"The thing is, with the sudden change that occurred in Riarravar, the map suffered a drastic change which made us disoriented and lost in that wasteland."

The Joker continued recounting the story while letting out a sigh. He lifted his head gazed back at the silver-haired woman before him while raising four fingers

"Four years, that's how long it took us to locate the origin of the problem. After one year of continuously fighting the Cthulhu day and night, we started stumbled upon those dark-skinned creatures that slightly resembled Dark Elves. Not only were they more powerful, they heavily relied on teamwork and showed more intelligence than their idiotic and barbaric allies."

Curious, Lucy asked:

"Were you alone for the whole four years?"

"That's the tragic thing about this… we never, ever managed to save one person. We always arrived too late and by the time we killed the enemies, the survivors had been brutally tortured."

***

Three visibly tired figures sat around a small campfire, each biting some roasted meat, however, it wasn't any meat but human meat! Anyone would probably say that cannibalism is immortal but these three didn't care, not after all that happened. In this world, where anyone around them has become an enemy and all the animals were killed by the still active fire, they had to resort to such means to survive.

For some, especially ancient beings, four years is a small amount of time which would pass in the blink of an eye but for Arthur and the other two, it seemed to be an eternity. The fighting never stopped and the battles grew crueler and harder for them, who suffered a heavy toll on their mental state.

Despite their indisputable prowess, they were still mortals, capable of feeling hunger and fatigue so it's without a doubt that they suffered a few injuries along this hazardous journey.

Bored and with nothing to do in their precious free time, the three, who grew much closer to each other after four years, talked about their past achievements and boasted to each other.

The Joker showed a card to the other two while speaking:

"I killed this beauty a long time ago and it's definitely one of the hardest fights I ever had."

The card showed a picture of a nine-headed hydra, its size was enormous and each head emitted a different aura.

"Took me six days to kill this beauty."

After staring at the hydra for a while, Leiu spoke:

"I killed a 11,000 years old Black Dragon."

"Oh? A Black Dragon? I heard it's the strongest Race of dragons…"

Interested, the Joker listened to Leiu, who briefly talked about that fight. Although he tried to hide, the youth was proud of his feat. Arthur was the last to talk, he cleared his throat and said:

"I fought the four Divine Beasts."

The Joker and Leiu were very shocked, they stared at Arthur with disbelief.

"Well… they were only copies."

"Still, I heard they're quite hard to deal with together."

The three continued chatting for an hour or so before being forced to fight yet again when dozens of silhouettes starting stealthily making their way toward them, clearly wanting to ambush them.

****

A couple of months later, in a familiar town, the three were inside were sitting around an unscathed table in the middle of a desert road. This was White Raven Town, a checkpoint for them and their presence here indicated that they were closer to their destination.

By sheer luck, Arthur found some ale in possession of one of the 'Dark Elves', it was a real delicacy for the three, who only ate human meat for the past two to three years. Water was provided by The Joker's Magic as none existed due to the red flames.

"This calls for a celebration!"

Arthur grinned while putting the ale on the table, making the two others excited. It was just one bottle but it was enough to quench their thirst for alcohol.

"I believe we'll reach the underground city in no time… It's the perfect time to celebrate an early victory."

The three couldn't wait to leave this godforsaken place but that doesn't mean that all the time they spent here was for nothing. Their friendship grew with time and they became an unstoppable force. Their teamwork reached perfection and despite their tragic pasts, they learned how to trust each other with their lives.

It didn't a day or two but years for them to reach this result, where they fight with their lives on the line and know that their comrades will protect their blindsides.

A lunatic, a reserved and silent youth, and someone with severe trust problems managed to achieve something many others wouldn't. They survived this hellish place despite the odds and even mastered quite a few unique techniques from each other.

Three transparent cups appeared in front of each of the three. Arthur filled them up and took a deep breath before reaching his hand to the cup, about to gulp it in one go only for the Joker to stop him.

"Wait!"

Both Leiu and Arthur stopped and stared at the man with confusion.

"It's almost the end so If you allow me, I would like to re-introduce myself."

He got up from his seat and softly bowed, his face containing a serious expression. The atmosphere around him was clearly different from the usual.

"My real name is Wolfram Sakamoto."

Contrary to his expectation, both Leiu and Arthur showed were flabbergasted which made The Joker crease his brows. The youth and Arthur have heard of this name in one or several occasions.

"You brought Hell Gate to Earth?"-Leiu

Before The Joker could respond, Arthur asked a question of his own

"You brought that chip to Earth?"

Hearing their unexpected questions, the Joker smile and nodded his head. He sat down and said

"If we survive, I'll tell you the whole story. After all, it's quite a long one."

Wolfram paused for a moment before saying

"Before we empty our cups, how about we do something first?"

The two stared at him and waited for him to continue, clearly complying with his words.

"We've been here for 52 months and went through a lot together. I admit that I always have been and will be an arrogant prick but I still do know how to respect my equals."

"So… I, Wolfram Sakamoto, sincerely want to become brothers with you two."

Ever since he began talking, the two kinds of predicted he'll say such words though it's a bit unlike him. The Joker raised his cup and waited for their response, which didn't take long.

"Then, brothers."

Arthur followed right after, raising his cup and grinning. As for Leiu, he followed a second after Arthur, softly banging his cup with the other two before all three cups were emptied with one swift gulp.

"So, now that we're officially brothers, a hierarchy must be set!"

"Hierarchy?"-Arthur

"Yes, who'll be considered the eldest and who's the youngest."

Arthur pondered for a few seconds before saying:

"Hmmm… age cannot be a factor so let's choose another method."

While displaying a crafty smirk, Leiu said:

"How about a brawl?"

"Hahahahaha now that's what I'm talking about! A free for all brawl! No weapons or Magic!"

Both Arthur and Wolfram agreed so after inspecting the area and setting up dozens of deadly traps, they chose the location of the brawl. Neither Makaze nor Anduril are allowed, The Joker's magic and cards are banned too.

Basically, it's a street fight and whoever wins will be declared as the eldest brother, a simple and effective method.

…

The 'brawl' last for two whole hours and it sure was bloody and violent and in the end, one person remained standing despite being bruised all over his body. The other two were heavily panting while their faces were beaten and back blue and blood leaked out of their lips.

One of them let out a few coughs before speaking:

"You're some freakish shit, my brother, you really are."

The other one remained silent, trying to catch his breath and recover from the painful yet not deadly injuries he received.

The next day, another the two losers brawled to decide on who'll become the youngest brother. The results of the two brawls were as follows; Leiu won the first brawl and Wolfram won the second which means that the youth became the eldest brother.

Between them, who consider each other equals, only strength matters, age has no meaning to people like them. As long as someone was powerful, even if it was a baby then he or she deserves to be treated equally and with respect.

"This settles it."

While patting the dust off his clothes, the Joker stretched his hand and helped a grumpy-looking Arthur up while grinning. The three sat around the same table yet again and finished what little remained of that bottle of ale.

"We three agreed to become brothers so…"

Leiu paused for a second and glanced at the other two before continuing;

"If even one of us gets out of here alive then he will do what he must. Our goals are now intertwined and if one falls, the other two must accomplish them in his stead. So… speak, what are your goals?"

After a long talk between the three brothers, the Joker curiously asked

"Hey hey Arthur, tell me, is your wife a beauty? If so then her sister must be pretty too!"

Arthur grinned and started boasting about Lucy's charms and her unique talent. In the end, they spent the whole day talking about their pasts and promising to help each other out if they all get out of here alive.