The Devouring Dragon-Chapter 75: The Losers

"You will enter the arena in 5 minutes, Beast King," A smooth female voice spoke out to me, belonging to the beautiful form of Grayfia Lucifuge - the maid, Queen, and wife of my opponent, Sirzechs Lucifer.

"Fine by me," I answered casually, just glancing over at the woman as she stood in the doorway of the preparation room.

Grayfia certainly looked like a devil, as she shared the same devilishly sexy body and gorgeous appearance that most high-standing female devils had. Her face was thin and beautiful, and she had long, silky silver hair. Her waist was thin, and she had large breasts that could rival even Rias', along with wide hips and thick thighs that were evident in her tight maid outfit.

[Ultimate-Class Devil] [Grayfia Lucifuge] - Level 750 

Reputation with [Grayfia]: Disliked

The woman was certainly impressive, as her level was only a bit lower than Serafall's. She was the second-strongest female devil for a reason.

Around me was a simple room, fit with just a small bench, a few bottles of water, and a fridge containing light snacks. As Grayfia turned around and stepped back out through the door, I knew that she was heading to a similar-looking room on the other side of the arena where Sirzechs was waiting.

I silently wondered if this was how professional athletes back in my original world felt - the feeling of sitting in the locker room, waiting for your call to enter the arena and fight in front of millions of viewers.

Athletes fought in a much different way than I was about to, but the scale was certainly similar. The news of my duel with Sirzechs had spread far and wide pretty quickly, and as a result, the entire supernatural world was keeping a keen eye on the result.

The stadium was already packed, with the heads of each pillar along with many members of each family causing the audience to sit in the thousands, but it would've been in the tens of thousands if I had allowed it.

Unpredictable variables were how my plan would go astray, and as a result, I wanted only noble devils to be in attendance. Luckily, the devils shared my opinion, as they didn't really want any powerful gods or dragons in attendance as their strongest soldier fought to near-death. It would create the perfect opportunity for someone to capitalize on Sirzechs' condition.

"You moved the Balam clan, right, Raya?" I asked, glancing back at one of the two women in the room with me. I had kept my preparation group pretty small, keeping it to just Raya and Tiamat.

Rias' in particular had been upset that I didn't let her wait in here with me - which was ironic considering she could be waiting with her own brother on the other side of the stadium - but I wanted to be able to talk openly prior to the duel. I trusted Rias, but I didn't think she or any of the other devils would approve of what I was about to do.

"Of course," Raya answered with a nod, "The last-minute switch was unexpected, but I'm glad our forces were able to break through."

The 'forces' that broke through was actually just a succubus finally managing to worm their way into the Balam head's bed, who funnily enough had taken her in during an orgy he held as a 'vacation weekend' spurned on by the duel taking place.

I had expected that Raya would switch where the Balam family was sitting in the stands, as she and Velrissa were the two people who probably knew about the Balam head's fate even sooner than I did, but it was good to be sure.

"And you're prepared, right, Tiamat?" I glanced at the other woman in the room, locking eyes with a dissatisfied-looking Tiamat.

"Yeah, yeah," she huffed, raising an eyebrow at me. "Are you sure that's all you want me to do? This could be a lot quicker if I just fought with you!"

"You're the insurance," I replied with a chuckle, shaking my head, "Your job is even a lot more important than mine. Zekram Bael will still be in attendance, and there are other unknown factors as well. You need to take care of all of those, while I just need to take care of Sirzechs."

While I'd prepared pretty thoroughly for this event, I couldn't predict everything. It wasn't out of the realm of possibility that another faction took the opportunity to attack, or that Ajuka far exceeded mine and Azazel's prediction and broke out of the sacred gear in only a day.

Both were unlikely, but not impossible. I also didn't know the extent of Zekram's power, as I knew his powerful Power of Destruction meant his combat power far exceeded his level. Tiamat needed to take care of everything else as I focused on Sirzechs.

"You can say it's important, but it's just boring," Tiamat huffed dryly at me.

"Just enjoy the show," I countered with another chuckle, "You're about to have front-row seats to a historical event, after all. It's not often that such a powerful faction crumbles in one day."

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"Zekram," Zekrel nodded as Zekram took his seat next to his right-hand man.

"This will be quite the spectacle, will it not?" Zekram grinned lightly, not returning the greeting as he looked around the arena.

It was truly a sight that had never been seen before, and a sight that could only be made possible by Zekram himself. In the rising circular stands surrounding the simple, wide stone-paved arena in the middle of the stadium, there sat the head of every noble pillar left remaining.

They were separated into 32 different sections, with a small stairway being the only thing acting as a divider. On each side of the arena, 16 sections sat close together until the large tunnel-like entrance that both Sirzechs and Valon would enter from separated them.

Some were filled to the brim, such as the Gremory section with both the current Lord and Lady Gremory, their daughter, grandson, multiple previous heads, and even more loosely related devils in attendance.

By comparison, some of them were also nearly entirely empty, such as the Astaroth section, in which the sole figure of Latia Astaroth sat amongst the hundreds-seat section. The Bael section was also pretty empty, with just a couple of members sitting on the lower section as Zekram and Zekrel occupied the top row.

Normally, Zekrel should've been in the Belial section - which was on the opposite side of the arena - as an elder, but rules didn't apply when you were Zekram Bael. He wanted his right-hand man to sit with him during the duel.

"No matter who wins, it will indeed be talked about for decades to come," Zekrel nodded at Zekram's words. "Has there ever been a singular event with so many important figures in attendance?"

Zekram nodded in agreement, "Even the Super Bowl doesn't attract so many noble clan heads as well as the four Maou."

Zekram turned his head upward, looking at a black box with a glass window sitting far above the rest of the stands. There were three much larger chairs, which looked almost like thrones, inside for Serafall Leviathan, Falbium Asmodeus, and Ajuka Beelzebub.

The form of the Dragon King Tiamat was also entering the box as he watched, the woman taking her place as the one who would maintain the barrier. With two beings as powerful as Sirzechs and Valon, the entire stadium would be destroyed if there weren't a barrier containing the fight.

Zekram blinked as he noticed that one of the thrones was empty, glancing over at Zekrel with a raised eyebrow, "Beelzebub is not here yet? He always arrives early."

"He's here," Zekrel explained at Zekram's question, "He's been here since far before anyone else, and was even here yesterday. He's checking every inch of this place to ensure there's no tricks being played."

"That does sound like him," Zekram chuckled at Ajuka's carefulness. The calculated man wanting to ensure that the Beast King didn't have any advantages set in place to take down Sirzechs was a good thing.

Zekram knew there was no such thing - as he had visited a few times during the arena's construction personally, and the entire thing was being overseen by Zekrel. If the Beast King really was trying to pull any tricks, then Zekrel would've told him.

"...Why are the families arranged like this?" Zekram asked, looking over at Zekrel curiously, "They should be in order of status."

Around the stadium, the sections belonging to each family were seemingly random. Zekram was able to see a pattern pretty quickly with some of them, as the Gremory, Phenex, and Sitri were all in a row despite being far apart in ranking, because they were known allies.

But the Bierth are next to Solas?

The two clans were multiple spots away from each other in ranking, and it was common knowledge that the two heads didn't like each other.

"I apologize, the Beast King insisted on having it this way," Zekrel said, looking at Zekram apologetically, "He wanted the clans to be seated near those they were friendly with to 'create a good experience.' I tried to convince him, but he wouldn't budge."

Zekram scoffed lightly. If that really was the Beast King's intention, then it was clear he didn't know the relations between each family well if the Bierth and Solas were seated closely.

I overestimated his intel.

"You should've told me," Zekram narrowed his eyes slightly, "I would've corrected him."

"He had agreed to make it by ranking, but he made the change this morning," Zekrel said apologetically again, "There was no time."

Zekram's lips twitched up a bit at that.

Changing it at the last second to spite me, and so I can't step in? I'll need to take a more active approach with this one.

Zekram had been leaving most of the dealings with the Beast King to Zekrel, but it seemed he would need to be more personally involved.

"Thanks to everyone for coming!" A cheerful voice rang out through the arena, and Zekram blinked as he glanced up at the black box that Serafall and Falbium were in. Serafall was now holding a microphone and waving very excitedly out the glass wall.

"Val-chan said I could be the announcer for the duel!" Serafall continued brightly, "Which is about to start... now!"

Serafall's the announcer?

Zekram smirked lightly. It was impressive to get one of the Maou themselves to be the announcer, but picking someone as unique as Serafall was questionable.

"On the right, we have Val-cha-, ah, t-the Beast King!" Serafall quickly corrected herself, trying to be more professional.

The arena stayed silent as the muscular form of Valon stepped out from the right tunnel, walking into the arena casually. He was certainly an imposing sight, as his monstrous armor glinted lightly, and his massive sword hung heavily in its sheath.

Zekram felt a shiver go down his spine at the sight - something which rarely happened after living for as long as he had.

"On the left, Sirzechs Lucifer!" Serafall continued, managing to say his full name correctly.

On the other side of the arena, a very serious-looking Sirzechs stepped forward.

This will be fun.

Zekram wasn't sure if he'd seen the man so serious since the Devil Civil War, as he was decked out in his also-imposing armor. His metallic shoulder plates jutted out like knives, making his frame seem broader and more intimidating than the man actually was.

His eyes were dark, covered lightly with shadows, as he didn't raise his gaze forward. The normally charismatic Maou didn't even look around at the crowd, instead keeping his eyes locked onto Valon as he walked forward.

He'll try to kill him.

The serious look in Sirzechs' eyes confirmed what Zekram thought was true - if Sirzechs won the duel, he wouldn't be satisfied with anything less than the Beast King's life.

Around the two men in the arena, the air started to shimmer. A rectangular wall of blue light rose upward, solidifying in a transparent barrier as Tiamat lit up with a blue aura in the announcer's box.

"The duel between the Maou Sirzechs Lucifer and the Beast King Valon will start shortly!" Serafall continued cheerfully, "But, first, we have some pre-fight entertainment!"

Zekram blinked, glancing over at Zekrel.

"Pre-fight entertainment?" He raised an eyebrow at the man, who just nodded sheepishly.

"The Beast King insisted on this, too." Zekrel nodded, "Don't worry, I think it will be entertaining, and it won't take long."

Zekram just shrugged in response. He trusted Zekrel's judgement.

"First, I would like to apologize!" Serafall shouted abruptly, causing all eyes to glance up from the arena and back at her form in the black box, "But I have to do what he says!"

Serafall's face looked a bit weary, which was unusual for the normally bright and cheerful girl. Her smile dropped, and her normally wide and bright eyes were squinted shut tightly.

What is-

"P-Please look upward to see the entertainment!" Serafall continued shakily, and all eyes turned to the sky as a massive magic circle suddenly appeared. It was large enough to cover the entire open top of the arena, stretching across the sky and lighting up the entire area.

The... Leviathan crest?

Out from the circle rose not just the beautiful form of Katerea Leviathan, but also the form of thousands of other gorgeous and scantily-clad women. The light from the magic circle was quickly drowned out by the shadows of so many women, but Zekram could make out the man by Katerea's side.

Next to her, there was the unmistakable form of Shalba Beelzebub.

"What the hell is going on?" Zekram said sharply, glancing over at Zekrel with hard eyes. He wasn't the only one, as an uncertain murmur rang out through the stands as the various devils tensed.

"Don't worry..." Zekrel glanced back at Zekram, and for the first time, Zekram noticed that the man's eyes looked a bit glossy. "It'll be over soon."

"Serafall, what is-" Falbium's voice came through the microphone lightly, but he was cut off - both by Serfall's voice and by Tiamat stepping between the two.

"T-Today, you will all get to witness a g-great event! An event t-that will be remembered for the r-rest of history!" Serafall continued, the woman stuttering as it seemed that she didn't want to say the words - almost as if she was being forced to.

"I told you he was on our side, Shalba!" Katerea said casually in the air as she held up her large staff. As she did, all the women around her were holding their hands out, and her body was glowing with a bright light.

I have to stop this.

Zekram didn't know what was about to happen, but he knew the appearance of Katerea and Shalba was bad news. He raised his hand, a black aura appearing around it as he lashed his hand toward the sky.

What he expected to happen was for his Power of Destruction to cut through the air - hopefully killing the two Maou descendants, but at the very least distracting them and taking out countless of the women around them.

Instead, the ball of pure-black destruction seemed to betray his very intentions. Instead of flying upward, it was stalled in the air instantly, and then slammed downward into the ground in front of him - almost as if something was sucking it down.

A... rune?

Zekram wasn't a master of runes, but as the floor lit up under him and his attack was sucked downward, he was able to make a good guess. As the Power of Destruction was sucked to the floor, it blasted away the upper layer of concrete and revealed a blue glowing stone underneath.

There are runes under the floor!

Zekram's eyes widened at the glowing stone. Around him, other devils were finding out the same thing as they tried to utilize their power. He wouldn't have been able to sense them just from being nearby, but-

Zekrel was compromised, but Ajuka surely would've-

Zekram's eyes went even wider as everything made sense.

Ajuka isn't here. He was never here.

"B-B-Be grateful, b-because you're about to witness..." Serafall continued, her heavy breathing being caught in the microphone as she tried and failed to resist letting the words come out of her mouth.

Zekram slowly glanced over the Zekrel - the one in charge of building the arena, and the one who had told him Ajuka was scouring every inch of the arena for any tricks.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Sirzechs' angry voice came from inside the arena, but Zekram barely picked up on it.

I was careless.

Zekram had put too much faith in both Zekrel and Ajuka. In Zekrel to not be tricked, and in Ajuka to beat the Beast King in a battle of intellect.

"Don't look so stressed, Zekram," Zekrel said casually, his grin becoming wide as his eyes were dazed, "You won't die."

All around the stands, large magic circles appeared as Katerea raised her staff. They covered every inch of the floor, walls, and even the chairs the devils were sitting on.

"Y-You're about... to witness..." Serafall spat out, sounding almost like she was choking as the words were pulled out, "T-The rise..."

Zekram looked down at the arena, and although Valon was wearing his helmet, he swore the monstrous helmet was smiling.

We lost.

"O-Of the... B-Beast... King!"

In that instant, the stadium exploded in a massive ball of light.

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AN: Thank you for reading! The next Chapter will be out tomorrow!

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