Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Scott Fellman.
I could feel the glares of every Phenex boring into my head. Yeah … she definitely didn't fool anyone. Rias was a terrible liar and actress, even more so because of her incessant gloating.
Ravel sat stiffly beside me, her hand gripping my forearm so tightly her nails were digging into my skin. Without hesitation, I pulled out a pair of cigarettes, placed one in Ravel's mouth, suddenly surprising her, and placed the other on my lips. I ignored the Phenex's stares, which suddenly turned even more intense, and lit both cigarettes.
I inhaled a long drag on my cigarette, while Ravel was even more timid about smoking it. She was already aware of the effects, but she never had a reason to need to smoke them to calm her nerves. She was able to handle herself with extreme efficiency in any situation she chose without any problem.
But now, under the withering gaze of her family, after a few exploratory puffs, she took a slow, long drag, nearly half the cigarette disappearing. I could feel Ravel's tension dissipate slightly. I could feel the faint gratitude in the back of my mind coming from Ravel.
Just in time for all the devils, Riser and his Peerage, and Rias and her Peerage, to appear in front of us, all completely healthy although somewhat battered and their clothes slightly destroyed. Rias had a smug look on her face while Riser had a blank stare, barely seeming to react to the pain and blood pouring from his wounds.
Ravel shuddered violently at the sight.
"Heal my son." Lord Phenex's voice said coldly. That woke Rias up because she shuddered slightly and paled.
"Huh?! Oh- yeah, I- I mean-" Rias tried to say, surprised by the call to attention. But Lord Phenex wasn't even looking at anyone on the Gremory side; he was staring straight at me. I didn't move. "I-" Rias tried once more before clearing her throat. Her gaze fell on Asia. Asia jumped and rushed forward.
She placed her hands on Riser, and Twilight Healing surged over Asia's hands. The green light had no effect on Riser.
"W-what?" Asia muttered in disbelief and looked at Rias in panic. Rias paled, and her gaze fell on me in near panic. And that was as good as direct confirmation. I sighed.
" Gae Buidhe: the Yellow Rose of Mortality." I began softly as I stood up and began walking towards Rias. "It was a gift that the Celtic god of the sea, Manannán, the king of the fairies, bestowed upon Diarmuid Ua Duibhne, his adopted son. The spear doesn't have any really flashy attacks, but it does have a pretty useful curse.
" Gae Buidhe inflicts wounds that cannot be healed naturally, or with magic. The spear reduces the opponent's maximum health limit, limiting healing and regeneration abilities to the point where the opponent received the wound, as they are considered at full health, even with the wounds." I said softly.
I walked over Rias's peerage and faced Yuuto Kiba, Rias's knight. I reached out and grabbed Gae Buidhe. Kiba barely flinched, not even making any effort to stop me.
"The only way to break the curse? Is to break the spear." I said it easily before applying a little force with my fingers to the modified blade of the sword. Buidhe cracked before shattering into pieces. A burst of energy erupted from the spear as the curse was lifted, and at the same time, Riser's wounds ignited as he began to heal with his healing factor.
"YOOUUUU!!!" Riser roared, finally coming out of his shock. Everyone seemed to be surprised by the guttural scream, except me. Riser lunged at me, grabbed my collar, and lifted me slightly, or tried to. I was taller than Riser, so his attempt to lift me had no effect. Riser's furious glare filled my vision. "HOW DARE YOU INTERFERE!!" Riser yelled as he shook me.
"RISER!!!" several people exclaimed simultaneously.
"How could you help her?! You're family!! You should be on our side!" Riser exclaimed angrily. My eyes widened slightly, and I could hear Ravel gasp slightly. That... Riser considering me family would never have occurred to me.
"You need to calm down, Riser." I said softly.
"Calm down!? CALM DOWN?!" Riser shouted angrily. Yeah, that's not the thing to say. I pulled out a potion.
"Please drink this, Riser." I said it as gently as before, handing him the potion. Riser let go of me, angrily grabbing the potion and throwing it at a wall. The sound of the flask shattering startled everyone.
"I don't want anything of yours!" Riser growled as he glared at me.
"Riser." Lady Phenex said worriedly, but Riser ignored her.
"Riser, there's no need to make a scene," Rias tried to intervene. "I know you wanted to marry me, but it's best if you get over it." What a help.
"You shut up, too!" Riser exclaimed in Rias's direction. That surprised everyone even more. But Riser wasn't finished. "Do you think I wanted to marry you?! Of course not!! I'm not some stupid masochist who would ruin my life just for a pretty face!! Don't get your hopes up, Rias! You're not worth a tenth of all the trouble that comes with being your fiancé!!"
"All I did was follow my parents' wishes!! I tried to be cordial to you, but you only antagonized me from the first meeting!! You looked down on me for something I had no control over!! You are a fucking hypocrite!! A pain in the ass!! You attacked me and tried to humiliate me privately and publicly for something your parents did, and yet I never retaliated against you because I understood you were angry!! I believed that in time you would accept it!! But no!! So I behaved in a way that I hated!!"
"Screw you Rias!! Screw you, your Peerage, all the Gremorys!! Screw you all!!" Riser exclaimed furiously. As he raised his hand and extended his middle finger in the direction of a very stunned Rias. We were all in shock as we watched Riser completely explode. Riser was breathing raggedly before moving away and approaching his Peerage. "We're leaving, I don't want to be here one more second." Riser spat before teleporting away with his entire Peerage.
We all fell silent in shock, until Lord Phenex simply cleared his throat and grimaced. He looked down on the Gremorys, especially Rias, and simply snorted.
"We're leaving," Lord Phenex said to his family. Then they all disappeared into the circle. I snorted and looked at Rias.
"Don't forget, Gremory, you still owe us big for this. And I assure you we'll collect." I said coldly. Then I turned to Ravel. "Let's go." I said in her direction. Ravel looked surprised.
"Wait, are you coming with me?!" Ravel asked, mentally surprised. I snorted.
"Of course, you're my fiancée. I won't let you go through what awaits you in the castle alone," I said. Ravel looked at me with appreciation and gratitude, but didn't say anything; she simply nodded. I opened a portal, and the two of us quickly stepped through.
I grimaced at the sight; Riser was sitting defeatedly on a couch, practically lying down with his back against the backrest and his head back, looking up at the ceiling without making a movement or showing any emotion.
Lord Phenex and his brothers stood to one side, looking worriedly while Lady Phenex and Yubelluna stood beside them, almost in tears. Their Peerage stood nearby, also looking worriedly.
"…Riser." Ravel said worriedly as she approached.
"...did you know?" Riser asked simply, not taking his gaze off the ceiling. Ravel closed her eyes in pain.
"Yes." Ravel said simply with determination. "I planned everything, I told Serena to give the weapon to Rias," Ravel confessed. Everyone stared at her in disbelief. Riser stood up abruptly.
"W-what?" Riser mumbled incredulously. He sounded so betrayed, so hurt. I could practically hear Ravel crying in her mind. She had to blink a few times to keep the tears from spilling out of her eyes. I reached over and took her hand. She held on like a lifeline.
"L-let me explain it to you please." Ravel said almost desperately.
"Explain what? What can you explain?" Riser laughed hollowly, a blank look in his eyes.
"You wouldn't have been happy!" Ravel exclaimed suddenly. Riser shuddered and looked at her, horribly confused. Ravel bit her lip and looked at me almost pleadingly. I simply nodded. "Do you... do you remember Sera's powers? The metals?"
"Get to the point." Riser growled impatiently. Ravel shuddered.
"Electrum, an alloy of gold and silver, allows Sera to see her own future. Within seconds, immediate decisions. They're useful for fighting." Ravel began immediately. " Duraluminium, an explosive enhancement of several magnitudes to the scorched metal. By using them at the same time, Sera can see her own future, days, weeks, and years if she wants." That surprised everyone.
"W-what-" Riser tried to say, surprised.
"There's... there's another metal. A special metal. A metal she created. Hard to replicate. It wasn't on the list she gave us. That metal allows you to slightly change the effects of the metal. And instead of seeing your own future, you can see the future of others." Ravel continued. I could hear several incredulous gasps. Ravel, who had already gained momentum, continued speaking.
"You were going to win, you were going to win the Rating Game, the engagement party was going to take place. But Lord Sirzechs, he was going to interfere. You set a precedent. By pitting you against Sera at our engagement party, Lord Lucifer was going to take advantage of that and force you to fight the Red Emperor, and you would lose." Ravel finally said.
"W-what?! That's ridiculous!! That useless pawn could barely hurt me in the fight! How the hell was he going to hurt me?! Beat me!?" Riser replied forcefully.
"He would make a deal with the celestial dragon in his Sacred Gear. He would give his arm to the red dragon to be draconified in order to gain power. He would be able to unleash its Balance Breaker." Ravel said simply, Riser grimaced.
"It still wouldn't be able to beat me. Even with that tactic, the pawn is too weak. It shouldn't even last a full minute," Riser said dismissively. Ravel nodded.
"You're right, much less. But... his arm would be that of a dragon. Allowing him to touch sacred objects, a cross, and holy water. He would empower it and use it to attack you until you fainted," Ravel finally said. Riser took a step back, his eyes wide open.
"That... even if that's true! Why do all this!? Why humiliate me by losing against Rias?! If you had known what would happen, you could have warned me! I could have prepared against the holy water!!" Riser growled through gritted teeth. Ravel sighed. And stared at her brother.
"And then what?" Ravel asked simply. Riser looked confused.
"And then what... what?" Riser asked awkwardly.
"And after defeating the Red Emperor, what? Everyone in this room knows that Rias would still try to break up the engagement. Just because the engagement party went ahead successfully doesn't mean it's the same as a marriage; it can still be broken up, and Lord Lucifer would still help her. So… what? You would still try to prevent Rias and Lord Lucifer's attempts until you are married?"
"That would only make Rias resent you more and more. You said it yourself, Rias hates you undeservedly. And she's stubborn and immature enough to keep holding a grudge. Then your entire marriage to Rias will be with her hating your guts. I'm sure even if you two were to get married, she wouldn't give up. She'd just change her goal from breaking off the engagement to divorcing you."
"Your marriage was going to be a misery, Riser, and I couldn't stand by and watch your life become miserable. With a wife who hates you, and you probably hate her back. So yes, I stepped in to stop this from the start. And I won't apologize for it," Ravel said firmly, chin held high.
Riser and the rest of his family and Peerage seemed stunned by everything Ravel had said. Riser had a conflicted look on his face.
"I…" Riser said, biting his lip. "Even if what you're saying is true, which is hard to believe… You went behind my back, Ravel." Riser said, pained. Ravel shuddered slightly.
"I know… and I'm sorry about that," Ravel said sadly as she bit her lip.
"I can help with the first one." I said simply. Ravel seemed confused by my interference, but the other Phenex stared at me. I opened a portal next to me, sticking my hand inside for a few seconds before pulling it out. Along with my hand, the Pensieve I had stolen from Dumbledore emerged from the portal. Ravel's eyes gleamed slightly in recognition.
"This is a pensieve. A magical object created to store and review memories. This… is something truly personal. It's enchanted to recreate memories, bringing them back to life by taking every detail stored in the subconscious and recreating it faithfully. It's not something I like to share," I said seriously, looking at the others.
"Seeing memories… is that… possible?" Lady Phenex asked, completely surprised. I nodded.
" Yes, you just have to extract them-" I said as I placed a finger to my temple and began to pull out a slightly altered memory. A silver thread emerged from my head and I slowly began to pull on it, slowly until the silver thread finally ended and dangled from the tip of my finger. "-and let them fall." I slowly dropped it into the Pensieve.
The silver thread seemed to float almost weightlessly as it slowly descended into the Pensieve's bowl. I could feel Ravel's gratitude fill my mind, and I just smiled slightly at her. Of course, I would support her in this situation. She was my fiancée.
Modifying memories was extremely easy to do, especially when I knew what I was after. I hoped no one would notice.
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