Issei keeps the Lamp!

"Given the circumstances, I believe that the one better suited to possessing the Lamp that my sister is bound to is Issei," Sirzechs announced with little fanfare.

Riser's eyes widened. "Lord Sirzechs, surely, you are joking! He is merely a servant, a Pawn at that! He shouldn't have any degree of authority over his King! Not to mention, he doesn't understand the needs of Devilkind!"

"Not yet, he doesn't. In the short term, perhaps you would be better for Devilkind... But in the long term, I am certain that Issei is the one better suited. Furthermore, he is my sister's choice of Master," Sirzechs explained with a chuckle.

"And on what grounds do you have to say he is better for the long term?" Riser demanded, indignant.

Sirzechs raised an eyebrow. "...well, for starters, he kicked your ass, did he not? Furthermore, while I suggested the Rating Game to settle the matter between my sister's wishes, and the demands of the powerful among our society, ultimately, it was a test for both of you."

"A... Test?" Issei questioned. "I mean, the Game itself was a test, but I get the feeling you mean more than that."

"Very astute of you. That is correct," Sirzechs laughed jovially. "I wanted to see what you both would do to prepare for the Rating Game. And in your case, Issei, whether you could come up with creative ways to utilize the Lamp's power to even the odds. And whether Riser would recognize the potential threat, and whether he would be able to come up with any kind of countermeasures and prepare accordingly."

"And... Your assessment?" Issei questioned, and Sirzechs smirked.

"You utilized the Lamp to create a time dilation field that almost tripled your training time, came up with a way within the rules to decrease recovery time, squeezing even more training into what was technically two weeks, and then there's the Evil Piece Transfer Spell you gained. That last one, you even had the foresight to ask for it to come in the form of a spell any Devil could learn, which is already something I'm interested in to develop Devilkind. I'll ask you to share the workings of it with Grayfia before you go. And then there's the... Ahem, other spell you came up with," Sirzechs laughed nervously glancing at Grayfia, who was giving him a subtle glare, just daring him to praise Dress Break. "... it's certainly... Creative," Sirzechs hedged, trying to neither insult nor compliment it. He was impressed by it, but he had the good sense to avoid irritating Grayfia. "You also helped one of your comrades learn new ways to utilize their abilities, so that's being a team player right there. Overall, full marks, and that's before you even made it to the Rating Game!"

"How did you know all of this?" Rias asked. "Were you spying on us?"

"Well, I can hardly test someone if I can't see their work, can I?" Sirzechs snorted. "Though, given the amount of... Passion occuring, I left the watching you part to some of my female servants."

"I take it Riser didn't do as well at that stage?" Issei inquired, smirking at Riser, who snarled.

"Not even close. Riser... You were so sure of your victory that you basically did nothing to maintain your advantage. You didn't so much as up your training, or that of your Peerage," Sirzechs shook his head, and Riser, already feeling humiliated, wanted to bristle at the subtly mocking tone Sirzechs had taken, but he knew better. "Literally the only thing you did to up your odds was to recruit your sister into your Peerage."

"And then there's the Rating Game itself," Grayfia noted.

"Ah yes, quite right, Grayfia," Sirzechs nodded. "Your performance was quite stellar in the Rating Game as well, Issei. A Pawn with four pieces available to them beating a more experienced Rook is no small feat. And you were instrumental in beating many other Pieces. Then, even when you were finally on the back foot, you showed the tenacity to not quite, and the ingenuity to turn your situation around. Actually, I have to say, you swiping the Phoenix Tears from Ravel was my favorite moment of the whole performance. Talk about snatching victory from the jaws of defeat," he concluded grinning like a bit of a fool.

"That just about concludes the matter..." Grayfia nodded. "Unless Riser has any counterpoints to offer, I believe we are done here."