Becoming Enkidu in DxD

The moment Grayfia Lucifuge appeared, the entire arena fell into absolute silence.

As the Strongest Queen in the Underworld and the personal envoy of Lucifer, her presence alone signaled that this Rating Game was no mere formality—it was now an officially sanctioned, high-level event.

With the Maou themselves attending as witnesses, no one dared to speak out of turn or behave carelessly.

— — —

Meanwhile, within the artificial dimension designated as the battlefield, Shin Akira stood in the center of what looked like Kuoh Academy's schoolyard, quietly surveying his surroundings with mild surprise.

"So this is an artificial dimension... Incredible," Akira murmured.

Despite the ominous red haze clouding the skies, the entire place was almost indistinguishable from the real academy grounds. Everything had been recreated with astounding precision.

Still, there was one thing that bothered him.

He could feel it—his power was being slightly suppressed in this space.

The dimensional field had been specially constructed as a safe battleground. But its floating, platform-like structure meant there was no direct connection to real earth. And without that grounding, Akira couldn't draw energy from the planet as he usually did.

Even so, it wasn't something that would stop him.

Against Riser Phenex, he didn't need his full power. Victory was already a foregone conclusion.

"Buchou, why are we still here?" asked Asia Argento, tilting her head with visible confusion. To her, the room felt too familiar—identical, in fact, to the Occult Research Club they used every day.

Indeed, the space had been magically reconstructed to perfectly mimic the real Kuoh Academy. Every desk, every wall, even the furniture was reproduced down to the smallest detail through large-scale formation magic.

"This is an artificial dimension, Asia," Rias explained gently. "It's designed to look like the school, so we can fight in an environment we're comfortable in."

"Ehh? So it's fake? But why go through all that trouble?" she asked, even more puzzled.

"Because this is the place we know best," Akeno answered with her usual serene smile. "Also… I wouldn't be surprised if the Gremory family helped influence the design a little."

It was true. While technically neutral, the arena had been arranged by the Gremory household. It wasn't unusual for the hosting side to receive some minor advantages.

"Amazing…" Asia breathed, her eyes sparkling as she gazed around in awe.

But all eyes soon returned to a single person—Shin Akira.

Everyone knew it. This match rested entirely on his shoulders.

"Akira... Are you really confident you can win?" Rias asked softly. Though she had voiced her trust in him, the closer they got to the start, the more anxious she became.

"Don't worry," he said, stretching lazily. "This'll be over quicker than you think."

"Then I'll be waiting to hear the good news."

"This isn't a match. It's a hunt. And I'm the only hunter here. The rest… are just prey."

His voice held absolute certainty. But since most of his teammates had never seen the full extent of his power, the tension remained thick in the air.

— — —

Elsewhere in the artificial dimension, in another area modeled after Kuoh Academy, Riser Phenex arrived with his full team—fourteen pieces in total.

Riser strutted into the space with a proud smirk, arrogance radiating from every step.

As a pure-blooded Devil from a noble family, Riser had grown up drenched in superiority.

To him, this battlefield—designed to resemble a human school—was beneath him. A disgrace, even.

He could never understand why someone like Rias Gremory, the younger sister of a Maou, would lower herself to attend a school in the human world.

He didn't know, of course, that the only reason she had come to the human realm… was to escape him.

Back in the Underworld, their families had been closely interacting, tied together by a political engagement.

And so, Rias had fled. This world—this ordinary, peaceful place—was her sanctuary.

"…So, the day's finally here," Riser muttered, eyes narrowing. "I'll make that human understand how worthless he really is."

None of his peerage objected. In fact, they shared his disdain.

Riser had already proven himself through numerous Rating Games. He had the skill, the pedigree, and the ego to match.

"To be honest, Onii-sama... you really do like Rias, don't you?" a cold, sharp voice said behind him.

"…Ravel?" Riser turned with a slight scowl. "What are you talking about?"

"Your precious fiancée is getting cozy with a human. What's the point of bringing someone like that into our family?"

Ravel Phenex—Riser's little sister and the spoiled jewel of the Phenex household—was even more arrogant than her brother.

Coddled by her entire family, she had never known rejection or failure.

"This is Father's will. The family agreed," Riser replied with slight irritation in his voice.

"Hmph. Father only cares about the social advantage. If she weren't Sirzechs Lucifer's sister, who would even want to marry someone openly clinging to another man?"

"I don't have a choice. She's the Maou's sister."

"Then crush her little boyfriend. Drag her back to the manor, and let Mother teach her how to act like a proper wife for the Phenex household."

"That's been my plan from the start," Riser said with a smug grin.

As a man, there was no way he could accept this insult—not just as her fiancé, but as a noble of the Underworld.

Letting her be claimed by a human? That was a disgrace. One that could never be forgiven.

— — —

"All participants have arrived," Grayfia's voice echoed clearly throughout the arena and across the battlefield. "Therefore, I now officially declare the start of the Rating Game between Rias Gremory and Riser Phenex."

"I, Grayfia Lucifuge, will serve as the referee for this match."

Her voice was firm and unwavering, declaring to everyone that there would be no bias, no interference, and no escape from the rules.

Back on Rias's side, the announcement brought a faint smile to Akira's lips.

"Finally. I was starting to get bored."

He stood up calmly and made his way toward the door, stepping out of the replica clubroom with composed steps.

No one followed him.

Not a single member of Rias's team moved.

Up in the audience stands, Sona Sitri's eyes widened in disbelief.

She had expected Akira to take center stage in the match—but she never imagined he would literally be the only one fighting.

"…Rias, what were you thinking?" Sona whispered, stunned. "Is that man really so strong… that no one else is even needed?"

From where she stood, it looked like madness.

And she wasn't alone in that thought.

Even Grayfia Lucifuge, usually cool and composed, couldn't entirely hide her unease.

As much as she respected and even liked this potential future brother-in-law… facing Riser and his entire team alone seemed dangerously reckless.

But the stage had been set.

There was no turning back now.

— — —

Author's Note:

At last... We've reached this turning point!

Thank you so much to all of you who have followed the journey up to this chapter! I may not be a professional translator, but I'll keep doing my best to bring this story to life!

I can't promise huge batch updates every day, but from now on, I'll be posting at least two chapters a day over on Patreon!

And I promise—I won't stop until the very end. This novel will not be abandoned, and the translation will be finished.

No matter how long it takes.

Thank you to everyone—whether you've supported me financially, or simply by being here and reading. Your presence means the world.

Let's keep going together until the very end!

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