Tournament of Ironfang

The day of the tournament had finally arrived. The village of Ironfang was buzzing with excitement, the streets filled with spectators and warriors eager to prove their strength. Near the entrance to the tournament grounds, Hugo, Stella, and Lena stood together, scanning the growing crowd of participants.

"Well, this is it," Hugo said, adjusting Cosmos on his back.

Stella stretched her arms. "Three days of training, and now we see if it pays off."

Lena smirked. "We win this tournament, we get the money for the Veilgate, and we move forward. Simple."

"You say that like it's easy," Stella muttered.

Ethan, practically bouncing beside them, couldn't contain his excitement. "This is gonna be amazing! Hugo, Lena, Stella—you guys are gonna crush it!" He looked up at Hugo with stars in his eyes. "I get to watch the Hero of the Eclipse in action!"

Cosmos suddenly chimed in, his voice carrying a hint of amusement. "Don't get ahead of yourself, kid. Winning isn't guaranteed. There are bound to be strong opponents."

Ethan gasped dramatically. "It never gets old hearing the legendary sword talk!"

Hugo shook his head. "Alright, let's focus. We signed up three days ago, so all that's left is waiting for the matchups."

Just then, a loud voice echoed through the arena.

"Attention, all participants! The tournament will begin shortly! Please make your way to the waiting area!"

Lena rolled her shoulders. "Guess it's time."

Hugo smirked. "Time to make this tournament ours."

The day of the tournament had finally arrived. The village of Ironfang was buzzing with excitement, the streets filled with spectators and warriors eager to prove their strength. Near the entrance to the tournament grounds, Hugo, Stella, and Lena stood together, scanning the growing crowd of participants.

"Well, this is it," Hugo said, adjusting Cosmos on his back.

Stella stretched her arms. "Three days of training, and now we see if it pays off."

Lena smirked. "We win this tournament, we get the money for the Veilgate, and we move forward. Simple."

"You say that like it's easy," Stella muttered.

Ethan, practically bouncing beside them, couldn't contain his excitement. "This is gonna be amazing! Hugo, Lena, Stella—you guys are gonna crush it!" He looked up at Hugo with stars in his eyes. "I get to watch the Hero of the Eclipse in action!"

Cosmos suddenly chimed in, his voice carrying a hint of amusement. "Don't get ahead of yourself, kid. Winning isn't guaranteed. There are bound to be strong opponents."

Ethan gasped dramatically. "It never gets old hearing the legendary sword talk!"

Hugo shook his head. "Alright, let's focus. We signed up three days ago, so all that's left is waiting for the matchups."

Just then, a loud voice echoed through the arena.

"Attention, all participants! The tournament will begin shortly! Please make your way to the waiting area!"

Lena rolled her shoulders. "Guess it's time."

Hugo smirked. "Time to make this tournament ours."

With that, they stepped forward, ready to face whatever came next.

As the three made their way to the waiting area, Ethan excitedly ran off toward the spectator seats, eager to get the best view. The tournament grounds were massive, with a large battle arena at the center, surrounded by stands packed with people. Giant screens hovered in the air, displaying the tournament's logo as the opening ceremony began.

A loud, energetic voice boomed from the speakers.

"Welcome, warriors and spectators, to the Ironfang Tournament! The time has come for fighters to prove their strength, skill, and will to win! But this year, we have a special participant joining us!"

The screen shifted, displaying Hugo's face.

"That's right, folks! The one and only Hero of the Eclipse—Hugo himself—has entered the tournament!"

The crowd erupted into cheers, whispers, and gasps of excitement.

In the waiting area, Stella smirked. "Well, there goes your plan to stay low-key."

Lena chuckled. "Hope you're ready for all the attention."

Hugo sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Of course, they had to make a big deal out of it."

Cosmos, still strapped to Hugo's back, let out a teasing hum. "Oh, the Hero of the Eclipse is worried about the spotlight? Come on, Hugo, shouldn't you be used to this by now?"

Hugo groaned. "Not helping, Cosmos."

Stella grinned. "Hey, look on the bright side—maybe your fame will scare off the weaker fighters."

Lena cracked her knuckles. "Or make the strong ones even more eager to take you down."

Hugo sighed. "Great. Just great."

Up in the spectator stands, Ethan was practically bouncing in his seat. "This is awesome! The whole village knows Hugo's here!"

Back in the waiting area, the announcer continued.

"Now that the stage is set, let's get ready for the first round! Fighters, prepare yourselves!"

With the crowd roaring in excitement, Hugo, Stella, and Lena stood ready—because now, the real battle was about to begin.

As they waited for the tournament matchups to be displayed, Hugo scanned the waiting area. Fighters of all kinds filled the space—some stretching, some meditating, others hyping themselves up for the battles ahead. But one group in particular stood out.

Darius.

He was leaning against a wall, arms crossed, surrounded by his three loyal crew members, who were loudly cheering him on.

"Boss, you got this!"

"Think about the fame, the money—!"

"And the hot girls!"

The other two immediately smacked the last kid on the head. "Dude, stop saying that!"

Darius ignored them, his eyes locked on Hugo the moment he noticed him. A confident smirk formed on his face.

Hugo sighed. Of course, he's here too.

Lena, standing beside him, caught his reaction and followed his gaze. "Wait, you know that guy?"

Stella rolled her eyes. "Oh yeah, that's Darius. We ran into him the other day. He thinks he's gonna be the next Hero of the Eclipse."

Lena raised an eyebrow. "The next Hero of the Eclipse?" She glanced at Hugo. "Sounds like another fanboy."

Hugo groaned. "More like a wannabe."

As if on cue, Darius pushed himself off the wall and casually strolled toward them. "Well, well, if it isn't the Hero of the Eclipse." He grinned. "Guess we'll be fighting again soon, huh?"

Hugo crossed his arms. "If the bracket pairs us up, sure. But don't expect me to go easy on you just because we already fought once."

Darius chuckled. "Wouldn't have it any other way."

One of the tournament staff members suddenly stepped onto a raised platform. "Attention, fighters! The matchups for the first round are about to be displayed!"

Everyone turned toward the giant screen as the tournament bracket was revealed.

As the matchups were being prepared, Darius' crew quickly made their exit from the waiting area, slipping out before security could question why they weren't actually participants. The three of them hurried to the spectator stands, looking for a good spot to watch their boss in action.

Somehow, in the chaos of the crowd, they ended up sitting right next to Ethan.

Unaware of who each other was, they all settled in.

Then, as the tournament hype built up, Ethan suddenly cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, "Hugo! You got this, man! Show 'em why you're the Hero of the Eclipse!"

At the exact same time, Darius' crew was just as loud.

"Boss, you're gonna wreck everyone here!"

"You're the next big legend, Boss!"

"Yeah! And think about the hot—"

Smack.

"STOP SAYING THAT!"

Ethan blinked and turned to look at them. "Wait… you guys are cheering for someone else?"

One of the kids scoffed. "Duh! We're backing up the future Hero of the Eclipse, Darius!"

Ethan frowned. "Future? Pfft, Hugo's the Hero now—no one else comes close!"

The three kids crossed their arms. "Yeah? Well, our Boss is gonna take that title for himself soon enough!"

Ethan stood up, pointing dramatically. "In your dreams! Hugo's way cooler!"

"No way, Darius is way cooler!"

The argument escalated fast, the two sides going back and forth, each passionately defending their favorite fighter.

Meanwhile, back in the waiting area, Hugo suddenly sneezed.

He rubbed his nose, confused. "Weird… I just got the strangest feeling that someone's talking about me."

Cosmos chuckled in his head. "Oh, you have no idea."

The large screen above the arena flickered to life, displaying the finalized tournament bracket. The announcer's voice boomed across the stadium.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the matchups have been decided! Let's see who will be facing off in the first round!"

Hugo, Stella, and Lena all turned their attention to the screen as names and portraits filled the bracket slots.

Stella crossed her arms. "Alright, let's see who we're up against."

Lena clenched her fists. "No matter what, we win."

Hugo smirked. "Damn right."

The announcer's voice rang out again.

"And here are our matchups for the first round!"

The screen displayed the tournament bracket:

Hugo vs. Kain the Iron Fist

Stella vs. Mira the Tempest Blade

Lena vs. Draven the Shadow Fang

Darius vs. Bruno the Boulder

Stella whistled. "Hugo got a guy called 'Iron Fist'? Sounds tough."

Hugo shrugged. "Eh, I'll manage. What about you?"

Stella looked at her opponent's name. "Tempest Blade? Sounds flashy." She grinned. "I'll break her sword."

Lena nodded at hers. "Shadow Fang… I don't like the sound of that."

Hugo patted her shoulder. "You'll be fine. Just fight smart."

Darius, standing a few feet away, grinned when he saw his own matchup. "Bruno the Boulder, huh? Sounds like an idiot." He cracked his knuckles. "This'll be easy."

Meanwhile, in the spectator seats, Ethan was still arguing with Darius' crew.

"Hugo's the real deal! He's the Hero of the Eclipse!" Ethan huffed.

One of Darius' crew smirked. "Yeah? And our boss is gonna take that title from him!"

They glared at each other before crossing their arms, both sides refusing to back down.

Back in the waiting area, Cosmos chuckled Hugo's mind.

"Hope you're ready. This is just the beginning."

Hugo smirked. "Always."