Chapter 7: Trump Cards
Skills and semblances are very similar in nature, but they differ in cost.
Skills can be used almost instinctively once you learn them, but they require aura to cast. Casting them still requires time and guidance as well. A good example of this is the Empowered Strike my last opponent used against me. First, his weapon had to be in motion in order to satisfy the skill's conditions to activate. Then, while he activated his skill, he should've kept in mind that his body will slow down as it is being casted.
This time lapse in between wanting to use a skill and finally executing it is what is known as a skill's cast time. Cast time is affected by one's WILL stat and the skill involved. You can also reduce cast time by using special items, potions, or blessings. What you can't do is reduce cast time by using the same skill over and over. What a shame. Cast times can be dangerous if managed incorrectly. My opponent forgot about this fact, and that resulted in his loss. In his defense, most cast times are very quick. Normal civilians wouldn't have been able to punish him for using skills carelessly. It's too bad I wasn't a normal civilian.
After the skill is successfully casted, he had to guide the strike to a valid target. In this case, Empowered Strike counted everything as a valid target, so he just had to make sure his sword hit something along its path. This meant that even if he managed to cast it, he would have to successfully hit me in order to make the aura consumption worthwhile. Those are some of the things you have to keep in mind when using skills.
Meanwhile, semblances are more mentally taxing than skills but do not consume aura. You could theoretically use your semblance indefinitely so long as you could ignore the splitting headache that arises. In reality, you would grow too mentally tired, and your semblance would not manifest. Semblances have the advantage that nearly everyone's semblance are different.
The Schnee family's semblance, Glyph, is the only hereditary semblance known to man. Depending on what type of glyph you make, it can do different things. These glyphs include Ice, Power, Acceleration, Gravity, Haste, Silence, and Summoning. Despite every Schnee inheriting the same semblance, each individual has different affinities. The higher affinity, the lower the cast time and vice-versa.
Mother specializes in Ice and Gravity, and she is weakest in Power. This fact has led to very painful muscle aches during my training with her.
Winter excels in Summoning and Power, but she is abysmal at Haste which can speed up one's body and thinking process.
Whitley, on the other hand, is great at Haste but mediocre at everything else. He often uses Haste to help him study for his lessons. I often do the same as it saves a lot of time.
Father is a Schnee, but that's because he married Mother. His semblance is Cleanse. He can remove any harmful elements inside his body as well as remove any buffs currently affecting him. Father often uses this whenever he attends any social events to prevent himself from getting drunk or poisoned.
Then, there is me. My affinities are as follows. Starting from the strongest to weakest, they are Acceleration, Ice, Haste, Power, Gravity, Silence, and finally Summoning. I really don't like the fact my affinity with Silence and Summoning are so poor. Silence can do something simple like manipulate sound similar to how Winter used it on the day of my awakening ceremony. More importantly, it can interfere with the casting of certain skills like a beowolf's Howl skill. Summoning can be extremely useful too. It would essentially give me a personal army. As of now, I have yet to successfully summon. That's how terrible my affinity with summoning is.
Luckily, semblances differ from skills in that I can reduce my cast time for my semblance by practicing with it. Since my semblance is very practical, I tend to use it very often. My semblance is interlaced heavily throughout my fighting style. I'm constantly using it to further my advantage or interfere with my opponents. Well, my opponents in this case being Neo, Klein, Winter, and Mother.
If I had to make a complaint about my semblance, it would be the fact that everyone knows about it.
I hate that.
A semblance can be a trump card depending on how you apply it. Just look at Pyrrha from RWBY. She disguises her semblance through her combat ability. A bystander would only see a powerful Huntress, but in actuality she's constantly tipping things in her favor.
As for me? How my semblance works is already known to the public. A weapon that's always seen isn't a weapon at all. It's just a weakness waiting to be exploited. That's why I intend on refraining from using my semblance at all during this competition. I'm going to train my swordsmanship and keep everyone in the dark about my affinities. I want it to be a huge question mark. Unless we're fighting Grimm or in an isolated environment with people I trust, I have no intention of revealing my cards I've painstakingly nurtured. This is my mindset for my other abilities as well. I won't use offensive perk pages, only defensive ones in order to not give an accurate impression about my abilities.
Anyway, I digress. What was it I was thinking about again?
Ah yes. Skills and semblances. Skills are instinctual but require aura. Semblances require more concentration but don't need aura to activate. However, there is something that is the best of both worlds. Blessings.
Generally, blessings are passives, but some higher-class blessings have an active ability you can use. Blessings are instinctive, and they don't consume aura nor mental concentration. They don't even have a cast time! If I had to coin a term to describe blessings, it would be that they are cheats. The only downside is that the actives parts of a blessing have cooldown timers, so you can't abuse them 24/7. However, that's only minor in my eyes when you take into consideration blessings can not only have amazing effects but also grant hidden skills like mine did with Observe.
I run my hand through my side-ponytail while deep in thought.
Unlike the Weiss of the RWBY series, I cut my hair so that it was only reached a bit farther past my shoulders. I felt no desire to keep that absurdly long length of hair. It would only interfere with my fighting. Besides, keeping it this short will save a lot of time I would have to waste cleaning it. Time that can be better spent studying or training.
I glance at Amber before looking back ahead of me at the screen.
Amber's is the first legendary-grade blessing I've ever seen in person. I can only imagine what kind of powerful abilities she can get from it, especially since she also gets another class from it. Speaking of which… I had glossed over this fact like it was a normal thing earlier, but that was only because Amber being the Fall Maiden is something I already know. Now that I think about it, I didn't know you can have multiple classes, and I'm fairly certain Mother and Neo doesn't think so either. So, why did that not faze them?
"Neo." I whisper to her, careful not to get any of the adults' attention. They were all absorbed in their own conversation.
She looks at me. I direct her eyes to my scroll that had a question typed out on it.
"What class does she have?"
I direct my eyes to the left, indicating that Amber was who I was talking about. Neo looks at her and then at me in confusion. She whispers in reply.
"Druid."
I squint my eyes in suspicion.
"That's it?" I type.
Neo nods. I look over at Amber. My eyes catch the flicker of the lights off of a black necklace. Amber shifts her cloak to hide the item from view when she notices my gaze. I smile in greeting. She waves back, unaware of my thoughts. I turn back to the fight, my mind elsewhere.
I see now. She's using an item to hide her extra class. If that's the case though, why can't Mother tell? Her WILL stat must be higher than mine, right? Unless… the reason I can see her class isn't because of my high WILL stat but because of the Skill History HUD. Perhaps because it can record blessings, I was able to find out she got the Maiden class from the blessing. Since I know that, the item might have failed to hide her class? Maybe? I'm not really sure since there isn't a notification prompting me. Hmm. That's not the only thing that bothers me.
Why are they even here anyway?
Ironwood, I already guessed was here from the various Atlas androids and military personnel I saw scattered in the stadium. I assumed he came to visit Mother since they're both Atlas graduates. Qrow, from what I can tell, is acting as Amber's babysitter. But why is he here? This is Mistral, not Atlas. If he wanted to visit the general, why do it at a tournament the general wanted to spectate? Why did he visit this VIP box in particular? Do they and Mother know each other? They certainly seem to.
Could it be? Is Mother part of Ozpin's inner circle?
I look at her. She was currently making small talk with Ironwood, asking about how Winter was faring during her senior year. Ironwood replied that she is performing exceptionally well and intends on fast-tracking her into his Specialist program. I recall the various times Mother's given me weird looks. Let's ask. Speculating will only get me so far.
"Hey, Mr. Lolicon."
Qrow glares at me.
"What's your relationship with Mother?"
He raises an eyebrow.
"What, you gonna accuse me of wooing your mom now?"
I scoff.
"I have lived the past few years accepting that I will forever have a target painted on my back. Suddenly, I see three strangers I've never met before in the same room with me, and only one of which is a general that I recognize. Forgive me if I'm just the slightest bit curious."
"Paranoid much?"
"It isn't paranoia if they're out to get you." I retort.
The man laughs.
"Haha! Well said, kiddo. I must say, you're definitely different than your mother. To answer your question, we go way back. Her team and mine were rivals. We competed constantly during tournaments. Long story short, we eventually took missions together, and rivals became friends. That satisfy your curiosity, or do you still want to fish for info?"
He gives me a knowing look. So, he wasn't fooled by my attempt at getting him riled up. Bravo, you have critical thinking skills.
"Not really." I admit unabashed from getting caught red-handed.
"What you've told me is the bare minimum that only reaffirms my previous conclusion that you aren't enemies."
"Oh? Wasn't the point of your questioning to confirm my status as your enemy?"
I roll my eyes at him. His facial expression obviously tells me he already knew the answer but wanted me to say it anyway. I'm getting the feeling that he knows I figured that out as well.
"If you were an enemy, Mother would have frozen your carcass long ago. If I had judged you as a fake, my bullet would be in your skull instead of in its casing."
I end the conversation there, annoyed that I had learned next to nothing. Qrow chuckles at my pouting. The chances that she is part of Ozpin's inner circle are still undetermined. I want to believe in my memory of the timeline and say she isn't though.
Whatever. The main issue here isn't that they know Mother, but that they are here now, and I need to make use of this opportunity. The question is: how?
My musing is interrupted as Neo holds out a bottle with both hands. I look at her befuddled.
"You should drink the potion, Weiss. You need to recover your aura in order to be in your best shape for the next fight."
I take the flask, but frown.
"A Minor Elixir? That recovers both health and aura. That's far too wasteful. I only used one skill, Neo. I don't need an elixir. Just give me an aura potion instead."
She shakes her head.
"Nonsense, Weiss. You should only drink the best of the best."
I sigh at her enthusiasm.
"Resource management is also important as a Huntress, Neo. There's no reason to be overly indulgent."
"Skimping and hoarding can get you killed as well, Weiss." she replies.
"A fair point. I might have conceded this argument to you if it weren't for the fact my health points literally haven't decreased. Your point is moot, Neo. Give me an aura potion instead."
She passes me a Minor Aura potion. I swallow the concoction while ignoring the terrible taste on my tongue. Lower quality potions always tasted bad, but it's no reason to waste high level potions even if we are rich.
"So, tell me kiddo." Qrow begins. "How well do you think you'll do?"
The rest of the room's occupants look at me, curious about my self-evaluation.
"Top Five easily."
It was an obvious conclusion. I started training far sooner than any other kid. I'm not one to boast, but given everything I have so far, I could easily get top two. The only reason I'm not saying first is because of Pyrrha. I have no idea what she's capable of. Given the restrictions I've imposed on myself, beating Pyrrha might not be so simple.
"So humble." Qrow says sarcastically.
I stand from my seat. I can't seem to come up with anything to request at the moment. Rather than waste time twiddling my thumbs, I should go to the waiting room and socialize with a certain redhead with green eyes. I bid goodbye to everyone in the room before heading out. As I am walking down the hallway, I hear Neo call my name.
"Weiss!"
I turn and face her.
"Something wrong, Neo?"
"I wouldn't say wrong, but I discovered something I figured I should discuss with you. Earlier before you showed up, the Madam and the two gentlemen were discussing you."
I blink.
"I assume you don't mean something innocent like Mother bragging about me?"
"No, she did compliment you, but... it seemed like this wasn't the first time they talked about you. The mood took a strange turn as well."
Now that is interesting. So, the reason they came here wasn't to see Mother nor the tournament but to see me? If I think about this normally, Mother most likely bragged about me and the two Huntsmen wanted to see what was so special. However, I can't help but feel there's something else going on here considering who we're talking about.
"You said the mood turned strange. What do you mean?"
"It's hard to describe... When they talked about your armor, Mr. Qrow had an air of melancholy around him. Later, they said something about you not being normal and went silent."
I hold my chin in thought.
What could that possibly mean? Do they suspect me as a Maiden? No, that doesn't make sense. I just confirmed Maidens have an extra class. I have no such thing. Qrow got sad at the mention of my armor? Why? That doesn't make much sense. Maybe he didn't get depressed from that but something else that was implied? Neo might have missed it. What could it have been though? The Qrow from the show seemed cynical but not gloomy. The only thing I can think of that can depress him is...
I widen my eyes in realization.
Summer Rose, Team STRK's leader and Ruby's biological mother.
My thoughts wander through my notes, recalling and organizing information as I analyze the situation. Neo stands silent as I do so.
Summer's death has always been vague. If this world follows the same course of events, then Summer died long ago. Ruby was too young to really understand at the time, so she had to be younger than five then. Today I learned that Mother and Summer were acquaintances. That means Mother had to have attended her funeral at some point, but she always been at home for the most part. When could she have…
A fuzzy memory comes to mind.
I see. The week after I started training. That must have been when. No wonder she was so out of it back then. It all makes sense now. Assuming she doesn't talk to Qrow on a regular basis, she must have mentioned me to them then.
Okay, so what does this mean? Why would the subject of Summer and I come up in the same conversation? List out all the possible implications. Remove all the ones under the premise that I am related to Maidens. Assume that Mother isn't part of the inner circle. What facts at the time could have been considered significant?
I close my eyes. My mind zeroing in on the past events that I can recall.
Wasn't that around the time people discovered dungeons could trigger another dungeon's Overflows? If I remember correctly, Mother was the one who told me…right after she came back from her trip. The same trip that must have been related to Summer's funeral. So, Summer must be connected to the discovery of the new dungeon mechanic. Most likely at the cost of her life. May she rest in peace. What about me? I was an anomaly. The-Girl-Who-Lived, they called me. Mother knew I had high LUCK stats. Is that enough reason for her to mention me to Qrow and Ironwood? Maybe. I could see her mentioning something if it was related to my safety. Mother is a very doting and protective person after all.
I don't have enough details to be absolutely sure, but this at least clears up a few mysteries. Summer died, and Qrow must have gotten in touch with Mother. After the funeral, they discussed how she died, and Mother brought me up somewhere in that conversation. For what reason it is unclear, but it's obvious they have decided to pay attention to me because of it.
I brush my hand over the scar that deformed the left side of my face.
Maybe I wasn't the only one they mentioned. I don't have to be the only one they talked about. They could be paying attention to anyone that might be abnormal. This world's timeline might appear to be the same as RWBY at first, but more and more differences are beginning to show as time goes on. There's no doubt about that.
"Weiss?"
I open my eyes to see Neo with a worried look on her face.
"Is everything ok?" she asks.
"I'm fine." I reassure her. "Just thinking."
"Weiss, why did you ask about Amber's class earlier?"
[Aura Boost]
I perk my ears, counting each set of breathing around me. All VIP rooms block eavesdropping from outside, so things were relatively silent. After checking that we were the only ones in the hallway, I type my message to Neo.
"…Because I saw that she had two classes."
Neo gasps. I hold up a finger to silence her.
"That's… that's impossible!" she exclaimed.
I delete my message off of ScrollPad, this world's equivalent of Notepad.
"Nothing is impossible. We simply didn't have reason to believe it can happen. Keep in mind humanity hasn't discovered every artifact or blessing out there yet. New ones can be discovered at any point. Amber just happened to be one of those lucky ones."
Neo clenches her fist. Her eyes cycle through various colors.
"Is she a threat?"
"Retract your bloodlust, Neo. Not everyone that hides a secret is our enemy. It's only natural for her to hide such a fact about herself. Do not condemn her for it."
She relaxes her muscles.
"My apologies, Weiss. I'm just worried about your safety."
"I know you are. I'll be fine. After today, we will be going our separate ways. There is no need to make a bigger deal out of this than necessary. Don't speak of this to Mother yet either. We can tell her later after we get to a more secure location. If Mr. Qrow is as close a friend as he says he is, there has to be a good reason he's hiding that fact from Mother."
"As you wish."
I nod before turning towards my destination. Neo calls out to me one last time but for a different reason.
"Good luck, Weiss!"
I wave back with a wry smile. Luck? I don't like leaving things up to luck. I'm spent enough of my life relying on luck. I'd rather take my fate into my own hands. My boots click on the ground as I move.
Have their eyes on me, do they? Maybe Ironwood will offer early admission if I impress him enough. Unfortunately, I have no interest in attending Atlas when everything happens at Beacon. Although, I do have a different reward in mind, one that might give me another trump card.
I sigh.
Truly, no plan survives contact with the enemy. I want to hold back, yet I also want to show off. What a conundrum. I only hope this tournament will be as smooth sailing as I think it is. I open the door to the waiting room. All heads turn to me. I walk unfazed by their stares. This was a sight I've grown used to long ago. I stop in front of a lone girl with red hair.
"Hi. Do you mind if I sit here?"
Pyrrha Nikos (Lvl 10) [Champion]
The Amazoness
Only two levels below mine. Either she started training super early as well, or I'm not working hard enough... No, levels aren't accurate judgement of our strength at this point. I spent a long time without leveling up. The fact I'm a Schnee also makes it impossible for me to fight Grimm in the wild. It would make it too easy for assassination attempts. I've only leveled up through the Grimm Mother had transported home. Wait, isn't Pyrrha from the Nikos clan? That means she has this problem too. Drat. Maybe I'm not as ahead as I think I am.
Ignorant of my brooding, Pyrrha smiles at me with her pure emerald eyes.
"Of course! Please feel free to. I'm Pyrrha Nikos by the way."
"Weiss Schnee. It's a pleasure to meet you."
I sit down in the leather chair. Quite luxurious for a waiting area.
"The honor's mine. I've heard great things about you. I think the charities you do are absolutely wonderful! I donated some of my own allowance to one of your fundraisers a few times actually."
I smile back at her.
"Yes, I do recall the Nikos name appearing every now and then. So, you were the one behind the 10,000 Lien donation then?"
She nods.
"Yes. That day I convinced Papa to lend me some extra spending cash. He refused at first, but he agreed after I told him what it was for."
I hear various voices grumble in the background. Most likely they were lamenting at how the two rich girls who were casually talking about the large amount of Lien as 'spending cash'. I tune their voices out and continue conversing with Pyrrha. If she noticed their voices, she didn't react to them. The two of us easily connect with one another.
Pyrrha's personality was kind yet formal just like how I recalled her. As she wasn't yet famous from her victories as the tournament champion, I assume this must be due to her upbringing. Mistral had a noble system as well, but they were called clans rather than nobles. The Nikos clan was one of the more famous ones since a huge part of their income was due to the clan's blacksmiths. That must be where she got all her gear from as well.
I look her up and down. Just like me, Pyrrha is covered from head to toe in gear. Each one fit her form snugly. She shyly looks away from my stare.
"W-what?"
"Hm? Oh, nothing. I was just admiring your armor. Your clan produces lots of high-quality gear."
"O-oh. Yeah. I guess I am pretty lucky." She looks down, disappointed almost.
I raise an eyebrow at her.
"I'm not coveting for connections, Pyrrha. If that's what you're thinking."
She blushes at getting caught thinking such a rude thought. Pyrrha tries to apologize, but I wave at her dismissively.
"It's fine." I say. "I know what's it's like to have people only look at you and see your name. I mean, look at who you're talking to."
She giggles when I point at myself with a finger. The intercom comes to life. All conversation in the room stops.
"Will Pyrrha Nikos and… please head to the platform. The match will begin in five minutes. Both participants please complete all preparations before then."
Pyrrha stands up.
"Well, that's my queue. It was nice meeting you, Weiss."
"Same to you."
[Pressure]
The smile dims on Pyrrha's face, and a serious expression takes its place. In her body muscles, I could discern the tension even without touching them. Her eyes reveal the excitement dancing beneath the calm. I wave at Pyrrha as she leaves. My eyes drift to my HUD. What I see compels me to send a mental prayer for Villager B. They didn't stand a chance against Pyrrha.
[Achilles' Champion] (Epic)
Every battlefield needs a victor. With the overwhelming potential that resides deep within, that person can be you.
Rank 1 (Unlocked): [Champion] class acquired. This is irrevocable.
Rank 2 (Locked): ? (Lvl 20 required, Action required)
Rank 3 (Locked): ? (Lvl 40 required, Action required, Item required)
[Pressure]
By acquiring the [Champion] class, your presence can now physically affect your enemies. The higher your level, the stronger the effect.
Rank 1 (Unlocked): All recognized enemies will have their stats reduced by [11%].
Rank 2 (Unlocked): All skills used against you have increased costs of [11%].
Rank 3 (Locked): ? (Lvl 40 required, Action required, Item required)
I orientate myself so that I can watch Pyrrha's match on the screen. Unlike the vast majority of kids here, Pyrrha obviously had more training. Soon, the match ended as quickly as mine had. There is a silver lining, however, as I discovered at least one of Pyrrha's skills.
[Winner's Privilege]
By winning your first battle, you've acquired a skill unique to the [Champion] class only. Whenever you defeat an enemy, this skill gains a Victory stack. Can hold up to 20 Victory stacks. If no enemies are defeated within 30 minutes of last fight, Victory stacks are reset to 0. Aura consumption depends on number of Victory stacks.
Current stack count: 1/20
Rank 1 (Unlocked): (Active) For every Victory stack, increase the power of the first attack you do by 1%.
Rank 2 (Locked): ? (Lvl 20 required, Action required)
Rank 3 (Locked): ? (Lvl 40 required, Action required, Item required)
Pyrrha already has the makings of a powerful Huntress. Am I jealous? I would be lying if I said no. Like I mentioned earlier, blessings are cheats. Anyone who faces Pyrrha would be a step behind before the fight even started. Despite both of us having epic-grade blessings, hers is obviously of higher quality. I'm not bothered though. From day one, I was mentally prepared for such a discrepancy.
I am aware that her strength is desirable, but I am also aware of my own abilities. Unlike Pyrrha, my strengths lie in preparation. Observe allows me to peek into everyone else's skillset and serves as a reminder in real-time about when people use their skills. My Glyph semblance and Battle Mage class gives me a wide range of tools to deal with any situation. Like my blessing suggested, I have to use my abilities to their greatest potential. That is how I will win my battles. The day I fail to prepare properly will be the day I lose.
Pyrrha walks back into the room with a smile on her face. I congratulate her, and we continue our conversation from where we left off. Eventually, it comes back around to my turn to fight.
I stand and do a once-over to make sure everything was in place. My rapier was fastened in its scabbard on my right. On my left leg, I had a pistol holstered on my thigh while a combat knife was hidden in my boot. Another pistol was located on my back, where I could easily reach for it.
While I originally don't intend to use any of them this early on – if at all – it was tournament regulations that anything I wished to fight with had to be on my person and not in my inventory/dimension chip. The only exception being ammo.
With everything in order, I make my way onto the stage. The announcer takes his time to introduce me and my opponent who has the Spearman class. I scan the boy's body, dissecting every inch of him. He has a common-grade Level 5 chestplate on with a matching helmet. His weapon is a naginata that had a red tinted blade. Most likely, it was the result of Dust. I draw my rapier with my left hand.
The horn reverberates, signaling the start of the match.
He dashes forward, lunging the blade at my face. I calmly lean sideways to dodge. Mid-strike, he changes the movement of the blade from a thrust to a slash. My rapier catches the blade and redirects it downward. I step forward all the while and jab my right fist into his stomach.
He backs up a couple feet, coughing and out of breath. I wait. He recollects himself and swipes at my feet. I jump backwards. He presses a switch on his weapon. A click is heard as Fire Dust powder trails in the path the blade had traveled.
I idly watch as he finishes swinging his blade back and forth. The Dust falls to the ground, forming a layer of red on the floor in front of my opponent. He clicks another button on his weapon. The blade end of the naginata detaches from the shaft and falls to the ground. It is still connected though by the chains that were apparently hidden inside the shaft. He steps back a bit to get some more distance between him and the powder.
Quite the elaborate setup. He quickly gave up on fighting me at close range. Instead, he opts to fight me from a distance using that glorified chain blade. I also would have to be careful approaching since stepping on the powder might detonate it.
There are a couple ways I could go about solving this.
Option 1: I can simply shoot the floor and purposefully detonate it while using the resulting explosion as a smokescreen to approach. This method would take minimal effort and would be the ideal course of action had I simply wanted to win.
[Aura Boost]
My opponent swings his weapon at me. While the blade travels swiftly, it is definitely not impossible to follow. The large distance between us makes dodging a simpler task with my reflexes. I do note, however, that more of the floor gets covered by Dust with each swing. I back up.
Option 2: I can barrel through, ignoring the potential danger of the Dust. This requires me to use my Aura Shield skill to minimize any potential damage. This brute force method is the riskiest because I would be vulnerable to his counterattacks. The amount of damage my shield soaks up also depends on what grade Dust he is using. The higher the grade, the more explosive the results.
The naginata blade approaches my head once more. I swipe my rapier against its side. The result is that the blade hits the ground, but since no Dust had covered this area of the floor yet, I am spared from an explosion. I go with the third option.
Option 3: First, I need to stop his long-ranged attacks. I stomp on the blade, holding it in place. Done. Now, I drag him out of his comfort zone and towards me. My stats are high enough that I don't need to use Aura Boost for this next part.
I grab the chains and pull. If he doesn't wish to lose his weapon, he better not let go. He flies towards me. I slam downwards. He widens his eyes in realization. Holding onto his only weapon was a foolish course of action, one that he understood far too late. His body glows as he performs a last-second attempt to reduce the damage to himself.
[Defend]
Boom!
The very trap he set for me is used against him. A large plume of smoke rises.
[Charge]
A blur dashes out of the smoke. He yelps when he realizes I had swung his own naginata right where I predicted his surprise attack attempt. The collision stops him dead in his tracks. His skills fizzles in failure. He dazedly shakes his head. When he finally clears his head, he looks up to find me staring at him silently.
Well? Was there anything else?
He gulps and clenches his fist, but he makes no attempt to retaliate.
How disappointing.
I kick his chin, knocking him out. As the umpire had not called the match, I had to do one final strike.
"Winner: Weiss Schnee!"
I turn and make my way back to the waiting area, my breathing not bothered in the slightest. At least struggle to the very end. What was the point of using you people as training if you give up halfway?
Many matches continued in a similar fashion. Numerous participants were first timers coveting the top prize, so they entered to try their luck. They were weeded out quickly. Of all the fights, nobody's matches ended as quickly as Pyrrha's or mine. During Round 4, one girl actually had the nerve to accuse me.
"This is unfair!"
I tilt my head at her, wondering why she is throwing a tantrum mid-match. Do it after you lose, not before. There was a time, place, and occasion for everything.
"If I had equipment like yours, I would be winning so easily as well! You're... you're cheating! You're just using your money to win! How could you do something so shameful?!"
My oh my. She should have pursued a career in voice acting. Her talent as a banshee would put any of Salem's Grimm to shame. It's not like I don't understand where she's coming from. I'm covered head to toe in gear. Given that I haven't used a single skill against her, she must be thinking my stats are inflated to the point she couldn't do anything. But, so what? I'm not the only one with gear here. I'm simply the easiest target for her frustrations. My name is synonymous with prosperity, after all. I sheath my rapier.
"Say something! Don't stare at me like that! You looking down on me?! I'm better than you!"
"Do you truly believe something like gear is why I am winning?" I ask patiently.
"Of course!" she shouts as if she was declaring the sky was blue.
"Gear can only boost stats so much. It doesn't make you miss every time you throw Empowered Strike around like a hot potato. There is only one simple reason why you aren't winning. You're just too weak."
Blaming others for your own flaws does nothing. You only fill yourself with anger that never goes away. Because the problem isn't solved, you'll only end up getting mad once it resurfaces. And the cycle repeats. I hoped that by saying this, she would wake up from her delusion to better herself but…
"Fuck you!"
No thanks. If I wanted to participate in intercourse with anyone, it would be my maid who has a crush on me. You simply don't match up to her whether it be looks, dedication, or personality.
"Are you quite done with your tantrum or do you have more obscenities you wish to share?" I question, my voice obviously showing my rapidly declining interest.
Helping people was fine, but how do you help someone who doesn't want to help themselves? Perhaps I should have phrased it better to sound less condescending? No, I doubt it. Anything I say at this point would be taken in the wrong way. Hmm. Words can be a weapon too, if used correctly. I just never liked to use them since it messes up my breathing and concentration. I have enough roaming thoughts mid-fight as it is.
"You bitch! I'll slaughter you!"
Scathing. Your imaginative language strikes fear into my heart. I'm shaking in my boots. Oh wait, that's from laughter.
[Aura Boost]
I dash up to her. She blinks, not comprehending how I got in front of her so quickly.
Smack!
She flies off to the side, hitting the ground rolling. Regardless of her disoriented mind, she reaches her arms outward to stop herself from rolling off the platform. That's a pity. She is still conscious. I shake my hand, the pain being the most damage she would ever inflict on me this tournament.
"Winner: Weiss Schnee!"
My next two matches were against more seasoned fighters, so things weren't as simple. They still didn't land anything on me though. Observe being my main advantage by allowing me to react quickly and efficiently against them whenever they used a skill. And what do you know, a bunch of 12 to 13-year-olds don't know any better than to spam skills that they know make them stronger. With much anticipation, the finale arrives with Pyrrha and I miraculously somehow avoiding one another before then.
Pyrrha smiles, her body practically vibrates with anticipation in her seat. We've basically been socializing with one another constantly despite recognizing each other as formidable opponents. Although I do admit this is mostly due to my insistence.
"Weiss let us fight with our all!"
Our all? I avert my eyes to the side. This whole tournament to me was never truly a competition. In my mind, I treated it like a simulation. Even this match was just another test for me. A measuring tool to judge how far I had grown. I recall the friendship our brief interactions have built up so far. It felt unfair to Pyrrha if I did not commit to this battle.
A voice nags me from the back of my mind. And what about the rest of the world? The assassins? Salem? Even if I have yet to confirm Salem is still a thing, was it worth it to give up what little advantage I have just for a friend's feeling of pride?
"I cannot promise you I will use everything."
She looks at me in shock, her emerald eyes sink at the betrayal her heart felt from hearing my words.
"It's not because I hate you, or that I don't respect you as a fellow Huntress-in-training. It is because of my own circumstances. I…I cannot expose my true strength. Not to the public. Please, I hope you can understand where I am coming from."
I bow in apology. Pyrrha waves her hand and looks around in panic. The waiting room was empty as we were the only ones left.
"Stop it, Weiss. I mean… I don't really get it, but you aren't doing this because you find me not good enough for you, right?"
"What? No, of course not! Why would you think that?" I inquire confused.
"Oh good! It's because you look so bored when fighting everyone else. I thought you didn't find me good enough at first, but since you say so then it's fine!"
I smile gently at her.
"Thank you, Pyrrha. While I can't fight with all I've got, I will still try to win to the best of my ability."
She nods.
"Same with me."
"Will Pyrrha Nikos and Weiss Schnee please head to the platform. The match will begin immediately."
We stand and make our way down the hallway. I pat her on the shoulder.
"Pyrrha, do you mind us exchanging Scroll numbers? I would love to keep speaking with you, and who knows. Maybe we can set up a private match. One where we can both go all out with nothing to bother us."
She beams at me.
"Why, that sounds lovely!"
We pull out our Scrolls. With our numbers exchanged, we split up by going down separate hallways.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Allow me to introduce to you our two finalists! On my left we have a girl unlike any other. She might have a heart big enough to donate to multiple charities, but don't let that kind smile fool you. Her mind is as sharp as her rapier, not letting even a single contestant land a solid blow. It's Atlas' Schnee princess: The Untouchable Beauty, Weiss Schnee!"
Untouchable Beauty? Wow, there is no escaping the nickname of 'Ice Queen', is there?
"On my right, we have yet another royalty! She's a once-a-century miracle! The girl who was born with a class! She's destined for greatness, and she'll prove it you with each thrust of her sword! It's the Nikos clan's Amazon princess: The Invincible Girl, Pyrrha Nikos!"
I suppose we have already cemented our titles at this point. We blew through the competition like it was a joke. I step into the limelight. The roars of the crowd weigh down on me. I hear them chanting either of our names in hope for an exciting match. The weight becomes very real a moment later as Pyrrha's skill kicked in.
[Pressure]
I also need to look out for her Winner's Privilege. She should be at six stacks right now.
Pyrrha bends her knees with her shield raised in front of her. Her right hand held her weapon in its sword form. I similarly hold my Myrtenaster prototype at the ready with an inviting posture. Come, Pyrrha! Show me how far I have grown!
Hooooonk!
[Aura Boost]x2
Pyrrha dashes forward while I do the opposite. She widens her eyes in surprise, not expecting my instant retreat. Her body glows a red outline.
[Shield Charge]
That's not good. I stomp on the ground, shifting my momentum sideways and not a moment too soon. Pyrrha's body suddenly increased in speed. Her body flies past me in a blur.
[Boomerang Throw]
I pivot on my landing foot, only to see a spinning circle of metal soaring towards me.
Equip: Defense
[Parry]
I block the shield with my rapier. I use my right hand to reinforce the back of my blade so that it can successfully push it to the side. The act is much more difficult than usual due to my repressed stats and Pyrrha's enhanced strike. The shield somehow flies back into Pyrrha's hand. Pyrrha charge skill had left her a bit of a distance away from me, so she used her shield to hold me in place while she began approaching me. Smart.
I pull the pistol from my back holster and take aim. Pyrrha hides her head behind her shield and lowers her posture to reduce the amount of area I can hit. As I pull the trigger with my right hand, I stab my rapier into the ground with my left.
[Freeze]
Bang! Bang!
My explosive bullets hit her shield. They don't damage her, but they've accomplished their goal. Pyrrha's vision is blocked by her shield, so she doesn't realize I had frozen the ground. With her center of mass askew due to her running posture, Pyrrha immediately face-plants. I skate towards her with my rapier glowing white.
[Thrust]
[Shield Bash]
My rapier rams into the floor as Pyrrha used her skill to push herself up into the air. I pull the trigger.
Bang! Bang!
My bullets hit Pyrrha head on this time. Her face is covered by small clouds of smoke as the impacts cause her to flip backwards.
[Polarity]
Click!
I squint. The click was not because I ran out of ammo, but because Pyrrha had forcefully jammed it with her semblance!
Pyrrha kicks at my gun, disarming me. I pull my rapier out of the ground as Pyrrha lands from her backflip. We charge at each other. Pyrrha slashes at me, but I parry her normally without a skill. Neither of us had time for that when we're this close to one another. I twirl clockwise and try to jam my right elbow on her face. She blocks with her shield before kicking the back of my leg.
I crumple to the floor, but I return a kick of my own with my other leg. Pyrrha is sent airborne from my hit, but she clicks a button on her weapon mid-flight. I am bombarded with rifle shots as the girl flies. I roll to the side and cast a skill.
[Ice Wall]
A few shots actually hit me. The rest were absorbed by the wall of ice. I concentrate.
[Aura Shield]
A white visible bubble of aura surrounds me as it manifests. I am unable to cast anything else unfortunately.
[Heroic Charge]
I jump to the side. Pyrrha bursts through the ice as if it was made of glass. I thrust my rapier at her, but to my surprise, she smacks it out of my hand with her shield.
[Shield Bash]
What?! How did she instantly cast that! Why did that strike ignore my shield?!
I have a suspicion it has something to do with that Heroic Charge skill, but I don't have the luxury of analyzing the new skill Pyrrha had used. She slashes at me once more, but her sword is caught by the shield this time. Recognizing my opportunity, I pull out my other gun with my left and grab her sword arm by the wrist with my right.
Bang!
I shoot her in the face. She raises her shield up.
Bang!
I shoot her in the foot. She grunts, frustrated at my attempts to whittle away at her aura reserves. I point it back at her face.
[Polarity]
Click!
Another jammed gun. I push the button on my pistol that allowed the magazine to fall to the ground. I kick it with my foot like a soccer ball, causing it to fly up and smack Pyrrha in the eye. She blinks on reflex, giving me a tiny opening. I slam the butt of my pistol against her sword hand that I still have in my grip. Her grip loosens, but the blade doesn't fall.
You're kidding me. She's using her semblance to keep it there?!
Pyrrha slams her shield into my face, finally having enough of our close combat scuffle. I use the momentum to retreat closer towards my rapier. I don't commit to retrieving it yet. Instead, I throw my now useless pistol at Pyrrha. It bounces harmlessly off her shield, but it allows me to pull out my combat knife and hold it in a reverse grip.
The two of us take a moment of reprieve. Both of us are panting heavily as we slowly pace in a circle. Pyrrha has a smile on her visage. It took me a second to realize I had one too. I glance at my status.
Weiss Schnee (Lvl 12)
The Generous Princess/The Untouchable Beauty
Health: 305/305
Aura: 157/369
Class: Battle Mage
Semblance: Glyph
Age: 13
Money: 2,663 (287,599) Lien
[+] Inventory
[+] Stats
[+] Perks
[+] Equipment
[+] Skills
Already, I am less than halfway out of aura. I used more aura than I thought. Must be Pyrrha's skill at work. If only I could somehow cast Aura Conversion to replenish my reserves. Pyrrha won't let me though. And if I could do so, so could she. This next bout will most likely decide the match.
We both look up at the same time. In her eyes, I could tell she reached the same conclusion. I tighten my grip on my dagger and hold my right fist up to guard. The two of us leap forward simultaneously with only Aura Boost active this entire time.
We engage in close combat once more. This time, I am on the defensive since I cannot be reckless with only a dagger. I weave back and forth, using my superior speed and strength to contend with her weapon advantage. I try to grab her sword arm multiple times, but Pyrrha learned from the first time. She is cautious with her strikes, making sure to not commit too much in case she needed to withdraw out of my reach. The result is that her offense slacks off, giving me room to breathe. Her shield arm is busy dealing with my dagger when I am not using it to parry. Its small size allows me to quickly swipe here and there. Unfortunately, neither of us make much progress. Caution takes precedence in all our decisions, causing this exchange to drag on. The sound of metal clashing with metal continuously echoes.
This is going nowhere. I need to create an opening.
I back off from Pyrrha as my left hand begins to glow. Pyrrha chases after me and attempts to stop me. I just keep backpedaling, so that I can reap the rewards of having a high WILL stat. Pyrrha swings her sword at me. I pump Aura Boost to the limit in my right arm for just a sec.
[Aura Boost]
Instead of parrying with my left hand, I raise my right arm and take the hit. Pyrrha's eyes widen in disbelief. My casting is done with my left hand. I swing the pommel at her head, and she responds quickly with her shield.
[Crushing Blow]
The hilt of my dagger creates an indentation on Pyrrha's shield. The force of the strike made the shield smack her head, disorienting her. I move Pyrrha's sword to the side in order to ram my fist into her cheeks.
Pow!
She soars away, landing just where I wanted her to. I toss my knife into the air and catch it by the blade. I rear back and throw. Pyrrha sees it coming and raises her shield up, but she suddenly realizes something is wrong. The dagger wasn't coming towards her. It was coming towards…
My dagger stabs the revolving Dust cartridge of my rapier which happened to be resting right next to Pyrrha. The explosion is immediate.
Boom!
I smile, but my victory was premature.
[Champion's Resolve]
Pyrrha dashes out of the smoke, her body entirely wrapped in a red glow. She swings her sword at me.
[Slash]
What do I do? My aura reserves aren't high enough to take this skill head on with my body. My last weapon was just obliterated as well.
I watch as the blade draws ever closer…
I panic.
[Glyph of Acceleration]
My body jerks to the side. I do a roll. My thoughts are going at breakneck speeds.
I messed up! I used my semblance! I used my semblance!
I see Pyrrha restarting her dash. This was no time to complain. I was committed at this point.
[Glyph of Haste]
I watch the world seem to slow around me when in reality I was the one that sped up. I run up to Pyrrha, moving around her in order to embrace her into a stranglehold. As I am doing this, I read the details of her skill.
[Champion's Resolve]
By acquiring the [Champion] class, you've acquired a skill unique to the [Champion] class only! Duration of effect(s) increases with level.
Rank 1 (Unlocked): (Active) For [1.0 sec], you will be immune to all damage and debuffs.
Rank 2 (Locked): ? (Lvl 20 required, Action required)
Rank 3 (Locked): ? (Lvl 40 required, Action required, Item required)
Okay, seriously?! Well, I feel slightly less bad about using my semblance. If Pyrrha can apparently be immune, it's only fair that I used my own trump card… Oh who am I fooling? I had promised myself not to do this even if I lost. It was just… at that time… in that moment… I simply forgot about it all.
Pyrrha struggles in my arms. It is useless. Not only I am stronger than you, science demands that you are not able to apply enough force to break this hold.
"It was a good fight." I whisper into her ear.
Pyrrha wriggles in my hold for a bit more before she finally stops moving. I let go of her and put my ear to her chest.
Ba-bump. Ba-bump.
I sigh in relief. I can still hear her heartbeat. Even though I've practiced the maneuver many times, I still want to check just in case.
I am startled as the announcer screams into the intercom.
"Ladies and gentlemen, there you have it. Your newest Mistral Regional Tournament Champion is… Weiss Schnee!"
I droop before laying down on the ground with my body spread out as if I was making a snow angel. The tension leaves my body as the truth of the matter sinks in.
I had won.
