Somewhere unknown, inside a cave.
The cave was deep and unfathomable, dark like an invisible giant web enveloping every inch of space. The eerie silence was only broken by the flickering candlelight stubbornly resisting the darkness.
A woman in a kimono knelt at the end of the cave, her head bowed, as if in deep contemplation.
The ground behind her suddenly broke open.
Literally broke open, as if drilled through from below. A burly man emerged from the hole beneath, like a ninja performing an Earth Escape. Strangely enough, though he came from underground, there wasn't a speck of dust on him.
Beside him a whirlwind of flames rose, like a tornado made of fire. When the flames dissipated, another figure appeared from within. This time, it was a relatively slender man, who, though stepping out from the flames, showed no signs of burns, not even his clothes were damaged.
"Iwamaru, Honomaru."
The woman remained seated with her back to the two, resting with her eyes closed, not turning around.
Both men respectfully bowed.
"Lady Mizuchi."
These two were the remaining pair of the Four Great Emperors, Honomaru who wielded the Flame Emperor, and Iwamaru who wielded the Earth Emperor.
"Your brothers have failed." Saio Mizuchi said calmly.
"Yes, regrettably so."
Honomaru said with his right hand on his waist.
"It seems Hyomaru and Raimaru paid the price for their arrogance. I always thought their mindset would eventually be a problem."
He paused and looked at his companion.
"But we are different. Right, Iwamaru?"
"Yes." Iwamaru nodded.
"Rest assured, Lady Mizuchi. Now that we are taking action, nothing will go wrong." Honomaru said confidently, "We will take care of the Revolver, and that Hanuo Knight who keeps hounding us.
In three days, we guarantee they will no longer be a problem."
Saio Mizuchi slowly opened her eyes, letting out a soft sigh.
"You always say that. But words are just words, what's the use of that?"
Honomaru's face changed slightly.
"We're different from those two, Lady Mizuchi." He said, "I assure you..."
"Enough."
Mizuchi stood up and slowly turned around.
"It's my fault for expecting too much from you. I should remember, you were merely humans, ordinary humans."
"We might have been mundane before, but we're different now!" Honomaru said urgently, "We now have the power bestowed by you, Lady Mizuchi! With this power, no one can ever..."
"Yes, but now I've changed my mind. You both are of no use anymore."
Mizuchi looked at them expressionlessly, as if delivering a verdict.
"Return your power to me."
The two were greatly shocked.
"Return the power obediently, and you can revert to being ordinary people. Or perhaps..."
Mizuchi slowly lifted her slender, snow-white hands and deftly formed a sign.
"Would you rather choose a more forceful way and become cards like those soulless shells?"
As she formed the sign, a bizarre light appeared above her head. In the glow, a strange mirror coalesced, its surface shimmering with a dangerous light.
Both men suddenly felt as if their hearts had stopped. They both knew clearly the methods of Lady Mizuchi. Anyone illuminated by the beam from her mirror would be sealed into a card.
"Wait a minute!" Iwamaru said urgently, "Just one day, one more day! We promise to take down the Revolver today, we won't let you down!"
Mizuchi's movements paused.
"Oh?"
She looked at them with interest.
"One day, huh?"
Seeing that they seemed to have no other choice, Honomaru hurriedly nodded as well: "By the end of today, we will have it resolved."
Mizuchi tilted her head thoughtfully.
"Alright."
She finally said.
"Then I'll give you one last chance. However, I'll add a little more to your hand."
She swept her gaze over them, finally resting on Iwamaru.
"Iwamaru, if I remember correctly, you should be the strongest of my Four Great Emperors. I've always seen great potential in you, and I still do."
Both men remained silent.
Unlike Hyomaru and Raimaru before, these two had always gotten along well. Honomaru acknowledged Iwamaru's strength, and it wasn't inappropriate to call him the strongest among the Four Emperors.
"Then, let me give you a little help."
Mizuchi formed another sign with her hands.
The mirror in the air suddenly moved. It tilted to one side and abruptly shot out a beam of light. That cold beam of light suddenly shone on Honomaru, who let out a cry of surprise. Before he could do anything, he vanished into thin air, absorbed into a card.
"Honomaru!"
Iwamaru instinctively reached out with a cry of alarm.
But next, he saw the card swiftly fly into the Card Deck carried by his Duel Disc like a comet disappearing into the night sky, leaving no trace.
Iwamaru looked up in surprise: "Lady Mizuchi, is this..."
"This way, Honomaru's power is also given to you."
Mizuchi said lightly, following with a wave of her sleeve. Two more cards appeared out of nowhere, flying directly toward Iwamaru.
Iwamaru instinctively reached out and caught the two cards.
He took a closer look and was astonished to find they were none other than Thunder Emperor Zaborug and Mobius the Frost Monarch.
The two kings that should have belonged to his other companions.
"This is...!?" He looked up at Mizuchi.
"As you can see, the Thunder Emperor and the Frost Monarch. Unfortunately, the Elf Power cards held by Raimaru and Hyomaru have been taken."
Saio Mizuchi said calmly.
"But with this, you have a new mission. Defeat that Revolver and retrieve the Thunder Emperor and Frost Monarch cards from him. Understand?"
Iwamaru looked at his Card Deck and nodded heavily.
He could feel it, that he had indeed become much stronger. Even without a duel, he could faintly sense the fierce, turbulent energy surging within his deck.
But this was no longer simply his deck; it was heavy with the weight of his brothers.
The Thunder Emperor and Mobius given by Mizuchi were merely rare Monster Cards. Only the Earth Emperor in his hands, and his brother's Flame Emperor, were real kings with Elf Power.
"Now, the Power of Four Emperors is in your hands."
Mizuchi said.
"I have always thought highly of you, Iwamaru. If anyone can accomplish this mission, it can only be you.
Prove to me, and prove the power of your Four Emperors, Iwamaru."
She turned and sat down again, closing her eyes to rest.
"Do not disappoint the Light Association."
Iwamaru bowed his head.
"Yes."