It's hard to believe we're currently thousands of feet in the air...
As Rio stood before Amity's stands, he couldn't help but silently marvel at the sheer size in which the grand arena occupied.
It was the next day, and after sharing a rather uneventful breakfast with both Team RWBY and JNPR, it wasn't long before students by the dozens were promptly loaded into bullheads, and off to Amity Colliseum they went.
Classes were cancelled for the duration of the Vytal Festival, after all.
But that being said...
Rio was actually alone in the present moment.
Both teams were seemingly stuck taking care of other things, so they would be showing up later. Now, what those things were, Rio wasn't sure. Though, not that he felt the need to pry in the first place.
Rather, he felt like that was the stance he should be taking.
After all... it wasn't lost on Rio that he spent more time with Team RWBY and them than most. And while that wasn't necessarily a bad thing, there was such a thing as being too integrated into their lives. Some distance, however small, was important in every type of relationship, he thought.
Well, that was half of it, anyway.
Really, he just didn't have the confidence his social meter would survive being in the company of such young, attractive, talkative teenagers, girls at that, for any given time.
Rio sighed to himself, as if struck by some phantom exhaustion.
Despite everything he's said and done, the white haired boy was still a sixteen-year-old boy with inclinations towards the opposite sex, although, not that he could really say he felt that way towards anyone, here at least.
Back home... was a bit more complicated.
No, even more importantly, even if he threw aside issues of preferences, types, and romantic attraction, as little bearing as they most of the time had on his choices, Rio... had absolutely no intention of getting into a relationship with another person.
Rather.
He wouldn't allow himself to.
And this had nothing to do with him being from another world, or anything like that.
No.
It was because of his goal.
Even if that man was so far away he could practically be non-existent, that still didn't change the fact that Rio wanted to track Lucius down, drive a sword through his heart, and patiently wait until it stopped beating.
So.
Having thoughts like that, but also wanting to fall in love?
Thinking he deserved love in turn?
Rio already knew he was a bad person, but he wasn't so evil to put someone through to such a thing. He wasn't so much of a scumbag that he would willingly taint someone with the darkness he tried so carefully to keep under lock and key.
And even if he achieved his revenge.
Even if he was finally able to put it all behind him.
Rio had still killed people.
He had still ended lives.
Who could come to love someone like that?
Who could come to accept a filthy murderer who had the gall to put on masks, pretending he wasn't one?
It made no difference if his hands weren't stained with the blood of innocents; he still chose to kill when he had the option to refrain.
It made no difference if he could be seen as morally righteous for killing the man who made him an orphan. For having killed the men who would have made those unaware Japanese children slaves.
He still chose to take the easy way out.
"..."
Rio's calm expression, contradicted by the violent storm that openly mocked such serenity, lingered for just a moment longer before drifting to other things.
Yes.
The Opening Ceremony, for one.
According to Ruby and the others, the Vytal Festival was usually kicked off with a preliminary event of sorts. Now, in previous years, this took the form of cooperative advertisements from all four kingdoms.
This time, however, it was something that required everyone present at the arena.
Some sort of surprise entertainment, maybe?
Rio had such musings, even as his eyes continued to sweep over his surroundings, where the sunlight shined brightly with no signs of overcast or rain, much to the enjoyment of the audience.
That being said, it was currently noon, which meant that the floating arena had arrived sometime in the eleven-something hours after he returned home last night, which told of a rather impressive moving speed considering he hadn't even spotted it in the distance during that time, even under the cover of darkness...
Still...this is certainly a huge step-up, Rio suddenly thought.
After all, the last time he was at an event like this was at Beltram Academy, when he and his classmates participated in mock battles against the upper echelon of knights.
Of course, this was nothing compared to that meager setting.
Presently, the seats surrounding the combat arena in the center were packed to the brim with spectators, no doubt numbering in the tens of thousands, starkly contrasting with few hundred that the Beltram Tournament had held.
And then there was the degree of technology being used.
Hanging off the walls that made up the surrounding perimeter, were various large-scale monitors, featuring footage of the happenings of the arena in real time, as well as views from the commentators chosen to talk through the upcoming fights. Speaking of, he recognized two of his teachers in the booth.
Peter Port, with his bushy white mustache, and Bartholomew Oobleck, with his frizzled spiky green hair.
They were his Grimm Studies and History professors, respectively.
It seemed they were doing introductions for the festival and how it would work.
Although, most of it was already things he had heard from Ozpin, which reminded him that his involvement in this tournament hadn't been explained to him yet.
Yes; he still had yet to hear from the headmaster about that.
Ah, but I guess the actual tournament doesn't start until tomorrow. This is just the opening ceremony...
Well, if Ozpin didn't contact him by the end of the day, he would go to his office and ask him about it.
Right as Rio was thinking this, however, something else was brought to his attention, which ended up being another key difference between his time in Beltram and now.
Before, being nothing but a dirty orphan brought in from the slums, he was always alone, and no one would dare approach him in fear of being ostracized themselves.
Now, however...
"Hey Riooooo! The Ceremony is about to start! Are you excited!?"
A hyperactive voice echoed, right before he felt something solid slam into his body from behind, making him tense.
No, when he even felt limbs wrap around his neck and waist, this would have been more than enough for him to see the action as an attack and promptly slam the perpetrator down into the concrete.
Or he would have, had he not recognized the voice in time.
Luckily, Nora's typical exuberance was hard to miss.
Well, that and...
"..."
"Rio? Why'd you stiffen up all of a sudden, and you're all silent. What's wrong?"
Trying very hard to ignore the soft feeling currently being pressed into his back, Rio made to greet the person who had latched onto him.
"...Please don't mind me Nora, I was just startled is all. But? Might I ask what you're doing? And where is the rest of your team?"
"Oh, I saw you and thought I'd say hi...! And the others—"
"Nora, I don't think Rio has gotten used to your brand of eccentricity yet. Maybe you shouldn't jump onto him like that?"
Another voice came, and this time Rio decided to turn around, finding three people looking at him with barely suppressed exasperation.
It was Team JNPR... even if the 'N' was still currently affixed to his back.
Anyway, the one who had spoken while smiling softly was Pyrrha... the girl who was apparently somewhat of a celebrity.
Rio inwardly wondered if it was okay to continue calling her by her first name, but just as quickly decided she would have said something yesterday if it bothered her.
In any case, Rio smiled.
Correction; he tried to.
"It's... fine, I don't mind at all. I have a sister who does this sort of thing all the time."
Of course, even though he said that...
Between Latifa wanting to be spoiled by her older brother... that and this were two different things.
The white haired boy wasn't even aware Nora and him were close enough to act like this... but, well, he guessed everyone had their own sense of distance. Moreover, he didn't want to hurt the girl's feelings in case she thought this was normal.
Fortunately, Nora chose that moment to release him from her grip, plopping on the ground beside him.
But it wasn't exactly because she got bored. Rather, her eyes just seemed to take on a completely different excited gleam, as if just now remembering something else.
"That's right, I almost forgot! Ruby said you could fly! Is that true!? Can you!? Can youuu!?"
This seemed to interest the other three, as their faces indicated they had been told the same thing.
Jaune even careened his head slightly. "That's right, she did mention something like that, didn't she?"
In addition to him, Pyrrha also looked to be expressing a certain amount of interest, and Ren too, looked curious despite himself.
"...Yes, although technically, it's closer to say I'm able to propel myself forward with wind, achieving something resembling flight."
Rio could only respond in the affirmative.
It was no secret, after all, especially not since Ozpin had seen him in the Emerald Forest with what he guessed was some kind of surveillance...
Of course, had he known that, he might have kept that particular part of his skill-set a secret.
But there was nothing he could do about that now.
Besides... it wasn't overly weird for him to have such an ability.
After all, he had seen semblances so far with rather diverse uses.
Glynda could levitate objects, something he could do with his wind, and Ruby — from what he's seen here and there — could move insanely fast in a shower of rose petals.
For him to be using wind to grant him speed; that wasn't by any means abnormal for this world.
Of course, for now, he would like to continue having everyone believing that that was all he could do.
Rio was caught in such musings.
To the point where he didn't notice the danger until it was too late.
That being Nora, mouth open, taking in his words with what looked to be thousands of different emotions all at once. Although, when she started to shake as well, Rio genuinely began to wonder if he should be concerned. No, he was even about say something, that is, until a hand landed on his shoulder.
"..."
Wordlessly, Jaune was looking at him with a sad smile, as if he was seeing off an old friend.
And when it also got two sage nods from both Pyrrha and Ren, Rio came to understand their meaning a beat too slow.
Yes.
It...
It ended up taking Rio ten minutes to gently convince Nora that no, he couldn't fly her around the arena, much to her grave disappointment.
In any case.
"We're not late! Yes!"
That shout suddenly made itself known, and upon looking, Rio found Yang to be the cause, with the rest of Team RWBY in tow.
"Only because I managed to pull you away from the hair dryer," Weiss grumbled back.
"Just like how you were practically glued to the mirror to hide your scar? We've already told you that you shouldn't worry about it. Hey, you think so too, right, Rio?"
No, why am I already being...
Ignoring the Weiss's embarrassed squawk, Yang had quickly sauntered to over to the flummoxed white-haired boy, who had, somehow, already been deemed a part of the conversation before even being given a chance to decide otherwise.
"...A scar? I've never noticed," Rio replied neutrally.
Of course, that was a lie.
He had noticed.
But since it would have been inappropriate to say it actually made Weiss look prettier, that is, that it added to the girl's delicate features rather than take away from it, Rio wisely chose not to say anything more.
"See, it's barely anything," Yang added with a dismissive wave. "No need to freak out."
"...I wasn't freaking out. In fact, you're the one who apparently decided to blurt it out to whoever might be—"
"Yep, no need freak out," Yang repeated once more, her bright smile unapologetically ignoring the now twitching brows of the white haired girl with practiced ease.
By now, there was nine of them in total, and with Yang suddenly plopping herself down amidst a score of empty seats, a sighing Weiss, the rest of them too, could only follow after her, even if they had wry smiles on their faces.
Rio, however, just watched them do so, unsure what to think.
'Haruto, Yang reminds me of Satsuki.' But then Aisha suddenly told him that, and before he even realized what he was doing, he found himself answering.
'Ah... she does, doesn't she?'
Yes; Rio, imagining the blonde and purple haired girls in his head side by side, couldn't help but agree.
Ah, but in Satsuki's case, that Earth-born daughter of a CEO could be politely smiling one moment, but verbally tearing into someone in the next, and when it came to the well-being of her friends even more so.
In other words, she was protective.
Very protective.
It was... a somewhat awkward thing to remember, but when Miharu, Aki, and Masato reunited with Satsuki after being separated, having been abruptly summoned to Rio's world, and when they told the girl that he was the one who had been looking after them in the strange new place they found themselves in, she had initially been quite suspicious of him.
Rio's lips twitched.
At that time, I believe she even called me shady...
Well, not that he could blame her.
Rio blinked.
Oh.
But now that he thought of it, Yang also had really let him have it not long after meeting, hadn't she?
Indeed.
They were quite alike.
It also confirmed something Rio already knew.
Pushy girls... really were intimidating.
…
…
…
"NOW! THE MOMENT YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR!"
In short order, Port's shout grandly echoed throughout the stadium, causing a surprising amount of the crowd to cease talking altogether.
Now, Rio and his company had been listening to the introduction up until now with patience, well—some of them were. Nora was still bouncing up and down in her seat.
But it seemed the time for waiting was over.
Oobleck picked up from Port.
"Yes! Before the Vytal Tournament officially begins tomorrow, we have a rather delectable surprise for all of you competing and listening at home~! I guarantee you will not be disappointed! In fact, we are introducing a new opening act to our glorious festival that we hope will catch on in future years!"
Beyond the crowd "ooh'ing" and "awe'ing", their interest peaked, not even Rio, RWBY, and JNPR couldn't say they were feeling different.
"They're certainly hyping it up this year..." Blake drawled in a rather bland tone, which might have had one believing she was bored.
That is, if Rio didn't catch her bow twitching irregularly.
No, even without seeing the ears, he could see a spitting image of Latifa in her place, in the way that she periodically liked to pretend to be mature and indifferent.
Now, as it happened, the seating arrangement was Team JNPR in front, and RWBY and Rio in back. From left to right, JNPR sat: Pyrrha, Jaune, Nora, and Ren. And then behind them sat: Weiss, Yang, Ruby, Rio, and Blake.
"Ahem!"
Port cleared his throat dramatically.
"Now that we've got you on the edge of your seat, let's get rid of the suspense, shall we? One lucky student will be picked at random from all four of the illustrious schools present today—Beacon, Haven, Atlas, and Shade. Now, this student, will be given the chance to guarantee their spot in the single matches—without having to compete in the quad and duo events! Imagine thaaaaaat!"
Everyone roared in a frenzy at that, which should have come as no surprise, not when realizing the crux of what had just been said.
No, it would be more concerning if it was just taken with understanding nods and casual deference. Even RWBY and JNPR exchanged incredulous looks.
This was a rather monumentous occasion, after all.
For a student to be able to get the opportunity for a straight shot to the end of the tournament?
That was absolutely ludicrous.
Even if whatever granted such a golden ticket was difficult, which they assumed it must be, there had to still be a chance of winning for them to even suggest it in the first place.
In other words, it sounded way too convenient.
Ozpin's enigmatic smile floated to the forefront of Rio's mind.
—"I'll handle it."
The white haired boy's expression froze.
But the announcers weren't done—Oobleck suddenly jumped in.
"However~! The challenge in which grants them entry will be no small feaaaat! This event will be called, 'SURVIVAL'. The participant will have to survive fifteen minutes in the ring with FOUR trained Huntsman—that's right! You heard me! Four of some of Vale's finest!"
"INDEED! AND IT WILL BE A BATTLE TO THE DEATH!" Port suddenly screamed.
For a moment, dead silence.
Then, just like that, the magical wonder that had been slowly and meticulously prepared was abruptly ruined in an instant.
Simultaneously, a large majority of the crowd even gasped in horror, expressions full of fright rippling through the populace like a wave.
Oobleck's voice followed quickly after though.
"N-No, no! Not a battle to the death! I assure you, this fight will be fully safe and sanctioned, just all the other matches will be during the Vytal Festival. Right! PE—TER!?"
Oobleck could be seen sending a scathing glare to his co-host, making the man stiffen unnaturally.
"Ah, c-correct. It is as my esteemed colleague says. My words were completely untrue. I apologize. It seems I got caught up in the moment—ahaha..." Port looked away awkwardly, pinching his mustache between his fingers.
"Ladies and Gentleman, w-we'll be right back. This will only take a minute."
Oobleck's strained voice came right before the monitors turned off, sequestering everyone into silence.
Additionally, their microphones had also been muted, though they heard muffled shouting and scuffling just before they did.
"..."
Now, the civilians in the crowd, as well as those from Shade, Atlas, and Haven still looked a bit frightened, but that was why they completely missed practically every Beacon student letting their heads fall into their hands with long resounding sighs.
"Why is he always like this..." Weiss asked, shame in her voice. RWBY and JNYPR nodded along with her.
Rio raised an uncertain brow. "I... wasn't aware Professor Port had such a reputation. Am I missing something?"
Weiss coughed into her fist. "Well, Professor Port has always been somewhat of a... passionate teacher. So much so that the vivid recounting of his tales often leaves some students, not me of course, struggling to stay awake."
Yang snorted.
"Some? That's an understatement. Name one person who you saw awake during his last lesson."
"I—"
"Besides you." Yang quickly corrected before Weiss could finish, leaving her without a response.
"Well, Rio was."
Everyone turned to Ruby as she spoke, making her stammer a bit. "I-I've always seen Rio paying attention during Port's class, at least during the few days he's been here."
Now it was everyone's turn — JNPR included — to look at Rio .
He could only smile back awkwardly.
"Why? Is that weird?"
Well, he supposed they had the right to be surprised, as to everyone else, as he was now learning, Port's lectures could bee seen as long and boring.
But for Rio, who was not even a week into this new world, his common sense was a lot different from everyone else's.
Seeing as he knew next to nothing about the Grimm, there couldn't be a more valuable and informative source than a firsthand account from an experienced Huntsman.
He actually felt that way about all his classes.
Although apparently, that enthusiasm wasn't shared by his companions, them giving him strange looks aplenty.
Though Ruby started giggling to herself.
"It's not weird Rio. We're the ones who are weird for not paying attention. But, it's funny because it's just so like you to be like that."
He wanted to ask what exactly that meant, but judging from the looks of understanding nods exchanged among the eight of them, he was probably the only one out of the loop.
"Alright! We apologize for that sudden break. Some changes had to be made—(cough)."
The intercom blared up a second later, as did the screens. Something of note, however, was that Port was mysteriously absent, as it was just Oobleck now.
"Anyway, let's pick up right where we left off. A student will be picked at random to fight against four Huntsmen, but don't worry. There are other ways to win besides depleting their aura. The alternate winning conditions are as follows! Survive fifteen minutes! Knock all FOUR huntsmen out of bounds, unconscious, put their Aura into the red, or force them to yield! Naturally, the opposite is also true! The student picked will be subjected to the same rules! However, if the student loses, he or she can still compete in the tournament with their team like normal. On the other hand, if they manage to win, well, I think they deserve the jump ahead in that case, don't yooooooouuuuuuuu~!?"
Oobleck was apparently very skilled at this, because the moment he stopped talking, a lull of silence captured the stadium in a choke-hold. Then, as if a switch had been flipped, things changed in an instant as thousands of people began to cheer in unison.
"WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
The noise echoed like thunder, accompanied by a very fervent applause that in no way lost to the yelling.
Everyone was excited, and that held true for both the students and the civilians.
For the students, even supposing they didn't get picked, they would still be able to see how a professional Huntsman fought. For all the aspiring warriors present today, it was something to look forward to.
Of course, it wasn't that different for the common folk, if not infinitely simpler.
After all, what was more entertaining than a one versus four scenario where the victor had the chance to ascend to greater heights?
It was quite the underdog story.
"Waa! Fighting against four Huntsman at once!? Oh, please pick me! Pick me!" Nora jumped up and shot her hand in the air, as if the choice was being made by a show of hands.
"Nora, I think they said they're picking the student randomly, so there's no need to raise your hand," Pyrrha said gently, eventually getting the girl to sit down.
Of course, Nora wasn't the only one excited.
"They actually did something interesting this year. About time," Yang said with a casual grin. "I wouldn't mind getting picked myself, if only to see how much damage I can deal to an actual Huntsman. Ah... wait, maybe not. I don't think I'd last very long with the way I fight..."
Ruby laughed slightly.
"Um, same here. While it would be cool to fight a real professional, I don't think I could stand the pressure of doing it in front of so many people. I mean, fighting against another student team is one thing, but for it to be four Huntsman at once? It sounds like I'd be humiliated..."
"You would have the best chance though, Ruby."
With that, all eyes fell on Rio.
The white haired boy had merely been listening, gazing down at the arena with no emotion in particular. Of course, this changed on a dime when he sent a faint smile the now startled Ruby's way.
"Wait, why Ruby and no one else?" Jaune asked, his tone making it clear he was confused more than anything.
"In a match where winning can be done without so much as touching your opponent, who's semblance would be the most optimal?"
Rio reply came without missing a beat, but it was asked in the kind of slow methodical way that had Yang and Ruby suddenly putting on the oddest of faces, thinking if only for a moment that they were back in their yard listening to Tai talking to them with his teacher's hat on.
In other words, it couldn't have been more strange that this was coming from a sixteen year old instead.
Still, Rio's words had the intended effect.
Understanding, some quicker than others, dawned on each of their faces.
"Of course. Out of all of us, Ruby's speed has the best chance, not at draining the aura of each opponent, but by waiting out the time limit..." Blake summarized, even if it might have only been to herself.
"A battle of atrophy...!" Nora declared with mock seriousness.
"Attrition, Nora. A battle of attrition," Ren corrected.
"That too!"
Ruby giggled, before turning to the white haired boy.
"Getting picked would still be way too nerve-wracking, but now I'm also kinda thinking it would be kinda fun to see how long I can go for. Thanks, Rio," the girl said with a grateful smile. "But, uh, what about you though?"
Rio's smile turned quizzical.
"What about me?"
"Oh... yeah, now that you mention it, how could we forget." Yang's hand found her head, a strange looking appearing on her face.
"Yes," Weiss drawled out next. "It does seem rather silly to have ignored that when we were talking about speed."
"...?"
But to the Rio that still looked confused, Blake had to help him out. "I'm not sure why I have to tell you this Rio, but you can fly," she said with a flat look.
Which, the boy fielded with a strange look of his own.
"Well, yes, I'm aware..."
Of course he was.
It wasn't like Rio had conveniently forgotten this fact.
But...
Using such an ability in an event like this, well, it never even crossed his mind.
And, this didn't even have to do with fairness—not when Rio was a firm believer that someone should use whatever they had at their disposal to survive.
No, instead, he just didn't want the attention that using it would bring.
However, this wasn't about how eye-catching flight would be to those who saw it.
The issue lay in how it was tied to his mana reserves.
In this world, everyone's semblance was directly linked to their soul, and through that, their aura. But aura could run out for a time, and pretty quickly too.
Rio, on the other hand, didn't want to have to explain why he didn't have quite the same problem, that is, why his soul — his magical essence — bordered close to bottomless. Showing himself capable of flying, but also making use of wind and strengthening arts, and all with no signs of running empty?
Questions would arise.
Nonetheless, Rio's casual response seemed to have thrown everyone for a loop.
"What do you mean 'I'm aware'? If you do, then you should also know that out of all of us, it's you who could remain untouchable for fifteen minutes, even if they tried to shoot at you..." Yang brought up, but then realized something and frantically looked at Pyrrha. "Oh, and you too of course P-money, I didn't mean to exclude you."
Pyrrha laughed in her hand. "I'm not bothered. But I'm not so sure about that. I think I would have difficulty against four trained Huntsman. But for Rio, well... flight is a different matter altogether..."
Now, the conversation would have probably continued after that, maybe in a direction that Rio would have found difficulty explaining, but luckily Oobleck saved him.
"We will begin the drawing nowwwww~!"
Everyone's head returned to the screen with a start, as if directed by an invisible force.
That's how powerful the bubbling anticipation that the crowd was giving off was.
They waited on pins and needles, eagerly curious as to who would be the lucky — or in this case maybe unlucky — student to be chosen.
After all, there was no reason not to be excited right?
Even if someone didn't want to be picked, what were the odds that out of the several hundreds of students of each of the four schools present, their name would be chosen?
It was laughably unlikely.
It would be, that is, for everyone except the student the event was made for.
Yes; to Rio, this was slowly confirming his suspicions.
This was Ozpin's way of bypassing the team aspect of the tournament. However, he still had his doubts.
But there's still a chance it won't be me, right? He might have added this to give me a chance at being selected, however slim it might be. After all, purposely rigging a drawing during a global tournament such as this would be tantamount to frau—
"WHAT'S THIS?! RIO AMAKAWA FROM BEACON ACADEMY~! Please step forwarrrrrrrrrrrddddddddddddddd~!"
.
. .
. . .
It was honestly impressive how long Rio was able to keep a straight face, which last a good solid seven seconds.
Of course, immediately afterwards the boy wilted like his strings had been cut.
Of course.
This had to be breaking so many laws.
Rio really wasn't sure what he'd done to earn this much favor from that mysterious headmaster.
And, even if he said he wanted to abstain, it wouldn't help him in the long run, not when this was feasibly one of the only ways for him to compete in the tournament.
But still...
Rio wanted to complain for all he was worth.
'You can do it, Haruto. I believe in you.' Aisha's soft and always calm voice floated into his head.
Rio smiled.
Or he tried to.
It looked rather uncomfortable.
'T-Thanks, Aisha.'