The morning rolled around as a mark of the new day. Asarirn exited the entrance to the hotel building. For some reason, the light of the sun was almost blinding. Luckily, the hood from his coat was able to shield him from the sun. Asarirn checked out his surroundings. He noticed that the area with the carts had already been open for business. There are already people doing some shopping within the area.

Asarirn reached into his coat and produced his scroll. He checked the recent message he received from Ruby. The content of the message consisted of the location of where the team is meeting up. Asarirn set out for his next destination.

-*RWBY*-

After traveling for a few minutes, Asarirn arrived at the location stated in the message. The location was a small café. In front of the café, there were sets of tables and chairs. Each table has an umbrella attached in the middle. Sat at one of the tables, Ruby was by herself. She had something in her mouth. As Asarirn approached the cafe, Ruby stopped mid-chewing as she noticed Asarirn. She shot up from her seat, waving at Asarirn. Ruby had a smile on her face with her cheeks puffed up.

"I seemed to be the first one here," Asarirn commented as he reached the table. He pulled one of the empty chairs and took a seat.

Ruby finished shallowing what was in her mouth before speaking, "Blake and Yang are taking their time getting here. Weiss would have been with me, but you know Weiss. She must look perfect for each day."

"I see," Asarirn acknowledged.

Asarirn sat in his seat in silence while waiting patiently. He passed the time by looking around the area, and hopefully, the rest of the team arrived. A scent of sweet honey and sugar lingered around, causing Asarirn to stop looking. He sniffed a couple of times as his head turned to the source. Just across from Asarirn where Ruby was seated, there was a familiar food on a plate in front of Ruby. Ruby picked up a sweet bread and took a bite. Her face was in pure bliss as she chewed her food. She took another bite, and her expression was the same. Ruby stopped chewing as she noticed Asarirn was staring at her. She looked at her sweet bread then looked at Asarirn.

"Do you want some?" Ruby asked while her mouth was full.

"No thank you," Asarirn shook his hand. "You look like you like that sweet bread."

"They are so good!" Ruby was delighted. "Ever since you mentioned them on the airship and ran into those kids with them, I just had to try one! I was not disappointed."

"I didn't know you had money on you," Asarirn commented.

"While in school, my dad would send me a small allowance from time to time," Ruby explained. "I use the money when I go out or stuff like this."

"I see," Asarirn said as he stood up from his seat. Ruby was a bit confused by his sudden action. "I suppose it is time for me to start my investigation."

"You don't want to wait for the rest of us?"

"There is something I wanted to look into that seemed unorthodox," Asarirn explained. "If I reach a dead end, I don't want to drag someone with me and waste their time. Besides, we will cover more ground that way."

Ruby doesn't like the fact that he was right about covering more ground. After the recent event with Zak at the diner, she was afraid to leave him by himself. However, at the same time, she sounded like he can't take care of himself. In the end, Ruby agreed.

"I will send you a message later about meeting up and going over our findings," Ruby stated.

Asarirn didn't say anything as he nodded to Ruby's words. He walked away as he waved goodbye, leaving Ruby by herself.

-*RWBY*-

Asarirn leaned against a lamb post within the town square. He scanned the area, watching the people of the town go about their business. Asarirn watched people interacting with the people at their carts, people who were simply window shopping, or people who were moving goods around the area. Asarirn was trying to determine his next action for the investigation. The notes he made about the rumors might hold the key to the whole investigation.

Asarirn's trail of thought was interrupted as he sensed someone was approaching him. He turned his head to the person in question. Asarirn narrowed his eyes at the sight of the mayor's wife: Laura. She was the one approaching directly at Asarirn. Asarirn believed she might cause some problems, but at the same, she might know some things.

"Hello," Laura greeted him with a smile.

"Hello, Ms. Laker," Asarirn greeted with a simple wave.

"Please, skip the formalities. Just for you, call me Laura."

"Very well, Laura," Asarirn corrected himself. "What can I do for you?"

"I was hoping you received the card I sent last night," Laura stated.

Asarirn widen his eyes as soon he heard Laura was the one that send the card to him last night. "I didn't know you were the one that send that card," Asarirn stated.

"Of course, I was hoping we could get to know each other a litter better," Laura softened her voice as she leaned in closer to Asarirn.

"Why me?"

"Who knows? I might have a thing for younger guys," Laura unbuttoned the top two buttons of her shirt, revealing a portion of her breasts. "I heard guys around your age are usually pent up and full of energy."

Asarirn stood still as Laura pressed her chest against Asarirn. Asarirn noticed the pair of breasts she had. He quickly figured out she was trying to seduce him. The only thing on Asarirn's mind was questions rising involving the mayor's wife.

"Sorry," Asarirn took a step back. "Right now, I am currently in the middle of my investigation."

"Right now, you say?" Laura twisted Asarirn's words. "I suppose I can't stop you from your investigation. Maybe later, after a day's worth of work, we can meet up and I can help you relieve some of that stress."

Asarirn didn't say anything as he watched Laura button up her shirt. Laura gave a smile to Asarirn before walking away. Asarirn watched her walking away to make sure he will be by himself. During that time, Asarirn watched as Laura was swinging her hips while walking. She knew Asarirn was watching her walk away. After Asarirn knows for sure he was by himself, he couldn't help but let out a sigh. After having that interaction, Asarirn knew she could complicate things.

-*RWBY*-

Asarirn walked around the town square, acting like someone who was window shopping. Even though, he stood out as someone wearing a hooded black coat. The true purpose of Asarirn acting like a shopper was because he was trying to find anyone of interest. As Asarirn continued to walk past different types of carts, he noticed one that stood out. There was a man behind a cart. The part that stood out was the man didn't try to make eye contact with Asarirn. Asarirn noticed for other carts that the person running the cart would try to make contact as a potential customer. However, Asarirn noticed the man's eyes would look at him for a moment before darting away. Asarirn believed he might know something.

Asarirn causally stopped in front of the cart. The man was surprised by Asarirn's sudden interest. Asarirn inspected the contents of this cart. This person sells different types of accessories, ranging from bracelets to necklaces, and rings. The things on here seem familiar to Asarirn for some reason.

"Hello," Asarirn greeted the man.

"Oh, Hello and welcome," the man returned the favor. "Feel free to browse and if you have any questions, let me know. Also, we have a special going on now."

"What the special?"

"Well, this special is normally for couples," the man started to explain. "We have matching accessories for yourself and your loved ones. Buy one and get the other one free."

Asarirn narrowed his eyes as soon as he heard the discount deal. Asarirn felt this was the same deal he encountered with Ruby yesterday. Instead of this guy, there was a woman.

"I could have sworn there was a woman who had the same kind of special as yourself," Asarirn stated.

"Oh, you must have met my wife," the man stated.

"Do you guys own more than one cart?"

"We don't," the man chuckled. "This is the same one we use, we simply changed location each day. Only today, I oversee the cart while my wife has the day to herself."

"I see," Asarirn understood. "I believe I have met your wife yesterday with my teammate."

The man's eyes perked up after hearing Asarirn's words. "You must be the ones here for the investigation of the missing family. My wife told me about your interactions with her. Hopefully, you are not here to question me about their whereabouts."

"I won't do such a thing if you don't have the information," Asarirn assured the man. "I am simply leaning an ear out for any news or rumors."

"Rumors you say," the man's body almost just out of his chair. "Have you heard the one about the mayor's wife?"

"I heard she had an interest in younger guys," Asarirn stated.

"That is the one I was referring to," the man stated. "I see that one has been circling."

"My question is since this rumor has been known to others, has there been anyone able to confirm this was true or not?"

"Well," the man started to explain. "There are two reasons for that. One is related to another rumor here. The rumor was about all the guys she was interested in were not from around this area. Usually, they visit the area. The second reason is being we don't want to involve ourselves."

Asarirn tilted his head as he was somewhat confused.

"If we were to involve ourselves in rumor," the man continued. "There could be a chance that the rumor was just a rumor. If someone gets involved and the rumor was not true, that could cause a scandal here with the involved party."

"That's why people would not give us information based on rumors," Asarirn concluded. "They will give us information if they are true."

"That is why we will say it was a rumor."

Asarirn took a moment to consider what the man had said. "Well, I would like to thank you for your time. I will leave you to your business."

"Before you go," the man stopped Asarirn from leaving. "Since I give you some information, I was hoping you would give me some information."

"That seems fair," Asarirn nodded. "What would you like to know?"

"I wonder if you are not interested in women."

"What do you mean?"

"I think you might have a thing for guys."

"What makes you say that?" Asarirn couldn't help but question.

"I saw you having a conversation with the mayor's wife earlier," the man explained. "She was making an advance on you with one of her techniques."

Asarirn couldn't help himself but look over to the direction from where he had the conversation with the mayor's wife. From where Asarirn was standing, he had a clear view of the lamp post he was at previously. Asarirn believed the man had seen them talking.

"I watched you step back," the man continued. "Then she decided to walk away. I'm assuming you rejected her advances and were not interested in her."

Asarirn let out a sigh before answering, "I rejected her advances not because I'm not interested in women. I rejected her because she was not my type. I prefer a woman around my age."

"Oh, I see," the man understood. "Luckily, I heard there were some colorful girls who arrived here. You might get lucky to get to know them."

"Those colorful girls are here for the investigation of the missing family and I am part of that team."

"That makes sense," the man understood again. "Since you are on the same team, are you interested in any of the girls?"

"If there are around my age, then maybe."

"One last thing, I heard there was a rumor about you sleeping with the girls in the same room. Was that true?"

Asarirn was silent for a moment. He knew that rumor came from the lady from the diner.

"I think that is a misunderstanding," Asarirn explained. "The sleeping part was due to all of us living in the same building since that was a co-ed dorm.

"I can see why people can misunderstand that rumor."

"Exactly."

"Well, I would like to thank you for that information," the man seemed pleased.

"I thank you for the clarification on the rumors," Asarirn thanked the man.

"And for that, I will give you this," the man took an item from the cart and handed the item to Asarirn. On closer inspection, the items appeared to be two bracelets that are connected by a silver heart.

"What is this?" Asarirn questioned.

"This is one of our special items for couples. You see that heart in the middle of the two bracelets. Those can come apart and come together with the power of magnetics. My wife said they looked romantic while holding hands and the two halves of the heart would come together. This is simply payment for those rumors you answered."

"You would give your goods for rumors?" Asarirn asked as he continued to inspect the bracelets.

"Depends on how valuable the information, anyone would trade their goods for rumors."

"Interesting," Asarirn put away the bracelets. "I will take my leave, enjoy your business."

Asarirn departed as he need to figure out his next action.

-*RWBY*-

Asarirn wandered the streets of the shopping district of the town. With the change of scenery, he could hope there would be new information. As Asarirn was walking by buildings, there was a familiar scent that could his attention. Asarirn could recall the scent was the same as the sweet bread Ruby had earlier, but stronger. Asarirn looked at the building where the scent was coming from. The sign 'bakery' hung in front of the building. He didn't have anything better to do but enter the building.

The scent of sweet pastries and baked bread filled the room as Asarirn entered the shop. The bell chimed while the door was swinging. Within the shop, there were small tables and a couple of chairs set up near the window. There was a glass case with different types of baked goods. A young woman walked out from the back. She was shocked for a moment at Asarirn's appearance before greeting him with a smile.

"Hello," the woman greeted. "Are there any pastries you are interested in? Or are you interested in our famous sweet bread?"

"I'm Arranis Shadow," Asarirn greeted. "I am part of the team that is investigating the missing family. I was hoping you would know any information."

The woman tilted her head in a bit of confusion, "I have already talked to someone from that team."

"You have?" Asarirn questioned. "Who did you talk to if you don't mind me asking."

"A short girl was wearing a black and red skirt that was here," the woman explained. "She ordered a couple of sweetbreads. She said something never had the chance to try one."

Asarirn figured out immediately that was Ruby that was there. Seeing her earlier with the sweet bread proved his theory.

"I never had the chance to talk to her yet," Asarirn explained. "Out of curiosity, what have you said to her?"

The woman took a moment to recall what she said. "I told the young girl I don't know much about their disappearance. I told her I get all my vegetables from them since they are always fresh and high quality. She then asked if there was anything unusual before their disappearance. I told her the wife acted weird."

"Weird?" Asarirn questioned. "Weird in what way?"

"I told her the wife acted differently," the woman explained. "She acted like she was tired and out of character. And that is all I told her."

"Do you know the reason for her being out of character? Or what might you think to be the cause?"

The young woman thought about the subject for a bit. "Normally, the husband ran the stall for selling their vegetables. I believed she wasn't happy since she was the running the stall."

"Do you know if they had any financial issues with their farm?"

"I don't believe so," the woman shook her head. "I know for sure their vegetables for the day always get sold out before the end of the business day. She and her child would always come in before we close and picked up a couple of sweet bread."

"And that's all you know?" Asarirn asked, hoping for more.

"That's all I know," the woman nodded. "I don't listen to some of the rumors because some of them are pretty crazy."

"I see," Asarirn pondered the information. "Well, I don't want to take too much of your time."

"Before you go," the woman started to speak. "Is there anything you might want to take on the way back?"

Asarirn browsed through the case for anything that catches his eye. He noticed there was a section dedicated to sweet bread. Asarirn almost perked up at the sight of the sweet bread but let himself down. He realized he didn't have any money. However, there was something he could try.

"I was hoping to get some sweet bread," Asarirn stated. "However, I was hoping to pay you with information of a rumor or any information in general."

"Sorry," the woman shook her head. "I have a legitimate business to run here. We are not like the ones running those carts in the town square. We would like to have an income, not spreading around rumors."

"I see," Asarirn hid his disappointment. "Unfortunately, I don't have any money for any sweet bread at the moment."

"Well, if you do have money," the woman started to speak. "You can come back and try one of the famous sweetbreads. We are always making them every day and they are always fresh."

"Thank you for your time," Asarirn waved goodbye before leaving the store. Despite not obtaining a sweetbread, Asarirn felt he should not be bothered by that. However, for some reason, Asarirn felt disappointed.

-*RWBY*-

Asarirn continued to walk around town while he pondered his thoughts. Despite gathering information, they are not a step closer to finding the missing family. Asarirn's mind wandered off as he continued walking. His body suddenly stopped which caused Asarirn to pay attention in front of him. He noticed there was a brick wall in front of him. Asarirn managed to stop himself before walking into the wall. However, Asarirn simply stood there, facing the wall while continuing his thoughts.

"Even with the information we gathered," Asarirn thought. "We are not getting closer to finding the family. We are only painting the events that occurred before their disappearance. To find them, we might need to travel north. However, Atlas guards might pose a problem."

Asarirn thought more about the idea of heading north. As he continued to stand there, suddenly, Asarirn sensed something incoming towards him. He quickly turned around and, with a fast reflex, caught the incoming attack. The thing that Asarirn caught was a hand. The hand was only a few inches from his face. Asarirn looked past the hand to find the culprit. Zak was the one that strike at Asarirn. Asarirn was surprised by the sudden attack, but at the same time, Asarirn expected something like this from him.

Asarirn threw the arm away from him. Zak reacted by taking a big step from Asarirn.

"No need for hostilities," Zak responded.

"Said the one that attack a student while investigating," Asarirn retorted.

"Don't be like that," Zak tried to calm Asarirn down. "I just wanted to see how well you respond to sudden attacks."

"What the hell do you want?" Asarirn questioned Zak's intentions.

"I never had a chance to talk to you, man to man," Zak explained. "I wanted to talk to you privately, but you were hiding within your 'team.' Be honest, do you have a thing for girls younger than you?"

"I wasn't hiding," Asarirn retorted. "You should know I was investigating with my team leader. You know the investigation we were assigned."

"As I said, your team is only wasting their time."

"Get to the point, Zak," Asarirn demanded. "What do you want with me?"

"As you may recall yesterday," Zak started to talk. "I said you might be in possession of a special blade. I am quite interested in that weapon."

"My special weapon is in pieces," Asarirn replied. "Destroyed by the school's bully. I don't know how that would be of any use to you.

"Playing dumb I see," Zak grinned. "You don't know how much information I have on you. A student transferring into a school out of the blue. Forced to be part of an already existing team. Happened to have no public record nor prior whereabouts. Some say that would be suspicious, but concealing your face is simply a cherry on top. What can you make of that... Asarirn."

Asarirn remained still but, under the hood, his eyes widened in surprise as he heard his true name. Asarirn was careful to never speak of his name. The question in his mind on where he had learned of that name.

"My name is Arranis," Asarirn told Zak.

"Did you know there is a camera in the classroom where your school held their sparring matches?" Zak responded. "Besides nearly killing the supposed school's bully, someone happened to say everyone thought you were dead. What can you say about that?"

Asarirn couldn't help but started to step back. At the same time, Zak took a step forward toward Asarirn. They continued to take a step until Asarirn backed against the brick wall. Asarirn remained quiet.

"Well? What can you say about that?" Zak asked once more.

"Are you really a Huntsman?" Asarirn responded.

Asarirn moved his head slightly as a hand slammed past his head at the brick wall behind him. Zak had an irritated look on his face.

"Stop with these games, Asarirn," Zak responded. "Tell me where you kept your sword of ice, and I might let you enjoy the rest of your time here. Maybe I can tell you how you can hook up with the girls of your team."

Asarirn stood there in silence while Zak was waiting for an answer. Asarirn recalled the message from the Ozpin. 'Beware the Huntsman from Atlas' was in Asarirn's thought. Asarirn believed this was the reason Ozpin had to warn him. To Asarirn, Zak might have the answers, but at the same time, Asarirn was not in the situation to ask him any questions. He needed to get out of this situation.

"Something tells me you are not here for the missing family case," Asarirn commented. "What are you really here for, Zak?"

Zak narrowed his eyes at Asarirn. He held up a fist as he was ready to strike. "

I guess I must beat that information out of you," Zak threatened. "Hopefully you don't have a pretty face as I-"

"Excuse me?" a voice interrupted Zak.

Zak snapped his head in the direction of the voice. "Can't you see I'm bus-" Zak stopped himself before he could finish. Standing behind Zak was a short elderly woman.

"Are you a Huntsman?" the elderly woman asked.

"Yes, I am, but I am in the middle of-"

"Would you be able to help little old' me and carry my things back home?" the elderly woman prevented Zak from finishing his sentence.

"I would be about to after-"

"Great they are right here," the elderly woman pointed behind her. There was a cluster of bags on the ground.

Asarirn stood there as he watched the interaction between the Huntsman Zak and an elderly woman. He watched as Zak tried to make her acknowledge he was in the middle of something. While for her, Asarirn observed she might have trouble hearing since she picked some words out of Zak's words. Asarirn believed Zak was trying so hard to keep up appearances. Zak would only show his intentions while Asarirn was alone with him. Asarirn does not have time to deal with Zak. He noticed Zak only had one hand on the wall, preventing only one way. Asarirn checked the other direction, and the coast was clear.

Without saying a word, Asarirn slowly took one step to the side. Asarirn watched Zak and the elderly woman continued to have their conversation. Asarirn walked away from Zak.

Zak turned around and noticed Asarirn walking away.

"Hey, get back here!" Zak ordered. However, Asarirn already walked around the corner and disappeared from Zak's sights. Before he could give chase, a hand grabbed onto his wrist.

"Where are you going?" the elderly woman held his wrist. "My things are not over there. There are over here."

Zak realized he was not going anywhere due to this woman. Zak let out a sigh of defeat. He didn't say a word as he picked up the elderly woman's things.

"Thank you. My place is not far," the elderly woman stated as she started walking. Zak followed without further incident.

-*RWBY*-

In another part of the town, Ruby and Yang walked out of a small store.

"Thank you for your time!" Ruby yelled back at the store while Yang only waved. They started to walk down the street.

"So, another dead end huh," Yang commented.

"I feel we are no way closer to finding the missing family," Ruby stated.

"I know what you mean," Yang agreed. "The only information we are hearing about is their everyday-to-day life. Not to mention all the rumors we have been hearing about lately."

Ruby fell silent as they continued to walk down the street. Yang noticed Ruby's mind appeared to be somewhere else. Ruby's face has a concerned look.

"Is there something on your mind, sis?" Yang asked.

"I'm just worried about Arranis," Ruby stated.

"You're sad you couldn't get another date with him," Yang teased.

"That's not it," Ruby turned away, hiding her slight embarrassment. "I just wanted to know what he is up to."

"You said he wanted to go by himself and wanted to try something on finding information. He didn't want to drag anybody if it was a waste of time.

"I don't know if that encounter with Zak during our dinner had something to do with his decision."

"I absolutely hate that huntsman," Yang sounded irritated. "The way he was treating you was making me mad. If Arranis hadn't said anything to Zak, I would have given him a severe beating. I swear if he would try any funny business with any of us, I would not hold back."

"I felt something weird when he was trying to talk to Arranis before I interrupted him," Ruby stated. "The way Zak was talking sounded like he wanted to talk to Arranis alone."

You think Zak wanted something from Arranis."

"I don't know," Ruby wasn't sure. "I felt the encounter Arranis and I had with Zak might suggest he wanted something from Arranis."

"Do you think there might be a chance Zak is after Arranis?" Yang suggested.

Ruby and Yang stopped in the middle of the street. They looked at each other with looks that suggested Yang might be right. The only thing on their mind was whether to warn their male teammate.

-*RWBY*-

Asarirn walked through another part of town that was closer to the town square. The sight of people roaming the area suggested this place was crowded. He believed this area would help him avoid further encounters with Zak. Based on the interaction with Zak, Asarirn believed he was certainly keeping up appearances or keeping his actual agenda hidden. Zak could have ignored the elderly woman and given chase, but he didn't. Asarirn thought to himself many things are not adding up. If Asarirn was Zak's target, how would he know if Asarirn was going to be on this mission? Another thought that came to mind was how did Ozpin know to warn him?

Asarirn stopped as he noticed someone familiar ahead of him. Weiss was standing by herself under a large umbrella. She had her back turned towards Asarirn. Asarirn remembered from the night before he wanted to ask Weiss and Yang about the rumor they heard. He believed now was a good time to ask. Asarirn started to head in Weiss' direction. He approached her from behind.

"I see you are by yourself," Asarirn tried to get Weiss' attention. Weiss perked up as she heard someone address her. She turned around and her eyes widen at the sudden surprise.

"This is certainly a surprise," Weiss commented which caused Asarirn to tilt his head in confusion. "Normally, you never were the one to initiate the conversation with us. We would have to approach you to get you to do anything. Well, mostly Ruby would be the first one to talk to you."

Asarirn pondered the thought Weiss just said. He believed what she said was true. Asarirn doesn't really approach the girls first. Normally, the girls were always approached. Asarirn didn't have a reason to start a conversation or interaction.

"I see you were by yourself, and I was curious," Asarirn explained.

"To simply inform you, I was with Blake before deciding to take a break," Weiss started to explain. "I am honestly getting tired of hearing about rumors. On top of all, I feel we are not getting any closer to finding the family and starting to feel we are simply wasting our time."

"I feel the same thing," Asarirn stated. "All the information we gathered doesn't really point us in the direction of their whereabouts, but only their daily lives before their disappearance."

"I glad someone agreed with me," Weiss sounded pleased.

"To be honest, that is the reason I wanted to talk to you," Asarirn stated as Weiss raised an eyebrow. "Yesterday, you and Yang mentioned you came across a rumor. What was that rumor?"

"A rumor from yesterday?" Weiss had to think for a moment. "The rumor involved the farmer's wife. A person was saying, days before their disappearance, the wife was depressed. Don't know why she was depressed. But at the same time, the rumor involving the mayor's wife started to surface."

"Around the same time?"

"From what I understand, yes."

Asarirn pondered for a moment while Weiss watched him.

"Based on that, sounds like there may be people involved in their disappearance," Asarirn stated. "However, that is only if the rumors are true. There is no way of proving that."

"Sounds like another dead end," Weiss commented.

"You may be right."

"Ruby mentioned you wanted to investigate alone," Weiss stated. "Was that the reason you asked about the rumor?"

"I believed there might be some hidden meaning in some of the rumors," Asarirn explained. "By looking into some of the rumors, I was hoping to see a bigger picture."

"Certainly, a weird way of going about it."

Suddenly, Asarirn grew quiet as he felt a familiar presence. Asarirn turned his head in a direction. Under the hood, Asarirn narrowed his eyes. During that ordeal, Weiss watched Asarirn with confusion. Asarirn turned back to Weiss while she continued to stare at him.

"Without making any sudden movements," Asarirn stated. "Look past me towards the bar."

Weiss didn't say a word and did what Asarirn asked. Weiss slightly tilts her head to look around Asarirn. She squinted her eyes to focus on where Asarirn stated. Over by the building with a bar, Weiss noticed the Huntsman from Atlas, Zak. Zak sat on one of the stools at the bar. He had his back against the countertop while his body was facing out. Based on what Weiss could see, she noticed Zak was looking straight at them.

"Is Zak watching us?" Weiss had to confirm.

"I would assume so," Asarirn nodded. "I had a run-in with Zak earlier about the same thing."

"He was asking about the Mystical Blade?"

"More like demanding," Asarirn corrected. "He stated he had seen the incident involving myself and Cardin as well as the events after. There was a recording of the whole thing."

"I just want to let you know," Weiss stopped Asarirn from continuing. "You are opening yourself up for questioning from me. I have questions about what happened but kept to myself because you wanted to pretend that didn't happen."

"I am not saying the events that transpired on that day didn't happen," Asarirn explained. "I only saying I didn't want to answer questions involving my past."

"How come Zak knew about that?"

"That is what I'm trying to figure out," Asarirn tried to think of an answer. However, he remembered something. "If I recall correctly, you are from Atlas."

"I would be surprised if you didn't know," Weiss commented.

"Do you know, by chance, if the Huntsmen from Atlas are different than the Huntsmen we are training to be?"

Typically speaking," Weiss started to explain. "Most of the Huntsmen from there work under the Atlas Military."

"Then they are just soldiers," Asarirn commented.

"Sort of," Weiss continued while Asarirn listened. "Those Huntsmen do the same thing as any regular Huntsmen do, slaying Grim and helping people. The only difference is Atlas will give out special missions to help their kingdom..."

Weiss went quiet as she thought of something interesting.

"You don't think Zak is under special order from Atlas?" Weiss questioned.

"I was thinking the same thing," Asarirn agreed. "But I don't have any information that would prove that theory. The question that came to mind was how did Zak know about the Mystical Blade? How else he knew about the incident in class?"

"What about the whole investigation mission?" Weiss threw a question of her own. "If Zak truly was after you, then this mission was there for them to get closer to you."

"That is hard to say," Asarirn commented. "The chances of that happening would be low. Any team could have signed up for this mission, especially when they are asking for a second year or higher."

Weiss peaked around Asarirn for a moment. She noticed Zak was still over by the bar, facing their direction.

"How do you know if Zak is after you?" Weiss asked.

"One way to find out," Asarirn stated. "I would ask you to stay here for a moment."

Asarirn waved at Weiss before suddenly departing. Weiss watched as Asarirn headed in a random direction. She took only a second to realize what was happening. Weiss procured her scroll and simply stared at the screen. Her eyes would glace up to observe what was happening around her. Weiss watched Asarirn disappear around the corner of a random building. Over by the bar, Weiss watched Zak briefly watch her before standing up from his seat. Zak started to walk in the same direction Asarirn had headed. Same as Asarirn, Zak disappeared around the corner of the same building.

Before Weiss had a chance to process what had happened, she felt something tap her shoulder. Weiss jumped and quickly turned around. She found Asarirn standing behind her. Weiss had a dumbfounded look on her face.

"How did you get her so quickly?" Weiss couldn't help but question.

"I used my semblance," Asarirn was quick to answer.

Weiss stood there, trying to process his answer. To her, some things don't make sense. One thought that came to mind was what exactly is his semblance. Weiss shook her head as she gave up on thought for now.

"You were right," Weiss admitted. "Shortly after you left the area, Zak left the bar in the same direction you have gone."

Asarirn looked at the bar to confirm what Weiss has said was true. He could only sigh at the whole situation.

"That would mean I am his target, or he really does not like me," Asarirn stated.

"Why would they take an interest in you?" Weiss had to ask.

"For that, I don't have an answer," Asarirn stated while he checked the time on his scroll. "I suppose I have taken enough of your time. I shall take my leave."

"What are you planning on doing next?"

"I am planning on spending the rest of the day in my hotel room."

"Sounds like you won't be joining us for the next set of meals," Weiss stated.

"Not when Zak would anyway try to bother me," Asarirn explained. "And I wouldn't want to drag anybody else. Better for everyone, I stay in my room."

"Are you really going to stay in your room?" Weiss cast some doubt.

"I was hoping those people from Atlas would finish clearing the area," Asarirn explained. "I would like to investigate the farmer's home. You said it yourself. We are wasting our time chasing after rumors without being any closer to finding the family."

"Then you are simply waiting."

"If anything does come up, I will update Ruby on my whereabouts since she is the leader of this team. I better get going before Zak realized I am not there and comes looking for me."

Asarirn waved goodbye to Weiss before heading off. Weiss was once again by herself. After the interaction with Asarirn, she was left with thoughts in her head to process. Besides having to listen to rumors from people, Weiss did enjoy the little company with Asarirn, treating it as a break from everything. However, Weiss believed things between Zak and Asarirn would only escalate from there. Weiss crossed her arms as she considered keeping tabs on Asarirn.

A/N: A new chapter for the new year. Who would expect things can get busy during the month of December? Hence the reason for waiting until now to post a new chapter. Anyway, Ruby and the gang are heading to a dead end in their investigation. The tensions between Asarirn and Zak are slowly climbing. What will happen next chapter? Until next time. o/