Here's the prologue to the next volume of Hero of Beacon. Yeah, I know that this took longer than it should when I said this would be out within a week after the last update, for that I apologize. I've been occupied so much with work and other interests within these past weeks that I've barely had much time to even revise chapters that I've already finished. That and I wasn't going to upload the prologue until the first chapter is almost ready because I didn't want to release a short introduction and make people wait longer for a proper chapter, that ain't my style hence the extended hiatus. So Chapter 1 of this volume should be released shortly after this since it's already finished I'm just going to take another day or two of proofreading and polishing before I release it.

Now with that out the way, here's the prologue of To Survive and Prosper which is now the title for the second volume of The Hero of Beacon.

The Jaune Archive

The Hero of Beacon

Volume II

To Survive and Prosper

Editorial Note:

This second volume of the Jaune Archive's Beacon saga details the first two weeks of his second semester in the academy, covering his first mission and the events leading up to it.

Our second semester in Beacon is what truly tested our skills as Huntsmen, making us put the knowledge we learned from last semester into practice while preparing for the upcoming Vytal Festival which was to be hosted in Vale as Beacon as students from other academies visit Beacon for the preparation of the Festival.

This volume will also explore the continuation of Jaune's relationships with his schoolmates and his escalating conflict with the White Fang as his reputation grows from the Defender of Podunk to the Hero of Beacon. It will also provide more insight into Ozpin's shadow war with The Grimm Queen and how it affected Jaune's background as a Huntsman. Notable entries taking place during his two-week break before this volume will be included in the extras should someone be interested in them, but for now, they will be skipped since they're not pertinent to Jaune's Beacon life.

As mentioned in my previous note. I will let Jaune narrate his recollection with his own words but since he often glosses over details that do not directly concern him, I will continue to insert some annotations and excerpts from other records to fill in details that he did not account for while omitting or condensing entries that are not worth noting for a better reading experience.

Weiss Schnee

Chief Executive Officer, Schnee Dust Company®

PROLOGUE

My feelings were rather ambivalent when the second semester started. While I did miss home and was relieved that I finally returned to my normal life albeit for a brief moment, I also missed Beacon during the two-week break. Don't get me wrong—I still think it is a deranged place where my ass is perpetually at risk that I had more trouble sleeping because I kept thinking about what might happen the next day, but there was something that made me want to come back as if the place put a spell on me or something.

After taking four months of risks caused by being too good with training which was made worse by my short-sighted exploit in Podunk, I was able to enjoy the simple and peaceful atmosphere of home and take advantage of the time I had. The only thing that bothered me was Dad and Rose were so impressed at my performance on Beacon that they started dragging me to a few missions for the sake of 'exercise.' And they're not the ones that involve killing a few low-class Grimm and going home like the ones I used to take, mind you, but they're the ones that involve killing whole nests and slaying freaking Alpha Beowolf. Even when I was finally back with my happy life in the countryside, I could not escape Huntsman duty and I felt like this was undermining my vacation. Thankfully, they were brief compared to the rest of my stay at home, only taking about twelve hours in total over two whole weeks and I was able to get the rest and relaxation I needed when I completed my first semester.

I have grown fond of my laser pistol after snatching it from some high-ranking White Fang goon at Forever Falls that I was able to convince Rose to have it upgraded. It wasn't really necessary because of how adequate it already was but she was able to make it twice as useful while weighing less and being able to hold more ammo, something which I can appreciate. Rose may be crazy with guns, but she's the right type of crazy. She knows how to make guns look and feel effective in a world where aura would make the most advanced weaponry look like cheap bootleg super-soakers. It was thanks to her that I'm able to protect my own life with a simple yet very effective pistol with only one hand and diligent practice.

Handguns were the only type of firearms I could rely on; my experience with other types of guns was not exactly ideal, I'm never going to forget that one time I tried practicing with a rifle when I went hunting with her. That was the time I accidentally shot and killed a deer that was mothering a fawn when we were supposed to be hunting for food and maybe shoot some predators along the way. Although that incident did teach me the importance of patience and trigger discipline, I decided to just stick with mimicking Dad's fighting style by using sidearms while still being able to swing swords at the same time afterward, it suited me better anyway.

I proceeded to the residence hall after another nauseating flight on the airship. I'm never going to get used to that, am I? I asked myself internally. At least I brought a plastic bag this time, so I no longer have to worry about throwing up on someone's shoes. But no matter how hard I try—I never seem to become habituated to air travel and riding without feeling nauseated.

As I was heading to my dorm, listening to 'I'm Walking on Sunshine' with my earpods on, I spotted Yang coming out of hers. She was already in her uniform which made her look modest in contrast to the well-endowed sexy biker chick look she was notorious for. Judging at how she smelled like flowers and not sweat, I could tell that she had just recently showered. "Hey!" she waved after spotting me, prompting me to take my earpods off out of courtesy. "How's the ploy, Vomit-Boy?"

"Took some stocks, Goldilocks." I jokingly replied with a grin. I've been in Beacon long enough for me to start being much more open with my quips. It helped that I spent a fair amount of time these past two weeks going on missions with a sister of similar personality and appearance who could easily pass as a long-lost twin of hers. Though I should still put my witty remarks to a minimum if I were to continue looking like a friendly dork who just happened to be competent at combat should the situation call for it.

She chuckled at my response, noticeably trying not to swear while her semblance wasn't active. "It's good to see you again. Shh—shucks, doesn't it feel good to be back?"

"Yeah, I can't wait to see what this semester has in store for us," I replied, feigning enthusiasm.

Yang grinned before recalling something. "Oh, I forgot to thank you for helping out Blake last semester. I wouldn't know what to do without my partner, even if I didn't know much about her aside from being an introverted ninja girl that likes to read weird books and all; I didn't even know she was a cat faunus until that day. Some partner I am," she muttered.

That day was almost hard to shake off. I thought that it was simply because of Blake's insecurities about being a faunus in a predominantly human academy, but I didn't expect terrorism and espionage to be involved in it. That was also the day I met the most enigmatic happy ginger since Nora. Luckily for me, the media wasn't able to capitalize on my presence during that fiasco, otherwise, they would have made it worse than the Podunk incident.

"It's not really a big deal," I replied as modestly as I could while I knew that I was only there because I didn't refuse Blake's last request. "Knowing her, she would have still been fine without me. It was Penny that saved the day."

"Then it must have been selfless of you to help out anyway. "You really got 'hero' written all over you, VB." she smiled again before patting my chest. I couldn't help but simper over her abbreviated nickname that almost sounded like she was flirting with me. But then again, this was something you'd expect from an outgoing party girl like her.

It appears that my compulsive desire to better my relationship with my allies to enforce my strategy is making my reputation as a so-called hero has grown worse since I didn't have a better alternative. Unfortunately, there was nothing I could do about it for the moment so there was no other choice for me than to carry on with the act while it still works. "It's what I do, I guess. So how's she doing?"

"She's doing great. Still quiet as usual, but she's become much more open and friendly since what happened that day. If it weren't for that, I don't think we'd be chatting in our scrolls during the break. Heck, she's even getting along with Weiss!"

Good to hear. Weiss was not an easy girl to be friends with, especially if you happen to work for an organization that's been targeting her family's company for who knows how long now. Team RWBY seems to be getting along well with each other compared to the past few months. If they keep this up, I don't have to see them bicker over trivial things that they become ineffective allies anymore.

"Has anyone seen my binder?" A voice belonging to a certain ice-cold heiress suddenly called from Team RWBY's dorm, speak of the devil. Whatever that was, I hope that it wouldn't make such a big deal that I have to drag myself into their drama again.

Yang smirked as she shook her head while still looking at me. "I gotta go. Catch ya' later, lady killer." She patted my shoulder as she passed through me.

"Peace out, girl scout," I cheekily replied, to which she responded with a two-finger peace sign with her back turned.

I watched her leave before going to my team's dorm and opened the door, preparing myself to get jumped by Nora since I became too used to her habit of doing that last semester that I was more surprised that she didn't. Instead, she was sitting in her bed, repeatedly opening and closing a scroll tablet as Ren was sitting beside her.

"Stupid machine. Why you no work?" she gritted her teeth.

"Nora, the machine spirit doesn't like it when you abuse its body like that," Ren remarked, staying in his deadpan tone.

Nora growled as she continued to force the tablet before noticing my presence. "Oh, welcome back, Fearless Leader!"

"Good to see all of you again." I smiled, taking a few more steps to drop my bag on my bed.

"You're finally here," Pyrrha said as she left the bathroom after tying up her hair. "How was home?"

"Eh, the usual family stuff. Just helped with the farm and hunted down a few Grimm. Nothing out of the ordinary." I answered as I played with their expectations. Grimm hunts that involve clearing whole packs were just everyday work for some formidable heroic Huntsman they paint me

"Ren and I stayed at Vale since we have nowhere else to go," Nora responded. "This kingdom is prettier and more fun than I imagined!"

"Visited some dojos. It was nice to just train and meditate while Nora does her own thing." Ren said, the tone and the expression on his face suggested that he was leaving the part where she had to fight and beat up some stab-happy thugs while she was at it. It was no wonder why Nora liked this place.

"I too spent the break training," Pyrrha responded. "My parents wanted to keep me sharp for the upcoming tournament so I could win my fifth championship. And speaking of which, I told them about you, they said that they would be glad to meet you, Jaune."

"Wait, me?" I was rather surprised by that statement, especially considering that her parents were presumably the ones that trained her to become the invincible girl that we became familiar with and I wasn't quite sure how to feel about that.

"They look forward to meeting the person who led me and this team these past few months. It would be a great honor for both of you," she continued with a delighted nod.

"Maybe someday, Pyrrha, maybe someday," I replied before facing everyone in the room. "Alright team, who's ready for this semester?"

"I do!" Nora excitedly raised her hand while raising her partner's as well while his expression remained blank as usual. "And you too, Ren!"

"Good!" I rubbed my hands in preparation. "Now remember what I taught you last semester. Everything then was only mere preparations for this one, this is where things start to get real. We will soon start taking missions and participating in the tournament. If we continue working well as a team—then there is nothing that can get past us. We were able to kill a Nevermore, fight some bandits and get an A+ from Professor Goodwitch herself, so we have proven ourselves to be far more than capable in this, we just need to keep up the pace."

Nora saluted while Ren firmly nodded. Pyrrha continues to gaze at me in approval. "Now let's get back to work," I said before immediately proceeding to change to my uniform so that I may lead the team into the auditorium to hear the announcements for this semester and see what it has in store for us.