The Next Day:
New Satan Stadium, Lilith, Underworld:
Isaiah's POV:
"Welcome back, everyone, to the Reincarnated Devils Ranking Tournament!" The announcer, who I found out was actually Reval Phenex, the older brother of Riser and Ravel and the younger brother of Ruval Phenex, shouted in an excited tone and the crowd cheered as I grinned as I along with the other 31 fighters stood in the centre of the arena.
"Now then, let's not keep everyone waiting! The first two to do battle is none other than the Queen of the Emperor of the Rating Game Diehauser Belial as well as the former heir of of House Fleurety, Diamante Fleurety!" The crowd cheered as Diamante just smirked, his hands in his pockets as he walked out onto the arena.
"And his opponent is the Queen of the Heir to House Astaroth Diodora Astaroth, Melissa Bucciarati!" A women dressed in a hooded cloak and a form fitting black bodysuit walked onto the stage, Diamante staring at her before he sighed.
"Another weakling." He said loudly as he cracked his neck and I could feel the woman tensing at his words, but she didn't say anything as he just smiled.
"And now, let's the first match…begin!" In the blink of an eye, Diamante was standing in the spot where Melissa was supposed to be, a dust cloud exploding into existence from the wall in front of him. As the dust settled, Melissa's unconscious form was seen lying against the wall, completely knocked out.
"…Well, that was fast." Even Reval sounded shocked and I grinned as Diamante just sighed and turned to walk back up to the viewing balcony, the attendants rushing to get her to the medical camp. It was completely silent in the arena before Reval broke it.
"…Let's see if the second match will be longer than that! The second matchup is an old rivalry between two Pillars that has existed since the birth of the 72 Pillars and now two peerage members, who are both the Queens of the respective lords of these Pillar Houses, will now do battle. It's none other than the Queen of Lord Paimon, Elsa Dracovich, vs the Queen of Lord Purson, Leona Scotts!" Two women walked out of the crowd of fighters, the rest of us being escorted off of the fighting area by the attendants and towards the waiting areas, which were balconies under the stands that gave us a view of the fighting area.
"I see that you're still dressed in those provocative clothes, Leona." The blonde woman with bright green eyes, which was Elsa, said with a mocking smirk as she was dressed in a form fitting bright blue dress with a fur scarf wrapped around her shoulders and blue gloves that went up to her elbows.
"Oh, please, my dear. These are nothing more than casual clothes, unlike the extravagant clothing you like to dress in." The brunette with dark hazel eyes, Leona, said with the same smirk. She was dressed in a gold bodysuit that didn't leave much to the imagination as it clung to her body, leaning most of her legs bare as well as having a diamond-shaped cleavage window on the front.
"Now, now ladies! Let your magic and fists do the talking as we finally start the second match! In three…two…one…begin!" Both women waved their hands and a bright blue magic crest appearing in front of Elsa and a dark gold magic crest appearing in front of Leona. In the blink of an eye, the arena was lit up in a variety of colours as they both sent spell after spell at the other.
"…This is boring." Both Alivian and I muttered in unison as we stared with our arms crossed at their fighting. It was nothing more than them firing spells at each other and trying to beat the other.
Where was the punching?
The kicking?
The running around and trying to evade the other's spell while creating trap spells and outsmarting their opponents?
Is common sense really that scarce amongst Devils that no one actually has any Battle IQ?!
"So, what did you focus on in the past few years that I was gone?" I asked Alivian and he just looked amused at my lame discussion starter.
"Wouldn't you like to know?"
"You're no fun." I grumbled as I went back to staring at the atrocity of a match, with it finally ending as Leona finally decided to use her common sense and struck in a rock bullet in between her magma attacks. It flew straight and struck Elsa in the chest, making her gasp before a magma wave slammed into her and sent her flying out of the arena with severe burns. The attendants quickly rushed to her and picked her up to rush her to the medical room, Leona smirking cockily as Reval spoke.
"And the winner of the second match is Leona Scotts!" She waved at the crowd, where a few were not happy that she won, as she smirked and walked out of the arena.
"And now for the third match, we have Kuisha Abaddon, the Queen of the Heir of Great King Bael!" Kuisha smiled as she walked out of the tunnel, waving at the crowd who cheered loudly for her.
"And her opponent is actually the Queen of Magdaren Bael, who is the younger brother of the Heir of Great King Bael. Give it up for Sectaas Barbaros!" Sectaas walked out of the opposite tunnel, his crimson eyes glowing as soon as he saw Kuisha standing in the arena.
"This is the battle of the Queens of House Bael! Which side will prosper?! Let's find out as the battle…begins!" Kuisha quickly flew into the air as Sectaas appeared in front of her, a broadsword appearing in his grasp and slicing through the empty space of air where she was.
Kuisha quickly created a magic crest under her and a wave of boiling water fell onto him only for it to be split open as Sectaas tore through it and slashed at her. A sphere of solid air appeared around Kuisha, the broadsword being deflected before the air turned into a drill and was sent flying at him. Sectaas just unfurled his wings and disappeared, reappearing above her with a bright crimson glow covering his sword.
With a grunt, he brought his sword down, a massive arc of energy coming down on her and Kuisha smirked as she waved her hand. A large black orb appeared in front of her, absorbing the blade before another orb appeared behind her and sent it flying at Sectaas, who tried to sneak in a blow from behind.
He just chuckled as he slashed the energy blade apart, disappearing from the barrage of elemental spells Kuisha fired at him before reappearing back on the ground. Kuisha slowly floated down and the silence was broken as the crowd cheered.
"I couldn't even get a word in! What a battle! Our opponents were just testing each other out, but already I'm in utter awe and I'm sure everyone else is too!" Reval exclaimed with glee, the crowd just as excited as he was as I grinned excitedly.
"Isa, battle mania." Akeno said with an amused smile and I quickly suppressed it, but that didn't stop me from becoming giddy.
Finally, a battle worth watching!
"I see that you've been training in your Hole ability, Kuisha." Sectaas said with a smile and Kuisha smiled as she nodded.
"I have indeed, master." She said with a smile, which slightly surprised me, and Sectaas nodded before his smile disappeared.
"But I see that you've been focusing a little too much on just the Bishop side of your Queen Piece. If I weren't trying to just incapacitate you, then that first blow would've been the finish." Kuisha just smirked before she got into a basic stance, with her hands held up to her chest.
"Then come and see how much I've grown." She said and Sectaas smirked before he held his sword in front of him. The air was tense as they just stared at each other before Kuisha disappeared, reappearing in front of him with her fist clad in a black energy sphere.
Sectaas' eyes widened and he barely got out of the way as the sphere expanded rapidly and completely sucked in everything in front of her before she spun on her left heel. Another sphere appeared on her right foot and Sectaas tried to dodge it only for her to expand the sphere even bigger than before and destroyed the blade of his sword.
"…I see." Was all he said as he stared at the hilt of his sword before dropping it, glancing at Kuisha, who I noticed was breathing a bit heavily before it clicked.
"So, that's the drawback, huh?" I muttered and Akeno nodded.
"Yes. The energy for cladding her limbs in the Hole ability without taking off her own limbs and then expanding it to be used as a normal Hole is still too much to use in an extended battle. The fact that she's using it right now means that she's finally being serious." She explained and I nodded before tuning back to the battle, where Kuisha was slowly losing energy while her master dodged her blows before he attacked.
Kuisha gasped as his fist buried into her gut, folding over his fist before she was knocked back upright with a rising knee. She stumbled back slightly as Sectaas flashed forward, a barrage of punches slamming into her and completely knocking her unconscious as he delivered a hard blow to her head.
"Oh! And Sectaas shows no mercy as he defeats Kuisha, though it was close when he lost his sword! Here's to hoping that the next match will be just as good, but first, they must repair the arena!" Reval said as the attendants walked onto the arena, getting rid of the still boiling water and the holes in the arena made by Kuisha's spells.
Two Hours Later:
Waiting Balcony:
Bafeel Furcas put her rapier back in its holster as she stared at her defeated foe, Alivian smirking as he nodded at her. He had already fought in the match before her and just like Diamante, had taken out his foe in one simple blow. Not just him, but Liban Crocell had also fought against a Knight of another Lord's Peerage and he had defeated his opponent with ease, sending him through to the next round. Right now, however, is the one match I've been anticipating for the entire time.
"And with that, Bafeel advances to the next round, winning the 7th match of the day! Now, this match is another rivalry, but a much more friendly one as it's between two Pillar Houses that have been allies for the past few generations! It's none other than Tsubaki Shinra, the Queen of the Heiress of House Sitri against Akeno Himejima, the Queen of the Heiress of House Gremory!" Tsubaki and Akeno walked out of the left and right tunnel respectively, both of them looking determined as they walked up onto the stage.
"Now then, let's see how this battle will go between these two Queens! Let the battle…begin!" Akeno quickly unfurled her wings and flew into the air, numerous magic crests appearing under her and releasing dozens of bright yellow lightning bolts that rained down on Tsubaki.
Tsubaki raised her hands and a large oval mirror decorated with a blue pixie frame appeared in front of her, all of the lightning being absorbed into the mirror before a monstrous lightning bolt nearly ten times the size of the previous bots was shot out of it. Akeno giggled as she waved her hand, a lightning bolt nearly just as large as the reflected one shooting out of a magic crest that appeared in front of her and there was a bright flash of light and a thunderous boom as they connected.
"Looks like they've both gotten a lot stronger." Alivian muttered and I smiled as I nodded, watching the two girls clash over and over in the air, thunder booming as Akeno sent lightning bolt after lightning bolt at Tsubaki only for her to slice them apart into pieces with her signature, dark purple naginata. I was smirking as Akeno looked as if she was in a world of her own, spinning and dancing around Tsubaki's attack while pulsing her magic at random intervals.
"Why is she pulsing her magic like that?" Alivian asked with a slightly confused look and I chuckled before I grinned.
"You'll see in five…four…three…two…one…now." As I finished, the sky was lit up in Enochian and Lilithian runic crests, Tsubaki looking surprised as electricity pulsed in all of the runes before Akeno smiled as she revealed a dark crimson Gremory runic crest on the back of her hand.
"Let there be Light." She chanted with a smirk as she disappeared in a flash of crimson, reappearing back on the ground and I winced slightly as I heard Tsubaki exclaim in pain, the purple sky turning bright yellow as dense bolts of lightning sparked around her.
It took a few seconds before it finally died down, Tsubaki just floating in the air before she slowly began falling to the ground. She didn't get far though as Akeno caught her in her arms, giving her a Phenex Tear and letting out a relieved sigh as her wounds slowly closed.
She handed off Tsubaki as she landed on the ground to the attendants along with placing a piece of paper in her shirt before she walked off of the arena, the crowd cheering loudly as she waved at them before walking out of the arena.
"And wasn't that match a good one! A showcase of physical power vs magical power, but unfortunately, magical power wins! Now then, let us continue as we continue with the 9th match!" I sighed as I sat against the wall, drawing a raised eyebrow from Alivian as I took a deep breath.
"I'm taking a nap. Wake me up when it's my turn." That drew a frown from the other competitors, but Alivian just nodded and I closed my eyes, slowly sinking into a short nap.
An Hour Later:
My eyes snapped open as I jumped to my feet, Akeno with her hand stretched out towards where I was sitting as I smiled.
"Battle senses." I said with a grin and she rolled her eyes as I chuckled, giving her a peck on the cheek before turning to the arena, where Gandoma was waiting.
"Well, I guess it's time to face the music." I said as I took a step, reappearing in a gust of wind in front of Gandoma and he looked slightly surprised as I smiled and bowed my head.
"It's a pleasure to fight against Lord Sairaorg's rival." Gandoma's deep voice boomed and I chuckled as I nodded.
"And it's a pleasure to fight against a member of his peerage." He gave a small smile as he nodded before going into a basic boxing stance. I just nodded as I left my hands at my side, waiting for the match to begin.
"And finally, we have the match everyone has been waiting for! The prodigy of the Reincarnated Devils, Isaiah Azathoth, is finally fighting in a public match and his opponent is none other than a Rook of Sairaorg Bael's peerage and a former member of the near-extinct Pillar House Baram, Gandoma Balam! I won't keep the match up anymore, so without further ado, let the match…begin!" Both Gandoma and I stayed in our positions, with him glancing for any weaknesses as I just stared at him before I disappeared.
Reappearing in front of him, Gandoma tensed his upper body just as my right fist flashed forward. He gasped as my fist slammed into his chest, sending him skidding backwards, but he kept a tight grasp on my fist as he spun and slammed me into the ground. I just grinned as I cratered the ground under me, jumping to my feet in the same second before I kicked backwards and caught him under the jaw.
He kept that same tight grip on my arm as he stumbled a bit, spinning to slam me into the ground, but I just chuckled as I flipped with the blow, cratering the ground under me as I landed on my feet before my Touki roared to life.
With a simple grunt, I ripped my arm from his grasp, not giving his mind a chance to catch up as my left fist flew forward, catching him dead centre in the face. Not stopping there, I pulled my left fist as my right fist connected with his chest.
"Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora! Ora!" My fists flashed forward like a gatling gun, Gandoma not being giving a chance to recollect himself as blow after blow slammed into his chest.
With a final roar, my right fist tore through the air and slammed dead center into his face, sending him flying head over heels across the arena ground. He didn't even make it out as I grasped him by the heel, runic patterns spreading over his body before he gasped as he slammed into the ground.
"That's a runic scheme of 'Double Gravity', 'Boost Runic Enchantment', 'Siphon Demon Energy', 'Energy Conversion' and 'Extend Runic Enchantment'. In layman terms, the more you struggle, the more demonic energy is drained from you and the stronger the gravity around your body becomes. Unless you don't want to become a pancake on the ground, please give up." His eyes went a light brown as he strained his muscles to move only for it to be a futile struggle as he was barely able to lift his head up before it was slammed back into the ground.
"I'd rather not injure you any more, so please give up." I asked once again as I stared at the light purple bruises forming on his chest from my barrage and he kept straining for another good minute before he sighed, nodding in resignation.
"I quit." He muttered out and I smiled as I tapped his chest, the runic pattern cracking before shattering as I helped him to his feet.
"Don't be disgruntled about losing to me. You're a Power-type and I'm a Power/ Technique-type. I was the worst opponent for you." I said with a pat on his back and he just sighed as he nodded before the crowd cheered loudly, taking my attention away from Gandoma as I finally remembered that we had an audience.
"What sportmanship from Isaiah! Looks like those rumours about him being an arrogant Devil is nothing more than hearsay! Now, then, let us not stop there as we continue on to the round of 16! Will Diamante Fleurety and Leona Scotts please come down to the arena?!" I nodded at Gandoma as he walked to the VIP booth, where Sairaorg and the others were watching, and I walked towards the tunnel that led back up to the Waiting Balcony.
Halfway through the tunnel, I heard a soft whistle and looked up as Diamante walked towards the exit. We didn't say anything as we kept walking, yet the air was tense as our auras kept clashing. As we passed each other, the tunnel trembled slightly, but we kept on walking before we both came to a stop.
"You were soft." He said and I hummed.
"Why use a cannon on a rabbit when a bullet is enough?" Was all I said and he chuckled in amusement before we both continued on walking, both of us finally retracting our auras as we continued walking. That didn't stop the massive grin on my face as my blood lust roared to life.
'This is going to be fun.'
A/N: And that's the first part of the tournament done! Next up, is the round of 16!
Also, as you all can see, I can't think of any names for most of the matches, so expect that to happen in the round of 16 as well as I will be skipping a few matches. In the Quarter Finals and onwards, though, everyone will be a named character, so all of the fights will be written.
Other than that, I don't have much to say so read, enjoy, review and until the next one…
Ba-Bye~!