Chapter 494: First Meeting with Ophis
The girls had mixed reactions about participating in another Rating Game.
Asia, who disliked fighting, was naturally a bit troubled, but Xenovia was incredibly excited.
After breaking through to the Satan-Class and fully mastering the Holy Sword Durandal, she could finally unleash her full potential.
However, only Rias's Familiars were participating; those like Irina, who had been reincarnated as an angel, and Mio Naruse, couldn't join.
After dropping a few hints, Haruto shifted his focus back to the student council.
The real danger this time wasn't Rias and the others. With their Satan-Class strength and group coordination—along with Ophis, the two other descendants of the old Satans who had mastered the Serpent Power, and Sirzechs and the others keeping a close watch—almost no one could pose a fatal threat to them.
In contrast, Sona Sitri's side, even though most of her members had significantly improved and were considered top-tier among the younger generation, still faced considerable risks on the battlefield.
So, even though Rias and the others had been notified to participate, Haruto decided to continue working alongside Sona.
Time flew by, and the tournament's start date arrived quickly.
The number of younger-generation fighters in the Underworld wasn't large, but it wasn't small either. To ensure everyone could fight to their heart's content, a separate dimension had been specially created for the event.
Under a crimson sky, various unique terrains were scattered about—mountains, cliffs, forests, lakes…
There were even palaces and a circular colosseum.
All of this was designed to allow every participant to fully utilize their abilities, making the tournament more thrilling and meaningful.
The Rating Game was derived from chess. The essence lay in employing tactics, maximizing one's own advantages, weakening the enemy, and knowing when to activate the unique traits of each piece to achieve tactical objectives and meet the victory conditions.
Of course, if one possessed power on a completely different level, like Haruto, all of that became meaningless.
Before Haruto's appearance, Sairaorg, the top fighter among the younger generation, was exactly that kind of existence.
He didn't need any Familiars; his individual combat prowess alone allowed him to achieve an undefeated record in the Rating Game.
Following the crimson arched sky, Haruto spread his senses completely.
"It seems Diodora is quite impatient…"
"Diodora?" Sona asked, puzzled. "Haruto, our opponent is…"
"President, it looks like this tournament won't be happening after all."
Haruto interrupted Sona with a smile and quickly explained the whole situation.
"I see. I was wondering why Rias and the others suddenly joined the competition again."
Sona's beautiful eyes grew serious. "At first, I thought it was because you were counted among my Familiars this time, which made their combat power not too overwhelming."
"That's not entirely wrong either."
Haruto shrugged. The reason Rias hadn't needed to participate in Rating Games initially wasn't because she was too powerful, but because she had already proven her and her Familiars' strength in the battle against Loki.
However, Loki couldn't represent all the younger generation demons, and many demons were quite dissatisfied with this outcome.
When Rias was required to compete, it immediately calmed many disputes, though a few particularly arrogant ones still boasted about teaching Rias a lesson.
What they didn't know was that Rias being required to compete wasn't because the higher-ups cared about their feelings, but simply to increase their chances of success in this war.
Frankly speaking, even if they had pure bloodlines, those who could be so brainless wouldn't be valued by Sirzechs and the others.
Just as the student council girls finished digesting this shocking news, magic circles began appearing continuously ahead of them.
"The enemies are coming, everyone get ready."
Haruto gave the order, broke formation, and positioned himself before the magic circle with the strongest aura, waiting like a hunter.
This war served as excellent training for the student council girls.
Real combat was far more instructive than Rating Games.
During this period, Haruto had taught them many practical combat techniques. As long as they could properly utilize their true abilities, dealing with mere foot soldiers wouldn't be a problem at all.
From the green-hued magic circle, Diodora slowly emerged, his usual gentle fake smile gone, replaced by madness and hatred.
"As expected of the strongest generation's Red Dragon Emperor, quite sharp reactions."
Diodora stared at Haruto floating not far away, his expression gradually twisting. "But today you must die here! Once you're dead, Asia will be mine!!!"
Haruto sensed his power level - barely that of a lower-tier god, truly wondering where his confidence came from.
Against this level of opponent, he didn't even need to use his Sacred Gear.
"Why aren't you speaking? Oh, I understand - you're despairing."
Diodora continued venting his inner darkness, growing more confident as more members of the Old Maou Faction appeared.
"See? These are all the enemies you'll face. Not just you, but everyone who came here today will die, hahahaha..."
"Enough nonsense, Diodora."
After all his subordinates had teleported in, Shalba Beelzebub finally appeared.
With a gloomy expression, he urged, "Hurry up and deal with the Red Dragon Emperor. We need to regroup with Katerea and the others to eliminate everyone."
Haruto observed this Beelzebub descendant without rushing to act.
Hmm, excellent appearance, imposing presence too. Compared to Diodora, he's the classic type of villain who's ruthless with few words.
As for strength...
Not counting that snake-like power identical to Diodora's, he wasn't even as strong as the current Satan Beelzebub I encountered last time.
With such mediocre power, no wonder he could only survive by hiding in the abyss, needing to cooperate with the Khaos Brigade to reclaim his former glory.
"Since the main character has appeared, I'll get slightly serious."
Haruto rarely activated his twelve-winged combat form, though he still didn't utilize the Red Dragon Emperor's Gauntlet.
Not seeing the signature red glow, Shalba instinctively furrowed his brow, but Diodora nearby reacted completely differently.
"Haha, so this is what you call getting serious? I feel zero pressure."
The power gap was so vast that Diodora couldn't properly perceive how powerful Haruto truly was.
Despite his words, as the next head of the Astaroth household—a demon who'd seduced numerous saints and nuns into corruption with honeyed words—he treacherously launched a surprise attack at full power from the start.
Enhanced by Ophis' power, a formidable magical shockwave violently surged toward Haruto.
The supreme truth is simple; all methods return to one.
When power reaches a certain level, attack methods become fundamentally similar.
Put plainly, it becomes an energy clash where superiority is immediately apparent.
As Diodora attacked, Shalba also gathered energy, firing an even thicker, more dazzling magical beam targeting Haruto's head.
Though not truly lightspeed, magical beams lived up to their name with incredible velocity.
Under the worried gazes of Sona and the other girls, both attacks struck Haruto consecutively.
There was no violent explosion, no struggle to resist, nor any penetrating injury.
As the attacks reached Haruto, an almost imperceptible ripple gently expanded—and that was all.
"Impossible!" Diodora's face contorted in disbelief. "This is Ophis' power! How could the mere Red Dragon Emperor..."
"Enough nonsense."
Shalba interrupted grimly: "The Red Dragon Emperor is far stronger than we estimated. Fortunately he hasn't used his Sacred Gear yet—we still have a chance."
"I'll distract him. You eliminate that Sitri girl below, then rendezvous with Katerea's group."
Shalba never forgot his mission: to take revenge on the Underworld, not help Diodora eliminate Haruto.
Though he'd made promises to Diodora, the demon had now outlived his usefulness.
"Shalba! This isn't what you promised earlier!"
Diodora snarled viciously.
Shalba shot him a glance before cleanly piercing through his chest.
"Useless trash. Don't waste the snake's power any longer."
Feeling his vitality and immense magical power draining away, Diodora still couldn't believe Shalba would kill him so readily.
Haruto watched with amusement, completely uninterested in intervening.
Even after absorbing Diodora's snake power, Shalba barely reached the threshold of a high-tier deity—still no match for him.
After Diodora's complete annihilation, Shalba threw a wary glance at Haruto before decisively shifting his attack toward Sona, who was directing her Familiars against the old devils.
After gaining more power, Shalba could perceive Haruto's terror more clearly.
It wasn't that he couldn't put up a fight, but his chances of winning were slim.
And this was assuming Haruto was already at his strongest.
But Shalba was clearly more intelligent than Diodora—how could Haruto's relaxed demeanor possibly indicate he was going all out?
"Tch, I'm still here, and you're already trying to lay hands on my woman?"
Haruto waved his hand, releasing a magical shockwave that dispersed Shalba's attack.
With his strike rendered ineffective, Shalba actually turned and fled without hesitation.
Sona Sitri was the next head of the Sitri family—killing her here would naturally be ideal, but with Haruto present, Shalba deemed it highly unlikely.
Moreover, Sona wasn't his primary target this time. The best course of action was to regroup with Katerea, deal with the others—especially the young lady from the Gremory family—and then join forces to confront Haruto.
Watching Shalba's retreating back, Haruto showed no intention of pursuing.
With the Four Great Satans led by Sirzechs, along with Odin and Michael, the other battlefield wouldn't face issues even with Ophis present.
In contrast, the student council girls here were indeed lacking in strength. Despite their improvements, they were still struggling under the numerical disadvantage.
Particularly Bennia and Nimura Ruruko, who hadn't undergone Dual Cultivation with Haruto, were only slightly stronger than ordinary Low-class Devils and found it difficult to handle two enemies each.
If not for the protection from the two Bishops, Hanakai Momo and Kusaka Reya, they would have been severely wounded long ago.
After watching over them for a while, personally stepping in to cover for Nimura Ruruko and Bennia several times, and offering on-the-spot guidance to the others, Haruto finally took action and eliminated all the enemies once the girls showed no further improvement.
"President, you should head back first. I need to go to President Rias's side."
"Alright, be careful."
Although Sona wanted to stay, she knew that she and the others wouldn't be of much help and might even become a burden.
Moreover, despite the Bishops' healing, Nimura Ruruko and Bennia's injuries needed proper treatment.
By the time Haruto reached Rias's location, the battle was nearing its end.
Confirming that all members of the Old Satan Faction had revealed themselves, Sirzechs and the others stopped holding back. Coupled with Katerea's betrayal, even Shalba's arrival couldn't turn the tide.
"It seems this matter is finally over."
With a wave of his hand, Haruto swiftly killed Shalba, then gathered with Sirzechs and the others, engaging in casual conversation.
Vali was solely focused on defeating the True Red Dragon of the Dimensional Gap, Katerea had betrayed them, and the other descendant of the Four Great Satans, a male Devil named Creuserey, had been eliminated by Sirzechs before Haruto's arrival.
Even with the boost from the snake's power, that Satan's descendant couldn't withstand a single move from Sirzechs.
With Shalba's death, the Old Satan Faction lost its leader, and the remaining stragglers posed no significant threat.
"No, although the Old Satan Faction has been eradicated, as long as the Khaos Brigade exists, turmoil will continue."
Serafall stated, "But they probably won't keep targeting the Underworld exclusively."
The Khaos Brigade's goal was to plunge the entire world into chaos, so they wouldn't solely focus on wreaking havoc in the Underworld.
However, just as Odin, Michael, and the Fallen Angels had come to assist this time, after forming an alliance, the Devils would also need to lend their full support when other mythological factions encountered troubles.
As the group discussed while cleaning up the aftermath, a petite figure silently appeared beside Haruto.
Though he hadn't sensed her presence, his eyes could clearly see her.
The little girl floating mid-air possessed raven-black hair nearly as long as her entire body, with pure black pupils that held no emotional fluctuations - resembling an exquisite doll.
Her upper body remained unclothed, with only two cross-shaped bandages covering her small buds.
Seeing the suddenly appearing little girl, Haruto blurted out: "Ophis?"
Ophis's appearance was too iconic. Though Haruto didn't have many impressions of her, he recognized her immediately upon seeing her.
"This is quite... unexpected that you would appear personally," Sirzechs said with a serious expression.
The group that had just relaxed tensed up again, and even the usually carefree Odin tightened his grip on his staff.
"If we defeat you here, will peace come...?"
"Impossible. I am undefeated."
Ophis still showed no emotional fluctuation, though the slight upturn of her lips demonstrated her confidence.
Faced with such arrogant words, none of the top experts from various factions present refuted her.
"Even possessing such power, you've never shown interest in the world. Why have you now become the leader of terrorists?"
Seizing the rare opportunity to speak directly with the Infinite Dragon God Ophis, Haruto took the initiative to ask.
He felt great interest in this Infinite Dragon God, especially after direct contact - his body's instincts constantly urged him to draw closer to her.
This wasn't just due to his dual cultivation ability, but an instinct buried deep within his bloodline.
In fact, it wasn't just Haruto - Ophis felt the same.
That's why she, who had been observing from the shadows, took the initiative to reveal herself, appearing right beside Haruto.
"A tranquil world..."
Ophis glanced at Haruto before raising her head to gaze at the boundless red sky, her eyes revealing a trace of nostalgia.
"I want to enjoy a tranquil world, just like in my homeland, the Dimensional Gap. That's all."
"The Dimensional Gap..."
Haruto didn't remember much about Ophis, but happened to know about this particular detail.
Simply put, Ophis was born from nothingness within the dimensional gap, but was driven out from her birthplace by Great Red. Thus, she wanted to return to the dimensional crevice to reclaim her original peace.
Coincidentally, Vali's goal was also to defeat Great Red, so the two often appeared together.
Learning that Ophis's reason for leading the Khaos Brigade was so simple, Sirzechs and the others merely exchanged words without any intention to take action. Haruto simply began chatting quietly with Ophis.
Under the strange sense of attraction and closeness, the two conversed quite happily.
"Red Dragon Emperor, I think highly of you. Will you come with me?"
As they chatted, Ophis directly extended an invitation to Haruto. "When I return to the dimensional gap, I can share half the space with you. I'll definitely never drive you away."
Haruto scratched his head. While he could survive in the dimensional gap, that place had absolutely nothing - it would be too boring.
He couldn't understand why Ophis wanted to return there. Perhaps because it was her homeland?
But he had no desire to go there at all, even though Ophis gave him good feelings and he very much wanted to stay together with her.
"I'm sorry, but compared to the tranquility of the dimensional gap, I prefer my current life."
"Is that so..."
Though unable to comprehend, Ophis didn't press further, just like Haruto.
"What a pity."
Those who appeared to be clearing the battlefield but were actually observing Ophis all glanced over in surprise.
Haruto had actually received an invitation from Ophis - and from the sound of it, she was even willing to share half her living space with him...
This was... almost like proposing cohabitation.
To Ophis, the dimensional gap was both her hometown and her home.
Similarly, Great Red, who permanently resided in the dimensional gap, felt the same way.
The reason Great Red had driven her out was precisely because he didn't want others in his home.
After their brief interaction, Haruto realized this Infinite Dragon God seemed remarkably simple, almost innocent.
Come to think of it, throughout all the conflicts with the Khaos Brigade until now, Ophis had never personally taken action - at most, she'd lent some power to the brigade's members.
Suddenly, Haruto seemed to understand something.
Defeating Ophis would be extremely difficult, but dealing with the Khaos Brigade might not require defeating her - they just needed to make her return to the dimensional gap.
However, dealing with Great Red would be equally challenging, since he was the one who had driven out Ophis and was probably even stronger in combat.
But if Vali could set Great Red as his target, why couldn't he?
Speaking of Vali, no one knew where he had gone - such a major scene and he was nowhere to be found.
Come to think of it, when they were dealing with Loki recently, Vali's subordinates had come to capture Fenrir to strengthen their team. He was probably still building up his forces.
Perhaps because Ophis gave Haruto such a good impression, as they continued talking, his thoughts began to drift.