Marksman of Remnant

Teams RWBY and SVRN were sitting in a study within the now named Arc Manor. A large wooden desk and chair were situated at the rear of the room, in front of three large windows, letting the setting sun's light enter the room. The left wall of the room was just filled with bookshelves from two feet above the floor to the ceiling. The right contained a mantle with a fireplace set up and ready to use. Above it was a large heather shield with a sword within it. The shield's face had two arcs set in the middle.

In the middle of the room was a large carpet with a slightly smaller coffee table in the center. On either side of the table was a couch while an armchair was on the other two sides of said table. This is where the two teams were situated, RWBY on the left one with SVRN on the right. Coincidentally, in the order of their initials in their team names. All eight of them looking confused by everything that just happened. But then again, it's not every day that the hunter that helped you out was actually in fact, the leader of the settlement you were trying to help.

Before they could even process that fact, Bertrand had escorted them to this room as Jaune went somewhere else. After that, he had told them to make themselves comfortable and that Master Arc would be back shortly. "So…" Yang started, "Do you think Jaune is actually the 'Lord' here?"

Pyrrha shrugged, "Bertrand did seem to believe what he was saying. It didn't appear like he was lying." She looked to the side, "But it is… odd."

"I just don't understand though." Weiss started to make her opinion known. "If he is the leader, why was he out in the woods in the first place? He could easily have others do it for him."

Blake rolled her eyes, "Yes because someone that has money or power only sit back and let others do the work for them." She gave a sideways glance to Weiss with a smirk, "Who in their right mind would go and do things with their own hands?"

Weiss gave her teammate a glare before eventually sighing, "Point taken."

Velvet nodded slightly, "Weiss does have a point though. This whole situation… The whole mission is very strange."

"We can always just ask Lord Arc when he returns." Ren pointed out. "He maybe willing to give us some answers."

Ruby looked a little nervous, "What are we supposed to call him now? Is it Jaune or Lord Arc?"

"I would prefer it if you just called me Jaune." They all turned to see the man in question open the door and walk in. He gave them all a smile, "It is what I introduced myself to you as." He closed the door before walking into the room proper, "Sorry for the wait. I wanted to get into something a bit more comfortable." True to his words, his old outfit was now replaced with a black t-shirt and blue jeans.

He then sat down in one of the two armchairs that were at the coffee the table. The one with the back towards his desk. "And to answer your question, I am the Lord of Arcadia. But like I told you in the forest, I spent much of my childhood exploring the forest and hunting. I do it to help feed Arcadia as well as trying to be aware of any… abnormalities that pop up in the forest that surround us." He chuckled slightly, "Also, any chance to get from behind that desk…" He pointed to the desk behind him with a thumb. "Is welcomed."

The joke put them all a bit at ease. "So, why were you out there in the first place?" Blake asked.

"Yeah!" Nora added. "Were you hiding your identity like some sort of spy!?"

Her team just gave her looks while Jaune chuckled slightly, "Something like that." They all turned back to him. "I've known Professor Ozpin for a good part of my life. He has been a good friend to my dad and my family. So I knew he wouldn't just send just anyone when I reached out for some help. But I still needed to be cautious. My number one priority is the safety of my home and all the people who live here." He shrugged, "If you knew of my title, you would've been on your best behavior, which is not what I wanted."

"What did you want?" Ren asked.

Jaune motioned to them all, "To know who you were. Who you really are. I was actually hiding in the forest when you were first dropped off."

Blake's eyes widened, "So I did hear something when we first got here."

Jaune nodded, "I was surprised you picked up on my presence so quickly." He gently rubbed the back of his head, "Had to be much more cautious going forward after that. But regardless, I then tailed you all as you went deeper into the forest itself. And after I had observed you enough from a distance, I needed to get closer to see you on a more… personal level? That may not be the right way of saying that."

"But why did you go yourself?" Weiss questioned. "There could've been others that could've done so."

He nodded, "You are right on that but we are close to the same age. So you would've seen me more as a peer than anything else. That would cut down on any masks you would try to put on."

"Masks?" Ruby asked.

"We all put on masks. Depending on who we are with or talking to, we put on masks to put our best foot forward." That just earned him a still confused look from Ruby.

"Well let's see…" Jaune thought about how to say this. "If it was someone younger than you, most people would do want they could to protect them and keep them safe. If it was someone older, you most likely would've been more respectful, in some way or form. But having someone your age that knew what he was doing and could protect themselves? You would be more yourselves than anything else." He shrugged, "I would be able to see who you were and if you could be trusted with this mission."

"What would've happened if we didn't stack up though?" Yang asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I had a flare gun in my bag." He told her. "If you weren't what we needed for the mission, I would've fired it into the air and signal the airship pilot that was still within the area." That gained looks of shocks from the students. Jaune just grinned, "Yeah, the pilot was still within the area, waiting to see if he needed to take you back to Beacon or not. If that was the case, I would send a message detailing why you were sent back to Professor Ozpin." He shrugged, "I don't know what he would do after that though."

"But why?" Jaune turned to Velvet who still seemed to be a bit on edge. "Why go through all of this?"

Jaune was quiet for a while, looking up to the ceiling as he thought, "I guess to answer that, I have to ask: What do you know of Arcadia?"

The students all looked at each other before Ruby spoke up, "Not much honestly." She motioned to her partner, "Weiss tried to look it up but we got very little on it. The only thing was that it was important to Vale."

He bobbed his head back and forth, "That's not exactly wrong. It all goes back to the Great War. I'm sure most of you know that it was brought to an end by the King of Vale. Well, that is a half-truth. He was also assisted by my great-great-grandfather and a small unit of his most skilled warriors. It was because of their assistance that the King of Vale was able to bring the war to an end."

That gained shocked looks from everyone there, "I've never heard of that." Weiss said stunned and partially unbelieving.

Jaune nodded, "Because my great-great-grandfather didn't want anyone to. He only wanted to protect his settlement and the people there. So, in exchange for his help, the King of Vale gave Arcadia its independence. It is in Vale's territory but it is not under the Kingdoms control. Along with that, all information on my home has been kept to the bare minimum. That way we wouldn't get pulled into the political climate of the Kingdoms."

As the students were digesting all of that, they were interrupted with a knock on the door. They all turned to see Bertrand open the door and walk in with a small tea cart. "Sorry about the disturbance. Since I didn't know what time you would be returning, I couldn't have the cook start dinner and it will still be a while. So, I brought you these to tide you over until then.

Jaune stood up, "I think we'd all appreciate that, Bertrand. Thank you." He walked over and started to pick up a tray of snacks from the cart to place on the coffee table. "Let me help you."

Bertrand just gave him a disapproving look, "Master Arc, it is my job to be of service to you and your guests. You shouldn't be doing this."

Jaune gave him a smirk in return, "Well, you did help to raise me, so this is partially your fault."

Bertrand rolled his eyes with a small grin but didn't try to stop his young master. The two placed the two trays of food, one with small sandwiches and the other with cracker and a cream cheese spread. They placed a teacup and saucer in front of all of them and Bertrand poured them all some tea. "Please, enjoy." The older man said with a warm smile.

Jaune took a sandwich and bit into it. With the others quickly followed suit, all starving from their day in the forest. All of them hummed at how good the simple treats were, "These are so good!" Nora said excitedly.

"I agree." Pyrrha nodded. "Especially after everything that happened today."

Bertrand chuckled, "Well thank you for the compliment. But rest assured, dinner will be much tastier than these little bits I threw together."

Jaune chuckled, "You don't give yourself enough credit, Bertrand." he said with a smirk. For the next few minutes, the nine of them just enjoyed their snacks in a relative silence. Jaune believing that this discussion would be better to have with their bellies slightly full. But he couldn't push this conversation off for too long.

"Anyways, back to what we were discussing." His happy disposition left for a more serious one, which everyone picked up on. "Arcadia remained out of the eyes of the public for years after that. Even the other three Kingdoms had no knowledge of us. But eventually, we needed a stronger income to help with our expansion and to protect ourselves. So we were forced to make ourselves known to the world. My great-grandfather was the one to reach out to Vale and offered something that could change the war they had with the Grimm."

"Really?" Weiss asked. "And what would that be?"

At that moment, Blake took a sip from her tea, the first person to do so. As she did, her eyes widened and she gasped. Everyone turned to her and saw a faint outline of violet cover her body before it disappeared. They all knew it was her aura and with that, Ruby pulled out her scroll. She gasped when she saw that her teammate's aura had recovered slightly. They all turned to Jaune who wasn't surprised in the slightest but smirked, "Well that would be it."

There was a long, tense silence until Blake was the one to speak up, "You have a way to replenish aura?" she said in awe.

He nodded, "We do. It isn't a miracle worker but it can help with aura rejuvenation." He took a sip of his own tea and a slight outline of yellow surrounded his own form. "Arcadia has a unique plant that can only grow here, Wyrmroot. We aren't sure why though. Dry out the plants a bit and you get a decent tea and aura strengthener. We can also turn it into a type of paste and if you apply it directly to a wound, the aura rejuvenation focuses the healing capability directly there to speed it up."

They all just kept staring until Yang spoke up, "If you have this miracle plant then why don't more people know about it?"

"Well what do you think would happen if every person on Remnant knew my home had the only supply of 'miracle plants'?" He asked her with a raised eyebrow. She thought for a second before her eyes widened. He nodded, "Exactly. My home would be assaulted constantly by people hoping to get their hands on them. So, the only people that know about Arcadia and our commodity are the members of the Kingdom's councils, that includes the Headmasters of the four Huntsmen Academies. At least the most trustworthy ones."

"But I'm getting off track. When my great-grandfather reached out to Vale, they reached out to the other three Kingdoms. And a deal was struck, we would deliver an equal supply of Wyrmroot to each Kingdom and they would give us Lien, Dust or supplies we may be in need of, like wood, concrete, and metal. They also unanimously agreed to keep Arcadia a secret from the public."

"Why are you telling us this?" Ren asked and that earned him the attention of the Lord of Arcadia. "If this is such a big secret, why tell us at all."

Jaune sighed, "Because if I'm going to ask you to help protect my home, you deserve to know everything." He gently sat his teacup down on the coffee table. He had a tired expression on his face as Bertrand refilled his cup. "The Grimm are increasing in number and ferocity lately. Usually the trained guards and I would be enough to hold them back but it's getting to be too much." He closed his eyes and gently massaged his eyelids, "And we're stretching ourselves thin. We need help and we can't afford a fully trained Huntsman. So… we need your help."

"How can you not have the money for that? You have a monopoly over this Wyrmroot?" Weiss asked.

Jaune chuckled emptily as he lowered his hand from his face, "We do but we aren't trying to get rich from it. Enough that will keep us all safe and make my people live happy lives. Plus the Wyrmroot helps the Huntsman community, so it would be weird to try to extort the protectors of humanity." He sighed, "And recently we had to use a good chunk of our savings to repair the relay tower that keeps us connected to the CCT. And no, we can't just sell more of our plants. If we over harvest, we could run the risk of ruining the soil and we won't be able to keep growing them. Which would spell the end for Arcadia and weaken the Huntsman forces as well." He sighed tiredly as he looked up to the ceiling.

That was the first time any of them saw Jaune in a real light. Not a hunter that knew the forest like the back of his hand. Not a young Lord that ruled a settlement. But a young man, not much older than themselves, trying to do everything in his power to keep his home and people safe but not knowing what to do anymore.

He took a deep breath before he looked back to them all and gave them a small but understanding smile, "This maybe too much for you all. Hell, this probably isn't what you signed up for. So, if you wanna go back to Beacon, I completely understand. I won't force you to stay here."

The eight students looked to each other, having silent conversations. Those came to an end when Ruby had a smile and determined look in her eyes, Weiss sighed but nodded, Blake playfully rolled her eyes with a small smile fighting it way onto her lips and Yang raising an eyebrow with her usual smirk. On the other couch: Velvet nodded with a nervous smile, Nora had the biggest megawatt smile, Ren nodded with a slight grin and Pyrhha had a her polite smile and determined look in her eyes.

Ruby turned to Jaune with that same smile, "We are staying." She said with full confidence.

Jaune raised an eyebrow before he gave a relieved sigh and smile, "I greatly appreciate that. I thank you and all of Arcadia thanks you as well."

They all smiled back but Velvet was the one to speak up next, "So, what now?"

Jaune grinned, "Now, I have some paperwork that needs to get done. Bertrand, can you take them to their rooms?"

"Rooms?" Yang asked. "You want us to stay here?"

Jaune shrugged, "We really don't have an inn or anywhere else you can stay comfortably. But the manor has extra room. More so now that my mother and sisters moved out." He added as an afterthought. Before they could ask him about that, he had stood up from the chair, teacup in hand, and moved towards his desk. "We have it so both of your teams can have their own rooms but if you would like more privacy, we can give you each your own room."

Weiss looked like she was going to say something but Ruby cut her off, "That's fine, Jaune. We don't want to be a bother."

Jaune sat down at his desk, "It wouldn't be a bother but if you are all sure." He nodded to Bertrand who gave a slight bow before walking to the door. The two teams grabbed their bags before following after him.

As they followed the older man down a hallway, he started to speak to them again, "If any of you need anything, don't hesitate to ask. You are all guests here and the staff will help you in anyway we can." He reached into his pocket and pulled his scroll out. "I will also send you my information so you can reach me at any time."

They came to two doors on either side of the hall. "And here we are." He opened the door on his right first, "This will be your room, Team RWBY." He then opened the left door, "And this will be yours, Team SVRN."

The teams looked into to see two equally large rooms. Massive windows were along the wall to let natural light in but had curtains that could be closed for more privacy. Four four-post beds were in each room, freshly made. The entire floor was carpeted and their were several dressers for their belongings. Along with that were a walk-in closet and a large en suite bathroom that had a bathtub and shower.

The eight just looked on in shock before turning back to Bertrand. He was just giving them a warm smile, "I hope everything is to your liking. Now, if you will excuse me, I have a few things I need to do. Please relax and dinner should be ready in an hour." With that, he gave them a small but respectful bow before he turned to walk further down the hall.

Th eight students looked at each other before Yang chuckled, "Well, this is happening. At least it won't be dull." The students then went into their new rooms to unpack and unwind before dinner. But more importantly, just process everything they had just learned and what it would all mean for them moving forward.

Jaune was still in his father's study. No, his study now. He had finished his paperwork several minutes ago and was now going through an old ledger. It was once his great-grandfather's and had been used by the following leaders since then. It was what he used to keep track of how much Wyrmroot was grown during a harvest and how much was given to each Kingdom afterwards.

His grandfather and father had used it and Jaune would be doing the same going forward. But he wasn't looking at his additions, he was looking over the numbers of the previous years. He had a sneaking suspicion and he just needed to know if he was just being paranoid. He lowered the book with a sigh, "So I was right. The amount of Wyrmroot we get every harvest is decreasing. It has been for a while now but it has been getting more severe over the last decade. We can keep this up for a while but maybe in ten years or so… That'll be it." He turned his chair to face the window as he thought to himself. "We need to fix this…"

He hated that he did it but he knew he had to keep some of Arcadia's secrets. It was part of this job as its leader. So he had lied earlier when he had told RWBY and SVRN that he didn't know why Wyrmroot couldn't grow anywhere else. His father had an idea why and gave a few plants to the other Kingdoms to see if he was right. It was a risk but he needed to know. And it paid off because none of the plants had survived away from Arcadia. They couldn't survive in the deserts of Vacuo or the Tundra of Mantle. They didn't even take to Mistral or Vale's farmland. It was only here in Arcadia.

His father had told him the truth and at first he thought he was just messing with him. But he now knew it was the truth. He had seen it with his own eyes only a few years prior to this. Something no other sane person would ever believe: The lands around Arcadia were saturated in Magic. As impossible as it sounded. It was a fact. An impossible one. But it was Magic that gave birth to Wyrmroot and without it, there could be none.

And on top of that, with every harvest more and more was being drained from the land. The only way to fix that would be to restore the Magic that was lost. And to do that, they needed to get back what was stolen from Arcadia. Years ago during his grandfather's tenor as leader. When he had trusted the wrong people and had to step down as leader because of the shame he felt.

Jaune got up from his desk and closed the curtains of those large windows. He then walked across the room to the doors, locking them. Once he did that he walked over to the side of the room to the fireplace. He stood there and looked at Crocea Mors, the treasured blade of his great-great-grandfather. He smiled at it before he ran his hand over the underside of the mantle. He stopped when his fingers brushed against a well-hidden but familiar switch. He pushed it and he soon heard the telltale sign of older mechanisms starting to move.

He looked to the left of the fireplace to see a section of the wall move inwards before sliding to the into the rest of the wall to the left of that. Jaune looked down the narrow staircase that went into the depths of the land below the manor.

It didn't take him long to reach the bottom of them and a smaller room. It was soon filled with light when he reached over and flipped the switch and as soon as he did, his eyes were drawn to the altar in the center of the room. It was a simple rectangular piece of stone that was about four feet tall, carved with arrowhead like filigree and etchings. On the top of it was a black cloth with a small stand on top of it and on the stand was a bow. It seemed normal enough: just black as the night with sharp edges. But Jaune knew just how powerful it truly was. Because of that fact, he would only ever use it if there was no other choice. And even then it made him uneasy.

He pulled his eyes from the bow to look down to the other items on the altar. Four gems set equidistant from each other, sat on the cloth below the bow stand. The one on the far left was perfectly spherical and red. The one next to that was a hexagonal and the same shade of red. The one to the right of that was light blue, nearly white, and was more rhombus shaped. And the final one on the far right was a nearly identical colored and shaped rhombus, only being much narrower than the one before it.

Jaune just gazed down at these gems. The source of the Magic that permeated the land of Arcadia. But they were missing several. Stolen long ago by liars and thieves. And with their absence over that last several decades, the Magic has lessened in this land. And the continued harvests had been taking more than what these four gems could replenish on their own. Jaune spoke out loud to himself, "If we can't get the others back soon… I don't know what we'll do." He then massaged his forehead, "Wish you were here… Dad."

After a few more minutes of just standing in the quiet of this hidden chamber, he looked back to the Black Bow and stared for a few more seconds, "Hopefully the time I need to use you is still a far ways away." He then turned his back and began to make his way back to the study. He couldn't leave the entrance open for too long.

As he left, he shut off the overhead lights. He however missed the four gems glow with a faint light. As if something had started to stir them from their slumber.

A/N- Here it is! Yeah I just had the urge to write the next chapter sooner than I initially planned. I think it was because I felt the first chapter was a bit weak. But I doubt many people will complain about that. Chapter served to give you all a good chunk of information about this unique settlement and a few hints about what may be coming. But don't worry, there are still a number of secrets that need to be uncovered.

On another note, a few people asked this and suppose those were the ones that didn't see the poll. Yes, this is drawing inspiration from Lord Marksman and the Vanadis. Not enough to make it a crossover but enough that parallels can be drawn. Also, I saw a few people think that Team SVRN was actually pronounced Sovereign... I honestly like that better so I'm going to go with that going forward. Props to those people who put that in my head.

Now I hoped you all enjoyed and I will see you all in the next update!