20demayo Shopping and clubbing.
Shopping and clubbing.
The past few days have been hectic; I have a wedding to attend on the 27th (I'm the best man). That's why there's been a delay in releases, things are a bit rushed here, sorry for the delay.
Well, as always, if anyone wants to support me or just read 3/7 chapters ahead of my two stories, that's possible on my (P)(A)(T). If not, I still appreciate you reading my stories!
I'll update the rarity chapter tomorrow, improve it, I didn't like how it turned out.
That said, goodnight and happy reading!
(P)(A)(T)/CalleumArtori
[...]---[...]
"You ran away!" - Those were the first words Yang shouted when the call from my phone connected to Ruby's Scroll, not hers.
"Running away implies I was in danger or trapped, which I wasn't." I walked calmly down the street in Vale as I responded.
After the brief conversation I had with Ozpin and Glynda, I bid farewell to them both before making my way toward Vale, catching the Bull-Head that was departing early.
Before boarding the Bull-Head, I pulled my phone out of the VoidBag and initiated the stream. I was a few minutes behind schedule, but nothing too consequential.
Among the first viewers to join the stream were the four members of Team RWBY, with Ruby being the first, which didn't surprise me, especially after seeing what her Semblance was capable of.
After a few messages here and there asking why I was inside a Bull-Head, I asked for their Scroll numbers to see if my phone could connect to their Scrolls, which it did, not that I doubted it would.
Ruby was the first to type the number, not taking even a second, but when I called her Scroll, it was Yang who answered.
"That doesn't change the fact that you went to Vale without us!" Yang's shout caught the attention of some people on the street where I was, in addition to those who were already paying attention to me.
It seemed that the video of my 'triumphant entrance' had gone viral. From what I had learned, although there were Huntsmen and Huntresses who recorded and posted their 'hunts' and were showmakers, most of them didn't have much skill.
These videos usually depicted battles against a few Grimm, which to a civilian might be impressive, as just a single Grimm could easily decimate an entire group of civilians without Aura, but to a true Huntsman? It wasn't really all that impressive.
The vast majority of skilled Huntsmen and Huntresses were more reserved, so to speak, preferring to get their job done as quickly as possible, without recordings or anything of the sort, then returning home as soon as possible to be with their families.
Those who didn't have families would typically go drinking or have one-night stands to unwind before returning to work.
So, it wasn't much of a surprise that the video of me fighting would go viral. What surprised me was that I had actually thought people in this world would be accustomed to this kind of battle, but apparently not.
Aside from tournaments where talents showcased their skills, like Pyrrha, from what I gathered with about five minutes of browsing on the CCT, this world's internet, or occasional videos here and there of a random battle that a civilian had managed to record of a Huntsman or Huntress fighting seriously from afar, battles like the ones that had occurred in yesterday's invasion were not often seen.
"You weren't expecting me to just sit around all day until your classes were over, were you?" I looked at the hologram above my phone showing Yang and Ruby's faces, with Ruby trying to snatch the Scroll back from her sister's hands.
Aside from the combat class where I would be the assistant teacher, I wasn't planning to participate in any others, or didn't really want to, for that matter. So, I asked Ozpin for some information, and he gave me a card with some Lien on it, which, in his words, was "my advance pay," and I came to Vale to buy some things.
I doubted the money he gave me would be enough, or that a single shopping trip would suffice for everything I wanted if I didn't literally rob the entire city in broad daylight and throw stores and stores into the VoidBag, but it was a start.
"Well... Yes. I mean, no! But that you'd do something inside Beacon at least, so we could go to Vale together later." Yang scratched her cheek as she responded. "Here, look what you did to Ruby!" She pointed the Scroll directly at her sister's face.
As if they'd done this motion thousands of times before, Ruby's face, which was scrunched up as she tried to climb her sister to grab the Scroll back, changed. Her scrunched-up face softened, and her eyes welled up, looking directly at the camera.
"I..." She sniffled. "I wanted to go buy ammo and weapon parts with you... Why did you go to Vale alone?" She pouted, trembling her lip.
... Whatever Qrow and these two's dad went through with them must be unimaginable...
"I was almost convinced." My tone was as dry as possible, causing both Yang and Ruby to click their tongues simultaneously at their failed plan.
I sighed, shaking my head.
"I'm not just going to Vale today, you know..." I had a whole month in Remnant; I didn't plan to spend that month confined to Beacon, or Vale for that matter; I wanted to see the other kingdoms too.
"... And I'm not just buying ammunition, weapons, and Dust; I want other things like books. I'll buy them today, don't worry." I had tens of thousands of HOTD books, but I wanted Remnant's too.
As much as I wouldn't have a use for the vast majority of these books, it's better to have and not need than to need and not have; that's because I was sure some of them I would use a lot, especially those focused on Dust, like how to use it correctly and its variations.
As I finished my sentence, Ruby's face visibly brightened, probably because she realized she hadn't missed the chance to show me her favorite stores for weapon parts and armaments.
As for Yang, she still seemed upset, but I could see that most of it was an act to see if she could get some kind of reaction from me or possibly a promise; she got neither.
"Quit the sulking and get changed already, we need to go to class," Blake's voice came from the Scroll. "You're not even that upset, you just wanted an excuse to skip class without getting reprimanded by Goodwitch."
"Tsk." Yang clicked her tongue again at Blake's words.
"A good reason to skip class?" Well, I guess guiding the 'being from another world' was as valid a reason as any.
"Speaking of which, Devas..." Blake took the Scroll from Yang's hands before she could react.
"Hey, I wasn't finished talking to him!" Yang yelled.
"Hey, that's mine!" Ruby yelled at the same time.
"... Here, I sent the location of the bookstores I usually go to and some others I know in Vale." The faunus cat ignored the protests of the other two RWBY team members and sent me a photo of a map with the locations of the bookstores.
"Thanks, this will help." I intended to wander for a while, going from shop to shop to see what I could find, but following a map wouldn't hurt either.
I quickly downloaded the file, pushing it to the top of the list of the thousands of other files I was downloading. In HOTD, I didn't have the opportunity, since the world had no internet after the apocalypse, not to mention the lack of time I had, but here, I would take advantage of the absurd memory of the phone after the stream modifications and download as much as possible.
Movies, games, documentaries, tutorials, PDFs, even books, although I would buy the physical ones.
No matter what it was, whether it was just entertainment like a random movie or had real utility like a tutorial on how to use Dust, as long as I was in Remnant, I would download as much as possible onto my phone.
I glanced quickly at my phone after Blake hung up the call when Weiss shouted that they were late. It was seven-thirty in the morning; I had a few hours before I needed to return to Beacon for my role as assistant teacher.
As much as accepting this job took away some of my free time, it was also useful for a few reasons.
The first of them, it allowed me to stay as close as possible to Beacon and the four, so I could act if something happened.
It wasn't a guess; it was a certainty that something would happen; the second part of the mission confirmed that.
-//-
[Emergency Mission! (Ticket) - (2/2 Part)]
Rarity: Amber World: Remnant (RWBY) Time limit: 30 days. (Max.)
Mission Description: Due to Ruby Rose unlocking her "Silver Eyes" earlier and using them in battle, the "Queen of Grimm" became aware of her existence and sent one of her most loyal pawns, Tyrian Callows, to hunt her down. (COMPLETE!)
Stop him before he can finish the mission the queen gave him. (COMPLETE!)
Reward: Vault Key (Random) (Single use) (COMPLETE!)
Note!: Emergency missions from an Emergency Ticket have reduced rewards!
[..]
Description (NEW!): Even though thwarting the impromptu plans of the "Queen of Grimm" to kill the "Silver-Eyed Girl," the world still turns, the seasons change as time passes...
Thwart the plans of she who wants to claim Autumn for herself, thwart the fall of Beacon that illuminates the fate of the world...
Reward: ???, ???.
-//-
For some reason, I was starting to collect keys to places I had no idea where they were...
"I'll see what this thing opens later..." I had to open the Bronze Chest and the Potion Recipe (Random) too that I hadn't opened yet in Winterhord.
I'll open those two and see what this key opens later when I return to Beacon.
I had some ideas of what this key could open, thanks to the information Tyrian had given me, but it was better to confirm later...
... And one of the invisibles, the one who was eating the ice cream before.
"No, just talking to our client here." Junior spoke, shaking his head. He seemed not to want to escalate things into a fight, which was logical since, as he himself had said, he recognized me as the 'Deer Huntmen'.
If Yang had destroyed this place before...
"Are you sure?" The other twin asked, looking at my face with the same concern. It seems like these two recognized me too and didn't want to fight me.
I only paid partial attention to the twins since most of it was focused on the short, quick, and light steps that I could hear coming towards me as the invisible person approached closer and closer.
Whoever it was, they were good, I needed to concentrate a bit to listen to their steps, even though the floor was made of glass, even their movements didn't produce much noise in the club's wind.
This person was armed too, I could tell using the Voidbag, with a damn umbrella that had a blade inside it, of all things.
This person's clothes were small too, in fact, all I could feel on this person using the Voidbag was small... What the hell was this? A gnome?... Were there gnomes in Remnant?
If I wasn't about to be attacked by a child of all things, this person was the smallest person I had 'seen' in my entire life.
I'm pretty sure I've 'seen' dwarfs larger than this, actually...
"Junior, I don't want trouble here, but you clearly recognized Cinder's name." I said, interrupting the conversation Junior was having with one of the twins, Miltia, from what I could hear. "The question is, are you allied with her?..." I asked, letting my voice fade with a threatening tone.
The air inside the club became tense the moment my words were absorbed. Even some people who were clearly drunk asleep had started to wake up because of the atmosphere, their bodies sensing danger.
"What will happen if I say no?" Junior asked, subtly moving his hand down under the counter, whether it was for the shotgun he had there or for the alarm button, I didn't care.
"If your answer is no, I'll pay you for any information you have on her and leave here peacefully." I replied, ignoring the urge I had to turn around and kick the invisible person who was just a few meters behind me with a blade pointed at my back.
My answer seemed to visibly relieve Junior.
"Just in case, what if I say yes?" He still asked.
"I'll still leave here with the information you have." I affirmed calmly, the threat of violence contained in my message wasn't lost.
"Good thing Junior isn't an ally of that cow." Another voice spoke, breaking the tension in the room. "Neither am I, actually." The male voice said.
I turned to see who was speaking, having heard the steps coming towards me for a long time.
He seemed to be about twenty-something, at the end of his twenties, I would guess, he was tall as hell too, taller than me by about two or three centimeters.
His hair was red, orange, covered by a black fedora hat with a red stripe, he also wore a white suit and black dress pants, along with brown dress shoes.
It wasn't a style I would personally wear, but he had a certain style, even though he looked like a pimp, but that must be because of the eyeliner on his eyes.
"Torchwick, I presume." I greeted the man before he even introduced himself, making his steps pause for a second before he started moving again.
"I see you've heard of me already. Was it on the news? Or did Red talk about me?" With Red, I guess he meant Ruby, who had also mentioned his name before.
It seems he had seen me talking to Ruby, probably during the invasion yesterday, I hadn't seen him, but I also wasn't very focused on my surroundings, but worried about the four and beating Tyrian.
"Something like that. I heard you're a thief, is that true?" I didn't deny or confirm anything.
As much as Ruby had thrown his name here and there, both in the (CHAT) and yesterday when he had fled, his description I had gotten from Tyrian, who said Roman had interfered when he tried to kill Ruby.
I was sure he hadn't done that out of pure goodwill, but still, I was grateful. After all, even if he wasn't, he had helped delay Tyrian.
Tyrian had also said that Roman had betrayed Cinder, being one of the few useful pieces of information I had managed to get from the psychopath.
Why did he know Roman's name and that he was allied with Cinder? I had no idea, but something told me that if I asked the psychopath, he would respond with something I wouldn't like to hear, probably involving plans of torture for the man in front of me.
I probably unintentionally saved Roman from a vacation in Tyrian's basement...
"Not a thief, but THE thief." He introduced himself, holding his hat and bowing artistically. "Pleasure, Roman Torchwick." Was he always like this?
The collective eye rolls from Junior and the two twins in his direction assured me that he was.
"Make me an Appletini, Junior." Roman ordered the bartender as he sat on the stool next to me.
"Did I hear a please?" Junior asked Roman.
"If you did, you're going crazy because I didn't say it." The man in the white suit replied without missing a beat. "Come on, come on." He waved his hand, making Junior mutter some very creative curses before turning to make the Appletini.
"So, Devas, wasn't it?" Roman asked rhetorically, but I nodded anyway, confirming that was my name. "Just to be sure, since you beat and captured Tyrian yesterday and all, but you're on Red's team, right?" He asked.
"You mean Ruby?" I asked.
"Yeah, the girl with the giant gardening tool, one meter sixty, red hood, you know, the girl the faunus psychopath wanted to kill yesterday." He gestured with his left hand, moving the cigar as he spoke.
Ruby didn't seem too happy with how Roman referred to Crescent Rose, if the emotes she sent were anything to go by... Wasn't she supposed to be in class right now?
"Yeah, I'm on Red's team, don't worry." I confirmed that I wasn't on the side of the woman he had just betrayed yesterday.
"Thank goodness for that, it puts me more at ease." Roman sighed falsely. As if it wasn't already obvious before that I was against Cinder.
After my confirmation that I wasn't on Cinder's team, the invisible gnome behind me moved, not to attack me, but to sit on the stool on the other side of Roman.
"Speaking of which, how's Tyrian? Being interrogated right now, I imagine." Roman asked after taking a puff of his cigar, blowing the smoke away, towards the twins who were listening to the conversation from afar, making them frown and glare at the man.
"Only if they can interrogate someone dead." Funny, I could.
My answer didn't surprise the (CHAT), I had already informed them that Tyrian was dead, but it surprised Roman, who coughed after taking too much of a puff from his cigar, making smoke come out of his nostrils.
Curiously, I could see the stool the invisible gnome had sat on trembling, as if the person sitting there was not laughing, but giggling with joy.
Roman coughed a few times before lightly tapping his chest before speaking.
"Well, I can't say I'll be sad about the psychopath's death." He seemed relieved actually. "Did you kill him yourself?" He asked, probably to confirm that Tyrian was dead.
"I can show you his head if you want," I pointed backwards, towards the door, as if the head were in the trunk of my car outside or something.
"No, no need, I'll take your word for it." Roman declined, waving the hand that didn't hold the cigar quickly.
Junior chose this moment to return with Roman's drink, a medium-sized glass with a green drink inside and a green apple on the rim.
"That's fifty Lien." Junior reached out his hand to Roman.
"I heard a 'It's on the house'? After all, I helped in the invasion yesterday just like our friend here." Romam pointed at me.
"If you heard that, you're going crazy because I didn't say it." Junior repeated the thief's words, making Roman purse his lips. "That's fifty Lien." He repeated, making Roman sigh and take the money out of his pocket to hand it to him.
"Are you going to count the notes in front of me?!" Roman asked with a yell when he saw Junior pass each note to make sure Roman had given the right amount of money.
Junior finished counting the notes quickly before putting them in his pocket and then replying.
"I am, oh self-proclaimed 'Thief'." Junior replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm, before turning around, going back to arranging the counter.
"Your friendship is touching." I replied belatedly, making Roman scoff in mockery.
All this time, the chair behind Roman was shaking as if whoever was sitting on it was not laughing, but laughing with joy.
[...]---[...]
Yay! Here's the interaction between the characters that (I believe) you've been waiting for, Roman and the invisible gnome finally meet the Devas!
The next chapter will be a conversation, probably from Roman's POV, as it'll be more fun to read from his perspective (I think).
Oh, and about the Lien, the currency, I have no idea how much it's worth, so I just assumed it's the dollar of that world. Is 50 dollars for a drink expensive? Depending on the place, maybe... I guess? I'm not entirely sure, but I wrote the scene thinking that it might be.
Well, that's it, I won't ramble on here.
As always, have a good night and happy reading!