"You want to come to my school?" Ozpin questioned.

"More than anything." The silver-eyed Huntress in training replied.

Craning his neck, the gray haired man glanced at his trusted assistant, as if silently asking for her opinion even though his mind had already been made up.

The woman in question kept her arms crossed, turning away from the man as she rolled her eyes. "Hmmph." She sounded, making her disapproval apparent.

Ozpin tilted his head back to the young student. "Well okay."

The girl's face brightened visibly at his declaration, her expression alone telling that she would be freaking out if she weren't still being interrogated right now.

The man stood up, his chair sliding back as he reached for his cane. He grabbed the back of the chair before sliding it in. Turning around, he appeared to be going for the exit when he stopped. "One more thing, Miss Rose." He said.

"Yeah?" The girl urged, shooting up in her seat right as she was about to relax.

Ozpin stood still for a few seconds, his expression made difficult to discern in the darkness. He appeared to be recalling a piece of information before he stepped back into the light. "Did you happen to spot anyone else during the battle?"

The girl quirked a brow in confusion as she nervously played with her fingers beneath the table. "Uh, I'm sorry, but you might need to be a liiiiittle bit more specific than that."

"What I meant to say was, 'did you receive any assistance during your battle?'" The coffee-loving Huntsman clarified.

"I didn't think so... But since you asked, I thought there were more guys on the ground than I remembered fighting... But when I looked around, I was the only one fighting. I kinda thought it was a little weird, like I might have been imagining it..." She half muttered the last part, raising her hands as she continued to clash her two index fingers together. Her face turning away in shame, as if they might think she were a bad Huntress in training for not being more cautious. On the other hand, she couldn't have afforded to pay it much attention during her situation.

"I see..." Ozpin replied, slightly lost in thought for the moment. "Do you have even the slightest guess at who they might've been?"

The girl shook her head, remaining silent after sensing the more serious atmosphere. Only when something came to mind did she speak up once again. "Um..." Ruby started. "Whoever they are, I don't think they're a bad person, they only targeted the bad guys."

Glynda was about to reply, most likely to scold the child for her naivety only to be stopped by the gray-haired Headmaster of Beacon, who seemed to almost be touched by her compassion.

"There's nothing to worry about, Miss Rose. The person in question isn't in any sort of trouble." Ozpin reassured her with a half smile. "Well then, you should go on home. You have a big day ahead of you and it is getting quite late."

"Ah, right." She half-whispered nervously, standing up before correcting the position of her empty chair. The door was held open for her by the blonde-haired witch who gazed at her almost impatiently. Taking it as a cue to leave, she was half-nervous when she stopped and turned around. "Thanks for the cookies." She awkwardly uttered her words of gratitude before spinning on her heel and walking away.

Closing the door, Glynda stared at the headmaster incredulously. "It's been a week."

Ozpin closed his eyes as he leaned against the table. "And he's here already." He said calmly.

"How do you know it's him?" Glynda crossed her arms.

Ozpin stood up, his stride remained slow as he made his way to the exit. "Instinct, Glynda."

The headmaster's assistant sighed in exhaustion before following him out of the room.

A day later and Archer had uncovered some much needed info about the place he wound up in. The city of Vale was much like any other city back in his own world, the catch being that it was more advanced in certain aspects and more archaic in others. It also bore the same name as the kingdom it resided in.

The weaponry wasn't lacking in the slightest and the combat he had seen from a small scythe wielding child had been above average for her age. There were few reasons to train young ones in combat, but Archer could very well guess why.

If they were desperate enough to train child soldiers, then they must be getting pushed back by something, something he was familiar with. While he hadn't fought many subspecies of grimm, he couldn't see why they would be so overwhelming. Perhaps there were stronger grimm, so strong that they overshadow all the others? Perhaps they reproduce at rates far faster than they could be exterminated? Maybe it was both. For now, Archer would only be able to wait for such information.

The overall advancements weren't too far ahead of what Archer had seen just before he had died, but it was enough to provide a critical piece of the puzzle in the picture forming in his head. The specific advancements and how they were only in a few areas told him they were working with a specific resource, or limited resources. Which proved to be correct.

Dust.

A resource he found throughout most of the city and heard spoken about by its residents. He first found out about it when he reinforced his hearing to eavesdrop on a pair of construction workers, a tactic that involved selecting specific groups to spy on, and one he had used many times in the past for reconnaissance. Through their conversation, he discerned that 'dust' was a fairly common, if not overused power source.

More recon spared him knowledge of what were referred to as 'dust shops', where the resource was sold for reasonable prices. There appeared to be types of dust, but Archer didn't need to know much more about it and decided to move on...

Move on to what exactly? He had determined that this world wasn't anything too outlandish, meaning he could lead a normal life here, but what exactly would he do? He'd help people every now and then when the opportunities came up, but he wasn't going to make a living off of that.

In all of his years, living his life as Emiya Shirou, he never once thought about doing anything other than saving people. Later, as Counter Guardian EMIYA, he never thought about his old life, or what it would be like if he had a second chance. All he thought about back then was killing his younger self, an attempt to cause a double paradox and boot himself out of the leash Alaya held over him. After losing, he gave up on the prospect.

Whatever he thought about after that was supposed to be up to his future self, something he would contemplate while suffering for the rest of eternity. However, he never expected to have his free will again, and maybe Alaya didn't either.

Maybe he could run a restaurant? A blacksmith shop? Lead any sort of normal life? Whatever it was, Archer he'd spend more time searching than relaxing.

Sighing in exhaustion, he vaulted into a sitting position on the rooftop ledge he was scouting from. Even here, he was a hopeless moron.

'I promise I'll try my hardest from now on, Rin.'

'Idiot.' Archer thought to himself. 'Don't go making promises you have no idea how to keep...'

Needless to say, Rin was an important friend, he intended to keep that promise even now.

Sighing again, Archer stood up with a plan in mind. He should get an ID card before he turned eighteen again. If this world was the same as his previous one, then it would be tedious if he waited any longer. At least that's how it was in western countries. He was pretty sure that he was in the west judging from the fact that everyone was speaking English.

Now he just needed a cover story...

Maybe he could say that he had amnesia? No, no one would believe that. He'll just show up and say he's from a village outside of the kingdom. As for the outfit... traced clothing was incredibly fragile and he didn't want to risk becoming naked. He didn't want to leave his armor unattended either, but it wasn't like he could just pose as a huntsman.

Perhaps he could tell them he was a mercenary? It wouldn't really be a lie, but whether or not they'd accept it would be half up to chance.

Well, throwing himself into society as 'Villager A' wasn't such a bad idea. What happened next was up to the system after all.

Archer couldn't hold back the smirk that formed over his lips, If only Rin knew what he was doing after his promise.

...

Archer may have screwed up.

He wasn't a stupid person by any definition of the word, save for one or two, but he didn't expect to be brought to the police station immediately after making his appearance.

What's worse was the fact that they threw him into an interrogation room and left him for thirty minutes. If the panicked expressions on the detectives' faces said anything, it was that they recognized him to an extent.

They seemed to be contemplating over whether or not he was someone they were looking for, glancing from a paper with a detailed description of their suspect and back at him.

Archer knew exactly why he was here, but the fact that, by word of mouth, his description and feats were made known to the higher ups in town was a mildly impressive to say the least. At the moment, as he leaned against the wall, they were probably contacting someone of higher authority for their next orders.

Speaking of which...

The doorknob twisted slowly as the door itself gave way, revealing a silver haired man.

The air he brought into the room was a calm one, his stature was relaxed and collected. It was as if he were trying to look as non-threatening as possible. Not that it was working of course, Archer could see through his act.

In actuality the man was carefully studying him, attempting to diffuse any suspicion by either sparing his glances or hiding behind his mug of coffee. Retreating behind closed lids or reverted gazes, the man would use the time to collect all of the information he gleamed and strategize his interactions.

Whatever the man was planning, however, remained a mystery.

It took Archer decades before he managed to gain the experience and effectively perform what the man was currently doing. Someone like this man was the more or less the only threat to Archer in a world like this one.

Walking over to the table, the man pulled a chair back before sitting down in it.

"'Archer', was it?" The man questioned.

Archer knew exactly where the man had learned of his name. He also knew that the man was merely following formalities and waited for him to continue.

"I take it you aren't one for socializing." The man said before raising his mug to take a quick sip. "Well then, allow me to clear any confusion you may have about your predicament." The silver haired man raised his hand and gestured Archer to the chair on the other side of the table. "If you would."

"And here I was hoping that we could get this over with quickly." Archer said in his usual tone, which sounded pretty weird in his younger voice. Realizing what the man meant by his previous statement, Archer knew he didn't have to worry too much.

He had originally planned to play 'naive seventeen year old', but the man in front of him held far too much information for that to work.

The old man chuckled slightly, the act sounding almost forced to the former Counter Guardian. "My name is Ozpin, and I am the one who had you brought here." Ozpin raised his mug once again, as if giving Archer the chance to reply, cuss him out, threaten him or all of the above. When he did none of those, he reassessed his understanding of the red head and continued. "As you might guess, your kind acts have gained my attention."

"Let's get to the point." Archer spoke. "What do you want to know?"

The coffee enthusiast raised a brow before calmly replying. "If I must say, you are quite the peculiar character. Your mindset, your tactics and abilities all leagues above those your own age. You didn't even hesitate to kill those bandits last week. What I want to know, Archer, is who exactly are you?"

The red headed magus narrowed his eyes. "Just a traveling mercenary."

It was Ozpin's turn to narrow his eyes. Archer knew that he had made himself more suspicious, but there wasn't much else he could reply with.

"Forgive my suspicion, but most mercenaries can't eliminate a gang of bandits and an army of grimm." Ozpin stated, knowing that Archer was capable of reading his expression. "Might I ask who taught you?"

"My father." Archer said. It wasn't exactly a lie, but it was barely the truth.

"Interesting. A man like yourself would have been famous. To hear that you learned from your own father, well, I can't help but wonder if I've ever heard of him."

Archer crossed his arms, leaning further against the backrest of his chair. "You haven't. We lived in a village outside the kingdom. As you might guess, we had to be creative to survive."

Ozpin nodded, seeming to accept Archer's explanation for now. "Well, If you're this insistent, then I'm afraid I can do no more." Never mind, it appeared that the man caught on to Archer's lie. "I would like to thank you for protecting my student last night."

Archer nodded, appearing to pay half a mind. Regardless, Ozpin knew he was listening as he stood from his seat.

"Pardon me asking, what will you be doing now?"

Archer contemplated for a moment. The man in front of him was dangerous for sure, but in what way, he didn't know exactly. As cautious as he was, Archer knew an opportunity when he saw one. Perhaps he could take advantage of his situation. "I don't know. I just got here."

Ozpin leveled his mug with his mouth once again, as if it were his thinking action. Standing in place, his gaze found Archer's eyes. "Finding work without any form of identification will be very difficult, young man. If you'd like, I could help you with your situation if, of course, you would return the favor."

"What exactly are you implying?" Archer questioned.

"I have a few jobs for you. I'll help you set up a life here if you agree to help. If you're interested, come and see me at my academy." Ozpin turned and began walking to the door. Somehow, he knew that Archer wouldn't give an answer right away.

Just before he opened the door, the headmaster turned back, as if he just remembered something. "I believe I should warn you not to be so open about your occupation, mercenaries usually take up illegal work and are commonly seen in a negative light. As such, you may find yourself in some unforeseen trouble if you introduce yourself as a mercenary in the future." After that, he casually opened the door and left the room.

Archer was glad that he was up against a more forgiving person. If he were an actual suspect, he may have been in a tight spot. Of course, Ozpin himself clearly had ulterior motives, which might have been why he was so interested in the young Counter Guardian.

Regardless, Archer had to be careful from now on. After a bit of recon, he was going to take the Ozpin's offer, but he couldn't afford to be relaxed around the silver haired man. Even though he was perfectly capable of protecting himself, Archer still had one specific weakness.

He couldn't allow anyone to know that he wasn't really a resident of this world.

Basically, he couldn't allow anyone to gleam any personal information from him, such a thing would be fatal for the former Counter Guardian. But he didn't have to worry considering how good he was at keeping secrets. He was able to dodge questions and avoid suspicion thanks to a lifetime of experience.

The almost foreign feeling of surprise was apparent inside of Archer, he didn't expect to come across such a challenge.

As of right now, his lack of occupation or home didn't quite matter anymore. Not at all. Such things were problems with relatively easy solutions, getting where he wanted in life would be easy once he figured out where exactly that was. But regardless, one thing remained certain.

Ozpin is dangerous.

A/N:

Hey, buddies. It's been a while. I've been working on things, not that you need to know. Of course, the fact that Dal never used outlines was also a setback. PAINSTAKINGLY, I've had to write new plans for his sssSTUPID stories. Curse that fool.

Well... It seems that I'm going to be busy elsewhere. Have fun, poor little readers.

Wait. Someone wanted to know why Archer risked exposing himself to the spotlight. As for why... Would you stand by and watch an adorable innocent bunny girl get harassed?... If so, then you SUCK- Just kidding, heheHE!... But, of course, I believe most of you wouldn't. And Archer himself most likely wouldn't either, that softy.

As for the other guy wanting to know which Archer this is, It's UBW Archer.

Welp, normally this would be the part where Dal tells you something like 'Brush your teeth and take your vitamins', but I'm not a loser, so we're going to stop with that nonsense. See ya later, pals.