Light drained from the Mirage Ruin.
One by one, the floating discs dimmed.
Then—
FWOOOOOSH.
The top ten contenders reappeared on the arena floor beside their respective groups.
The stadium exploded.
"THEY LIVED!"
"VERDANT VEIL'S BOY MADE IT AGAIN!"
"That crowned echo… my knees are STILL shaking!"
Lucien blinked as reality snapped back into place.
A half-second later—
"LUUUUUUUC!!"
Marie tackled him like a meteor in wolf form. Her arms locked around him so tightly that three vertebrae reconsidered their life choices.
"Wow! You ACTUALLY WALKED THROUGH THE RUIN LIKE YOU OWNED IT—!! I was cheering so hard I think I pulled a lung!"
Lucien winced.
"…I can feel your excitement through the bruises."
Eirene stepped forward, serene as always, though her eyes shone with unmistakable pride.
"You did exceptionally well."
A soft pause.
"And your Echo… it was magnificent. A true... sovereign, as I would describe it."
The Verdant Veil members swarmed him next.
"Boss!!"
