A/N (20231007): Nothing much to say here!

/-A Requiem for a Gamer-/

"Hey, Jaune."

"Yes?"

"Can you help me out with some of this?"

"Nope, busy, very busy."

Weiss gave him a flat glare.

After that story from Blaine, Jaune had not felt like fishing anymore. Therefore, after he had reported the story to Weiss, he had returned the fishing equipment. Since Blaine didn't do much other than fish and draw, Jaune then had looked for something else to spend his downtime on.

Well, first of all, I should consider something productive. He had thought. Since RWBY:Online has lots of fighting, I think improving my reaction speed and ability to make decisions under pressure is a good idea.

That train of thought resulted in his current activity.

Weiss placed down the boxes of art supplies she was carrying. Walking over, she looked over his shoulder. Then, she crossed her arms.

"...Bewildering." She said.

"Well, can't disagree. It is all analog, though, so it kind of fits the era?"

One very important thing they had noticed once they arrived in this world was the lack of phones and computers. This told them the setting was pre-modern, and when they saw some guards in the periphery with swords and no guns, they assumed something medieval.

Weiss watched as a real, physical doll wearing overalls leapt up behind a glass panel to stomp on a mushroom's head. The mushroom flattened, before falling off the stage. Then, the doll continued, his actions controlled by a joystick in Jaune's hands.

"...I don't understand the era we're in." Weiss finally said.

"Neither do I, but it's not digital. It's like a little theater play that we can control using magic devices. Think it still harms the eyes?"

"I believe that's a myth? There is far more to that." Weiss sighed. As Jaune's doll leapt up onto a flag pole, the level finished and curtains closed on the interactive play. "What is this even doing at school?"

"I heard the magic device research club made it. Pretty cool, right?"

"Anyways, since you've finished the level, I assume you'd be free to come to my aid?"

"Wait, it seems the princess is in another castle…"

Weiss facepalmed. "Fine. I'll go ask Sora for help, then."

"Sure. He looks like a strong man." Ah, that's the alternate Nora? I think I remember seeing him.

"He is, for sure. He also has convenient lightning magic."

"Hmmm…" Wait, convenient? Why would lightning magic be convenient?

Weiss smiled, putting a finger on her cheek and making a thinking pose. "I wonder how they save their data on this machine, if it doesn't have a hard drive."

"Erm…" Jaune pressed some buttons, throwing a 'BOW' block at some enemies. All of the enemies were forced to bow, stunning them. Some enemies also hit their heads on the ground and died. "...I dunno."

"Hopefully they do things differently. After all, back when we were young, weren't thunderstorms, almost completed save files and improperly grounded houses a pretty scary combination?"

Jaune's head snapped up to face her. "You wouldn't dare…"

"Try me." She smiled.

"...Have I mentioned I hate it when you smile?"

/-/

Jaune and Weiss carried art supply boxes down the hallway.

"So, those locations we went to with the boxes…" Jaune began.

"Yes." She confirmed. "It's very spread out. I wouldn't be surprised if this is to destroy as much of the school and cause as many casualties as possible." She kept her voice down as there were many other students in the hallway once more.

Jaune didn't give a response, considering the situation himself. Having seen what he had seen, he was also starting to lean towards Weiss' conclusion on Blaine. Since it was a dating sim afterall, perhaps the man was a terrorist still, but maybe… a good terrorist?

His expression flattened. That's stupid. Violence is never the answer… unless it's a stubborn pickle jar.

"Therefore, there's only one thing left to do."

"Open the boxes?"

"Open the boxes." She confirmed.

They set down the boxes they were carrying, making sure to move out of the way to the side of the hallway. Since Jaune had returned his fishing kit, Weiss went and grabbed some scissors from a nearby classroom.

"Be careful." He told her, also whispering to match her. "It could explode if you accidentally cut the wires."

She didn't say anything, ignoring him as she focused on her task. Carefully, she cut through the tape underneath Jaune's unblinking gaze.

"Hello." Came the deep, mysterious voice of Blaine.

Jaune jumped, stepping aside quickly to see the man behind them. Where the hell did you come from?!

"These boxes look a bit of a bother for delicate ladies like you to move." The capture target inquired. "It would be only right for me to help." Without waiting for a response, he took the box Weiss was opening from beneath her grasp and placed it on top of the other. Then, he carried both away.

The two players stared at his retreating back.

"...He does remember he's the one who requested for us to move them, right?" Weiss asked.

"Script issue?"

"Sounds like they may have reused dialogue without accounting for context."

"Not to mention that there's still more boxes that we need to go back to get anyways."

"...Why does he even have that dialogue?"

Confused at the odd situation, they headed back to the art room for more boxes. This time, they took one box each to an isolated hallway so that they'll have a clear view of anyone who'd come to interrupt them.

"Keep watch." Weiss told Jaune. "I'll open the boxes - "

The entire hallway was deserted, until Weiss had said those words. Suddenly, before Jaune's very eyes, Blake warped into existence and pinned Weiss between him and the wall.

"I apologize." The man said. "I had spent too long on an artwork yesterday for the gala, and slept too late. I tripped. Are you fine?"

Weiss selected one of the dialogue boxes. "Please, take care of yourself. I understand it's important to you for some reason, but your health is also a priority." Hearing that, for a second, Jaune was almost convinced she actually cared.

[System]: Relationship Requirement (305) Success.

Blaine closed his eyes, letting his sharp features be traced by the sunlight. "This time, it's extra special. I need to put my everything into it. It's an artwork… Of you."

Bro. Jaune stared at the man. That's fucked.

"Anyways, these boxes look a bit of a bother for delicate ladies like you to move. It would be only right for me to help." Once again, he took the boxes and left.

Weiss watched the man walk away contemplatively. "...Was that the exact same line?"

"No, no, can we talk about how he knew a girl for a month or two and is now painting her portrait?!" Jaune definitely thought that was weird. I mean, anyone definitely would feel honored, and, well, creeped out?!

"What's wrong with that?" Weiss raised an eyebrow. "Happens more often than you think."

"Right, if you're - " Oh, cause Weiss Schnee. "Nevermind I get your point."

"It's an artist character in an Otome game. Painting the MC happens…" She paused. "Every second game."

"That too!" Maybe she's right? Well, whatever… There's definitely something more important to bring up. "So, uh… would you like to talk about how Blaine just warped into existence?!"

Weiss crossed her arms. "...Definitely a more… intriguing matter." She narrowed her eyes. Without a word, she started walking back. Jaune stood there for a second, surprised at the sudden movement, before sprinting after her.

Ignoring repeated questions from her companion, Weiss took out another box of art supplies from the club room. This time, she started opening it right outside.

Jaune watched incredulously as Weiss, who was bent down kneeling, suddenly slipped on absolutely nothing. Her foot made a ridiculous arc, completely flipping her one hundred and eighty degrees, before a newly warped in Blaine caught her in his arms.

"Careful there," the teenager said in what was most likely the huskiest tone his voice actor could manage.

Jaune's right eye twitched. He wouldn't have felt so annoyed if the camera - his vision - didn't do its best to capture every moment, slowing down and reframing shots to make Blaine look as cool as possible.

As Blaine said his lines and left, Jaune figured that he had gotten a hold of what the situation was. "It seems like opening the box triggers one of these 'events' of yours, preventing us from seeing what's inside… How very not suspicious."

Weiss just stood, watching the direction Blaine had disappeared towards.

"Weiss?"

"...His arms are surprisingly well built."

"Weiss."

She turned to face him, her eyes resolute. "I believe we need to determine the limits of his omniscience."

Ah, there it is. "Yeah, got any ideas?"

She thought for a second. "You caught where he spawned?"

He motioned the place in the hallway.

"Stand there. I'll grab another box."

"...How many more boxes are there…?"

"Infinite, they respawned."

Good job on realism, Light.

Jaune walked to the spot to occupy the spawn point.

"What do you think will happen, Weiss?"

"It is difficult to predict. Maybe it'll notice the illegal spawn and reset his position to the world origin of this game, allowing us to finally open the box. There is also the possibility of him and you clipping into each other."

Jaune laughed. "Oh that'd be pretty funny." He recalled himself clipping through the map a few days ago and imagined something similar.

"With how realistic this game is at some points, I wouldn't be surprised if it took it a bit more literally, however."

"Literally…?"

She came back out of the room holding a box. "Imagine what would happen if yours and his flesh accidentally physically occupied the same space." She said as she put it down and got ready to open it. "Blood would flow into the wrong vessels, nuclear explosions as your atoms are jammed together like they never should be…"

Jaune's face paled. "Wait - "

Luckily for him, none of that happened as Blaine appeared at a different spot in the hallway.

This time, Weiss tripped forward, sending her into a forward dive, despite the fact that she had started stationary and kneeling. Blaine caught her as expected.

"...Nope, didn't work." Jaune summarized as Blaine left once more after a short exchange. I wonder what it looks like in Blaine's POV. "Should we try something else - "

"Place a box there so that both spawns are occupied." She said instantly, going back into the art room.

"...That works too." Can't hurt to try again.

Of course, the same thing happened, but this time with a bridal carry.

"You think his alternate spawn locations include the entire hallway - "

"More boxes!" Weiss commanded without even looking at him from her position.

"Fine, fine."

Jaune did as she asked and for the next five tries he watched the same situation play out in slightly different ways, enough to make him a bit tired of the repetition.

"Hey Weiss," he walked up to her after the latest altercation, approaching from behind. "Are we really going to keep trying this until the entire hallway is full of boxes?" We have limited time, you know! You sure you want to do just that? He moved around her such that they could talk face to face.

She quickly turned away. "Yes." She said, her voice firm. "It's too early to give up."

"Hm?" He raised an eyebrow, circling her but she kept turning away. "Why are you…"

"I said we need to keep going! Go, go on." She shooed him away.

"Now this sounds familiar." He deadpanned. With practiced ease, he pulled the same trick he did on Blaine and came face to face with Weiss despite her best efforts.

Her cheeks were definitely flushed.

"Weiss." He put a hand over his face in pure exasperation.

"It's not what you think it is! The physical exercise is merely raising my heart rate, and I have beautiful porcelain skin, so it shines through easily!"

"Weiss..."

She cleared her throat, trying to gain back some of her composure. "Like I said," She told him seriously. "We should consider this instead as a battle between the developers and I. Who are they to tell me how to play the game? In fact, this whole situation is just a reward - War!" She quickly corrected herself. "A war, with our dignity at stake!"

"Blaine's dignity is the one at stake here." Jaune let his hand slide off his face. "Stay here, I'll apologize to him."

"W - Wait, Jaune! Let me have my fun!"

He headed down the hallway Blaine had disappeared down. He wasn't too sure about how much Blaine remembered, or even if the capture target had lines for such a situation. Still, he thought it'd be the nice thing to do.

"Now where is he - Woah!" Jaune yelped as he found Blaine crumpled on the ground as he rounded the corner.

The teenager was in a fetal position, holding his head in between his arms. He was rolling side to side, making noises of absolute suffering.

"Blaine?" Jaune questioned, unsure what was happening. Did he hit his funny bone or something?

"...Leave me to my dishonor…" Blaine said. "Aaaaargh, I can't believe I did that!" He screamed into his arms, muffling it. It was very strange for Jaune to hear so much outraged emotion in Blaine's voice, since it still had the dark and broody intonations.

"...Huh? You are talking about that hair flip after catching Wei - Maria the last time?"

"You saw that?" The man stopped for a second, looking stunned at Jaune, before he began rolling even more panickedly. "Noooooo…"

"What happened to being dark and silent…?"

"You do something this cringy and then not regret it!"

"...Point." Said Jaune, though in truth he didn't really get it. "Surprised you're already reacting to it, not, you know, ten years down the line while lying on your bed in the middle of the night."

"I must have looked like a fool! No, misogynistic even…"

"Yet you did that sort of action… so many more times than once."

Blaine raised his face from his arms. "Did I?" He said, before hiding it again. "I have no idea what came over me!"

Jaune sat down on the floor beside him, and patted his shoulder. "Come on now, it wasn't that bad. It'll just be part of your dark history for the rest of your life."

"Please… If you are trying to comfort me… do better. She is going to hate me after this…"

"No, no… In fact, I'd say things have minorly improved."

"...Really?"

"You heard it from the love master." Definitely would only work if you're a dating sim character… Even I, with my lady-killer charms, wouldn't be able to make it work. "Anyways, keep up the good work!"

"...Don't remind me…" Blaine groaned as Jaune stood up and left to head back to Weiss.

The smile Jaune had on his face felt definitely plastic.

Arriving, he saw Weiss stand with her hands on her hips. "Ruined my fun, yet?" She glared.

"...What was I doing again?" Jaune blinked.

She stared at him incredulously. "...Putting boxes into Blaine's spawn locations?"

"I believe we were trying to see what was inside them, rather."

"Yes, by blocking off his spawn so that we can do so without him interrupting us." Weiss was quick on the comeback.

"Or, we can try something else, like you trapping Blaine in a dialogue, and I can open the box. The more obvious answer, in fact, unless there are two Blaines that come into existence." An obvious answer that you would have provided, Weiss, if you weren't distracted! What has the world come to if I'm the voice of reason!

"We can try that, though I don't expect it to work as easily as you think. ...I suppose it was a little awkward with you watching on the sidelines." She paused. "Oh, did you wish to get physical with Blaine too?"

"Weiss! Please, for the love of goats everywhere, go trap Blaine in a conversation!"

"Who are you to order me around?"

"Pretty please with every single cherry in the entire world on top, Weiss!"

She rolled her eyes. "Fine. Have it your way." She said, before she left down the hallway.

Burger King? He pinched his own nose. Dammit, why did I think that? I must have been working in fast food for too long.

We should have made a signal or something… He suddenly realized. How else will I know when Blaine is trapped in conversation? She couldn't have gone far. He sped up to a small jog. That was when every student around him froze up, letting him remember that there was a pretty obvious signal.

"Nobody saw that." He looked around with an awkward laugh, before running back the way he came. In fact, you're frozen! There's nothing you can see!

Arriving back at the box, he tried opening it.

He realized his mistake when he couldn't even move the box.

"Oh." I forgot. "Goddammit, I already tried this with the fishing rod!" Jaune scratched the back of his head with a bit of a laugh. "Guess time to give up and go back to Weiss to tell her it didn't work out."

And that was what he did.

"Alright, so what did you try?" Weiss asked him, frozen in the dialogue menu.

"...Try?"

"Well, yes, it's not like I can be the one this time. Only I can trap him like this," She waved to Blaine, who was sitting across from her doing his homework. They were both sitting at a desk in their classroom.

"Erm, I tried… nothing else…?"

"Nothing?!" She called, outraged. "You gave up so fast?! Go back!"

"W - Wait, so what should I - "

"I don't know, use your powers, your chi, your inventory… I don't care, Jaune, do something!"

"Alright, alright!" He jogged back for the nth time. Facing the box once more, he tried using his Aura as Weiss had suggested. His Aura flickered a few times, but he was unable to move it. No chance to 'Override' this time? He sighed. Well, any other ideas?

The only other thing that came to him was Weiss' inventory comment, oddly. I mean, it definitely has to be a throwaway line. I don't see how storing it helps. Still, he was willing to try. He opened up his inventory menu and instantly came face to face with a full-screen ad.

Dammit, I don't care if there's a limited time deal for buying three inventory slots!

Closing it, he saw that his one single inventory slot was used up by the loot box he had slammed into an unlucky Grimm's face a while ago. He took it out using voice commands in order to make room. As expected, it spawned in front of Jaune, floating in the air waiting for the moment that the world restarted to fall.

Wait, it's not going to crash through the floor, is it? He had not forgotten how heavy it was. Therefore, he tried pushing it lower so that it'd be closer to the floor, but he was unable to budge it an inch, forcing him to put it back into his inventory and then taking it out again.

"...Wait…" An idea suddenly came to him. Leaving the loot box where it was, he returned to Weiss.

The woman in question was keeping herself busy. "...the amygdala was first formally recognized in the early 19th century…" She mumbled to herself, staring at the ceiling contemplatively. "...evolutionarily primitive division is associated with…"

"You're studying?"

"Of course. What else would I be doing?"

"I dunno, blankly staring at Bla - into space…"

"My head is not empty like yours, Jaune."

"That's not nice to say, Weiss." He wagged his finger at her. "You might make some people angry."

She looked at him. "Tell me," She said, ignoring his words. "Did anything work?"

"Just a sec." Jaune pointed a finger at Blaine. "'Store'," He spoke the voice command out loud.

[System]: Error, invalid target.

"Aw."

Weiss' stare became even more incredulous. "Did you just try to put the capture target into your inventory - "

"Nope, and bye!" He left before he could hear the rest.

Arriving back at the place he left both boxes, he took a moment to rack his mind for any ideas. "Oh, since the items poof out from my inventory, what if I tried taking it out in the same place as something else?" Placing two things in the exact same location, that has to create some errors, he thought.

He tried that, but it seems the gods had expected it. All he had gotten was a system warning, similar to when he tried to place Blaine into his inventory.

"Argh, this is hard!" He said in frustration. "Just let me break your game!"

At least it most likely confirms we were doing something with all those spawn-blocking boxes.

Dejected, he went back to Weiss.

"So?"

"Nothing…" He reported, frustrated. "It seems like all the bases have been covered! I tried putting things in and out of my inventory, on top of other objects… Nothing!"

She looked skeptical, but decided to take his word for it. "Hmmm… Perhaps we should try another angle."

"If only the hallway wasn't so large, then we wouldn't be placing boxes forever for our first method!"

Weiss tilted her head. "...For example, in a smaller room?"

"Oh. Yeah!" Jaune blinked. "Oh, yeah!" I'm not sure if Blaine needs to spawn in the same room, but it can't hurt to try!

Weiss finished up with her scenario, and the two found a random janitor's closet. Baffling the other students, they picked up boxes from the art room and started stuffing it up. Since there was an infinite spawn, they had more than enough boxes to fill it up. Soon enough, Weiss was sitting with one of the boxes while surrounded at all sides by a fortress of cardboard.

"Last box, coming in!" Said Jaune. With a bit of effort, he slid it into the remaining hole and sealed her off from the hallway.

Weiss said something, but he couldn't hear much as he closed the door.

"Alright, I just need to keep watch, I guess." He leaned against the wall beside the doorway, crossing his arms. Other students walked by him, uncaring of the actions of the two players.

All the hecticness of the previous trials disappeared as he kind of just waited there. It wasn't long, but the lull in the moment made his usually easily distracted mind wander and drift to the matter that Weiss had revealed to him - about his own intelligence.

So what, I'm smarter than I thought I was? What do I do about it? He winced. Does such a revelation even matter? I mean, I'm in my final year of uni. It's kind of too late to do anything, isn't it? I'm an adult already.

It's kind of like what Cardin was talking about. How all the other huntsmen were awakened to their powers early, and that he and I are basically extremely late. To match the kind of effort everyone else has made, at this point, is basically impossible.

Cardin and Weiss… He narrowed his eyes. This is definitely beyond a coincidence. It was your goal this whole time, wasn't it?!

[Admin]: You think yourself too important. However, you are not entirely incorrect.

Not entirely incorrect - yeah, I doubt that. He mentally mumbled. Well, thanks, Light, for the revelation, except the past is kind of passed! It's gone to a place I can't reach - what do you want me to do?!

The lights in the hallway flashed, making him suddenly snap back to reality.

Someone playing a prank? Power outage? That's what he thought until he also saw that every other student was gone. What? They just poofed away!

Jaune also noticed a second thing that was definitely strange. The lighting definitely felt different, despite the lights having come back. There was… more contrast? His eyes glanced over to the windows… where it showed that it was clearly dark outside.

Wait, were we really here for that long?! He quickly ran down the hallway. He was looking for a clock, deciding to check the obvious answer. He also checked his pocket, but he didn't have his phone. Maybe it's already winter, the sun sets earlier? It wouldn't make too much sense if that was the reason, as it definitely didn't set that early yesterday. Or suddenly!

Just before he was about to go back and ask for Weiss' phone, he found a clock a few doors down, at the very end of the hallway hanging on a wall. It read 8 pm, something he could see clearly despite not approaching it.

It was definitely still during school hours just seconds ago… But… Did we actually just snap forward in time?!

This kind of thing happened a lot, actually, since between game events they would usually have little time to dally around. Sometimes, they would skip almost an entire day as Weiss skipped through dialogue and ran through menus faster than he could see what she was doing.

However, the difference this time was that they weren't teleported to the dorm after-school and weren't face to face with the after-school activities menu. Other events that changed up the norm were prefaced with a few dialogue boxes which also teleported Jaune to them, so clearly it wasn't that.

The lights flickered off.

"...Rich kids school, and the lights aren't working right." He deadpanned. "Probably 6000$ collector's antique light bulbs." He shook his head with a bit of mirth, before looking back up.

Below the clock, there was a man.

He jumped. Wait, that person - Did I miss him?! No, I don't think so… He's right beneath the clock I was looking at! There's no damn way!

Having gazed from half the hallway down to the clock, at that distance, and with how dark it was now, he couldn't see it anymore, nor the man's face at all. The silhouette suggested a uniform or tux of sorts and a tall, skinny build.

Jaune nervously glanced behind himself, as if something else was watching, before returning his gaze.

The man still stood at the end of the hallway, silent. Unmoving.

[?]: 1%

"...Er, Blaine, that you?" He asked. The build didn't fit him; Blaine had wider shoulders and was a bit shorter. Also, what do you mean, he thought, double checking the notification that had appeared on his HUD. 1%? 1% of what?

A bit of light in the corner of his eye caught Jaune's attention, and he glanced towards it. To his shock, there was warm, orange light peeking out from the edge of the windows all across the one side of the hall. Confused, he walked up to one of them, holding a hand out to block the majority of the glare.

There, outside, was a beautiful sunset, set against the school gardens.

[?]: 3%

Despite the fact that it was dark a second ago. Wait, is it sunrise then?! This game literally doesn't care about time!

He lowered his hand, but it was as he did so that he realized that it was glowing. Even more confused, he took a few steps back into the darkness of the hallway, where he then realized his entire self was glowing with white light. As if he was using his Aura.

"Damn, am I unconsciously concentrating on it?" He tried to relax, but it did not go away. In fact, rather than go away, it intensified. "The Hell?!"

[?]: 4%

I don't like this number going up!

[System]: Data extraction request failed: 403 Forbidden. Retrying.

[System]: Data extraction request failed: 403 Forbidden. Retrying.

[System]: Data extracti

[System]: New supervisory credentials received.

[System]: Supervisor access granted without permission from admin. Notification sent to relevant authorities.

[System]: Data extraction request succeeded.

Just as fast as his Aura brightened, it dimmed, taking his attention away from the messages that were spamming his HUD. Before his bewildered eyes, out from his white halo grew out tendrils of blackened yellow. They stretched out like snakes, yet their movements were erratic, incomprehensible. Some detached from him with a snapping motion, before slowing down and casually orbiting him like satellites around a planet.

"The hell…" Jaune repeated. Wait, I've seen this color, this shade before… Back when I first - His gaze was fixated on the black and yellow strips, but the longer he looked the more uncomfortable he felt. Like his mind was expanding, because in truth, within those slips he could see -

born onto eternal life. Cycle, after Cycle. capitalization, synchronization, termination

who has the rights to existence?

not I. especially… not you.

- infinity. He saw a glimpse of endless possibilities, but not in the sense of a single loosely, hand-waved, poorly defined word. He saw the very fabric, blankness of - he didn't know what - and within, saw so much it could be. In that very moment possibilities inundated his senses so much that it hurt, and hurt, and hurt.

Yet he couldn't look away.

[?]: 6%

It captured his gaze despite his pain, like watching a train wreck with his mind's eye, and slowly it became like a searing hotness, pounding, burrowing into his brain. Something hot dripped down from his nose and ears, and -

[System]: Admin assuming direct control.

A hand clamped onto his face, covering his eyes, yet it did nothing as it was not what he saw, but what he will see, could see, and had seen. Instead, all the hand did was suffocate Jaune, but he couldn't do anything as his body spasmed.

Then, a blinding flash.

[System]: Psionic-link disconnected from Actor.

[System]: Data extraction request interrupted.

[System]: Reconnecting…

[System]: New updates found.

[System]: Updating…

[System]: Complete.

[System]: Admin direct control terminated.

Jaune found himself sprawled on the ground, staring at the dark ceiling of the hallway. His head hurt. Something sticky was all over his face and neck, so he instinctively raised his hand to touch what it was.

It was sticky.

thanks hands, very informative. He moaned in pain to himself, before raising it to his eyes to barely see something maroon covering his fingers in the darkness. What the hell… He thought, as his nose registered the coppery scent.

He sat up. What the fuck? His head was pounding, his body ached, and he was just so utterly confused.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he suddenly spied the blackened yellow ribbons again and made sure to this time snap his head away. It seemed no new ones were being created. However, there were many, so some still stayed in his peripheral vision.

He narrowed his eyes. Instead of orbiting around him like before, it seems that they were all moving in the same direction? Carefully, he turned his head to follow, trying to feel for that sensation of mental overload. This time, though, there was nothing, and he safely watched as all the ribbons flowed gently down the hall…

…towards the mysterious, lanky man.

[?]: 14%

"Oh… Oh fuck." Jaune mumbled, stumbling a bit as he tried to get to his feet. "You… You're the one behind this, aren't you?!" An enemy Stand user!

The ribbons disappeared as they touched the man, and though nothing visibly seemed to happen, Jaune felt like the darkness around them started becoming… thicker. Elongated, bendier, livelier… Almost like a creature.

The shadows lurked. Hiding. Waiting.

[?]: 15%

The man stepped forward.

No, it was more… More like a teleport, a phasing. He didn't take a single step, he just appeared two steps forward! And he's still in the same pose!

Despite himself, Jaune grinned for a second. Let's just hope he doesn't start T-posing menacingly - OH FUCK!

Jaune fell backwards off his feet as the man - the entity - teleported halfway up to him. Scrambling, he tried to get back up and start running, but in the next moment the man was hovering right beside him and he stretched out a surprisingly well manicured hand to -

"Large heal!"

The hallway was lit up with a flash of light, and in the split moment before the man suddenly disappeared, Jaune saw the man's blond hair in the light of Weiss' spell.

Jaune collapsed on the ground for the second time, his heart pounding. Weiss kneeled behind him, gaze furiously scouring the hallway for the man's presence.

"Care to explain, Jaune?" She said.

"What the fuck." He repeated his earlier words, stunned himself. "What the fuck!"

"...I will assume that wasn't usual."

"Understatement of the fucking year, Weiss!" He sat up to get a better angle at the hallway around him.

"Perhaps the villain of this game finally shows himself, I see."

"What kind of villain is that!" Jaune turned around to face her. "Isn't this a dating sim?! When did it turn into a horror movie?!" He watched as her eyes widened. "It's back?!" He yelled as he spun around, but there was nothing.

"...You're…" She muttered. There was clear shock in her voice. A distinct sudden soft undertone followed her words, contrasting strongly against her usually poignant way of speaking. His confusion increased as he froze when cold skin softly cupped his cheek before he could fully turn back to face her.

His eyes widened as all his muscles tightened in a way they hadn't for the apparition. A chill invaded his body, letting him know of a new kind of terror.

"You're bleeding." She finally said. It was delicate, wispy words, as if she had merely breathed them out rather than voicing them clearly.

His hands shook.

Gently, her hand guided his head back and she raised her other hand over him. She whispered the spell name and her hands glowed with healing light.

Shivers went up his spine.

"Jaune?" Her eyes scanned his face. "Say something." A little bit of urgency entered her voice.

His mouth opened, teeth chattering. "... W - Weiss snapped!"

Her expression flattened. She smacked him over the head, making him let out a laugh. "You actually made me think something was wrong, you dunce!" Sighing, she pinched her nose in frustration. "You sure you are fine now?"

"Yup, yup!" He stood up with a bounce, giving her a reassuring smile, "In fact, after your healing, all my exhaustion went away! In fact, I feel better than ever!" His gaze then moved to glance down the hallway. "I'll keep feeling fine if he doesn't come back, though!"

Weiss eyed the same direction. "We need to be on our guard. I assume this must be related to the bombings… and I don't like how realistic they are taking this plot thread."

"Right, right, realistic, cause it's every day that it's day, then suddenly night, then suddenly sunrise."

"Sunrise?"

To his surprise, when he glanced out the window, he saw perfect darkness. He strolled closer in order to get a better view of the horizon, yet all he saw was the blackness of night. "...I guess the sunrise is gone?" Erm… A trick of the light? Someone with a floodlight? "Or maybe illusion magic?"

Weiss also stood up, walking to stand by him. "...Why would anyone make that kind of an illusion?"

"If I was the villain, I would totally make an awesome backdrop to my entrance! I'd also use magic to make a sick background track, you know, keep the heroes coming back for more!"

"That villain would be mentally challenged."

"At least I'm not height-challenged - Woah!"

Weiss winced as she retracted her hand from his unmoved side. She held the throbbing fist in one hand, glaring at him as if it was his fault.

"I mean, I did do that Garfield thing in the morning where I showed off my Gamer abilities…" Jaune rubbed the back of his neck with a laugh.

"Yet, I was able to wind you no problem during our conversation with the headmaster."

"What? Did you?" He did vaguely remember something like that, now that he thought of it.

"...I do suddenly feel a little sluggish. Still, we are getting side tracked. An illusion magic wielder is going to be annoying. We should think of countermeasures."

"Hmmm…" Something else bugged him though and it was the '?' system messages. He felt like he had seen them before. He couldn't at that moment remember where, though. "I guess maybe he's some kind of undead? He was clearly scared away by your healing magic."

"Then, you should stick with me. While usually the NPC's don't approach you as much, this one clearly targeted you."

"No objections."

"Oh, no objections now?" Weiss smiled. "What about when you forgot me inside of a locked closet?"

For a second, Jaune didn't get what she meant, before he remembered that before the whole horror event he was supposed to watch the closet from the outside until she was done. "Oh… Haha… I'm sorry?" He rubbed the back of his neck again, this time sheepishly. "No hard feelings?"

"I had to kick down the door, and the boxes almost crushed me!"

Jaune winced. The boxes weren't the lightest things, and there were a lot of them. That must have been difficult. "Wait, you kicked down the door?!" She hurt herself punching me… and she can kick down a door?!

"Not sure how I was able to, but it was lucky that I could! You know how claustrophobic it was?!"

"Sorry, sorry, sorry!"

"You don't sound sorry!"

Jaune chuckled awkwardly. "So, were you able to open the box?"

"I was."

His eyes widened. "You were?" No complications? Nice! Can't believe it worked! He thought for a second. Is that why…?

"Yes." Her now serious eyes met his gaze. "And the items inside weren't entirely what I was expecting."

"…Art supplies?"

She turned around, leading the way. "I think I better show you."

"Oh my goat, don't tell me you found more boxes inside the boxes."

"As if!"

He followed her back to the janitor's closet, where the lights were also on. When he arrived, he did a double take. "You were not kidding!" He said. The door had been kicked straight off its hinges, laying split in half on the floor. "Holy shit!" A number of boxes were also strewn about, most likely tossed there by Weiss in her escape.

"...I don't understand how I was able to do so. Perhaps a scripted event?"

Jaune grabbed half of the door. He concentrated, trying to remember what it felt like to use Aura strength, and slowly and with difficulty, picked it up. "Hey, Weiss, try to kick this a - " His concentration flickered and he almost dropped it on his foot. "Try to kick this again."

She raised an eyebrow at him. She held out her hand, gesturing between the board's height and her skirt.

"...What?"

"Do I really need to say it?"

"Err… No?" Jaune scratched his head and brought the board lower. "I can… Kneel down?"

"That's worse, you dunce!"

"Alright, alright!" He placed the board on the ground. "How about what's inside the box, then?"

Weiss gave a long, suffering sigh, before shaking her head and taking out the box she had opened from inside the janitor's closet. Jaune looked inside.

It was full of books.

"That's so damn disappointing."

"I know," Weiss agreed, "Books are a little tough for you, but stick with me for a moment."

"Hey!"

Weiss continued. "I had flipped through some of these. There's a lot of poems. Diaries. Biographies."

"Blaine has a terrible taste in books."

She placed the box onto the ground and took one out, showing Jaune the cover. "However, take a look at the author."

"...Julliet Belladonna?"

"And this one."

"...Kali Belladonna?"

"And this."

"Blake Belladonna."

Weiss put the book down. "You aren't looking at just any books, Jaune. These dozens of books are a house's entire history, from their feelings about wars, explanations for cryptic choices taken during their reigns, and their legends. This encompasses so much of who they were… It is House Belladonna." She took a second look, her lips stretching into a thin line. "Or what is left of the ancient royal house's legacy."

Jaune blinked.

Weiss noticed his confusion. "Yes?"

"What?"

"What what?"

"What, what what?"

"Please, do not make that joke with me." Weiss placed a hand over her face. "What is it?"

"Blaine's a prince?!"

"Yes… So are the other four revealed capture targets."

"A - All four?! How the hell do you know that, and I don't?!" Jaune threw up his arms. How, how does that even make sense?! The four don't even look related!

"It was literally said in the very first scene, after the opening ceremony, Jaune! Didn't you listen?!"

"I remember telling you that I didn't."

"Jaune!"

"And you said fallen… The Belladonna's were disgraced? Is that why Blaine's so moody?"

"Jaune… He's the last Belladonna. Barely a trueblood, in fact, and the vassals of House Belladonna basically propped him, a distant relative, up as a puppet."

"Oh…" Jaune paused. "You probably shouldn't say that to his face."

"Obviously."

"I… Wow. You've trying to steal a prince away from his fiancée, despite your low status." He placed a finger over his lips. "What's that called again? Oh, a gold digger - wait, wait wait, put that book down, I didn't mean it!"

"More importantly, Jaune," Weiss opened the book she was holding. "One of these Belladonna's was a Light-user. And she was hailed as a Saint, because she had prodigious healing powers… and the rarest ability for a Light-user to have: divination." She flipped to a section of the book. "And guess what she did with her future sight?"

"Win all the lotteries?"

Weiss glared at him. "She wrote down a prophecy about the eventuality of this world. A prophecy… called the Eden of Roses."

Jaune gasped and pointed at her. "That's the name of the thing!"

"That's the name of the thing." Weiss agreed, though scrunched her nose for a sec at the way Jaune put it. "She described it as a 'state of perfect love'."

"Right, right, and she says that we will one day reach it, blabla vagueness… I know how these prophecies work."

"She also said that in this very year, it will be achieved."

"She put down a year?!"

"And she wrote this three hundred years ago."

"Holy shit! A big, hard to predict event, yet also very specific in terms of timeframe… already better than 99% of the fortune tellers out there!"

"...A state of perfect love sounds grand enough that it will be difficult to explain away with the Barnum effect."

"Wait…" Jaune remembered something. "Didn't the school explode this year? That is not perfect love!"

"Probably non-canon."

Jaune chuckled. "Damn, I wonder how this factors in with everything."

"I have already flipped through what I can - there's a lot of writing - but I do wonder if it's just our luck, or there's something else in the other boxes."

"Wow, what a coincidence that the very first box we open isn't just art supplies."

"Oh, shush you!"

Huh, last of the Belladonna's… Jaune thought as they started walking back to the art room. This does make a little sense with what he talked about for his backstory. About being a wanderer. That kind of sounds like… either he was always alone, or… Jaune frowned. Or something happened.

/-A Requiem for a Gamer-/

A/N: Nothing, really.

Next Chapter: October 22nd, 2023