Beyond the Outer Gates Lies... the Role of the Dice?

It took Sona and company almost forty five minutes to reach the Sitri Box.

"What took you so long?" I asked her.

"First, we had to remove Lingua Prima from the Agares Peerage," Sona told us, "And Tsubaki and I did so without using your stones."

"So you still have that as a hidden trump card," Yvette nodded.

"Not so much," I shook my head.

"Everyone will probably be going out and learning the counterspell," Coira agreed.

"Or even just the spell itself," Reya suggested, "we already know from our first time using it, that Lingua Prima doesn't overwrite itself. So they could just use a conlang, and they would both be protected, and we wouldn't be able to understand them."

"Possibly," Anna said gently, "But then the other team could just target individual members with the counterspell, cutting them off from the rest. Even with Dresden's foci to make it easier to apply the spell, that cost you critical moments."

"You could just all learn the languages," Serafall said pointedly, smirking.

"That," I agreed.

"So after you helped you Lady Agares?" Duncan prompted.

"The medics insisted on giving each of us a brief examination," my King continued, "After that was the press…"

"I'm guess that didn't help," I said sympathetically.

"It could have been worse," Tsubaki said, "At least we were the winners."

I studied my King. Her gaze was lowered, shadowed. Her stance was unsteady, showing obvious exhaustion.

"Tough match?" I prompted.

"It was not my first or even my tenth Ratings Game," Sona tried to object. But then she sighed, "But the stakes were different this time. And we have never had to fight in front of such a large audience. And this was the most complex set of rules, and we were outnumbered by larger margin than usual…"

"Do you need a hug?" I asked her.

"I think I will be fine," Sona smiled slightly.

"I'll take one," Tsubasa plopped into my lap and wrapped her arms around me. I returned her embrace. Then I passed her off to Serafall, and pulled Reya down into her place. The bookish Bishop snuggled into my shoulder, her exhaustion palpable. Finally, Sona dropped her front, and put her arms around me from behind. Tsubasa grabbed Sona, and pulled her over so she was sprawled across the Rook and Bishop's lap. All of us hugged her tightly, four embraces from ankles to shoulders.

Kendra raised an eyebrow, and Duncan looked annoyed. Or maybe jealous. Saji turned to get food, ignoring us. But everyone else seemed pleasantly amused. Even Sona, in spite of herself. She seemed to sink into our affection for a few moments. Then she blinked and took a deep breath.

"That's enough," she informed us firmly.

A few minutes of quiet debate between my girls followed. I carefully ignored them, watching the landscapers remove the trees and towers from the arena. Eventually, they came to a decision. I was on one of the dual seats, wedged between Serafall and Tsubasa. It was a tight fit, but not unpleasant. Reya and Sona shared the loveseat on our left, Sona in the furthest seat, for her father. Both because that put her in talking range for him, and it had her separated from me.

The amphitheater was cleaned and flattened, and then two raised platforms were positioned on opposite sides. Each on had a dais with a podium and large magical circle. Next to the circle was a row of sixteen white chairs, and a raised section behind that had fifteen more black chairs.

"The available combatants sit in front," Serafall explained when she saw me studying the configuration, "And anyone who gets defeated sits in the back row. Unless they are taken away for treatment."

"So they can still talk to anyone who loses?" I asked.

"Yes," Sona nodded, "In this event, it is a fairly common strategy to send out a sacrificial Pawn in the early rounds, to learn about your opponent's abilities. Although in this case it is not possible. And the Gremory team is fairly well known."

"They were," Kendra said with a slight grin.

"We may have helped them grow," Shiro interjected, "But their basic styles are still the same. It would take more than two weeks to develop a new style."

"Oh, I don't know about that," I said. Reya, Momo, and Sona all shuddered.

"All right, viewers here in the Agreas Dome and across the dimensions," Naud Gamigin stated grandly, "The event you have all been waiting for. The crown jewel of the first round of the Young Devils Rating Game Tournament. The unexpected, unbeaten Sairaorg Bael Peerage! And the Crimson Haired Princess of Ruin and her Oppai Dragon, the Rias Gremory Peerage!"

I frowned slightly at how he just glossed over most of my friends. And Sairaorg's crew, I guess. He probably wouldn't have mentioned Ise, if Hyoudou wasn't famous for... that show.

"For those of you not familiar with this type of event," Diehauser Belial said in a condescending tone, as if anyone who needed this reminder was beneath him. He went through the rules of the Dice Battle Ratings Game. And I was amused and gratified when Azazel interrupted him to clarify that 'dice' meant the standard, square, six-siders that most people naturally assumed.

"And finally," the Emperor concluded, "The committee has determined the King's respective values in this match. Rias Gremory will have a value of seven points. Sairaorg Bael has been assigned a value of twelve."

The audience roared in approval. I wondered if they understood that meant there was less chance that they would get to see him fight.

I also wondered how they determined Rias's strength. I suppose she probably wasn't quite as strong Ise, but still. Since seven was the average on 2d6, maybe they were trying to bait Rias into going out herself, getting eliminated and losing? Or were they just underestimating her?

"Alright!" Naud barked as soon as the Emperor was done, "Now that you know the rules, and the two teams are in place, let's get the Kings out for the first roll!"

Rias and Sairaorg both stepped forward to their respective pedestals. They picked up the dice. Each was a large amethyst, roughly an inch on each side. Instead of Roman, Arabic, or even Japanese numerals, the dice were carved with Norse Rune numbers. And the carved numbers were filled with platinum.

The Kings hefted the gems and tossed them onto the podiums. The cameras zoomed in, the rolls projected on the dome for the audience's sake.

"Sairaorg rolls a five, and Rias a two," Naud announced, "For a total of seven. Who will they send out? Their one minute to confer starts… now!"

A solid grey dome covered each team, hiding them from each other, and incidentally the crowd. I didn't think Rias or Sairaorg would cheat, but I couldn't put it past other Devils.

"So who are you going to send?" Kiba asked.

"Two Knights, a Knight and a Bishop, a Rook, or Lady Rias alone," Rossweisse mused, "Though I would not suggest the last one."

"Why not two Bishops?" Ise asked. Then he looked at his comrades and nodded, "No, I guess not."

"Me," Koneko said. They all turned to look at her.

Rias nodded, "I don't want to send out more than one of us in the first round. My darling Ise can't go and neither can Akeno. It would be foolish for me to go out. That leaves us with one Rook as the best option."

"Are you sure?" Ise asked his youngest girlfriend. Koneko nodded silently. He gently hugged her, and Asia and Rias each squeezed her hands.

"I won't lose," the Nekoshou stated, slightly more firmly than usual.

"Dresden-sensei would tell you not to say that," Gaspar told her, "It's a death flag."

The cat-girl just sniffed, and then took her place on the platform.

Two teleportation circles lit up the field.

"For the Gremory Peerage, we have the adorable Rook, Hellcat-chan herself: Koneko Toujou. And from the Bael Peerage, that mysterious septuple Pawn: Regulus."

I wanted to blast the announcer again, but instead focused on the Devils. Koneko was wearing a Kuoh uniform, though I would later learn that it was a reproduction made of armored materials. Over it she had her short, white jacket, though it was unzipped. It was a newer one, updated with my latest enchantments. She also had a pair of black leather gloves, the latest version of my Rook Gloves. Regulus had the same outfit and mask he had worn at the press conference, or at least another set of the same clothing.

They squared off, Koneko dropping into a fighting stance, while Regulus just stood there.

"Begin!" Naud informed them, and the giant twenty minute digital clock above the barrier started counting down.

Koneko immediately charged, launching a hard right at his nose. He gently batted her hand aside, but the force of the blow knocked off his mask. Revealing… a perfectly normal face. Not ugly, not as damned handsome as Kiba or Thomas. No major scars. Maybe he just thought the mask was terribly comfortable, and that everyone would be wearing them in the future.

After a short exchange, Takako leaned forward, scowling. Koneko had yet to land a single hit. But Regulus had done nothing but block and deflect.

"What is it, Ken… Miss Senju?" Shiro asked before I could.

"Kendra is fine," she reassured him, "and it that Pawn. His movements are simplistic. Like he has little or no training. He is fighting mostly on his physical talents, and a bit of experience. But if that were true, he shouldn't be able to read Koneko so well. And the rough way he's defending should be hurting his hands and forearms, especially given how strong she is. She's not using much Ki, yet, but…"

Then she stopped as the little Rook stopped her assault. Her nose twitched. Then she snarled and jumped back. Her ears and tail popped out. And her nails extended, tearing through her gloves to form claws. Claws surrounded by the glowing white energy of her Ki, a basic application of her Senjutsu.

Kendra pouted. Koneko had refused to let her observe any Senjutsu techniques during the training. Cats and their secrets, and all that. Not like the Senju ninja clan (coincidence? I may have to look into it) didn't have their own special moves she wouldn't teach the Devils.

Regulus was entirely nonplussed, though he did roll up the sleeves of his jacket, exposing his arms up to the elbow. Then he glanced at Koneko's shoulder, and gave a long, slow blink.

"Oh crap," I growled, "Don't do it girl. You are better than that."

Nope. She hissed, and charged.

"What?" Tsubasa asked me a moment too late.

"What he just did, not quite looking at her and a long blink," I explained, "In cat body language that means basically 'I know you are there, but I'm not concerned and not hunting you'. Which, if they were meeting for the first time, would be nice, non-threatening gesture."

"But since they are already fighting, that seems pretty insulting," Saji realized.

"Yeah." By which I meant 'duh', but I was trying to be nice.

Koneko tore into him. Or she tried. But every slash of her claws was caught on Regulus' palms or wrists. Those finger blades would have sliced cleanly through steel and could have torn up one of my coats in a few minutes. But against the Bael Pawn, they dimpled his skin and skidded off without leaving even the slightest mark. It appeared he rolled up his sleeves only so that his shirt wouldn't be damaged.

'He's a cat, isn't he?' I asked Lash to confirm my guess, 'Koneko's reaction once she got a good whiff, and Regulus insulting her like that. He's some kind of monster or spirit feline.'

'Yes,' the brain mate agreed, "but why do you ask?'

'A theory,' I told her, 'When I hear monster cat, and skin that can't be cut, only one thing springs to mind.'

'It would be impossible in our world,' she caught on immediately, 'but in Bizzaro World, who's to say?'

'Probably someone in this room,' I smirked internally, 'Which is why I'll ask.'

"Okay, Sona," I addressed my King while still watching Koneko's futile exchange. And Regulus toying with her. Or maybe trying to learn her style.

"It's time for another, 'how are the myths wrong' question from yours truly," I continued.

"Yes, which myth are you questioning this time," she responded, mildly amused.

"Well, for his first or second…"

"second," Serafall whispered immediately, confirming it.

"…labor," I kept going anyway, "the original Heracles had to kill the Nemean Lion. A giant lion monster that lived near the town of Nemea and terrorized all of Greece. The lion was bigger than an elephant, and strong enough to bite through stone. But the most dangerous thing about it, was that its skin was functionally invulnerable. No arrow or sword could pierce it. Even Heracles couldn't hurt it. In the end, he had the choke it, suffocate it. Then he was able to skin it with its own claws. Does that sound about right?"

Anna's eyes narrowed. She stared at Regulus as if trying to see into his soul.

"That is basically correct," Sona told me, "but incomplete."

"Incomplete?" Kendra frowned.

"Yes," the youngest Sitri nodded, "The Lion of Nemea was not just a monster; it was also a minor god."

"Like Argus," Tsubasa realized instantly.

"Yes," Sona agreed, "And Heracles was still coming into his power as a demi-god. Even though he killed the monster, that was only its body. In time, the Lion would have returned. So Jehovah took the Lion's remains and soul, and transformed them into a Sacred Gear."

"Which should be the end of my theory," I sighed, "Except that since both Sacred Gears and Evil Pieces are involved, common sense mean less than nothing. I don't suppose you happen to know the name of that Sacred Gear?"

"I don't," Sona said, "I'm sure Azazel-sensei would know."

"Regulus Nemea," Anna answered, "It seems obvious when you say it. I'm disappointed I did not think of it myself."

"It's not like you would normally just sit around thinking about Greek monsters or random Sacred Gears," I reassured her.

"Harry did," Reya pointed out.

"Well, I didn't know about the Sacred Gear part," I reminded her, "And I've been going over the original myths, in case it gives me insights into the Zeroes."

"So then Sairaorg Bael's Pawn is the reincarnation of the Nemean Lion," Shiro mused, "I wonder how that happened."

"Yeah, how did it happen, Serafall?" I asked.

"Sister?" Sona looked past me, at Levi-tan. Serafall wilted.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have asked," I frowned and corrected myself, "You probably can't tell us."

"Harry?" Tsubasa copied her King.

"I'm sure the Maou have looked into all of the Devils created through Evil Pieces," I shrugged, "And they can't just give out that info to anyone else. It wouldn't be fair."

"Thanks, Harry," Serafall said with relief.

"Of course, I'm not a Devil, or part of any Peerage, so you can tell me, right?" I teased. She slapped my arm.

Below us, Koneko was getting desperate and Regulus seemed to be getting annoyed. Finally, he attacked. He easily knocked her arms aside, and swung his hand upwards with two fingers extended. She was not directly hit, leaning back just out of range. But whether through some divine or Sacred Gear power, or even just air pressure, she was cut. Her jacket was only lightly scored by his middle finger. But both invisible claws cut through her uniform and lightly sliced her skin. The bottom band of her bra was also caught in the attack, but she finally zipped her coat closed before it turned into a wardrobe malfunction.

Those would have to wait for Ise's matches, I supposed.

The wound forced Koneko to focus. She took a breath and pulled her rage to heel. She retracted her claws, and dropped into one of the stances Kendra had drilled into her. But the light of Senjutsu didn't fade. Instead, it surrounded her entire gloved fists.

Which, in turn, made me wonder how well the gloves were working after she damaged them from the inside. I might have to make her a custom, fingerless pair.

She stepped in again, launching the most technically skilled set of attacks so far this fight. She blocked his next wild slash. She scored a hit to his shoulder. Then a sweeping kick to his knee, but it didn't knock him down. He tried to counter with his own kick. The slender Devil slid around it. She countered with a powerful uppercut to his jaw. His head was driven back, but he still did not appear to be hurt.

He did look aggravated. He caught her next punch, holding her wrist. Then his free hand slashed down, all five fingers extended. And this time the claws weren't quite invisible. Instead, there was a noticeable warping of the air in front of each digit.

Koneko used his grip against him. She pulled herself closer and Regulus off balance. His attack flew past her, his forearm harmlessly bumping her shoulder instead. She twisted her arm free. She used the momentum, and all of her minimal body weight. Her right hand flashed even brighter as she drove it into his ribs.

CRACK!

The arena's microphone caught the sound of bones snapping. Regulus's face contorted in pain and surprise. Koneko danced back with a satisfied look.

"If it bleeds, we can kill it," I commented, noting the flecks of red appearing around his lips and nose, probably an indicator of damage to his lung.

With just over seven minutes left on the clock, Regulus let out a roar of genuine anger. Then he moved. His hands flashed, and cut through the torso and left sleeve of her jacket. At least my work stopped the attacks from cutting her, but I didn't think it would take much more.

'It may be that our other efforts to improve the coats have compromised their protection from slashing attacks,' Lash noted.

'Or his former god and Sacred Gear BS somehow makes his claws count as something else," I watched carefully, "or multiple somethings."

He followed it up with a kick to the side while she was recovering.

"His skills are still mediocre," Kendra looked unhappy, "But his strength and speed are dramatically higher than what he was displaying before. And I was right, he is reading her."

"The primary power of the Regulus Nemea Sacred Gear is to increase the physical abilities of the owner," Coira told us, looking at her phone, "It wouldn't be surprising if that power carried over to his reincarnated Devil form."

"Or perhaps that roar was him shouting 'Promotion: Queen' in lion language," Yvette sounded like such a thing might make for a good plotline.

"Lash can't cover animal speech. Most of the time," I considered it, knowing of at least one mastadog exception, "If Language doesn't either, that would make sense."

"Perhaps another thing to test with Lingua Prima," Sona mused.

Regulus pulled back his arm, making a fist. As Koneko recovered from the slashes, he punched her square in the nose. It bent the wrong way with a sickening crunch, and blood began to pour down her face and onto her jacket. While she was staggered and struggling to stay up, he kicked her in the stomach. Well, more like he put his foot on her belly and pushed her away, than a proper kick.

That earned a round of annoyed grumbles from everyone around me. Me? I was just pondering if having an indestructible skin would prevent his hair slash fur from burning or not.

He extended his claws and crouched. Like the lion in human for he was, he pounced. But before he landed, Koneko vanished.

"Koneko Toujou had been withdrawn and the Gremory Peerage forfeits this match," Naud proclaimed brightly, "Winner, Regulus!"

Koneko reappeared on Rias's platform, and Asia immediately ran over treat her.

"Sorry," the tiny girl told her master. The Bishop's power restored her nose and healed the cuts.

"No," Rias comforted her, "You did well, all things considered."

"He is like me," Koneko said, "Not a Nekoshou, but some form of monster cat."

Rias nodded, considering that.

"Okay, time for the next match!" the announcer's annoying voice pulled Gremory back to the Rating Game.

"Rias Gremory rolls a six," Diehauser informed anyone who wasn't watching the screen zoomed in on Rias's platform, "And Sairaorg Bael rolls a three."

"With a nine, that means anyone except Sairaorg himself can go out. Who will we…"

He was cut off when Sairaorg raised his hand.

"Rias," he called out across the field, "My Bishop Coriana wishes to challenge the Oppai Dragon to a one on one duel. What do you say?"

"There it is," Shiro said sharply. We all tensed, especially we three teachers. Since the press conference, we had been trying to figure out what the plans Sairaorg mentioned might be.

On their podium, Rias and Ise shared a look. Ise nodded. Rias stared at him for a moment longer, and then nodded.

"I accept," Rias announced.

Rias's Pawn and Sairaorg's Bishop stepped onto their respective teleportation pads, and were zapped down to the field. Ise was wearing his normal uniform. Coriana was wearing a business suit, but this one was different than the one she had worn at the press event. A jet black suit jacket and matching shirt. Moderately short skit, but technically a professional length. The jacket only had a trio of buttons leaving her white blouse mostly visible. But the blouse was designed without the top two or three buttons to hide her cleavage. She had on a red tie, only it was tucked into her shirt and her breasts. She was also wearing pantyhose; that or stockings long enough I couldn't see the tops under her skirt. Her outfit was completed with a pair of black leather stiletto heels.

She smirked sexily at Ise, and nodded slightly to him. He returned the gesture. Then, as he raised his hand and summoned a familiar mandala, she bent down (making sure to show him plenty of décolletage) and took off her shoes.

Odd.

"Maybe she is a martial artist?" Coira's tone mirrored most of our expressions.

"She does not move like one," Shiro said.

"Breasts, liberate your words," Ise proclaimed, "Pai-lingual!"

The members of Sona's Peerage shuddered. By Sairaorg's Bishop didn't seem to care, as the spell settled over her. Instead she just reached in and undid the lowest button on her jacket.

Ise's eyes widened.

The next button opened.

Ise raised his gauntleted hand.

The last button almost popped off, and her breasts jiggled from the release of pressure.

Ise lowered his hand, staring at her.

Coriana rolled her shoulders, making her chest dance again. But mainly it was to loosen her suit coat. Which she began to slowly slip out of.

"Ise, attack her!" Rias shouted.

"I can't," he yelled back.

"Why not?" she demanded. Then she reddened slightly and asked, "What are her breasts telling you?"

"They are telling me what piece of clothing she is going to take off next!" he roared.

I wanted to bash my head against something. But I settled for dropping my face into both palms. Only for a moment though. Something bugged me, and not what you are thinking.

"Then just hit her with Dress Break," Rias looked scandalized to say that, "Or shoot her."

"I can't," he sounded moderately regretful, "No man could attack a woman willingly stripping for him."

The Bishop hiked up her skirt slightly, revealing that she was indeed wearing stockings. Which she started to peel off her left leg.

Serafall and Tsubasa put their hands over my eyes. I sighed, and pulled them away.

"I'm trying to watch," I told them.

"Why, does Harry like what he sees?" Tsubasa asked, her tone both Dangerous and a little dangerous, too.

"Harry has seen much better," I said giving each of my girls a pointed look. That seemed to mollify them slightly, but annoyed Duncan.

Of course, in addition to finding all four of them more attractive than Coriana, I also meant that she wasn't a very good stripper, seemingly lacking in both training and natural talent.

Not that I was going to tell them that.

"I'm trying to figure out what her endgame is," I informed them, as the first stocking fluttered away. Rias looked like she wanted to pull her hair out.

"What do you mean?" Sona asked.

"Fine, Ise won't attack her while she is stripping," I answered, "And what happens when she is done? He normally blasts their clothing and then shoots them. So all she is doing is saving her outfit and buying herself some time. There has to be more to her plan. At least, I would hope there is."

"Maybe she intended to keep going," Anna suggested, "to actually seduce him."

I looked at her incredulously.

"We do know multiple women who are willing to go to absurd lengths to try to have the Red Dragon Emperor's child," Tsubaki added, forcing me to reconsider.

"Irina, Xenovia, Koneko's sister," Saji counted.

"Not Irina anymore," I countered, "But you have a point. Still, how does that win her the match? I don't think Sairaorg is willing to forfeit this fight, just so his Bishop can try to get pregnant. If that's her goal."

"Maybe she intends to exhaust him?" Yvette suggested suggestively.

"More likely," Sona said sternly, and I silently thanked her for being the voice of reason, "She is willing to go through with that. Otherwise presumably Pai-lingual would detect the deception. But she and Sairaorg are aware of Ise's relationships, and they expect Rias to forfeit the match before it goes that far."

I withdraw my thanks. And the Bishop's second stocking was off.

"Maybe she's got gun boobs," Tomoe suddenly said. She straightened her back, and thrust her small bosoms forward. That got a round of sighs.

"Maybe…" I agreed thoughtfully.

"Harry," Serafall called out cautiously. Like she wasn't sure if I had lost it, was going to play a prank, or had actually found something.

"I don't mean that she's a Fem-bot," I told them, "But what if the first thing she did, before Ise cast Pai-lingual, was to set up an attack spell? A small… ish mandala, under her bra or undies. It could be slowly charging up, as she draws this out."

Even for a tease, it was taking her a long time to unbutton her blouse.

"Then, when she takes off the right piece of clothing, bam. She can be pretty much sure that Ise will be staring right at the attack and mostly defenseless."

"That…" Sona started to say something, but quickly trailed off.

"It is an ingenious plan," Kendra agreed, "The sort of thing we might try, if we had a target like Hyoudou."

"I suppose we will find out when she finishes," Duncan said flatly.

But he was wrong. After finally getting out of her shirt, and then her skirt, Coriana was left in her matching bra and panties set, and her tie. Ise was practically drooling at this point. She turned her back to him, wriggled her butt, and then bent down. She grasped the band of her panties, and started to lower them.

Suddenly, Ise's gaze hardened.

"BOOST BOOST BOOST BOOST!" Ddraig roared, and the red scaled gauntlet quickly lifted into firing position.

Coriana looked back, her eyes widening in surprise, and a bit of fear.

"BRA FIRST! PANTIES LAST!" my friend's yell bordered on a shriek.

"Dragon Shot!" the gauntlet shouted.

A column of light engulfed the Bishop, and a moment later she reappeared next to her King.

"Bael Bishop retires?" Naud announced uncertainly, "Gremory team takes the round?"

The children in the audience (and Irina, who was holding a giant banner) cheered for the Oppai Dragon. Ise was teleported back to Rias's platform. He turned his back to Sairaorg's team. And then he gave his King a quick wink. For just a moment her annoyed expression turned into a subtle smirk, but just was quickly it was gone. I turned to Sona in surprise, and she met my eyes with a similar expression.

Had my perverted friend really just played the Bael Peerage like that? I knew he was a halfway decent actor, and Rias was a good strategist, if not quite on Sona's level.

'Ise did wait until after Coriana began to remove her underwear to attack,' Lash noted, 'If he knew that she was intended to do so in advance thanks to Pai-lingual, he need not have waited.'

'You make an entirely valid point,' I agreed.

'And he is not wrong, either,' she continued, 'If she did intend to fully strip, her bottom should have been last. Though she likely intended to leave the tie on. Of course, it would have been acceptable removed her undergarments earlier, if she used her shirt…'

I sighed and tried to block her out. I didn't want to put her in the box, I wanted her commentary on the match.

The next match lasted barely two minutes. Rias rolled a one and Sairaorg a four. Each sent a Rook, Rias only having Rossweisse left, and the Bael team sending out Ladora Buné, the older but more normal looking of the Sairaorg's two Rooks. He almost immediately turned into a twenty foot long black dragon. And Rossweisse just as quickly hit him with four different ice spells, two wind spells, two water spells, and a lightning spell. And three copies of each of them. The barrage took him down, but a gout of dragonfire incinerated the left arm and side of her armor, seriously scorching her skin despite her defensive nature and a hasty protection spell.

"She should have let Rias get her one of your coats," Tsubasa noted, "something that would have fit over her armor."

Rossweisse was declared the winner, and Asia set about treating her wounds. While that happened, the two kings stepped up to the podiums again.

"Gremory rolls a two," Naud informed the crowd, "and Bael rolls another four. Gremory can't send out her surviving Rook again, so some combination of her Knights and Bishops. But will Bael send out his other Rook? Or also a combination of lower point pieces?"

The domes covered the teams. Once the decision timer counted down, the teleport circles appeared on the field.

"It looks like Bael has sent out both of his Knights," the announcer continued, "But Gremory has only sent out Xenovia Quarta…"

"Did you really miss that?" Azazel demanded incredulously. And Diehauser just shook his head.

"Miss what?" Naud asked.

"You will find out in a moment," the Emperor informed him.

Beruka Furcas was still in his full armor, but was now on a horse, and carrying a jousting lance. He has a second, lighter lance strapped to the back of his saddle. His partner, Liban Crocell wore the same blue padding, but now had pieces of bronze colored armor over the top. It wasn't full armor; parts of his arms and stomach were unarmored, and his legs were mostly armor free.

Furcas nudged his horse forward immediately.

"I'm not sure what your King is thinking," he said sternly, "You maybe be a power type, and a wielder of Light, but she cannot think that you could defeat two opponents?"

Xenovia didn't say anything. She casually pulled Ex-Durandal off her back, and hefted the giant blade into position.

"No matter how strong you are, it matters not if you cannot hit your opponent," Furcas continued to lecture, "and when it comes to speed, I will not lose out to anyone."

Then his disappeared from a moment. Then next instant, seven of him were charging at Xenovia.

"Some of these are just after images," he explained, "But some are actual clones. The question is, can you figure out…"

He stopped abruptly, both speaking and moving. At least the real Beruka did. The copies all vanished. Xenovia smirked, and started to swing Durandal. As she lifted it, the blade slipped from her hands, and slammed into the ground with an especially loud thud. Xenovia started to reach for it. Her limbs shook, as if she was having trouble standing.

"You may as well come out," Liban called, "It is obvious you are there. Our Gears are similar, yet different. I immobilize what I see by increasing the effect of gravity. And you immobilize what you see by halting the flow of time, Gaspar Vladi."

The young vampire dropped the invisibility spell.

"Is this a foul?" Naud shouted, "Has the Gremory team sent out ano…"

He was cut off as Diehauser dope-slapped him.

"The Bishop was there the entire time. He hid behind the Knight, and enacted his invisibility immediately after the teleportation. It is not his fault you were too inept to see it."

Az nodded.

"What will you do, child?" Liban sounded almost kind, "Will you fight?"

There was a distinct, and familiar, clanking sound. Xenovia had made contact with her sword. But not the hilt. Instead she touched the blade wrapping.

"From what I have heard," Gaspar said, "Your power also only works so long as you hold your gaze on your target. Which is born out since you are still looking at Miss Xenovia, not me."

Then two pieces clicked off of Ex-Durandal. And Xenovia vanished. Liban blinked, and drew his sword. The next instant, sparks shot off his blade and he was pushed back.

"I know my weakness," he said, this time angrily, "Do you think I have not trained to fight opponents I can't see?"

"Even if you have, can you fight an opponent who is faster than you, invisible, and using two weapons?"

Xenovia's disembodied voice asked flatly, followed by a quick series of metallic clangs.

"Excaliburs Rapidly and Transparency," Shiro said, having seen the two Excalibits in the moment before Xenovia activated them, "An especially difficult to counter combination."

"Sight Inversion," Gaspar proclaimed, "Vertigo. Poison Leaf Rash. Armor Break. Fae Glue. Fae Glue. Fae Glue."

The first four spells he cast two at a time. And the trio of Fae Glue mandalas appeared together, even though he chanted the name once for each.

I was so proud.

The spells all hit Beruka, who of course could not dodge. But the time stop also seemed to lower the victim's resistance. Since they could not mentally or mystically brace themselves. When Alexandra's son unfroze, he would be mostly blind, terribly off balance, itching all over, his armor much more likely to break, and glued to his horse. Who was also glued to the arena floor. Gaspar turned towards the duel.

"I will help you Miss Xenovia," he called out. He tried to lock his eyes on Liban. The Knight was darting around like Toot-toot trying to protect the last slice of pizza, keeping out of the way of Xenovia's invisible attacks and making it harder for her to accurately aim in the first place.

A light cut appeared on Liban's cheek. Then a chunk of his left bracer was torn off. A spot of blood appeared on his blade, but the injury did not reveal Xenovia.

"Sn… Snoepglas!" Gaspar shouted. That got a lot of odd glances as he used the weak shields to hem in Liban. Everyone expected Sairaorg's Knight to smash right through the spell. The Dhampyr's eyes flashed. Crocell slammed into the semi-transparent wall to his right. It cracked. But the cracks spread at a speed that made glaciers look fast. And the individual shards of the spell remained trapped in place. In time.

The blue padding over Liban's stomach split. Then the skin underneath began to be cut. Before he was disemboweled, he vanished.

"Bael Knight Liban Crocell has been defeated," Naud declared, "Now it is two on…"

He trailed off as Gaspar was suddenly thrown to the side. A lance appeared where he had been. Then a fountain of blood erupted around the tip of the weapon. Xenovia reappeared for a moment, and then she was returned to Rias's podium. Asia immediately began to treat the deep gouge in the former exorcist's right breast.

"Senpai," Gaspar said sharply, slipping back to the Japanese title.

Beruka turned, as if trying to find Gaspar.

"Your adhesive broke easily enough," the horseman said, "But your other spells are more clingy. Still, from what I have seen and heard, you will not be much of a threat alone."

That was it. Sight Inversion, took the blind spot that existed naturally in humanoid eyes, and instead made it the only part that could see. Even though the brain was normally able to fill in the gap, the inversion was too much for it to deal with. So as long as the spell was active, the target's range of vision was only about three percent. Which from my limited understanding of eyeballs was even less than it should be. Combined with the disorientation, it should have made it easy for Gaspar to avoid Beruka. Instead, the little guy stood up as straight and tall as he could, and glared at the Knight. I thought he might be trying to freeze Furcas again, but if that was Gaspar's intent, it didn't work.

"It is the responsibility of the men of the Gremory household to protect girls," the kid declared darkly, shadows forming around him, "Instead I made senpai protect me."

Beruka locked on to Gaspar's voice. His horse turned unsteadily, until he could see the younger Devil. He lowered his lance and prepared to charge.

"Thank you for confirming that my spells are still working."

Saying that Gaspar reached out for his opponent. Beruka was a good dozen feet away from where Vladi had landed, well out of reach. Except a clawing, undead talon of the deepest black formed around Gaspar's hand. It closed the gap in the blink of an eye. It tore through the Knight's armor like wet cardboard, partly due to the weakening spell. But it was mostly due to Gaspar's rage driven strength and improved mastery over his nature and element. The claws continued, digging into Beruka's chest.

"Bael Knight Furcas is defeated," Diehauser proclaimed before the blow could become lethal, "Winner, Gremory team."

"Rias has taken a pretty good lead," Naud commented, "Trading one Rook and one Knight for two Knights, a Bishop, and a Rook. But Sairaorg himself has not taken the field yet, nor has either Queen. Let's get ready for our next match!"

Gaspar was returned to Rias's crew, and immediately began crying on Xenovia and apologizing. She tried awkwardly to comfort him. Asia and Koneko stepped in to help her. But his tears only stopped when Ise complimented him on standing up and 'taking revenge for the girl'.

"Okay, we have a three on the Gremory side," Az noted before Naud could, "And a one from Sairaorg. That means he has to send out his last Bishop. And Rias doesn't have much of choice either. Unless she has some sort of crazy plan in mind, she basically has to send out her second Knight."

Sure enough, Rias did not send out Asia alone. Instead, Kiba appeared on the field, opposite Misteeta Sabnock. Misty had his white hood draw low, hiding his pale green hair and emphasizing the light glow of his violet eyes. Kiba's uniform seemed oddly lumpy, and I suppressed a grin.

Kiba didn't wait. A stiletto like dagger appeared between each of his fingers. He flicked the six blades at Misty, and then summoned a second set to throw.

"Your idea?" I asked Shiro.

"Mine, but also partly yours and his," he admitted, "But Miss Senju was the one who actually tutored him in knife throwing."

I gave him a sideways glance, not remembering saying anything about him using throwing daggers. Before I could probe further, an explosion shook the battle field.

The knives had hit Misty's shield. Three clattered off and fell to the ground. But three had snapped. Two released large balls of fire while also flinging ice spikes. The third unleashed a torrent of electrified water.

"I merely suggested throwing knives as a medium range attack," Shiro explained, "You suggested he combine more than two elements in his swords, and potentially opposing ones. And while he still cannot created stable three element swords, he found if he doesn't worry about the stability and deliberately weakens the blades…"

"He gets handmade yin-yang bomb grenades," I cut him off.

"Precisely."

"And he mixes in some normal knives," Kendra realized, "to make it even harder to anticipate and counter."

Young Mr. Sabnock did not take that lying down. He put up a stronger shield to buy a moment. Then a circle of purple flames appeared around Kiba's feet. Chains flowed out of the seal, crawling over Kiba and sinking in.

"I have sealed your ability to create swords," Misty boasted, panting slightly, "That is my Sacred Gear. And without it you don't stand a chance."

Kiba did not say anything. He darted forward. Misty scoffed.

"You would fight me hand to hand? This spell will..."

Kzzzz!

Misty had started to form a spell, but a silver tube appeared in Kiba's hand. With a familiar sound, a blade of purple energy appeared, and cut through the mandala, cancelling it. I didn't know it could do that, but I guess he was the swordsman and fully trained exorcist.

"You let him borrow your lightsaber?" Tsubasa asked incredulously.

"You want to borrow my lightsaber?" I asked incredulously.

"Yes," Kiba said conciliatorily, "I think it is wise to carry a backup, in case any of Sairaorg's Peers can control metal or otherwise resist my normal blades. I am fully trained in the use of an exorcist's sword, and Light is the weakness of Devils. Master Yoshimo confirmed that your lightsaber is far superior to any of the blades he carries."

Of course I had let Shiro see my lightsaber when he asked. He was quite impressed, and had asked if I could revamp the seven swords of light he carried.

"You won't have any particular use for it during the tournament," Rias added.

"Shh," I scolded her, "Say that and the mysterious force will arrange for the Old Maou to attack, specifically since I won't have my best weapon."

"Then more the fools them," she grinned slightly, "considering all of the gods who are attending. And you will be in Sitri box, so I doubt you will lack for support. And from what I have seen and heard of your swordsmanship, you would be better sticking to your spells, weakness to light be damned."

"Ha, funny," I acknowledged sarcastically. Then I studied them both.

"Fine," I agreed, "But you owe me one, Kiba. And if you break it…"

"The Gremory family will see to it you receive everything you need to recreate it," Rias assured me, "And possibly even improve it. I understand there are lightsabers with more than one blade or even crossguards."

My eyes widened at the potential, not that I wanted a staff saber or anything. Still, I quickly presented him with the milled aluminum tube.

"Yup," I confirmed for her.

Misty danced back with a look of terror.

"And it appears blocking my ability to create swords, does not prevent me from doing this," Kiba noted. Tyrfing appeared in his left hand.

The fight barely lasted a minute after that. I guess Misty was too used to opponents falling apart when he stopped their primary ability. And Kiba recovering Tyrfing wasn't well known yet. Unable to match the Knight's speed, and his spells cut down by the two swords, Sabnock's defeat was swift and inevitable.

"Another unexpected upset," Naud declared, "and the rest of the matches will start at a minimum of five points, since that is what the Bael team has available. Now, we will take a short break, before we roll for the next battle."

Next: Beyond the Outer Gates Lies... a Lion and a Dragon?