The Phenex Rises

Chapter 1

The blaring of an alarm clock filled a lusciously appointed room filled with the finest furniture imaginable. A masculine groan came from beneath a well-appointed quilt and was quickly followed by an arm. The arm flailed around for a bit before it finally found the source of its annoyance and pounced. Blessed silence filled the room for a few moments until it was broken by another male groan.

The thick down filled quilt was shoved off of the mans head revealing a head of golden blonde hair and a rather handsome face. Dark blue eyes blinked open as he looked around the room, seemingly in confusion for a moment. He muttered something to himself that sounded like 'need to stop drinking'.

His attention was drawn to his right where the thick quilt moved once more. He reached over and pulled it back to reveal a head of purple hair. Pulling the quilt up a bit to look underneath it he was treated to the sight of a gorgeous and completely naked woman snuggled up next to him. He recognized her and smiled softly to himself. Yubelluna, his Queen and the second in command of his peerage, because he was Riser Phenex, third son of the prestigious Phenex Clan a Devil clan with the rank of Marquis within the Underworld.

Yet, he could also remember another life where he watched an anime that showed a small portion of Riser Phenex's life. A Rating Game against his prospective future wife and then a Duel against her sex offender of a Pawn that left him as some sort of shut-in?

Fuck that.

The Rating Game had already happened, last night in fact. Today was the day of the wedding, his father, Lord Phenex, and her father, Lord Gremory, had decided to push the wedding forward in fear of Rias being able to force her way out of it after she gained the sex offender. Unfortunately for all of reality, the little pervert had been born with one of the twelve god-slaying weapons known as a Longinus Class Sacred Gear, the Boosted Gear.

It was an item created by the, now dead, G-o-d of the Bible and gifted to mankind as one of many items meant to help them combat the forces of the supernatural world on a more even footing. The one the sex offender had was supposed to be one of the twelve strongest in existence because it allowed its user to double their power every ten seconds up to whatever limit their body could handle. It sounds amazing, but that sex offender was so weak that it didn't matter.

Even after giving her a handicap in the form of ten days to focus on training her peerage, Rias had still lost to him. Granted, he'd had to be a bit of a heel at the end to get her to surrender. If he hadn't, she would have fought to the end and forced him to hurt her, something he definitely didn't want to do. Forcing her to surrender by threatening the newest, and weakest, member of her peerage, the sex offender, seemed like the best bet to get her to surrender on her own.

He was right of course, but now she loathed him even more. Not that he liked her all that much himself. He was just trying to do what his family wanted, what the head of his house required of him. He was being a good son and setting a good example for the other members of the nobility. Others of his generation, such as the shameful Sitri heiress, had fought tooth and nail to defy their parents. It was disgraceful.

Rias had treated him like trash from the moment they met and for the next ten years that followed. Was it any wonder he was done with her bullshit? Now the fight was over, Rias was supposed to submit to her fate and marry him, something he was NOT looking forward to. She wasn't the only one who wanted to marry for love. Still, he'd do it for his family, honor, and pride.

Except, that little fucking sex offender was going to crash the party, literally, and then have Sirzechs supporting him blatantly. Even going so far as to promise what wasn't his to the sex offender as a reward for winning their duel.

That bullshit wasn't going to fly today.

He smiled to himself as he ogled the naked sleeping Yubelluna for another minute before covering her once more. It was tempting to wake her up for a morning quickly, but she was very much not a morning person and was just as likely to explode his head as she was to play with his 'head'. Just thinking about her blowing up his head made him chuckle a little since it wasn't like she could actually hurt him. By that he meant his inherent regenerative ability would just negate any damage she dealt him.

His entire clan was renowned for their 'Immortality' which was, in reality, just a hyper fast hyper effective regenerative ability. They weren't actually immortal, just the closest thing to it compared to any other living thing. They could still be killed, but it took something special to pull it off. The most common way any Phenex was defeated or outright killed was through sheer superior power. It was why his older brother Ruval was only in the top ten of the Rating Game scene rather than number one.

Aside from pure power there were a few other things, such as Light and Holy magic that was effective against any devil. Though their regeneration did let them recover from wounds inflicted by Light or Holy magic significantly faster.

Speaking of Holy magic, it was because the sex offender borrowed that little nun's rosary that the sex offender had been able to even lay a finger on him to begin with, in the anime in his memories. He'd make sure the sex offender didn't have it this time and teach the little shit a proper lesson.

He shook off the thought and made his way to his massive closet to find something to wear. As he opened the door and looked at his clothing something new and unexpected happened.

[System Alert! New Quest!

Get Dressed

Welcome to your new life as Riser Phenex! Your two souls have been merged into a single new being! With that being the case, perhaps it's time for a change in how you dress?

Option 1: Pick something new! Don't dress like a douchebag.

Option 2: Wear the same old garbage. Dress like a douchebag.

Reward: Based on chosen Option.]

"Wut?"

No, seriously, he wanted to know what the hell was going on. He had a system? Since when? Well... okay probably only since he woke up and it clearly wasn't a super complex one if there had been no notices until just now.

What really bothered him though, was that he wasn't bothered about the reveal of having his souls merged into a new being. Now that he thought about it, it was exceptionally weird that he hadn't freaked out over the new memories in his head. Mostly because he didn't think of them as new! As far as he was concerned, they'd been there a long time and he was just more focused on them than he had been in the past.

Except.

That wasn't really how it was, was it? Until this morning he'd only been Riser Phenex the, somewhat lazy, definitely arrogant, third son of the Phenex clan. Now he was Riser Phenex combined with human from a completely different universe whose name was lost to him. He should have been freaking out and wondering if he'd lost his mind, not getting on with his day as if nothing had changed.

Yet, even though he knew he should be freaking out, maybe even having a mental breakdown and wondering about reality itself. Yet, he wasn't and didn't feel the need to. He was as he was and it wasn't a big deal.

Oh, right, he needed to make a choice for the quest he'd just gotten. And why was he just so accepting of that? Ugh, just thinking about not having a stronger reaction to these things was more annoying than a nice freak-out would be.

Whatever.

He moved into his closet and started digging through his clothing for something that fit the new him and wasn't going to make him look like a douchebag. Given the choices he'd made in his clothing purchases, this was going to take a bit of work.

Riser looked at himself in the mirror and couldn't keep the smug smirk off of his face, "Damn, I look good."

A feminine groan from behind him caused him to turn around in time to catch Yubelluna sitting up with the blanket bunched around her waist and her arms in the air as she stretched. It did wonderful things to her bare chest. She blinked a few times and looked around blearily until she spotted Riser standing by the mirror. Even after sleeping, her hair was still perfect which meant that the right side of her face was covered with her purple hair. Yet, it didn't stop him from seeing the look of surprise as her one visible eye widened noticeably. She stared at him for a moment before asking, "Riser-sama?"

His smirk grew a little as he addressed her, "Good morning Luna-chan."

She blushed lightly at the pet name he only used in private while her eyes roamed up and down taking in the entirety of his new look. It wasn't anything drastic, really. For his clothing he was wearing a suit jacket and pants in a nice blue color, a dark maroon-colored vest, and a black shirt with just the top button undone, rather than his usual three to four.

The most drastic change, which seemed to change his entire face, was the change to his hair. Gone was that weird upward swoop of hair and the bangs curving around his head that sort of made his hair look like a bird. Instead, all of his hair was straighter and shorter giving him a more masculine and mature look like a handsome male character out of any manhua. He adjusted the lapels of his jacket and then tugged at the end of his sleeves to make sure everything was falling on his body perfectly, "What do you think?"

Yubelluna's eye locked on his, "You look very different Riser-sama, but still very handsome."

Riser flashed her a smile filled with pearly white teeth. If he had to guess by the way she was subtly rubbing her thighs together, it was a look she very much approved of. If he didn't have a ton of things to deal with over the crappy marriage he was about to be stuck in, he'd have happily stripped down and gotten back in bed with his Queen.

Instead, he answered her, "Thank you Luna-chan. I felt like it was time for a change and it looks like I made the right choice."

That last part was more about what he was seeing from his new, weird, system. While hunting for a new outfit, he'd tried all of the usual commands one might expect of trigger some reaction from a gaming system. Such as menu, status, inventory, help, quests, and anything else he could think of that might present him with more information. Unfortunately, none of his attempted commands had provided any results. It left him with the conclusion that whatever system he had only provided him with quests. He even had to remember the quests himself since there was no option, that he'd found, to view what quests he had in progress. In short, he'd gotten a very restricted system that seemed to only be capable of giving him quests. Still, it was infinitely better than nothing and came with memories of another life. He had no right, or reason, to complain about any of that.

[System Notice! Quest Complete!

Get Dressed

You chose not to dress like a douchebag, even going so far as to change up your whole style, even your hair! Very impressive!

Reward: Flame Manipulation Mastery]

As soon as he finished reading it there was a shift within his mind, as if he was remembering something he'd always known. As a Phenex he'd been born with the powers of Fire and Wind. He'd grown up with control over fire and considered himself to be rather good with it.

He was so wrong.

With what was now in his head, he knew that he had previously been nothing more than a minor novice with hardly anything resembling skill. Remembering how he used to use his flames was now just plain embarrassing! How could he have possibly thought he was good with fire before? He grimaced and stopped comparing the him of now to the him of the past. They were completely different people now!

He blew a kiss toward Yubelluna, "I'm going to get some breakfast. Take your time getting ready for the day Luna-chan."

After leaving his room, and a now aroused and frustrated Yubelluna, he made his way through the halls of the massive mansion that made up his clan's primary residence. As he walked the halls, ignoring the looks he was getting from the maids and butlers doing their jobs, he conjured up some fire to play with. He'd never done much more than use it to attack and usually in large, flashy, wasteful ways. Now he was playing with the flames, molding them into various shapes and figures. He smirked a little when he turned his flames into an almost life-like representation of a Phoenix in flight.

His magic power hadn't grown a single iota, but he now felt like he could do five, maybe even ten times as much with what he had. However, that only applied to his fire magic. His wind magic was just as wasteful as it had been before. He would have to see if he could use his new insight into how to control his fire could be used to help increase his control over wind. He didn't even want to think about what it would require to make it work for his over-all magical abilities!

When he arrived at the dining room, he dismissed his fire and joined his parents for a quiet breakfast. They didn't talk at the table unless it was absolutely necessary. His new memories included living with a family that did the exact opposite and he found he preferred that. The dining room table seemed like the perfect place to talk and relax with family. He'd have to make sure he implemented that with his peerage at his private mansion.

Riser moved through the grounds of his family's palatial estate until he arrived at one of the training grounds. Aside from when Ruval would visit, they didn't get much use. His father was too busy with politics to participate in Rating Games, Ranval, his second brother, was too busy with his media empire, while Riser and Ravel had been too lazy and arrogant to see the need. Though, for Ravel, she also had the excuse of her age and being female. It wasn't expected for her to train heavily, nor was it considered proper by Phenex standards.

Riser now considered that to be bullshit. They should all train to get stronger at every given opportunity. He planned to train daily from this day forth. There were just too many scary ass threats out in the wild for him to feel safe. Especially when the only thing between everyone and certain doom was the sex offender. That just wasn't fuckin' good enough!

After removing his jacket and vest, he unbuttoned and loosened his shirt enough to move easily in. He didn't plan to do too much this morning, he had duties to see to in the evening, after all. It would make him an absolute jackass if he wore himself out and had no energy left for the duel he knew was coming that evening. He didn't plan to make it easy for Sirzechs to get his way, but he was certain that Sirzechs would get his way. You just didn't outright refuse the guy who could erase you and your entire family with the same amount of ease that Riser himself could snuff out a regular plain old human.

He looked around the training ground with a frown. It just... wasn't good enough. Not anymore. Before he woke up that morning physical effort was nearly beneath him. Now he wanted to find a gym and hit the iron like there was no tomorrow so he could abuse the hell out of his regeneration. It disgusted him that his family didn't abuse their ability to nearly instantly heal from anything that didn't outright kill them!

The sheer amount of muscle strength they could gain per day would be ridiculous. All those little muscle fiber tears would heal instantly. Lactic acid buildup? What's that? All of the negatives that everyone else would feel when working out had no effect on them. He could pump iron from sun up to sun down and all he would do is gain more strength.

Unfortunately, they didn't have a gym and a normal human gym wouldn't work since their equipment simply wouldn't be strong enough to hold the weights he would need. He was significantly stronger than a human and lifting a few hundred kilograms wouldn't be much of an issue. He would have to have a custom set made.

Maybe he should talk to Sairaorg Bael about that? Well, after giving the guy an apology. The last few times they'd met he'd treated Sairaorg like shit because he was a 'cripple' for not having Demonic Power, let alone the Power of Destruction the Bael clan was famous for. He had to apologize to the guy knowing how cool the dude was. He'd also make an excellent sparring partner allowing them to push each other to even greater heights. Hell, he'd even make an excellent punching bag for Sairaorg since the big lug couldn't actually kill him. Not without outside help anyway.

He put those thoughts aside and began to move through some basic forms his father had taught him a long time ago. The forms wouldn't do anything to build up his strength, but they would definitely warm and limber his muscles up. He barely broke a sweat by the time he finished them all but he did feel a lot more awake and comfortable.

With his body taken care of, he pulled on his magic and went through the basic exercises he'd been taught. They were far too easy now. He remembered how difficult they were not so long ago and couldn't help wondering why that was. He quickly shifted into new exercises that his fire mastery had implanted in his mind and the difficulty shot through the roof. Yet, he still performed them all flawlessly, as if he'd been performing the moves for decades.

By the time he finished, he was lightly sweating and feeling euphoric. The forms he'd practiced were hard on his body and consumed a good portion of his Demonic Power. He'd recover what he'd spent in a few hours so wasn't too worried about that. Rather, he was ecstatic because he realized that performing the highest tier of exercises would not only help build his body a bit but, more importantly, would help him build up his Demonic Power!

It wasn't a huge boost but, if his memories on it were right, it would never stop being effective! As long as he performed the katas on a daily basis he would grow just a little bit stronger every day. Combine that with the fact that devils naturally grew stronger as they aged and he had something that many devils would kill for.

Sadly, as exciting as it was, it wasn't enough. It would help, for sure, but given what he knew of the universe he was in, he would have to gain far more power far faster than the little daily bump he would get from this. He'd still do it daily though since Demonic Power was the end-all and be-all as far as devil politics went. After all, they were not a democracy, they were a society where might made right. They were ruled by the four most powerful of their kind, after all, no one in their right mind would have voted in that lazy-ass Falbium or that 'freaky' Serafall. Sirzechs might have gotten voted in, he was pretty popular, but no way his butt buddy Ajuka would have been voted in. In fact, he was pretty certain Ajuka actually hated being a leader and just wanted to spend all his time doing research.

So, yeah, Demonic Power was the only thing that mattered to most devils. It's why Sairaorg got so much shit and would continue to do so until he revealed that he was an Ultimate Class Devil with just his physical body alone. Which just reaffirmed to Riser that he needed to make good with the big guy and get some of those tips. He especially wanted to learn about Touki.

Thinking about it... Wouldn't the Phenex clan be the ultimate masters of Touki? It was all about using one's 'lifeforce' to make themselves stronger, faster, and more durable, right? Who better than a clan of individuals with 'infinite lifeforce' in the form of immortality?

He frowned at that. Given what he knew, didn't the Phenex clan members have the ultimate setup for becoming the most powerful physical fighters ever? They could work out non-stop getting constant gains from it. Once they were strong enough they could learn Touki and use it to make themselves even stronger. Satans below, the Phenex clan had really been wasting their potential for millennia. If his father had realized this a couple of centuries ago, he'd be able to body Sirzechs with just his body alone.

What a waste.

Riser looked at the outfit that had been selected for him and scoffed. There was no way in hell he was going to wear something that screamed 'douchebag' that loudly! Whoever thought he should wear a white outfit that showed off eighty percent of his chest while they were busy stuffing Rias into a wedding dress was out of their goddamn mind! A flick of his fingers saw the gaudy outfit reduced to ashes in an instant.

He'd liked what he wore earlier in the day and fully planned to continue down that path of clothing choice. This time he chose a darker navy blue that would look black in low light to wear with his vest and black shirt combo. After dressing, he addressed his hair once again to make sure it was perfect. Satisfied with his looks, he walked out of his room and made his way to the grand ballroom within his ancestral home.

[System Alert! New Quest!

Rude Guest

Everyone knows how this story goes. Issei 'comes to the rescue' and makes a fool out of Riser. Is that how it will go down this time?

Option 1: Let things happen as they did before. You'll lose the girl to a sex offender, but hey, who cares about her right?

Option 2: This shit is not kosher! Put the sex offender in his place using any method(s) you choose. No one steps on the dignity of the Phenex Clan!

Reward: Based on the chosen option. Chances for a better reward based on how things change or remain the same.]

As he got close to the room he decided to make a grand entrance. Flames whipped around him as he used them to teleport from outside of the room to the main dais. He smiled happily as he heard a few gasps of surprise. His smile grew as he heard a few more come from some women among the crowd as they got a better look at him. He opened his arms in a grand welcoming gesture while raising his voice just enough to be heard throughout the room without shouting, "Ladies, Gentlemen, renowned nobles of the underworld, on behalf of the house of Phenex allow me to thank you for coming."

"You have all been invited here to share in this wonderful moment as I am married to Rias Gremory, the next head of the distinguished House of Gremory." He gestured to the side where he knew Rias would be teleporting into the room, "Allow me to present my fiance, Rias Gremory!"

Rias appeared with a bright flash of red light wearing a very fetching white wedding gown. A split moment after she appeared, the main doors to the room were violently smashed open with a shout, "Buchou!"

Rias gasped when she spotted the perpetrator, "Issei?!"

Riser calmly looked across the room to see Issei standing in the doorway while the guards, men meant to defend his home from invaders, lay unconscious around him. He grit his teeth at the sight. He'd specifically told his guards to allow the little sex offender to pass unharmed. Either they disobeyed him, or the sex offender had come in swinging without regard. Either way, he found it very annoying.

Issei stepped further into the room while shouting at the top of his lungs, "I am Hyoudou Issei of the Kuoh Academy Occult Research Club! The Bushou's, Rias Gremory's, virginity belongs to me!"

Rias blushed as silence filled the room. Before that morning Riser would have been furious and shouted at the sex offender. However, it was a new dawn a new day, and a new life for him. Instead of yelling at the little shit, he calmly turned to face the blushing Rias, "Oh? Is this low-class reincarnated devil telling the truth? Are you his property? A thing with which he can do whatever he pleases?"

Any excitement or happiness Rias felt at the 'brave' showing from Issei was doused in cold water by those questions. Her blue eyes looked over the crowded room filled with nobles from almost every Pillar Family. Her blush instantly faded as she paled. If she agreed with Issei then her reputation would be forever destroyed. She would always be known as the King who gave herself to her Pawn and became his property. Worse, she would be a High-Class Pureblood Devil giving herself to a Low-Class Reincarnated Devil. She might not personally care about blood purity or status, but that didn't mean the rest of the Underworld didn't. She would forever be looked down on and treated as trash.

On top of that, she could still see the commotion Issei's statement had made. Almost every noble in the room looked offended on her behalf. Worse, she didn't love Issei. She liked him well enough and found his antics to be amusing. That was why she was willing to sleep with him in desperation to have control over at least that aspect of her life. Trying to sleep with Issei hadn't been about love or lust, but about sticking one to Riser. Everything she'd done over the last few years had been about getting away from Riser.

The deafening silence in the room as everyone stood by as if frozen and waiting for her reply, filled her with a feeling of dread. She knew what she was going to say would hurt Issei, but there was nothing else she could say without it destroying her life. Calmly, in a quiet voice, she answered Riser, "No, I am not his property. My virginity," just saying the words out loud made her blush in shame, "does not belong to him, but rather to whomever I choose to give it to."

She tried and failed to hide a little smug satisfaction at her little dig toward Riser. Publicly insinuating that it wouldn't be him taking it made her feel a little better about the situation. She could see the look of hurt on Issei's face but made no further comment. She was in a precarious position and couldn't afford the damage that would be done to her public image if she made the wrong step. It annoyed her to no end and she hated it, but it was just how the world worked.

Riser turned to look at the wilted sex offender and offered him a conciliatory smile, "Well, you heard the lady. But, let it not be said that I am not magnanimous. You are a member of my future wife's peerage, even if you are a crude one with no manners. If you wish to stay, you are free to do so as long as you go and change into more appropriate clothing." He gestured grandly to everyone in the room, "As you can see, this is a high-class affair and we are all dressed for the occasion. You should be as well to keep from further embarrassing your King."

"That won't be necessary. This is just a little bit of entertainment I prepared."

Riser looked over to the man who'd spoken. Anyone could tell at a glance that the man was related to Rias given they had the exact same hair color and similar facial features. Rias's brother, the most powerful devil in the Underworld, and the current Satan Lucifer, Sizechs Lucifer.

[System Alert! New Quest!

Meddling Sis-con

Sirzechs Lucifer's little plans and tricks have failed in the past so he's decided to blatantly step in between you and your bride. If he has his way the sex offender will be cucking you before the night is over.

Option 1: Give in to his 'request', read demand, for a duel.

Option 2: Refuse to give in, no matter the consequences!

Option 3: Refuse his request, or if you do give in make him pay for forcing the issue.

Reward: Based on the option chosen and the results of that choice.]

Rias looked to the side in surprise but didn't say anything. Her reputation was in enough trouble without her appearing to run to her brother for help. Sirzechs smiled genially as the crowd, who'd just noticed him, went into a small uproar.

Riser, still calm and collected politely addressed the meddling sis-con, "Lucifer-sama, what do you mean by 'entertainment'?"

Sirzechs held up his hand to cut Riser off, not that Riser planned to continue speaking, and took on a tone that was slightly condescending, "Riser, I watched the Rating Game with great interest. However, against my sister who had no Game experience, and less than half of your forces, I was left somewhat underwhelmed."

Riser cocked his eyebrow, "That seems unlikely. Much as I dislike admitting it, Rias did most excellently in our match despite the drawbacks you have mentioned. To say you're underwhelmed with such a brilliant performance by your sister... I'm not sure what to say to that."

It took everything Riser had not to laugh at the face that Sirzechs pulled at his reply. Clearly, the man hadn't expected Riser to praise Rias for doing so well against him. It also didn't help that Riser was speaking the absolute truth. Rias had done amazingly well even with the odds so heavily stacked against her. If Sirzechs continued down the line of thought he began with, he would only be insulting Rias in the eyes of everyone present.

It didn't help that Rias was looking directly at him with a look of open shock on her face at his little bit of praise. She clearly hadn't expected him to acknowledge how well she had done against him. Sure he has his pride, and it stung a little to admit that she'd done so well by decimating his peerage, but it was worth it to put Sirzechs on the back foot.

Still, Sirzechs was old, and more importantly, had centuries of experience in politics, so he pivoted, "No no, I merely meant that I was underwhelmed from not getting to see you participate more in the match yourself. Especially given the circumstances being what they are. We wouldn't want the old family to lose any face."

Riser snorted, openly and loudly, "I'm sorry, I fail to see how 'the old family' would lose any prestige. After all, wasn't it your own Queen, under your own orders, who suggested the Rating Game that Rias readily and happily agreed to? Are you unsatisfied because things didn't turn out how you desired despite it all being your suggestion in the first place?"

Seeing Sirzechs have to grit his teeth, even for just a brief moment, brought no small amount of pleasure to Riser. Even more so, seeing the look of confusion turning into anger on Rias's face made him feel even better. Not anger at him, for once, but anger at her brother. Her eyes narrowed at the older man as she asked, "Are you implying I was underwhelming because I didn't do good enough even though it was your suggestion?!"

Sirzechs looked truly put out and in the fashion of those not getting their way, bulldozed right over it and moved on, "This is my young sister's engagement party, let's not burden it with such discussions. Rather, since it is her big day, I wanted to add a little spice to it."

Sirzechs was clearly completely ignoring the muttering going on in the crowd as the nobles wondered just what he was up to. There was also quite a bit of dissatisfaction running through them at what seemed, to them, to be him tearing down his little sister's efforts. Sirzechs continued to ignore them as he focused on Issei, "You there, boy. I'd like to see the power of the dragon within you with my own eyes. I had Grayfia make a few arrangements."

He turned to look at the silent, and rather bored looking, Riser, "Dragon versus Phoenix, what do you say we have those possessed of legendary powers liven up the party a little bit?"

"Pass."

…

A silent void filled the room as Riser flat-out refused Sirzechs to his face, something very few people would have the bravery to do. Sirzechs also seemed surprised, but more because Riser hadn't let his pride get the better of him to accept the challenge. That was not something he had expected. Riser blandly looked Sirzechs directly in the eyes as he continued, "For starters, I am not a well-trained monkey for you to parade about just because you want a little entertainment. Second, you fought against the Old Satan Faction to put a stop to the very thing you are attempting to do here. That war that so many died for was to keep those sick people from forcing people into situations like this where they had to fight one another."

He arched a golden eyebrow, "It is unbecoming of the Satan Lucifer to act like the very devils he fought so gallantly to oppose. Wouldn't you agree?"

Sirzechs really had to grit his teeth at Riser's comeback. Especially when he heard the mutters of the nobility implying that he was overstepping his authority and behaving in a very negative manner. It didn't help that he really wanted to put the brat in his place. Except, doing so would forever cement the fact that he was behaving like those old bastards in place. It would devastate his reputation, and worse it would give the old fogies in the Old King Faction a large amount of leverage over him. Leverage that he would only be able to ignore if he acted like the people he fought so hard to depose. It would make him one of the worst hypocrites ever.

He grit his teeth as he pushed on, "Dragon versus Phoenix, I would really like to see it."

Riser, who should have been scared out of his mind according to Sirzechs, simply tilted his head up, literally looking down his nose at Sirzechs. His voice took on a tinge of disbelief as he asked, "Are you insisting on this with your authority as the Satan Lucifer?"

Sirzechs held back an annoyed growl and kept himself from erasing the bastard right then and there. To insist on it with his authority... this was going to cause him a lot of issues but seeing the look on Riser's face, he knew it was the only possible way he could give Rias another chance without risking starting a war, "Yes."

Riser gave a curt nod of his head, "Very well then."

Feeling his shoulders relax, he turned to face Issei, "You, dragon-boy, would you be good enough to show me, and the upper-class nobles here, the power that you possess?"

Issei clenched his fists, the blood red of the Boosted Gear on his left hand glinting in the light, "Yes!"

Rias stepped forward, "Issei, don't do it."

Riser said nothing, letting things play out as they would. He was glad he did as Issei opened his mouth to embarrass himself and her, "Don't worry Buchou! I'll beat this yakitori and claim your virginity for myself!"

There was another minor uproar at his words. Taken the wrong way... well it sounded like the sex offender just promised to rape her after insulting her fiance. Rias blushed heavily in shame. Seeing her blush made Issei think she was happy and excited for him to defeat Riser. How wrong he was.

Sirzechs speaking brought everyone to silence once more, "Now then, dragon-boy, what compensation would you like if you win?"

Several nobles blurted out questions about why he would compensate a low-class devil for such a thing. Sirzechs reply was a thing of beauty to Riser, "High Class or Low Class, he is still a devil. Since I have asked this of him, I must pay him a commensurate compensation." He focused on Issei, "What do you desire? A title? Perhaps a woman of great beauty?"

Riser held back his snort at that last question. Talk about 'leading the witness'. It was clear to everyone what Sirzechs was aiming for and none of them approved. If he was anyone else, there would have been a riot and calls for his head. Yet the man continued to dig his grave, "Ask me for anything you would like."

Issei stood firm as he answered Sirzechs, "I would like Bushou, no Lady Rias Gremory, returned to me, please."

"Very well. Shall we make our way to the arena?"

Riser cleared his throat, loudly, to get everyone's attention, "I believe there is a problem here Satan Lucifer. First, and least importantly, as you said yourself, not but a moment ago, High Class or Low Class I am still a devil, since you have asked this of me, you must pay a commensurate compensation. No? Or does that only apply to those you deem it to apply to making your words meaningless?"

Again Sirzechs had to resist the urge to start a war by atomizing Riser. Yet the boy continued with his second question, "To add to which, what gives you the right to agree to give someone else's fiance away? Rias is not your property to just hand to someone else as you see fit!"

The glare coming at him from Rias wasn't helping Sirzechs mood but he refused to budge on giving Rias to Issei if he won so he didn't even address that issue. Instead, he focused on the one he could handle, "You are, of course, correct. Ask me for anything you would like."

Riser couldn't help smirking as he answered, "Well, seeing as how you are so willing to give away other people's significant others, I want your significant other, Grayfia."

Everyone felt the temperature in the room plummet to below-freezing temperatures in an instant. Riser merely raised an eyebrow at her, "How undignified." He turned to Sirzechs who looked rather angry himself. The Satan spoke in a deadly calm voice, "That is out of the question."

Riser smirked victoriously, "I see, so it's only appropriate when it isn't your woman that is being given away. Still, that's fine. Now everyone here can clearly see your agenda and how much of a hypocrite you are willing to be to see it achieved."

Sirzechs took a quick glance around the room and did indeed see the nobles staring at him with disdain. No matter how this played out, his political efforts for the next few years were going to be a nightmare. This had definitely damaged his reputation and would continue to do so for a long time. Still, he felt it was worth it to help his little sister.

Riser's next words filled him with dread though, "Fine Satan Lucifer. Since you are unwilling to promise your wife while happily promising mine, I will take your solemn vow. I want a vow on not just your life, but on the life of your wife and your son, that from this day forth you will stop interfering in any negative way between me and my future wife. You will cease any and all attempts to get between us."

Sirzechs openly glared at Riser, yet Riser didn't react, only looking back calmly. Finally, Sirzechs nodded his head. Riser nodded as well and turned away. Things had gone to plan so far and he hadn't been reduced to atoms. Not too shabby.

Riser looked around the arena that Grayfia had prepared. It wasn't too complex, just a stone floor with some walls and statues of various chess pieces around the edges. Issei stood on the opposite side of the arena, his Boosted Gear still out. Up in the sky, the faces of Sirzechs and Rias could be seen. Sirzechs got things started, "You may begin."

Issie dropped into a stance, "Buchou! I will end this in ten, AHHHHHHH!"

Riser saw no point in letting the sex offender run his mouth. The duel had officially started so he sent a moderately powerful stream of hellfire across the arena that covered Issei from head to toe. The heat of the fire instantly burned his clothing and gave him second and third-degree burns while the force of the flames sent him flying back until his back slammed painfully into the stone wall of the arena.

There was a gasp from Rias, but utter silence from everyone else. They could see how badly burned Issei was but he was still breathing and conscious. Slowly, with shaking arms and legs, Issei forced himself to stand back up. Gritting his teeth he announced, "I won't give up."

He thrust his left hand out, the one covered in the Boosted Gear, and shouted, "Shine forth, Over Boost!"

As Issei held the Boosted Gear up, the green gems on the back of his hand and arm shone and emitted golden light while the area was filled with red light.

[Welsh Dragon Over Booster!]

Issei was nearly instantly covered in deep red armor adorned with green gems on the hands, arms, chest, and knees. He stared at Riser through green lenses in his helmet, "This is the Dragon Emperor's power, Balance Breaker Boosted Gear, Scale Mail!"

Riser looked down on the sex offender with something akin to pity. The original Riser had been able to go toe to toe against the Scale Mail without much issue, only taking damage because of the crucifix that Issei cheaply used in the fight. This time, even that wouldn't help him. Riser flexed his Demonic Power to call up his wings of fire. Before they were just flames in the general shape of wings, but now they were intricately detailed to such a degree that everyone could see individual feathers made of fire.

There were gasps of shock and surprise from the people watching the match. Several of the women commented on how beautiful Riser's new wings looked. Even Rias, as much as she hated it, had to admit that they looked beautiful. Combined with the change in his hairstyle and clothing choices, Riser almost seemed like a completely different man.

Riser watched calmly as Issei's shoulders erupted with green energy that sent him flying forward and into the air. Issei slammed his fists together and gathered energy to fire off a large red orb. Riser calmly shifted to the side to casually dodge it, even ignoring it when it slammed into one of the tall chess pieces along the wall and exploded with enough force to almost level it. Even if it had hit him, it wouldn't have done lasting damage. Still, his clothing was rather expensive, best not to scuff it up unnecessarily.

He watched as Issei dashed toward him, cocking his arm back in a very telegraphed attempt to punch him. Another casual shift moved him out of the way of Issei's attack. It was blatantly clear that Issei had only the barest control over his new Balance Breaker as he failed to stop after missing Riser and slammed into another of the chess piece statues. Riser watched as Issei crashed through the stone and landed in a heap. The burns probably weren't helping him any with the control issue.

[Nine!]

Oh, right! The 'ten-second countdown' that was really more like five minutes. But, whatever. While Issei lounged around in the rubble, Riser lifted his right hand with his palm facing up and conjured a small bit of hellfire. He watched Issei as he continued to feed his Demonic Power into the flames without letting them get any larger. By the time the dust from the shattered stone cleared and Issei could be seen, the flames in Riser's palm had color shifted from orange to blue.

Issei jumped into the air and charged Riser head-on once again. It became clear to everyone watching that Issei had no clue how to fight. Every single one of his moves was clearly telegraphed. No one was surprised when Riser calmly moved to the side and let Issei pass harmlessly by. No, what did catch their attention was the color of the flames in his hand.

[Eight!]

Rias turned in shock when she heard the voice of Ravel Phenex, Riser's younger sister, exclaim, "Since when can nii-san use blue hellfire? I thought that was just a bedtime story!"

Rias couldn't help asking, "Blue fire?"

Ravel nodded, not taking her eyes off the action as Riser continued to dodge, "It's a story from the days of the Great War about the founder of the Phenex clan. The more one masters the power of Hellfire, the more the color of the flames changes. Blue is supposed to be many times stronger than regular Hellfire."

Everyone gasped as they watched the small bundle of flames change from blue to white. Ravel openly gaped, forgetting her station and etiquette, "What is that?! I've never even heard of white flames!"

If they had been in the arena they would have felt what Issei was feeling right then, dread. The small flames flickering gently above Riser's palm were putting out waves of heat that made it hard for him to even breathe. It felt like the very material of his Scale Mail was heating up and burning his skin. He had to bite his lip until it bled to keep from screaming in agony as the heat affected the burns on his body.

[Seven!]

Issei tried to charge Riser once more but fell from the sky as he lost control of his body. He wanted to yell, to scream at Riser, to proclaim everything he wanted to, but he couldn't. Every bit of willpower and focus he could bring to bear was solely used to keep himself conscious while he tried to push himself to his feet once more.

[Six!]

Riser calmly watched from on high as he continued to feed Demonic Power to his flames. He had a surprise for the people watching.

[Five!]

Issei managed to push himself to his feet but couldn't do anything else. He stood there, looking up at Riser as sweat poured from him. The salt agitating his burns and making him feel that much worse.

[Four!]

He needed to move, he had to get closer to Riser. Just one punch. One good punch with his left hand and the hidden crucifix would show the yakitori who was boss!

[Three!]

The boosters on his shoulders ignited as Issei launched himself at Riser once again. Riser calmly watched Issei's approach as the flames in his hand color shifted once again. However, this time the shift was far more dramatic as the hellfire changed from white to a soul-sucking black. Instantly the temperature within the arena doubled and continued to rise. Even with Riser flying a good fifty feet above the ground, the stone began to smoke and heat up from the small bundle of flames.

[Two!]

Issei pushed down the urge to scream as he felt his own armor burning his flesh. His vision grew black around the edges but he remained on target. He felt nothing but pain and the desire to slam his fist into Riser's face.

[ONE!]

Alas, Issei's desires went unanswered. The moment he was within striking range, the black Hellfire hovering over Riser's hand, moved to cover it as he clenched his hand into a fist. He ducked under Issei's clearly telegraphed blow and slammed his black hellfire-covered fist directly into Issei's armored chest. The flames detonated with the power of a small nuclear explosion that shattered Issei's chest armor and blasted the sex offender straight down into the ground.

Issei slammed into the stone floor with a bone-shattering force that destroyed what was left of his armor.

[COUNT UP!]

There was absolute silence as Riser dismissed the black flames and looked down upon Issei. The boy was covered in burns from first to third degree. His clothing was little more than ash, which was something Riser could have lived without.

Yet, despite all of that, Issei still breathed. Not through any great feat of durability or some form of miracle, like plot armor, but simply because Riser held back and perfectly controlled how much force from the explosion affected Issei.

Sirzechs, along with everyone else, stared at the screen where Issei, even with his Balance Breaker, had been completely and utterly crushed. Worse, Sirzechs now had to choose to either honor his word and make the oath Riser asked for, or break his word and make his life even harder than it was already going to be.

To make things more complicated, there was also the black Hellfire that Riser had shown at the end. There were all sorts of myths and legends about black fire, but he'd never seen any or ever confirmed they were real. To see them with his own eyes... He might not have felt their power in person, but he doubted that those flames were any less destructive than his own Power of Destruction. Could Riser be like himself and Ajuka, a mutant with powers and abilities above and beyond the norm? If so, then he couldn't make a move against Riser and risk pushing the boy toward the Old Satan Faction. Worse would be if he succeeded and the whole Phenex Clan defected. The loss of Phoenix Tears would lead to too many deaths and give the Old Satan Faction the leg up they needed to push for another war.

Riser gently flew through the air while looking at his gains from the duel.

[System Alert! Quest Complete!

Rude Guest

Well, you definitely put Issei in his place. Instead of him mouthing off and somehow getting a total babe like Rias to fall for him because of his 'grit, determination, and self-sacrifice'. You made him look like a pervert who was only interested in owning her body to defile it.

Reward: Fire Dragon Slayer Magic (Fairy Tail)

Meddling Sis-Con

Wow, you really didn't give Sirzechs anywhere to hide, did you? You pushed him into a corner, ruined his reputation, and compared him to the old Satans before demanding his literal Ice Queen wife as compensation for you winning the duel? Dude, you've got balls of DIAMOND!

Reward: Tori Tori no Mi, Model: Phoenix (One Piece)

BONUS: Demon Extract (Akame ga Kill)]

Riser paused in his flight to, ostensibly, watch the other members of Rias's peerage collect the badly hurt body of Issei. In reality, he was going over his rewards and feeling absolute glee. While the Fire Dragon Slayer Magic made famous by Natsu Dragneel was pretty nice, it wasn't a massive gain for him. He already had fire magic, after all.

However! That didn't make it useless as he could now eat fire to heal himself (if necessary) and recover his Demonic Power. More importantly, he was now immune to any fire weaker than his own. Now his own emotions could also influence his flames, making them stronger depending on how strongly he was feeling any given emotion. Considering how strong they already were, making them stronger was a nice bonus. The biggest bonus though? If he could get good enough, and strong enough, with this new form of magic, he could turn into a dragon.

Sure, in Fairy Tail turning into a dragon was seen as a bad thing, but in the DxD world? He would become a member of the single most powerful race. Dragons never, ever, died of old age and, like devils, got stronger the older they were. Plus, he had knowledge guaranteeing him that he would have a human form if he ever transformed. Something about the laws of the DxD world? Either way, it was a goal worth striving for!

Next, he gained the power of the Tori Tori no Mi, Model: Phoenix from One Piece. It was a bit on the nose, really, but he had no complaints. It had just massively increased his healing power to the point where he could literally regenerate from a single drop of living blood. On top of that, he now had the ability to use his flames to heal other people. That was a big fucking deal in the Underworld where the best forms of healing were Phoenix Tears and naked cuddling to transfer Demonic Power. Granted, it wasn't super fast or super effective healing, but it would work on anyone!

There was also being able to transform into an actual Phoenix, which was amusing but not really all that useful outside of showing off. Still the bonus to his body's strength from now possessing the power of a Zoan Devil Fruit was nice. Especially since it didn't come with a deadly weakness to water. Again the laws of the DxD world overriding the laws of the One Piece world.

The last item was by far the most interesting. The Demon Extract that Esdeath herself had wielded granted the user ultimate power over ice. It wasn't lost on him that he got the power of ice as a reward for going after Grayfia, the 'Ice Queen' of the underworld. It was probably the most powerful thing he'd gained from his quests. Not only was it the ice element, a new one he'd previously had little power over, but it was so powerful that it could actually be used to FREEZE TIME. Once he mastered it he would be stepping on the toes of the Agares clan but he didn't care. He now had power over ice that would surpass Grayfia and Serafall once he got some training in with it.

After looking over his rewards, he resumed his flight and soon landed next to Rias. She'd just finished looking over Issei and turned to face him. He could see she was fairly angry but was holding it back. Instead of berating him, she said, "Thank you for sparing his life. He is my precious Pawn and I wouldn't want to see his life lost pointlessly."

Riser calmly nodded, "I understand." She seemed to relax a little until he added, "However, I believe you've been far too gentle with him and his training. The way he behaved, the way he talked to you? None of that was acceptable and it needs to be properly addressed before he says or does something to a noble willing to call for his life to be forfeit."

Rias grimaced a little but didn't argue with him. He was right, after all. If Issei had done something similar to the Astaroth or Glasia-Labolas heirs, they would have flat out killed Issei for his disrespect. It would be even worse if he failed to keep a rein on his perversion and insulted the wife of a noble by talking about the noble woman's 'massive oppai' to her face. Rias might find it amusing, but that didn't mean every noblewoman would.

Rias nodded in acceptance and glanced at the burned form of Issei lying on a couch that had been provided, "It will take some time for Asia to arrive and heal him."

Riser could tell she was fishing for a Phoenix Tear to quickly heal up her loser Pawn, but Riser smirked, "I've got a better idea."

When she looked at him, he held his hand up and instantly conjured flames. These flames were completely different from any others he'd conjured. First, they put off very little heat, feeling pleasantly warm instead of burning. Second, they were blue with a yellow 'core' within them.

Rias warily observed the unique-looking flames while all the other nobles looked on in interest. Rias's first thought was that Riser wanted to kill Issei, but she dismissed it as he'd had all the opportunity he needed to kill him during the duel. So, instead of jumping to conclusions, she asked, "How will more fire help him when he is already burned?"

Riser nodded in approval at her asking instead of assuming, "Simply put? These are healing flames. Something new I recently cooked up and haven't had much opportunity to put to use. Granted, they're not as effective as your Bishop's Twilight Healing, but they will help nonetheless."

Rias studied the flames that still didn't feel hot for a moment before she nodded, "Please, heal Issei for me."

Riser gently tossed the flames at Issei. Rias held her breath as the flames touched Issei and instantly enveloped his body in their blue and yellow light. She carefully watched, her eyes widening when she could clearly see one of the lighter burns slowly healing right before her eyes. She whipped her head around to look at Riser with a bit of awe, "Thank you!"

Riser calmly shrugged his shoulders, "It's not a problem. After all, he's a member of our family, no?"

Riser smiled and then clapped his hands together while he looked around, "Excellent now where... aha!" He gestured grandly, "Satan Lucifer, I hope you didn't find this duel to also be 'underwhelming' given we all got to witness the... 'power' of the legendary Scale Mail of the Red Dragon Emperor."

Sirzechs looked at the odd flames currently healing his last ditch effort to get Rias out of her wedding to Riser and felt the sudden urge to just go home and go to sleep. The entire day felt like a fiasco. All of his effort, all that damage to his reputation, and he had nothing to show for it. He also couldn't claim the event was underwhelming again as he, along with all the nobles present, had seen something they all thought to be a myth, black flames.

No, he only had one choice that let him keep any face at all, "It was a rather impressive showing, Riser."

He might have been backed into a political corner, but he didn't have to address that little brat with any titles or formality! Yes, it was petty and disrespectful, no, he didn't care. What he really wanted to do was walk over and punch Riser in his smug face, especially when the boy said, "Excellent. Now, I do believe there was something you were to give me as the winner?"

Sirzechs grit his teeth for a moment but conceded, "I, Sirzechs Lucifer, swear upon my life, the life of my wife, and the life of my son, to henceforth stop negatively interfering with matters between Riser Phenex and Rias Gremory, and will cease all attempts to disrupt your marriage."

Riser smiled from ear to ear as he clapped his hands together, "Excellent! Wonderful!" He turned to look at Rias who seemed a little lost, "Rias Gremory, get the fuck out."

The silence that followed was one that not even crickets would dare intrude on. Eventually, it was Rias who broke the silence with a quietly whispered, "What?"

Riser, still all smiles, reiterated himself, "Get the fuck out. We're over. Through. Done. Gone. If I never see you again it will be too soon. You are a spoiled bitch of a princess who has spent the last few years spitting on her family, my family, and the traditions of our entire race. I NEVER wanted to marry you. Well, perhaps I did before I got to know you. I had hoped that we might work together for a better future, in the beginning. But then you metaphorically kicked me in the balls and started acting like a complete and utter bitch toward me."

He stared down at her, all signs of his mirth gone, "Did it never once occur to you that I might have hoped to find love myself? To choose who I wished to marry? It didn't did it? No, it was all about you, you, you. I tried to be nice in the beginning, to give you time to adjust and adapt. But you just kept piling shit on until I got fed up with it and turned into the very asshole you thought I was."

He glared down at her letting her see the sheer resentment and hate on his face, "Today I woke up and realized, you are NOT worth it." He gestured vaguely in Sirzechs direction, "Your brother abusing his power to force me to fight that sex offender pawn of yours was the final straw. Clearly, he can't keep his fucking nose out of where it doesn't belong. You're simply not worth this much hassle. So. Fuck off. Get out of my fucking house. Go fuck your loser pawn or something, I don't care anymore."

Flames erupted around Riser as he teleported out of the room leaving a crowd of stunned nobles, a royally pissed-off Lucifer, and a crying Rias.

Worth it.

AN

10.6k words

How this all came about is a bit of a funny story. On my pat-reon Game Master has just finished the Riser Arc. A patron, maddmann1991, made a comment about how it was always nice to see Riser get bodied (paraphrasing).

The thing is, Riser really isn't all that bad. Yes, he's a bit of an arrogant dick but if you take a step back and think about it, he has reason to be. Just look at the way Rias treats him, dismissing him, ignoring the desires of their parents, and acting like the whole thing is entirely Riser's fault. It's like she doesn't want to admit that it was their parents that made the choice for both of them. Now, imagine you're forced to put up with someone who is constantly talking down to you, treating you like some sort of monster, and in general is just a bitch toward you. Wouldn't you get sick of it and end up, eventually, stooping to their level and getting angry yourself?

I know I would.

I see Riser as a guy who had had to put up with verbal abuse, at least, for years, and has given in to his anger. I also see him as a good son who is just trying to do as his parents wish, therefore honoring them.

Meanwhile, fanon has him looking and acting like some supervillain who wants to rape Rias and the girls of her peerage while gelding the boys and sticking them in the cuck chair to watch.

If Riser really was that bad, his peerage wouldn't be so loyal to him and would probably be more like the broken dolls of Diodora's peerage from Riser abusing them.

Well, that's my interpretation of Riser. You are, of course, welcome to have your own interpretation of him.

All this is to say, the comment from maddmann1991 made me think and inspired me to write this chapter. I had planned on it just being a snippet/one shot, but the response I got to it on pat-reon was phenomenal and I ended up writing four 10k+ word chapters in 4 days. A ridiculous record for me. If you want to read the next 3 chapters they're all available on pat-reon slash thomasdarkrose along with a vote for which story I'm working on next, looks like Fabricator is in the lead for now.

I look forward to seeing what you all think of this story!

Later!