The pause on the arena was short, but palpable, like the calm in the heart of a hurricane. The teams regrouped, licked their first wounds, and assessed their losses. The board had changed. Rias had lost her Knight, Kiba, and her Queen, Akeno—two key pieces responsible for speed, reconnaissance, and powerful magical support from the air. She was left with only herself; her Pawn, Issei, with his gauntlet, inexperienced and predictable; her Rook, Koneko, strong but isolated at the gym; and her Healer, Asia, locked away in their headquarters. Four pieces, only three of which were combat-capable.
Riser Phoenix was in better shape, but he too had taken losses. His Knight was wounded and had retreated, and two Rooks and three Pawns were taken out. However, he still had numerical superiority: himself, his powerful Queen Yubelluna, one Bishop, two Rooks, and several Pawns, including that nimble cat girl. The forces were unequal, and Riser undoubtedly intended to exploit this.
...
I stood on my hovering balcony, watching the regrouping of forces below. The game was becoming predictably bloody. Rias had lost her two best fighters. Akeno had made a mistake, getting carried away with her show of power and leaving herself open. Kiba had fought respectably, but his injury and subsequent retirement were inevitable.
"Losing the Queen is practically a death sentence," I noted quietly. "Akeno was their main source of magical power and air support. Now Rias has lost her eyes and her whip."
Grayfia Lucifuge turned her head toward me, her silver eyes studying my face dispassionately.
"Lady Akeno is indeed strong, but her overconfidence was her downfall," her voice was as level as the surface of a frozen lake. "In a Rating Game, emotions are a luxury not everyone can afford. Lady Rias will now have to rely on her remaining pieces and her own Power of Destruction."
"Which she doesn't have much to spare, if she wants to save her strength for a final showdown with Phoenix himself," I added. "Her Pawn with his half-baked armor isn't bad, but he's still green. The Rook is strong, but isolated. And the Healer is locked in the base. Riser will simply crush them with numbers and experience now."
"Perhaps." Grayfia looked back at the arena. "But the game is not over. Sometimes, desperation breeds a strength that surpasses all calculation. Lord Sirzechs is finding this situation... quite educational. Especially your presence here, Izayoi-sama."
I caught the subtle hint. Sirzechs Lucifer, a Satan, was watching me through his Queen. My comments, my presence, my power—it was all being analyzed. Fine, let him. I had nothing to hide except my origin. And my power spoke for itself.
"We'll see what lessons they learn from this beatdown," I muttered, turning my gaze back to the arena. Riser Phoenix was clearly issuing new orders.
...
Riser didn't waste time. Losing three pieces had angered him, and he decided to quickly finish off the isolated Koneko. His two remaining Rooks—muscular female warriors, one of whom had already been injured by Koneko but was clearly healed by her Queen or Pawn-healers—moved toward the gym. They were joined by the Bishop—the same girl with the staff who had attacked Akeno. Three against one Rook.
Koneko saw them approach. She didn't run or hide. She took a combat stance, her small body tensing, her Touki aura wrapping her in a dense cocoon. She was ready.
"Stupid cat!" shouted one of Riser's Rooks, swinging a hammer. "We'll flatten you!"
The first Rook attacked head-on, her hammer whistling down on Koneko. But she didn't just block. She made an imperceptible move to the side, letting the blow pass, and simultaneously delivered a sharp palm-strike to her opponent's side—right where the armor was already cracked from her previous attack. The Rook howled in pain, her attack faltering.
The second Rook tried to strike from the other side, but Koneko, using Senjutsu, anticipated her movement and met the blow with a powerful block, enhanced by Touki. The hammer and her fist collided with a deafening crash. Koneko was thrown back a few steps, but she held her ground.
Meanwhile, the Bishop began to bombard her with magic from a distance. Fireballs, ice shards, dark orbs—a whole hailstorm of spells rained down on the small Rook. Koneko darted across the field, dodging, blocking the Rooks' blows, and simultaneously trying to evade the magical attacks.
'She's holding on,' I thought with some surprise. 'Her control is better. She's not just a tank anymore; she's using speed and Senjutsu to evade and counter. But three-on-one… that's too much.'
Koneko knew this. She knew she couldn't last long. She had to take out at least one opponent to even the odds. She chose the wounded Rook as her target. Seizing a moment when the second Rook and the Bishop were busy preparing a joint attack, Koneko lunged. She ignored a fireball flying at her, taking it on her Touki aura (though it clearly cost her and caused pain), and unleashed a series of devastating blows on the wounded Rook. The strikes were fast, precise, aimed at vulnerable points. The Rook's armor cracked, bones broke. With a final, exceptionally strong punch, the Rook was sent flying into a wall and did not get up.
"Karla! Retired!" Grayfia announced.
Koneko was breathing heavily, her body covered in minor burns and bruises. But she had taken out another of Riser's pieces. Now it was two-on-one.
The remaining Rook and the Bishop were furious. They attacked Koneko with doubled effort. The Rook went for a direct assault, her hammer crashing down again and again, forcing Koneko onto the deep defensive. The Bishop, meanwhile, created a zone of magical suppression around her, slowing her movements and weakening her Touki.
Koneko was trapped. The hammer blows became heavier, dodging grew more difficult. The Bishop's magic pressed in on her, sapping her strength. She began to take hits. One hammer blow struck her shoulder, another her leg. She fell to one knee, her defense weakening.
"It's over for you, cat!" the Rook roared, raising her hammer for the final strike.
"Koneko-chan!" Issei's desperate cry rang out.
He had seen on the magic screen that his comrade was in trouble. Without waiting for Rias's order, he charged forward, his Armor glowing red.
"Boost! Boost! Boost! Transfer!" he roared, and the accumulated energy, amplified by his own will and perhaps part of the power Rias had transferred earlier, burst from his gauntlet, not as a Dragon Shot, but as… an energy ram.
He slammed into the Rook who had been swinging at Koneko. The blow was unexpected and powerful. The Rook was thrown aside, crashing into the Bishop and knocking her off her feet.
"I won't let you hurt Koneko-chan!" Issei snarled, standing protectively in front of his Rook.
The Rook and Bishop quickly recovered. Now they faced two—a Pawn and a weakened, but still combat-capable, Rook.
"Two runts against us?" the Rook sneered, lifting her hammer. "Easy prey!"
The two-on-two fight began. Issei, despite his armor, was still inexperienced. He attacked furiously, but predictably. The Rook easily parried his blows or simply took them on her sturdy armor. The Bishop, meanwhile, focused her attacks on him, knowing his magical defense was weaker. Issei was getting hit, thrown back, his armor cracking.
Koneko tried to help, but her strength was gone. She could only distract the Rook with short jabs or try to block some of the Bishop's spells.
'This is bad,' I thought. 'Issei is too linear. He's wasting his power. And Koneko is exhausted. They'll be crushed soon.'
And then Issei did something unexpected. Instead of continuing to uselessly attack the Rook, he suddenly spun and fired a Dragon Shot—not at her, but at the Bishop. The Bishop, not expecting an attack from a Pawn she considered non-threatening at a distance, failed to raise a shield. The beam hit her in the shoulder, punching through her defenses and leaving a serious burn.
"Marion! Retired!" Grayfia announced. The Bishop vanished.
Only the Rook was left. She was strong, but one-on-two—against Issei and a weakened Koneko—her chances plummeted. She tried to attack Issei, but Koneko, using a final burst of Touki, tripped her, causing her to lose her balance. Issei capitalized on it and unleashed the full power of his Boosted Gear. The gauntlet's blow struck the Rook's helmet.
"Bürent! Retired!"
Issei and Koneko were left standing on the battlefield, panting heavily. They had won. They had taken out three more of Riser's pieces. But at what cost? Issei could barely stand, his armor smoking and cracking. Koneko was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion and her wounds.
"We… we did it… Koneko-chan…" Issei wheezed, before his Scale Mail vanished, and he fell to his knees.
Koneko nodded silently and slowly sank to the ground beside him.
"Issei Hyoudou! Koneko Toujou! Retired!" Grayfia's voice was impassive. Rias had recalled her exhausted fighters.
...
The arena was empty. Riser was left with only himself, his Queen Yubelluna, and several Pawns (including the cat girl). Rias was left with only herself and Asia in their headquarters. The piece count was a devastating victory for Riser.
"Looks like we're heading for the finale," I remarked, looking at the screens. "Rias has lost all her fighters except herself. Now she'll either have to surrender or come out and fight Riser and his Queen."
"Lady Rias will not surrender," Grayfia said quietly. "The honor of the Gremory clan is more important to her than anything."
And indeed. The door of the old club building opened, and Rias appeared on the threshold. Her crimson hair billowed, and a powerful aura of Destruction enveloped her. Beside her, trembling but trying to stand straight, was Asia.
From the main building, Riser and Yubelluna emerged to meet them. Riser was smiling his self-satisfied smirk.
"Well, my dear Rias? Ready to admit defeat? Your pathetic peerage has been annihilated. All that's left is you and this useless nun. Surrender, and I may yet be merciful."
"Never, Phoenix!" Rias's voice rang with fury. "I will fight to the end!"
"Stupid girl." Riser shook his head. "Yubelluna, deal with her. I don't want to dirty my hands on this weakling. And in the meantime, I'll take care of… the healer."
Yubelluna nodded silently and stepped forward, her hands glowing with complex magical energy. Riser, meanwhile, started walking toward Asia, who retreated in terror behind Rias.
"Don't touch her!" Rias shouted, holding out a hand and preparing a blast of Destruction.
"Oh, I won't touch her," Riser smirked. "Not yet. First, we deal with you. Yubelluna!"
Riser's Queen attacked. A powerful torrent of magical energy struck at Rias. She met it with her own Power of Destruction. Two colossal forces collided in the middle of the school courtyard, kicking up a vortex of dust and energy.
The final stage of the game had begun. Queen versus Queen. King versus King. And a helpless Healer, caught between them. Rias's chances were nonexistent. But she was ready to fight.
I leaned back in the chair I had finally decided to occupy. The show was reaching its climax. We'll see if Rias Gremory can surprise me one more time. Or if a predictable and humiliating end awaits her.