'Strange... Looking past his rambunctious behavior, there is something deeply unsettling about him that I can't quite put my finger on...'

Cinder ignores the happenings on the arena stage and continues to stare intently at Mo-Ri.

'But why? He looks no different from any other student, so why am I so unsettled at the mere sight of him? My gut tells me that there is something more to him. I must know what it is.'

She stands up from her seat and makes her way out of the Colosseum. Once she is in an empty hallway, she flips out her Scroll.

"Yes?"

"Emerald, I'd like you and Mercury to find all information pertaining to Jin Mo-Ri and report back to me. Put all other tasks on hold until this is complete."

"... I understand. We'll have it by tonight."

"Excellent."

Cinder ends the call and puts her Scroll away. Her ever perpetual smirk is missing as she is deeply absorbed in her thoughts regarding Mo-Ri.

'What are you hiding?'

*** Fairgrounds Food Stall ***

"Mo-Ri, you should try this," Blake offers a piece of fish with a pair of chopsticks.

Mo-Ri opens his mouth and chomps down on the piece of food.

"This is pretty tasty," he nods. "Want to try some of mine?"

Nora eyes the pair from the other side of the stall, then scoops up a large spoonful of rice.

"Ren~"

"U-Uh, yes Nora?"

"Open your mouth~"

Ren sweats at the small mountain of rice that obviously can't fit into his mouth.

"Nora, I don't thi- MMMPHH!"

Nora shoves the spoonful of food into his mouth mid-sentence with a bright smile.

Jaune is splayed out across the table, looking rather stressed.

"I've never been more happy to have a powerhouse like Nora and a champion like Pyrrha on our team to finish the match quickly... I blame Mo-Ri for this happiness..." he says with a blank expression.

"I will admit that it was... a lot," Pyrrha chuckles. "But his heart is in the right place. Besides, once you zone into the fight itself, all of the noise from the audience just kind of fades away."

"Easy for you to say Miss Champion," Yang scoffs. "Unlike you, the rest of us aren't so used to that kind of attention. Maybe Weiss, since she's a princess and all."

"I'm an heiress," Weiss corrects. "And no, I am not used to that level of buffoonery."

"You'll get used to it Weiss," Ruby grins. "I'll be cheering for us every round!"

"No you won't-" Weiss pauses while glancing up at a particular ship heading towards the Beacon docks. Her eyes widen as she recognizes the long ribbons flowing from the tips of the ship's wings.

"Weiss?"

"I have to go," Weiss quickly responds as she collects herself and leaves the food stand in a hurry.

"What's with her?" Yang raises an eyebrow.

"I don't know," Ruby responds with concern. "But I'm going to find out."

She hops down from her seat and sprints after her partner.

Yang glances at Blake.

"Should we?"

Blake sighs, "I guess we should."

The two of them stand up to leave, with Mo-Ri going along with them.

Jaune looks between the retreating figures of RWBY and his team with a questioning expression.

"Did... Did they just stick us with the bill?" He slowly asks.

Pyrrha lightly laughs as she takes out a fancy credit card.

"We'll make sure they treat us next time. Why don't we follow along and see what the commotion is all about? It is not normal for Weiss to lost her composure like that."

*** On the docks ***

Mo-Ri, Blake, and Yang arrive at a large crowd gathered in front of the courtyard. They run up behind Ruby and Weiss.

"What the hell is going on here?" Yang asks.

The clashing of weapons and debris rings through the air.

"Some maniac suddenly started to attack my sister!" Weiss yells.

"It's not just any maniac! Look Yang! It's Uncle Qrow!" Ruby excitedly says.

Yang peers over Ruby's head, taking a look at the battle scene.

"Holy crap it is," Yang mutters. "Kick her ass, Uncle Qrow!"

Weiss glares at the two sisters in utter disbelief.

"I can not believe you two! Seriously, what is wrong with your entire family?!"

As the battle ensues, the ground starts to crack and larger chunks of debris get flung through the air.

Mo-Ri narrows his eyes at the scene.

Blake glances around with concern.

"It's starting to get a bit dangerous," she says. "A lot of the people here don't have their Aura unlocked. They might get seriously hurt. Mo-Ri?"

As Winter and Qrow dash in towards each other with their weapons swinging down, they suddenly feel their swings diverting away from their intended paths. When their respective swords slam into the ground, their arms grow heavy to the point they are forced to drop their respective weapons.

Standing between them is a teenage boy who has a finger pressed into both of their shoulders.

'Who the heck is this?!'

"You two are a bit reckless," Mo-Ri says with a frown.

"Schnee!" A voice booms out.

Winter straightens her back and salutes with her non-dominant hand. Meanwhile, Qrow winces while trying to move his arm.

"General Ironwood, sir!" Winter responds.

"Just what in the world do you think you're doing?" He sternly asks while casting a sideways glance at Mo-Ri.

"He started the altercation, sir!"

Qrow massages his shoulder, still trying to get his arm to move.

"Not true," he grumbles. "She attacked first."

"Is that right?" He asks while looking at Winter. When she glances downward in shame, he knows that Qrow speaks the truth.

"What is wrong with your arms?"

Both Winter and Qrow glance at Mo-Ri.

"Whoever this is, jumped between us," Qrow says in a low voice.

Ironwood raises an eyebrow.

"This is a student currently enrolled in Beacon. His name is Jin Mo-Ri," he slowly explains. "And you mean to tell me that a mere student jumped between two professional Huntsmen in mid-combat, and came out completely unscathed?"

"Not only that sir," Winter adds. "He... did something to our arms. At the moment, I can not move my dominant arm a single inch."

"And he disarmed you two?" Ironwood asks doubtfully.

"Now now," Ozpin's voice cuts in. "We can save this conversation for later. For now, we should be grateful that no one was hurt during this ordeal."

"Break it up everyone!" Glynda commands. "We will take care of this mess!"

She throws a scathing glare at Qrow and Winter before she proceeds to repair the dock and courtyard.

"Mo-Ri, can you do us a favor and undo your work?" Ozpin requests.

"Sure," Mo-Ri nods.

He presses into another spot on Winter and Qrow's shoulder. Their disablement is instantly relieved, and the two of them rotate their arm and shoulder while casting a strange look at him.

"Everyone," Ozpin announces. "I must apologize for the disruption. Please be on your ways to enjoy the festival and the other activities to be offered."

"Looks like Mo-Ri was the overall winner of that fight?" Jaune asks the group. He and his team had arrived at the tail end of the fight between Winter and Qrow.

"It must have been luck," Weiss huffs, refusing to believe that anyone could get the better of her sister like that, even if it is Mo-Ri.

"Maybe not," Blake responds, completely unsurprised.

"Should I not have done that?" Mo-Ri asks.

"Regardless of whether or not it was luck, it was the right course of action," Pyrrha nods. "That fight was beginning to quickly escalate out of control."

*** Ozpin's Office ***

"What were you thinking?!" Winter screams at Qrow.

"While I wouldn't condone his behavior, it certainly did not help with the way you responded," Glynda comments.

"He was drunk!"

"He is always drunk."

"Anyways..." Qrow drawls. "Anyone gonna explain who the heck that Mo-Ri guy is?"

"He is one of my students," Ozpin answers with a light smile.

Qrow leans forward on Ozpin's desk.

"You and I both know that I'm not buying that."

"As much as I hate to agree," Winter sighs. "He is right. What he did is not at the level of students."

Ironwood slowly nods in agreement as he places his Scroll onto Ozpin's desk to bring up slow motion footage of the fight between Winter and Qrow. Courtesy of the various cameras situated throughout Beacon.

The footage shows Qrow and Winter swinging their weapons down at each other, when suddenly, Mo-Ri appears between the two in midair. Both of his legs come up to meet their respective weapons, and as Mo-Ri twists, the two weapons are nudged to the side. When Mo-Ri lands on his feet, his arms shoot out with their index fingers extended and press into the shoulders of Winter and Qrow. In real time, all of this happened in a split second.

"... Holy..." Qrow mutters. "This guy's a monster. Just where did you find him, Oz?"

"Not even a veteran Huntsmen could easily that off," Winter says with narrowed eyes. "And we have yet to address how he disarmed us with the poke of a finger of all things."

"Indeed, Mo-Ri is quite the talented student," Ozpin nods.

Qrow straightens up and sighs, "Alright fine. You don't want to talk about him, Oz. I get it."

"Anyways... we're here to talk about the message I sent to you all?"

Ironwood solemnly nods, "Can you elaborate?"

"Basically, the enemy is already here. In Vale."

"We know," Ozpin replies with a serious look.

"What do you mean you know? Did something happen already?" Qrow asks in a low voice.

Ozpin glances at Ironwood before sighing, "Yes. During the Vytal Festival Dance, one of the students was attacked and severely injured."

"Damn..." Qrow narrows his eyes. "So they've already begun to make their-"

"It was your niece," Ozpin continues. "Ruby Rose."

Qrow's eyes widen.

"What..."

His red eyes pierce into Ozpin's and the room grows heavy with killing intent.

"Explain."

"Calm yourself, " Ozpin says. "As you have seen down at the docks, Miss Rose has recovered just fine, thanks to the one who stopped the clash between you and Miss Schnee."

The air's density lessens somewhat.

"That kid... Jin Mo-Ri?"

Glynda nods, "If it was not for him, Miss Rose would still be bedridden in critical condition..."

A complicated look flashes across Qrow's eyes.

"Just how did he... No. That doesn't matter anymore... Do you know who the assailant is?"

"No. Unfortunately, the perpetrator escaped before any of us could arrive at the scene. Based on Miss Rose's description, it is likely a female, but it is still not certain," Glynda responds.

"... I see."

*** A dorm room ***

"Play that back... Pause."

Emerald pauses the video footage, showing Mo-Ri pressing his index fingers against the shoulders of Qrow and Winter.

Cinder stares at the screen with an incredulous look of realization.

"So it was you..."

"Cinder?" Emerald asks.

"I knew that I did not miss my strikes against that silver eyed girl..." Cinder mutters. "So it was you who healed her... It's the only logical explanation, given what I'm seeing here."

She turns to Mercury with sharp eyes.

"What did you find?"

"Public records show that Jin Mo-Ri is a student hailing from Mistral. Born and raised in a small remote village, " he replies.

'How convenient...'

Cinder narrows her eyes before flipping out her Scroll and dialing a number. After a few short moments, the recipient picks up.

"Y-Yes?" A weary voice answers.

"Good evening Professor," Cinder greets. "I'm going to need you to look into a particular individual."

"W-Why would you ask me to do that?"

"Please... You are a headmaster and a council member of Mistral. Therefore, you have access to the records of every single resident in Anima. If you'd like to refuse, I can always forward your refusal to my employer."

"... Who d-do you want to look i-into?"

"Jin Mo-Ri is his name," Cinder recites, while looking down at her info sheet. "17 years old. Brown hair and eyes. Apparently was born and raised in a remote village."

"I-I'll have what you want in 3 days."

"I want it by tomorrow."

"If I suddenly go through the records without proper procedure, I will draw suspicion," the voice whispers in panic.

"That is not my problem, but yours. I am expecting your call tomorrow, Professor Lionheart."

Without giving him a chance to answer, Cinder hangs up.

"It's that bad?" Mercury asks.

Cinder slowly nods, "This Jin Mo-Ri disabled two veteran Huntsmen with a single jab at their pressure points. Not even I am at that level of proficiency... Until we learn more, we must proceed carefully."

Both Mercury and Emerald gulp and sweat. The only other times they'd seen Cinder so cautious and reserved was... whenever they were before their Mistress.

*** The following day ***

"Come on! No!" Mo-Ri yells as he mashes the buttons on his controller.

"Player 1 wins!"

"Haha! Take that Mo-Ri!" Ruby celebrates.

"How many losses is that now?" Yang laughs hysterically. "Ten from each of us, which is twenty. Meanwhile, you haven't beaten either of us a single time. How are you so bad at this?"

"I guess this just goes to show that real life combat skills do not translate to fighting in video games," Weiss comments from her bed.

"It's not my fault the character can't keep up with what I want him to do!" Mo-Ri complains. "Gaaahhh! Take that!"

"Nope!" Ruby yells as her character counters and combos out Mo-Ri's for another KO.

"Another win for me," she grins.

Blake lightly laughs while looking up from her book.

"You can't be good at everything, Mo-Ri."

'I wonder how Ruby and Yang would react if they knew they just beat down a god?'

A knock on their door frame interrupts them.

"Can I come in?"

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby leaps to her feet.

"Chance!" Mo-Ri's eyes gleam as he takes advantage of the character Ruby had abandoned.

"Oh no you don't!" Yang yells as she hastily grabs Ruby's controller. With only a sliver of health left, Yang dismantles Mo-Ri.

Block. Counter. Combo.

"Player 1 wins!"

Mo-Ri slumps onto the ground in defeat with a pale face.

"I... I still lost..."

As Blake silently pats his head, she casts a glance towards Qrow.

'Is it just me, or is he eyeing Mo-Ri?'

"How are you doing kiddo?" Qrow smiles down at his niece.

"Just great!" Ruby grins. "Did you see our match? Did you?!"

"Yeah yeah," Qrow chuckles. "I did. You guys mopped up that other team pretty good."

"So why're you back in Vale?" Yang asks. "Aren't you normally... somewhere? You know, busy with missions?"

Qrow scratches the back of his head before ruffling Yang's hair.

"What? I can't visit my nieces?"

"Gah!"

Yang slaps her uncle's hand away.

"Anyways..." Qrow sighs. "I heard from Ozpin what happened. During the Dance..."

The room instantly turns somber as Yang, Weiss, and Blake frown at the memory.

"W-Why the sad faces?" Ruby nervously laughs, trying to cheer the group up. "It turned out all right, didn't it?"

Qrow flicks Ruby's forehead.

"Ruby... what you did was reckless. Borderline stupid, in fact."

He turns to Mo-Ri and bows his head, much to the surprise of Ruby and Yang. Unbeknownst to the others in the room, their uncle is an extremely proud individual. To bow his head to someone is nearly unheard of.

"Jin Mo-Ri. I owe you my deepest thanks for saving Ruby. If you weren't here..."

Mo-Ri stares up at Qrow with an inquisitive look, before smiling.

"She's my friend. Of course I would save her."

Qrow tilts his head up, then nods.

'He doesn't care about recognition. Aside from Ruby and Summer... how long has it been since I've seen such honest eyes?'

"Still, gratitude should be given where it is deserved," Qrow adamantly states.

He glances at Yang and Ruby with a grin.

"I have some free time before I have to get back to work. You two want to hang out with this uncle of yours in the fairgrounds? Food's on me."

"Let's go!" Ruby cheers.

Yang shrugs with an equally large grin, "I've never been one to turn down free food. We'll see you guys later!"

Weiss and Blake wave their hands as the sisters leave with their uncle.

"So, what should we do now?" Weiss asks.

Blake and Mo-Ri glance at each other, before both of them open their Scrolls and sending out a message.

"What are you two up to?" Weiss asks with a raised eyebrow.

Her Scroll suddenly buzzes, and when she looks down to check the message, her brow scrunches.

"You two..."

Blake lightly smiles, "I guess it turns out that Sun is free today as well."

"... I've been telling you all that it was only one dance and that we are only acquaintances."

"Sources say that you were actually smiling when you were with him," Blake knowingly grins.

"I blame the festivities," Weiss huffs. "That has nothing to do with whether or not I was dancing with that-"

"Hey Weiss!" Sun suddenly calls out from outside their room. "You really want to hang out?"

"Go on Weiss," Blake encouragingly says. "He rushed all the way here. Wouldn't it be rude to keep him waiting?"

Mo-Ri brightly smiles at Weiss.

Weiss deeply sighs, "The longer I stay in this room alone with you two, the greater my headache will be. Fine, but only for a short while, as I have other plans with my sister."

She huffs and straightens her clothes with her hands as she hops off her bed to exit the room. When she leaves, Mo-Ri turns towards Blake.

"She's pretty easy to read huh?"

Blake laughs into her hand.

"Surprisingly so."

*** Another dorm room ***

A Scroll rings.

"I certainly hope that you are calling because you have what I asked for?"

"J-Just to be clear. You said the boy's name is Jin Mo-Ri?"

"Yes. Why are you asking such a stupid question?"

"The thing is... there are zero records found in the Mistral archives. As far as I am aware, he does not exist!"

Cinder narrows her eyes.

"... I see."

She hangs up.

'He does not exist in the Mistral records, but the records in Vale say otherwise... Normally, such a discrepancy is impossible. Especially for a student enrolled in a Huntsmen academy. That is unless...'

Her eyes widen.

'... Ozpin is covering for him. There is a deep secret behind Jin Mo-Ri's existence that Ozpin is hiding.'

She hurriedly dials another number into her Scroll. As the device rings, she takes a deep breath to compose herself.

"Cinder."

"Mistress," Cinder bows her head.

"For you to contact me in the middle of your mission. Something unexpected has occurred?"

"Yes," she nods.

She proceeds to explain and showcase all of her findings with regards to Jin Mo-Ri.

"... So he is one of Ozpin's hidden cards..."

There is a long pause as Cinder waits for her Mistress to continue.

"Eliminate him. You have my permission to use that."

Cinder's eyes widen momentarily, before bowing her head.

"Report the result once it is done."

"By your command."