligation to accept, especially since the whole thing felt incredibly suspicious.
To sweeten the deal and ensure Ethan would agree, the Phenex family—or rather, Riser, who had shamelessly begged his younger sister—had put Ravel up as the wager. The stakes were simple: if Ethan won, Ravel would serve as a member of his peerage for three years.
Officially, the paperwork would list her as Rias's servant, as Ethan lacked the "seniority" and official record in Rating Games to hold his own Evil Pieces just yet. He still needed time to solidify his standing in the Underworld.
The Phenex family was already interested in sending Ravel to investigate the truth behind Ethan's Dual Cultivation abilities. They just needed her to be willing. To everyone's surprise, the pampered little princess had agreed almost instantly.
Riser felt a twinge of sadness that his sister seemed so eager to leave him, but his joy far outweighed his grief.
The Underworld's intelligence network had already mapped out Ethan's decadent and unrestrained lifestyle. Riser didn't believe Ethan could resist such a massive temptation.
While the Devils didn't know about Ethan's ability to copy talents, they had noticed a pattern: the stronger the woman he bedded, the more his own power seemed to grow.
Ravel's talent was on par with Rias's. Though she was technically underage, she already boasted S-class magical potential. More importantly, she was the pampered princess of the Phenex house and a top-tier beauty.
Riser's gamble was correct; Ethan was indeed tempted.
After the previous Rating Game, Ethan had discussed acquiring Phoenix Immortality with Rias, but there was no easy shortcut. Rias had been blunt: that level of transcendent regenerative power was only found in the purest Phenex blood.
There were many Devils with Phenex blood, including many suitable women, but their lineages were "diluted" or "polluted" by other families. Only Ravel and her mother possessed the concentrated essence required for a successful talent harvest.
As for how the Phenex family maintained such "purity"... it involved either mating with other high-tier purebloods or engaging in "internal breeding" traditions that would make most modern societies collapse in moral outrage. Incest was an open secret among the high-tier families obsessed with blood purity.
After thinking for a moment, Ethan licked his lips. "President, I'm taking the challenge."
He didn't know where Riser found the guts, but he doubted the man could jump to Devil King level in just a few days. Even a cheater had to follow the laws of progression.
"Good. I figured you wouldn't say no, so I already accepted on your behalf," Rias said with a teasing smile. "The duel is at the Underworld Arena. The day after tomorrow."
Ethan stared at her, speechless for a moment before grinning. "The Master's word is law, I suppose. Who am I, a lowly servant, to object?"
Rias's face flushed a deep crimson, and she gave him a sultry, sidelong glance. Despite the official titles, everyone knew Ethan was the one in control. His words were a clear warning: he expected her to be extra "obedient" during their next Dual Cultivation session.
When she thought about the specific outfits he made her wear—the tight latex, the revealing lace, and the increasingly depraved sexual positions he demanded—even a demon as open-minded as Rias felt her heart race and her core grow warm.
As his experience grew, Ethan's tastes were becoming increasingly... adventurous. Or, more accurately, perverted.
The Underworld.
The sky remained eternally dark and gloomy, shrouded in an ominous, unmoving mist.
Riser stood in the center of a massive, blood-red magic circle. His fourteen beautiful female servants were positioned along the edge of the array, forming a perfect circle around him.
"Lord Riser, the preparations are complete."
"Good. Begin."
Riser looked at his silent, somberly-dressed servants with cold indifference and gave the order to the family mages.
"As you wish."
Several household mages began funneling massive amounts of magic power into the array. The chaotic energy swirled, causing the already strange sky to churn and darken.
The turbulent magic eventually flowed toward Riser at the center. His aura began to spike with terrifying speed, visible even to the naked eye.
The Phenex family butler watched as Riser's body began to tremble under the weight of the agony. "My Lord, is this truly worth it? Even if you succeed, you will lose all hope of future natural advancement..."
The clash of different energies tore at Riser's insides. He gritted his teeth against the sensation of a thousand knives flaying his skin, utilizing his incredible regenerative powers to heal his cells as fast as the energy destroyed them, forcing the wild, mixed mana into his own reserves.
"There is a saying in the Human World," Riser snarled, his eyes bloodshot. "A man lives for his pride, just as a god lives for his incense. Even if I can't win Rias back, I will have my vengeance against that human bastard!"
Riser did lust after Rias, as any man would. But the thought of his fiancée being stolen and defiled by Ethan was a constant, searing brand on his soul. He couldn't train, he couldn't sleep, and he couldn't even find pleasure in the bed of his 'Queen,' Yubelluna.
This obsession had become a mental demon. Rather than being slowly consumed by it, he chose to gamble everything on a forbidden Phenex secret technique.
Once Rias had sent her confirmation, Riser had ignored all warnings and activated the ritual.
Time passed slowly. The faces of Yubelluna, Xuelan, and the other girls grew deathly pale. The weaker members of the peerage could no longer even stand.
The secret technique worked by forcibly siphoning the life force and magic power from the servants to boost the Master's strength. The level of the power-up depended on the servants' strength and the Master's endurance.
Only a Phenex could use this. Without their legendary immortality, the influx of chaotic, uncontrolled energy would have detonated a normal body a dozen times over.
The array hummed. Sparks of fire continuously erupted from Riser's skin—a sign that his immortality was working at its absolute limit to keep him from exploding.
However, while the ritual enhanced his mana and physique, it did nothing for his mind. The mental strain was becoming unbearable.
The first to break weren't Riser, but the twin lolis.
"Neru... Yiru..."
Looking at the green-haired twins who had collapsed, their life signs fading, the woman in the cheongsam, Xuelan, felt a surge of horror.
The twins' collapse was the signal. One by one, the girls fell into unconsciousness as their very essences were drained away.
"ARGH!!!"
Riser's aura was still climbing, but the agony was becoming transcendent. His mental fortitude was shattering, and the destruction was finally starting to outpace the healing.
Seeing this, the butler acted immediately and cut off the magic flow.
Only the strongest, Yubelluna and Xuelan, remained conscious, though barely. They looked at their fallen sisters—whose fates were now uncertain—with eyes full of icy despair.
Riser hadn't asked for their consent. No one in the Phenex house cared what they thought. They had accepted the family's resources for years, and now, they were being cashed in like chips at a poker table.
Riser had been merciless. He had drained them until they were essentially crippled. Had his own mind held out longer, he likely would have siphoned them until they were literal husks.
A forbidden technique of this magnitude naturally carried a horrific price. Beyond the toll on the user, it had permanently damaged the foundations of his servants.
The only "good" news was that they were still breathing, though for how much longer was anyone's guess.
The battered Riser was carried away by servants for emergency medical treatment. Yubelluna and Xuelan tried to stand, hoping to carry their sisters to help, but they found themselves weaker than ordinary humans. They could barely crawl, let alone carry twelve people.
Being "drained" wasn't just a term. Their magical circuits were scorched. Even with the best care, they might never regain their former strength.
Xuelan, being a 'Rook,' had the best physical resilience and managed to weakly pull the slender twins into her arms.
But in their current state, would the Phenex family even bother to heal "broken tools"?
As Xuelan hesitated in despair, a petite figure with flaming wings descended slowly before them.
"Serves you right for keeping me in the dark," a familiar, sharp voice ringed out.
Yubelluna and Xuelan looked up and gave a bitter, weak smile.
As a gentle wave of magic lifted them and the unconscious girls off the ground, the two women felt a complex surge of emotion. It was Ravel. Even in their ruin, the little princess hadn't abandoned them.