I honestly did NOT like how this chapter turned out.
There's too much randomness and jumping around. A dip in quality.
I'll make sure the next chapter lives up to at least a decent structural quality.
Chapter 3:
If you watched RWBY Volume 4, you might recall several villages that were destroyed before the setting of RWBY.
Those villages are Oniyuri and Kuroyuri. There's also Shion, but that will be destroyed by Raven's tribe somewhere down the line.
Oniyuri was founded by the wealthy elites that wanted nothing to do with Mistral and set out to found their own city in hopes of it becoming a kingdom one day. It was destroyed by the Nuckelavee before the events of RWBY, but it's currently thriving.
Notice the 'wealthy' part?
It turns out that having money can get you a large construction crew and materials out into the wilderness, but you can't throw money and speed up the process. Which means they have some spare cash and valuable assets on hand to conduct business with. It doesn't take a genius to know what I've been doing all day at Oniyuri.
It's day three, and my business is already yielding huge profits. They were quick to buy all sorts of goods from me; the most profitable were weapons/tools, and luxury items. Oh, and my catering service as well. That yielded a very good income since the food and drinks I serve are delicious.
Though it would seem that they are also interested in buying luxury building materials like construction marbles, and a statue here and there. Mistral is renowned for its arts and culture after all. I'd take notes on the items they want and will restock my inventories to accommodate their wants when I return. It helps that they made a considerable depletion to what I had in stock.
Now, I'm in Kuroyuri doing business outside their walls from my RV.
"Hmm, this is a fine bow you have." I inspected Li Ren's bow. "A fitting bow for a hunter such as yourself."
Equipment [Li Ren's bow]
Grade: Rare
Physical Range DMG: 49 – 144
It's a wonderful green, brown, and black ornament bow. The central riser, if I'm naming the anatomy of a compound bow correctly, is made out of magnesium alloy. The bow limb is titanium and foldable with a few gears to work the folding mechanism. I reckon it's a compound bow or almost a compound bow, but I don't know much about archery.
Li Ren is a tall man with black hair streaked with gray pulled back into a ponytail, a mustache, and a goatee. Finely dressed in a sleeveless green tailcoat over a long-sleeved white shirt, black pants tucked into open-toe sandals, a black sash with a single pouch, and an archer's glove on his left hand.
He is the father of Lie Ren, one of Team JNPR's team members.
The man salutes me politely, "It has helped me greatly throughout my life."
"It certainly has that reliable feel to it." I gently set his bow onto the counter, "I can start creating the materials for your bow, but it seems that you are keen on having more than just spare parts on hand."
"Yes. Kuroyuri and its people grow and prosper each day, but so too does the Grimm. I cannot explain it, but I fear that my bow is not enough to defend my home."
"An upgrade is what you're looking for then." I wonder if he has some sort of foresight since the Nuckelavee is bound to destroy Kuroyuri and nearby villages, at least in canon. "What improvements are you looking for?"
Li Ren kept his stony expression while he briefly works out the details. "In truth, I'm not sure what to improve upon. Perhaps an increase in its draw weight?"
I nod and snap my finger, bringing up the interface detailing his bow's stats for Li Ren to see. He didn't appear surprised like Summer or the other villagers that I've conducted business with. There is, however, a hint of wonderment in his eyes.
Equipment [Li Ren's bow]
Draw Weight: 49 – 144
Draw Length: 26.5" (74.93 cm)
Materials
Modifications
Repairs
"My apologies if the terminology and numbers don't line up with the typical archery conventions. I'd handle a lot of weaponry over the years and use a different standardized system to measure things. Allow me to briefly explain some of them and give you a tutorial."
After giving him a rundown of how the system work, Li Ren took his time to figure out what sort of modification he wants for his weapon. Meanwhile, I continued vending and catering to the villagers of Kuroyuri. They've even brought out chairs and tables to enjoy the nice weather outside their village walls.
A small, haggard girl with orange hair could be seen meekly prowling around the area, looking for something to eat. That's the one and only Nora Valkyrie. Her appearance and personality are a far cry from her teenage self.
I'm tempted to call her over and give her something to eat, but there are too many people nearby to make blatant exceptions.
'Where is Ren anyway? Lie Ren, I mean. Wonder if Ren and Nora know each other. Meh. Let Ren's father do it.'
"Mr. Ren. Forgive me for interrupting you, but can you call over that unfortunate orange-haired girl so I can provide her a free decent meal? She really needs to be fed."
Li Ren smiles and entrusted his bow to me for safekeeping while he calls Nora over. If I can recall Li Ren's personality, he does not like those who do nothing when they could do something. What was his quote? The worst action to take is doing nothing or something.
I prepared a brunch meal for Nora as she slowly followed Li Ren to my RV. Four fluffy pancakes with maple syrups, bacon, biscuits, gravy, hash browns, a Denver steak, and two eggs. It's a lot and probably too much for Nora to eat it all, but she's going to need it.
Nora walks to the counter of my RV and looks up with dull aqua-colored eyes. Her orange hair is long, shaggy, and paled, complementing her slightly gaunt appearance.
"Here you go. Enjoy."
Her jaws immediately dropped and her eyes lit up when I handed her the entire tray. Both Li Ren and I found it amusing how speechless and stunned she was at my charity. For a starving child, Nora has a lot of restraint from immediately chowing down the meal. She just stood there like a statue before a familiar child skips up and places a single note of Lien down on my counter.
"Father! I'll pay for her meal!" A little boy with pink striped black hair said with a brave expression.
'If it isn't little innocent Lie Ren. Seems like they already knew each other by then. I can't believe he and Nora switched personalities when they grew up.' Hard to believe that the stoic Lie Ren was this little guy.
Li Ren walks over to his son and placed a hand on his shoulder. "It has already been taken care of. Why not use this to buy you and your mother something to eat?"
Lie Ren tilts his head. "What about you, father?"
"I will join you and your mother when I'm done." He answers sincerely, "But first, please show your friend a table to sit at."
"Yes, father!"
We watched Ren gently helped Nora towards a nearby table and stuck around for a moment to ensure that she stayed there.
"Your son is very kind-hearted."
"Thank you."
Ren returns, skipping over, and slips a note of Lien to me without ordering anything.
"I don't believe you've ordered anything yet. As such, I cannot accept this until you buy something." Out of the corner of my eye, Li Ren stopped what he was doing and looked up to help out his son. However, I subtly gave him a reassuring glance.
The little boy looks confused, "Really? But the shops here often give me what I wanted when I give them Lien."
It looks like I have to teach him how standard transactions work.
/-/
After teaching Lie Ren some basic money counting, his mother, An Ren appeared and the Ren family ordered several traditional eastern foods: Sukiyaki, easy okonomiyaki, kung pao chicken…
Transaction:
1x Sukiyaki: One Pot Meal – 589 Lien
1x Easy Okonomiyaki – 306 Lien
1x Kung Pao Chicken – 612 Lien
2x Grilled Garlic Steak Skewers – 462 Lien
Total: 1969 Lien
Well, Li Ren had to hold off on joining his family for lunch to discuss things with me. He may not be a Huntsman, but he is a hunter that's also tasked to defend Kuroyuri from Grimm and bandits. A job he takes very seriously. Meanwhile, his wife and son were happily sitting not far from my station and keeping Nora company.
"You're not keen on using Dust for your bow?"
There's a limitation to how one can upgrade their things. It's not like you can transform a poor iron sword into a lightsaber that's also a minigun bazooka. The easiest way to upgrade your weapon in Remnant is to use Dust crystals to enhance its properties.
"I've considered it. Dust is powerful and volatile. I do not trust myself with handling it, much less incorporating it into my weapon out of fear that it would… Backfire and hurt those around me."
Never knew just how considerate Li Ren is. Well, that's because he was a side character for a flashback so we don't really know much about him. It's interesting to learn more about the side characters.
"You do not have to worry about that, Mr. Ren. The forge has created far more stable, but volatile equipment before."
"I will put your trust in you then." Li Ren had already made up his mind. For the sake of his family and home, he will not squander away any opportunities that would be of benefit to Kuroyuri. "I believe you're much more knowledgeable on the subject of Dust than I am. What do you recommend?"
I produced a Dust crystal for him to observe. "If you're wary about the volatility, Wind Dust crystals would be the first on most minds. It has low volatility compared to other viable Dust, and would greatly add more power to your arrows."
"Hmm…" Li Ren cups his chin, thinking back on something. "Is it possible to utilize this with lightning Dust as well?"
"Yes. It's one of the most common combinations. I would recommend trying out the Preview function if you wish to test its capabilities."
"I shall do that then." He observes his surroundings, "At a safer location where there are not many people around."
"That won't be an issue."
With a snap of my fingers, a blue rectangular prism barrier was generated to the right of my store. Another snap created several floating bullseye targets. It was something out of a sci-fi movie and it certainly caught everybody's attention.
"This is…?"
"A safe area for you to test out without the hassle of having to relocate. You will not have to worry about stray bullets, arrows, explosions… Anything for that matter. Let me give you a demonstration." I grabbed my modified Mandalorian Amban Phase-Pulse Blaster from under the back counter and exited the RV. "Don't worry. The safety is on."
I assured them as I entered the barrier. This thing is a nasty piece of work when set to full power. Have you ever seen the extended Star Wars universe? The Amban Phase-Pulse Blaster, or rifle, will easily disintegrate a person.
You might be wondering why I have a modified version of the Amban rifle. Let's just say that in the Star Wars universe, being able to go anywhere has its perks. Why buy things when you can go out and hunt some very dangerous creatures somewhere on a hostile planet and sell its materials for a very high price? Seriously, Star Wars have a lot of scary monsters whose parts would be sold at an absolutely staggering price in the black market.
'Let's go for full power.'
At full power, this Amban rifle will turn everything into ashes within a ten-meter radius. Five meters out and you'll probably suffer from some burns. Much needed firepower since I was hunting Zillo Beasts back then and their armor can shrug off everything.
PWEEHEW!
With a pull of a trigger, a red laser bolt instantly met its mark, destroying all the floating targets in one giant red flash of light. The barrier ripples slightly but did not break from the destructive power. I reloaded and fire another one, this time at the barrier.
PWEEHEW!
Everyone who was watching flinched, expecting the barrier to shatter.
Instead, the barrier straight up absorbed the red laser bolt without even a single ripple. I then flick the spent shell casings at the barrier to which it only bounced off and dissipates.
[Recycling materials]
I nod in satisfaction and set the Amban rifle back to SAFE. Even though it's not loaded, I don't think people would enjoy me lugging around something so dangerous without a safety catch mechanism. Especially this.
"It's all yours, Mr. Ren. If you do wish to enter for some firing test."
A slightly stunned Li Ren managed a nod while I store away my weapon underneath the back counter. I should had used a weapon within their technology level. The problem is that I don't have a good estimate of Remnant's current technology level. It'll be complicated if the likes of the Atlas found out about the things I have. Things that are not meant for sale.
'I seriously hope I didn't scare any of them. That's bad for business.'
/-/
"It's a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Ren."
The hunting bow's overall appearance hasn't really changed much. It is a lot more embellished due to all the Dust crystals and infusers installed into it.
Transaction:
1x Installation p/ wind Dust – 857 Lien
1x Installation p/ lightning Dust – 782 Lien
1x B-50 Dacron Bowstring – FREE
2x Installation XS Dust Infusers, Type M1 – 1,814 Lien
2x Magnesium Alloy Central Riser – 2824 Lien
3x Custom Foldable Titanium Bow Limbs – 6711 Lien
5x B-50 Dacron Bowstring XL Spool – 919 Lien
Total: 13,907 Lien
Li Ren had his receipt tuck away into his pocket and his upgraded weapon into his bow quiver.
"It is also a pleasure to do business with you." He gave me a bow and was about to walk off to join his family in their lunch.
"Mr. Ren. I almost forgot to give these to you." I present to him a quiver of arrows infused with earth Dust. "A few complementary and special arrows to go along with your bow. Free of charge."
Li Ren picks up one of the arrows and studied its arrowhead. "These are… I see. Thank you."
"You're very much welcome. By the way, have you heard anything from the mayor yet?"
Just like how I warned the mayor of Oniyuri about a powerful Grimm heading their way, I also told the mayor of Kuroyuri and Shion. There's no way I'm willing to part with a wealthy and isolated area. There's profit to be made here. Just because my business opportunity is in danger doesn't mean I'll be stepping in to deal with the threat. It's their responsibility, and I rather not be in a very glaring spotlight that's reserve for actual heroes/villains.
"I have not. Do you wish to speak with the mayor?"
I shake my head, "There's no need. I've already spoken to your mayor concerning other affairs. My apologies for keeping you from your family."
It looks like the mayor is letting only a select few know about the Nuckelavee. A wise decision. You don't want to cause panic and attract the Creatures of Grimm. Let's hope the mayor makes good use of the information I'd given.
/-/
The wilderness of Mistral is cloaked in the glow of the rising moon. A celestial body that will forever float around the world. A shattered moon. A shattered celestial body.
Shattered just like young Adam Taurus.
"Ugh…"
The SDC logo that was branded across his left eye years ago had begun to act up again. The pain made him stumble across through the forest, silently cursing himself for being foolish to partake in this lonely journey. More importantly, he cursed the SDC and the humans who made his life miserable.
Gripped tightly in his hand is a steel chokutō sword that he stole from one of the hired goons the SDC employed. In his pocket were small chunks of fire Dust used to make a campfire and keep himself warm. The night is quick to encompass everything in its dark and cold embrace. Calming in fact. A calm before the storm, that is.
The air was soon filled with howls from a pack of Beowolves, causing Adam's heart to beat faster. He needs to find a safer place to defend himself. There's no use hiding from the Creatures of Grimm once they've detected one's negative emotions and he's not capable of fighting several Grimm, much less a single Beowolf.
Adam sprints deeper into the dark woods, hoping to find a durable tree to climb and shelter. The trees here are all scrawny, easily toppled over.
He ignored the painful sensation in his left eye and pushed his leg muscles to their limits, desperately trying to find anything that would grant him some sense of security. The sound of snarling Beowolf indicates that they were shortening the distance and snapping at his heel. Adam trips over an unseen root and tumbles to the ground, rolling blindly through the grass.
"W-why…?" He whispers to himself as three Beowolves tower over him. Their eyes gleaming with bloodthirsty glee.
This isn't fair.
He wants to live.
To be free!
At that moment, a large red vehicle roars through the forest, violently bouncing on the uneven terrain, and rams itself through the Grimm.
Before Adam could even figure out what was going on, the door opens and a figure emerges to pull Adam into the red vehicle. The sharp bright lights inside the vehicle caused Adam to shut his eye. He could feel someone sitting him down onto a soft seat before a jerking motion could be felt as the vehicle quickly took off.
"That was a close call. You alright?"
Adam opens his eyes and blinks away the spots. When he was able to regain his vision, an amber blond human teen was casually waving at him. Was this human genuinely trying to help him, or is he tricking him into letting his guards down?
The teenage boy waves his hand, "No. Of course, you're not. Somebody branded your left eye and it's starting to bleed. Hang on."
Adam instinctively puts a hand over near his left eye and points his sword at the human. "I… I will not go back to the SDC!"
"Call me Seth, and I'm not interested in taking you to the SDC." Seth takes out a white and green container and opens it. "Hold still while I apply this ointment to your eye. My hands are clean, by the way."
Seth dips two fingers into the healing salve and stood up to apply it. The bright overhead lights obscuring his entire figure. A towering shadowy figure.
In Adam's eyes, for the briefest moment; he imagined Seth as the same cruel person who branded his eye. He utters an unintelligible cry and swings his sword, only for the blade to be effortlessly caught. Adam found himself helpless and could only flinch, bracing himself for the painful and burning sensation.
"Easy kid. This won't hurt."
Adam's entire body jolt as the soft and cool ointment was applied over his branded eye. The pain that was tormenting his eye begins to subside and Adam's entire body begins to relax.
Seth sits back and wipes his hand onto a wet towel. "There we go. Let that sit a bit before we wipe it off. Feeling better?"
"Y-yes."
"You're welcome." The teenage human yawns, looking tired. "Red hair and bull horns. You must be Adam Taurus."
"How do you know my name?" Adam asks in shock. He thought it discarded all his identification when he escaped from the SDC. Was his name put out for them to hunt him?
Seth shrugs, "That's hard to explain, but I know a lot of things. Your name is just one of them. In fact, I really know your name. How old are you? You look like what? Ten or eight?"
"What do you want from me?"
"Let's see… I want to know where you're going."
Adam looks at him skeptically, "… Why?"
"Because I'll take you there, free of charge." Seth casually replies, "I'm assuming you're looking for the White Fang, am I right?"
He is indeed looking for the White Fang. An organization to promote equality between humans and faunus. An organization to protect them. At least, that's what he had heard.
"But why are you helping me?"
"Why is a human helping a faunus? Because I can." Seth checks his watch and draws out a warm wet towel. "I am, what I am Mr. Taurus. A human."
Adam didn't really know how to respond to his nonsensical answer and remains silent, letting Seth wipe off the ointment from his left eye. When he was done, a handheld mirror magically appeared in Seth's hand and held up to Adam's face.
"The scar…"
The ugly SDC brand that marred his face was gone. All that was left was some slightly pink skin that seems to be quickly fading. His left eye, however, remains damaged and bloodshot.
"Yes, well. I did use some very potent healing salve on you. It can't heal your eye, but it'll clear up any skin damages including scars." He let Adam hold onto the mirror and walks over to the driver's seat. "So, Mr. Taurus. Where shall I take you?"
Curious how actions shape the future, or doesn't. Who knows?