Only seven people were killed in the event many now referred to as 'The Breach.' Five of them were residents of a housing complex which the train crashed into, another was the patrol officer who'd been escorting people away from the area, and the final confirmed death was a homeless man who'd refused to leave his alleyway with the rest of the civilians. Each death was a tragedy, and a memorial service was held about a week afterwards in their honor.

However, the next day was one of celebration. As news got out about the exact details of the event, what the White Fang had planned to do, the population was filled with a sense of relief. Everyone seemed to realize that they had dodged a major bullet, and felt the need to party away the stress. If that train had hit Vale while they were unprepared, hundreds- if not thousands- could have perished. Legislation allowing greater protection against this terrorist threat was already being pushed through to the Council, and in the meantime, the Atlesian Military was invited to start the setup of the Vytal Festival early- though, everyone knew why they were really there.

That was what the news said, exactly what Sun told him. Jaune knew himself. He would have let those deaths weigh on his soul- and they did- but the guilt was counterbalanced with a greater sense of accomplishment. He'd actually done some good in this world! The Hunter would try not to let that thought inflate his ego too much, but the Game did not seem to have the same reservations.

New Title Acquired:
[Hero]
[OK]

Jaune never really considered himself a hero. In fact, he still didn't. While, yes, he wanted to be a hero, the hunter-in-training did not think he'd actually accomplished this goal yet. Just one look at his actions over the past school year would reflect this. The first time he stopped White Fang in Vale, it was only so he could keep track of Yang. The second time, he went to support Blake- the same motivation applied for his third venture. And this last time, he'd fought against the White Fang to keep Yang and Pyrrha from killing each other. Heroes were supposed to do the right thing at the right time because it was the right thing to do. Jaune was just a guy trying to be a good friend. Anybody would have done the same.

The buffs the title gave, though, were ridiculous. Massive increases to nearly all his stats, along with a higher chance of making bonds with people? It would be crazy of him not to equip it… Yet, he didn't. All because of one extra modifier.

+100% Charm Strength Bonus

Jaune had made a promise to never use that skill again, to never forcefully alter someone's mind. With that bonus, he'd barely need to think about Charming someone before it happened instantly. No, that wasn't something Jaune could live with. He wasn't a hero. That title was not for him.

In other news, Yang and Pyrrha had not mended their relationship yet. They were no longer hostile to each other, so that was a plus, but no communication existed between them beyond the bare minimum. As much as it pained Jaune to leave things like that, he knew he wasn't able to help. Once he had the proper knowledge to bring them together, he would, but until then, it was best not to poke the hornet's nest.

Blake, surprisingly, was sated for the time being. The faunus felt an immense accomplishment for being one of the first Hunters to help stop the breach, and so she had maintained their previous deal regarding Neo's information. She wouldn't work herself to death hunting the White Fang, and would simply wait until Neo felt the time was right before striking again.

And speaking of the multicolored criminal, well, she was… Miffed, to say the least. Thankfully not too miffed, as Cinder still thought he had independently discovered her plans and did not suspect that Neo was against her. Apparently, their operation had slowed to a halt as the mastermind reworked her plans, leaving Roman and Neo out of the crossfire for a little while longer.

Weiss was panicking slightly, but she refused to say why. Ever since the news of Atlas' arrival to Vale broke, the heiress had been throwing herself into her training and studies. He could tell something was off with her, but she wasn't overdoing her training or starving herself like Blake had. In fact, this 'panic' training seemed to be entirely beneficial. As odd as it was, Jaune decided to let things be- after making sure Weiss knew that she could always come to him if she needed help, no matter what. He was most likely overthinking the issue. Weiss still hadn't won a match in Miss Goodwitch's class yet, so perhaps that fact was what drove her. Then again, she had seemed very excited when the first year mission date was announced, so maybe her desire to finally get into the field was what pushed her on.

Nora and Ren, as usual, did their own thing. The Breach had made the entire team remember the other threat that they trained to destroy, the Grimm. They had been so focused on the human and faunus enemies that they'd nearly forgotten the cornerstone of their school. None took this lesson to heart more than Ren and Nora, however. They spent most of their free time in the Emerald Forest.

Finally, Ruby. The reaper hadn't gotten up to much since her weapon was broken, but he had promised to help remedy this problem. And that's where he was going right now.

This is chapter is even shorter than usual, but that's okay. It's just a reintroduction to Volume Two. Let the second half begin!

Until next time,

-RMV