S.R: For my sanity, I decided not to do every single Rating Game like I had originally intended. Instead I'll list the results of all of them up until the point where this chapter starts. So with that out of the way let's get to to the story.

The last few weeks had been… interesting to Issei and his fiance Sona. After their first Rating Game with Diodora, they decided a wait and see strategy would be best for the rest of their games. The second game they had was for Sona's peerage against Zephyrdor. Since Issei wanted to kick his ass for openly mocking Sona's dream he reveled in the fact that he would be in the battle as part of Sona's peerage. In the end though it was a let down. He didn't even have to activate Boosted Gear to thrash the other peerage king.

Then they had a Rating Game against Rias. She and her peerage put up a decent fight, managing to just barely take Kalawarner out of the fight after she defeated both of Rias's pawns and fought a 2 on 1 fight with Kiba and Xenovia. But she was avenged by Koneko, who completely surprised Rias and her peerage with how much she had grown since joining Issei's peerage. Though the nekomata retired from the game it wasn't due to being defeated so much as it was because she wore herself out after finishing off the two knights and defending herself from Akeno, long enough to be rescued by Bova. But in the end thanks to Sona's strategy, and the strength of Issei's peerage Rias was defeated.

The fourth Rating Game was Sona's peerage against Seekvaira. While it was more challenging than Zephyrdor, Seekvaira's peerage was not as difficult as Rias's peerage. So once again with an excellent strategy from Sona they claimed victory.

"You know the two of you are somethin' else."

Sairoarg commented when they met up a day before the Rating Game that they were going to have. The heir to the Bael clan and cousin to Issei had been coming around to hang out with them in an attempt to get to know his long lost cousin better.

"What do you mean?"

"Sirzechs and the other Satan's decided to make your achievements known to the public. You've handled several rouge fallen-angels, Issei helped dissolve Rias's engagement to Riser, You guys and Rias helped the Grauzauber during a siege, You fought off a Cadre class fallen-angel, defeated a traitor to devil kind, and are undefeated against the other peerage kings your age."

"Either we just have the good luck to get through it all, or we've got some seriously bad luck that causes us to be involved in all of this stuff."

Issei replied, not wanted to get a big head despite the fact their accomplishments were praise worthy. Sona rolled her eyes at her fiance's words. Though she did agree on the fact they didn't go looking for trouble.

"But I plan to prove myself as one of the strongest, so my peerage and I'll be handing you your first defeat in a Rating Game tomorrow."

"Good luck with that."

Issei replied, confident in their power.

"Well It was fun, but I've got to get back and finish up a few final preparations for tomorrow. I'll see you during the Rating Game."

Sairoarg replied as he stood up from his seat at the table where they'd been eating lunch while talking. Issei smiled as he gave his cousin a small wave, and Sona politely said that they'd see him later.

"Issei, he might be more of a challenge than Rias."

"Yeah. He suppresses it well, but thanks to training with Tannin and Tiamat, I can sense a persons general power level."

The brown haired teen replied as he locked eyes with his fiance.

The Next Day

Because of how popular they had become after all of their achievements were made public, The Four Satan's had also declared that Issei and Sona's Rating Game against Sairoarg would be public as well. Since it was going to be viewed by a lot of people a professional announcer was brought in to be the host, instead of Grayfia doing it like she had back when Issei had joined Rias's peerage to take down Riser.

"Welcome one and all to a very exciting event. This will be a Rating Game for the ages. For the first time since the introduction of the Rating Games, our Satan's have opened them up to the young heirs and heiresses to the pillar clans. So you can all expect this to be an interesting match, especially when we have Sairoarg Bael, heir to the Bael clan facing off against Issei Lucifuge, the current head of the Lucifuge family!"

The commentator announced, though Issei grimaced when he was mentioned. For formalities sake anytime he was going to be introduced as the head of the Lucifuge clan, his other last names were going to be dropped. Back when he first met his parents he had dropped the Lucifuge from his name, because it felt like a mouth full when combined with Gremory and Hyoudou, but then he had to take it anyway because of politics. Even after settling into things it still felt strange to him, and even more so when his other names were dropped.

Eventually the hype up for the Rating Game was done and it was time to begin.

"What's our move?"

Garran asked as he looked towards the king and queen of the group. For some reason the hairs on the back of his neck were standing up.

"Sairoarg and his peerage are powerful given the fact that like us they are undefeated. So we've got to work carefully. For now though..."

Sona commented before trailing off in thought. After a moment she looked up.

"Given what I know of his peerage members this will be very tricky and we'll have to pay close attention to the rolls."

Sona commented, a bit put off by the fact their Rating Game was special in more ways than one. Because of their power and brain, it was decided that rather than risk taking all day with a regular Rating Game they would play with a set of rules known as Dice Rules.

Each side was given a six sided die, and each peerage member was assigned a number based on what type of Evil Piece they were in their respective peerages. Both peerage Kings would roll their dice and the results would be added together to determine who could be on the field.

"How so?"

Bova asked, since he wasn't paying attention when the rules were announced.

"Pawns are worth 1, unless more pieces were used on them, so in Sairoarg's case his Pawn Regulus would be a 7. Bishops and Knights are both worth 3, while Rooks are worth 5, Queens are 9, and Kings can be anywhere from 1 to 12. Let's say Sairoarg rolls a 5 and we roll a 6. That means a total of 11 can be spent. So Sairoarg could send out both of his knights and a Bishop for a total of 9, while we could counter by sending me as a queen who also counts for 9."

"So?"

Bova asked not really understanding what Sona was getting at.

"Sairoarg's peerage is… unique. Every member of his group is stronger than you would expect. Enough so that we have to be careful not to let ourselves get overwhelmed. After all Issei is the only one here that gets stronger the longer a fight drags out. Speaking of, you should probably be using Boost even when you aren't fighting Ise. Sairoarg has the brute strength to punch through a dragons scale when he gets serious."

Nodding Issei called out his Boosted Gear, though he didn't start boosting up just yet.

"Alright then, that's the fifteen minute mark, the time to talk strategy is over! Let the Rating Game begin!"

The announcer spoke up. Sighing Issei reached for the die that he had been give for the game and rolled. Sairoarg rolled his die just as quickly. Both peerages were given a screen with which they could see the results of the rolls, and watch the fights, so they watched on as the screen began to display the dice rolls.

"Alright it looks like Sairoarg has rolled a 4 and Issei has rolled a 6, for a total of 10."

They heard from the commentator.

"That's going to get old very quickly isn't it?"

Issei asked, already fighting off a headache because the sound of the announcer's voice echoed loudly around them.

But he didn't get an answer as Sona was already directing his peerage.

"Let's start off with a bang. Garran and Koneko, go have fun."

Even though they trusted her judgment and would follow her, they still had to get confirmation from Issei before marching out to fight. He just nodded at them with a smile.

"Give 'em hell."

Garran and Koneko were met by both of Sairoarg's knights, and one of his bishops.

"Oh, it looks like Issei has send out a combination of his Rook Koneko, and Bishop Garran, while Sairoarg sent out his Knights Liban and Beruka alongside his Bishop Misteeta. Will numbers prevail and Sairoarg take the first win, or will Issei's peerage come out on top even though it's an uneven fight? Who knows, but we'll certainly find out!"

Ignoring the announcer entirely Koneko started to stretch while Garran assembled his Grimoire. Sona had told them to start things off with a bang, so neither one were going to hold back.

"I guess we'll start."

Misteeta commented as he pointed his staff towards Koneko, hoping to use his Sacred Gear to seal off her ability to move so she could be overwhelmed by the two knights who could easily over power Garran. Or at least that's what he thought.

"Oh? You're somehow preventing me from using my nekomata abilities."

Koneko commented as she ducked under a lance thrust from Beruka, before lashing out with a kick, that caused a sickening crunch like sound from the leg of Beruka's horse. Since he trusted Koneko to hold her own long enough for him to get rid of Sairoarg's Bishop Garran ignored her fight and pointed his fully combined grimoire towards Misteeta.

"Frost Surge!"

Unleashing a wave of ice, towards the enemy Bishop, Garran activated the Teleportation spell his grimoire had stored to move out of the way of a sword strike from Sairoarg's other knight Liban.

"Glacial Burst."

Another spell was cast, this time a rippling shock-wave that chilled his enemies to the bone burst out from his scepter. But rather than point it towards Misteeta who had only just gotten out of the way of his first spell, Garran had pointed it at Liban.

He knew the swordsman would try and dodge, but that was what he wanted. It was a distraction so Koneko could throw Beruka and his horse at Liban from behind.

"Garran and Koneko have remarkable teamwork, despite the fact they haven't been communicating at all! Even after Misteeta used her Trick Vanish Sacred Gear on the female Rook, Koneko is still fighting on as a true powerhouse Rook. It's an absolutely wild battle!"

The announcer commented at this point, finally having regained enough of himself to do his job and speak. Not that anyone in the audience could blame him. Most of them were still in awe of the fight, not having really expected to see the level of power that the group of fighters were showing off.

"Oh, and there goes Misteeta! That must have hurt quite a bit to be taken out by one attack even if it was from a Rook."

The commentator said as Koneko launched a sneak attack on the Bishop that was distracted by running from Garran's barrage of ice.

"Relax. I've got the rest of this."

Koneko commented to Garran as they stood side by side facing the two knights that Sairoarg had sent out to battle them.

"If you say so."

Nodding her confirmation, Koneko surprised everyone when she let her nekomata ears and tail out. They weren't surprised by the fact she was a nekomata, nor by the fact she had stopped hiding it (at least those that already knew), no the shock was from the fact her tail had split, making her a two tailed nekomata.

"Oh boy, That's one powerful Rook Lord Lucifuge has in his peerage!"

No longer suppressing her nekomata side, Koneko received the full benefits of her species. Not just the enhanced senses, but also the agility, flexibility, and magical ability. Yet those that knew her well enough could see she was still holding back as she one sidedly beat down Sairoarg's two knights.

"The first fight goes to Lord Lucifuge!"

With that the two returned to the base that Issei's peerage was using for the Rating Game.

"Nice job guys. But counting Sairoarg himself we've still got 6 left to take down. Don't let up just yet."

Issei commented, as he high-fived Garran while using his other hand to give Koneko a head-pat. Then he rolled the die once again.

"This time Issei has rolled a 3, and Sairoarg a 5, making a total of 8. I wonder what the match up this time will be like."

For the first round Issei and Sona had decided on Garran and Koneko rather quickly, but this round the first one to decide who to sent out was Sairoarg. He only sent his Rook, Gandoma.

"Other than his extraordinary strength I can't think of anything special about Gandoma or the Balam clan."

"So he might be the least threatening of them?"

"Right."

Sona and Issei went back and forth, but as they thought about how to handle it Kalawarner stepped up.

"I've got this one."

"Are you sure?"

Sona asked. Kalawarner just nodded her head. Without a better idea they agreed.

"Alright but be careful."

Issei and Sona said in unison. Smiling Kalawarner nodded at the two before making her way to the battle field to face off with Gandoma.

"It looks like this match up will be Rook versus Knight. Gandoma is known for his abnormal level of strength, but Kalawarner is a former fallen-angel. Who truly has the advantage? I don't know but I suspect we'll find out!"

The commentator spoke up, somewhat surprised at just how little info he'd been given to talk about Kalawarner if she appeared. Of course he wasn't given much for the others either, but of Issei's peerage she was the one that they had the least amount of info on.

"Don't hold it against me, since I'm not holding back."

"I'm not either."

Kalawarner responded as she drew her sword and attached her shield to her wrist. Gandoma was being cautious since Kalawarner had a longer reach with her sword, but he did get close enough for him to be able to attack if he saw the chance.

It was a fairly close fight, teetering back and forth, as they clashed. Gandoma's strength being enough to offset Kalawarner's advantage in reach. Especially after a bad block with her shield caused the devil to bat it away from her, the clasp holding it in place against her arm being broken from the force of his fist meeting the shield.

But Kalawarner wasn't giving up easily, having scored a few dozen small cuts on the devil.

"That sword really hurts. But I can power through the pain long enough to take you down!"

Gandoma commented after a he purposely gave the swords-woman an opening to take advantage of. Kalawarner's blade had only just started to cut into his side when the rather tall devil brought his arm into his side and pinched the blade in place long enough for him to lash out with his free hand. His fist hammered into Kalawarner's cheek and sent her flying back, before she harshly bounced headfirst off the ground upon landing. But then he fell to his knees and declared he was retiring as well. His words only just managed to come out before he finished falling to the ground out cold.

"Oh, a draw for the second round of this battle. While not quite enough to even things back up, it does help shift the balance back towards an even match for Sairoarg."

Was heard as the announcer spoke up. Issei and the rest of his peerage were a little sad that Kalawarner didn't manage a perfect win, but they were proud that she managed the draw.

"I didn't expect his strength to be able to allow him to power through that. I mean she had the advantage in reach, speed, and the fact that her weapon is a holy blade."

Sona commented, finding herself very impressed with Sairoarg's Rook.

"Yeah, but we'll have to figure out something to cheer her up when we're done here. She's probably going to be beating herself up over it."

Issei commented as he started to roll his die for the third time. He had a 3 pop up for his roll.

"Oh, Lord Lucifuge has rolled a 3 and the young heir to the Bael clan has rolled a two for a grand total of 5!"

"I'm going this time boss."

Bova commented, his blood boiling to fight. He had held himself back as much as he could, but the teenage dragon couldn't stand the boredom any longer.

"Alright. Be careful though."

"Nah, it won't be that hard."

Bova commented with a grin. He could see who he was facing already as Sairoarg had already sent out his second Rook. He knew the young man well. Bova was still smirking even as he strode onto the battleground.

"Hey Ladora, it's been a while."

"Oh boy. I can't afford to hold back now."

Ladora commented when he saw Bova approaching. Both of them just looked at each other for a moment, but then Ladora crossed his arms and began to glow. His body shifted, and stretched to become a rather sizable dragon.

"Hey you finally learned how to do it! Maybe this'll be more fun than I thought!"

Bova commented as he took on his full dragon form as well.

S.R: And cut! Yeah I know, it's a bit cliché to end it there, but I can't keep going. My mind has already shifted back to thinking about my Fairy Tail stuff. But I've still got to update my One piece story. So I have to stop here, and find a way to think about One Piece long enough to start working on that update. I'll see you all next time (A.K.A. some time in November)!