[Third Person POV]
Riser rushed out of the smoke cloud that formed from the impact.
The clothes he was wearing were now burnt, but he was otherwise unharmed.
Flames appeared on his legs, launching Riser a few meters into the air. Gravity quickly acted, pulling Riser back to the ground.
Owen and Oscar, shocked that their opponent was unharmed by their twin magic attack, barely reacted, diving away from where Riser was falling.
Hitting the ground, Riser unleashed a ring of fire that burst from the impact, traveling a few feet before catching the brothers in the back and singeing their clothes.
Both men stumbled as the flames hit them, knocking them off balance and sending them tumbling to the floor.
The two scrambled to stand up, turning to face their young foe.
Riser's face twisted into a smug grin, almost as if he were laughing at them. The more they interacted with the brat, the more they understood why Ulick wanted to cave his face in.
Casting a different magic circle from before, the two rushed together. After seeing their fire magic, Riser didn't dare let them hit him again. He may have been immune to fire magic, but he doubted anyone was stupid enough to attack him with fire again after he came out unscathed.
The twins closed in on Riser from both angles. Their coordination was solid.
Once they got close enough, the two struck at Riser again and again.
Riser avoided each attack, sometimes barely, but he couldn't retaliate. If he hadn't been child-sized, dodging their attacks would have been difficult.
Trying to counterattack, Riser swung his fist at one of them but couldn't land the hit, instead dodging the other brother's attack.
He could tell that, individually, both were weaker than him, probably low-class; however, their teamwork and experience made up for it in this case. Plus, their magic seemed like a unique talent from the way they used it in tandem.
Riser dodged for several minutes, and it was clear that whatever spell the two were trying to use was draining them even without activating it. Likely a consequence of the magic connecting to another person.
Eventually, Oscar couldn't take it anymore and recklessly charged at Riser, hoping at least one of their attacks would land.
Overwhelmed by the young man's rampage, Riser only managed to avoid a few strikes before Oscar's hand finally connected with his shoulder.
Pain didn't come immediately, but Owen, seeing the situation, cast his spell.
A large lightning bolt emerged from the magic circle and slammed into Riser.
Enhancing his speed with fire magic, Riser managed to push himself out of the lightning's path, but Oscar took the chance to cast his spell.
The lightning bolt visibly shifted in midair, redirecting itself toward the young Phenex.
Riser's eyes widened in shock, finally understanding what they were trying to do before.
Slamming into him, Riser's body seized up as the lightning struck. Falling to one knee, panting, Riser's regeneration activated to heal the damage.
Seeing their opponent fall over, the twins moved to grab him. As they moved to touch him, Riser burst into flames, destroying the rest of his shirt and sending the flames outward to hit them.
Riser frowned, seeing his shirt get destroyed, realizing he'd need to get some more reliable clothing, probably from the shop.
Owen and Oscar paled as they saw their opponent healing while covered in flames and realized who they were attacking.
"You're a Phenex?" Owen said, now visibly nervous.
The Phenex clan was highly influential worldwide, especially among devils, whom they were active nobility of. They were one of the few people with a 'miracle cure' that could heal almost anything.
Recovery potions existed, but they only sped up healing rather than actively healing anything themselves. Hera's golden apples could heal people and grant immortality, but unless you were Greek, you'd never get close; even then, she rarely gave them out, usually only to those she felt were worth the 'investment.'
Phenex tears were simply the most useful healing item that most people could reasonably buy.
Because of that influence, the Phenexes were the least affected of all devil clans when a diplomatic incident occurred.
This usually happened when a noble devil reincarnated someone they shouldn't; why bother bringing one of the most reliable healers into the matter? Other clans were forced to participate, if only to show a united front, but the Phenex clan would almost always opt out.
Part of their value came from being so valuable that upsetting them wasn't recommended.
Only thanks to Sirzechs' influence and the original Riser's naiveté could Rias have her rating game, then have Issei challenge Riser separately, where he wouldn't have gained anything by winning.
Riser took off into the sky, unfurling his flaming wings behind him, and smirked down at the two, now aware of his identity.
"Hold on now, can't we talk about this?" Owen asked, practically begging. He knew the type of influence the Phenex clan wielded.
Larger factions like the Norse, Grigori, and the like could afford to ignore them or buy through intermediaries, but Ireland was a more closed-off region magically. It was very likely their fian would kick them out to appease the Phenexes if the blond kid in front of them said anything.
Riser created several small magic circles wrapping around his arms like bracelets.
The circles glowed an ominous orange-gold.
Moments later, they erupted in flames, launching fire bullets like it was a machine gun.
Owen and Oscar, standing in the middle of the street, found no cover. The fire bullets crashed against them, sending them tumbling to the ground. As they lay on the ground, the barrage kept going.
Fire bullets hit their arms, legs, stomachs, and chests.
The barrage lasted about 15 seconds, but for Owen and Oscar, it was a very painful 15 seconds.
They were in too much pain to focus enough to create a shield, and the constant attacks were wearing down what little stamina they already had.
As Riser's magic circles faded into motes of light, a small dust cloud was raised around Owen and Oscar.
Flapping his wings to push away the dust, Riser found the two young men lying on the floor, groaning in agony.
Turning to his compatriots, Riser saw that Erza was finished with her fight, and Viola was wrapping up hers. Riser nodded in pride and satisfaction that they all managed to win their first real fight with minimal injury.
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Author's Note:
Thanks for reading; I'll see you next time!