"And now...we welcome our next fighters." Cra Ne said. "Coming to us from a frigid place, these two spend their lives continuously climbing up mountains. They are the Bone-Chilling Duo with a fiery passion for mountain climbing. Let us welcome...the Ice Climbers." he said as the two in question ran into the arena.

"Ah, Popo and Nana." Mari said.

"The two in one fighter. Wonder who will be facing those two." Tulip said.

"If the two of them are a pair, wouldn't it make sense for another pair to fight them?" Glimmer wondered.

"Well the reason they're called the two in one fighter is because they fight and act as one given their profession as mountain climbers." Mari said.

"Kind of like myself and my spectral illusions whenever I summon them." Sectonia said. "Or like Leonora and her Einherjar."

"Hmm… I think we should match their gimmick. What do you say, Teepo?" Elize asked.

"Yeah...let's do this, Elize!" Teepo said as the two headed down.

"And...their opponents! One is a little girl gifted with powerful magic, the other is a talking doll that mimics part of her thoughts. They are the Dark Duo! Welcome Elize...Lutus and Teepo!" Cra Ne said as the two entered the arena.

"Let's do this, Elize! Time to show them what's up!" Teepo said.

"You don't have to tell me twice! Let's go, Teepo!" Elize said.

"The destination for this battle will be the Summit!" Cra Ne said as the two pairs appeared on a frozen mountain. "Here...you will now begin!"

"Here goes… Pow Hammer!" Elize said as a small squeaky hammer fell on the Ice Climbers.

The two Ice Climbers looked at one another before they raised their hammers and started hitting some ice chunks at Elize and Teepo.

"Let's go. Frozen Flash!" Elize said as her rod was coated in ice as she struck with it twice. The attack cancelling the Ice Climbers attack.

The duo was surprised by this before getting an idea as they smashed their hammers against the mountain.

"What the heck was…" Teepo said as the mountain shook before the summit broke off as it started sliding down the side.

"Hold on, Teepo!" Elize said as Teepo clung onto Elize's back.

As the mountain slid down the side, it soon hit the water where a polar bear jumped onto it. While both Elize and Teepo were confused, the Ice Climbers went spinning at them and nailed Teepo with their hammers.

"Ow! That really hurt!" Teepo said.

"Dark Brush!" Elize said as she did her own spin attack, coating her rod in darkness and finishing with a strike from the right.

The Ice Climbers tumbled back a bit before they shook their heads as they let out a call as a large iceberg started to rise from the sea.

"Gah! Cold!" Teepo called out.

"Don't worry, Teepo. Just shake it off. We're gonna finish this right now." Elize said.

"Locked on target!" Teepo said, coating himself in darkness.

"Charge complete! Fire!" Elize said.

"It's gonna hurt!" Teepo said, flying around the Ice Climbers and forming a four layer pillar of darkness as he floated back down next to Elize. "I'm home!"

"Scary-Go-Round!" Elize and Teepo call out together as the pillar bursts, causing the dark energy to erupt.

The Ice Climbers looked scared as the pillars erupted around them. Nana was the first to be sent flying before Popo followed suit.

"Well...that was...magnificent! These two are definitely the definition of the word duo. The winners of this round are Elize and Teepo." Cra Ne said as the audience applauded.

Elize and Teepo took a moment to bow to the crowd before helping the Ice Climbers up. "You two worked well together out there." Elize said as the Ice Climbers high fived each other before shaking Elize's hands.

"Wow...those two handled themselves pretty well out there." Jexi said.

"I didn't expect any less from them." Jude said.

"Same here." Milla said walking down the steps.

"Ah, Lady Milla!" Revali said. "I see you came to watch as well."

"Of course. We were very interested in seeing how these fights would unfold." Milla said.

"We?" Simon asked.

"Hey." Alvin said.

"Hello there." Muzet said, floating in.

"Alvin? Hey, the gang's all here!" Teepo said.

"Hi, everyone." Ludger said, approaching with Elle and Nova.

"You're here, too, Nova?" Vera asked in surprise.

"Yeah, I didn't want to miss the chance of seeing my sister in action." Nova smiled. "And I really missed you."

"It's not just her. We've all heard about your exploits as of late." Rowen said.

"H-Hey, Rowen!" Teepo said as he glomped onto Rowen's head.

"It's good to see you again as well, Teepo." Rowen said calmly, not even flinching.

"Whoa… Rowen isn't even fazed by that." Genis said.

"It is good to see you are doing well, Ludger." Shanoa said.

"It's been hard getting back to my life after I was resurrected, but we're managing." Ludger said. "I'm the head of Spirius Corporation now."

"That is quite a big responsibility, but I know you'll be able to uphold it well." Shanoa smiled.

"As per the terms, Ludger would've become the CEO of Spirius Corporation after Bisley's death. However, since his first death also resulted in Ludger's death due to him turning himself into a divergence catalyst, Spirius was in quite a state for a while." Alvin said.

"But then the Portalstone redux happened, right?" Lloyd asked.

"Yep. That disaster was a blessing in disguise." Alvin said.

"In a lot of ways, actually." Sectonia said.

"Huh...yeah. Guess it was." Jexi said. "Just wasn't like it for us that first time."

"Well, the second time is always the charm." Leonis said.

"It might be because the second time around, maybe even onward, you already know what to expect." Cheetah said.

"Yeah...just hope this is the last time we deal with something like that." Hope said.

"Probably not since you just mentioned it." Connor said.