The dark zone of the Elf Dimension.
A pair of eyes slowly opened.
"Returned?" A gloomy voice said.
A moment of silence, then the voice of the Evil God Eraser was heard.
"Yes."
The second evil god, Root of Fear, asked, "How did it go?"
The Eraser mumbled, "Not bad."
Root of Fear said, "You failed."
The Eraser: "..."
He was momentarily at a loss for words.
This was indeed beyond his expectations. In fact, recent developments had exceeded their projections. In their original plan, the three evil god brothers should have been able to dominate the present world with impunity, able to kill at will. But barely a few steps into the world, they hit a wall everywhere.
First, they faced a human Duel King and were continuously thwarted, and then, at the Duel Academy, they randomly challenged a student and were again thwarted. Even the evil gods began to doubt their godhood, wondering if they had grown weak due to their long seal or if monsters of this caliber were now commonplace.
How could they, as dignified evil gods, be defeated so easily?
After the Eraser returned, the more he thought about it, the angrier he became, feeling he couldn't just swallow this humiliation. So he rose once more: "No, I was careless last time.
This time, I must take down that guy, along with his elf..."
"Save it."
A more somber voice echoed from deeper within the darkness.
Upon hearing the eldest brother speak, the Eraser shuddered and immediately lowered his head, not daring to reply.
"A great battle is imminent, save your strength," the Divine Incarnation said, "Even if we are outside with our avatars, it still consumes heart energy. You are already the weakest of us; wasting extra energy before the battle is pointless. If you succeed in capturing that elf, then fine. But if you fail again, you may become the flaw among the three of us."
The Eraser was not convinced, but he said, "Elder brother's lesson is right."
Indeed, their true forms were sealed, unable to leave, and even if they acted outside, they could only project themselves, using others' bodies as puppets.
This method allowed indirect action, but ultimately it was a drain on their true forms. Defeating in a Dark Duel might not extinguish their essence, but collateral damage was inevitable.
The Eraser curiously asked, "Speaking of, elder brother, what great battle are you referring to?"
It had been a long time since he'd seen something that made his elder brother so serious.
The Divine Incarnation said, "Human duelists, the one they call 'King,' likely discovered this location before us.
Now, they should be coming soon."
Frost gleamed in the Eraser's eyes, "They really dare to come to our territory to die?"
"It seems so. But do not be careless; we can no longer afford any failures," the Divine Incarnation said.
Root of Fear sneered, "Previously, we were unable to go out personally and were repeatedly taken advantage of by enemies. Now, petty humans are foolish enough to come at us in person. Isn't that just seeking death?"
The Divine Incarnation did not deny this.
Indeed. Although this place was their Sealed Land, the three brothers had resided here for so long that they couldn't remember how long. The area had become a natural barrier for the evil gods, where their 'force' could be boosted beyond their usual maximum while their adversaries' strength would be suppressed.
"Additionally, if it comes to the final moment, that being from beyond time and space should also help us," Root of Fear said.
The Eraser added, "True. That being promised that if it came to the end, they would help us break the seal. Once the seal is broken, not just a man of distinguished strength, even if the Pharaoh were alive, what could he do?"
The Divine Incarnation knew his brothers spoke the truth, so he chuckled lightly.
"Even now, human ignorance is not necessarily less than it was back then. They think what they see in front of them is the entire world, truly laughable.
The world's clash is imminent, dimensional ruptures are near. Soon, countless worlds will plunge into chaos, followed by endless darkness and destruction..."
Root of Fear said, "But that's exactly what we want, isn't it?"
The Divine Incarnation laughed.
"Of course."
The evil gods chuckled coldly.
"That will be our era."
...
...
"President Kaiba?"
As a circle of transparent blue ripples appeared, Seto Kaiba's virtual image indeed walked in, stepping on the ripples, much to Yugen's surprise.
President Kaiba was constantly busy with corporate affairs worldwide, sometimes unsure whether he was on Earth or in another dimension. Even Yugen hadn't seen the president for a while.
Kaiba approached, sizing up Yugen, "You've gained some momentum; you haven't been idle."
Yugen said, "After receiving so many benefits from the president, I can't let down your expectations and cultivation."
Kaiba's lips curved upwards, "Hmph↓."
Perhaps the president was already contemplating a rematch with Yugen in his mind.
Of course, that wouldn't be today, not now. Everyone present knew there were more critical matters at hand.
Malik greeted the president as well, "President."
"Malik."
Kaiba said indifferently.
"Speaking of, we still owe a match that hasn't been played from the Duel City tournament."
During the finals, Malik faced Joey and advanced, while Kaiba was defeated by Yugi. The final was Yugi against Malik. Therefore, in the end, Kaiba never got a chance to face Mr. Malik.
But before Malik could reply, Kaiba smiled again, "Just kidding."
Malik courteously replied, "If the president is willing, once this is over, we can find an opportunity to spar."
Kaiba smiled but didn't respond.
In truth, he always had a chance to spar with Malik, as Mr. Malik didn't vanish into thin air over the years. However, Kaiba knew that the one who contended for the Phantom God at the top of the world and battled Yugi was not this person before him, but the dark personality that had long since been vanquished. The remaining shell, though not weak, wasn't the opponent Kaiba sought.
This was also one reason why the president's desire to duel had been building up over the years, always thinking about going to the Netherworld to find old acquaintances. The experts he acknowledged from his era were either content and sidelined by the current version, retired, died, or disappeared without a trace.
This left the president increasingly frustrated.
He said he longs for defeat in vain, lonely at the top... Not really. The president knew he wasn't at the peak yet, knowing several were stronger, but they all seemed to have vanished like vapor, which annoyed him.
This made the present opportunity with the evil gods even more precious.
"Let's go."
Kaiba stepped forward and said.
"You are going to face the evil gods, right? Count me in. I have scores to settle with those three, too."