I uploaded the rom to a repro RTC cart using EPILOGUE GB Operator (I really wanted to have this game on a cart since I couldn't get the physical release) and played in FPGBC. Was on stage 2. It didn't happen again, for now...
Certain emulation will crash the game. It's hard to pinpoint which ones will cause it. Sometimes a firmware update will fix the issues. Certain emulators are poorly coded or something. Those kernal panic screens pop up a lot with emulators.