Chapter 272 The King’s Piece

“There’s also this.”

Her voice continued steadily.

“Azazel-sensei, who was watching the same footage, said it was ‘probably fine.’ The only clearly suspicious detail in that video was that the cave entrance was briefly illuminated by a blue light.”

“If Sensei judged that as ‘safe,’ then something beneficial to Riser must have happened there.”

“At first I thought that light might have been Lord Ajuka’s teleportation magic. But the magic I previously saw from Lord Ajuka was yellow-green. So… could it be that there was someone else at that scene besides Lord Ajuka, the Emperor, and Riser—someone Azazel-sensei also knows?”

Heh… how’s that?

I basically stitched together what I saw with what I already knew and built a plausible theory out of it.

That blue light was probably from Tiamat, the strongest female among the Five Dragon Kings, the “Chaos Karma Dragon,” one of the hidden judges of Rating Games.

That should be right.

Ajuka-sama in front of me slowly began clapping.

Boom

“Splendid. If I were an enemy targeting D×D, the first person I would eliminate would be former Governor Azazel… but the second would undoubtedly be you.”

Wow. That’s… not exactly a compliment I’m happy to receive.

He smiled faintly.

“Fufu… I may need to strengthen the Phenex household’s defenses further. The future after those old men start meddling with you and your family is… frightening.”

Oh, don’t worry about that.

We already figured something out.

Even if Serafall’s party can’t handle everything alone… worst case, winning the Rating Game international tournament would let us use the wish reward to wipe out the old devils’ influence entirely.

“For some reason, I feel like I should punch Ikki-senpai in the head and erase his memory immediately.”

“I agree.”

“…Shirone? Ravel? What are you two casually saying something so dangerous for?!”

Azazel suddenly crossed his arms.

“Ajuka. One thing I want to confirm, how many King Pieces currently exist?”

“Production has been halted at the initial slot. I am the only one who knows how to manufacture them, and without my ability, they cannot be created. Therefore, no more will be made.”

“There are nine King Pieces in total. Including the one given to the King, I currently possess four.”

“So the remaining five are in the hands of the higher-ups… That’s enough to overturn a battlefield if necessary.”

Five in the hands of those old fossils… earlier it was six, wasn’t it?

Wait… that means—

“Ajuka-sama,” someone spoke up. “Earlier you showed data on dozens of Rating Game players using the King Piece… does that mean they are being swapped around?”

“What do you mean, Ikki?” Azazel asked.

“It’s simple. The number of King Pieces doesn’t match the number of players.”

Six pieces versus dozens of users that gap is too large to ignore.

Ajuka nodded calmly.

“Good observation. That is correct. Rating Game players are not active all year round. Some retire after gaining fame and only return occasionally. The old administration exploits that.”

“They temporarily assign King Pieces only when needed. After the match, they remove them again.”

“Some, like second-ranked Roygun Belphegor and third-ranked Abaddon, are frequently active media figures, so they tend to keep them permanently.”

Azazel frowned deeply.

“If they can just insert and remove them so easily… that’s troublesome. Even if we corner them, they could just transfer the piece back to headquarters.”

“Yes. That is exactly the problem we are dealing with,” Ajuka replied.

“Even so… I intend to recover all of them, even if it takes thousands of years. This situation is the result of my own miscalculation.”

Yeah… if Ajuka had known what kind of monster that thing was, he probably would’ve sealed or destroyed it the moment it was created.

Or maybe someone tested it and ran off with it before he could properly evaluate it.

Issei raised a hand.

“Uh… why doesn’t someone like Rizevim use it?”

A valid question. If a being like him gained a hundredfold power boost, it would be catastrophic.

Ajuka answered calmly.

“The King Piece causes an overflow reaction when used by individuals with excessively high power or unique abilities.”

“In short—it is something only the ‘weak’ can safely use.”

“If a strong individual uses it, they will either die… or survive with severe damage.”

The room visibly relaxed.

At least we won’t be facing a hyper-boosted Rizevim running around…

“Well then. That covers the King Piece topic.”

Azazel looked around the beach.

“Now, about this space. You said it recreates an otherworldly landscape—but isn’t there a risk of being detected?”

“After all, we know entities like evil gods exist. If they notice, they could trace the coordinates here.”

Ajuka answered without hesitation.

“There is no problem. This space is linked to two Longinus Sacred Gears.”

“Innovate Clear’ and ‘Telos Karma.’ I am borrowing fragments through a self-made ‘game.'”

Azazel’s eyes widened slightly.

“So you’re combining a world-creation gear and a probability-manipulation gear… and letting random chance recreate an entire worldscape?”

“That’s… absurdly dangerous.”

What kind of insane combination is that?!

That’s like putting a cat on piano keys and it accidentally plays Beethoven’s “Fate.”

Ajuka continued.

“These Longinus are beyond conventional understanding. Even for someone as knowledgeable as you, tracking them will be difficult.”

Azazel smirked.

“Heh. As a Sacred Gear maniac, I’ll eventually dissect them both.”

Ajuka chuckled.

“I look forward to it, former Governor.”

Then he turned to us.

“Members of D×D. This matter will place a heavy burden on you—especially the younger devils but I ask you to overcome it.”

“We will handle the political shadows of the Rating Game.”

“You only need to fight in the arena you’ve been given.”

“That alone will lead the Rating Game toward a proper future.”

“Yes!”

Sona-senpai, who had been shaken earlier, now answered firmly.

Even if the current system is rotten… if we can slowly change it… then her dream isn’t over yet.

We thanked Ajuka for protecting Riser and said our goodbyes.

Then we activated the teleportation circle and returned to Issei’s house.

Honestly, I even considered scenarios like Niðhöggr or Qlippoth attacking.

But with my original knowledge and Izuna’s shared perception… I’d probably solve it instantly anyway.

Damn it.

If only I didn’t have Izuna’s sensory link… I could’ve turned Issei’s house into a robot, grabbed his parents with mechanical arms, and launched them to the moon.

…Wait, what am I even thinking.