"Speaking of which, it feels like we haven't heard God's will in a long time."
Lester suddenly remarked.
The other two remained silent.
It was true.
In the past, they had been the Three Pure Nobles of Iliaster, the leaders of the organization. Iliaster was Z-ONE's primary operational unit, and most tasks were scheduled and arranged by them, making them the absolute core.
But now that they thought about it, how long had it been since they last received a divine oracle?
It seemed… probably ever since that annoying new Leader appeared.
An eerie silence fell over the space, and the atmosphere grew somewhat stiff.
No one spoke up first, but the same doubt began to surface in all three of their hearts.
Had they been abandoned?
Thinking about it, it didn't seem entirely unreasonable.
They had failed in their duties, and their strength had been completely crushed by this newcomer. It was only natural for God to entrust more work to capable people.
The best evidence was that God had clearly developed new power for the Meklord Emperor series, yet instead of giving it to them—the original Meklord Emperor holders—He had chosen this new Emperor of Iliaster.
What could be stronger proof than that?
In the midst of this eerie silence, cracks appeared in the space. The person who had just finished disciplining the Three Nordic Gods strolled leisurely into the area.
"What are you three doing here slacking off instead of working?"
The trio: "..."
Kira walked in and looked down below.
Right beneath their feet, above this void space resembling a cosmic curtain, tens of thousands of luminous veins grew out from the emptiness, like neural pathways drawn by an invisible hand. These light paths were sometimes straight as swords, sometimes winding like snakes, intertwining in the absolute darkness into a breathing three-dimensional network. Every light pathway consisted of flowing stardust, with rainbow-colored data sparks constantly bursting at the intersection nodes, illuminating the entire space like a shattered mirror maze.
Three spiral main trunks were entwining with each other, splitting off countless fractal branches along the way, each branch further deriving even finer secondary circuits. The whole system seemed alive, continuously expanding. Occasionally, a certain area would suddenly dim and extinguish, only to relight in a brand-new geometric form—like a universe repeatedly calculating some ultimate formula with a pen of light.
The circuits.
This was the circuit Z-ONE was drawing to summon the descent of the "Ark Cradle." The WRGP had been held precisely for this purpose; all participating duelists fought with everything they had, and the energy they released became nourishment for the circuits.
"Ohh, so many have emerged all at once today," Kira laughed. "Because of the duel just now?"
Meklord Emperor VS the Three Aesir gods of the Cosmic Realm—it was indeed a heavyweight matchup. Looking across the entire WRGP, there probably weren't many duels of this level. The circuits that appeared from this one match outnumbered the total circuits from the entire tournament so far.
"Yeah," Jakob said in a deep voice. "Your move was remarkably effective. The circuit's progress has been greatly accelerated. At this rate, the Divine City should descend soon."
The Divine City was what they, the lower-ranking personnel, called the Ark Cradle.
Lester crossed his arms and pursed his lips. "Well, that means we're needed even less now."
Kira gave him a strange look. "Not needed? Who said that?"
The three looked at each other.
In the end, Lester still pouted and said, "What else? Meklord Astro Dragon Triskelion… I've never even heard of something like that."
Even the usually silent Primo let out a low hum. "I'm afraid even God felt that your insignificant power wasn't enough to control such a monster. The Meklord Astro Dragon is clearly a higher existence that surpasses our individual Meklord Emperors."
Kira seemed to understand something and laughed. "Oh? So you think your God abandoned you, which is why He gave the new power of the Meklord Emperors to me?"
The three said nothing.
"Then you've really wronged Him," Kira smiled. "I think that when you saw the Meklord Astro Dragon in today's match, your God was probably just as surprised as you were."
"Eh?"
All three looked up, somewhat surprised.
Jakob asked, "Wasn't the Meklord Astro Dragon a card bestowed upon you by God?"
"Of course not. That card was only just completed yesterday. I personally oversaw the work," Kira said casually. "I developed it myself—or at least, I provided the idea. Even Z-ONE probably didn't know about the development of this monster."
The trio's expressions instantly became colorful.
The happy part was that they might not have been abandoned by God after all. Because the Meklord Astro Dragon wasn't a gift from God—it was something this guy had tinkered with himself.
At the same time, however, it served as an even stronger warning. Not only was this person stronger at dueling than them, he could even conduct his own research and development. He had only been in his position for a short time and had already created something like the Meklord Astro Dragon.
Didn't that mean the gap between the three of them and this person had widened even further?
"The plan hasn't changed. You three will continue to form the Team New World, participate in the WRGP, and defeat Yusei Fudo and his 5D's team."
Kira said seriously.
"You have your tasks, and I have mine. God has His own considerations—you've always believed that, haven't you? I believe that to Him, you are far more than mere tools to achieve a goal. You can't simply be discarded when no longer useful.
You are His irreplaceable companions—or at least, the continuation of His companions. If I have to put it bluntly, I am the tool with the greatest utility value at this stage. If I lose my utility, I can be replaced at any time.
In the end, I'm just a collaborator with aligned interests. You three are the ones who are truly His companions."
The trio's expressions were complicated as they exchanged glances.
They truly hadn't expected that this Fujiki Kira—this new Emperor who had replaced them and had been so annoying ever since taking office—would say such things to them.
Looking at it this way… maybe, just maybe, this person wasn't as detestable as he first appeared.
"Oh, right, speaking of which…"
Kira tilted his head and thought for a moment.
"You three should probably start feeling a bit of urgency by now."
Jakob: "What?"
"Yusei Fudo seems to have gained some insight recently and is researching the secret of Accel Synchro."
Kira smiled.
"Jack Atlas as well. He went to look for the ruins of the legendary Earthbound Immortal Red Nova a couple of days ago and has probably made some discoveries by now."
"The Signers each have their own evolutions. When you encounter them in the WRGP, you'd better be careful."
"Hmph, let them evolve all they want and then come at us."
Primo regained his usual arrogance.
"Then these foolish pests will be crushed into fragments by the power of my divine intellect!"
…