EPIC: Path of Demons and Dragons-Chapter 250: Preparations

"Man, this brings back memories..." sighed Issei, staring up at the shifting purple sky of the Rating Game field, a subdimensional battlefield erected within the Muken with two Japanese-style fortresses and an emptied city encircled by forests. The flow of time within To Love Ru had been brought into sequence with the rest of Invirtua, but it had still been more than five years since he last participated in a Rating Game.

"Oh, yeah. I only saw the recording, but you previously participated in a Rating Game against Riser of House Phenex, didn't you?" asked Sairaorg, encircled by the members of his Peerage, a handsome, Knightly man with long blonde hair and blue eyes, a diminutive youth with spiky, dark orange hair, and a very beautiful woman with slightly curly blonde hair fixed into a loose ponytail, blue-green eyes, and an exceptional figure that included a sizeable bust and broad, shapely hips and thighs.

"Yeah. Though, after what I've experienced, it feels like a lifetime ago..." responded Issei, gazing down at his left hand and squeezing it into a fist. He and Ddraig had parted ways after Invirtua separated from his original world, and though a few years had passed since then due to a three-year stint in a Room of Spirit and Time, he still found himself staring at where the Red Dragon Emperor had once resided when he experienced doubts or succumbed to introspection.

fwooooom

With the Tactics Phase of the Rating Game set to kick off shortly, Vahn appeared from a complex golden Magic Circle with Serafall, Ravel, Asia, Xenovia, and Erza in tow. Kiba, Robin, Yamato, Frieren, and Lalatina were already present, so their arrival brought their entire team together within their fortress's Tenshu(keep).

"Sorry for arriving so close to the starting time..." expressed Vahn, a guilty smile adorning his face as he excused, "But I couldn't get away from what was keeping me."

"You do not need to apologize," stated Sairaorg, grinning knowingly as he remarked, "Everyone knows how busy you are managing the affairs of the Dragon's Pavilion." freeweɓnovel.cѳm

"That's an understatement..." appended Vahn, exhaling from his nose as everyone naturally congregated around him. Instead of him taking charge of their strategy, however, it was Ravel who stated, "While this is a Rating Game in name alone, it isn't without stakes. The prestige of the Dragon's Pavilion is on the line, and our opponent isn't weak. We have Lady Serafall as insurance, but everyone is expected to give their all."

"If things go South, I'll make the entire battlefield go boom~!" pealed Serafall, striking a cutesy, audacious pose in her favorite frilly and pink Magical Girl Pink Apocalyptica getup. Everyone had changed into their respective battle attire in preparation for the Rating Game, but she was unquestionably the most stand-out member of the group.

Nodding in approval of Serafall's statement, Ravel appended, "Before that, our forces will split into three groups, centered around Bael-dono and his Peerage as our center. Our vanguard will be Sirs Kiba, Liban, and Yamato-san, with Robin-san, Lalatina-sama, and Lady Frieren as support. You should have the advantage against the enemy Pawns, but be careful not to overextend yourselves as even the weakest member of their named Pieces would be A-Rank in the Tower."

"We shall fight to the best of our ability," affirmed Kiba, placing his right hand over his heart and offering a slight bow.

"And we'll keep fighting to the last...!" exclaimed Yamato, punching her right fist into the palm of her left hand. The field was set up similarly to a Training Room, so even if participants were cut down or killed, they would respawn outside—where they could spectate the remainder of the match with their respective delegations.

"Well said," affirmed Ravel, offering a curt nod before shifting her gaze to Sairaorg and Issei, asserting, "As our team's Rooks, Bael-dono and Issei-kun will hold the line against the enemy with Kuisha-san and Regulus-kun providing support until Asia-san is allowed to mobilize. Your opponent will be the enemy team's fiercest and most battle-crazed combatant, the 11th Division Captain-turned-Knight, Kenpachi Zaraki, so steel yourselves for a tough battle."

"U-Understood...!" responded Asia, her large green eyes glistening with determination as she clung tightly to her golden, cross-headed staff—her vigor and holy aura causing mild discomfort to the Devils present despite being one herself.

"I can't believe we're fighting the Kenpachi of Zaraki..." muttered Issei, his voice low and body tense. He had experience battling fierce beasts and alien threats capable of destroying cities in the world of To Love-Ru, but Kenpachi was depicted as one of the fiercest, most intimidating fighters in all of anime. And battling someone who wielded a sword with his fists was never not unsettling...

"Hey, show some spirit..." said Sairaorg, smacking Issei's back with the palm of his right hand as he reminded him, "You're the heir-apparent to a galaxy-spanning empire. If you can't find confidence within yourself, draw it from those who support and are pushing you from behind."

"Right...I can't afford to be hesitating here!" exclaimed Issei, starting off timidly before striking a guts pose and shouting loud enough to compel a tempestuous gust of Touki to flare out—causing Serafall's short and frilly skirt to billow, briefly exposing her uncharacteristically tame pink sports panties. By that point, it was well known that Issei's presence incited an inordinate number of wardrobe malfunctions, so most of the girls present wore longer skirts, pants, or shorts as a precaution against being exposed in such a public setting.

"Ahem...as much as I appreciate Issei-kun's spirit, we're in the middle of discussing our strategy..." reminded Ravel, her expression and tone cold, causing Issei to shrink back and smile awkwardly while touching the back of his head with his right hand.

"Now, regarding our plan of attack..." started Ravel, crossing her arms as she shifted her gaze to Xenovia and Erza, her tone firm as she stated, "It won't be easy, but we'll be depending on the two of you to break through the enemy's defense line. The rules prohibit our forces from advancing as long as the enemy team's Rooks, Captain Komamura Sajin and Lieutenant Marechiyo Omaeda, remain in play. Expect them to receive the support of Captain Hitsugaya and Lieutenants Matsumoto and Hinamori, at the least."

"A heart-racing battle against a superior force...how exciting..." hummed Xenovia, holding her closed fist up to her chest and closing her eyes with a smile, causing Issei's to flash as he briefly stole a peek at her very large bosom, emphasized in her usual skintight black bodysuit.

"Isn't it?" hummed Erza, exuding confidence as she met Ravel's gaze and asserted, "I will do my utmost to meet the expectations of my Mistress, the Dragon's Pavilion, and the father of my future children..." with a firm, resolute tone. After all, while they hadn't been asked to throw the match, Vahn had made it clear he wished to exhibit his power during the Rating Game. This would require the rest of them to be eliminated, so while the Dragon's Pavilion could have fielded a line-up that utterly suppressed the enemy, they were chosen to represent the Dragon's Pavilion's range.

"Of that, I have no doubt..." affirmed Ravel, nodding approvingly before smiling as she asserted, "Otherwise, I would not have chosen you as my Queen if I did not believe in your strength and your capacity to grow even stronger."

"Wait, Erza is a Queen? And what's this about the father of her children?" asked Issei, derailing what should have been a tender moment between the two women. Fortunately for him, just as Ravel narrowed her eyes and glared, the spirited voice of a woman echoed throughout the Rating Game field as Tiamat energetically exclaimed, "Welcome, everyone, to the first-ever Rating Game between the esteemed Imperial Court Guard Divisions and our illustrious Dragon's Pavilion! Let's be sure to cheer for both sides, regardless of the final outcome~!"

"Alright...looks like it's about that time..." remarked Vahn, Tiamat's voice and explanation to the Seireitei echoing in the background as he passed his gaze over everyone present, meeting each of their gazes in turn as he said, "Before we head into battle, I want to personally thank each of you for accepting the Dragon's Pavilion's call. None of you had to be here, so it means a lot that you chose to participate in this important event. That goes doubly for you, Issei. I know how busy you've been, so I appreciate you setting aside the time to be here..."

"Hey, come on...there's no need for that..." said Issei, grinning awkwardly and rubbing the underside of his nose with his right index finger before he asserted, "We might walk different paths, but we're still friends, Vahn. The moment you asked for my help, it was decided."

"Even so, I appreciate it..." appended Vahn, exhaling faintly from his nose and smiling as he extended his left fist, prompting Issei to beam from ear to ear and readily reciprocate the gesture.

"Hey, don't think you can go bumping fists and leave me out!" expressed Sairaorg, grinning as he stepped forward and added his fist to Vahn's and Issei's, leading to an impromptu hand stack after Kiba, Yamato, Erza, and eventually everyone but the stoic Frieren and cross-armed Ravel stepped in for a series of pre-match hurrahs and battle cries...

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With the Rating Game officially underway, five Pawns from the side of the Gotei used Shunpo to hurriedly advance to the frontline as vanguards and scouts. Leading the group was a visor-wearing man with prominent tribal tattoos adorning his eyebrows and neck, an impressive widow's peak, and crimson hair tied back into a spiky ponytail.

"Let's stop here," said the man, Abarai Renji, making a halting gesture with his right hand before lowering his visor over his thin, brown, sanpaku eyes as his colleagues fell into a relaxed formation around him. This included a bald man with similarly styled eyes accented by crimson eye shadow, his partner, a somewhat effeminate-looking man with neatly arranged, jaw-length black hair, pale purple eyes with colorful red and yellow feathers adorning the right, and an orange turtle neck worn under a standard-issue Shihakushou, Madarame Ikkaku and Ayasegawa Yumichia.

"How powerful do you think the enemy will be...?" asked the only female member of the group, a petite woman with large brown eyes, delicate but weary facial features, and purple-tinted black hair tied into a cloth-bound bun. The armband adorning her left sleeve denoted her as the Lieutenant of the 5th Division, Hinamori Momo, so while she had been cleared of all suspicions against her, the past few weeks had been rough for her as the second-in-command of the traitorous Aizen Sosuke.

"They must be powerful to represent a group like the Dragon's Pavilion..." responded a tall, lanky, inordinately pale man with angular cerulean eyes and shoulder-length blonde hair, notably divided into three sections. Two formed a swallow's tail hairstyle at his shoulders, while the third formed a very prominent clump of bangs over his left eye. Like Hinamori, he, 3rd Division Lieutenant Kira Izuru, had also spent the past few weeks being investigated, so while there were always bags under his eyes, they were especially prominent at that moment.

"I don't know about their Pawns, but I'm sure they have at least one or two heavy hitters that will prove interesting," remarked Ikkaku, standing with his sheathed Zanpakuto across his shoulders and his hands dangling from it like a pillory.

"I just hope there's at least one man among their vanguard..." sighed the flowery Yumichika, closing his eyes and exhaling a weary sigh. He wasn't against battling women, but even if he won, there was little prestige to be gained from it as, within the Soul Society, women were generally regarded as weaker than men.

"Well, you're in luck..." remarked Renji, frowning as he flatly revealed, "Because there are at least two men approaching—one of which is even prettier than you doll yourself up to be. Unfortunately, I don't think they will be our biggest issue..."

"A man prettier than me? Unthinkable..." huffed Yumichika, crossing his arms and snorting. He was widely regarded, according to himself, as the most elegant and handsome Shinigami beneath the rank of Captain. His only contemporary was Captain Kuchiki of the 6th Division, so he couldn't help snorting in defiance of Renji's claim, altogether overlooking what the latter had said about their biggest issue...

psh psh psh psh psh psh

Following the sound of some very heavy footsteps, Yamato leaped high into the air, beaming from ear to ear and metal club radiating black and crimson lightning as she bellowed, "Stand ready, brave men and women of the Gotei, for I, Yamato, shall be your opponent...!"

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