"Whoa….now this is something." Hope said.

The groups stood in the middle of a large area where many competitors and spectators were unwinding and enjoying some set up shops and stalls.

"Hey, guys!" Roy waved as he approached the groups.

"Good to see you, Roy." Hope said. "That first batch of matches was pretty good, eh?"

"It certainly was. Though the fights are far from over with." Roy said.

"Yeah, there are still a lot of others left. There are supposedly 100 Smashers on that side." David said.

"Ah...you mean the Wild Cards. You know...even though they have been involved, I overheard the refs saying there's only going to be 89 matches." Terry said.

"Figured as much. With only so many slots, they couldn't bring in everyone." David said. "Speaking of which, Terry…"

"Yeah, I already get the gist. Reformed Society aren't competing this time, huh?" Terry asked.

"Yeah. Sorry. We know how much you wanted to finish your match from that special KOF tournament." Leopardmon said.

"It's no sweat for me. After the tournament, I'll have a chance to go look for them and challenge them personally." Terry said.

"After that… Well, there's always the next KOF tournament, right?" Mayumi asked.

"Yes, that is something to look forward to." Ash added.

"You betcha. Andy and Joe have been looking to get back in the ring too." Terry said.

"Yup. you guys formed Team Fatal Fury during the last tournament after all." Hope said.

"More than that. We were teammates in almost every KOF tournament to date. They're the best partners I can hope to have." Terry said with a thumbs-up.

"Uh...huh." Ivy said.

"KOF...nothing but a pathetic display." Kazuya muttered near the bar.

"In any case, I'll be seeking out Cheetah and the others after this. But no matter what team I'm up against when I go out there, I won't hold back." Terry said.

"We won't expect you to." Leopardmon said with a courteous bow.

"That guy though, Kazuya." Rutee said.

"I'd be careful around him if I were you. A lot of stuff has been said about him lately, and not a lot of it is good." Terry said.

"We understand, we've actually fought him a while back I think." Stahn said.

"Well, then you were lucky to have survived." Zacian said.

"Yeah...maybe just avoid him for now. Less you wanna be tossed into a volcano like his old man." Lan said.

"That sounds like a very good idea." Miu said.

"Agreed, I'd rather not get tangled with his devil self again." Rutee added.

"I'll see you guys later, I hope to have a good match with one of ya." Roy said as he left.

"Speaking of matches, is anyone looking to fight someone from the smashers specifically?" Hope asked.

"Well, mine's kind of obvious." Sectonia said.

"Same here." Simon added.

"Simon's choice is kinda obvious. Bayonetta. But you? Who could you have your eyes on?" Jet asked.

"Well… It's kind of embarrassing to admit. It was a toss-up between Dedede and Ridley." Sectonia said.

"Dedede I understand, but Ridley? The Space Pirate?" Hope said.

"Well, we did kind of fight twice before. Both circumstances were… Well, the first time, I provoked him with a lightning attack. I don't know if it brought any memories that set him off, but he went after me with that. Thankfully, Meliodas was there to bail me out." Sectonia said. "Second time was during that World of Light incident when he was under Dharkon's control. I had to fight him to snap him out of it and get him to join our side...reluctantly, of course."

"So what you're saying is that you feel that these two encounters sparked a sort of rivalry between you two, huh?" Francisca asked.

"I don't know if he feels the same way, and does it mean a possible recruitment? Well… Considering his history with Samus, highly unlikely." Sectonia said.

"You do know what happened the last time someone tried to be friendly with him, right?" Tsumugi asked.

"Yes, I am very well aware. But this is going to be different from then. I'll stand against him on my own, and at least earn his respect." Sectonia said.

"Well, if you insist." Mark shrugged. "Although I doubt anyone else would want to earn that."

"And then there's Dark Samus. Between myself, Crusadermon and Sachiko, this is going to be hard." Tsumugi said.

"Not to mention that Incineroar has been kind of out of it since Indigo left." Zacian said.

"I guess it will depend on which of us fights Mewtwo, huh Zacian?" Leia asked.

"Whoa...check that out." Theo said seeing four versions of the Hero sitting down and talking with one another.

"Hey, we recognize one of them!" Sachiko said.

"The hero from Dragon Quest 8...Eight." Sunset said. "With the heroes from Dragon Quest 3, 4 and 11."

"Ah, I'm very sure he would've been happy to see Yangus and the others again." Kentaurosmon said.

"You mean us?" a voice said as Yangus, Jessica and Angelo stood nearby.

"What the?! When did you guys get here?" Mayumi said.

"You know we're partial owners, right? Just because we can't fight doesn't mean we can't be here when a big tournament like this comes around." Jessica said.

"Plus, the Guv is our old friend." Yangus said. "You really think the three of us would miss out on seeing him pull off a win?"

"I...guess not." Mayumi said.

"It's good you guys could make it though." Stoj said.

"Hmm...wonder if we'll see…" Hope said as a kick landed against his head.

"Oh wow...it is you again. Your head must have some sort of kick magnet." Alena said standing over Hope.

"Oof… Hi Alena. You and Kyril came to cheer on the hero of your world, right?" Hope asked.

"Yes. We are here for Solo." Kiryl said catching up. "Tsarevna...you mustn't run off like that."

"I just wanted to greet the blue haired boy in a fashion he is familiar with. He is definitely still the strongest of all of you." Alena said.

"I suppose we will have to see once we get in the ring." Dynasmon said.

"Yeah...and...wait...I can't seem to find my gun." Connor said.

"Looking for these?" a voice called as Jack sat nearby twirling said gun.

"I knew you guys wouldn't miss out on this." David said.

"Eh...fighting tournaments aren't my thing. But Joker has to compete so...thought it would be fun to watch him win." Jack said.

"Your brother is quite the interesting individual." Angelo said.

"By the by...I heard you guys went to the Elemental Universe recently. They still pissed about their elemental stones?" Jack asked.

"Nope. Read 'em and weep." Zacian said, showing the new Elemental Sword.

"What the? There was a sword? Damn it. That would have been better than gems. I wouldn't have gotten my ass handed to me." Jack said.

"Someone beat you up there?" Jessica asked.

"Yeah...him!" Jack said, pointing to Mark.

"Uh… It wasn't technically me..." Mark said, looking embarrassed.

"I know. You were possessed. So…" Jack said before socking him in the face. "Now we're even."

"Oof… Yep. I definitely deserved that." Mark said. "Sorry…"

"It's okay now, Mark. You weren't at fault, you just reached your breaking point when Subtelizer was torturing Sinon. If at all, I should've reacted quicker to stop him." Hope said. "But let's not dwell in the past. This isn't the time to bring up somber things."

"Then you shouldn't bring them up to start with." Norman said.

"Wait...you were that kid we saw from the tower when Theodore got axed. His replacement." Odd said.

"Former replacement. Had to give it all up after you all destroyed the Crusade." Norman said.

"My group and Cheetah's weren't there for that, but… We still got the memo of what happened." David said.

"He's Emma and Ray's friend. The one we were looking for. Weren't for him, we would have never gotten one over on that idiot angel." Jack said.

"The one that destroyed the Phantom Thieves' original world, right?" Kabuki asked.

"Yeah. Superbia, the Vice Angel of Pride." Mark said. "He never did say why he did that, though…"

"Knowing that fool, it was undoubtedly something petty." Vegeta said.

"Likely it was because of that stuff with Yaldabaoth." Jack said. "But...what's done is done. No reason to dwell on the past now."

"My bro's right. It's time to look forward to the future." Hope said.

"Yeah, and there's more matches to look forward to tomorrow." Simon said. "But for now, let's enjoy the rest of tonight's festivities."

And so they did...enjoying the short reprieve in preparation for tomorrow.