It's a cloudy day at Card Capital 2, several days after the end of the first phase. Alex sits on the couch with her teammates, holding a fancy-looking flyer. "A party?" she questions.

"Yep." Kazuma replies, who sits in a chair directly across from them, "The Vanguard Association is holding a party for all of the teams who made it to the second phase. Their family and friends are also welcome to join. Think of it as their way of congratulating you for making it this far. It's being held one week from today."

Yui looks at Alex with excitement and says, "That sounds awesome! I can't wait!"

"I know right?" Rina adds, "I've never been to a party like this."

However, Alex still has a look of disapproval on her face. "This isn't a fancy party, is it?"

"Yes Alex," Kazuma tells her, "it is a fancy party, so you'll need to where something nice."

Alex lets out an annoyed sigh and says, "Ugh…this is going to suck…"

"Why Alex?" Yui asks, "It's going to be fun."

"I just hate wearing dresses… I hate it with a passion!" Alex tells her.

"Why?" Rina asks, "Is it for the same reason you don't like wearing skirts?"

Alex nods and adds, "Why do you think I wear shorts under my school uniform? Skirts just cause too much of a draft on my lower region… and I hate it… plus, one wrong move and your undies are on display to everyone around you… not to mention the heels. Those things are an absolute pain to walk in!"

"I'm sorry Alex…" Kazuma tells her, "but you're going to have to wear a dress. It's in the party's dress code."

Alex lets out another annoyed sigh, not looking forward to having to wear such complicated attire.

Opening Theme – Fighter (Gundam Build Iron-Blooded Orphans OP4)

Drive 31 – The Night Before the End

One week later, on the night of the party, Alex had just finished taking a shower at her house. She steps out before wrapping herself in the towel and going upstairs to get dressed for the event, but upon walking into her room, she notices a big red dress laying on her bed. It was a sparkly dress with spaghetti straps and a large frilly skirt. This was a dress that she and her mom went shopping for the day prior, and they had it tailored to her exact measurements. She sighs when she sees the dress, knowing how uncomfortable it's going to be to wear. She drops her towel to put on some panties before attempting to put on the dress. She gets it on, zips up the back, and puts on a pair of low, red heels. She stands up and lets out a sigh and says, "I hate this…" she already feels uncomfortable. She can feel the breeze on her crotch and having to practically stand on her toes because of the heels is very aggravating, not to mention she feels like she's being suffocated because of how tight the dress is on her waist. She swallows her pride and walks downstairs, being very careful not to trip in the heels, but of course, she fails. She steps the wrong way and goes tumbling down the stairs, landing face first on the first floor. "Owee…" she moans.

"I understand your pain, Alex." Tokoha says, who walks over. She was wearing a long white, neckless dress and white gloves that went up to her upper arms, and her hair was tied into a ponytail with a pink ribbon. She helps Alex to her feet and tells her, "I remember my first time walking in heels, but you'll get used to it."

"I don't know…" Alex replies.

Tokoha sighs and puts a hand on her daughter's shoulder before saying, "Look… I know this is difficult for you, but just grin and bare it, just for tonight. Okay?"

Alex tries to think of an excuse, but just gives in and replies, "Okay…" Just then, they hear a honk outside. When they walk outside, they find a limousine waiting for them. Tokoha grabs her purse, locks up the house, and the two of them walk to the limo. A young man in a butler's uniform steps out of the car and opens the door for the girls and helps them into the back seat.

As soon as Alex sits down, she is greeted by someone saying, "Alex!" she looks up to see Yui and Rina, along with Kazuma and Luna sitting in front of her.

"Hey guys…" Alex says to them. Yui was dressed in a frilly yellow dress that went down to her knees and up to her neck while leaving her shoulders exposed and had a matching bow on her back, while her hair was done up in a perm with a pink flower.

Rina was wearing a blue traditional dress that only went as low as her lower thighs and had sleeves that went down her wrists while leaving the top of her chest exposed. She kept her twin-tails, but her yellow ribbons were replaced by simple scrunchies and she had a small butterfly clip on her forehead.

Kazuma was wearing a dark-blue tuxedo with a white undershirt with a red rose in the chest pocket, and his hair done a little neater than normal.

Finally, Luna was dressed in a red Chinese dress that had a large moon symbol on it, while her hair was done up into a bun.

"Are you ready for tonight?" Luna asks Alex who gives a hesitant nod as Tokoha gets into the car.

"While we are here to have fun tonight…" Kazuma says in a daunting tone, "Remember, that there are people here who are dangerous individuals."

"You mean Kenny, don't you?" Alex asks and Kazuma nods.

"He is the Death Ark's Acolyte. If you at all see him, do not engage with him, no matter what. Understand?" Alex, Yui, and Rina nod in approval. Kazuma then smiles and says, "Well other than that, let's all have fun tonight!" and everyone cheers, hyping themselves up for the party.

They soon arrive at the Vanguard Association headquarters, the large tower in the middle of the city. At the base of the tower, were slanted walls that looked like Vanguard cards, as well as a red carpet that led into the building and several people, young and old, dressed in formal attire walking inside.

The limo driver opened the door for Alex and her friends as they stepped out of the car and stared in awe at the magnificent structure. "Whoa…!" Yui exclaims, "I've always seen the CFAHQ from a distance, but never up close!"

"Pretty cool huh?" Kazuma says, "The first couple of floors are usually open to the public, where they can freely play Vanguard and hang out. There's also a floor reserved for private parties, but above that, it's just a normal office building. We're going to the private party floor."

Alex looks down at her heels and groans, "Don't tell me I have to walk up fifty flights of stairs in these things…"

"Don't worry Alex," Luna reassures her with a giggle, "we'll take the elevator." The group then walks toward the building before being stopped by a man in a suit, who asks if they are Team K3. Alex answers yes, and then he leads them to the elevator, and then to the party floor. They are met with two double doors with two men standing on either side of them. They open the doors for Team K3 as they walk into, what appears to be a large ballroom.

Red velvet carpet lined the floor and the walls were painted a nice and faint gold color, while one wall was entirely glass that overlooked the city. Towards the glass wall, were circular tables covered with white table cloths where people were eating and talking, while towards the back wall was a buffet table where people helped themselves to the various foods on display. There was also a large staircase on the opposite wall from the door that led to the second floor which overlooked the rest of the room, while a large chandelier hung from the ceiling.

Alex looked around the room in awe as she walked further in, however, she doesn't watch where she was going and bumped into a familiar face. "Yuto?!" she exclaims.

"Oh, hey Alex." The red-haired boy replies. He was dressed in a red suit with a black shirt underneath while his teammates stand behind him, Murasame and Nezumi.

"Glad you could make it." Murasame says.

"Yeah!" Nezumi cheers, "Isn't it exciting?"

"Yeah, totally." Alex says, rubbing the back of her head as her companions join her. She then notices they're holding what looks like wine glasses with a bubbly yellowish-clear liquid inside. "Uhh… what are you guys drinking?" she asks, in fear of them underage drinking.

"Ginger ale." Yuto says, making Alex raise an eyebrow.

"They provided ginger ale to all the minors attending this party," Kazuma explains, "while serving it in the same kind of wine glass. I guess to make them feel more like adults?"

"That sounds good," Rina says, "I wanna try some."

"Me too!" Yui adds."

"Then follow me," Nezumi encourages, "I'll show you where it is." The three of them then head off while Tokoha surveys the room.

"I don't see Kenny anywhere…" she says.

"That doesn't mean he won't be here," Kazuma says, "keep your guard up… but until he does show up, let's have some fun!" the group splits off and goes their separate ways.

Alex walks around the room, looking for people she knows while struggling to walk in her heels, and constantly having to fix her dress to make sure her chest doesn't slip out. "Ugh… I hate this…" she mutters to herself.

Just then, she hears someone call her name, "Alex!" She looks over to see a man with white and blue hair, wearing a white suit. It was Yusuke of Team Exodus.

"Yusuke!" she replies as he walks over to her. "How are you feeling?" she asks, thinking about what happened the other night (see Drive 23).

"Like a million bucks." He replies pounding his chest, "Though I have to say, we were incredibly lucky we didn't get it worse."

"I know…" Alex adds, "By the way, where are Yuji and Saki?"

Yusuke then points toward the buffet table to see Yuji, in a black suit in contrast to Yusuke's, and Saki wearing an aqua-blue dress with her hair done in a bun, and they appear to be arguing. "Yuji, you shouldn't be eating so much!" Saki tells him, "The doctor said your stomach is still weak."

"Come on Saki…" Yuji complains, "this is the first good food I've had in several days! The food at the hospital was like prison food."

"Hey guys!" Alex greets them, walking over.

"Oh, hey Alex." Yuji replies.

Saki then begins eyeing her up, admiring her dress, and says, "My, my… you look rather gorgeous tonight."

Alex lets out a sigh and tells her, "Maybe… but this thing is so uncomfortable. I wish I could just rip this thing off right now."

Yuji lets out a small chuckle and tries to reassure her, "Come on Alex, you look nice. I doubt Saki could pull off a dress like that."

Saki puffs out her cheek and jams the heel of her shoe into Yuji's foot, making him tense up in pain, but before he could say anything, Saki shoves him aside and tells Alex, "Well it was great seeing you Alex. We look forward to maybe facing your team in the finals." She then grabs Yuji's arm and drags him away saying, "Come on Yuji, let's go find a table." Alex watches them walk away in confusion, but in reality, Saki just wanted to rip into Yuji for bashing on her fashion.

Meanwhile, is talking with Nezumi and Yui over some of the ginger ale. However, Rina glances to her side and notices Riku walking into the restroom. After their most recent exchange (see Drive 20 & 21), she wants to ask her a few questions. She turns to her friends and tells them she needs to use the restroom and walks off.

She opens the door, but Riku is nowhere in sight. She then hears her voice behind her saying, "I was hoping you would be here." Rina turns around to see Riku leaning against the wall, but dressed in her normal attire, rather than something fancy.

"I did what you asked," Rina tells her, "I made it past the first phase! So let me join you and take down Eiji!"

"You've still got a long way to go." She hears another voice tell her. She looks over to see Kyoko popping out of a stall, also dressed in her normal attire. "Eiji's tough, and he's got lots of tricks up his sleeves."

"Still…" Riku adds, "You do have some skill. I feel we can let you in on our plan."

"Okay then, so what is it, and where's Koharu?"

Riku lowers her head and explains, "Unfortunately, after recent events, Eiji has wanted to keeping a close eye on Koharu, so he didn't allow her to come to the party."

"Oh…" Rina says.

"However…" Riku adds, "We still have another operative." From another stall, Rina sees a girl with long pink hair, dressed in her school uniform who looks over at them. Riku introduces her, "This is Lily Haruza. She's our inside agent."

"It's nice to meet you." Lily says with a bow.

"L-Likewise…" Rina replies, also with a bow.

Just then, the bathroom door opens and a calm voice speaks, "I thought I'd find you girls in here…" they all look over to see a tall woman with short blue hair with parted bangs in the front, and wearing a long blue corset dress with a yellow butterfly pin in her hair.

Rina's mouth drops open when she sees her, calling her, "Y-You're… Am Kiba, a-and former star of Rummy Labyrinth!"

"Rummy Labyrinth…" the woman says with a sigh, "I haven't heard that name in a while. Anyway, I'm glad you're all here." She holds her hand over her chest and says, "My son desperately needs help… he's not seeing the error of his ways, and you're the only ones I have left to turn to."

"I promise Mrs. Kiba," Riku tells her, "we'll stop Eiji."

"So, wait a minute…" Rina interjects, "You already know about what Eiji's doing? If so, why aren't you doing anything about it?"

Am glances down and explains, "It's not that simple. Eiji is a master of manipulation, always able to find ways to twist a story. If Shion were to try and punish him for his acts, Eiji would make him look like the bad person."

"That's why we need to call Eiji out in public." Riku says and Am nods, "If there's anything I've learned from that bastard, it's that he only fears one thing, losing his power. So… our plan is to defeat him in this tournament, in front of thousands of people, and then present damning evidence of his actions."

"Are you sure that will work?" Rina asks, to which Riku replies.

"It has to."

Kyoko shrugs and adds, "If he can worm his way out of this one, I call hacks."

"There is only one issue with this plan…" Am mentions, "It's public knowledge that the Kiba corporation has ties to the underground. Although, the connections my husband has are just some ruffian street gangs that he can trust… not illegal crime rings like Eiji. So… Eiji might try to use that against us. What's your plan then?"

Riku thinks for a moment but just says, "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, all we can do is wait until the second phase starts."

"By my estimations," Lily speaks up, "I see it likely that either Team K3 or Team Rebellion will face Team Kiba in the second phase. If either scenario happens, we put our plan into action, and either Rina or Riku needs to be the one to defeat him." The two aforementioned girls nod in agreement. Afterward, Riku adjourns the meeting and the girls leave the bathroom at separate times to avoid drawing suspicion.

A few minutes later, Yui walks over to the buffet table to get something to eat when she sees someone familiar at the table filling their plate with food. It was a girl with short green hair and wearing a blue and pink parka over brown shorts and matching boots. Yui immediately recognizes her and calls out to her, "Renka!"

Renka Tachibana turns around and sees Yui, but immediately turns back around and starts filling her plate again.

"See? I made it to the second phase, just like I promised!" Yui tells her, but Renka continues to ignore her while continuing to fill her plate up. Yui puffs out her cheeks and says, "You know, it's rude to ignore someone you know?"

"I don't have anything I need to say to you." The green-haired girl finally replies, while not stopping her plate filling, to where before long, the amount of food on it towers above her head.

"Why do you have to be so cold-hearted all the time…?" Yui asks her, changing her tone from cheery to concerned, but Renka still doesn't answer her. Yui then folds her arms and pouts like a little child and tells her, "Fine, then I'll just stick with you until you decide to talk!"

"Okay…" Renka replies but says nothing else. She finishes serving herself and heads for a table to eat, to which Yui follows. They sit down at the same table as Renka eats her massive stack of food, not caring that Yui is watching her. The two are silent until Renka finishes, almost making Yui sick with how much food she just watched her consume, and gets up from the table to go for seconds.

Yui follows, thinking to herself, "Yeesh… I've never seen someone eat that much in one sitting."

Renka reaches for takoyaki, but someone bumps into her, causing her hand to slip and touch an open flame that was used to keep the food warm, thereby burning her head. "OWWW!" Renka screams and falls to her knees.

Seeing this, Yui helps Renka to her feet, still holding her hand in pain, and asks, "Are you okay?!" but Renka pulls her hand away.

"I don't need your help!" she says in an unusually aggravated tone while she holds her hand in pain.

"Come on, at least let me look at it," Yui asks her, to which Renka shows her hand. The palm of her hand close to her fingers had been singed, taking off the first layer of skin. Several small blisters began to form as well. Yui's eyes widen seeing and says, "Oh my gosh! You need to get that treated."

"I'll be fine…" Renka tells her, not wanting to admit she's in pain, but Yui can see tears beginning to form in her eyes. Then, without saying a word, Yui grabs her wrist and drags Renka into the bathroom. There they find an emergency first aid kit, and Yui begins to treat Renka's burn by telling her to hold her hand under cool water, to which she complies, despite arguing at first. After a few minutes, Yui sprays that is used for burns, dabs a gauze pad on the burn mark, and leaves it there as she wraps her hand in bandages. "There, feel any better?"

Renka looks at the bandages on her hand, amazed by Yui's medical knowledge. "A little…" Renka replies, glancing away, but then looks back at her and asks, "How did you know how to do that?"

Yui smiles and answers, "I learned a few things from my dad, he's a doctor." She then tells Renka to keep the bandages on as much as possible so the burn can have time to heal. She then asks Renka, "Why didn't you want my help?"

Renka turns away and tells Yui, "Because I don't want friends."

"Huh?" Yui says, confused by her statement.

"People tell you they're your friends… but then they just end up making fun of you or taking advantage of you."

Flashback non-italicized text is Renka talking in the present.

A young Renka, about in elementary school years, sits at a desk near the window in a school. The room is dark, and all she sees are shadowy figures around her with glowing and menacing white smiles.

"Ever since I was little, I've never really had anyone I can call a friend. I was never the most social kid in school, I always just sat in the back of the class drawing things, but then, one day, someone came up to me."

Renka sits on a bench at the school playground, her face buried in a sketchbook, until she sees a girl, about her age, walk up to her. She had short black hair and hazel blue eyes. The girl sits down next to Renka and offers to share her lunch, to which Renka agrees.

"At first, she seemed really nice. She would share her lunch with me, take interest in my drawings, and play games with me in the park. I thought I had made my first friend… but then… things started to happen.

Renka was sitting on a toilet, doing her business, when the black-haired girl walks up to the stall, carrying a bucket of water, with two other shadow figures beside her. She smirks at them menacingly and then throws the water over the stall, soaking Renka.

Another time, Renka walks into a classroom, but when she opens the door, a dirty chalk eraser calls on her head, covering her in chalk dust as the entire class laughs at her, including her black-haired friend.

One time, Renka was hanging out with her friend and some other figures. The friend asks to see Renka's drawings, to which Renka happily replies. They then requested Renka to draw a self-portrait, to which she replies. When she finishes, the other girls see it as garbage, but ask her to draw it again… and again… and again… until Renka finally caught on. They were making fun of her looks through the drawings, and she's since given up on art.

However, the straw that broke the camel's back was when Renka was walking to school with her "friend" and all of a sudden, her friend pulls her skirt down and off her legs entirely, revealing her bear-head patterned underwear. A circle of shadow figures surrounds her and laugh at her as she tries to hide her undies while tears form in her eyes. She looks over at her friend who has a maniacal grin on her face.

"This person betrayed me… played so many pranks on me and just made fun of me non-stop. Since then, I've learned to never make friends."

End of flashback

"People say they're your friend just so they can take advantage of you." Renka says.

Yui then shakes her head and tells her, "That's not true! Alex is my best friend, and she has never tried to take advantage of me!"

"Are you sure?" Renka asks.

Yui nods and adds, "Alex has always been kind to me. She's wanted to help me grow and get stronger! Like you… I was never the most social kid in school. I had severe anxiety issues in my childhood, but Alex helped me overcome that anxiety, and she's still helping me grow and mature, even today. You just had a bad first experience, that's all." Renka glances at Yui as she continues, "Not all friends are going to take advantage of you, in fact, there's more people who will be kind to you and love you, rather than pick on you and make you feel like mud."

"Are you sure…?" Renka asks and Yui nods again.

"Through my time on Alex's team, I've made a lot of friends. Alex, Rina, Saki, and now you." Renka's eyes sparkle, while at the same time, she feels conflicted. Yui opens her arms, offering Renka a hug, and says, "Come on, let's be friends."

Renka looks at the floor in thought. She spins on her heels and says, "I'm sorry… I don't want to." And walks toward the door to leave the bathroom. She pushes it open before looking back at Yui and holding up her bandaged hand, saying, "Thanks for helping my burn though…" and leaves the room, closing the door behind her, leaving a defeated feeling Yui standing there, but she's not going to give up on Renka. She's going to show her that friends aren't all bad, and she'll start by giving it her all for her in the second phase.

About an hour later, after everyone has had fun at the party, a female voice rings out through the speakers. "My I have everyone's attention?" Everyone looks at the top of the staircase to see a woman with purple hair and wearing a white lab coat standing there with a microphone, "I do hope everyone's having a good time, but now, I would like to introduce the host of this party, the director of the Vanguard Association himself, Mr. Ryuzu Myoujin!" Spotlights shine in the staircase, revealing Ryuzu standing front and center, with Tokoha, Kazuma, Luna, Am, and Shion, standing behind him.

Ryuzu takes the mic from the lady and says into it, "First of all, I'd like to congratulate all of you for making it to the second phase of Fighter's Royal." The entire crowd cheers as Ryuzu continues, "You all showed great promise, and I look forward to seeing how all of you perform in the second phase, however, there are a few teams that I personally think have the most potential."

Ryuzu then calls each team up one by one, "First up, Team Crimson. Akiya Kojiro, Renka Tachibana, and Ichiko Hoseki." The three aforementioned people walk up the staircase to stand next to Ryuzu, "These three were the champions of last year's national tournament, and are an amazing powerhouse of a team."

Ryuzu then calls the next team up, "Next, Team Exodus." Yuji, Yusuke, and Saki all walk up the stairs with smiles on their faces as they join Team Crimson, "These three friends are known all around the world, and have become champions in tournaments in over 30 countries, including America, China, Italy, and the United Kingdom."

Ryuzu then calls the final team up, "And last, but certainly not least, Team K3. Alex Shindou, Rina Shouji, and Yui Genjima." Alex's eyes widen in surprise and excitement as Rina and Yui nudge her to go up the stairs. "These three girls have shown the most promise in recent days. Although they may have come last in the proceedings, their leader, Alex, showed an amazing display of imagination and skill during her last fight against the leader of Team Q4 Neo, securing them a spot in the finals." Everyone in the crowd claps for the three hopeful teams as Alex smiles with joy.

Each of the team members bows before the crowd and walks back downstairs. "Now…" Ryuzu continues, "the second phase begins in 1 week, but before then, I'd like to talk about how the phase will proceed." He then gestures behind him as a large flat screen monitor lowers from the ceiling. When it turns on, the screen shows an eight-person tournament bracket with Teams labeled A through H, "The second phase will be a standard single elimination bracket, but the fights will play out a little differently. All fights in the second phase will be relay fights."

"Relay fights…?" Rina questions.

"What's that?" Yui adds.

"All three members of a team will participate in a relay fight. At the beginning of the match, each team chooses one member to be their starter. That fighter will then play until they have suffered five damage. They will then take their deck, while leaving all cards on the board and in their hand while the next member of the team steps up, and will continue the fight with their own cards, while retaining all the cards left for them by their teammate."

"So if you know you're going to lose, you can set things up so your teammate has an better chance." Yuji comments.

"Interesting…" Yusuke says, "This could be fun."

"When fighters switch out, the current turn automatically ends, and the second fighter will play until they also reach five damage, or ten total cards in the damage zone. Same thing for the third fighter. The team that deals a grand total of fifteen damage to the opposing team is declared the winner and moves on. Now I am aware that some of the teams moving on have less than three members, as such, these damage rules will be adjusted for them accordingly, but regardless, the end goal is fifteen damage."

Ryuzu then holds up his hand and says, "Now, I will reveal the first round matches of the second phase." The screen changes to show the winning team names in pairs of two as Ryuzu names them off, "Team K3 vs Team Crimson, Team Exodus vs Team Vanguard Club, Team Rebellion vs Team Kiba, and Team Wildhart vs Kenny McGallister. Now, as I said before, the second phase begins in 1 week so…" but before Ryuzu could finish his sentence, the power goes out to the entire building, startling everyone.

"What's happening?!", "What's going on?!", "An Earthquake?!" some people say.

Ryuzu talks into his hidden earpiece and asks the maintenance workers on the other end, "What's happening? Why isn't the backup generator kicking in?"

"I don't know sir," one of them says, "both generators aren't responding!"

Just then, everyone hears a burst of maniacal laughter from at the bottom of the stairs. Everyone at the top looks down as the spotlights shine on Kenny standing there, holding his hat, and with one foot on the bottom step. "Well, well, well…" he says, "you've got quite the party going on here, eh Mr. Myoujin?"

"I'm glad you like it…" Ryuzu says, trying to stay formal, but in fact, he is terrified of the man. He talks into his earpiece and says, "Quick, get the generators back on."

"We're trying sir, but it looks like someone's hacking into our system." A worker says, horrifying Ryuzu.

Meanwhile, elsewhere, a feminine figure sits in the darkness in front of a laptop that shows footage of a security camera in the ballroom. She pulls a lollipop out of her mouth and snickers.

Kenny begins to climb the stairs and continues, "I do apologize for not arriving on time, I wanted to be… fashionably late."

"That's fine, but the party is almost over." Ryuzu tells him, hoping that will send him off, but Kenny keeps climbing.

"Oh, I will be leaving, but before I do… I have a message for you from my superior."

"Your superior?" Ryuzu questions.

"Yes." Kenny replies, having reached the top of the stairs, and looks Ryuzu square in the eyes, "Our plan is already in motion." He says, making Ryuzu shutter in terror, "You designed this tournament to find someone who can stop us, but did you ever consider what would happen if I joined your tournament?" Ryuzu quivers. Kenny's words terrified him, knowing what he is capable of. "Once I win your silly little game, and show the world the true power of my Death God, we will unleash all of Hell's fury on both this planet and Cray! So go on… try and stop us. You already tried once, and you failed!"

Yuji in the crowd shutters, remembering how he was impaled during his last fight with Kenny.

"So, the second phase begins in one week?" Kenny says, "Then let that be the countdown clock to your world's demise." The man then laughs maniacally as the room blacks out again, and when the lights come back on, Kenny is nowhere to be seen. The entire room is tense, as everyone tries to process what they witnessed, and what Kenny had said.

Soon afterward, the party came to an end, and everyone began heading their separate ways, but as Alex and her team climbed into their limo, she couldn't help but think about what Kenny said… "One-week countdown? To what…?" she thought. Alex asks her mom that question, and the answer she gives is bone-chilling.

"To the end of the world…" she says, making the hearts of Team K3 sink deeper into their chests. "Alex… listen to me…" Tokoha says to her daughter, "There is a chance you will have to face Kenny in the final round… and if you do, you must win. Okay?"

Alex wants to say "Okay!" like she always does, but she is too scared to think, knowing that one week from now, the world, and all life within it, could end. It's a chilling thought, and everyone knows it.

"Listen girls…" Kazuma says, "You three are our last line of defense, in the event Kenny makes it to the finals. Do you understand?" the three girls nod, "Until then, try not to stress yourselves out over it. Stay calm, and focus on the matches right in front of you, okay?"

His words seemed to have given them a little more confidence, as they all nod their heads in agreement, but still, having to go to sleep knowing the world could end in one week… it isn't pleasant…

Ending Theme – Yume no Hikari-Kun no Mirai (Buddyfight DDD Ending 1)

[Next Time]

The second phase begins! Team K3 stand forward ready to begin their fight against Team Crimson. Everything they've learned over the past couple of months is finally about to be put to the test!

Next time on Vanguard X: "Team K3 vs Team Crimson!" Don't miss it!