Reborn as a Dragon Slayer in Draconic Deus

A/N:

" " : Dialogue,

' ' : Thought,

"Italicized text" : Telepathy,

[ ] : Spells, Techniques and Sacred Gear Casts,

"Bold text" : Ddraig & Albion.

Sorry for the late chapter. I got a few blocks while writing, so I was switching between this and the other two. If all goes well, UTGOV will also be updated tomorrow alongside the Marvel fic.

Also, thank you all for my first 1 million views on a fic.

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Narrator POV

The day for the Rating Game between Sona Sitri and Rias Gremory, and the anticipation was through the roof. Most devils wanted to see the capabilities of this generation's Red Dragon Emperor, with some others wanting to get a sense of the capabilities of the Satans' sisters.

But without a doubt, everyone knew that if the rumors they had heard of them were true, the game was going to be entertaining regardless.

While the devils, fallens, and angels were filling with excitement, the participants of the Game were at the Gremory castle, in an underground floor that had a magic circle that would teleport them all to the Game venue.

Aside from Xenovia and Asia, every single one of them was wearing the Kuoh Academy summer uniform. The two clergywomen turned devils were wearing clothes that they were familiar with. Asia was wearing her nun's habit and Xenovia was wearing the skin-tight battle suit that she and Irina wore on their first time in Kuoh.

Rias was, of course, receiving encouragement from her family members, save for Sirzechs and Grayfia, who were already in a VIP spectator's lounge with the leaders of the other Abrahamic factions as well as leaders of other supernatural factions. After a few more minutes of encouragement and checks, the magic circle glowed, teleporting Rias and Sona away, along with their peerages.

When Rias and her peerage reappeared, they did so in what seemed to be a large restaurant. That was, until they stepped out and saw the vast shopping mall that surrounded them, one that they were all familiar with. "So the department store near Kuoh Academy is the stage this time." Rias said as her eyes scanned their surroundings, trying to see how much she could use to their advantage.

As Sirzechs saw this, his eyes twinkled with approval at her actions. He saw that despite the name of the event, she wasn't treating it like a game, as she and all the other devils rightfully should've.

The Rating Games were created not as a means of entertainment, but rather as a simulation of a battlefield during times of war. And unfortunately for the underworld, majority of the devils that had been born since the war between the three Abrahamic factions had ended saw them as games. So seeing Rias take the battle seriously gave him some hope for her.

"Everyone. I, the Queen of the Lucifer Group, Grayfia, will be carrying out the role of arbiter in the Rating Game between the Gremory and Sitri groups." Grayfia's said, her voice being heard all around the stage and spectator area. The two groups readied themselves in various ways, wanting to scrape out any advantage possible before the game began.

"In the name of my master, Sirzechs Lucifer, I will watch over the battle between these two families." Grayfia said, finishing her preamble. "The battlefield for today is the department store within the neighborhood of the school, Kuoh Academy, that Rias-sama and Sona-sama attend, which has been prepared within a separate space for the game." She said, introducing the environment to the spectators.

"Both groups have been transported to their respective bases, with Rias-sama's base on the east side of the second floor, and Sona-sama's base on the west side of the first floor. As always, all pawns must make it to the opponent's base to use Promotion." Grayfia said, mentioning one of the most basic rules of the Rating Games.

"For this game, special rules will be implemented. Documents on this have been sent to each group, so please check them." She says, and the spectators who had watched other Rating Games let out intrigued "Oohs." "A single bottle of the healing item, Phoenix Tears has been provided to each team. Furthermore, the time to strategize before the battle is thirty minutes. Contact with the opponent during this period is forbidden, and the game will begin afterward. Then, let the strategizing begin." She said, and the two peerages immediately began working out a plan with their Kings.

About twenty minutes had passed since Grayfia's announcement, and the atmosphere in VIP lounge with Sirzechs had grown heavy, not with grief, but rather with anger and a strong resolve. "And everything here is true?" He asked Haruki in a gravely tone. "Every last bit." Haruki responded from his seat opposite Sirzechs.

…

Flashback

After they had returned to the hotel, Haruki, Tiamat, Rias, Koneko and Issei gathered the remaining members of Rias' peerage and took them to one of the hotel's premium rooms. While no questions were asked on the way in order to avoid making a scene, that restraint went out the window when the door to the room was shut.

"Why'd you call us here, Rias-senpai?" Gasper asked his King. "Actually, Haruki said we should come here." Rias said as she sat in a sofa at one of the corners of the room. "Haruki-san?" Gasper said, then looked at Haruki. "Yeah, one sec." Haruki said, then cast the Doppel spell, creating a clone which he sent to the room where Sirzechs and the other faction leaders were.

"Right, then. I called everyone here because of Koneko. Specifically, because I want to get justice for her and her sister." Haruki said. After his confrontation with Sirzechs and the elder devils, Koneko had explained her past to her fellow peerage members, so they immediately understood what Haruki was referring to.

"Okay, we're in. But how?" Issei said. "It's simple, we'll ask the perpetrator herself." Haruki replied, then swiped the air, opening a spatial gate, through which Kuroka fell out of. She groaned in discomfort, as the effects of Haruki's white magic lingered, leaving her feeling unusually weak.

"Hello, Kuroka. I think we can actually talk, now that you aren't feeling so murdery." Haruki said calmly. "What? You wanna gloat?" Kuroka said with a groan. "I have no reason to do that. You can see this as me extending out a hand to help family." He said, and she looked at him oddly.

"Family?" She asked, then looked at her younger sister who was seated beside Haruki on the couch, her body pressed against his. "Heeehh~ So he's your mate, Shirone?" Kuroka said with a teasing voice, and Koneko nodded, albeit with a slight blush.

"But, so what? Did you expect me to just want to speak to you because you're Shirone's mate? Get over yourself." She said to Haruki, her tone dripping venom. "*Sigh.* I don't need you to like me, Kuroka. But I do need you to cooperate with me so that I can clear your name… and kill a few devil patriarchs without getting in trouble." Haruki replied, and Kuroka's eyes glinted with interest.

"As her mate, I know of what you had experienced under Valefar Naberius, and I told her the truth of your mental state from that day." He said, and had silence follow. "I'm not doing this because I want your approval, Kuroka. I don't need it, anyway. But I want Koneko to be happy. And if that means that I'll have to risk getting a target on my back, then so be it. I only ask that you cooperate." He said, looking at her with his draconic eyes.

"Alright, fine. What do you want to know?" Kuroka said as she readjusted her sitting position on the floor. "Were you able to grab any records or things of the like when you escaped Valefar?" He asked her outright. "Yeah. But why that first? Wouldn't you want me to confess, make up a sob story?" Kuroka said playfully.

"I'm dealing with the Satans, Kuroka. They may be chill normally, but can be absolutely ruthless when the need calls for it. I need that ruthlessness to be directed to the Naberius clan and their accomplices and supporters. That won't happen if I don't give them something concrete." As Kuroka heard his words, her mouth widened into a toothy grin, and her eyes held a sadistic glint, almost as if she couldn't wait to see the Naberius clan destroyed by the rage of the same people they expected to protect them.

"Okay, brother-in-law. I'll tell you where I put the data. It's right there." Kuroka said, pointing to Koneko's head, specifically her black cat-shaped hairclips. Haruki looked at her with a raised brow, masking his knowledge with skepticism, then put his hands to Koneko's hair, and gently took off both her hairclips, then held them in front of Kuroka.

She smiled, then took the clip in his right hand and applied some of her yojutsu to it, transforming it into a disk with glowing circuits on it. "All the data of that bastard's work is right here." She said, then put the disk back in Haruki's hand. "Thanks. With this, I can see to them removing your status as an SS-class fugitive." He said, and Koneko hugged him tightly, an unspoken gratefulness emanating from her.

He smiled and stroked her hair, reassuring her that everything would be okay. "Now, that I've helped you out, send me back." Kuroka said, trying to negotiate for her release. "No." Haruki flat out rejected her, shocking her into stillness. "What the hell do you mean no?!" She shouted at him after ten seconds of silence.

"If you returned to the Khaos Brigade while I'm over here trying to clear your name, it would bring up a whole lot of drama that I don't want to be a part of. So until they fully revoke your fugitive status, you're going to be staying there." Haruki responded, then lightly waved his hand, opening a portal to his pocket dimension underneath Kuroka.

Kuroka yowled in protest, but he closed the portal immediately she went through. After he did that, Koneko squeezed his arm. "Don't worry. If you want to see her, all you have to do is ask." Haruki said, as he stroked her hair.

"Well, you've heard it now. I'm essentially going to start the process of tearing down a good chunk of the higher-ups of devil society starting tomorrow. You don't need to intervene. Just go out there and do your best." Haruki said with a wry smile.

"Is it because we're weak?" Rias asked, her face holding a pained expression. "Unfortunately, it is. The Naberius clan's experiments were done to artificially create Super Rank Devils that could rival Sirzechs and Ajuka. While they didn't succeed, I don't think it'll be strange for them to have something else up their sleeves; like a more powerful clan backing them. I won't have you get directly involved until I'm sure that I can engage them without having to worry about you." He said, his voice steady and eerily calm.

"I see. Then we'd better get stronger." Rias said with a grin and tears held back in her eyes. "If we're too weak, that's all we can do to make sure you don't worry about us. However…" She said, then pointed at Haruki. "That doesn't mean that you're allowed to make us worry either, got it?" She said, and Haruki smiled. "You've got it, princess." He said with flair.

"Now, you all go ahead and get ready for your battle tomorrow, while I go ahead and work with this." He said, holding the disk in his hand. Koneko tugged on his shirt, and he looked at her. She put her hands on her head, at the places where her hairclips were. Smiling, Haruki put back the other hairclip, then using his magic, created an identical hairclip, and put it in her hair, returning her to her signature look.

"Okay, then. We'll put up a spectacle tomorrow, but you'd better not do something stupid." Rias said, then walked out of the room. "Well, you all heard our ojou-sama. Let's get going now." Akeno said as she pulled Gasper and Yuuto out of the room. She winked at Haruki as she went out. As Issei left with Asia and Xenovia in tow, Koneko kissed Haruki on his cheek, then joined her fellow peerage members.

After they left, Haruki huffed out a breath then laid on the couch. "You don't think the Sitri girl will get jealous? After all, you only called the Gremory peerage to witness this and hear your arrangement." Tiamat said as she sat on the sofa adjacent to the couch. "All in due time, Tia. Right now, I'm just wondering what kind of face Sirzechs will make when he sees this."

Flashback end.

…

Sirzechs had called the other Satans to convene in his VIP lounge, and upon reading through the data on the computer that Haruki had borrowed, they too had their ire aroused. Seeing the data for the artificial development of Super Rank devils, they understood that those behind the project wanted puppets they could control. In other words, they saw the current Satans as hindrances to their ambitions.

Haruki noticed this and began to fan the flames of suspicion towards the elder devils within the Satans. "If they could go along with this, I don't see why they'd stop there. I believe that the Naberius and Nebiros clans, as well as whoever else is behind them or working with them, would have other plans to strengthen their forces, or weaken those of the Underworld." Ajuka raised a brow at his words, wondering how exactly they would do either of those.

"I can't tell what exactly their plans could be, but I advise that you remain vigilant in case you ever come across something as such." He said, smiling internally. "Yeah, you're right. Thank you for giving us this." Ajuka said as he got ready to leave. "Before you all return, I want to ask for something." Haruki said, giving them pause.

"Seeing as you've helped us out with this, I don't see why we can't help you. So, what do you want?" Ajuka said, as the only one who had been able to stay somewhat unaffected by his emotions. "Rescind Kuroka's status as a fugitive. That is all I ask." Haruki said calmly.

"We can do that, but her current association with the Khaos Brigade is going to be a hindrance." Sirzechs said, after calming himself down. "That isn't a problem. She only stayed with them due to her fugitive status. With it gone, she wouldn't have a compelling enough reason to return to them. And besides, she seemed quite interested in seeing the Naberius clan's fall from a front row seat."

"I see. Then we'll see to it that her fugitive status is removed." Sirzechs said, and Haruki smiled softly, glad that he had succeeded with that, then he thanked the Satans as they left.

"It is now time to begin. This game will be a blitz-style game with a time limit of 3 hours. Now, without further ado, let the game begin." Grayfia announced as the other Satans returned to their prior locations, signaling the commencement of the Rating Game.

Chapter End.

Word Count: 2,501

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