- 2 Days Later –
Holy crap….no demonic crap.
Apparently my little lesson for Rias last time caused some great problems. In general Sirzechs was being a big Sis-con that he is.
Investigations were launched in Kuoh one after another. Anyone who might be involved with it was being questioned. Runa was erased from existence from Rias' attack. I was there myself, so I would know better.
After finding no one else involved, the matter was declared as an independent attack by a stray devil. Runa's ability to increase her power by eating stronger beings was considered as the prime reason for her attack. Rias as well as the two people who were killed by her( and here I had to resist the urge to laugh really hard) were said to possess strong powers either their own or in sacred gears.
Rias herself is fine. The poison was non-lethal as it wore down after she was taken for treatment. Like fuck it was non-lethal. If I hadn't given her the antidote, she would have been in a coma right now.
Safe to say, the underworld was on high alert because a Satan was being a crybaby. This could be really useful for me. I did after all think of this and made it so that the attack leaves Rias in danger. Now, all I have to wait for the right moment and snoop in to gain what I want.
Anyways, as soon as I reached underworld, I was received by Siaraorg. He told me about the current situation. Needless to say as a good future husband I was quite worried about her. Hey, don't look at me like that. It wouldn't do if she had some kind of mental trauma from it. That would mess all my plans.
I contacted her and turns out that she was fine by the very next day and it mostly the Sis-con Satan causing all the ruckus.
I still went to meet her anyway. Venelana was quite pleased by my visit. I even scored +5 Affection with her and +5 with Rias and Akeno because of it.
We did spend some good time together. I could tell that she was worried about my Rating Game more than me. Oh, if she knew. My magic power was suppressed the entire time due to my bracelet. She has no idea about my real power level so it is only natural that she will be worried a bit.
"Are you sure you can fight this Rating Game with your current peerage. If you want, I can trade my peerage to you for just this game." Aww, man she looked so cute when she said that, I almost felt slightly sorry for having her attacked.
"Don't worry about it. I have got few members in my peerage. We are quite excited for the match. I think we will manage it somehow. This is my first Rating Game after all. It would count as my debut to the Devil Society. If I borrow your peerage members it wouldn't be good for both your and mine as well as our peerage's image. Moreover it wouldn't be proper sportsmanship if I did that."
Cute as she is, she clearly didn't realize the consequences of such an action did she? If she lend me her peerage members it would make me look weak and that she had been plotting behind everyone's back to fight against Riser who was known as someone she wanted to get away from. It would make Riser look like a victim and me a villain. I can't have that now can i?
"I guess you are right. Best of luck for the game. this is best I can do for now." She says with a small smile.
"Don't worry. You will enjoy the game. I promise you that. I can't let my first match be boring after all." I assure her while being completely casual about it.
"I will wait for it then." She answers with a smile though she seems a bit sad about something else.
"Is there something in your mind? You seem a bit distracted and …sad? Anything I can help with." I already know the answer for this but I wonder which one is the main reason for it though.
"In the last attack, one of the people I had scouted for my peerage was killed. Very little was left of his body and there was no way for me revive him. I feel like I failed the people in my territory. This place is under my protection and people died here and I couldn't do anything to help them. I failed them." She speaks softly. Good at least she is sharing these with me.
"We can't always save everyone. People die. Now or later, it is mostly only a matter of time. I know this might seem too crude and cruel of me to say this but you shouldn't take the blame for all this to yourself. I have let people die, I couldn't protect them. My Godfather would have been alive if I had been stronger. A schoolmate could have lived, if I had been more careful. They were both killed and I couldn't protect them. It will hurt you for sometimes. If it hurts then it means that you care and that is important. However you have to grow over it and use that pain as a motivation to grow stronger. So that if something like this ever happens again, you won't lose someone close." Simple and subtle pushes to become stronger. Sirzechs has done one heck of a job to make her lazy. It will take a lot to get her back on track.
+5 Affection with Rias Gremory (45/100) for cheering her up.
"Thank you Shin. I will work harder so that something like this doesn't happen again in the future." She says with a resolve that I have been wanting to see in her. Good, the plan seems to be going in the right direction.
"Anytime. Take rest and be safe. I will give you a good show for my first Rating Game. The tea was great Akeno. Awesome to see you without the millennium puzzle today. Yami Akeno was good but I like this one better." I take a crack at Akeno's big sister persona.
"Ara Ara, are you saying that you like me Shin-san. Rias might get jealous you know. Are you trying to have an affair right in front of your future wife?" Damn, she really doesn't give up does she?
"I do like you Akeno-san. You are a great girl from what could see in my time here. I am sure anyone who gets to marry you will be a very happy man." I reply with the most innocent and pure smile I could muster. Yeah, bitch that's the counter to the Big Sister tease act. Be oblivious as fuck.
And as predicted, she blushes up a storm and I could also hear Rias chuckling at her reaction. Shin – 1, Akeno – 0.
"Then I have to take my leave for now. See you soon Rias. Let's go to Akihabara after my game. It is a date." Without giving her a chance to reply, I teleport out of her room and back to the underworld.
- Rias –
Shin was really great. She could definitely see herself getting along with him even after they get married. He was funny most of the time but can be mature and comforting when I need it. I have only had Akeno and Mother as such people in my life. Grayfia cares a lot but she refuses to show emotions because of her job as the maid of the House of Gremory and my brother…moving on. I never considered my father in the list of people who cared because he didn't. If he did most of my problems would have been solved already.
Looking at Akeno still carrying the hint of blush she couldn't help but smile. It was quite rare to see her flirty queen blush at someone's comment. Shin really played her in her own game.
"He got you good on that one didn't he Akeno." She says with a smile on her face as Akeno pouts a little.
"I will get him back next time. Although you seem to be quite happy with him. I haven't seen you happy at the idea of being happy with marrying someone. It is certainly nice to see you happy again Rias." Akeno smiles back at me.
"It is. He is a great guy. I just hope that he does well in this match or things might become bad for everyone." I have heard from Siaraorg that Shin is strong but still he is up against Riser who has experience with Rating Games. I can't help but feel worried about him. Maybe if I was stronger, I could have challenged Riser on my own and won. I have to get stronger. Not just my peerage but myself too.
I lost a potential recruit to my peerage and almost failed to avenge him and almost lost my own life as well. I had been extremely pained when I saw his grieving parents when they heard of the news. We had to change their memories because the bodies were not in a condition to present to normal people. We did put everything left of him in his grave. It was the least we could do after all.
Shin was right. I have to use this pain and become stronger for everyone's sake. This is the best I could do for them
Did he feel the same way too when his Godfather die? He did say it was only a week ago before their last meeting. He could still laugh with me and talk normally. I could tell that his Godfather meant a lot to him especially after the way he talked about….. or rather refused to talk about his parents. His eyes were angry but pained at the same time. He did share this with me because he thought that I deserved to know everything about him. He trusted me that much and was working to make this relationship successful.
Maybe it is time that I took an initiative of myself to get to know more about him. I don't even know his name…..or at least the previous name yet. I have had previous experiences with Koneko and Kiba to know that he changed his name because of some unpleasant reasons, so I did not ask him about it. Maybe this time I will ask him about his life.
Yes, I have decided that I will work harder with every aspect of my life.
Maybe I should start by planning for my date. My first date, the thought brings a warm bubbling feeling of excitement in my stomach.
- Siaraorg –
Shin became stronger again. And the peerage members he recruited were extremely strong as well. He could feel his blood rushing when he felt his aura this morning. It was completely collected and his magic was wrapped tightly around him like a thick blanket. It didn't give out any aura or mana leaks to give others an indication of his power but he clearly felt it. Shin was at least near a 10-Winged Devil in terms of Demonic power alone. If he was not there yet, then the difference couldn't be that much either.
His pawn was interesting too. Her life force was extremely strong. Stronger than even what he had felt from Shin during his spar with his peerage. She had a sacred gear too. He could sense it although the presence was a bit hidden but the aura was comparable to his own pawn, Regulus and that was something to look out for in the future. A Longinus. Which one was it? How well could she use it? She didn't seem like a magician so he was pretty sure she was like him. A close range fighter. Maybe he would get a chance to fight her with his full power. He hadn't had the opportunity to use his Regulus Rey Leather Rex against anyone yet.
The knight surprised the life out of him though. For a moment he had thought that Shin somehow managed to get the Strongest Queen on his side. But that was impossible right. On closer look, he saw the differences between them. She had a shorter skirt compared to Grayfia's more conservative uniform. Probably made for easier movement in battle. Her moves were sharp however. Attitude and atmosphere were completely like the strongest queen herself and she was not pretending to behave like her. She was completely natural. He really looked forward to the look on people's faces during the Rating Game. Having a Strongest Queen lookalike with equally sharp attitude in the Game will be something to look forward to. He wondered what her fighting style was. She was speed focused at least he got that much from her knight piece. More surprises for him then.
The last one was someone who gave him the shivers. The little magician girl was someone who was the most normal among them yet she gave him the most dangerous feeling of them all. Something inside him made he want to run away from her from the very moment he met her. It was not something she was doing. No. it was something much more….. instinctive.
One week. In just one week Shin brought together of three extremely dangerous and equally interesting members. His future members can only be something interesting. He was initially worried about Shin in his Rating Game against Riser. Riser, a scum he maybe, but was experienced in Rating Games and Shin was alone. Although in a one on one fight the Phenex would have no chance of winning against Shin…..he still remembered Shin eating the fire against Kuisha. It still made his jaw fall slightly when he remembered that scene but a Rating Game was different from one on one fight.
Riser could gang up on Shin with the rest of his peerage and take him down after tiring him out eventually. But looking at him and his peerage now, he could only pity Riser for having provoked and challenged the worst possible monster in their current generation. Yes, the likes of him and Shin were not at the same level as the rest of the youth devils. They were levels beyond others of their age. Monster was a more appropriate definition for them. And Shin with his unique magic was the worst monster for Riser.
At least his cousin Rias and aunt Venelana will be happy when Riser gets kicked brutally. He could guess that Kuisha will be happy too. She had been too worried that it was her fault that Shin was in this situation. She still didn't know about the background moves made by Zekram. The Great King did not take walks in common market. That is just common sense.
Why Kuisha couldn't understand this simple fact is still a mystery to him.
Whatever the result maybe, one thing was clear to Siaraorg Bael, the future was going to be very interesting.
- Zekram Bael –
The boy was back in the underworld and he had gathered a decent peerage for himself. Looking at the reports in front of him he could only laugh at the sheer foolishness of it. The fool Lord Phenex was spreading the news of the Rating Game and his association with Shin to every corner of the underworld, inviting them all to have watch the game.
He wanted to make this a symbolic defeat of House Bael against House Phenex. The fool had been making many moves both legal and illegal in the past few decades, from common bribing and blackmailing to threats of stopping the supply of Phenex tears to other houses and other trade agreements to make his position in the underworld stronger. He doesn't realizes that Devils in general don't like being suppressed. His actions have led him to making enemies of a major half of the devils elder council.
It was only the presence of him Zekram Bael that no one dared to start another fight in the underworld. But it was about time that an exception was made. If someone thinks that they have a chance at the seat of The Great King, then they need to be shown their place. He knows all the hidden skeletons buried in every nooks and corners of the Pillar Houses. The current Lord of House Phenex was the younger brother of the first fiancé of Lady Phenex. His elder brother died in an ambush of Fallen during the last great war.
The interesting fact was that he was the only one who had escaped from the battle. His injuries were said to have been healed by the Phenex tears his brother was carrying. The matter did cause some great tremors during the war, but people die in wars and so this matter was buried among other deaths too. No one actually knew what happened in that battle.
At least that is what everyone thinks. He himself had been the head of investigating the said matter under the orders of Lucifer. He had interrogated the Fallen involved in the ambush and found some really interesting information. They were given the information about the supply line's travel routes by an insider. The identity of this insider was none other than Oggan Phenex, the one who then inherited the marriage contract of his elder brother with the Heiress of the House Phenex and thus became the Lord Phenex.
Lucifer had decided to bury the news because it would have caused heavy disturbance in the state of underworld and devils who were already involved in the Great War then.
He did as was ordered but he still had all the information about the said incident along with many others. Illegal occupation of business or other Pillar houses through underground organizations, supply of Phenex Tears to the Old Satan Faction during the Civil war and even now, selling information about important trade routes of other Pillar Houses to impede their business were among few.
The current Heir of the House Phenex was a capable one. Noble but having the strength to back it up. He didn't want to ruin their name if possible so he had been holding back on his judgment on them for a while. But if the fool was pushing towards his own doom, then he wouldn't mind showing him his place.
This would all start with the Rating Game. Shin had to win the game and he had even prepared other measures for it if he hadn't been strong enough. Looking at the King Piece between his finger and thumb, he couldn't help but smile at the boy's progress. It was not needed. He was strong enough even without it.
He wouldn't be surprised by such progress. He wouldn't have been chosen by Death if he was anything less. This much was only expected of him. It was also one of the main reasons that he had pushed the date of the Rating Game so early. It was to test the boy's growth potential and needless to say he was immensely pleased. The underworld and the Devil race will benefit greatly from the boy's presence and power among them. Now all he had to think was how to bind the boy with the devils as a whole. A marriage contract was good but not something he could always rely on. He still didn't know the full extent of the boy's abilities but he won't take any chances. Something to think about in the future.
- Sona –
Sona had been looking forward to this Rating Game for a while. It did involve the future of her best friend after all.
Rias is her best friend. She has always been but sometimes she couldn't help but feel jealous of her. Rias was better looking than her. Sona was not petty enough to not recognize that simple fact or live in denial for such a useless fact.
She had her peerage members almost handed down to her…oh who was she kidding, actually handed down to her. Her own sister, while she dotes on her more than probably anyone else would never pamper her like that.
But even through all this, Rias had remained her Best Friend because she is just that simple. Sure she is prideful and spoiled but which devil was without pride. Her presence helped her to keep herself in check, from analyzing everything everything as chess pieces. That was why she was so close to her.
That's why she got along so well with her and this was an important event for her best friend. Not to mention, her sister had been very excited about 'Shin-kun' having his first Rating Game. Honestly her sister was really over the top som…..most of the times but she knew one thing for a fact that her sister was by far the sharpest Satan among the four. She was extremely good at identifying talents and if she was insisting so much on Shin Kageyami, then he is someone to keep an eye out for.
He did appear out of nowhere and his supposed Marriage contract with Rias was something surprising too. Even more was the fact that it was brought forward by none other than Zekram Bael. The Great King himself taking initiative for him made him that much more interesting. What secrets was he holding? During their first meeting with him, she couldn't get a proper chance to talk to him herself due to being too busy handling her elder sister. She could really be a handful. All the information she had about him was through others and that is something she could only put so much trust in. or else who in their right mind would believe the rumors that he was a bastard child of Zekram Bael, that he had hidden away in among humans on earth.
If anything the information she could actually trust was given by her sister and Siaraorg Bael. She had respect for the eldest Bael son as he was not someone who would lie to others for common things like this.
Rias also found out that he fought both Kuisha and Ladora, both of whom are fair to say as strong as her and Rias or even stronger. Kuisha due to her constant spars with Siaraorg was much stronger than them. Just her experience trumped theirs by a huge margin. And Shin won against her….as a normal human. They didn't give out the details of the fight except that he won both the fights without any scratch on his body…..which was honestly terrifying. She couldn't think of anyone under ultimate class who could do that. Even Siaraorg, their own King would have at least a scratch on him if he fought the two. He would win just as easily though. Yet, this was a proof that Shin Kageyami was no ordinary boy.
Becoming a devil would have only made him much stronger and not weaker. He was supposedly wearing a self-made artifact which kept his magic contained and prevented any leaks. Truly useful tool for any supernatural. This only further showed his talents in artificing. As such she couldn't get feel of his power but it was bound to be great.
Now all that is left is for them to watch his rating game. She looked around her, Rias, Akeno, her own queen Tsubaki and her and Rias' peerages were all present. Siaraorg and his peerage along with Seekvaira were present too. Lord Phenex didn't leave any means left to publicize this game. Politically this game was much more than the childish fight between two young devils. No, it was a challenge from House Phenex to the Great King and victory in this game would mean as a victory against The Great King Zekram Bael himself.
She watched as both teams take their respective positions in their waiting room.
Riser Phenex surrounded by his bunch of playthings and Raven Phenex who is the real brains for the peerage. She tries to make a plan as Riser stops her stating it too beneath a Phenex to have to plan against a nameless nobody. Oh how she pities Ravel wasting her talents in her idiot brother's peerage.
Shin however looks calm and relaxed. Almost too calm and relaxed. She almost falls down from her chair when she hears his first line.
"We have 30 minutes to pass, so…who wants to watch a new anime?"
Of all things, this was not something she expected.
She can see others having various reactions everywhere around her. Rias looks nervous, Akeno looks confused. Her queen is keeping a great poker face but she knows she is just as confused as him while Siaraorg is holding his guts and laughing like a lunatic.
If anything her sister looks the happiest one at this suggestion of Shin. Sona might finally have an idea why the two of them get along so well. They are both completely and utterly …..CRAZY.
_x_x_
Hey guys, here's a new chapter for The Game Must Go On. Preparations have been made, teams are ready. It is about time for the Rating Game.
Many things have happened in the background and they will affect Shin in different ways. Everyone has their own agenda.
Good thing Rias is finally getting her head straight.
Shin's peerage is ready to kick butts.
And what exactly is he going to do with the anime. At least Serafall seems excited with all this.
Shin will finally be revealed to the whole world and his entrance will be anything but boring.
Man passing 50k words is really something.
Maybe from the next time I will add the wizarding world's pov to keep everyone updated on what has been going around there. It will prevent an info dump when Shin finally returns to the wizarding world after he stabilizes his position in the underworld.
I am also thinking about how I should go about the wizarding world. His quests and his revenge.
Needless to say I need to draw some plans about it. So please bear with me for a little while.
See you guys soon. Have a good day.
Peace Out.