Rias couldn't help but wonder, sitting in the sitting room after the game had ended, if maybe she should have listened to Issei - or rather Aatrox. He had claimed that when it came time to fight, they might just see the monstrous side of him that he'd otherwise restrained.
Honestly, she hadn't believed him. After all, it was just a rating game, what kind of terrible evil could he possibly reveal?
It turned out, when fighting a regenerator, quite a bit.
True, it was barbaric. Savage. Insane. Bloody. Something done by somebody who wasn't quite all there in the head, who could even contemplate doing such a thing to a fellow thinking and feeling being.
But despite all that, the fact that Rias should be terrified of her ally, her once friend and kohai, she wasn't.
Instead, all she felt was joy, and a sense of gratification. Did that make her a terrible person as well?
Maybe. But regardless of that, she didn't have to marry that stupid pig of a Phenex. When her strength had failed her, the heat and flames proving too much, Aatrox had stepped in.
Aatrox had used his might for her. To help save her from a lifetime of sorrow and abuse, more than likely.
Undoubtedly he would face some serious flack from his actions in the rating game, but Rias knew she would do her utmost to keep him safe. Tit for tat, she believed the saying went.
One lifetime of freedom granted, and the least she could do is be an ardent defender in his corner. With her staunch support, even her brother would have to think twice before caving to the wishes of the nobility.
Rias's peerage and her were all stuck inside a room, sat on the various chairs that were made available, and were more than likely being talked about in just a couple rooms over. If they didn't even bother to ask them for their thoughts or views on what happened, since they were right there, she was going to raise a stink large enough to cover the entire Underworld if she had to.
While devil's were supposed to get their fair trial, in an emulation of human law systems, they also had the Pillar Clans. Those operated more similarly to the aristocratic nobility of olden times - which was to say they did what they wanted, and frequently got away with it so long as it wasn't widely publicized.
Rias would not allow something like that to happen here - both for fear of letting down her savior, and fear of what Aatrox would do to his attackers if they tried.
It wasn't like she'd ever seen him go properly all out - he'd never had a reason to. The only thing she had to base his true power level on was the feelings she got when he slipped up on his control.
While similar to the sensation of her brother, keeper of the title and name Lucifer, when he wasn't holding back, it was also different.
She imagined it as two different scenarios. One was like being trapped with a large predator nearby - her senses tingled a warning, and her hair stood on edge. Their mere presence was enough to set off the warning bells in the back of her head. That didn't mean they were unreasonable, and were capable of being understood, regardless of the danger they posed.
The other was more like circling a black hole, and watching it slowly consume anything in its vicinity, even the light itself. Sure, she was safe because she wasn't going to be stupid enough to incite its wrath - IE dive into the event horizon and assume everything was going to be alright. That didn't make it any less ominous, however, as the feeling of something unknown, inexorable, and utterly untouchable being in any sort of proximity to her sent alien shivers up her spine.
Rias loved her brother very much, and was utterly confident in his strength. At the same time, she would never, ever want to pit him against… Whatever Aatrox was.
So, if it came down to it, she was ultimately prioritizing both the safety of all the other devil's, and keeping her honor intact.
The being in question sat across from her, his eyes closed, a tiny smile on his face, leaving him with an oddly peaceful look. That is, until one noticed the massive sword he was cradling in his lap. For some reason Rias had expected it to be covered in blood, but it remained spotless, looking like it was freshly cleaned.
How odd.
Rias flinched slightly when the door slammed open, allowing Sirzechs entrance into the room. His face was serious, as warranted by the situation they found themselves in.
His eyes crinkled slightly as he gave her a tight smile. "If you would, Rias, and Issei, please follow me." Although it came across as a request, she understood it to be nothing less than an order.
She nodded and observed as Issei, or what once was the boy, slowly rose, finding some way to strap the massive sword to his back. How, exactly, the thing remained attached without falling to the ground was beyond her. It probably weighed more than she did, and Rias couldn't imagine any sort of mundane method that could possibly hold it as snugly as it currently sat.
Disregarding the strange and seemingly impossible feat, they both began departing the room, following in the footsteps of the Maou.
Their journey was made in silence. It was oppressive, a weighty and physical thing pushing down on them. Rias could honestly say she had no clue what was about to happen. A solid mix of happiness and fear bubbled inside her, swirling in ways that made her stomach tighten and clench.
She didn't have much time to contemplate the future as they swiftly reached their destination. Her brother opened the door, allowing them sight into the meeting place. It was exactly what she expected it to be - a lavish sitting room with a proper table, a massive circular thing, laid out in the middle of the room with plenty of space to seat everybody.
Circling said table was none other than Serafall, no doubt here because it gave her an excuse to see Sona, though her serious face spoke towards her now more focused mood. Lord Phenex, the father of Riser, was also there. Ajuka Beelzebub, yet another Satan, was also in attendance, likely at the behest of Sirzechs.
They were always closer than the rest, though they were all good friends.
Sirzechs gestured towards the table. "Please, have a seat." There were two chairs, already partially pulled out, clearly demarking the specific places he meant.
Rias gently sat down, though Aatrox had to detach his sword and casually lean it against the table to actually sit. It spoke to the sheer weight of the behemoth-sized blade that the table groaned under its bulk.
The three Satan's in attendance at worst looked amused, or passive. Ajuka didn't seem to care what was going on, Sirzechs was undoubtedly happy that she was out of the marriage but couldn't show that in front of Lord Phenex or the others since he had to maintain his neutrality, and Serafall was likely pleased but since it didn't impact her 'So-tan' she wasn't worried either way.
Lord Phenex on the other hand, looked a bit peeved, to say the least. He was very similar in appearance to Riser himself, since he looked not a day over 25 at the oldest, which made it easy for Rias to hate him as well, even if he hadn't said a single word yet. She was swiftly proven correct in her feelings when he did open his mouth.
"Young Rias… I understand your apparent distaste for my son, but what you've done has gone too far. This was a rating game, for Satan's sake, not a bloody brawl in the pits of Tartarus! What were you thinking, unleashing that… thing, upon my son? Did you truly think that going to any length would be worth it?"
Fighting back the sudden fury that rose like an unstoppable hurricane at the insinuation that she only had a mere 'distaste' for Riser. She took a steadying breath before she let the vitriol leak out.
"Lord Phenex, while I do apologize for the manner in which our victory was secured, I cannot say it was wrong. While I was personally unaware of what was going to happen, now that I've had a chance to reflect I do not see a way in which we would have won otherwise. For that reason, and the opportunity to retain my freedom as well as that of my peerage, I am grateful to Issei. Nothing you say will be able to change my mind on that fact."
A slight red tinge spreading to his cheeks was the only reaction Rias was able to see on Lord Phenex's face as he listened to her statement.
"I see. You think the brutal dismemberment and torture of my son was worth your victory? Are you really such a cruel person? I thought better of the Lucifer's little sister."
Trying to bring her brother into this? Did he honestly believe this would be something that could slander his good name? What a fool.
"Lord Phenex, your son's peerage was utterly decimated by mine. The sole reason he would have won was because of happenstance - that he was by chance, born a Phenex. Not his skill, not his wit, not even his courage. Pure luck, to be born to a family that can regenerate from near anything." Rias scoffed.
"Maybe if he wasn't such a scumbag who was clearly waiting for the day he could fuck me without facing the repercussions of one of the Maous, I wouldn't have been pleased with the results of the match either. But as it stands, the results of the match wound up being everything I hoped it would, and more."
She wasn't one to delight in others suffering, but in this particular instance, she was quite happy to watch the pain and agony on his face as he realized the exact position he was in. One of utter helplessness.
A dark look crossed his face as she discussed the man's son. "Watch your tongue, girl. Don't slander my boy's good name just because you decided to throw a fit about something your elders decided was best for you."
Rias's comeback was swift. "And I would appreciate it if you checked yourself before knowing all the facts. Riser has admitted exactly what I said in front of Grayfia. If you have doubts you are welcome to call her. I doubt you'd want to hear the rest of what she has to report of your son's mannerisms, but prove me wrong, Lord Phenex. I'm waiting."
Lord Phenex looked practically constipated with unadulterated fury at being stopped cold at every turn. He likely knew exactly what his son was up to regularly, but had to defend his family's honor after such a brutal takedown. It only made sense, but Rias would make sure he wouldn't win this battle.
The look passed, and instead he let out a sigh, something that had her quite alarmed since it wasn't a sigh of defeat, but the sigh of exasperation as someone deals with somebody particularly slow and dimwitted who hasn't realized they lost.
"I'm afraid this changes nothing, my dear. You clearly can't control your peerage, and the fact remains although we were looking forward to joining the Gremory and Phenex lines, I also discussed the matter with your parents some months ago and we all agreed you need a… firm hand, to guide you going into the future. To make sure you reach your maximum potential and succeed in our society once you enter its ranks as a proper noble." He shook his head slowly.
"I'm afraid the rating game option, while written into our laws, doesn't guarantee a reversal of the contract. It was intended to show the family who negotiated the contract to begin with that the daughter to be wedded was strong enough and independent enough to stand on their own two feet, and could bring honor and glory to their family name without being wedded off. While you have shown promise, I'm afraid this rating game also revealed a number of flaws that indicate you will need guidance. To say nothing of the punishments we shall have to meet out on your pawn for committing such a travesty!"
Rias nearly jumped out of her chair and screamed before swiftly reigning in her emotions. A swift glance to her brother told her he couldn't interfere, though he looked none too happy. She was still gathering a retort when Issei's, or rather Aatrox's, voice emerged from her side.
"Say, Lord Phenex, how would you have defeated Riser in my stead?"
All he got back was a dumbfounded look. "Because, in my experience, this whole thing was rigged from the start. You tell her, without the added stipulation that it's not guaranteed, by the way, that this rating game is her one chance to be free from someone she clearly doesn't want to marry because the guys a shithead."
The patriarch of the Phenex clan looked like he was about to respond but Aatrox cut him off again. "So assuming this was her one and only shot to be free and live a happy life where she could make decisions on her own, she went all in. She trained hard, and pushed the limits of what her peerage could do. Riser's peerage is defeated handily, until he is the only one remaining."
A confused look said Riser's father wasn't sure where Aatrox was going.
"So I offered him the chance to surrender, without being forced. He declined. I cut him in half and offered again. He declined once more. As a matter of fact, he was so prideful, he would rather have his head cut off than lose. For what reasons he had to stick so fiercely to his pride, I can't say. But the point is, Rias stepped up, showed up, and proved her determination and worth."
Rias turned and saw a sneer crossing Issei's features, something that looked positively foreign on the once cheerful boy's face.
"So for you to claim that Rias is the one who needs to have a strong guiding hand… Well, I don't mean to laugh, but it's pretty clear Riser is the one who needs a strong guiding hand, and based off how we got here… It seems you lack that. Regardless of your parental skills however, your dogged determination to drive this marriage home seems to me like it is clearly swayed by politics, rather than 'wishing what is best' for the kids. I mean, if y'all are that desperate to join some family lines or whatever the hell just say it, don't act like it's Rias's fault Riser probably can't wipe his own ass without help."
Silence fell over the room as everybody stared with varying degrees of surprise, shock, or interest at the suddenly verbose body-snatched teen.
"Oh, and I owe Rias a favor, and technically I will be in remit if I allow her to be forcibly married to that dunce. So if you decide to push this on through regardless and since I know nothing about your legal system, killing your son will be the simplest way to guarantee her freedom. And don't think I can't, won't, or will be stopped by anybody in this room if that is what needs to be done."
This time Lord Phenex let out a laugh, full of derision.
"Boy, I know you think you're all that since you've been reincarnated, but you've merely shown your immunity to fire. Maybe I couldn't hurt you as well as the others, but if you think the Maou's would allow a political incident of that scale, or even a threat of a political incident of that scale to pass by, you're deeply mistaken. We've been around for centuries, boy."
It seemed the interest of the Maou's had been peaked, if only because of the absolute surety in Aatrox's voice. Each Satan, regardless of which one, had a presence. Rias had become accustomed to the oppressive aura of power they released due to her frequent exposure to her brother, but Aatrox had his own sense of danger, and in many ways it was far more terrifying.
His voice broke her out of her reverie. "Let me see if I got this right then, Lord Phenex. You use fire." Aatrox raised a finger and pointed it at Sirzechs. "You use a vastly stronger version of Rias' power." The finger shifted to Serafall. "You use ice. And water, if needs must, I believe." Once more his finger moved. "And you, something to do with affecting power and just being a master magician in general."
He received a general consensus and nods. They seemed curious as to what he had to say. Aatrox's finger moved back to Lord Phenex and spoke damning words.
"Too weak to hope to affect me."
To Sirzechs. "Your power is cute, but there are far, far stronger versions of your power, or equivalents, in existence. Too weak."
To Serafall. "Magically reinforced ice is cute, but even less likely to work than fire. Physical impacts might be able to do something, but incredibly unlikely to do much."
To Ajuka. "From what I've seen of the highest caliber magicians on this planet, I'll assume you're at least 100 times more powerful than the strongest one I've researched. It's not enough, I'm afraid."
He glanced down at himself. "Hmm…. In this form, all 4 of you might pose a challenge. Maybe. It's hard to tell, this is all so new to me." Having a body, he meant. Aatrox, when he discussed himself, had mentioned that Issei and his draconic Sacred Gear, were the first humans strong enough to support him. Rias could extrapolate what that meant, and didn't want to think particularly hard about it.
Sirzechs was the first one to break the silence, and it seemed he simply decided to ignore the insane (not as much as he thinks) assumptions of her pawn. "Rias-chan, was there something you wanted to tell me about your newest family member? I don't recall you mentioning him being quite this scary!"
The slight smile told her he was mostly joking, though he was likely trying to figure out the discrepancy between what she'd told him, and what he was now seeing. She'd reported to her brother in a fit of excitement when Issei had originally joined her peerage - the possibility of winning the probable rating game against Riser at the time had been rather slim. The potential power he carried would be one of the few chances Rias had to secure her freedom.
In the end, he had, just not in the way she originally anticipated.
"Eheheh, you know how it is, he is quite fierce and protective of me! I wouldn't worry about him too much, except he's not lying about the whole 'Killing Riser' thing, so we really should just let this go so we can avoid a whole lot of political issues... The game was won, fair and square, after all. Issei was perfectly in control the entire time. He simply had no other choice to force out a surrender"
It was far too much to hope that Aatrox threatening most of the strongest devil's in existence would go over well, but maybe it would turn out?
Her brother rubbed his eyes before turning back to the rest of the table. "Honestly, I can't really make a decision as an impartial judge, but this whole situation is just headache-inducing. You guys know I would vote for what Rias-chan wants to do, and from the perspective of my position I'd rather not deal with the fallout of this whole thing. Trying to explain to people why she won the rating game - handily, I might add - and is still being forced to marry who most people know to be a playboy, would paint a negative picture."
Lord Phenex was about to defend his son, undoubtedly, before Serafall spoke for the first time.
"Oh, don't bother trying to say otherwise. We ALL know how your son is, and the rest of our kind likely knows that even better. He has hardly tried to hide it. I'm in agreement, this is the kind of thing that has the potential to grow out of hand quite easily, and could be avoided by simply bowing to Rias's wishes. Her parents aren't here because they trust Sirzechs to handle these matters, and I have no doubt they too would rule in Rias's favor in this scenario. Rias's peerage is clearly more powerful and better trained than Riser's, the argument that she needs a guiding hand is grievously incorrect, and that mandate was put in place specifically for the woman's side of the arrangement. Ajuka?"
The green haired devil sighed and simply said, "Let the girl do what she wants. Riser can find his fun elsewhere." There was a brief pause, as the rest of the room waited for him to say more.
He did not.
Lord Phenex's face turned a color akin to the flames of the legendary bird they were named after. "This is outrageous! Riser was mauled in one of the most brutal fashions I've seen in hundreds of years and he gets to walk away scott free?"
It was that moment, when the patriarch revealed the truth of his intentions, that Rias grew truly furious. "It is by my decision that my pawn shall be punished or not, Lord Phenex. It is not your place to decide such things, and even if somebody else was to make that decision, it should be an impartial judge, who isn't tainted by his emotions."
Serafall perked up for some unknown reason, and Rias didn't particularly care to guess. "Well, Rias if you decide he needs to do some drudge work to make him regret his actions I could always use an extra set of hands, and a cute face, on my show!"
Rias simultaneously shivered, and witnessed Aatrox himself shiver ever so slightly at the thought of him appearing on Magical Girl Milky Way Spiral Seven. Even though Aatrox likely had no knowledge of what she meant in particular, his danger-sense seemed to be screaming at him that the particular path being shown led to extreme humiliation.
"I'll think it over, Serafall-sama. I appreciate your offer of assistance." And that was all she cared to say on the matter.
Sirzechs butted back in, clearly trying to end the conversation that no longer was headed in any particularly constructive direction. "Very well then. Lord Phenex, I apologize but we are in agreement that forcing the marriage through is simply not feasible, and it is correct that the punishment of Rias's pawn is in her hands."
He let out a sigh. "With that said, I propose we close this meeting, and let Rias get back to her peerage, though I would like to speak with Issei alone, if you would."
Seeing no way to dodge the request, Rias acquiesced. "Of course. Issei, if you would."
Aatrox gave a slight incline of his head, and remained seated as she stood to leave. Before departing she gave a slight curtsy. "Thank you for your time."
The door closed behind her with an odd sense of finality, and she could only hope things turned out alright for her wayward pawn, or the Satan's and her brother if they antagonized him too much.