The Ironfang Arena was alive with energy.
Thousands of spectators filled the massive coliseum, their voices roaring like a storm as they awaited the grand finals.
The massive holographic screen above the arena flickered, displaying the faces of the four remaining fighters.
🔥 Hugo, the Hero of the Eclipse
🔥 Darius, the Challenger of Legends
🔥 Stella, the Radiant Blade
🔥 Lena, the Gun slinger
The crowd erupted in excitement as the announcer's voice boomed through the stadium.
"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! THE MOMENT YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR—THE FINALS OF THE IRONFANG TOURNAMENT!"
The battlefield itself was massive, an expansive arena designed for high-level combat.
But this wouldn't be a series of one-on-one duels.
No—this was a BATTLE ROYALE.
"FOUR FIGHTERS ENTER—ONLY ONE WILL STAND VICTORIOUS!"
Hugo, Stella, Lena, and Darius all stepped onto the battlefield, the wind whipping against them as the countdown began.
Darius grinned, gripping Drill Fang. "This is it."
Lena adjusted her Arc-Gun, eyes sharp. "I'm not going easy just because we're teammates."
Stella smirked, resting her hand on her blade. "Wouldn't want you to."
Hugo simply stood there, calm and unreadable, waiting.
"FIGHTERS, READY?!"
The crowd's cheers reached a fever pitch.
The massive holographic timer began its final countdown.
3…
2…
1…
"BEGIN!"
DING!
The instant the fight started—Darius moved.
Like a bolt of lightning, he rushed straight for Hugo.
"YOU'RE MINE, OLD MAN!"
Drill Fang roared to life as he activated Gear Shift: Sonic Gear, his eyes and clothing shifting to blue.
He lunged, his Arc-Lance striking with blinding speed.
But—
Hugo wasn't there.
Darius' attack slammed into the ground, shattering the stone floor where Hugo had stood.
The Hero of the Eclipse had already moved.
Darius whipped around.
Hugo stood a few feet away, completely calm.
His hand hadn't even reached for Cosmos.
Darius gritted his teeth. "Tch—of course."
---
Meanwhile – Stella vs. Lena
While Darius focused on Hugo, Stella and Lena locked eyes.
For a moment, there was a silent understanding.
Then—they moved.
Lena opened fire first, her Arc-Gun unleashing rapid bursts of energy. Stella weaved through the shots, her Arc-Blade glowing as she closed the distance.
"Too slow!" Stella grinned, bringing her blade down.
CLANG!
Lena blocked with the barrel of her Arc-Gun, twisting to counter with a spinning kick.
Stella barely dodged, landing a few steps away.
Lena smirked. "You're faster than last time."
Stella rolled her shoulders. "You'll have to keep up."
They both rushed in again, their battle intensifying.
---
Back to Hugo vs. Darius
Darius rushed Hugo again, shifting Drill Fang into Blast Gear (Red).
This time, his speed wasn't his focus.
It was power.
He swung with full force—
And Hugo finally drew Cosmos.
CLASH!
A shockwave erupted from their weapons meeting, sending dust and debris flying.
Darius' eyes burned with determination.
"I'M NOT LOSING TO YOU!"
Hugo stared at him, completely unreadable.
"Then prove it."
Darius grinned. "Gladly."
The arena shook from the sheer force of Darius and Hugo's clash.
The moment their weapons met, a shockwave erupted, kicking up dust and shaking the stone floor beneath them.
But Darius wasn't done.
"Gear Shift: Vortex Gear!"
His eyes and clothing flashed green, and suddenly—his Arc-Lance stopped absorbing the impact.
Instead, it redirected Hugo's own force back at him.
Hugo's feet slid slightly back from the sudden push.
Darius grinned. "Surprised? Vortex Gear absorbs impact and sends it back."
He spun Drill Fang, slamming it into the ground. The stored energy from their last clash burst outward, causing cracks to splinter across the battlefield.
BOOM!
Dust filled the air.
When it cleared—Hugo was still standing.
Not even fazed.
Darius clicked his tongue. "Seriously?"
Hugo glanced at him, his grip on Cosmos relaxed. "Not bad."
Darius' eye twitched. "Not bad?! I just—"
Before he could finish, two blurs shot between them.
Stella and Lena.
The two warriors, locked in battle, crashed into their fight zone.
Lena fired a burst of Arc-energy, which Hugo tilted his head to avoid.
Darius barely ducked before Stella's Arc-Blade slashed over him.
Both girls landed in ready stances, their battle having pulled them right into the middle of Hugo vs. Darius.
A pause.
Then—Darius groaned.
"Oh, come on! You two just HAD to bring your fight over here?!"
Stella smirked. "The arena's only so big, genius."
Lena adjusted her Arc-Gun. "Guess this is a free-for-all now."
The crowd roared in excitement.
Four warriors.
One battlefield.
The true finals had begun.
The crowd erupted as all four fighters now stood in the same battle zone.
Darius gritted his teeth. "Tch. This just got messy."
Lena shifted her stance. "Guess we're all fighting each other now."
Stella grinned. "So, who's going down first?"
Then—
Hugo moved.
Before any of them could react—
He vanished.
A blur of motion. A sudden shift in the air.
And then—
BOOM!
Darius barely had time to react before Hugo was in front of him, swinging Cosmos with a single, precise strike.
CLASH!
Drill Fang met Cosmos, but Darius was sent flying backward from the sheer force.
Before he could even land, Hugo was already gone again.
Lena's instincts screamed at her—MOVE.
She jumped back just in time to avoid a downward slash that cracked the ground where she had stood.
Eyes wide, she rolled and fired a burst of Arc-energy.
Hugo tilted his head, dodging it with effortless precision.
Then, before Lena could even react—
Stella attacked from the side.
Her Arc-Blade flashed forward, aiming for Hugo's blind spot.
It should have landed.
But Hugo's hand shot out, grabbing Stella's wrist mid-swing.
She froze. "What—?!"
Hugo's golden eyes met hers for a fraction of a second.
Then, in a single fluid motion—
He twisted her arm slightly, forcing her to drop her sword, before sending her skidding backward with a controlled shove.
It all happened in less than five seconds.
The crowd gasped.
Hugo stood there alone, against all three of them—completely unfazed.
And that's when they realized.
He wasn't just fighting them.
He was controlling the entire battlefield.
The crowd roared, their excitement reaching a fever pitch.
On one side—Stella, Lena, and Darius.
On the other—Hugo, standing alone.
Three warriors. Three ultimate techniques.
They had to overwhelm him.
"Radiant Edge!" Stella's blade ignited in golden Arcana, a blinding streak of light cutting through the air.
"Phantom Bullet!" Lena's Arc-Gun charged with unstable energy, firing a shot that bent through space itself, curving unpredictably toward Hugo.
"Drill Rush!" Darius' Drill Fang roared to life, his entire body turning into a spiraling projectile, drilling through the air at devastating speed.
Three different attacks.
Three different angles.
Hugo didn't move.
He didn't react.
Instead—
He called out.
"Cosmos."
A deep hum filled the battlefield, vibrating through the very air itself.
And then—Cosmos answered.
"Luna Mode."
FWOOOM!
A sudden, radiant flash of silver-blue light erupted from Hugo.
The moment it activated—he vanished.
And all three attacks missed.
The arena exploded with silver-blue light.
For a brief moment, Hugo was gone.
Then—he reappeared.
And then again.
And again.
And again.
Luna Mirage.
Everywhere across the battlefield, afterimages of Hugo flickered in and out of existence, weaving between Stella, Lena, and Darius.
"What the—?!" Darius skidded to a halt, his eyes darting between the countless Hugos surrounding them.
Lena grit her teeth. "He's… everywhere?"
Stella whipped around, sword raised. "No. It's an illusion—he's using speed and perception tricks."
Darius clicked his tongue. "Great. So which one's real?"
The afterimages moved—some standing still, others rushing past them.
It was impossible to tell.
And the worst part?
None of them had seen Hugo actually attack yet.
The battlefield was a storm of afterimages.
Stella, Lena, and Darius were surrounded.
Hugo's Luna Mirage was in full effect—his form flickering across the arena, shifting between countless illusions.
But then—
A new energy surged.
Hugo's afterimages solidified for just a moment.
Then—
"Luna Break."
A flash of silver-blue light erupted from Hugo's real body—a pulse of pure kinetic force.
The shockwave ripped through the battlefield, sending a burst of air pressure outward in all directions.
Stella's stance broke slightly, forcing her to brace.
Lena's Arc-Gun wavered as she steadied herself.
Darius' feet skidded against the ground, his eyes wide.
The afterimages shattered like broken glass—leaving only one Hugo standing in the center of the battlefield.
The crowd erupted in chaos.
---
VIP Seats – The Supporters Cheer On!
Ethan, gripping the edge of his seat, threw his hands up in excitement.
"LET'S GOOOO!"
His voice boomed over the audience as he cheered on Hugo, Stella, and Lena—though mostly Hugo.
"He's too fast! Too clean! This is why he's a legend!"
Meanwhile, across the VIP section, Darius' crew was just as loud.
"Boss, don't let him show you up!"
"You trained for this, Boss! HIT HIM BACK!"
"Drill Fang won't lose to some relic sword!"
The entire arena pulsed with energy.
The fight was nowhere near over
The battlefield raged on.
Hugo, Stella, Lena, and Darius pushed themselves to their limits, exchanging blows that shook the entire arena.
But eventually—it became clear.
Stella faltered first.
She had used Radiant Edge repeatedly, but Hugo's Luna Mirage and Luna Break had drained her energy.
One final clash between her and Hugo ended with Cosmos knocking her Arc-Blade away.
Stella skidded back, breathing heavily—then dropped to one knee.
The announcer's voice boomed across the stadium.
"STELLA HAS BEEN ELIMINATED!"
The crowd exploded into cheers.
Lena held out longer, using Phantom Bullet and setting up multiple traps, trying to catch Hugo in an opening.
But he was too fast.
One perfectly timed counter from Hugo sent Lena's Arc-Gun flying out of her hands.
She tried to go for a backup attack—but a quick strike from Hugo's hilt to her stomach forced her down.
She collapsed, gasping for air.
"LENA HAS BEEN ELIMINATED!"
The entire stadium shook from the sheer volume of the crowd's excitement.
The dust slowly settled, revealing the final two fighters standing.
Hugo.
Darius.
The long-awaited battle… was finally here.
Darius wiped sweat from his forehead, staring straight at Hugo. Then, he grinned.
"Guess it's just you and me now, old man."
Hugo twirled Cosmos once before resting it on his shoulder.
"…Looks like it."
The final battle had begun.