Izashi could barely keep the smirk from his face as he stood before his father, Zeoticus, whose proud stature remained rigid. Their eyes met, and an intense silence filled the hall, only broken by the soft murmurs of the gathered elders. Zeoticus's calm demeanor seemed forced, an attempt to shield his unease.
Zeoticus finally took a slow breath, his voice level as he spoke, "Listen, son. This decision we're about to make affects not just you and me, but the entire legacy of the Gremory House. We should settle this... in a proper manner. A rating game would allow us both time to prepare, to ensure neither of us is at a disadvantage."
Izashi sighed, letting out a faint chuckle, as if his father's words were expected but amusingly futile. He glanced over his shoulder at the elders, raising his voice with an air of practiced indifference. "It seems the fight's being delayed. I hope all of you have some patience before you're chosen to serve under your new head of the family."
The elders' murmuring grew louder, some nodding with approval, while others exchanged furtive glances. One elder, a silver-haired devil with a faint scar across his brow, raised his voice above the others. "Why should it be a rating game, Lord Zeoticus? We're not here to see who has the best servants. We came to see the true strength of our next leader. Settle it now, here, in this very hall."
Izashi's smirk widened as the elder's words struck home. He kept his gaze steady on Zeoticus, who stood unmoved but whose eyes showed the tiniest flicker of irritation. It was enough for Izashi to know he'd won this small battle.
"Very well," Zeoticus replied, his voice tight with resignation, his gaze flicking to each elder who dared to nod in agreement. "If this is the will of the council, I'll respect it."
The hall was quickly transformed, the elders conjuring a red-tinted barrier around the area, creating a private, contained battlefield. The soft lighting of the chamber shifted, now radiating a faint crimson hue as the magic deepened the atmosphere into something ancient and intense. The walls seemed to breathe with the weight of history, the Gremory family's legacy of strength echoing around them. Izashi inhaled, feeling his demonic energy surge in response. He stepped forward, locking eyes with his father.
Zeoticus's aura expanded first, filling the space with his full devil power, pressing down on the elders who hadn't yet withdrawn to a safe distance. They staggered back, some wiping sweat from their brows as they moved away. Izashi felt the force but stood unflinching, his smirk still firmly in place.
"Trying to intimidate me, are we?" Izashi drawled, crossing his arms, his expression bored.
Zeoticus narrowed his eyes and raised a hand, summoning a deep violet energy that swirled around his fingertips, condensing into a fierce orb. "Spectral Inferno!" he commanded, and the orb shot toward Izashi with a howl of power, erupting as it neared, creating an inferno of purplish flames that roared forward with deadly intent.
Izashi didn't move, instead lifting his hand and casually conjuring a shield of his own, a thick wall of the Power of Destruction that absorbed the flames, swallowing them into nothingness. He stepped through the dissipating embers, a grin tugging at the corner of his lips.
"Spectral Inferno? Not bad, but if you want to get through to me, you'll have to do better," Izashi taunted, making a 'come-here' motion with his hand.
Zeoticus's expression hardened, and without a pause, he raised both hands to the sky, summoning a dark cloud filled with crackling energy. "Lightning of the Fallen!" he shouted. The air crackled as streaks of black lightning rained down, filling the chamber with blinding flashes and echoing thunder.
Izashi's eyes glinted with amusement, his own power flaring in response as he stepped forward, his body weaving between the bolts with practiced grace. A single bolt came dangerously close, but Izashi sidestepped, the electric current merely grazing him. Without a second thought, he gathered his own energy, forming a dozen small orbs that pulsed and glowed a fierce red.
"Destruction Barrage," Izashi murmured, each orb firing toward his father, breaking through the dark lightning like unstoppable cannonballs. Zeoticus raised his arms, shielding himself, his aura flaring as he conjured a thick barrier. The blasts hit his shield with a force that cracked the floor beneath him, yet he managed to keep his stance.
Zeoticus steadied himself, a visible tremor in his arms from the force of Izashi's attack, and narrowed his gaze. "You're a strong devil, I'll give you that. But strength alone isn't enough," he spat, sending a wave of freezing energy through the floor that surged toward Izashi, creeping over the ground with deadly intent.
"Glacial Dominion!" Zeoticus commanded, the ground below Izashi freezing into a layer of thick ice. Spikes began to form, shooting up with precision, each one aimed directly at his legs and torso.
Izashi leapt into the air, a smile on his face as he watched the spikes rise beneath him, his body twisting and maneuvering easily. He landed on one of the spikes, his foot perfectly balanced, as if he were simply strolling across solid ground. "Ice, Father? Surely, you know that's not going to hold me back." With a flick of his hand, he sent another wave of the Power of Destruction down onto the ice, shattering it into a spray of mist.
Zeoticus clenched his jaw, visibly frustrated, his eyes flashing with a fierce determination. "Very well, if you want to test true strength..." He raised his arms, gathering his energy until the very air hummed with tension. "Crimson Cataclysm!" He unleashed a massive burst of red energy, the force of it filling the hall with a pulsing, throbbing light. The wave shot toward Izashi, filling the space with searing, oppressive heat.
Izashi chuckled, his expression almost pitying as he braced himself. "Impressive, but still not enough." His own aura blazed around him as he extended both hands, channeling a swirling sphere of blue flames infused with destruction energy. He met the oncoming cataclysm head-on, his sphere absorbing the energy, quelling the flames with his own.
As the flames died down, Izashi stood completely unharmed, his face illuminated by the fading embers. "Let's wrap this up, shall we?" he said, his tone almost casual as he raised his hand, gathering a terrifying swirl of power.
With a smooth movement, he brought his hands together, the flames and destruction energy merging into a single, potent sphere. "Phoenix Destruction Style: Flaming Rasengan," he whispered, the sphere pulsing with such intensity that the elders had to shield their eyes.
Zeoticus's face blanched, his magic momentarily flickering as he processed the magnitude of the attack. He barely had time to react before Izashi closed the distance between them, thrusting the burning orb into his side. The impact was explosive; Zeoticus's entire right side burst into flames, his armor and clothing tearing apart as the searing heat and destructive force tore through him.
He staggered, desperately trying to gather himself, but Izashi was relentless. Izashi leapt, catching him mid-stumble with a precise kick that sent him hurtling upward, his body wreathed in the shape of a flaming phoenix.
The hall fell into a stunned silence as the elders watched, wide-eyed, as Izashi made a mock gun with his fingers, pointing it toward his father's airborne form. "Bang," he said with a playful smirk. A final blast of energy shot from his fingertip, colliding with Zeoticus and sending him crashing to the ground.
Izashi approached his fallen father, looking down at him with a gleam of satisfaction. "Do you yield, Father? Or should I demonstrate even more of what I've learned?" His tone was almost mocking, his voice dripping with confidence.
Zeoticus coughed, his voice barely a whisper as he forced the words out. "No more... Please. I concede. You... are the Head of the Gremory House."
Izashi released his father, letting him fall back onto the ground with a dull thud, barely managing to maintain a spark of magic to heal himself. Izashi, ever the strategist, tossed a vial of Phoenix Tears at Zeoticus's feet. "Heal yourself," he said, his tone dismissive. "There are more pressing matters to address now."
As Zeoticus began to heal, the elders emerged from the shadows, their faces a mixture of awe, fear, and respect. Izashi, without a single bead of sweat on his brow, walked to the chair where his father had once presided and sat down, folding one leg over the other, his gaze unwavering as he looked out over the assembly.
The silence in the room was as thick as the aura he exuded, each elder feeling the unspoken command to kneel before him. Izashi finally spoke, his tone laced with authority. "From this moment forward, my orders are law. The time for questioning has passed. As your head, I won't ask permission. My decisions are absolute."
A few elders shifted uncomfortably, one even opening his mouth to protest, but the icy look Izashi shot him silenced any dissent. The old ways, where elders held sway, were being abolished before their eyes.
And Izashi, now the undisputed leader, felt nothing but satisfaction as he gazed out at his future—the House of Gremory, redefined under his rule.
~~
A/N: I hope you all liked this long chapter.
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