Just as Rias felt that something was terribly wrong, a deafening boom suddenly echoed from the distance, like a violent explosion.
Ryuya and the others looked toward the sound, only to see Akeno plummeting down from the sky!
While still midair, Akeno transformed into a beam of white light and was ejected from the subspace—she had been eliminated.
"Rias Gremory has lost one Queen."
Grayfia's broadcast confirmed the outcome, causing both Ryuya and Rias to feel their hearts sink.
Logically speaking, Akeno's strength should have been above Yubelluna's. Even if she couldn't defeat her, she should at least have been able to stall her…
At that very moment, another sense of danger surged forth—Koneko was attacked again!
However, Ryuya was unable to rush to her aid this time, because the Knight facing him suddenly cast aside all shame, charging straight at him while wrapped in an anti-magic aura, recklessly crashing toward him!
That brief obstruction was enough for Ryuya to completely miss the chance to support Koneko!
Boom!!
Koneko was struck head-on by a massive surge of demonic power, triggering a violent explosion on the spot!
She let out a scream as the blast nearly swallowed her whole. In an instant, she was heavily injured, and all Ryuya could do was watch helplessly as Koneko turned into white light and vanished.
"Koneko!" Rias cried out in shock.
Ryuya lifted his gaze toward the sky, where a new figure had appeared—a woman clad in a magic cloak.
It was Yubelluna!
After defeating Akeno by some unknown means, she had flown over and eliminated Koneko as well!
"Well done, Yubelluna." Ravel Phoenix smiled faintly. "As expected of my brother's Queen."
"I'm ashamed, Lady Ravel. In the end, I still had to use this."
Yubelluna produced a small bottle. Everyone present could sense the dense vitality still lingering inside it.
Ryuya frowned slightly, his eyes fixed on the bottle. His intuition told him that this small vial was precisely the reason for Akeno's defeat.
"Curious, are you?"
Noticing Ryuya's gaze, Ravel said smugly,
"This is a Phoenix Tear—a secret treasure of our Phenex Clan. Once used, it instantly restores all injuries. It's an extremely precious item, you know."
Something like that actually existed?
Didn't that mean that members of the Phenex Clan were practically impossible to kill in this Rating Game?
Rias spoke up at that moment, "They're only allowed to use at most two bottles per match."
"Heh, so what?" Riser laughed confidently, his expression one of absolute certainty as his gaze turned sharp and vicious toward Ryuya.
He had been harboring a lot of resentment toward Ryuya—after all, Ryuya's earlier performance had been utterly unbearable for him.
"Now it's time to teach you a lesson!"
Riser snapped his fingers, and surging demonic power roared toward Ryuya!
As a pure-blooded devil whose strength rivaled Rias's, Riser was unquestionably powerful, exerting immense pressure on Ryuya.
Facing Riser's assault, Ryuya summoned the Shield, blocking the incoming attack.
Just as Yubelluna was about to make her move as well, Rias immediately stepped in to stop her.
Fortunately, those Knights and Pawns were all sealed for the moment. Although this time Aegiron had restrained quite a large number of targets—and all of them possessed strength on the level of top-tier mid-class devils, which greatly shortened the duration of the seal—it at least resolved the immediate crisis.
Boom!!
Riser blasted a massive crater straight into the ground where Ryuya had been standing.
"What's this? Is that all you've got?" Riser said coldly. "As Rias's Knight, your performance has been truly disappointing."
From the start of the game until now, Ryuya hadn't displayed anything particularly eye-catching. At best, he had merely defeated a few Pawns.
Given that the Knight piece naturally possessed far greater bonuses than a Pawn, defeating a handful of soldiers was hardly worth praising.
"If this is really the extent of your ability, then Rias truly misjudged you."
Riser spoke indifferently, as if frustrated that iron refused to become steel.
On this point, he was actually sincere. The devil race did indeed need outstanding Evil Pieces to prosper. If an Evil Piece was too weak, it would inevitably tarnish its master's reputation.
Ryuya once again blocked Riser's fierce assault. Though it looked dangerous, his expression remained calm from beginning to end.
"There's no need for Lord Riser to concern himself," he replied evenly. "You'd best be careful yourself. Until the very last moment, no one knows who will be left standing."
His tone was unhurried as he continued to control the Shield, protecting himself tightly. His aura remained steady and unshaken.
And all this time, he still hadn't launched a counterattack. The Sword of Kings hadn't even been drawn.
Riser laughed in extreme anger. "How laughably ignorant. You probably don't even realize what you're about to face."
He turned his gaze toward the direction of the old school building.
"Shuriya, you should be done by now, right?"
As his words fell, a terrifying surge of demonic power erupted from the direction of the old school building.
"That's… our base…" Asia murmured softly.
Rias's eyes flickered as she said in a low voice, "A Pawn Promotion."
At that moment, Riser's lineup gained another Queen!
A girl named Shuriya flew over, her face filled with confident joy.
"Master, I succeeded in promoting!"
"Heh, excellent. Now things are much simpler," Riser said with a faint smile. In a Rating Game, possessing two Queens at the same time practically meant standing in an unbeatable position.
"Rias, what are you still clinging to? Give up resisting and obediently come back to the Underworld with me."
With the wind firmly at his back, Riser began running his mouth without restraint.
Rias and Asia both felt that the situation had turned dire. At this point, their only remaining hope was Ryuya.
"Enough of your nonsense! I will never give up!"
With a cold snort, Rias launched an attack of her own, blasting off one of Riser's arms.
However, in the very next second, flames surged forth, and Riser's arm regenerated completely—the Phoenix's trait of rebirth through flames was displayed in full.
"So stubborn…" Riser sighed. "What a shame. I'm out of patience now. Your hope is this brat, isn't it? Fine—then today, right here, I'll burn him to ashes completely! After all, accidental death is permitted in the game!"
A dense killing intent burst forth. Riser was serious now. His ferocious demonic power surged straight toward Ryuya.
Rias wanted to help, but the two Queens had her firmly pinned down, leaving her no room to break away.
"Don't!!"
Rias cried out in horror.
But at that very moment, Ryuya—standing calmly there—raised his head to face the incoming attack directly. His lips moved as he spoke softly:
"—Promotion."
---
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