A night of joy

With the battle over and Xander gone, the Eclipse Festival resumed.

The villagers, initially shaken, quickly regathered their spirits, eager to reclaim the joy of the night. The streets lit up once more, lanterns glowing like stars as music and laughter filled the air again.

Eclipse Zero, finally free from the weight of combat, let themselves enjoy the moment.

Nathan immediately rushed to the food stalls, stuffing his face with everything he could grab. "I EARNED THIS!" he declared between bites of skewered meat.

Lena, rolling her eyes, still grabbed herself a drink. "For once, I agree with you."

Darius challenged a group of villagers to an arm-wrestling contest, and within minutes, a crowd had gathered, chanting wildly as he demolished every challenger.

Ethan took a more relaxed approach, leaning against a stall, enjoying the night air. "It's nice," he admitted to no one in particular. "Having a moment like this."

Iris, always the observer, smirked as she sipped on a glass of wine. "Oh, I'll cherish this moment forever—Hugo actually smiling." She nudged Lena. "Did you see that? I swear the world almost broke."

Lena chuckled. "Yeah, I'd say today was a win."

But while the others were celebrating—

Stella was elsewhere.

Far from the noise and excitement, Stella stood alone at the edge of a cliff, staring into the vast, open sky.

The festival lights flickered in the distance behind her, but out here, all she could see was the endless night, stretching far beyond the horizon.

The wind brushed through her hair, cool and quiet.

Her golden eyes stayed locked on the sky.

She wasn't sure why she had walked away from the others.

Maybe she just needed a moment of peace.

Maybe she was still thinking about Hugo's Eclipse Mode—about how different he was now.

Maybe—

A sound from above made her freeze.

A low hum of Arcana energy.

Then—

A blur of red and blue light shot up from below the cliffside.

Stella gasped, staggering back slightly as a figure emerged from the darkness.

Hugo.

In full Eclipse Mode.

His crimson and azure aura shimmered, his coat rippling in the night wind as he hovered just above the cliffside.

His dual-colored eyes locked onto hers, his expression unreadable.

For a moment, Stella forgot how to breathe.

"…You flew up here?" she finally managed, blinking.

Hugo smirked slightly. "Yeah."

Silence.

Then—

Without a word, he extended his hand toward her.

Stella blinked, staring at his outstretched hand.

"Come on," Hugo said, his voice softer than usual. "You wanted to know what the air feels like up here, right?"

Her breath hitched.

She hadn't expected this.

She hadn't expected him.

For a second, she hesitated.

Then—she took his hand.

The moment Stella's fingers grasped his, a rush of Arcana energy surrounded them both.

Before she could react—

Hugo lifted her into the sky.

The wind rushed past them, lifting her hair, making her heart race as they soared higher, above the festival, above the village, above the world.

Stella tightened her grip on Hugo's hand, instinctively pressing closer to him as the ground became a distant blur beneath them.

For a moment, she felt weightless.

The cold night air wrapped around them, but she didn't feel afraid.

Because Hugo's grip never wavered.

He held onto her like it was effortless.

Like she belonged there.

Her golden eyes widened as she finally looked around.

From here, the entire world was stretched before her.

The stars, unfiltered by city lights, burned brighter than she had ever seen them.

The eclipse, still lingering in the sky, glowed with a celestial radiance, its soft light reflecting off the vast expanse below them.

And below them—

The festival.

A sea of golden lanterns and colorful banners, tiny from this height, yet somehow more beautiful than ever.

Stella stared in awe.

"…It's beautiful," she whispered.

Hugo's gaze remained on her.

"…Yeah," he said, but he wasn't looking at the sky.

They hovered there, suspended in the sky, neither of them speaking.

For once, there was no battle.

No mission.

No war.

Just them.

Just the stars.

Just the sound of the wind.

Stella finally turned to look at Hugo.

He was still watching her, his red and blue eyes reflecting the night sky.

She had seen him fight.

She had seen him suffer.

But this—

She had never seen him like this.

"…Thank you," she said, her voice quiet.

Hugo raised an eyebrow. "For what?"

"For this," she admitted, tightening her grip slightly on his hand. "For showing me this."

Hugo was silent for a moment.

Then, he smirked.

"Well," he said, "I figured you deserved a better view."

Stella felt her heart stutter.

For some reason—that made her chest feel warmer than it should.

She quickly looked away, staring at the sky again.

"…Yeah," she murmured. "I guess I did."

And so, under the light of the dying eclipse, with the world quiet and still beneath them—

Hugo and Stella stayed in the sky.

For just a little longer.