Save the world? Fuck that, I want to make money! (RWBY SI) ch 9 (Patreon)

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In one second, I was at Atlas and in the next, on a flight to Vale.

Vale was a interesting place. At the end of the Great War, the Kingdom was arguably the strongest power left in Remnant. Mantle's armies were spent, Mistral was engulfed with chaos as its Imperial Dynasty found itself struggling to deal with its own rebelling citizens. Vacuo was on the winning team but its king had died, the members of its royal family scattered and its armies and economy near gone. Vale?

It's territory remained intact, its economy on the drive, and its armies invincible. The King of Vale could have declared a global empire cantered around Vale but...he did not. Instead, he did not place any restrictions or other power-reducing constraints on Mistral and Mantle, the ones who had started the war in the first place and he disbanded his army to the four winds, allowing Huntsmen to take their place.

In other words, this would be like France disbanding its military after World War 1 and letting the Germans and Austrians off without even a spank to the hand. The chaos and punishment the old world had was self-inflicted by its own people, the common folk banding together and overthrowing the last remnants of old feudalism.

I supposed that a reason the King of Vale had for doing the things he did was to prevent resentments from brewing. By being magnanimous towards Mantle and Mistral, it would allow them to re-integrate back into the global system without them muttering about repayments and such. The disbanding of armies...I supposed it happened due to the King of Vale not really feeling the need for them as the other countries had no military left.

It was still a mind-boggling decision when the Grimm were around and Mantle merely rebranded and rebuilt its armed forces to be bigger, better, and even more dangerous than its previous incarnation.

"Have you ever been to Vale, boy?" Land suddenly asked, disrupting my musings. I looked up to see the old Doppelsoldner leaning back on his chair, arms crossed, and Matilda laying on his lap.

I shook my head. "I spent most of my life in Solitas, old man. My mother, she was from Vale. She told me stories of how her home was like. Green and fertile unlike Solitas."

Land nodded, grinning. "You got it!" He said with a click of his fingers. He then explained. "That was the reason why Mantle invaded the north of Vale in the first place; establish colonies that weren't in a frozen hellhole."

"And the Valeans took exception to that," I said, snorting.

"It wasn't as if he was using them, you know? They were just a bunch of islands," Land grumbled. Even if he no longer wore the gray of Mantle, he was still a loyal soldier at heart.

"No nation will tolerate others from stepping foot on their land even if that land is unused, old man," I said, shaking my head.

"Bah," Land said dismissively. I shrugged my shoulders, letting the old soldier stew in his resentments.

"Anyway, Vale. What to expect?" I asked, changing the subject. Land harumphed, rubbing his chin with a gloved hand.

"Nothing too bad. Your 'customers' are going to be the one who will come to us, not us to them. We'll be meeting them in the hotel at, erhm, seven in the evening." Land surmised. As they were the ones who wanted to buy from us, the Faunus were going to have to come out to actually meet us. Me going over to Vale was courtesy enough already. They were going have to finish the rest.

"So, I assume I still have time to loiter?" I asked, my mind thinking about exploring the city. Atlas was a futuristic city, with its gizmos and gadgets. Mantle was Birmingham but Central European. Vale on the other hand was built like a classical European city with relatively intact architecture. I never got to visit Europe in my old life so I was going to go enjoy myself in my new one.

"You do," Land said carefully, his eyes narrowing. "You do realize that I have to follow you around and shadow you, as your personal protector?"

"Mhm," I nodded.

"Have you seen what I look like?" Land said again, gesturing to his clothes. I snorted at his bright colors before looking down at mine. Presently, we both looked rather anachronistic. The reason I wore such clothes was to be a walking advertisement for the company and honestly, I liked the pseudo-Prussian look of the uniform. Land on the otherhand was dressed as his namesake, a Landsknecht, with fluffy clothes and extremely bright colors. It was gay, in the happy sort of way. While this was perfectly legal to do, the company talking to faunus would be controversial to say the least. And having the heir and his bodyguard walk around in public would raise questions. Keeping everything low-key was important.

"I reckon we can go and dress up as normal folk," I suggested. I noted with interest as Land's face soured.

"I am not dressing up other than this nor am I leaving Matilda behind," Land muttered.

"Why not?" I asked with amusement.

He glanced up. "I made a vow to my fallen comrades that we would live and die as Doppelsoldners. I am going to be keeping that vow until I die."

My eyes widened in sympathy and I gave him a respectful glance, unaware I was of the significance of his wear. "If it's going to be difficult for you, Land, then I shan't go out in public. I don't want to make this hard on you," I offered.

He looked at me in surprise.

"What?" I asked.

"I forget, you aren't a spoiled shit," Land muttered. My eyes widened in surprise before I laughed.

"Hey man, it's alright if you can't. I won't make your job way harder than it has to be," I snickered.

"Now you're making me feel bad, boy," tutted Land. He leaned in. "Tell you what, do your thing in the city. I just will be watching from afar."

"How the hell can you keep hidden with your bright colours? Your hat is the size of fuck you," I asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I have powers beyond your comprehension," Land said mysteriously.

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Our craft landed at the airport in a out of the way area reserved for the genteel and affluent. I was not going to deal with the stress of going through a packed airport with screaming children and unruly passengers. After getting off, it was a mere private ride towards the hotel. You best believe I consumed the architecture and layout of the city. While Solitas had a Central European Theme, Vale certainly hogged the best that France had to offer.

Sue me. I grew up poor and never left my home-country. I was going to enjoy every moment of the trip even if at the end of the day, I had to go negotiate with potential unknowns. Honestly, it was a little surreal to see places on the screen and now, you were living in it.

As soon as we arrived at the Hotel, it was a quick matter of checking, changing into more casual clothes, and walking out of it. True to his word, Land had vanished from sight but I could feel his eyes on me.

At this moment, I was not Alexander Wayland, the heir to a arms company. I was just some rich tourist from Atlas enjoying the sights of the city.

And by god, it was.

The hotel we stayed at was only a short walk away from one of Vale's many plazas. It was a massive courtyard surrounded on all sides by traditional marble buildings, a far cry from futuristic Atlas. In one end of the plaza, a marble statue of Vale's last king astride a horse, eyes gazing onward to the east. At the very middle, an obelisk of pure white flanked by two sparkling fountains. Crowds walked the stones; families, couples, and groups of friends enjoying the sights, helping themselves to street vendors, or merely just passing their time there. It did not take much for me to melt with them, breathing in the city air as the river next to the plaza flowed quietly with boats prowling its waters.

I found a good food stall, bread and other treats made available. I readily purchased some good bread, found a corner to sit in, and allowed myself to relax.

There was a simple pleasure to be found there, munching on fine crunchy bread, and letting the sun fall upon my face. Just as I was about to take another bite of my baguette, I felt a hand touch against my pocket. My reaction was swift as my head turned, mid-bite, to watch a tiny tanned girl with red eyes trying to steal from me. Her body was thin, very thin, and her hair was green as emeralds. The girl froze as we locked eyes.

So this was the Paris experience.

The girl gulped, mouth trembling as I bit into my bread, chewed some more before swallowing. My tone, I kept calm. "You are lucky that I did not try to break your hand, girl." 

"I-I'm s-sorry," Emerald Sustrai stumbled. She moved to run but I stopped her. 

"Stop," I said and she did. She trembled, her back turned against me. My pocket trembled as my scroll rang. Picking it up, Land's voice came through. 

"Boy," his voice rumbled. "I saw that. She tried to nick you?" 

"Yeah," I replied, making her shake some more, guilt and fear coursing through her. 

"You want me to do something about it? Call the police?" he asked. 

"Nah. I got this," I said before turning off the call. I slipped my scroll back in and turned my attention back to her. 

"Turn to me," I asked her and she did, turning around. Her eyes were brimming with tears, fear glinting in her eyes. This was not the cold murderer in future events but rather, a scared orphan. Now, I did not really care much for Emerald. I was a proud Weiss and Winter enjoyer, with occasional Glynda related thoughts. But now, I was forced to deal on what to do with little Emerald. To start off, her semblance was useful. Very, very useful. In short, she could put hallucinations in people. 

"You hungry, girl?" I asked, holding out my other un-eaten baguette. She glanced towards it, her mouth watering, before looking back to me. 

"N-no..." she lied weakly. 

Her stomach rumbled, loudly. I snorted as I took out the decently sized baguette and bid her to sit next to me. "Come on. This baguette ain't gonna eat itself, you know." 

And just like that, Emerald Sustrai sat by my side and carefully took the bread from my hand. It did not take a single second until she wolfed it down like the starving urchin she was. A few other folk saw what was happening and tutted to themselves. I gave them a look and that made them walk away. 

I shook my head, looking back to the hungry girl. 

"What's your name, girl?" I asked. I already knew who she was but from her perspective, I was a literal stranger. 

"E-Emerald," she stammered after long bites. It did not take long for the baguette to vanish. Emerald looked satiated but still quite hungry. 

"Hungry?" I asked gently. 

​"Y-yes...?" Emerald replied, unsure of what to say. 

"You want more food?" I asked. 

She nodded quickly. And just like that, I unintentionally adopted Emerald Sustrai.

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​Hunger. 

That was all Emerald ever knew. Ever since she was forced into the street, memories of her family vanishing, she was forced to survive on her own. She wasn't big enough to work in the shops, she was still a little girl after all. No one was willing to hire her and what could she do?

So, she stole. 

She stole to sell. She stole not to give herself riches but to buy even the smallest loaf of bread if only to drive away the hunger that gnawed at her soul. The sellers were unfair most of the time. They saw her poor clothes and charged her double. Something about her status making it hard to sell or something. She did not understand what they meant but she wasn't dumb enough to not see the injustice at that. 

When she couldn't buy, she would have to steal from private gardens. Her hidden power...it was useful. She could sneak in, steal fruits or vegetables, before she had to leave. In fact, she just feasted on some potatoes the night before. She couldn't stay too long in one place however, people would find out that their produce was getting stolen. 

And so, she would have to go without food. She had her own private corner in a alley. She would curl up into a ball, shivering as she tried to warm herself up with a half rotten blanket. As she would drift into sleep, her mind would think back to near-forgotten memories of a warm home and a woman's voice humming her to sleep. 

She would see that sometimes, other kids like her but they had mothers and fathers.

She hated it. 

What did she do to not have a mother? A father?

Why did she have to be alone? 

But now, she was no longer alone. She was seated on a chair before a table filled with food. As soon as they arrived, she dug in. Warm cheese melted in her mouth, soup tasting of beef and onions warmed her soul and bones. And the big juicy steak, oh she just ate and ate and ate. 

She ate until she couldn't anymore. 

She wasn't the only one eating though. The Red Eyed Man was eating too albeit slowly, with manners. He muttered a few things in a language she did not understand, making motions with his hands, before he ate. He watched her with amusement, as if she was playing a joke. 

Emerald did not know why the man did this for her. She did try to steal from him after all. Normally, people she stole from would go and smack her badly. But instead, he...fed her. 

A swelling in her chest rose. 

It made her feel uncomfortable. 

And so, she focused on other things. He looked rich, very rich. His clothes were simple but finer compared to what most people would wear. He also lien too, lots of it. Inside his wallet. 

If only she could steal it...

"You want my wallet, don't you?" his voice broke through. 

She froze as he spoke. Was she too obvious? She glanced up to see the man eyeing her with amusement. Seeing his look, despite the fact she wanted to steal from him...

​Her lips trembled. 

"Listen kid, don't worry about why I did this. You looked hungry, I have more than enough money," Red Eyes said, his voice kind and warm. 

"But...why?" she squeaked. After what she tried to do, she surely deserved to get hit, not to get fed. Emerald blinked in confusion as she saw him speak in that strange language again. 

"I don't u-understand," she admitted. 

His laugh filled her ears. "Because I know what it is like to be hungry, to be in rock-bottom. To be friendless and alone. And I do not want that for anyone, let alone a kid like you." He spoke truthfully, sincerely. 

He...knew what it was like? To be hungry? 

"Do you hate feeling hungry?" he asked again.

She nodded. 

"Would you like to come with me then? Not feel hunger ever again?"

At that, Emerald balked.

​She had seen many times kids like her get approached by those wanting to give them a better life. Some from the big government people that placed them all in small houses. Others by people who....who liked to do adult things to children like her. 

At this point. what did she really have to lose? Would she go back to the streets to steal and shiver in the cold?

​No. 

She couldn't.

Not after tasting this, having all the food she could have.

​At this point, she did not care if she was going to be forced on.

She was never going to be hungry ever again. 

And just like that, Emerald found herself adopted.

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A/N: Something sweet from all the sour. Next up, the meeting.