The ticking of the clock matched the rhythm ticking away in Ruto's head. Anticipation bubbled in him as the thick of battle awaited him. Rias had already sent Haru along with his orders to find and join Koneko on the field. Now only silence filled the ORC clubroom. His Sight Wisps spotted nothing so far, so Ruto took a moment to speak with Rias.
"So, you placed a seal on his power, huh? Is it really that great?" he asked, never turning away from the window. Rias silenced her thoughts to address him.
"Yes. As I'm sure you heard, the power I placed in him with the eight Pawn Pieces would have been too much for his new Devil body to handle. So I limited his power so he would gradually gain access to it in chunks as he got stronger." she surmised.
"Sounds reasonable enough." he said evenly. "I've gotta say, you've really surprised me." Rias was caught off guard but remained composed.
"How so?" she asked curiously.
"You've managed to exceed my expectations so far. You're clear and decisive, and they follow your orders without much question. It's different from the doting mother act I see you pulling. It's rather refreshing to be perfectly honest." he complimented.
"Well in something like this, there isn't much room for second guessing myself. But I'm glad I've exceeded your expectations, whatever they were." she replied, waiting for him to find something to criticize. She herself had made an observation of her own.
"You've changed as well. There's no snide remarks, no sarcasm, no tricks. Why is that?" Rias inquired. Ruto shrugged and was silent for a minute or so.
"The stakes are high. Normally I don't get like this but I need to be. Not only is my informant missing, the others are at risk, your future is at risk." he said, sounding uncharacteristically serious for once.
He actually cares? Who knew? Rias thought in surprise. Here was another example of how Ruto is unpredictable to her. He was hard to read, yet obvious if you see things in a certain way. The entire time shed known him, he'd shown nothing but uncaring condescension towards her. Calling her out on every little thing, disrespecting her authority, showing blatant disregard for the safety of her peerage, and yet here he was practically admitting he cared for them, at least a little.
"Surprised? I thought you'd be." Ruto said amused. "The truth is that I do like you as a person Rias. You're smart, kind and quite accommodating to those who need it. But until I see you lead your Peerage on the path to greatness, then I can't respect you as a leader. You understand now, right?" Rias stared owlishly at him.
"But trust me, you're doing just fine changing my opinion on that with this Rating Game. So let's win this shall we?" he said with an encouraging grin.
Sona and Tsubaki sat before an array of monitors that keenly captured every moment of the Rating Game. Both had blank faces as they carefully analysed every detail of the event.
"Looks like Rias is about to make her first move." Tsubaki said coolly to her King. Sona kept on watching patiently.
"Given the amount of pieces Rias is missing, she won't be able to defend her base and make a full assault. Granted, having Ruto on her side makes things a little more manageable for her, but once he's out to fight, she'll only have her Bishop with her." she frowned. "So with that lack of pieces, she'll only be able to force her way in with tertiary attacks."
The match ahead was looking one-sided, but she had confidence in Rias' abilities.
Let's just hope that Ruto doesn't go crazy. Too much magic usage at one time, especially for a human can be incredibly draining. she thought.
Rias had a hand to her earpiece as she contacted Haru and Koneko. The two waited for the order she was giving.
"Okay, so when you enter the gym, there will no now way of avoiding a confrontation. Make sure to stick to the plan and watch each other's backs." she said clearly. The two gave their affirmations and proceeded to the gym.
"Kiba, are you good to go?" she asked.
"In position and ready to move," he replied through the earpiece.
"Akeno, stand by. I'm counting on you."
"Don't worry, we totally got this." the Priestess of Thunder said confidently.
"Rossweisse, are you ready?
"Of course my King. I await your next order. " the Valkyrie replied dutifully.
Rias smiled, her confidence swelling as her team were ready for action. "Alright team, commence operation Phenex Ashes." she declared. She heard Ruto snicker from his post by the window but ignored him. "Your opponent is Lord Riser, a talented warrior from the House of Phenex. Show them no mercy as none will be shown to you."
"That's what I like to hear." Ruto said approvingly, a savage grin split his face.
Koneko led the way as she and Haru stealthily made their way in through the back, finding cover behind the show stage curtains.
"I still can't get over how good a replica this place is." Haru said quietly.
Suddenly the lights of the gym burst to life, illuminating the interior. "Smells like Gremory filth." a voice came loudly from the other end of the gym. "Come on out."
Haru frowned while Koneko's face didn't change at all. "Well I guess the stealth approach is out." he said before both he and Koneko walked onto the main stage to face their opponents. There were four in total. Three Pawns and a Rook. The Rook wore a blue Cheongsam dress with a white sash around her waist. The two twin Pawns wore average Japanese school gym uniforms while the other Pawn wore a Red haori with a white top underneath it.
The three Pawns were carrying objects. The Pawn in the red haori carried her staff while the other two had unknown items.
"Uh, who are they?" Haru asked. On queue they introduced themselves. The staff wielding went first.
"I'm Mira, a Phenex Pawn." she said with bluster. Then the Rook.
"I am Xuelan, a Phenex Rook." she stated proudly.
Then the bubbly twin Pawns introduced themselves. "I'm Ile and I'm a Pawn!" she said with an informal salute.
"I'm Nel and I'm also a Pawn!" announced the other.
Koneko was impassive for the most part. "The Rook chick." she said pointedly to Haru. "She could be a big problem."
"You think so?" Haru asked, glancing at his comrade.
She nodded. "Based on her power, she has the skills of a Queen." Haru's eyes widened in alarm.
"Dammit, really!?"
Suddenly, the faint sound of a dixie horn was heard just outside of the gym, behind the wall Koneko and Haru had their backs to.
I know that sound. It's— Haru's thought was cut off.
The wall exploded into a shower of brick and plaster as none other than Ruto stepped through the gaping hole in the wall. He looked down on the enemy Pieces looking pleased with himself.
"I'm Uzumaki Ruto, and I'm here to progress the plot!" he announced loudly. "Also I'm a temporary Gremory Knight." he added quickly.
Mira felt her stomach drop when she saw him. He was the one that had made Siris betray them. Before Siris encountered him, she was one of the most loyal members of the Phenex Peerage, or so she thought. But he twisted and manipulated her to betray them. His serpentine words could have been the only explanation.
She froze up when the blonde haired Knight's cold blue-grey eyes locked onto her own. He knew. He knew she'd foiled his plan. The look in his eyes was all she needed to feel cold fear course through her veins. She didn't know anyone else who had such an oppressive aura when facing them.
"So nice to see you again. Mira." Ruto said in a sinister tone. Mira's body stiffened as she tried to hold her ground. "You've been a bad little Pawn and disrupted my plan. So the question remains..." he hopped off of the stage and stood before the four enemy Devils.
"... What am I gonna do with you?" she could feel his eyes burning into her own now. She wanted to look away, run, hide or do anything but she couldn't. The others were clearly uncomfortable as well as they sensed something off about their opponent.
He's doing that thing again. Haru thought. I don't know how he does it, but he's terrifying in combat. But I don't know if it's something he consciously does. What is it?
However, Ruto knew just where he learned his intimidation trick. Thanks big sis, for teaching me your secret to keeping me in check. he thought, resisting the urge to grimace. He slowly walked towards the four Devils, Xuelan and the twins parted without realising, leaving a clear path to Mira. She began to back away, trembling as his terrifying presence got closer and closer. Before she knew it, she was face to face with him.
She could feel his oddly cold breath on her face, saw the evil glint in his eyes, all while he looked down at her with his canines bared in a fearsome grin.
"So tell me." she jolted when he spoke. "Where oh where is Siris? I know you turned her in to Riser, so make this easy for yourself and tell me where she is." he said with his grin still wide.
Haru looked at Koneko and whispered. "I thought he couldn't confront enemies on his own. So what's he doing here?" he asked in confusion. Koneko thought for a moment before answering.
"The rule must apply strictly to combat, it said nothing about not conversing. What does bother me is how he's already here. I thought we had to take the zone for him to be able to move." she replied.
Haru raised an eyebrow. "Huh, I guess he got it wrong."
5 minutes ago…
"My plot senses are tingling." Ruto said suddenly. Rias wasn't sure just what the hell he was talking about sometimes, so she just decided to humour him.
"And what are these 'plot senses' telling you?" she asked. He cast his gaze over to her, temporarily disengaging from his Sight Wisps.
"My restrictions, I made a mistake." Rias looked curious but waited for him to continue. "After carefully analysing the restrictions put on my power, it seems that I was mistaken in one aspect. I can go anywhere I want, but I can't fight if it isn't under control or a non-combat zone. So I could do forward recon, but I'll just have to be careful and avoid enemies. However, if I'm with an ally, I can fight." He explained, none of the usual energy in his voice, just clear and firm like that of a soldier.
Rias raised an eyebrow, not sure why he hadn't found this out sooner. "So why the delay on the clarification?"
"I'm busy is all. Kinda have to concentrate on the task at hand." he responded. "But anyway, I think I'll take this opportunity and pay the gym a visit."
Present.
"I'm waiting Mira. Tell me where Siris is, and you'll have no trouble from me." white light pulsed in Ruto's narrowed eyes for a moment. "However if not, then I'm afraid you're all gonna find me to be a little… difficult." His tone was cold and eerily calm, as if he could smell the fear coming from the Pawn and knew she'd tell him.
Mira couldn't handle having his oppressive aura around her anymore. Her chest was tight and legs shook. The grip on her staff was loosening from fear. She gulped as cold sweat rolled down the side of her face.
"S-she's in the… the new school building, in the principals office. She's b-being forced t-to watch Lord Riser defeat you when y-you fight him. His words, n-not mine." She added that quickly, as not to set Ruto off.
Ruto cupped his chin in thought. He hummed, satisfied with the information. He smiled a serpent's smile. "Thank you Mira, you've been most helpful." He strode past her and made for the door at the end of the gymnasium.
"Oh, Haru, Koneko?" The two looked at him. "No mercy." With that, he carried on, kicking the door open and departing into the track yard.