The sky shimmered above the replica Kuoh Academy as two figures faced each other in mid-air, their wings spread wide.
Riser Phenex hovered opposite Yuuto, his flaming wings casting shadows across the rooftop below. Despite the momentary shock, his arrogant smirk had returned in full force. Flames wreathed behind his back, orange and red flames that promised immolation to anyone foolish enough to challenge him.
"Ultimate Class Devil?" Riser laughed, though a tremor remained beneath his bravado. "Ridiculous. You are just a reincarnated Devil, a former human playing at demonic power with a cheap facade. Do you really think you can match a pure-blooded Phenex? Do you think you can match Riser?!"
Yuuto didn't respond. He simply raised Lostvayne, the blade blazing with embers of purple flames from the depths of the otherworldly demon realm. Riser gritted his teeth when he realized the Knight was staring at him as if he was nothing more than a minor inconvenience.
"Let Riser show you the difference between us!" Riser roared, thrusting both hands forward. "Let Riser show you what real power looks like!"
"Phoenix Hell Fire!"
A massive torrent of flames erupted from his palms, spiraling through the air in a devastating burst that would have incinerated anything in its path. The heat was so intense that the air itself seemed to combust under the Hellfire of the immortal Phenex.
Yuuto swung Lostvayne in a single, fluid motion as he simply muttered.
*[ Hellblaze ]*
Purple flames exploded from his blade, forming a sea of fire that met Riser's Hell Fire head-on. The two infernos collided in mid-air with a deafening roar. For a moment, it seemed like they would engulf each other with consuming everything around them.
Then Yuuto's Hellblaze blazed violently as they began to burn hotter.
The purple flames consumed the Phenex's fire like Itachi's black flames devouring the ordinary flames of his dear brother. The Hellblaze surged through Riser's Hell Fire.
Riser's eyes widened in disbelief as his flames were overpowered. He threw up a desperate barrier of fire, but the Hellblaze crashed through it like it wasn't even there, forcing him to dodge desperately to the side.
"Impossible! Riser's flames are the flames of a Phenex! They're the strongest fire in the Underworld!—"
"The strongest?"
Yuuto interrupted, his tone cold and dismissive. He lowered Lostvayne slightly, the purple flames still dancing along its edge, casting eerie shadows across his face.
"Your Phoenix flames are nothing compared to my Hellblaze" Yuuto smirked as he pointed his sword "If this is the best they can do, then there's no difference between your Hell Fire and the fire of a bonfire."
Riser's face contorted with rage, flames flickering around his clenched fists. "You... you DARE mock the Phenex clan?!"
"I see no greatness in it, other than burning down the wooden rooftop"
Yuuto gestured with Lostvayne toward the rooftop below, where Rias and Asia watched in stunned silence.
"You thought you could force yourself on Rias-buchou. You thought your flames and your immortality made you untouchable. You thought your family name gave you the right to take whatever you wanted." He pointed his sword directly at Riser, eyes cold as ice. "But now your flames are useless. So tell me, Riser Phenex—what are you going to do now?"
Riser's hands trembled. For the first time in his pampered, privileged life, he felt something close to genuine fear. The sensation intensified when Grayfia's voice resounded through the dimension.
*[ Queen of Riser Phenex has been Eliminated ]*
"You're nothing but a spoiled noble," Yuuto said, his voice cutting like a blade. "Acting strong because of heritage and powers you never earned. Without them, you're just a coward hiding behind the strength of your bloodline."
The words struck harder than any physical blow. Riser's carefully constructed image—the invincible Phoenix, the irresistible and invincible devil, began to crack and crumble.
Riser's face twisted into a snarl. Flames exploded around his body with renewed intensity, wild and furious.
"You countered Riser's flames? So what?!" He spread his arms wide, his voice rising to a near-scream. "Do you think it means you won?! Riser is a Phenex! Even if you can hurt Riser, even if you can burn Riser, RISER WILL JUST REGENERATE!"
His body erupted in a corona of fire, eyes blazing with manic confidence—the second stage of his blind arrogance.
"Don't underestimate the power of immortality, you fool! No matter how many times you cut Riser, burn Riser, or break Riser, Riser will just heal! That's what it means to be a Phoenix! That's what it means to be RISER PHENEX!" He laughed, the sound echoing across the battlefield. "You cannot win! You can NEVER overcome Riser's immortality! RISER IS INVINCIBLE!"
The declaration rang through the air, and for a moment, it almost seemed convincing, atleast to him. The Phenex clan's regeneration was legendary, after all. High-Class Devils had fallen before Phenex immortality simply because they couldn't sustain damage fast enough to overcome the healing.
But Yuuto just smiled.
It wasn't a warm smile. It wasn't reassuring. It was the smile of someone who held all the cards and was about to reveal them one by one.
"Immortality, huh?" Yuuto said, his voice almost contemplative. He shifted his grip on Lostvayne, and cyan-white mist began forming at his feet, spreading outward around him. "That's interesting."
Riser's confidence wavered slightly as a chill of unease crept up his spine.
"So," Yuuto continued, as if Riser hadn't spoken. The mist thickened, obscuring his lower body completely. "No matter what happens, you'll survive. You'll regenerate." He raised Lostvayne to eye level, and the purple Hellblaze flames intensified along its edge "But luckily, my flames don't give a damn about that."
"Lies!" Riser roared, trying to sound confident but failing to hide the uncertainty creeping into his voice. "Riser's immortality is absolute! Nothing can—"
Yuuto's smile widened, and his eyes glowed with an eerie light.
The mist exploded outward, filling the entire airspace between them in an instant. Riser found himself completely disoriented, unable to see anything beyond two meters in any direction. The cyan-white haze seemed to swallow all light, all sense of direction.
"What is this?!" Riser spun around desperately, flames flaring from his hands. "More of your cheap tricks, low-class scum?!"
[ Mist Breathing ]
Yuuto's voice echoed from everywhere and nowhere at once.
[ Second Form ]
Riser's eyes darted frantically, trying to locate the source. "Show yourself, coward! Face Riser like a—"
A shape materialized in the mist—just a silhouette at first, but moving impossibly fast.
[ Eight-Layered Mist ]
Yuuto appeared directly in front of Riser. Before the Phenex could even process what was happening, Lostvayne moved in a blur.
Slash.
The first strike came from the upper right, cutting across Riser's shoulder. The Hellblaze seared into the wound, and for the first time, Riser felt pain that didn't immediately fade.
Slash.
The second strike followed so quickly it seemed part of the first, cutting from the opposite angle across his chest.
Slash. Slash. Slash.
Three more strikes came in rapid succession, each one layered perfectly on top of the previous wounds. The speed was so incredible that Riser's legendary regeneration couldn't even begin to activate before the next slash landed.
Slash. Slash. Slash.
The sixth, seventh, and eighth slashes completed the technique. All eight strikes had been delivered in less than a second, each one perfectly positioned to compound the damage of the previous attack.
To any observer, it looked like a single strike. But the devastation was eight-fold.
Riser's eyes went wide with shock and horror. Blood exploded from multiple wounds across his torso, and for the first time in his entire existence, he felt what it was like to take damage faster than his immortality could heal it.
"GAAAAAHHH!"
He screamed, falling backward through the air. His wings flickered erratically as the pain overwhelmed his concentration. His regeneration tried to activate, desperate to close the wounds—but the Hellblaze had left its mark. The purple flames clung to the injuries like a curse, and the healing that should have been instantaneous, simply... didn't work.
Blood poured from Riser's wounds.
And it wasn't stopping.
Riser's body convulsed in agony. Blood splattered across the pristine surface as he rolled to a stop, his burgundy blazer torn and soaked crimson.
For the first time in his life, Riser Phenex was bleeding.
And it wasn't stopping.
"What... what is this?!" Riser clutched at his chest where the deepest wounds continued to pour blood, the purple Hellblaze flames still flickering in the gashes like cursed embers. "This is impossible! Riser is a Phenex! Riser's regeneration is absolute!"
He tried to focus his demonic power, tried to activate the legendary immortality that had defined his entire existence. The wounds should have closed instantly. His flesh should have knit back together in seconds.
Nothing happened.
The blood kept flowing.
"No, no, no!" Riser scrambled backward across the rooftop, his perfectly styled blond hair now matted with sweat and blood. "Riser doesn't bleed! Riser doesn't get hurt!"
Yuuto landed gracefully several meters away, Lostvayne still wreathed in those damnable purple flames. The mist dissipated around him, revealing cold eyes that looked at Riser like he was nothing more than trash.
"What's wrong?" Yuuto's voice was devoid of sympathy "Where's all that confidence from before? Where's that arrogant smirk?"
"Shut up!" Riser's hands trembled as they reached into his jacket pocket, fumbling desperately.
His fingers closed around a small crystal vial, and he yanked it out with such force he nearly dropped it. The golden liquid inside glowed with ethereal light—Phoenix Tears, the most potent healing potion in all the Underworld. His family's greatest treasure, worth more than most devils would earn in a lifetime.
"Phoenix Tears!" Riser held up the vial, and for a moment, his signature arrogance tried to resurface "You see this, low-class trash?! This is the power of the Phenex family! Riser is going to heal from everything you did, and then Riser is going to burn you into ash!"
With shaking hands, he uncorked the vial and poured the entire contents over his wounds. The liquid splashed across his torn flesh, and immediately, the bleeding stopped. The familiar warmth of Phoenix Clan's healing energy spread through his body.
Riser laughed—high-pitched, almost manic "See?! You can't defeat Riser! Riser is immortal! Riser is—"
He looked down at his chest.
The laughter died in his throat.
The bleeding had stopped, yes. But the wounds... the wounds were still there. Ugly scar tissue had formed across his chest and shoulder—dark, twisted marks that stood out starkly against his previously flawless skin. The deep gashes were sealed, but they remained as permanent scars, marring his perfect body.
"What..." Riser's voice came out as a strangled whisper. He touched the scars with trembling fingers, his face going pale. "What is this? Phoenix Tears heal everything. They're supposed to heal everything!!!"
He looked at the empty vial in his hand, then back at the scars.
"No... no, no, NO!" His voice was laced in despair "These should be gone! Riser's body is supposed to be perfect! Riser is beautiful! Riser is—"
He touched his cheek where another smaller scar had formed, and something inside him broke.
"SCARS?!" Riser's eyes went wide with horror and disbelief. "You... you gave Riser SCARS?!"
His breathing became rapid and shallow, his chest heaving as panic set in. Every devil noble knew that Phoenix Tears could heal any wound. They were absolute. They were perfect.
But against Hellblaze, they were.
Useless.
"Riser's face..." He ran his fingers along the scar on his cheek, his entire body shaking. "Riser's perfect body... You RUINED it! Do you have any idea what you've done?!"
Yuuto watched impassively as Riser's mental state deteriorated. The pampered noble who had strutted into this Rating Game surrounded by beautiful women, confident in his victory, was now a broken mess clutching at permanent scars.
"Scars are the highest honor a warrior can get, and yet you cry about it" Yuuto said coldly but then he smirked as he mocked him "But I must say, Your regeneration is just as pathetic as your Hell Fire"
Riser's head snapped up, and his face twisted into something ugly—pure, unadulterated hatred mixed with humiliation and rage.
"Flames exploded around Riser's body, wild and uncontrolled "You low-class reincarnated TRASH! You DARED to ruin Riser's perfect body?!"
He staggered to his feet, wings flaring out behind him erratically.
"Do you know who Riser is?! RISER IS A PHENEX! The third son of House Phenex! Riser is supposed to be perfect! Handsome!!"
Spittle flew from his mouth as he screamed, his carefully maintained noble composure completely shattered.
"Riser will kill you! Riser will burn you alive! Riser will make you suffer for eternity for what you did to Riser's beautiful face! RISER WILL—"
Before Riser could finish his threat, Yuuto vanished in a blur.
CRACK!
The sound of impact echoed across the battlefield as Yuuto's fist connected with Riser's face like a cannonball. Riser's head snapped backward violently, blood and saliva spraying from his mouth.
The sheer force sent him hurtling through the air. He crashed through the roof of one building, smashed through two walls of another, his body carving a path of destruction through the replica academy like a meteor.
BOOM!
Riser finally slammed into the ground courtyard, cratering the concrete. Debris exploded outward from the impact. He lay in the center of the crater, stunned, blood pouring from his nose and mouth.
"Guh... ahh..." Riser tried to push himself up, but his arms wouldn't support his weight. His mind was fuzzy and in turmoil, from sheer force that he felt from the punch of Demonic Knight.
*THUD*
Yuuto landed in the crater beside him, his expression cold and merciless. He undoes the Assault Mode as the force behind a single punch, would eliminate Riser before he gets eliminated from Rating Game. But the base strength of Meliodas was far above the high class devil, which was more than enough for Yuuto to drill some humbleness in the arrogant Phenex.
Riser glared at him as he tried to get up, bleeding profusely "Riser will—"
Yuuto grabbed him by the collar and hauled him up effortlessly.
"Still talking about yourself in third person?" Yuuto's voice was dangerously quiet "Even now, you can't drop the arrogance. You can't admit what you really are."
WHAM!
A devastating punch to Riser's stomach drove all the air from his lungs. He doubled over, but Yuuto held him upright.
"Did you really thought you could force yourself on Rias-buchou..."
CRACK!
A punch to the ribs that made something crack.
"Using your family name, to make yourself untouchable..."
SMASH!
Another strike to the jaw that spun Riser's head.
"Having immortality meant you could do whatever you wanted..."
BOOM!
A knee landed to his solar plexus.
"Well, guess what?" Yuuto slammed Riser into the ground, then dragged him back up "To me, Your immortality means nothing. Your family name means nothing. And you..."
Yuuto stared into Riser's swollen, bloodied face.
"...are nothing."
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
Three rapid punches, each one faster and harder than the last. Riser's nose broke. His cheekbone fractured. Blood poured from split lips.
"This is what happens when you try to hurt what I care about"
Yuuto threw Riser against a pile of rubble. Before the Phenex heir could even think about recovering, Yuuto was there again.
WHAM!
"If you ever threaten"
CRASH!
"Rias Buchou"
SMASH!
"Or anyone in her peerage"
BOOM!
"I'll Kill You!"
Yuuto delivered punch after punch, each one was restrained and brutal. There was no wild rage in his movements—just cold, efficient violence. Every strike was aimed to hurt, to break, to punish.
Riser's face swelled beyond recognition. His once 'handsome' featured face became a mess of bruises, blood, and broken flesh. The scars from Hellblaze were still visible on his torso, permanent marks of his defeat.
"S-stop..." Riser managed to wheeze out. "Riser... Riser gives up... Riser—"
CRACK!
One final punch, delivered with everything Yuuto had. His fist connected squarely with Riser's face, and the impact created a shockwave that spread cracks through the concrete beneath them.
Riser's head snapped back. His eyes rolled up. His body went completely limp.
For a moment, there was only silence.
Yuuto stood over Riser's broken form, his fist still covered in blood. His breathing was steady, controlled. There was no satisfaction in his eyes—only cold certainty that justice had been served.
Riser's body began to shimmer as it began to turn into blue particles. His face was unrecognizable—swollen, bloodied, beaten beyond anything his vaunted regeneration could quickly fix. The Hellblaze scars marked his torso, permanent reminders that his immortality wasn't Invincible.
As the blue particles intensified, Riser's fading consciousness held one final coherent thought:
Riser... lost...?
The blue particles consumed him completely, and Riser Phenex vanished from the battlefield.
Silence.
Then Grayfia's voice rang out across the dimension, clear and authoritative:
*[ Riser Phenex has been Eliminated ]*
*[ The Victor is Team Gremory ]*
The announcement echoed throughout the battlefield.
Yuuto straightened slowly, looking down at his bloodied knuckles. He flexed his fingers once, twice, then let out a slow breath.
A small smirk crossed his face.
"Another one bites the dust"
The words were quiet, but they carried across the battlefield. On the rooftop, Rias stared up at him with wide eyes—awe, relief, and something deeper shining in her blue-green gaze.
Asia had her hands clasped over her mouth, tears streaming down her face. But they were tears of joy. Akeno smiled while standing next to Koneko, who took a bite of a cookie, nonchalantly.
Around them, the replica dimension began to shimmer and fade, as they were turned into blue particles as well, marking the end of the thrilling game, which would go down as one of the bloodiest and interesting Rating Games in the history of the Underworld.
The Rating Game was over.
Team Gremory had won.
. . .
For advance chapters, you can check on
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