Breath of Fire IV is a single-player game that continues the story with these "dragon people," who gave their lives to eradicate the evil goddess and restore peace in their world. This time around, battle has broken out between two powerful continents, and the fair Princess Elena has disappeared during a tour of the war-torn region. The princess's sister, Nina, who reigns o'er the Windia Kingdom, vows to retrieve her missing sibling. She meets Ryu along the way, who joins the epic quest

In a far-away world, two continents float, separated by a vast swamp-land. For eons, no contact existed between the two continents because ships couldn’t sail across the expanse. At last, when the historic first contact was made between the two powers, war erupted!

After long and costly fighting between the Fou Empire in the west and an alliance of countries in the east, both sides exhausted all their strength and resources. With no other alternative, the two powers agreed to an armistice.

One year later, Princess Elina vanished. She had been traveling in the east from town to town, exploring battlegrounds and visiting war veterans. Her trail vanished in a small town near the front line. Nobody knew her whereabouts!

The Eastern Alliance wanted to avoid sending a large army to the front. Such a move would be a political blunder, breaking the armistice and stirring up hostilities. It became impossible to carry out a large-scale search for Elina. Time passed... with no sign of the princess.

Elina’s sister, Princess Nina, finally makes up her mind. She leaves on a journey in search of her sister – by herself.