After all, the reason Rias had not ended up marrying Riser was due in part to the Red Dragon Emperor, and in part to her older brother, Sirzechs.
Without his tacit approval, the Red Dragon Emperor would never have been able to storm the wedding venue and snatch the bride in front of so many guests.
In fact, during that battle, the original protagonist had even lost to Riser at first, only managing to win by relying on enhanced holy water in the end. Under normal wedding circumstances, he would have been thrown out long before that.
"The truth is, Rias is bound by an engagement," Akeno sighed. "Recently, her fiancé, at least in name, has been coming here repeatedly, urging her to return to the Underworld and complete the marriage."
At this point, Akeno let out another soft sigh. Clearly, this was a matter far beyond her ability to interfere in.
As soon as she brought it up, several curious women immediately gathered around. Even the three Fallen Angels, who had been washing dishes in the kitchen, stopped what they were doing and peeked out.
Gossip, it seemed, transcended race.
"Go on," Rod said. Although he already knew the details, he had to satisfy Lavinia and the others' curiosity.
Not treating Rod as an outsider, Akeno explained the entire situation surrounding Rias.
After hearing the story, the women were all surprised.
Who would have thought that even the Underworld practiced arranged marriages?
Wasn't it supposed to be a place filled with rebellious beings who longed for freedom? Yet this sounded exactly like the kind of family drama shown in evening soap operas, elders demanding marriage, the daughter refusing in anger, and eventually some dramatic hero descending from the sky to rescue her.
The details matched Rod's memories almost perfectly.
"If she doesn't want to marry him, then she shouldn't," Asia said, crossing her arms indignantly. "If you have to spend your life with someone you don't like, it would be very painful and unhappy. Marriage should be with someone you love!"
As she spoke, she secretly glanced at Rod, her fair cheeks faintly flushing.
"Then why not just refuse?" Lavinia asked, puzzled.
"It's not that simple," Akeno replied, shaking her head. "The higher-ups insist that pure-blood devil lineages must continue, which is why the marriage alliance exists. This isn't merely a wedding, it concerns political interests and the future of the Underworld itself. When something is framed as a matter of such importance, personal wishes rarely have any influence."
She sighed deeply, then looked toward Rod.
"Mr. Rod, do you have any ideas?"
Previously, Rod had told them that they could come to him if they had problems. Rias herself had not taken that seriously, but Akeno trusted Rod as her cousin's close friend.
[Akeno Himejima has issued a new quest.]
[Quest: Arranged Marriage of the Underworld]
[Objective: Prevent the marriage alliance between the Gremory and Phenexfamilies]
[Reward: +50 Affinity with Rias, Akeno, Yuuto Kiba, and Koneko; Random Reward ×1]
The newly displayed quest did not surprise Rod. After all, this was essentially one of the main storylines of High School DxD.
However, in Rod's opinion, this mission was somewhat troublesome. Rias's marriage was an internal matter between two noble families; as an outsider, he could not intervene directly.
In the original story, the engagement had been resolved through a Rating Game between Rias and that "turkey." But as a human, Rod could not participate in games organized between devils, this was not the late-stage world setting where every faction could compete freely. With the three major factions still lacking full diplomatic cooperation, interaction between groups remained highly restricted.
After thinking for a moment, Rod said, "That's simple. I can just go kill Riser."
"Riser is very powerful," Akeno replied, shaking her head. "He's a pure-blood High-Class Devil from the Phenex family, and their most terrifying trait is their immortality."
"I've heard of the Phenex family before," Lavinia added, frowning slightly. "They may not be among the very top of the Seventy-Two Pillars, but it's said they can resurrect even after being reduced to ashes."
"Exactly," Akeno said. "That's why Rias has been reluctant to resolve the issue through a Rating Game. She knows she cannot defeat Riser. That kind of immortality is simply too overwhelming. Moreover, Riser's peerage is already complete, while Rias currently has only me, Koneko, and Yuuto. No matter how hard we try, we simply can't win."
Her expression turned bitter as she spoke. At this point, she already knew that even telling Rod might not change anything.
Hearing this, Rod silently thought: Even without immortality, Rias would still struggle to defeat that turkey.
The problem was simple, Rias had developed her Power of Destruction far too little. Her mother had once been the famed "Lady of Ruin," and Sirzechs, who inherited the same power, had become the current Lucifer. That alone demonstrated the immense potential of the ability.
Yet in the anime, Rias could only handle weaker opponents and often found herself struggling against anyone slightly stronger.
"It's fine," Rod said with a smile. "I can deal with Riser. As long as we lure him to Kuoh Town, I have a way to eliminate him without anyone finding out."
As for being discovered, he could simply wear his glasses. Even Lavinia wouldn't recognize him then. Combined with Hyper Acceleration, that "turkey" wouldn't even know how he died.
"…Is there any other method?" Akeno asked hesitantly. Though she disliked Riser and would gladly see him gone, she also knew he was the third son of the Phenex family. If he died, Rias would inevitably bear responsibility.
"Even though Rias hates Riser, she would never agree to that approach."
"Alright," Rod sighed. It was the same situation as before, there were more efficient solutions, yet they were rejected for various reasons. Still, since he was kind-hearted, he respected the client's wishes.
"In that case, there's another way: challenge that turkey to a Rating Game and defeat him head-on."
"But I just said, Rias's strength is inferior to Riser's…" Akeno began.
Rod interrupted her. "It's not that Rias is weaker than Riser. It's that all of you are weaker than him. And the most important reason is that none of you have seriously tried to train yourselves."
"If you haven't even trained for a single full day, how can you claim that you've done your best?"
Though they were the protagonist's team, they had suffered a crushing defeat when facing opponents like Riser and his peerage. The main reason wasn't that they were inherently too weak, it was simply that they had already given up, putting in minimal effort.
Well, except for Yuuto Kiba. He was one of the few who had genuinely fought with the intention of winning. Unfortunately, talent alone couldn't close the gap no matter how hard he worked.
Aside from him and the Red Dragon Emperor, however, Akeno, Koneko, even Rias herself, had never truly fought with the determination to win.
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