Yo!
I doubt anyone expected a chapter today of all days, eh? But well, here we are. Enjoy.
Chapter 38. Preparations
"So those are the two kids I have heard so much about," I said, stopping just a few steps away from the group. "Quite the unique pair you have, Summer."
For some reason, Ruby beamed at my words while her mother just let out a long sigh. "Don't I know it," she muttered. "Ruby, Yang, this is Umbra, the man who saved my life and brought me back to you after…"
She trailed off, but no one here needed her to finish. We all knew very well what she wanted to say, and to be honest, it might be for the best if the subject of Taiyang's death remained untouched. I definitely didn't want to talk about it with his two kids…
Thankfully, Ruby, the ever-bright child, saved us from awkward silence. "Thank you so much, sir!" she shouted while dashing forward and enveloping me in a hug. "You're now my third favorite person."
I stiffened, looking left and right for some help at the sudden invasion of my personal space. Yet, Neo—the little shit—just grinned at me while Summer simply offered me a tired shrug as if to say, 'What can I do.'
Thanks a lot… I grumbled internally and awkwardly patted Ruby on the back. "It's nothing, kid. I did what any self-respecting person would. Also third? Now I'm curious who is first and second."
At that, the girl released me from her embrace and stepped away. "Mom and Yang, of course!" she chuckled sheepishly. "No one can take their place."
"Don't let Qrow and Raven hear you say that," Summer said. "I would rather not experience their dumb ideas trying to regain their lost place."
"You got it, Mom." Ruby grinned and made a motion of zipping her mouth shut.
"Good." Summer smiled before glancing at her other child. "Yang? Anything you want to say?"
The older teenager, who had been doing her best to ignore the ongoing conversation, huffed before offering me a small bow. "Thank you for helping our mother."
With that, she averted her gaze, refusing to look in my direction. I opened my mouth to answer, but Ruby's never-ending energy beat me again.
"Don't mind Yang, sir," she said, rolling her eyes at her sister. "She is like this with everyone she doesn't know. Trust me, deep inside, she is a big softy. This is just her another attempt to look intimidating."
"Ruby!" Yang shouted, her face coloring as she punched her sister's shoulder. "What the hell?!"
"Ouch." The small girl rubbed her shoulder, shooting Yang a glare. "I'm just saying the truth. If you stopped trying to act like some tough bitch, I wouldn't need to do this every time."
"Ruby! Language," Summer hissed, to which the girl just rolled her eyes. "I will kill Qrow and Raven…"
I chuckled but also couldn't help but notice Neo shuffling on her feet. If I had to guess, it wasn't only the Branwen siblings that were responsible for the little Red's colorful language. More blackmail for me.
"So what brings you all here?" I decided to ask. "Aside from the obvious, of course."
"The girls had been asking about meeting you ever since I told them about what happened," Summer explained. "With you still at Beacon, I decided to get it out of the way."
I hummed. "Wanted to meet me, hmm? Both of you?" I quirked an eyebrow, sparing the older teenager a short look.
"Both." Summer grinned.
"Mom!" the only blond whined, the mask of coldness cracking in the face of growing embarrassment. She hid her red face in her hands.
"What Yang?" Summer ruffled the girl's hair. "I said the truth. Besides, even if your sister's choice of words wasn't exactly perfect, she was right. Do need need to have another conversation about lying and being rude to others?"
Yang scowled, mumbling out a "No."
"That's what I thought." Summer smiled. "Okay, girls, if you wanted to ask Umbra something, now is the ti—"
"Train me!" Ruby shouted, cutting her mother off.
"What?" I asked just to make sure I heard her right.
"I said, train me. We saw your fight with Neo. It was fucking awesome! You beat her without even trying, while I can't even land a clean hit on her. Train me just like you trained her!"
Oh dear…
Feeling a headache coming from a mile away, I tried to diffuse this situation. "Listen, little Red. I'm sure there are better teachers out there than me. Besides, Neo's skills are the result of her own hard work. I was out of commission for ten years, remember?"
"I don't care. Train me!" Ruby repeated as if she hadn't heard a word I just said.
I fought back the urge to face-palm and looked at Summer for help. Thankfully, the woman understood my plea and placed a hand upon her unruly daughter's shoulder.
"Ruby, Umbra can't stay here. He has his own life and will be leaving in a few days anyway, right?" I nodded to that. "See? You can't make him stay just to train you."
The girl looked between me and her mother and crossed her arms, pouting. "Bummer…"
"Oh, don't be like this, little rose," Summer said, gathering Ruby into her arms. "Your mom is here, and I don't know if you're aware of it, but I'm quite a powerful Huntress. I will teach you and Yang everything I know."
Ruby pouted even harder. "But you can't throw around cool lightning."
Seeing Summer flounder at her daughter's sudden betrayal, I stepped in. "Kid, who do you want to be in the future?"
That instantly shifted the atmosphere around them. Ruby escaped out of her mother's embrace and stood straight. "I will be the best Huntress ever! I will make it so nobody will ever have to suffer losing their loved ones again."
A good goal, an obvious one considering what she went through. I nodded, ignoring how Summer froze. Instead, I glanced at the other teenager. "And you Yang?"
For a moment, it looked like she wouldn't answer, but then her eyes landed on her sister, and her gaze softened. "I will go wherever Ruby goes. Someone has to have her back while she saves the world."
I see, I thought, coming to a decision.
"Tell you what," I began. "Your mother is right. I can't train you. And even if I could, I doubt I would have anything new to teach you. You are at Beacon Academy, after all. People here are much better suited for the job than me. However,"—I raised a hand to stop Ruby from interrupting—"I'm not against a spar every now and then when I visit. What do you two say?"
The two girls shared a look as if having a silent conversation none else could understand. Then they both turned to me and nodded.
"Great." I clapped my hands. "We have a deal then. We can even have a spar before I leave. Maybe tomorrow?"
Summer, who finally reclaimed her lost dignity, winced at that. "I think you should avoid fighting anything for at least a few days," she said, pointing at the ruined arena behind them. "Glynda won't be happy when she sees that."
"Ah…" I muttered. "You just might be right… We should probably get the hell out of here."
"After you, Umbra."
"I heard from Glynda about one of our arenas being almost destroyed yesterday. You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?" Ozpin asked as we took a seat in his office.
I froze for a second before recovering my composure. "Nope, nothing."
"I'm sure," the other man said, amusement dancing in his eyes. "But enough about that. I didn't call you here just to talk about some minor damages."
I wouldn't call them minor, but I'm definitely not gonna complain. I shrugged, leaning back in my seat. "So what is it? I'm kind of surprised the others aren't here."
"I will be meeting with everyone tomorrow, but I thought you would appreciate getting the information sooner, considering you have already stayed here longer than you wanted," Ozpin explained.
"I really do. Beacon is nice and all, but I got stuff to do out there."
The man nodded. "Thus we are here… As you're aware, I have been busy dealing with Leonardo for the past few days. The case is now closed."
That instantly caught my attention. I leaned forward. "What did he tell you?"
"Everything and nothing. He confirmed what he already told you. The Relic of Knowledge is gone, and Cinder Fall wields the power of two Maidens."
Right…
"That's all? You wouldn't have called me here if it was," I prodded.
"You're right, there's more," Ozpin confirmed. "It took some effort, but Leonardo told me an interesting story about Salem's agents. Other than Cinder and her team, of course."
Oh? That I gotta hear. With Tyrian dead, god knows who else she found to work for her.
"I'm listening."
"Very well," Ozpin said and slid a Scroll toward me. I picked it up and looked at the picture of a tall and muscular man it showed. "This is Hazel Rainart, a man I honestly didn't expect to fall this low, but maybe that's my mistake. He is a powerful fighter with a Semblance that practically negates his pain. You probably have nothing to worry about from him, but keep an eye out."
I nodded even though I already knew most of that. Although in my head, I called this guy 'a big man with more brawn than brain.' It was nice to finally put a name to his face. Honestly, until now, I almost forgot about him, meaning he probably wasn't that important.
That, or my memory of the show, was worse than I thought…
"For the next one, I don't have a picture, only Leonardo's ramblings," Ozpin continued. "According to him, Salem employs a monster that looks like a human. Very similar to The Cursed but on a much bigger scale. Leonardo described it as a humanoid scorpion Grimm. Fast but apparently can't say more than a few basic words."
Blood froze in my veins even before the ancient man finished speaking. Humanoid scorpion? It could be a coincidence, but what were the odds?
"When did it appear? Did he tell you?" I demanded.
Ozpin's eyebrows jumped up at my sudden question. "We can't be sure. Leonardo first encountered it six years back. Why?"
I grimaced. "There's a good chance I know what, or rather who the monster is. I could be completely wrong, though."
"Any information is welcome, Umbra. Even if you're wrong, it's best to be prepared."
It was hard to argue with that. "Tyrian Callows," I said. "He was Salem's agent in the other timeline too. The issue is that I killed him ten years ago in Atlas."
"Ah… I see how that could be a problem."
"Yeah…" I grumbled. "So either this monster is something completely unrelated, or Salem took Tyrian's corpse and turned it into a knock-off version of a Grimm."
"To fall so low," Ozpin muttered. "I had always suspected that she might have experimented with her powers on humans, be it dead or alive, but this… I thought she had at least enough goodness in her heart left to leave the dead to their rest."
And that's your problem. You still sometimes try to treat her like the woman you knew ages ago. Yet I didn't say that out loud. It wasn't my place to do so, nor did I want to. I had much better things to do than to act as a therapist to a centuries-old reincarnator.
As such, I decided to move the conversation forward. "Is this all Lionheart told you?"
Ozpin shook his head. "No. He also mentioned the Vytal festival. He doesn't know about any plans Salem might have, but not that long ago, he had a meeting with Cinder Fall. She wanted all the information he could get her about the festival. Details about protection, Amity Colosseum, attending students, and the like."
"So the attack might still happen," I summed up.
"Indeed, but I'm unsure. For all we know, they just might use it as a distraction to strike somewhere else, especially now that we have Leonardo captured."
Again, the man made a good point. It seemed like centuries of collective wisdom were finally getting some use. Now, they just had to figure out the next step.
"So what's the plan?" I asked. "Per our agreement, I will help you, but I need to know everything."
"And you will," Ozpin confirmed. "The obvious play is to use the festival as a distraction to reach the next Maiden and her vault. Atlas could be the potential target, but not even Salem would succeed there without revealing herself and her true power. No, what I worry about is the Summer Maiden and Vacuo."
"You said the Maiden is safe."
"I also thought Leonardo is a trustworthy member of my inner circle," Ozpin countered. "I had some time to think in the past few days, and while I still plan to go to Vacuo, I might have to adjust my plans."
I raised an eyebrow. "Anything specific?"
"Not yet. This is a delicate matter, and with the festival barely a few weeks away, we can't make any mistakes. I need to see the situation in Vacuo first and talk to Theodore."
"Got it. I'm a call away if you need me."
Ozpin smiled. "I will remember that… You've really given this old soul some hope, Umbra. For decades, I thought that my war with Salem would end with a slow suffocation on my side. I have lost so many times, and I was ready to lose for the final time… But now… Now, even with two Maidens gone, I think there is a chance. Small it might be, but it's much better than nothing."
I stayed silent for a moment after he finished. I didn't expect this, not from someone I barely knew, but was it really a surprise? As Ozpin said, he had lived for centuries, fighting a war he had no chance of winning. And now, a random guy came along, with knowledge and powers almost impossible to achieve in this world, offering the assistance he longed for.
That was why I returned his smile. "Just don't thank me yet. I have done nothing to deserve it."
"Maybe, maybe not. Only time will tell." Ozpin chuckled. "Now, let's forget about those depressing thoughts for a moment. I remember you asking me for help setting a base in the mountains…"
I grinned at that.
A few days had passed since my conversation with Ozpin—well, three to be precise. I left Beacon the same day, with Neo following after me on Bob. The mountains where my old base waited was our first target. I had to reclaim that territory, but considering that it was a no man's land, that wasn't difficult.
From there, we set up a camp in our old cave and made it into a somewhat livable home with all the supplies Ozpin had given me. He promised more—even a team of builders that could make it into something more—but that could wait. For now, they had better things to worry about.
Like the upcoming Vytal Festival.
As such, I had already begun my preparations. In hindsight, I should have done this long ago—way before getting transported forward in time. After all, up until now, I had almost completely ignored my territory system.
Well, no more!
Salem wanted war, then she would have it. And I would begin by taking over every single piece of land that the System offered to me. She wanted to be a Queen of the Grimm? Then, I would go one step higher and take all her subjects away from her, piece by piece.
For now, I only had enough time to conquer Northern Sanus, which might not sound like much, but it really was. That place was fucking huge… Add to that, I needed to kill five thousand Grimm and another group of powerful Grimm to claim it. That took some time.
At least it was worth the effort. My status only confirmed that.
Name: Umbra
Race: Soul Grimm
Title: Adult Grimm
Level: 37 (7424/32000)
Evolution Stage: Draconic 4 (79%)
HP: 4080
MP: 4845
STR: 76 (40%) = 106,4
VIT: 68 (40%) = 95,2
DEX: 91 (40%) = 127,4
INT: 75 (55%) = 120
WIS: 59 (55%) = 94,4
LUC: 25
Elemental Affinity: Lightning
SP: 57 EP: 89
Six levels in three days. That had to be a record and only showed just how much I could grow if I focused on killing stuff alone. Sure, my skills didn't progress too much, but my attributes definitely weren't complaining. Stat Crystals for the win, as people said…
The next evolution was also quickly approaching, and if I played my cards right, I should be able to get it before any major event happened again. Unless, of course, Salem had decided to send another Jailer after me.
Hopefully, that wouldn't happen, but everything was possible at this point. However, until another mutated Grimm appeared in front of me, I planned to do my best to prepare for the worst.
Well, that and continue training Neo to be ready to defend against someone with elemental powers. I couldn't have her die the first time she encountered and fought Cinder.
Not that I planned for her to ever face that monster in human skin. That bit—
"Ow…" I rubbed the back of my head, turning to glare at the tiny woman next to me. "What was that for?"
"You have been staring at that tree for the past five minutes," she wrote with her Semblance. "Anything you want to tell me?"
I scowled. "No… I was just thinking." I glanced at the swords strapped to Neo's back. "You ready to go? We might be gone for a while."
The woman gave him a grin and nodded. "I have all I need."
"Good. Get Bob, and let's get going."
Neo mock saluted and walked off toward the Swift Wyvern. Meanwhile, I transformed into my true form and took a deep breath.
It was time to conquer another territory.
[Number 5: Deserts of Vale
-Defeat powerful Elder Grimm (0/1)
-Clear Merlot's base (1/1)
-Exterminate Grimm (0/50)]
This is it for today. Thank ya all for reading.
When will the next chapter be out? I have no idea, but I will try not to make you wait for too long. I wrote this chapter quite quickly, so maybe I will try to do it more often. It really depends, though, as I am working on multiple projects now.
Anyway, have a good day/night and happy new year!