Time flew by, and the one-month special training period for Eligos's servants was already nearing its end.
Yukinoshita Yukino, Yuuki Asuna, Kasumigaoka Utaha, and Mahiru had completely adapted to the harsh training regimen. They were no longer collapsing in exhaustion every day like they had at the start. In fact, after a full day of training, it was getting harder and harder for them to even hit their limits. They were beginning to handle it with ease.
Ravel Phenex, Ram, and Rem had joined later, but unlike Yukino and the others, who had started out as ordinary humans, all three of them came from extraordinary backgrounds. They were either pure-blood High-Class Devils or naturally powerful Oni, with solid foundations to begin with. Even with only a short period of training, the results were obvious.
Ravel and Ram, in particular, were growing at an astonishing pace. One of them was still underage and had never fully unlocked her potential before, leaving plenty of room to grow. The other had a ten-year gap to make up for and was slowly filling in what she'd lost. Both were improving rapidly.
As for Rem, her regular daytime training still showed only modest results. However, with Leo giving her one-on-one guidance every night, she had gradually begun to adapt to her Oni transformation. She could now maintain her sanity for short periods without losing control.
At first, it had only lasted a few seconds. Then it slowly extended to a full minute. As the month-long training approached its end, she could now stay in her transformed state for two full minutes without going berserk. Of course, if she entered combat, that time would likely be shortened considerably, so it still wasn't very practical in real battles.
Even so, Rem was genuinely happy.
Unlike before, when her progress had been barely noticeable, this time she could clearly feel herself growing stronger. Every extension of her transformation time, even by a single second, made her happy for a long while.
It meant she had finally found the right path.
If she kept going like this, even if she couldn't completely master the power of her Oni form, being able to control it for several minutes would be enough to let her undergo a complete transformation. In a short time, she would become a hidden trump card among Eligos's servants, someone who wouldn't hold Leo or Ram back.
From now on, Rem would continue pushing herself in this direction, determined not to disappoint Leo or Ram.
Leo, of course, could see Rem's efforts. He had also been watching the growth of his other servants, and it left him deeply satisfied.
A month wasn't long, but in that short time, every single one of Eligos's servants had been completely reborn.
Leo was confident that once they resurfaced, they'd shock everyone who'd been keeping tabs on them.
You'll understand when the time comes, he thought calmly. Trying to control us like before won't be possible anymore.
Of course, Leo's side wasn't the only one making progress. Rias and Sona Sitri hadn't slowed down either.
Even though they were training in the Underworld, Leo had kept in regular contact with Rias and Sona. They exchanged information often, keeping each other updated on their situations and changes.
Because of that, both Rias and Sona already knew that Leo had taken in three new servants: one of them the young lady of House Phenex, and the other two survivors of a fallen Oni clan.
"Phenex, huh…"
When Rias heard that Ravel had become Leo's servant, her feelings were complicated.
She couldn't help it. House Phenex had practically become a sore spot for her.
It wasn't that she had a grudge against the Phenex family. On the contrary, they were related.
By marriage.
And it was a marriage Rias was absolutely unwilling to accept.
Riser Phenex was someone even Sirzechs, the famously approachable Maou, didn't think much of. Needless to say, Rias herself found him unbearable.
He was nothing more than a sleazy delinquent. Sure, he came from a powerful family, and thanks to his phoenix immortality he performed decently in Rating Games, but Rias just couldn't stand him.
She had dreams. Her ultimate goal was to dominate the Rating Games, overthrow the current champion, and become the undisputed queen of the competition, making a name for herself across the entire devil world.
In other words, Rias was a career-driven woman. There was no way she'd willingly settle down into marriage.
House Phenex was no weaker than the Gremory House. If she married into the Phenex family, she'd be marrying into their household, becoming a dutiful wife and daughter-in-law. How would she ever have the freedom to pursue her ambitions then?
So from the very beginning, Rias had never accepted the idea of marrying Riser. On top of that, she genuinely disliked his behavior.
If she could, she'd love to follow Sona's example and crush Riser outright, breaking off the engagement entirely.
Unfortunately, she wasn't nearly as skilled at schemes and planning as Sona. And House Phenex knew exactly what kind of person Riser was, so there was no way they'd gamble the engagement on something like a chess match.
Rias couldn't find any way out.
She was nearing adulthood, and her anxiety was growing by the day.
The two families had already agreed that once she officially came of age, they would hold an engagement banquet and announce the marriage to the entire devil world, locking it in for good.
Given all that, how could Rias not feel conflicted upon hearing that the Phenex family's daughter had become the servant of someone she considered an important rival?
Even so, she didn't show it. She spoke to Leo as calmly as ever.
"Ravel Phenex, the eldest daughter of House Phenex… I've heard of her. They say she's sharp and talented, someone who might one day rival her brothers."
Her voice came through the magic circle Leo had opened, making him smile slightly.
"She really is smart. She has a few small flaws, sure, but when it comes to intelligence and strategy, she might not be much worse than Sona."
Rias was genuinely surprised.
"You rate her that highly?"
As Sona's childhood friend and closest companion, no one understood her abilities better than Rias.
Rias was confident that Sona couldn't match her in raw power, but when it came to tactics and planning, Rias admitted that even two of her couldn't beat Sona.
Sona had already solved a major life problem through sheer strategy, while Rias was still stuck in the mud.
So hearing Leo say that Ravel's strategic ability was comparable to Sona's was shocking.
"She's my strategist," Leo said with a hint of pride. "If it made sense, I'd have loved to give her the Queen piece. And she's no slouch in combat either. Even relying purely on her phoenix immortality, she can hold off an Ultimate-Class Devil."
Brains and brawn. No wonder Leo felt like bragging a little.
"For House Phenex to hand over such an excellent daughter to you as a servant… they really must think highly of you," Rias said quietly.
She believed Leo wasn't exaggerating, so she fell silent for a moment before speaking again.
"They don't compare to your family," Leo replied bluntly. "Yours is willing to send their only daughter, the heir to the household, to someone else's family to be a wife and raise children. How could House Phenex compete with that?"
That left Rias completely speechless.
"Enough about that," Leo said, sensing her complicated emotions and smoothly changing the subject. "I heard from Sona that you've taken in two new servants recently. Is that right?"
He was genuinely interested.
After all, if he remembered correctly, among Rias's new servants was someone who could change the course of the world.
"You heard from Sona already?" Rias smiled, pushing down her earlier feelings.
Clearly, this topic put her in a much better mood.
"Yeah," Leo said with a relaxed smile. "I heard one of them is a Longinus holder, and you used all eight Pawn pieces to reincarnate him successfully?"
Sona had mentioned it just yesterday when she contacted him.
She'd originally been checking on Leo and casually informed him that the Sacred Gear wielder she'd been keeping an eye on had become her servant.
At the same time, she mentioned that Rias hadn't been idle either. Not only had Rias recruited more servants than Sona, they were all Sacred Gear users. One of them, like Yukino and Mahiru, was a Longinus holder, someone Rias had only managed to reincarnate after using all eight Pawn pieces.
"The Boosted Gear, Red Dragon Emperor's Gauntlet. It houses the soul of one of the Two Heavenly Dragons, the Red Dragon Emperor. Its ability doubles the host's power every ten seconds and allows that power to be transferred to allies or weapons. It ranks fifth among the thirteen Longinus."
Leo recited it calmly, smiling as if it were nothing new.
"This is a Sacred Gear ranked just below the four Top-Tier Longinus. It's said to possess limitless power. Its ranking is even higher than Yukino's Absolute Demise and Mahiru's Incinerate Anthem. Recruiting someone like that must've caused quite a stir among the devil world's upper ranks, right?"
If he didn't already know how the future unfolded, even he would've been shocked.
Rias having a Longinus holder under her command was no small matter.
"One of the Two Heavenly Dragons becoming a devil… even Heaven and Grigori must've been startled," Leo added.
But Rias simply laughed softly.
"That's thanks to you. You told me to keep an eye on the people at Kuoh Academy, and that's how I found him." She smiled wryly. "At first, I thought he was just a Twice Critical user. I couldn't understand why someone like that would need eight Pawn pieces to reincarnate. Then I realized it was actually the Boosted Gear. I was completely stunned."
Twice Critical was an extremely common Sacred Gear that temporarily doubled its user's strength. It was considered a lower-tier substitute for the Boosted Gear.
If that had been the case, a single Pawn piece would've been enough.
But the Boosted Gear was different. Ranked in the top five among Longinus, Rias had only managed to reincarnate him with eight Pawn pieces because he was still just an ordinary high school student. Otherwise, she'd have needed a Mutation Piece.
Thinking about her new servant made Rias sigh.
"He's just like you said, a total pervert."
She recalled his reputation at Kuoh Academy.
He was infamous as one of the "Three Great Perverts of Kuoh." He'd enrolled there because it used to be an all-girls school with lots of female students. Despite being massively unpopular with girls because of it, he still did whatever he wanted, constantly pulling perverted stunts.
His dream was to build a harem. After becoming a devil and realizing that dream might actually come true, he threw himself into devil work with enthusiasm, fantasizing about becoming a High-Class Devil, claiming the King piece, and using Evil Pieces to openly recruit beautiful female servants.
A life surrounded by girls calling him "master." That was his ultimate fantasy.
"He didn't take advantage of you, did he?" Leo teased, knowing exactly what kind of guy he was.
"Pfft."
Rias burst out laughing, barely holding it in.
"He wouldn't dare. Forget about us, he doesn't even dare try anything with the regular girls at school anymore."
She explained why.
After Leo's earlier warning, Sona had taken it seriously. Using her authority as student council president, she launched a full-scale crackdown on Kuoh Academy's discipline. Anyone causing trouble was rounded up and dealt with harshly, leaving more than a few students traumatized.
The so-called Three Great Perverts, who constantly peeked at girls and talked trash in public, were singled out and publicly humiliated by Sona. The three of them were utterly crushed, unable to lift their heads at school ever again.
Before Hyoudou Issei had even become Rias's servant, he'd already been thoroughly "educated" by Sona. Now, he was the person in the entire academy most terrified of her.
So when he found out Rias and Sona were childhood friends, he nearly pissed himself. He wouldn't dare even think about stepping out of line.
Leo was stunned.
Wait… Issei, reformed?
That had to be a joke, right?
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
You can read up to chapter 201 on patreon.com/NiaXD.