A flash of silver light brought Elias to the Underworld.
When he opened his eyes, he was standing in the hallways of a massive, glowing stadium.
It looked like a giant Roman colosseum, but built with dark stone and glowing purple magic.
The stadium was packed. It was a huge event.
Devils from every direction had traveled to witness this duel.
A fight for the hand of the Gremory heiress was rare and exciting.
But as Elias walked down the hall, he could hear the loud whispers and gossip coming from the crowds above.
With his sharp senses, he heard every word.
"Elias Thorne? Who is that?"
One Devil asked.
"I have never heard of the Thorne family,"
Another replied.
"He must come from a very small, weak Devil family in the countryside."
"He is a fool for challenging Lord Riser,"
A third Devil laughed.
"Riser is a pureblood Phenex. He has the power of immortal fire. This Thorne boy won't even last five minutes."
Everyone in the crowd was completely sure that Elias was going to be beaten into a bloody pulp.
High above the arena, in the most luxurious VIP box, two older men were sitting together.
They were drinking expensive wine and watching the empty fighting stage.
One man had bright crimson hair. This was Zeoticus Gremory, Rias's father.
The man sitting next to him had blond hair and a proud smile. This was Lord Phenex, Riser's father. They were old friends.
"Well, Zeoticus,"
Lord Phenex chuckled, taking a sip of his wine.
"Your daughter certainly knows how to cause a scene. But tell me, who is this boy? The Thorne family? I have never heard of them in all my centuries of life."
Zeoticus frowned slightly and shook his head.
"I have not heard of them either, my old friend,"
Zeoticus admitted honestly.
"I thought it was just a silly joke at first. But Grayfia personally came to me. She told me to allow this duel. She said this boy is... special."
Lord Phenex just laughed louder.
"Special? Against my Riser's immortal fire? We will see about that."
Deep inside the stadium, in a private waiting room, Rias was pacing back and forth nervously.
Her peerage was there with her.
Yuki stood quietly by the door, Koneko was sitting on a chair eating a snack, and Seiko was looking out the window at the loud crowd.
Akeno was not there.
Because Elias had saved her mother years ago, Akeno never had to become a reincarnated Devil to survive.
She was still a normal high school student with Fallen Angel blood.
Because she wasn't a Devil, she wasn't allowed to come to the Underworld for an official duel.
She had to stay back at the shrine with Dee, Shuri, and Asia, cheering for Elias from the human world through a special monitor.
Suddenly, a silver magic circle glowed on the floor of the waiting room.
Elias and Grayfia stepped out.
"Elias!"
Rias smiled brightly, running over to him. She looked so relieved to see him.
"You made it."
"Of course,"
Elias smiled back.
Grayfia gave Elias and the girls a polite bow.
"I will leave you here to prepare,"
Grayfia said, looking at Elias one last time.
"I must excuse myself now. Lady Serafall Leviathan and I are the official announcers for this event. I have to go to the broadcasting booth."
"Serafall?"
Elias asked.
"She is one of the Four Great Devil Kings,"
Rias explained quickly.
"She is very energetic. And she loves to dress up in magical girl costumes."
Elias just blinked. A Devil King who acts like an anime magical girl? This world really was a crazy place.
"I see,"
Elias nodded to the maid.
"Thank you for the ride, Grayfia-san."
"May the best fighter win,"
Grayfia said. Then, she vanished in another flash of silver light.
Elias turned to look at Rias, Yuki, Koneko, and Seiko. He cracked his knuckles and rolled his shoulders, feeling the heavy, combined power of a Devil, a Dragon, and an Angel resting quietly in his blood.
"Well,"
Elias smiled calmly, ignoring the loud cheers of the crowd outside who wanted him to lose.
"Let's get this over with."
Suddenly, a loud, cheerful voice echoed through the whole stadium.
"Hellooooo, Underworld! Are you ready for an amazing show?!"
It was Serafall Leviathan. She was standing in the high announcer's booth, holding a bright pink microphone.
Just like Rias had said, she was wearing a sparkly, colorful magical girl outfit, complete with a glowing wand.
"Today, we have a very special, romantic duel!"
Serafall cheered happily.
"First, let's welcome the groom! The immortal bird of fire! Lord Riser Phenex!"
A massive pillar of bright orange fire shot up in the middle of the fighting stage.
The flames spun like a tornado, and Riser stepped out of the fire, looking completely unharmed.
He had his arms wide open, smiling with total arrogance.
The crowd went absolutely crazy.
They clapped, whistled, and chanted his name.
Riser pointed a finger toward Elias's waiting room tunnel.
"Look at Riser!"
He shouted, his voice echoing loudly through the stadium.
"Riser is a pureblood! Riser is the true power of the Underworld! That lowly, arrogant boy thinks he can steal Riser's bride? He is a nobody! Today, Riser will show everyone what happens when a weak bug tries to fight a god!"
The crowd cheered even louder, loving his flashy style and confident words.
Serafall giggled into her microphone.
"And now, let's welcome his brave challenger! He is a mystery boy fighting for the Gremory Princess! Give it up for... Elias Thorne!"
As soon as Elias's name was spoken, the stadium filled with a loud, angry noise.
"Booooo!"
"Go home, weakling!"
"Don't waste our time!"
Thousands of Devils were booing him loudly.
They looked down on him because he didn't have a famous family name.
They thought he was just a foolish, weak commoner.
Inside the dark tunnel, Elias just smiled.
He didn't feel angry at all.He made a quick choice in his mind.
He didn't need to use all of his powers today. He would keep his holy Angel light a secret.
For this match, he decided to only use his heavy Devil magic combined with his raw Dragon strength.
That would be more than enough.
Elias stepped out of the tunnel and walked into the bright light of the arena.
The booing got even worse. People yelled insults and laughed at him.
Elias stopped walking. He took a deep breath.
He let the thick, ancient Dragon blood inside his veins mix perfectly with his massive Devil energy.
He opened his mouth, and instead of speaking, he let it all out.
He roared.
ROOOOOAAAAR!
It wasn't a normal human shout. It was the epic, majestic, and terrifying roar of an ancient, giant dragon, boosted by pure Devil magic.
The sound hit the stadium like a physical wave. The solid stone ground shook violently.
The magical barriers protecting the audience flickered wildly. A heavy, suffocating pressure washed over the entire crowd.
It felt like a giant, invisible claw was pressing down on everyone's chest, making it hard to breathe.
The loud booing stopped instantly.
The massive stadium went completely, deadly silent.
Not a single person dared to make a sound.
The Devils who were just laughing at him a second ago were now pale, holding their breath in pure shock and fear.
Up in the VIP box, Lord Phenex dropped his expensive wine glass. It shattered on the floor, but he didn't even notice.
He was too busy staring at the boy in the arena.
Elias stood calmly in the center of the stage. His eyes were glowing slightly with a dangerous, commanding light.
He looked around at the quiet stadium.
He had just shut up thousands of people who looked down on him, and the actual fight hadn't even started yet.
Read up to chapter 56 at [email protected]/jelopy_jelopy for $5 only