Ch 22: When Dragons Take the Stage

The atmosphere turned glacial.

Diodora's sneer twisted into something feral and ugly.

"Enjoy your temporary victory, Hyoudou. In two months… I'll kill you in the Rating Game."

A ripple of gasps swept through the assembled nobility. Silver goblets stilled midair. Eyes widened.

Serafall Leviathan chuckled behind a gloved hand, violet eyes glittering like a cat with a fresh mouse.

"Cheeky~ I like that."

Issei's smirk was slow, smooth, and razor-edged. His voice cut like molten glass.

"You're welcome to try, princeling. I don't mind putting another spoiled brat in his place."

The hall shuddered with a second wave of murmurs. Some nobles looked scandalized. Others intrigued. Mio's lips quirked in a grin of savage approval, while Sirzaria Lucifer arched a crimson brow, unmistakable pride gleaming in her gaze.

Diodora's face darkened to a sickly shade. He spat something venomous under his breath and stormed from the room, his retinue scrambling to follow like panicked shadows.

Before the gathering could settle, Sirzaria stepped forward. The weight of her presence snapped the hall to attention, the tension turning brittle as glass. She radiated regal command, and her voice sliced through the air like a crimson blade.

"Since we're in a mood for surprises…" she began, a dangerous glint in her eye, "…let it be known — as Maou Sirzaria Lucifer, I hereby announce the formal engagement of myself, Rias Gremory, and Mio Gremory to the Red Dragon Emperor, Issei Hyoudou."

Silence. Not a breath dared stir.

Goblets froze halfway to lips. Forks clinked against untouched plates. A few nobles paled visibly.

Among the Four Maou present, the reactions were priceless:

• Serafall's hand dropped from her lips, wide-eyed in delighted shock.

• Ajuka Beelzebub stiffened imperceptibly, his blue gaze sharp and calculating behind his glasses.

• Falbium Asmodeus blinked as though searching for a nearby sofa to collapse onto.

Rias squeezed Issei's hand, cheeks flushed but posture fierce — proud and unyielding. Mio smirked like a conqueror claiming spoils. Even Kuroka let out a soft, wicked laugh, her tail flicking lazily behind her.

And then, as if choreographed by the gods themselves, Ravel Phenex approached.

A vision of poise in crimson and gold, her gown clung to her petite, voluptuous form with devastating precision. A teasing glimmer danced in her crimson-gold eyes as she extended a delicate slip of parchment.

"A little something for you."

Issei took it, brow arching. "What's this?"

Ravel leaned in, her voice silk and dark honey.

"The number of Yubelluna's older sister."

She placed a photo into his other hand — a breathtaking portrait of a raven-haired succubus with emerald eyes, impossibly long legs, and a smile that promised both salvation and sin. The unmistakable visage of Morrigan Aensland.

"Name's Morrigan," Ravel murmured, lips near his ear. "Do let her know who sent you."

Issei studied the photo for a beat, then grinned.

"You're dangerous."

Ravel's smirk curved like a blade.

"You have no idea."

[Eden: {…Master, if you collect any more dangerously beautiful women, we're going to need a separate system category labeled 'Heart Attack Risks.'}]

Issei chuckled, tucking the photo into his jacket.

"You love it."

[Eden: {I live for it.}]

Ravel's finger trailed along his lapel, her lips brushing his ear as she whispered,

"When your Evil Pieces arrive… I'll be joining your peerage. Until then, I'll join your harem — and I'm leaving with you."

A mischievous flicker in her gaze.

"Try to keep up."

The look on Rias, Akeno, and Kuroka's faces could have shattered stained glass.

With a final lingering smile, Ravel drifted back into the sea of nobles, leaving a hall still choking on its collective shock.

⸻

The Banquet's End

The room struggled to recover.

Whispers spiraled like smoke. Calculating eyes flickered. The political machine of the Underworld spun furiously, scrambling to adapt to the chaos Sirzaria had detonated like a well-placed bomb.

Issei drained his wine in a steady, unbothered pull as his girls closed in around him like orbiting stars.

"Well," he quipped, adjusting his jacket. "That went well."

Akeno's eyes sparkled.

"You certainly know how to steal a room."

Kuroka grinned, golden eyes half-lidded.

"Nyahaha… and now you've got the whole Underworld either purring or hissing at you."

Rias, equal parts flushed and fiercely proud, laced her fingers through his.

"You handled Diodora perfectly. And Sirzaria's timing… bold."

Mio smirked.

"Bold's the Gremory way. 'Bout damn time someone shook this place up."

[Eden: {Reminder, Master — you now have three Maou-level fiancées, an heir to the Phenex Clan eager to jump your bones, and a succubus supermodel waiting for your call. Hope you've updated your cardio routine.}]

Issei snorted, earning curious glances.

"Eden being Eden."

At that moment, Sona Sitri approached — poised, calculating, and immaculate in her tailored navy gown. She moved with the confidence of someone who already knew what tomorrow's headlines would be.

"Hyoudou," she greeted, eyes glinting behind her glasses. "I expected scandal tonight… but not like this."

"Disappointed?" he asked.

A tiny smile ghosted her lips.

"Amused."

She flicked a glance toward Rias and Sirzaria before returning her gaze to him.

"Keep your wits sharp. The currents you've stepped into aren't easily escaped."

"I'm not running," Issei promised.

"Good." A pause. "And when your Evil Pieces arrive… I look forward to seeing the roster you build."

"Maybe you'll be one of them," he teased.

She arched a brow.

"I don't join harems."

"Yet."

That earned the faintest flicker of amusement before she pivoted and vanished into the crowd.

Akeno chuckled softly.

"I think you got under her skin."

"Give it time," Kuroka purred.

Across the hall, Ravel met his gaze again — a look laced with silent promises and the certainty that the world Issei Hyoudou was carving for himself would belong to no one else.

The music swelled. Nobles raised their glasses.

The storm Sirzaria unleashed hadn't passed.

It had only begun.

Issei exhaled, the weight of what tonight had set in motion sinking in.

He wasn't just Rias Gremory's Pawn anymore.

Wasn't just a promising Red Dragon Emperor.

He was a player now.

A name.

A future kingpiece.

And the Underworld had just begun to realize it.

[Eden: {Welcome to the big leagues, Master. I suggest you sharpen your claws.}]

A crooked grin tugged at his lips.

"Wouldn't have it any other way."

⸻

Banquet Aftermath

As the Gremory estate emptied, nobles whispered of harems and dragons, of Lucifers and fallen engagements. The scent of wine and scandal clung to the air like an old perfume.

Issei and Rias didn't linger.

The moment protocol allowed, she seized his hand — not a timid, courtly touch, but a bold, possessive claim.

Without a word, they vanished in a swirl of crimson light, leaving politics and ancient vendettas in their wake.

The cool Kuoh night air greeted them, streetlamps flickering in the distance, the cicadas' lullaby a soothing contrast to immortal courts' chaos.

They stepped into Issei's room, moonlight spilling through tall windows. The hum of ordinary life felt alien after what they'd left behind.

Neither spoke at first.

Issei shrugged off his jacket, hanging it over a chair, the crimson-lined fabric catching the moonlight. Rias lingered in the doorway, her gown still clinging to her like liquid fire.

In this light, she wasn't a highborn heiress.

She was the girl who had once offered him a second chance beneath a bloodstained moon.

"Rough night," Issei murmured.

Rias smiled — tired, but warm.

"You handled it better than most seasoned devils would've."

He crossed to her, cupping her face.

"It's not over yet."

"No," she whispered. "But that's for tomorrow."

She took his hand, guiding him toward the bed, crimson hair shimmering.

"Tonight…" Her voice was a sultry promise. "It's time for you to claim your prize, my dragon."

Issei's grin was slow, dangerous, and hungry.

The door shut softly behind them, leaving the Underworld's schemes and ambitions to another day.

Tonight belonged to them.

⸻

That Night – Hyoudou Residence, Issei's Bedroom

Moonlight poured through the windows like liquid silver. Issei sat shirtless at the edge of his bed, admiring the rewards of his night, feeling the changes in his power. Destruction magic coursed through his fingertips like barely restrained thunder.

His pulse still thundered from the night's aftermath — names claimed, rivals humbled, old pacts shattered.

A pulse of magic shimmered in the room.

A swirl of crimson light ignited in the shadows, and Rias appeared.

She stood there in sheer crimson lingerie, the delicate fabric barely concealing the perfect curves of a queen long denied what her heart craved. Her cheeks were flushed, sapphire eyes fierce, gleaming with hunger, defiance, and unspoken need.

"I can finally be yours," she whispered, voice trembling with relief and centuries of longing finally breaking like a dam.

Before he could speak, she was on him — a burst of warmth, of scent and silk. She straddled his lap, her lips crashing against his in a kiss that was desperate, claiming, and unrepentantly hungry.

Her hands fisted in his hair as his arms locked around her waist, holding her as if the world might steal her away. The taste of her was fire and wine, sweet sin and freedom all at once.

No titles.

No arranged marriages.

No ancient chains.

Just a crimson queen claiming her dragon.

Her hips rolled against his in a sultry, silent promise. Issei growled low in his throat — the sound dark, primal, and possessive. Magic crackled between them like a storm barely held in check.

"Mine," he murmured against her lips.

"Always," she whispered back, breathless.

And as the moon painted them in silver and crimson, the world beyond their door faded to nothing.

Tomorrow, the courts would whisper.

Tomorrow, the old families would scheme.

Tomorrow, the world would tremble again.

But tonight belonged to them.

And neither held back.

*

AN: R-18 next chapter. Followed by him getting his rewards from his three tasks.

Who would like to see in his peerage to take on Diodora.