Harbinger of Ruin: Ch.11

The atmosphere was tense inside the Occult Research Clubroom as everyone, dressed in the Kuoh Academy uniform and in her secretary outfit for Kalawarna, were scattered throughout the room while doing their own thing.

Mittelt and Koneko were sitting on the couch with Asia sitting in between them as the three of them each ate a piece of chocolate while the two girls did their best to calm Asia's nerves.

Raynare and Kalawarna were both standing and staring out the windows, but there was no hiding the slight tenseness in their shoulders as Raynare took a deep breath while Kalawarna's gaze narrowed whilst scanning the entirety of the school's grounds in front of her.

Sitting behind her desk, Rias bit her lip as she had divided the school into a rough draft of a chessboard with the Old School building that had the ORC on one side and the main school building with the Student Council Office on the other end.

“You really think they'll be here?” Akeno asked as she looked at her king and Rias nodded with a frown as she looked at the Gym hall that sat in the middle of the field.

“It's the perfect spot to capture as it sits in the middle of the battlefield and can become the decisive point that can bring victory for whoever holds it.”

“That is true. Therefore, we have to make sure he does not get it.” Akeno said and Rias nodded before looking up as the door opened.

“Really?” She asked as Kiba walked in and he blinked while looking down at his body with a raised eyebrow.

“Too much?” He asked and they all just shook their heads at the sight of the teen wearing a black leather jacket with blue jeans, black sneakers and a dark grey chain around his neck with a vial on the pendant part.

“Why not the school outfit?”

“I don't want to buy another one. That and if I'm beating Riser to win that date, I need to look my best.” He answered with a shrug and the girls just rolled their eyes while Rias blushed slightly as she remembered their bet.

However, she didn't have to wallow in the embarrassment of her actions last night as a silver Lucifer crest in the middle of the floor.

A moment later, they all looked ready as Grayfia appeared from it, the woman looking at the room and nodding slightly as she saw all of them looking ready and prepared for battle.

'Good, they'll need it.'

“Are you ready, Lady Rias?” She asked and Rias took a deep breath before nodding as she stood up.

“Ready.”

“Good, I shall take you to the battlefield then.” Grayfia spoke and with a snap of her fingers, they all blinked as the woman vanished while they were still in the clubroom.

However, Kiba hid the shock that was usual for anything mystical of this world as he looked out the window at the kaleidoscope that Kuoh Academy's school grounds were floating in.

“I would like to welcome all nobles and commoners to the Rating Game of Lord Riser Phenex and Lady Rias Gremory for Lady Rias' hand in marriage. Should she lose, the marriage between herself and Lord Riser is to be finalized, but should she win, the marriage contract will be annulled and Lady Rias will be free to marry whoever she pleases.”

“Wait, what? That last part wasn't something I added.” Rias muttered with a frown before looking over in surprise as Kiba cleared his throat and smirked.

“I thought it would be something you overlooked so I called Lord Lucifer and asked if he wouldn't mind adding that one part into the contract.”

“…See, if we win now, I'm definitely marrying you.”

“Let's win first and then we can talk about my payment.” He responded and she rolled her eyes with a giggle before they looked up as Grayfia continued speaking.

“The match will have a five minute planning phase and during this time, any attack on the other team will be seen as a foul and the match will be ended, with the King who fouled being declared as the loser. The match's time limit itself is twenty minutes. Should the time run out, the King with the pieces of most value shall be declared the winner. Good luck and your planning phase begins now.”

“Okay, everyone understands the plan, right?” Rias asked and they all nodded before she looked up in surprise as Kiba opened the door.

“Where are you going?”

“Just going to do something. I'll be back in a few.”

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It took Kiba barely ten seconds or so to cross the entire distance between the two bases and come to a sliding stop just a dozen or so meters away from the base, smirking as he saw Riser's knights and rooks already looking at him the moment he stopped.

“You wish to cause the loss of your King, Knight?” The brown-haired Knight dressed in a combination of silver armour with black accents and a light grey dress asked as she looked at him, a frown adorning her face as Kiba chuckled and shook his head.

“No, I simply came to scope out the competition. After all, we can't attack each other, but there was no penalty for simply coming to talk to you all, were there?” He asked and smirked as they all looked at each other with slight frowns.

“There…is not. So what did you wish to come talk about?” The Chun-Li lookalike asked as she crossed her arms under her ample bosom and Kiba had to force himself to not look at them as he shrugged while placing his hands inside his jacket.

“Nothing much. Just wanted to ask if there's anyone that didn't want to fight.”

“You appear to have the wrong idea, knight. We are here because we follow Lord Riser out of nothing more than loyalty. Even if everyone abandons him, we shall still be there to support him. That is what it means to be a member of his peerage.” The voluptuous woman with short brown hair that had three highlights across it spoke up and Kiba looked at the rather weird outfit she had on before nodding as he looked at the last member.

“Are you in agreement?” He asked and the woman with the large Zweihander and five thin ponytails going around her head didn't hesitate as she nodded, to which Kiba sighed before nodding.

“Very well. Well, I did try this the peaceful way.” He muttered as he turned and began walking back before stopping in his tracks as the woman with the Zweihander spoke up.

“Did you come simply to waste our time?” She asked and Kiba chuckled before he turned around, all four of them being slightly surprised at the now cold gaze in his eyes as he smiled and shook his head.

“No, I simply wished to see if there was a way I could avoid unnecessary conflict for today.”

“You believe you've grown powerful enough to take us on.”

“Oh, not at all.” Kiba's blunt answer confused them as the woman in the qipao frowned.

“Then why say what you said?”

“Oh, let me rephrase what I said. I don't think that I'm powerful enough to take you guys on. I know I'm powerful enough to eliminate all four of you on my own.”

“You wish to test your logic?” The knight woman asked as she reached for her sword before glaring at the woman in the weird biker outfit as she raised a hand to stop her teammates from attacking.

“He's trying to goad you all into attacking.” She answered and their eyes widened slightly before glaring at Kiba as he smirked while looking at the one that stopped them.

“You're a quick one, huh? Well, there goes my entire plan.”

“So, you were bluffing? Ha! As expected of a weak knight.” The knight woman spoke before her eyes widened as an eerie chill filled the air, looking back at Kiba to see him being surrounded by numerous swords in a rose pattern while he held a sword in his grasp.

“Like I said, beating you all would be easy, but since I can't avoid this conflict, I can only say that I'll try my best to make it as painless as possible. Meet you all on the battlefield.” With that said, the blades around him sunk back into the ground as he walked back towards the Old School building.

'Well, the Talk-no-Jutsu failed, so now it's time to beat the shit out of them instead.'

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“Really?” Rias asked as Kiba walked into the room and he scratched the back of his head with an apologetic smile.

“Sorry about that, but I would rather not there be unnecessary conflict if we can avoid it.”

“I understand, but these are enemies that have tormented us for years. There is no place for mercy tonight for they will be trying their best to win this for their master.”

“I know. Hah, is the plan still the same?” He asked and Rias smiled as he shifted back to the plan they had in mind and nodded.

“It is.”

“And have you all done the thing I asked for?” He asked while looking at the former Fallen Angels and half-Fallen Angel in the room, smirking as Akeno simply walked forward and placed four demonic swords on the floor.

However, their demonic aura were nearly non-existent as each of their blades were shining with a bright gold hue, cracks on each of the blades as holy energy seeped from the blades.

“We tried our best to keep it as contained as possible, but as you can see…”

“Oh, these will do wonders.” Kiba spoke with a smile as the Gremory crest appeared under the four blades and the girls rose an eyebrow as the blades sunk into it and vanished.

“Uh, what was that?”

“Pocket dimension spell I made.” He answered with a simple shrug, smirking at their deadpan stares before they all looked up as Grayfia spoke.

“The Planning Phase has ended. May Lilith grant victory to the King who is worthy of it.”

“Go.” The moment she said that, Rias rolled her eyes as both Kiba and Raynare shot through the windows, the former Fallen Angel taking the right forested side of the arena while Kiba took the left forested side.

Right behind them, Koneko and Mittelt leapt out through the open windows and rushed off to the Gym Hall, Akeno sharing a nod with Rias before the two of them followed after the two in the air.

“You have any hope in them finishing this on their own?” Kalawarna asked as she stood guard in front of Rias, Asia standing besides their King as Rias sat down behind her desk with a smile and nodded.

“I do. They have not disappointed me before and they won't start doing it now.”

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“Think they know we're here?” Mittelt asked as she and Koneko hid in the rafters of the gym hall's stage and Koneko just rose an eyebrow before pointing down at the enemy.

Mittelt frowned as she looked at the enemy before letting out a soft sigh as the Rook in the qipao was already looking up at them, which the other three Pawns in the room noticed as the Rook spoke up.

“Come down and face us like true warriors or are you too scared to do so?”

“Ready?” Mittelt asked and Koneko smirked before the two of them leapt from cover.

As they did so, the four below were shocked as Mittelt created a light spear before throwing it down at the ground as hard as she could, the Rook quickly leaping back and getting out of range of the attack along with two of the Pawns.

“Nel!!” However, the same could not be said for the last pawn as she was too late to jump back and a pained cry escaped her lips as the spear exploded against the ground with a powerful explosion of holy energy that burned her.

Nel, Pawn of Lord Riser Phenex' Peerage, has been eliminated

The moment she landed, Mittelt left the Rook for Koneko as she rushed towards the other twin of the Pawn she just took out, her hands and feet covered in Holy Light as she watched the other Pawn quickly trying to intercept her.

The staff-wielding girl dressed in a white haori with a red happi coat thrown over it was the first to attack as she tried a poke at Mittelt's leg, but the blonde was quick to leapt over the attack with a flip while landing behind her opponent.

The staff girl quickly spun her weapon and held it vertical besides her right as Mittelt lashed out with a powerful heel kick, the force of the attack along with the holy light making her arms tremble as she tried her best to push Mittelt away.

However, as she spun around to face her foe, her eyes widened and she cursed as the blonde girl had already rushed towards her second foe who had pulled out a flaming chainsaw from the black dufflebag she was carrying.

“You'll pay! You'll pay for what you did!” The twin sister of the first elimination exclaimed as she leapt at the girl, but Mittelt smirked as she came to a sliding stop before slipping under the wide swing of the girl.

A moment later, a gargled gasp escaped the twin's lips as Mittelt's hand wrapped around her neck, burning her and choking her out as the blonde kicked out her legs from under her before slamming the twin skull first into the ground.

Rolling with the chokeslam to get out of the way of the chainsaw falling onto the ground, Mittelt quickly kicked it off to the side to get it away from the twin lest she wake up before looking up to see a flaming staff coming for her face.

Ile, Pawn of Lord Riser Phenex' peerage, has been eliminated.

Quickly reaching up and catching the staff with both hands as she was nearly burned by it, Mittelt smiled at the announcement before glaring at the last of her foes as the girl glared back.

“You!”

“Yes, me. What are you going to do about it?” Mittelt asked and the girl gritted her teeth before Mittelt used her moment of distraction to deliver a precise kick to the underside of the staff.

Knocking the weapon backwards and away from her, the staff-wielder was forced to let it go as Mittelt leapt forward with a flying side kick that nearly burned her chest.

However, while the blonde was relentless in her attack to make her foe lose, Koneko on the other hand was even with her frowning foe as the taller girl had more reach.

Compared to the average devil, Koneko was certain that she could win a fight, but it was only against her fellow Rooks that the girl was more hesitant that she was shorter and a bit weaker than most of them considering her stature.

Leaning back to dodge the kick aimed at her head, Koneko was quick to dodge the following hook kick from the same leg while taking the girl's support leg out from under her and forcing her onto her behind.

That was what the girl needed as she leapt onto her foe, delivering blow after blow onto the arms of the girl with the qipao who was trying her best to block each of them.

She found her opening as Koneko threw a punch to the side of her arm, letting the girl knock one arm away before sitting up and leaning away from the follow-up punch to her head as she linked her arms up behind the white-haired girl's head.

With a grunt, Koneko felt dazed as she was slammed forehead first into the ground, the other girl quickly taking of her disorientation as she rolled back and pulled Koneko with her before the white-haired girl wheezed as she found herself on her back and in a strangle hold.

Gritting her teeth as she forced her free arm to block some of the pressure on her neck while she tried to free her other arm, the qipao woman smirked as she tightened her grip before her eyes widened as she heard Grayfia's voice.

Mira, Pawn of Lord Riser Phenex's peerage, has been eliminated.

Her head snapped up to look at where the battle was taking place only to be greeted with a holy drop kick to the head, Mittelt grinning as she kicked the girl off of Koneko and sent her rolling across the ground.

However, as Koneko coughed and took deep gulps of air, she let Mittelt pick her up as the blonde spun and threw Koneko at the girl, who had rolled to her feet only to be greeted by a powerful spinning heel kick that sent her blasting right through the wall of the gym and skidding across the ground outside.

Moments later, the world cried as a powerful lightning bolt slammed down upon her and Akeno giggled from where she was floating as the announcement came through.

Xuelan, Rook of Lord Riser Phenex' peerage, has been eliminated.

Looking back down as Koneko and Mittelt walked out, Akeno grinned sadistically as she raised a hand up before swinging it down and lightning cried as numerous bolts slammed down upon the school building, each carrying enough power to reduce a section of it to ashes.

Burent, Shuriya and Marion, Pawns of Lord Riser Phenex' Peerage, have been eliminated.

'Looks like Raynare is busy. A shame truly. I would have loved to punish her for being lazy.' Akeno thought with a smirk even as she sent a lightning bolt flying downwards from the crest flying besides her, the explosive orb shooting down at Koneko and Mittelt being intercepted by the bolt before both exploded with a brilliant flash of light and heat.

“You two go and regroup! You've done your part!” Akeno called out as she floated down, both Mittelt and Koneko nodding as they ran back towards the Old school building while Akeno's smirk grew at the glare the woman floating opposite of her gave her.

“You took my prey away.”

“Oh, I do apologize for that. It's just that you were slow I thought I would die of boredom before you finally decided to hit something.” Akeno said with a soft smile and the woman glared as she clenched her staff tightly.

“Oh, I was going to let you off with one explosion, but it seems as if your master has not taught you manners yet.”

“Let me guess, you're the one who's going to do it for her? Ha! By all mean, let me see if the great 'Bomb Queen' can do something of note in her life.” Akeno fired back and her smirk turned into a sadistic grin as she knew how much Yubelluna hated that nickname.

A moment later, the cry of lightning and the roar of fire echoed in the air as the two elements slammed into each other.

A/N: I just realized I am one lazy bastard 'cause two chapters in three hours...yeah, I really need to stop being so lazy, man~!!

Anyway, the battle is off to a good start as Team Gremory still has everyone while Team Riser has lost a few members.

However, will that hold during the end round of this match or will Riser make a comeback? Also, what has Kiba been up to and what is he scheming?

Let's find out in the next chapter~!!

As always, read, enjoy, review and until the next one…

Ba-Bye~!!