Night had fallen, and faint lights glimmered through the darkness.
Stars dotted the sky, while street lamps flickered against the nightscape.
As the sound of the motorcycle engine died away, Hikaru dismounted with his usual calm demeanor.
Tonight, Kuoh Academy was unusually quiet. Partly because it was the weekend, and partly because a basic "repel outsiders" barrier had been set up to prevent any accidental intruders during the nighttime.
At the center of the campus, Rias Gremory and her group were waiting; upon spotting Hikaru, they immediately came forward.
"I thought you weren't coming…"
Rias said with a complicated look on her face.
After school that day, Rias had tried to find Hikaru to help him train in what little time they had, but he refused her offer—it didn't benefit him at all. However, Rias saw things differently. After being turned down, she went home sulking. When the weekend arrived and the match was about to start, she both hoped Hikaru would show up and felt uneasy about seeing him. Yet in the end, he came after all.
Akeno covered her mouth, laughing softly:
"Indeed, Hikaru does what he says he will."
"Thank you, Hikaru. The President's future depends on you,"
Koneko and Yuuto Kiba added with heartfelt gratitude. As Rias's servants, they were ashamed they couldn't offer more help themselves. Their only hope lay in Hikaru's intervention.
Hikaru gave a small nod in response.
Besides Rias and her group, two unexpected figures stood nearby: Sona Sitri and Tsubaki Shinra.
Noticing Hikaru's gaze, Sona stepped forward to explain:
"Rias is my friend, after all. Her future's on the line, so of course I had to come see."
"Hikaru, be careful—Riser is strong, but more importantly, he has the Phoenix family bloodline. No matter what injuries he takes, he heals almost instantly. Many times in Rating Games, he doesn't so much defeat his opponent as outlast them with his regenerative abilities. You have to watch out for that."
Hikaru was well aware. A Phoenix's bloodline wasn't for show. Even if his head was cut off or his body shattered, he could recover—his healing factor surpassed even that of ghouls. At least with ghouls, you could destroy their kagune organ to halt their regeneration, but a pure-blood devil of the Phoenix family had passive healing. Unless you sealed their magic entirely, they could recover from virtually any injury.
Seeing everyone's grim faces, however, Hikaru's mind wandered for a second:
If that's how it works, then wouldn't a female Phoenix devil's first time "heal" instantly too…?
But he only gave a curt, audible reply:
"Understood."
Saying no more, he fell silent. The group realized there wasn't much else they could do anyway. Even if the match looked unfavorable for him, they had no choice but to trust him.
"The match venue is a temporary dimension using Kuoh Academy itself as the battlefield,"
Rias explained.
"Knowing the terrain is probably our only advantage."
She led them to the Occult Research Club room.
As Hikaru stepped onto the transportation circle, Rias seemed about to speak, but then held her tongue.
Quietly, Sona said:
"Rias, at this point, relying on Hikaru is your only choice. There are many spectators from the Underworld today—besides both the Gremory and Phoenix families, Lord Lucifer and my sister are also in the audience. If you act stubborn now, no one can help you."
Sona herself had once faced the threat of an arranged marriage, but by winning a crucial Rating Game, she gained autonomy.
"I know… I just feel terrible that I can't help Hikaru in this fight."
Rias heaved a heavy sigh.
…
Meanwhile…
Riser Phoenix and his group were already on the battlefield.
Though the sudden appearance of Hikaru had surprised Riser, the orders from Maou and his own family left him no choice but to comply.
Still, Riser was not the complete buffoon he appeared to be on the surface. Before the match, he made sure to investigate everything he could about "Hikaru." The findings showed that while he wasn't an ordinary human, all they really knew was that:
He roamed Kuoh Town exorcising stray devils and ghouls, or ridding the area of troublemakers.
He'd recently taken out a ghoul group named "Aogiri Tree," as well as some low-level Fallen Angels.
That was all they could find on him, and Riser felt scornful after reading it.
Ghouls? Flesh-eaters… basically no better than dogs. Even if they formed organizations, they were still just "wild mutt packs" to him. As for Fallen Angels, that was laughable—he could burn a group of minor Fallen Angels with a single spit.
"When the time comes, the two of you teach him a lesson and bring him before me. I'll show him that not everyone qualifies to challenge a high-class devil."
With the Underworld's two Maou and both families' elders watching, Riser not only planned to put on a spectacular match but also to showcase his power.
~~~
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