jaune the undead king (remake)

chapter 10: Part one

Crowds demanded accountability.

Justice for Riser.

Whispers became a roar—some wanted him to speak, to tell his side, to rise from the ashes and reclaim the name they believed had been stolen from him. But there was only silence.

Because Riser wasn't in the Underworld anymore.

He couldn't answer them.

He was in another world entirely—Remnant. The fractured land of RWBY. A place of huntsmen and Grimm, of shadows and steel. He was surviving, adapting, changing.

PLACE: REMNANT

Jaune and Riser were walking through the halls of Beacon. Jaune was met with glares from many students, especially the female students. However, a few of the female students greeted him with a smile, and he returned the gesture. These same female students also greeted Riser with smiles and slight blushes, to which Riser responded with a polite greeting of his own.

Riser suddenly sneezed. Sharply. Loud enough to make a few nearby students glance his way.

Riser blinked, confused, then instinctively glanced around as if searching for some unseen presence.

"Someone might be talking or thinking about you," Jaune quipped, smirking. “That’s what they say back home, anyway.”

Riser gave a soft chuckle, brushing a strand of golden hair back from his face. “Let’s hope it’s someone kind.”

It was strange, really. How far he’d come from the inferno of reputation and legacy that once clung to his name in the Underworld. Here at Beacon, the weight of being Riser Phenex had melted away. What was left was… simpler. Still complicated in its own way, but different.

He hadn’t expected to be so well-liked.

Where Jaune bore the brunt of whispered ridicule—old rumors still haunting him like stubborn ghosts—Riser had somehow slipped into Beacon as something of a mystery. A foreign transfer. Charismatic, courteous, strong. His natural warmth, his habit of gently checking in on others, had quickly drawn attention—especially from the girls.

He wasn’t trying to charm anyone. But he was kind. Protective. And in a world where monsters roamed the forests and Grimm fed on fear, kindness wasn’t taken lightly.

Some of the same girls who once laughed behind Jaune’s back had started to see him differently—because of Riser. He made them think. A few even apologized. A few more started training with Jaune. Listening to him. Supporting him.

Yang noticed. Lea did too.

They never said anything directly, but Riser could feel it—the way Yang’s eyes lingered on Jaune a little longer these days. The way Lea’s grip tightened around her weapon during practice sparring. They were the ones who had stood by Jaune when no one else would. When the whispers called him a pervert, when glances turned cruel. They protected him when it cost something.

And now… others were stepping in, too. Because of Riser.

Riser spoke to the girls and even asked them about Jaune before the rumors started. Each girl had a different perspective, but one thing remained consistent: he had always been kind and caring.

One girl in particular decided to analyze the pictures that Cardin had spread. As she studied them, something didn't add up. The hair, armor, sword, and shield were all the same, but there were subtle differences. His forearms were larger, he appeared taller, his hair looked messier, and, most notably... the way he was walking was off.

She pulled up a picture of Jaune and began comparing it with the one Cardin had spread. Her suspicions were confirmed. There were multiple discrepancies. Intrigued, she dug deeper, comparing photos of other students until one image stood out most—Cardin’s.

The similarities were undeniable. She decided to investigate further and learned from a teacher that Cardin had been sick the day the picture was taken. This meant he wasn’t in class and could have easily set up the cameras. But the question lingered: how did Cardin know which dorm Jaune would target?

Determined to find answers, she gathered more information. Jaune had been in class, and after that, he went straight to bed, making it impossible for the story to be true. She decided to confront Cardin but remained silent at first, only asking how he had gotten the pictures.

Cardin’s response was strange. He told her a story about being sneaky and capturing the pictures. But then, his account took a strange turn. He claimed that he had actually approached Jaune and managed to make him leave, which either meant his story was fabricated, or there were two possible explanations.

Even with two possible outcomes, something didn’t add up. If Cardin had approached Jaune, then he couldn’t have taken the picture in secret. His story now contradicted itself—first, he’d claimed to be sneaky, but now he was saying he confronted Jaune directly.

The inconsistencies were growing, and the pieces were slowly falling into place.

(This is part one)

(Sorry for not updating earlier; I rewrote this about ten times before finally getting this version.)