I don't own the RWBY or Fate Universes. It is a late update, but here it is!

Chapter Eighteen: Reunion With Friends

Weiss opened her eyes to find herself in the midst of knights.

The knights were gathered in a large chamber with cobbled stone walls and vibrant blue and golden tapestries. Dominating the majority of the chamber was an enormous round wooden table with a distinct cross emblem in the middle; about a dozen of the knights have taken their seats around it. Weiss had already recognized this place due to her previous dreams.

The Round Table. It was the foundation of Kingdom of Camelot and a famed symbol of chivalry. This was the primary place that King Arthur and his knights were able to gather together as equals.

Yet the atmosphere in the room seemed to be more somber and tenser than Weiss had last remembered. Though some of the knights were naturally serious in demeanor, there were certainly others who were more at ease. But this time, none of the knights in the room had revealed any positive expressions on their faces. What was happening right now?

Her eyes finally caught sight of Artoria standing in front of one of the seats. She was in her normal blue dress and silver armor, yet also wore a majestic royal blue cloak that further accentuated her sovereign authority. Her ageless and boyish appearance along her current stoic face made it surprisingly difficult to discern her true gender. Weiss slowly made her way over to Artoria's side as she observed the memory proceedings.

The main focus of this gathering seemed to be on one of the knights sitting at the table. Weiss had recognized him from her previous dreams as one of Artoria's more prominent knights. He had rich red hair like Pyrrha, yet it was darker in shade. His eyes were seemingly closed as if though he was asleep. Yet it was his melancholy temperament along with his innate beauty that made him stood out of the rest of the knights in appearance.

Tristan, the peerless master of the bow and one of the Knights of the Round Table. The Knight of Lamentation.

Artoria suddenly spoke out, quieting the random chatter between the knights. "Sir Tristan, do you truly desire this?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. I reaffirm my decision. I wish to withdraw from the Round Table." Tristan answered in a melodic voice. The other knights visibly shifted uneasily at his statement. Weiss also looked at Tristan with some surprise. Why would a prominent knight like him leave the Round Table? Unless he had some kind of hidden grievance with Artoria…

"…Very well. If this is your decision, then I will not hold you back. May you live the rest of your days in peace." Artoria finally answered in a passive voice.

Tristan nodded acknowledgingly before he stood up and made his way towards the exit. Weiss glanced worriedly at Artoria, but the king did not have any visible signs of emotion at one of her knight's departure.

However, one of the other sitting knights did not especially look happy about Tristan's departure. He was a tall and muscular man with faded blonde hair and aqua-colored eyes. He wore shining white armor and had a presence akin to a bright sun. That knight abruptly stood up; drawing the attention of his fellow knights. "Halt, Sir Tristan. I would wish to hear the reasoning of why you are leaving the Round Table."

"Gawain, that's enough. Let him leave in peace." Artoria warned the knight.

However, Gawain seemed too incensed to normally listen to his king right now. "Why would you refuse to serve our king now? Has our king done anything wrong to you? What possible flaw do you see in our king?"

"Sir Gawain, stand down!" Artoria reprimanded him again.

But it was too late.

Tristan had already paused in his steps upon hearing Gawain's questions. Weiss couldn't see the knight's face, but his fists were visibly clenched and trembled. Then a sorrowful remark left him in a murmur.

"-The king does not understand the hearts of men."

Tristan then finally left the room, leaving those few words lingering in the air.

Nearly at once, everyone reacted to those words with varying degrees. Some of the knights looked quite angered by the fact that their 'perfect' king had been insulted like this. And there were others who had doubtful expressions of whether his words were truly wrong about their king. But there was one person who didn't change their expression towards Tristan's words.

While her knights were in visible turmoil at their former comrade's words, Artoria stood alone silently with an unreadable expression on her face. Her green eyes stared at the seat that Tristan once occupied before closing her eyes in mere acceptance. As if she had already known the fact that this would have happened to her as king…

Weiss was struck with realization of why she was so drawn to Artoria's presence.

While the others may only praise her or condemn her for being the perfect king with no human desires or flaws…Weiss instead saw a lonely king.

Weiss slowly stirred. A hazy figure with blonde hair and green eyes appeared in her bleary vision. She blinked in confusion.

Artoria?

Yet her eyesight soon cleared up and she found herself staring at Gray instead. Then Weiss finally remembered where she was at the moment.

"How was your rest, Weiss?" Gray asked her quietly.

"It…was fine." Weiss admitted shyly. Yet she will never confess that his lap was quite comfortable…

"But your ears are turning quite red… are you getting airsick?" Gray noted worriedly as his head leaned down closer to her own… Too close!

"I-it's nothing!" Weiss yelped as she immediately sprung up to put some distance between them. That was way too close for her heart…

Gray looked at her in confusion. "Did I do something wrong?"

Weiss thankfully managed to gather her wits together in time. "N-no, I just had one of those… um…dreams."

"Ah…" Gray thankfully accepted her reason. "May I ask what your dream was this time?"

Weiss hesitated a moment before she answered. "I dreamt about how a knight named Tristan left the Round Table."

Gray's expression immediately turned somber at the knight's name. "Oh…I can see why you were troubled by such a scene."

Weiss nodded before grimacing in thought. "Were…were his words true about Artoria?"

Gray slowly shook his head to her relief. "Artoria may be cold and unapproachable as a king to those who did not know her well. But she was still human, even if she had trouble showing her emotions."

"Then why did he say those words to her?" Weiss questioned.

Gray sighed heavily. "Tristan was a knight with a troubled past and tragic love. He may have said those words, but it was definitely not out of spite. As for the exact reason, I don't really know. Perhaps he couldn't bear looking at the king who had her emotions buried away. What I know is that he did regret his words later, but the damage was already done. However…in a certain way, it was necessary for Artoria."

Weiss whirled around to face Gray with disbelief and anger. "N-necessary?! What part of those words was necessary? It did nothing but to hurt her in the end!"

Gray slowly nodded in agreement. "I am not saying those words weren't wrong or hurtful. But you have to understand Artoria's life wasn't exactly normal. Artoria strictly kept to the oath that a king is not human and one cannot protect the people with human emotions. In the process, she became the perfect king by burying her emotions. She only lived for her people and was only happy when her kingdom prospered. Very few understood her inner sentiments, yet she still stood alone with that burden. Do you believe she was happy as a person?"

Weiss slightly faltered at his words. She distinctly remembered her first dream about Artoria; how she was more than willing to sacrifice her own happiness for the kingdom…and her eventual fate in the end.

How she stood regretfully alone in the battlefield as her kingdom lay in ruins.

Gray rested his head against the wall with a wistful look. "Had he not saved her, I wonder if she would have ever found her own happiness in the end?"

Weiss gave a strange look at Gray. "What do you mean someone saved her? I thought you said that she had died in the end."

A strange knowing smile formed on Gray's face. "Well, there is another story to her tale. And when did I say she had died without finding her own happiness?"

Just then, the pilot's voice suddenly crackled through the ship's intercom; interrupting their conversation. "Hey, if you two aren't busy down there, then do you mind coming up to the cockpit?"

Gray slowly got up onto his feet. "We can talk about this later, Weiss."

Weiss nodded reluctantly as she followed Gray up to the cockpit. When they entered, the pilot was humming a soft tune as they appeared to flying through white clouds."Is there something that we should be worried about?" Weiss asked the pilot as she sat on the co-pilot seat.

The pilot just gave her a grin. "No, it is nothing like that. But I would like to announce that we have just arrived at our destination and the view of capital city is quite spectacular from the air." Weiss looked at him strangely till their aircraft finally broke through the low-lying clouds. Then they saw the city itself.

"…Wow." Weiss gasped in apparent awe.

"Indeed, it is quite a sight." Gray agreed.

Mistral was quite majestic for a city; humbling even. While Mistral lacked the technological and modern feeling of Atlas, its essence held a much deeper history and color to it. Surrounded by the lush green mountains, the capital city stood proudly like a temple for the gods. From its simple and worn buildings at the bottom to its elaborate and vibrant buildings near the top, the city looked as if it was carved into its twin mountainsides. And sitting right at the very top of its twin cliff peaks was Haven Academy; the crowning symbol of safety and strength throughout the Mistral Kingdom.

"Welcome to Mistral." the pilot announced as the airship slowly descended towards the city.

When Weiss decided to go to Mistral to reunite with her friends, she did have a plan in trying to track them down by visiting Haven Academy. Since Haven Academy was the most distinguished huntsman academy in Mistral, she figured that they would have at least visited there. If not, she was confident that the academy would be accommodating enough to keep an eye out for her friends.

Unfortunately, Weiss had experienced none of that when she first arrived at the Haven Academy's doors.

"Closed?! What do you mean the academy is closed right now?" Weiss questioned in disbelief.

The academy receptionist snorted sharply at Weiss's incredulity. "You heard me, miss. Haven Academy is not accepting any visitors, according to the headmaster's orders."

Weiss tried to contend. "Well, I am a huntress-in-training and I need to enter the premises to…"

The academy receptionist abruptly cut her off. "It is still not possible. All students are to be sent away home regardless. If you have left something back in the school grounds, you need to send in proper documentation at least two weeks prior…"

Weiss's thoughts were in disarray as she drowned out the rest of the receptionist's monologue. How could the headmaster close the academy at a time like this? She had figured she could somehow find Ruby and others with the academy as a valid starting point. But Weiss didn't think bureaucracy of all things would stop her here.

"…then please contact one of other academies." The academy receptionist pushed her black-rimmed glasses up as she finished her monologue. "Now if you have nothing else, I suggest that you should go home right now."

Seeing that further argumentation was pointless, Weiss turned around with an unwilling expression. Her heels clacked sharply against the stone steps as she slowly made her way down in a forlorn mood. Weiss caught sight of Gray waiting for her at the bottom of the steps as he was currently engrossed with another book in his hands. She immediately plopped down right next to him and rested her head tiredly in her hands.

"Judging from your expression, I assume that we cannot enter the academy?" Gray slowly asked as he turned his eyes towards her.

Weiss gave a short nod in confirmation. "…I swear the Haven headmaster is not in his right head. I mean, who would close off Haven Academy at a time like this?!"

Gray promptly shut his book in a clap. "That is quite concerning…I didn't expect the academy to be closed off to visitors right now…"

Weiss heaved a sigh before glancing up at Gray. "Well, there goes my plan in finding Ruby and the others. Do you perhaps have any other ideas to suggest?"

Gray pondered for a moment before he slowly voiced his thoughts. "…Say, Weiss. Don't you happen to have Ruby's number on your scroll? The CCT network may be down, but local communications should still work around here."

"…" Weiss mentally berated herself for not thinking of that idea sooner. She whipped out her scroll from her pocket and quickly tapped on the screen several times before finally selecting Ruby's contact number. Her heart pounded as she nervously waited for the call to go through.

Please connect, please connect…

Just then, a familiar voice came through the speaker. "W-weiss…?"

Weiss's voice had hitched for a second before she managed to reply back. "Ruby, it's me…"

"Weiss! It is really you! How-how are you calling me?! I thought CCT was still down?!" Ruby asked fervently.

Weiss tearfully wiped her eyes as she was finally speaking with her partner again. "Well, it wasn't easy getting out of Atlas, you know."

Ruby chirped excitingly. "You're here?! You mean here-here right?!"

Weiss rolled her eyes before she smirked. "Yes, I am in Mistral. But do you know where we can meet up? I'm currently at the entrance of Haven Academy and …"

"Haven Academy? ThenIwillseeyousoonbye!" Ruby babbled excitedly before the connection was abruptly cut off.

Weiss stare at her scroll blankly. "Ruby? Ruby!?" She turned her head towards Gray…who was now several feet away from her.

"Gray?"

"Yes, Weiss?"

"Why are distancing yourself from me?" Weiss asked dryly.

Gray whistled innocently as he turned his head towards a certain direction. "Well, it is because I don't want to get in-between your 'reunion' soon."

Weiss looked at Gray with confusion till she thought she heard her name. Scratch that, someone was definitely calling her name. And something red was heading towards at her at extreme speeds…

"WWWWWWWWWWWWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!"

"Gah!" Weiss felt her whole world spin around several times over as a storm of rose petals collided into her figure. She moaned in pain and slight dizziness as she thankfully landed on the soft grass… with 'someone' sitting right on top of her.

And that 'someone' had to be her partner, Ruby Rose.

"Weiss! I found you!" Ruby cried out in high spirits. "Are you happy to see me?! Are you?!"

"Ruby." Weiss managed to say calmly.

Ruby tilted her head down. "Yes, Weiss?"

"G-get off me, you dolt!" Weiss shouted out discomfortingly at her position.

"Oh, oops! Sorry!" Ruby nervously giggles as she quickly jumps away from Weiss. "But I missed you!"

Weiss brushed herself off before a smile appeared on her face. "And I am glad to see you too, Ruby. But did you have to meet us like this? Where are the others?"

"Well, I was close by…and the others are currently at the house right now." Ruby replied sheepishly while scratching behind her head.

Weiss sighed at her partner. "Listen Ruby, I got over here to help you and others out with Gray and…"

"Who?" Ruby interrupted her before she finally noticed Gray standing nearby.

Gray smiled at Ruby. "Hello, there. You must be Weiss's partner, Ruby Rose."

Ruby blinks before she puffs out in response. "A-ah? Y-yes, I am Weiss's partner, Ruby! Ruby Rose is my name!"

Gray nods amusingly at her antics. "My name is Gray. Gray Pendragon. It is nice to meet you, Ruby. Weiss has told me many great things about you."

Weiss gave Gray a surprised look. When did she compliment anything about Ruby? Sure, she did talked a bit about her team…

"R-really?" Ruby asked him somewhat shyly.

"Indeed. You are the one and only leader of the Team RWBY, one of the greatest teams of Beacon Academy. Your compassionate and valiant leadership has led your team and others out of dire situations. You have inspired many people where others' strengths would have failed otherwise. I have yet to judge it for myself, but I do believe in her words to be the truth." Gray declared in a rather bold fashion.

Weiss had to blink several times as she failed to comprehend entirety of his words. What…?

Ruby, on the other hand, deeply blushed at Gray's compliments before turning towards her. "Aww, Weiss. Did you really say all of that?"

"W-well…" Weiss couldn't answer properly before Ruby suddenly enveloped her in a hug.

"Heh-heh. I think you are great too, Weiss." Ruby grinned.

Weiss shot a questioning look at Gray, who simply offered her a sly smile. That idiot… Weiss heaved a sigh of resignation before she eventually hugged Ruby back. It isn't like she didn't enjoy the hug…

"Ruby, would you mind leading us to where the others are now?" Weiss asked after she finally pulled away from the hug.

"Of course, I don't mind! I bet the others would want to meet you now, Weiss! Yang is there, too!" Ruby answered excitingly as she insistently tugged Weiss's arm. "You wouldn't believe what happened to us so far!"

"…I am sure I wouldn't be that surprised after all that has happened to me though." Weiss muttered under her breath. She then shot a last look back at Gray before letting Ruby pull her to wherever she was taking her.

Weiss pointedly ignored the chuckles behind her as Ruby led them down the stone steps.

I quietly chuckled to myself as I trailed behind the two girls, who were chatting amicably. We were currently traversing the streets of Mistral as we followed Ruby's direction to the safehouse. I admit that Ruby's sudden entrance was a surprise, but not unwelcomed. That look of realization on Weiss's face was quite priceless.

From what I can tell, Ruby hasn't changed much from her enthusiastic and adorkable character from the last time I've seen her. Though…I was a little concerned about the burden she was carrying. I wasn't lying about the words that I spoke about her. She may or may not realize it, but she has a positive impact on the people around her. I seriously doubt that the group could have survived long without her influence.

But it is good to see that Ruby and Weiss are close friends now. It's a far cry from when they had initially met in Beacon Academy. Weiss is a good person in heart, but she isn't exactly the most approachable of all people. It was a wonder how a socially awkward person like Ruby had managed to befriend someone like Weiss.

I turned my attention to the city surroundings. The market streets were expectantly full of large crowds of people going about their day. A tired-looking mother had just walked passed me with a wicket basket in one hand and her small daughter in the other. A short, fat fruit vendor was currently haggling with a blond young girl over a bag of oranges. I even caught a glimpse of an old, bearded man currently resting in a small alley with a straw hat covering his eyes. It's certainly something.

Yet…something wasn't quite right about the city. Even though I'm not a Grimm, I could sense a shadow of unease blanketing the city. It wasn't quite outright fear that would definitely draw in the Grimm, but rather it was a perception that something ominous was coming to Haven.

That tired-looking mother was tugging along her child along more closely to her than it seemed necessary as if she was afraid of losing her child. The fruit merchant was sharply whispering to the young girl as if he was secretly warning her of some sort of danger. And the old man who was supposedly sitting by himself? I caught the glint of a small hidden blade under his right sleeve and he was sitting in a way that one could respond to an attack effectively.

I frowned slightly as I processed the various signs of unease around me. Was the situation in Mistral this bad? Or was something else afoot? It appears I have some things to investigate later. Maybe Ruby and others had a better idea of what was going on in the city.

We eventually exited the busy market streets where we climbed up a narrow stone stairway that led us up to a fairly large three-story wooden house on top of a plateau. It was a nice place that was fairly high up in the city and somewhat isolated from prying eyes.

Ruby hummed to herself as she knocked on the front door three times. It was a few seconds later till the door slowly opened itself up and a familiar blonde head peeked outside.

"Ruby, is that you? What took you so long…?" Yang's voice trailed off as her lilac eyes slightly widened at the sight of Weiss. Weiss looked back at her with a nervous yet small smile.

"…Weiss?" Yang spoke out in astonishment. Weiss nodded tearfully before she immediately rushed in and wrapped her arms around Yang. Though surprised by her actions, Yang forms a genuine smile on her face as she returned the hug back in full. It wasn't long till her sister Ruby had eagerly joined in a moment later.

"Welcome back, Weiss." Yang whispered emotionally.

I waited quietly on the side as the three girls tearfully embraced each other in their long-awaited reunion. They deserved this moment.

When we had arrived at the house, the others were preparing dinner for the group that Qrow and Oscar was supposed to bring back. They hadn't arrived back yet, though I heard that they were coming back before dusk. The group unanimously decided to have dinner anyways to celebrate Weiss's reunion with her friends.

I bit into my soft-boiled egg as I quietly listened into the conversations between the others. The current atmosphere at the dinner table was quite cheerful with currently present members of Team RWBY and Team JNPR talking animatedly with each other.

Most of them didn't look that much different from their canon counterparts except for a few minor details. For example, Jaune didn't have the red sash around his waist, Yang lacked a prosthetic arm and Ruby's cloak showed greater wear and tear than I remembered. Pyrrha, who was still alive at this point, was the eye-opener. She had more additions to her armor including golden spaulders and twin vambraces. Her skirt sported decorative bronze tassels and an extra leather belt pouch. Her fiery red hair that was normally in a ponytail was let loose as a cascade of crimson behind her back.

While I observed the others' appearances with subtle interest, everyone else was studying Weiss herself quite intriguingly.

"Weiss, you seem so… different." Ruby wondered.

"What do you mean? Haven't we all grown up in our own ways?" Weiss questioned her.

Ruby waved her hands in front of her in awkwardness. "No, no! I mean you look more like an actual veteran huntress! Not that you weren't one! You just have that sort of feeling…"

"I believe what Ruby was trying to say is that you have well, matured greatly." Ren clarified. Ruby nodded rapidly in agreement.

"You also seemed to be training a lot while you were away." Pyrrha observed. "And I see that you have decided to take up some armor as part of your battle attire now." She then grinned in anticipation. "I would like it if we can spar with each other soon."

Weiss's smile turned listless as if she just remembered something unpleasant. "I guess you could say that I had been training harder than most…"

"Um, Weiss?" Ruby asked worriedly. "Is something wrong?"

"It's nothing; just remembering the days I would rather forget," Weiss replied dismissively after refocusing on the conversation. "Anyways, I agree that I may have made significant strides in myself. But it wasn't without any help."

"Who helped you out?" Jaune questioned.

Weiss smiles mysteriously. "Oh, just a certain person that I met."

"Oh, did Ice Queen get her heart finally melted?" Yang teased her.

"W…hat?! No!" Weiss denied strongly. Ruby bursts into laughter at Yang's remark.

"But you are blushing." Nora pointed out obviously. Hmm…she isn't wrong. Weiss's face was redder than any fire Dust I've seen. Then Nora gasps in realization. "Who went and warmed your heart while you were gone?"

Weiss buried her face into her hands. "I so did not miss you people." Everyone else simply laughed at her expense while I settled for a smirk.

But it wasn't long though before the focus of the conversation shifted towards me.

Yang offered me a friendly wink. "So...do you mind telling us your name? I'm Yang, if you haven't known that yet."

"I'm Jaune." Jaune introduces himself next.

Pyrrha waves her hand at me in a friendly manner. "Pyrrha, Pyrrha Nikos."

"I'm Nora!" Nora proclaimed. "And this is Ren!"

Ren politely greets me. "Hello."

I smiled back. "You can call me Gray. It is nice to meet you all."

"So, are you a huntsman?" Jaune asked curiously.

I shook my head. "No, I am not a huntsman like you guys. But I do know how to fight pretty well."

"Ooh-ooh! Then you must have cool weapons?!" Ruby joined in as her silver eyes shone excitingly. Yang rolled her eyes at her sister's antics with a small smile.

I chuckled lightly. "Yes, but I prefer not to show my weapon off if I can."

"Aww…I want to see it though…" Ruby whined in disappointment.

Yang then decided to cut into the conversation. "I am more curious to know why you were with Weiss in the first place."

I adopted a thoughtful look. "…You want to know about my relationship with Weiss?"

Yang nodded. "Yeah, I could ask Weiss here, but I have a feeling she wouldn't give me a straight answer here."

Weiss raised her brow. "You know that I am here, right?"

Yang sticks out her tongue playfully. "It doesn't mean I'm wrong. So do you mind telling us, hot stuff?"

I hummed for a few moments before I answered. "Well, the answer is simpler than you might think. Weiss trusts me."

A pregnant silence filled the dinner table. Weiss's face blushed at my statement.

"It is because she trusts you?" Pyrrha asked me curiously.

I nodded. "Weiss would have never brought me along if she didn't trust me in the first place. She considers all of you as her closest friends and wouldn't try to endanger you all. At the same time, I place my own trust in her that she would have my back. I can't exactly explain how we got to this point, but know that we trust each other greatly."

Yang glanced at both Weiss and I before she eventually smiles knowingly. "I may not understand why she trusts you. But I know Weiss isn't the type of person who trusts anyone readily without good reason. You two must be pretty close."

I smiled graciously at Yang. "Yes, you could say that we are pretty close. Though if you want know more about me, I suggest we all talk it after dinner. After all, the world isn't quite the same anymore."

The atmosphere suddenly turned somber from my words. Ren looks down as his tea in a contemplated mood, while Nora glances at him with worry. Ruby has a visible pained look on her face, while Yang slowly clenches her fist tightly. Weiss simply closes her eyes in thought.

"Yeah…" Jaune agreed in a sad manner. Pyrrha places her hand on Jaune's shoulder comfortingly and gives him a reassuring smile.

"But isn't it true that many of you have changed as well? I don't know if it is for the better or worse, but all of you have grown up in some different form or shape from your past selves." I added. "The real question is, are you proud to become the person that you are today?"

The others looked at each other unsure.

"Well, I wouldn't have known how to swing a sword correctly without Pyrrha here." Jaune admitted aloud. Pyrrha positively beamed in response to his statement.

"And I do know that I can count on my friends, though I can still be a bit reckless…" Ruby added sheepishly. Weiss gently placed her hand over Ruby's, while Yang ruffles her sister's hair with affection.

I offered them a comforting smile. "While you may still struggle with this question, it is undeniable that you could have only made it this far with your earnest efforts…and friends. Don't you all agree?"

This time, I received unanimous agreement from the group. "Now with that subject out of the way, could one of you please pass down the pot? I could use a few more bowls of noodles."

Slurp. Munch. Munch. Munch. Gulp. Slurp. Munch. Munch. Munch. Gulp.

I sighed in utter bliss as I finished up my twentieth bowl of noodles that Ruby and others had prepared for dinner. By now, everyone else's jaws had dropped as they observed my eating prowess. On the other hand, Weiss didn't blink an eye on it as she sipped on some green tea.

Jaune stared at me flabbergasted. "I-I didn't think there would be anyone that could possibly out-eat Nora. Did you, Ren?"

Ren had a more subtle look of surprise on his face. "No."

Nora, on the other hand, had competitive flames in her teal eyes as she slurped down her noodles at an increased rate. Yet she is certainly going to get bloated from rushing her meal…

To be fair, most huntsmen do have much larger appetites than civilians as they burn more calories due to their intensive regiment and Aura. However, since Servants don't have a need to eat, they don't get the sense of fullness as the food is converted into magical energy. So Nora has a definite disadvantage here.

It wasn't long till the conversation paused as Jaune and Pyrrha started to pick up the empty dishes together.

"Gyah…We ate it all… Oh, I'm think I am going to be sick…" Jaune groaned as he picks up the pot holding all of the bowls.

"Easy there, Vomit Boy, I believe in you." Yang joked.

"Oh, we're doing nickname throwbacks now. Wonderful." Jaune sarcastically answered as he walked away with the dishware. Pyrrha giggles as she followed behind Jaune to help him out with the dishes. Hmm…those two seem a lot closer than I expected. Are they a thing now?

Yang then interrupted my thoughts. "Say, didn't you say you knew how to fight?"

"Yes. I am especially confident in my strength if you are asking." I replied casually.

"Oh? You want to bet?" Yang placed her right arm on the table daringly. I intriguingly raised my brow at the rather sudden challenge…but this could be fun.

Weiss sighed at her teammate's actions. "Please Yang, now's not the time…"

I nodded. "Sure, why not?"

Weiss turned at me in utter disbelief. "Gray?!"

I shrugged my shoulders helplessly. "Well, I was told that I am quite competitive. I could never turn down a challenge, especially with my pride at stake."

"Alright, then! Let the games begin!" Nora announced excitingly.

I placed my own elbow on the dinner table and slowly wrapped my hand around hers. Yang had quite a firm grip; testifying her great strength. Then I felt Weiss's hand touch my shoulder.

"Gray. Don't try to overdo it, okay?"

I glanced up to see Weiss bit her lip with concern. "Don't worry, I won't hurt her." I mentally assured her. Weiss sighed before she let go of her grip on my shoulder.

Then Yang and I started our match. Our hands shook as we tested each other's strengths. Surprisingly, Yang was much stronger than I had initially expected. She was still nowhere near my real level of strength, but she was definitely outstrips most magi in terms of raw strength, according to Saber's memories.

"C'mon, sis! Don't let him beat you!" Ruby cheered on for her sister. The rest of the group also cheered on for Yang. Weiss opted to quietly observe the scene.

"Oh? It looks like you aren't just made of hot air…" Yang joked as her arm strained against my own.

"You, too. But I won't lose." I replied with some determination.

Yang gave me a toothy grin. "Oh, yeah? Well, I won't make it easy for you, then!"

The table trembled as both of us gradually increased our arm strength as we tried to dominate over the other. Then...I think it somehow got out of hand at some point. From what Weiss had told me later, both of us started to glow as we unconsciously started to channel our respective energy reserves to further increase our strength. Our elbows suddenly dug deeper into the dinner table, forming splinters into the wooden tabletop. And it wasn't long till…

Crraaaackkkkkkk!

The entirety of the wooden table immediately burst into pieces as the immense pressure from our bout proved too much for it. Yang and I blinked simultaneously as we were left holding hands without a table for support. Weiss just shook her head incredulously at the result.

"Damn!" Yang cursed at the abrupt ending of our match.

"So…who won?" Nora asked confusingly.

"I think…it was a draw." Ren slowly concluded.

"You aren't too bad, hot stuff." Yang said. "But I'm still bummed out that the table couldn't handle it."

"Indeed," I replied. "Although it was quite a yang in the end."

Everyone bewilderingly looked at me before Yang then suddenly bursts into laughter while everyone else's face twitched at my pun.

"That's a good one!" Yang chuckled as she slapped my back in good humor. She then smiled teasingly at Weiss. "How did you seriously reel in a guy like him, Weiss?"

Weiss hissed back in embarrassment. "Yang! I-it's nothing like that!"

Yang rolled her eyes. "Sure, sure."

I smiled as Weiss grumbled something incoherent under her breath. I never thought I would have so much fun like this. It has been a while since I…

Someone then interrupted us with an annoyed tone. "How can you kids possibly make so much noise eating dinner?!"

I twisted my head around to spot a lanky man with dark spiky hair and red eyes. Qrow Branwen looked quite unamused at us with his arms crossed. The short, tanned teenager standing next to him must be Oscar Pine, who instead gives a small chuckle at our antics. Jaune and Pyrrha were also present as they unsuccessfully attempted to cover their amused grins.

Qrow's eyes then focused onto the destroyed table remnants. "Did the table do something to you?" he asked dryly.

Yang could only laugh sheepishly. "Ha-ha…oops."

Qrow stares for a bit before heaving a heavy sigh. "You know what? I'm not going to ask about that. But it seems that the number of brats here has somehow gone up when I last checked."

His dull-red eyes then narrowed onto me specifically. "I do know about mini-Ice Queen here, but you are certainly a new face around here. Who are you?"

I smiled as I introduced myself. "My name is Gray Pendragon. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Sorry for the late update. I was struggling a lot with the multi-character dialogue and transitions in this chapter. I still think I could do a lot better job, but it is a new chapter.

As for my other upcoming story release, it is going to be delayed (probably by another week or so). I want to do some heavy editing on the first chapter and refine my future storyline plot a bit first.

As always, thanks for your patience. Please follow and favorite me if you can!