Support my journey and unlock exclusive content! Join me on Patreon at patreon.com/xxSUPxx and be part of something special!
__________________________________________________________
The host's final word was a thunderclap, a signal that a monumental clash was about to begin. A palpable wave of power pulsed through the air as both sides prepared for battle, the tension between them a live wire ready to snap.
On one side, Diodora Astaroth's peerage of ex-saints moved in a synchronized, precise formation, their auras of holy power flaring to life. Diodora stood at their center, a cruel, triumphant smirk on his face. He believed he held all the cards—an entire team of holy-powered devils to counter Algernon's peerage.
But Algernon didn't move. A slow, knowing smirk touched his lips, not with the arrogance of a common fiend, but with the chilling confidence of a being who held a deck of aces. He muttered to himself, his voice so low only he could hear, "Let's get this solved quick and move to the main part."
Then, in a sudden, impossible blur, his very form seemed to fold into itself. He simply vanished from his spot on the battlefield, leaving no magic residue, no afterimage, nothing. The live broadcast captured a brief, vacant space where he had been standing. A gasp rippled through the commentators' booth.
A moment later, he reappeared, not on the ground, but suspended effortlessly in mid-air, a hundred feet above the field. It was a flawless use of space magic, but it wasn't his teleportation that sent a shiver of dread through every viewer.
It was what was behind him.
Unfurled to their full, magnificent span were six pairs of crimson-black wings. They were a stunning, terrifying sight, each feather like polished obsidian, streaked with veins of deep crimson. They were not the wings of a common devil, but the embodiment of a power that was all but a myth. A power that could only be found in a true Super Devil.
The broadcast was filled with a stunned silence. In the commentators' booth, the host's jaw hung open in shock, his voice failing him.
The sight of Algernon's six crimson-black wings was a shock that rippled through the Underworld, but it was only a prelude. With a slow, deliberate breath, he let go of every ounce of power he had been holding back. The aura burst from him, not as a wave, but as a silent, physical force that slammed into the dimension.
The barren, desolate ground began to glow with a deep crimson hue. The air itself thickened, turning into a suffocating pressure. The entire dimension, from the cracked earth to the starless void, became an extension of his will. The very light around them bent and twisted, painting everything in shades of a terrible, beautiful scarlet.
The effect on Diodora's peerage was instantaneous and absolute. Without a single word or spell, the pressure and gravity of Algernon's aura slammed into them.
Diodora's peerage , once so confident in their holy power, collapsed where they stood, their bodies unable to bear the weight of his overwhelming might. They lay unconscious on the ground, their forms inert and defeated before the battle had even truly begun.
Diodora Astaroth, with his borrowed power and his shattered arrogance, was not so lucky. The force of Algernon's aura drove him to his knees, the weight of a god pressing down on his back.
He grunted, straining against the invisible pressure, his muscles bulging and his face contorting in a mask of humiliation and helplessness. The ground was cold and unforgiving against his skin, and try as he might, he could not raise his head to meet Algernon's eyes.
Algernon descended slowly from the air, his six crimson-black wings a silent, terrifying testament to his power. He stood over the defeated Diodora, his face devoid of emotion.
"You speak of strength and fame," Algernon's voice was a low, cutting whisper that resonated with the force of his aura. "But you are nothing more than a child with broken personality and desires. You sought to humiliate me but now you lie broken and pathetic, a testament to your own foolishness."
Diodora grunted, trying to speak, but the weight of the pressure was too great.
"Don't worry," Algernon continued, a cruel smile touching his lips. "The whole Underworld is watching. They see the real Diodora Astaroth. Not the blessed, righteous heir, but a desperate and talentless boy who must cling to Astaroth house and pathetic schemes. Your reputation is ruined. Your life as a devil is over."
A final, desperate scream of pure, unadulterated fury tore from Diodora's throat, a sound that carried no force, no power. With a trembling, powerless hand, he reached into his jacket and crushed a small, crystalline item he had been carrying. It shattered into dust, and in an instant, the world behind him began to tear itself apart.
A single teleportation circle was not enough. The very space behind Diodora bloomed with a myriad of magical sigils and symbols, forming a gateway of staggering size.
From it emerged an entire army, a diverse and terrifying force composed of magicians, devils, fallen angels, and other powerful supernaturals. Leading this vanguard were four figures: Katerea Leviathan, Creuserey Asmodeus, Shalba Beelzebub, and, to Algernon's surprise, Euclid Lucifuge.
What was even more surprising was their strength was boosted by Ophis to super devil level, although they were weaker when Algernon sensed their aura, which was to be expected as their power was borrowed, and they didn't have any LAW which is essentially the core part of Super Devil's power. Still, they were enough to give Algernon a fight.
But they were not alone. From the other side of the battlefield, a second set of teleportation circles blazed to life. The air grew thick with a primordial, ancient power. With a series of earth-shaking roars, four legendary dragons erupted from the gates.
They were Aži Dahāka titled Diabolism Thousand Dragon, Grendel titled Crime Force Dragon, Ladon titled Insomniac Dragon, and the most powerful of them all, the fearsome Crom Cruach titled Crescent Circle Dragon.
The Rating Game had become a battlefield for a full-scale war.
But, the devils and supernatural beings who had just emerged from the teleportation circles came to a stunned halt, their expressions of triumphant fury replaced by disbelief. Whispers rippled through their ranks as they took in the sight of Algernon's six crimson-black wings. Their intelligence had only ever spoken of two Super Devils: Sirzechs and Ajuka. They were now staring at a third.
The army's leaders, however, held their ground. Katerea Leviathan, her eyes narrowed in suspicion, spoke first. "I don't know who you are, but this is a private matter. Stand aside, and we will finish our business here."
Algernon remained perfectly composed, a placid smile on his face as he stood over the kneeling Diodora. Behind him, however, Kuroka and Issei were a different story. They were both visibly sweating despite their own considerable power.
"Finish your business?" Algernon's voice was calm, yet it held the weight of a god. "You think you can just march in here and take over the whole show?" He looked at their confused faces.
He paused, before delivering the words. "And you all really thought I was alone?"
With that, Algernon's smile vanished, and his aura, which had already turned the dimension crimson, intensified tenfold. He didn't cast a spell or make a grand gesture. He simply exerted his own space law. The air in front of him tore itself apart, and with a terrible, echoing shriek, a massive crack ripped through the dimension itself.
From the gaping fissure, a countless, disciplined army of demons marched out, fully equipped and assembled in perfect formation. At the head of the colossal force were the four figures who held absolute power in the Underworld.
The arrival of the Four Great Satans was a spectacle that could part oceans. Their auras, immense and terrifying, settled over the dimension like a physical weight. Sirzechs Lucifer, Serafall Leviathan, Ajuka Beelzebub, and Falbium Asmodeus stood side by side, their expressions a mix of regal power and utter disbelief.
Their eyes swept over the battlefield, taking in the sight of the assembled Khaos Brigade and the legendary dragons, an army of a size they had not anticipated. But their greatest shock was reserved for Algernon. Lord Sirzechs's calm, measured expression faltered for the first time.
Lord Ajuka, who had been a key figure in the creation of the Rating Game system, spoke first, his voice tinged with incredulity. "The numbers… I did not foresee this. And Algernon… I only thought Sirzechs and I held the power of a Super Devil. This… this changes everything."
Algernon, still suspended in the crimson-bathed air, did not move.
"I can tell you now," Algernon said, his voice carrying an icy finality that resonated through the dimension. "The time for talk is over. The game has truly begun."
_____________________________________________
Meanwhile, when Algernon released his aura the live broadcast of the Rating Game suddenly flickered and went black. A collective gasp of confusion erupted from the audience. The host, a professional accustomed to every technicality, was left stammering into his microphone, unaware of the cause of the sudden blackout.
"We seem to be experiencing some… uh, technical difficulties," the host announced, his voice filled with a frantic confusion. "We will be right back with the ac—"
But his words were cut short. The black screen in front of him, and across the entire Underworld, suddenly flickered back to life, not with the image of the battlefield, but with a new figure emerging from within it.
From the glowing surface of the screen, the figure of Diehauser Belial stepped out. The crowd and the host alike were left in stunned silence as the great champion, the planned commentator, looked at them with an expression of calm authority. His presence filled the room, and the host, speechless, simply stared as Diehauser walked toward him.
The host, paralyzed by disbelief, stared at the figure of Diehauser Belial who now stood before him. The live broadcast, a medium meant to entertain, had become a platform for something far more significant.
Diehauser's gaze, cold and commanding, swept over the cameras and the millions of devils watching. His voice, a low rumble that carried the authority of a champion, broke the stunned silence.
"My sincerest apologies for the interruption," Diehauser began, his tone holding no warmth. "Now, i will be presenting an entertaining show to for you to see the rot that has festered at the very heart of the Underworld."
He paused, and from somewhere within his armor, he pulled a small, shimmering object. It was a hairclip. "For years," he continued, his voice rising with a controlled fury, "I have been driven by a desire for vengeance against the Old Devil Council. This council, once protectors of our great race, has become a cancer."
As he spoke, the hairclip glowed, projecting a series of magical holograms that appeared on the screen for all of the Underworld to see. "The Naberius Clan," Diehauser's voice was like a gavel striking down a verdict, "has been secretly profiting from the trade of sacred gears and powerful artifacts on the black market. The funds were used to buy slaved and kidnap children of different races even demon children to do human experiments." The screen showed financial ledgers, encrypted messages, and secret meeting locations.
A collective gasp rippled through the audience. Diehauser continued, his pace unwavering. "But that is not all. Their corruption runs deeper. The House of Vapula has been using its expertise in alchemy to create forbidden poisons, poisons used to orchestrate 'accidents' and assassinations of those who threatened their power." The images on the screen changed, showing vials of strange liquids and detailed plans for political murders.
"And finally," Diehauser said, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper, "the Council orchestrated the death of my cousin, Cleria Belial. They sought to hide the existence of King Pieces, created in the early days of the Rating Games' existence by Lord Beelzebub, they were judged too dangerous due to the potential for rogue Devils to abuse them, with their production stopped early on. A total of 9 King Pieces were created"
"Six of which were seized by the Old Devils' Council. Due to the Rating Games being tied together with politics and economics, the Old Devils sought to manipulate the Rating Games from behind the scenes in order to increase their own influence and generate more money"
"By fixing matches through bestowing King Pieces to certain Pure-blooded Devils from the 72 Pillars such as Roygun Belphegor and Bedeze Abaddon and using bribery to obtain the commercial rights for the popularity obtained by competing in Rating Games."
"The reason why the top-ranked Rating Game contestants did not have much change in rank was due to Old Devils, who were secretly controlling things in order to reap the benefits of the matches, as they managed the tug-of-war state so that there were perfectly adjusted to balance it out in order to generate a lot of money."
"And rumors about its existence spread across the Underworld. My cousin, Cleria Belial, who took an interest in the rumors, was able to confirm the King Piece's existence, as the Old Devils had her killed and covered it up, blaming her death on the fact that she had entered into a romantic relationship with the human exorcist."
"This is a total fabrication! A lie!" the host yelled, but his voice was drowned out by the rising chorus of outrage across the Underworld.
Diehauser's face was stone. The reputation of the Old Devil Council, which had once been a bastion of power and respect, was now reduced to dust. The Underworld and young demons grew up watching the rating game, believing it to be a fair and glorious way to gain fame, power and everything, only to find out it was a lie orchestrated by the very people they had trusted.
"The time for their control is over," Diehauser declared, his voice carrying the full weight. "Their power is gone, and their reign of terror is at an end and I have already personally sent them to this end"
He paused, On the broadcast, a chilling smile touched Diehauser's lips.
"And to you all," he said, his voice echoing across the Underworld, "I give you a formal declaration. As of this moment, I will be joining the Khaos Brigade."
The entire Underworld was plunged into chaos. Gasps of disbelief erupted everywhere.
But Diehauser, with no fanfare, no magical burst, he simply vanished from the screen, leaving behind only the echoing silence of his final, stunning declaration.