Somewhere in the Kingdom's Capital...
The bustling capital of Sirius Kingdom is filled with the noise of the various festivities mixed with the clanking of iron due to the preparation of the upcoming Ranking Qualifiers.
5 years before the World Championship, people are getting hyped over each Ranking Matches by the passing of years...
Guy 1: "This year's ranking match! Who do you think will be in the top 10?"
Guy 2: "Well, I bet the 4 horsemen will dominate it again..."
Guy 3: "Really? I think they'll need to watch out for this year's dark horse though!"
Guy 2: "Hm? Who do you mean?"
Guy 3: "This year, the crown prince will participate!"
Guy 1: "Oh yeah, I heard he's a genius with the sword. I wonder how he'll fare against the 4 horsemen..."
Guy 3: "And there's also the Guildmaster. I doubt he'll go far in the top, but he's a consistent member of the Top 10 every year.."
Guy 2: "I wonder why the 4 horsemen kept joining the contest though, they're already title holders.. How many wishes do they want to be granted?"
Guy 3: "I heard they didn't really care about the title anymore, they just want to fight strong opponents.."
Guy 1: "Huh, I'm not even surprised, everyone who will see them will know they're battle freaks just by the looks of it."
Guy 1: "Hmm. So aside from the Prince, there's also the Sword Maiden that could possibly pose a challenge to the 4 horsemen."
Guy 2: "Ahh.. I still think the champion would be one of those four... 5 years ago, it was "Death" that won the Championship.. I doubt the others would give him another chance to win next time."
Guy 3: "Oh yeah! Speaking of dark horses... Haven't you heard the rumor?"
Guy 1: "Oh that? Was that rumor really true?"
Guy 3: "Well, beats me, it IS a rumor.."
Guy 1: "But if it is indeed true, then this year's ranking matches would be taking an interesting turn wouldn't it?"
Guy 2: "Wait, wait, wait! What rumor?"
Guy 3: "Huh? Haven't you heard?"
Guy 2: "Heard what?"
Guy 1: "That person is said to have took an apprentice..."
Guy 2: "Ugh... Who is that person exactly?"
Guy 3: "You know? The one who is called "Pestilence"...."