Chapter 2

 [Rael Pov]

The Rating Game is a competition between two Devils with a peerage. The Rating Game shares many similarities with the board game; Chess.

The Rating Game was created after the introduction of the Evil Pieces by Ajuka Beelzebub. The Rating Game is used to measure a Devil's strength which will reflect their social standing in the Underworld. In fact, the Rating Game is so famous that the Top 10 ranked are considered as heroes to the Devils.

The Evil Pieces, also known as the Devil's Pieces, are a set of 15 chess pieces given to High-class Devils to increase their ranks by reincarnating other beings into Devils.

The Top 5 ranked are said to be unmovable, with all 5 having held their position for a long time, especially the 3rd ranked Bedeze Abaddon, the 2nd ranked Roygun Belphegor, and the 1st ranked Diehauser Belial. All three of them are said to be Ultimate-Class Devils among Ultimate-Class Devils and have power equal to the current Satans, something my father always found suspicious but never pursued.

The Game Field is where all Rating Game matches take place and is located inside a section of the Dimensional Gap, protected by a barrier. This field was created by Ajuka and the technicians who work under him. The field itself provides a simulation of any environment or scenery for a game to take place in.

I sat in the living room of my manor, which is within the same area as Castle Avarice, but quite a walking distance away. As I await the arrival of my peerage members except for Sebastian who is at my side pouring tea. A rich blend of Earl Gray. I accepted the cup from him took in the aroma and released a sigh of contentment. I took a sip, it was smooth and the flavor was potent. The best money could buy sure but Sebastian took his job very seriously(Sometimes too seriously) and this tea reflected his dedication to being the Head Butler.

"How is the tea, my Lord"

"Excellent as always Sebastian. When are the others scheduled to arrive"

"They all said they'd be hair as soon as possible, although I estimate the first to arrive will be either Sebas or Albedo"

"Does it ever bother you how similar your names are?"

"Mildy at first but I've grown to respect him as both a warrior and colleague and his experience as former Head Butler of the household has been a well of knowledge that proved most beneficial. It is safe to say I owe a portion of my current skills to him. It also helps that we look nothing alike"

I chuckled they truly looked nothing alike. Sebas was the head butler when my mother was still alive. When she died he wanted to retire and train the young heir..me. But he needed a suitable replacement. When I found and took Sebastian into my peerage he later saw Sebas in action when his father was hosting a party he wanted to learn from him. Sebas always praised his work ethic. He became the assistant Head Butler in a few months and Sebas retired a year later. 

The door to the room opened and Albedo my Queen walked in and bowed before headding over and taking a seat to my left.

An impeccable beauty, Albedo is a woman with lustrous jet-black hair and the face of a goddess. She has golden irises and vertically split pupils; on her left and right temples are two thick horns protruding crookedly, and on her waist are a pair of black angel wings. Albedo is half Succubus half Fallen Angel. And in my and I'm sure many others opinion the most sinful combination ever. She's lust on a stick. I met her at the party my father hosted a few hours after I had reincarnated Sebastian, she was the Queen piece of the heir of a lesser house, I offered the Clan Head a lesser philosopher stone as compensation and he gladly instructed his son to trade pieces with me. She was hurt by the betrayal and it took time to build trust. But she knows now she my right hand my irreplaceable Queen.

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Queens are worth 9 Pawns. Queens possess all the characteristics of Rooks, Knights, and Bishops, making them the most balanced piece as well as the most powerful. Within individual peerages, Queens typically act as their master's second-in-command, overseeing the rest of the peerage.

"Hello darling, did you miss me"

I sighed she always does this, which I don't mind, but the looks of death she gives females of Noble House trying to seduce into a marriage proposal..can be well...disconcerting. To put it simply she's a yandere and I clearly have a screw or two loose because I love that shit.

Albedo is wearing a pure white dress with silky gloves covering her slender hands and a golden spiderweb necklace that covers her shoulders and chest.

"Yes Albedo, I missed you"

A few minutes later Sebas walked in. He was my personal trainer and the head Guard for the bank. He has cable subordinates to hand things if he's not there but he likes to oversee things personally from time to time. Sebas is my Rook and I used a mutated piece to re-reincarnate him into my peerage. Rooks are worth 5 Pawns. Rooks gain superhuman strength, leading to high offense and defense. However, they are not very quick and can get beaten easily by a high-speed opponent. But that not-quick rule applies to those who choose people who are proficient in strength and defense and lack speed and provide them with a piece that boosts the best attribute and does nothing to remove to boost their worst. Sebas is not slow, and his reaction speed is nasty.

Sebas Tian has the appearance of an elderly butler and he is dressed gracefully in his traditional black uniform. Sebas' hair is entirely white, just like his immaculate beard. He has visible wrinkles on his hollow face, which makes him seem gentle in appearance, but his eyes are as sharp as an eagle's. This however is merely his human form. Sebas is a Dragonoid, a hybrid between a dragon and a human.

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Along with Sebas came my other Rook Diablo Noir and The Deputy Head Guard for the estate, with my father's Queen being the head Guard. Diablo is a hybrid between a devil and a demon. Not a natural-born one like Sebastian, as his Devil half comes from the evil piece not being able to turn him into a full-blooded Devil. Black hair with streaks of red and gold, as well as golden eyes with red pupils and black sclerae, Diablo was finely dressed in garments like that of a human prince, but with a butler theme. Diablo is proficient in hand-to-hand combat but he's also a beast with magic he would have been an excellent Bishop but he chose the Rook piece after hearing their benefits.

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A magic circle appeared and two knights came together which was a surprise because they hated each other. Well not hate but any disagreement they have they solve with battles to near death since Sebas stops them before it's too late. Both were a present from my Dad. He said he reincarnated them and planned to give them to the first son he had. I sighed dad always said I reminded him of Mom, sometimes too much. It sometimes made him uncomfortable so I started hiding most of my incubus features like my tail and horns. But the love spot birthmarks I inherited from her I will never hide. 

Knights are worth 3 Pawns. Knights gain increased speed and mobility, enabling them to perform high-speed attacks and maneuvers. However, their main weakness is their low defense, making them vulnerable to powerful attacks if they are not careful. Another weakness among knights is their legs; if their legs are injured, their mobility is greatly reduced.

My two knights were Hijikata Toshizo who was reincarnated at 34 and Shimazu Toyohisa who was reincarnated at 30. Hijikata is taller than the average Japanese person and is very handsome. With shoulder-length black hair and steel-gray eyes, his face constantly holds a stoic and grim appearance. He's dressed in all-black clothes consisting of a haori and hakama over a kimono, with a white cord called a Tasuki crossed over the chest and tied in the back. He has two katanas strapped to his waist.

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Toyohisa is a young man with short, messy, side-part dark brown hair and light grey eyes. He has a pointed jaw, with standard shoulders and he's shown to be quite skinny, which makes him agile, making him a perfect swordsman. A fact he constantly likes to point out to Hijikata. He's dressed in Late Sengoku/Early Edo period armor consisting of a red karuta sashinuki style kote with red lacquered steel han kote style forearm guards along with red lacquered steel suneate and haidate. Under the armor, he wears a black shitagi, yugake, and hakama tied with a white himo where he ties his swords.

He also wears a pair of cotton waraji over a white tabi. He uses a nodachi and is seen carrying a wakizashi as well. He's also shown carrying a tanegashima, a Japanese matchlock, which he only uses when his swords are unusable.

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Both of them bowed and sat down as well. Only my Bishop and my pawn remain. The only piece I have left is a mutated Bishop piece. The rest of my pieces have been used.

Soon another magic circle appeared and my Bishop Olminu appeared with my second Pawn Medusa. Olminu was the slave of one of the rogue groups of alchemists my family had contracted. They captured her because of the pure mana signature she gave off and planned on extracting it to fuel one of their experiments. Father found out they were stealing from us and falsifying reports on their progress and ordered me and my incomplete peerage consisting of Albedo, Sebastian, Diablo, Toshizo, and Toyokisa to eradicate them and we did. It was my first time drawing blood and a test from my father on how I would react to taking a life. That day I took several. I found Olminu in the cells at the base and a magical scan showed she possessed a fraction of elven blood. When she agreed to come with me I reincarnated her as my Bishop and left with all the research the rogue faction had.

Olminu is a relatively young, athletic-looking woman who wears an altered magician's uniform and spectacles. She has long silver-white hair which is styled into two tails thanks to her ribbons, and a noticeably large bust. She is gifted in many forms of magic including sorcery and druid magic and her elven blood gives her a larger-than-normal magic container and an affinity towards nature magic and archery.

Bishops are worth 3 Pawns. Bishops gain enhanced demonic power and magical abilities which they can use to conjure up a multitude of spells (offensive, healing, etc.). However, more powerful spells consume most of their demonic and magical powers, which take a long time to regain, forcing them to use their power carefully or risk becoming vulnerable to physical attacks.

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As for Medusa. She's my first successful attempt at creating new life using material from someone long dead. My father provided the blood, bones, and eyes of the legendary gorgon. How he got it I don't know. Most like a deal with a Greek connection high up in the Pantheon. Medusa is a beauty with her almost pale skin, long purple hair, and toned physique. Since she was created in a similar way to a homunculus she aged faster and then he age halted. Chronologically she's 10 but her appearance is that of a young woman in her early twenties. She wears a blindfold that completely covers her eyes and relies on her senses to navigate her surroundings.

Pawns are worth 1 Pawn each. The traits of Pawns include the ability to be promoted into a Queen, Rook, Knight, or Bishop in enemy territory or with the permission of their King. The amount of pawn pieces a person consumes depends on there potential at the time and the strength of the master reincarnating them.

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After they both bowed and took their seats. Sebastian poured tea for everyone before pouring some for himself and taking a seat as well.

I snapped my fingers and the letter sent by Riser duplicated and appeared in front of everyone at the table. They had varying reactions upon reading the contents Then they all turned to me.

I place my tea down on the coster, "We have work to do".