Aftermath of the Rating Game

10+ Advance Chapters: patreon.com/Accel14

Discord Link: KQAtTw9u7x

You lunatics somehow reached the powerstone goal already, so even though I said it would start next week I'll go ahead and release a bonus now. The support is greatly appreciated.

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"Will they be alright?" Rias approached her sister-in-law, concerned about the condition of her fallen subordinates; Issei, Koneko, and Akeno. 

"They started receiving treatment the second they were teleported out of the Game Field, I assure you your subordinates will be just fine Rias-sama." 

Grayfia's voice was calm and composed as usual. 

"That's a relief…" 

The victorious King exhaled calmly. 

"Your team performed admirably out there Rias," she turned around. Facing the crimson-haired Satan approaching her. "Especially Akeno, I imagine she had to put a lot of work in to achieve that level of strength." 

Akeno had been the key player of the match, there wasn't a single person who doubted the fact. 

"Nii-sama…" 

She was momentarily stunned by his appearance, but Grayfia had indeed notified her that Sirzechs would be watching the match. 

"Yes, Akeno had trained almost as if she were possessed during those 10 days… especially during the latter half." 

That was when they summoned Takauji. 

"She's a superb Queen, make sure you take care of her alright?" 

"Of course." 

"Yuuto-kun's performance was also something to behold, especially against Riser's Rooks." 

Another presence had made itself known, inching closer and standing next to her brother. 

"Congratulations," the man bowed respectfully and smiled. "I'd expect no less of my contractor." 

"You're…" 

She couldn't even bring herself to say his name. 

The connection formed by the contract was there, but a part of her couldn't bring herself to believe it was him. 

All four of Takauji's eyes were opened, placidly pointed in her direction. 

"What… happened to you?" 

"I experienced an evolution of sorts if you will," he answered nonchalantly. "But today isn't about me, it's about you guys."

The Mage turned his attention to Rias's side, watching as the Knight approached with a just as cautious look on his face. 

It'll probably take them some time to adjust. Oh well, I'll be gone in 2 weeks anyway so I don't mind playing oddball until then. 

"An evolution…?" Kiba repeated. 

"Yes, I understand if my appearance is a little jarring. I'm not expecting any of you to be comfortable around me for a bit anyway." 

They weren't sure how to respond. 

By all means, now was a time of celebration, but Takauji's presence right now was simply too unnerving to not soil the moment. 

"Hmm. I don't wish to ruin your afterglow so I suppose I'll be taking my leave now. Tell Himejima-san that she performed most admirably for me will you?" 

Takauji started to walk away. 

"Wait…" Rias called out. 

"Yes?" He turned around. 

"What do you mean by evolution?" 

"I mean that I got bored of being a human, that's all." 

He didn't elaborate, taking off before they had the chance to pursue any further inquiries. 

"You've contracted quite the interesting figure Rias," Sirzechs remarked. "But as he said, today is your day of celebration. So I'll save my questions for another time." 

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Roughly two or three days had passed since Rias had emerged victorious over Riser, officially annulling the marriage between the two of them. 

Akeno had come to visit him a day after the match, obviously intent on questioning him about the changes his body had experienced. 

However, like with Rias, he only offered up a vague answer in response. Having decided to wait until the contract had fully expired to reveal everything he was keeping hidden. 

"Again," Takauji ordered. 

Right now both he and Raynare were in the underground chamber, standing opposite one another. 

The Fallen Angel was currently in her [Balance Breaker] form, charging up a projectile made of light in the palm of her hand. 

It pierced through the air, charging at Takauji as he started to open his hand. 

"Such an unfair ability…" 

Raynare moaned, watching with a pout as he caught the projectile in his hand. Disabling the Mana within it through [Contamination]. 

She's strong, but not strong enough for me to do a proper test of this ability. I need an opponent who's as strong as me to truly see its prowess in effect. 

"Hard at work as always I see," a familiar voice appeared behind him. 

Takauji turned around, smirking internally as he locked eyes with the figure. 

"I didn't expect to see you so soon, Azazel. Did something happen?" 

The Governor's expression wasn't aloof like usual, on the contrary, it was more firm than he had ever seen. 

Something interesting is about to happen. 

"Yeah, something did. An incident involving the church." 

"The church?" He was taken by surprise. 

"When you hear the word Excalibur, what comes to mind?" Azazel asked seemingly out of the blue. 

"Uh, King Arthur, I guess. From the fairy tale and all that." That was the common assumption. 

"Well it's real, or at least it was." 

"What do you mean?" Now he was seriously intrigued. 

"During the war a long time ago, Excalibur was destroyed and split into seven different pieces. Each of which is in the possession of the different denominations of churches." 

Where is he going with this? 

"I see, and those pieces of Excalibur have something to do with why you're here right now." 

"Precisely, apparently four of them have been stolen as of today. And the church has sent two of their agents here to retrieve them." 

Takauji's eyes rounded. 

"Here? Why would whoever stole them bring the pieces here?" 

"At first I was just as confused, but then I figured out who the perpetrator was and the dots started to connect." 

Azazel heaved a deep sigh as he lowered his head. 

"It was one of my Cadres, Kokabiel." 

Did he get betrayed again? Dude, you might wanna rethink how you're managing things. Or maybe it's time to get some new staff. 

"That's quite unfortunate," he said with a distinct lack of emotion. "Any reason in particular why he decided to do that?" 

"Kokabiel is a somewhat… deluded man. He genuinely thinks we Fallen Angels could've won the war between the three factions back then, and blames me for choosing peace over continuation." 

Takauji thought on his words for a bit, a spark of realization soon hitting him as he pieced everything together. 

"If the church sent its people here… and the Devils are here as well…" 

"Exactly, he's basically trying to start round 2. Which will naturally result in utter disaster for everyone involved." 

"You said Kokabiel is a Cadre right? Then doesn't that mean…" 

"Yes, he's an Ultimate-Class like you, and if he reaches either the Devils or those agents from the church, they'll be killed within seconds." 

Please tell me he's about to ask me what I think he's going to ask me.

The corners of the Mage's mouth started to stretch, not bothering to hide his emotions from Azazel. 

"As you've probably figured out by now, I want you to kill Kokabiel. Right now I can't deal with him since I need to prepare to deal with all the backlash Grigori is about to face." 

"I gladly accept," he didn't even hesitate. "Where is he?" 

"Not so fast, there's actually something of mine I'd like you to field test during your fight with him." 

"Field test?" 

"Mhm. Demon-kun, would you like to be a Sacred Gear user for a while?" 

Takauji flinched, wondering if he had misheard the man. 

"You've lost me…" 

Azazel chuckled, summoning a lance-like gilded dagger with a purple jewel on its end and holding it out towards him. 

That thing has some serious presence… 

The Mage could feel a tingle run down his body as he looked at the dagger. For some reason, his mind recalled Issei's [Boosted Gear] while observing it. 

"This is an Artificial Sacred Gear, one created by me specifically." 

He couldn't believe what he had just heard. 

"Artificial… such a thing is possible?" 

"If you're me it is," he said shamelessly. "It's a Dragon-type gear like Hyoudou Issei's [Boosted Gear], and likewise it contains a Dragon inside it." 

A Dragon… 

"The Dragon's name is Fafnir, he's one of the Five Great Dragon Kings whom I made a contract with in order to create this Sacred Gear. Since I don't really fight all that much anymore, the amount of data I've collected on it is pretty limited. But if you use it against Kokabiel, I'll be able to gather quite a bit of valuable research on it." 

Fafnir… I've never really been interested in having a Sacred Gear for myself, and honestly, that's still the case. But if it's just for a while, then I suppose it's not a problem. 

Azazel approached him, placing the dagger in his hands. 

"I've explained everything to him, all you need to do is pour a little bit of your Mana into it and a temporary contract will form between the two of you." 

"Alright then." 

Takauji did as he asked, feeling a presence start to invade his psyche shortly after. 

["So you're the one…"] 

The voice was deep and hollow, a profound sense of dignity resounding from it. 

"Looks like he's reached out to you, take your time getting used to one another. I'll tell you how to use the Gear once you're done." 

It's a pleasure to meet you, Fafnir. 

["Mm… your strength isn't half-bad even though it's still a far cry from Azazel's. However, since you're rather young I'll tolerate your weakness."] 

Haha, well I'm glad to hear that. 

["Remember, Azazel is my only master. I'll lend you my power against Kokabiel, but after that, we're through so don't go getting any bright ideas."] 

Such a loyal Dragon you are. But don't worry, I'm not stupid enough to try to steal one of Azazel's belongings. 

["Good. You're strong enough to handle my full awakening, however, you won't be able to use my power for as long as Azazel. My estimate is you can handle 3 minutes of my activation before your body gives in. Think you can take Kokabiel in that time?"] 

Oh please, even without you I could still beat Kokabiel. 

["Don't get cocky, you haven't even met the guy so don't pretend like you know what you're dealing with. He's a war veteran with thousands of years over you in experience, do you honestly believe just your raw power alone will be enough?"] 

Our definitions of raw power seem to vary, Fafnir. 

["Sigh, so it would seem. Whatever, Azazel will teach you how to activate me so make sure you pay attention, I don't want you blowing up your own body out of sheer stupidity."] 

The Great Dragon King is worried about me? I'm touched. 

["Oh shut up."] 

"I think we're all set." 

"Splendid, in that case, I'll start teaching you how to activate Fafnir's power. The Sacred Gear's current settings are designed to match my specs, but I believe with your strength you should be able to handle it for a certain amount of time right?" 

"Fafnir said I could handle it for about 3 minutes." 

Azazel let out a satisfied nod. 

"That should be plenty, even Kokabiel won't be able to win if Demon King-kun and Dragon King-kun join forces." 

That was so cringy I almost wanted to vomit… 

Seeing the look of second-hand embarrassment on Takauji's face, Azazel cleared his throat with his cheeks slightly reddened. 

"Uhm… let's just focus on the activation shall we?" 

"That would be ideal." 

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10+ Advance Chapters: patreon.com/Accel14

Discord Link: KQAtTw9u7x

Word Count: 1925