The forest was quiet again, save for the crunch of leaves under their boots. Weiss kept a measured pace, Ruby was still sneaking glances at Jaune like she couldn't believe what had just happened, and Pyrrha walked beside him with a faint, proud smile.
Hyunwoo trailed a few steps behind, eyes sweeping the treeline. The whole thing had gone exactly like he remembered from the show... until a ripple of unease crawled up his spine.
Something's wrong.
He turned back to the treeline scanning the area. The sudden stop, make others do the same, their eyes darted toward him.
That's when he saw it.
A figure standing in the distance — unmoving, half-shrouded in shadow. Its form was wrong for a Grimm, almost... human. Broad-shouldered. Mid-aged. A white, cracked mask concealed its face, but its very presence made the air feel heavier.
Hyunwoo's frown deepened.
No. This... this isn't supposed to exist. Not here. Not in this timeline.
The humanlike Grimm tilted its head slightly, as though studying them.
Swoosh.
It blurred — one instant standing still, the next materializing right in front of Jaune.
"Jaune!" Ruby cried.
The Grimm's clawed hand whipped forward, black talons aimed for his chest.
But before it could connect, a spear shaft slammed into the path of the blow with a deafening clang.
Hyunwoo had moved without thinking, intercepting the strike. The impact rattled through his arms — heavy. The force alone told him this thing wasn't like the Ursa they'd just fought.
The Grimm's head slowly turned toward him, its hollow eye sockets locking on his face.
Hyunwoo tightened his grip on the spear, feet digging into the earth.
"...You picked the wrong world ."
The ground beneath Hyunwoo's boots trembled as the Grimm pressed against his spear, its strength forcing the metal shaft to groan.
"Stay back!" Hyunwoo barked, shoving the creature away and sliding into a low stance. "This one's different."
Ruby froze mid-step, scythe half-raised. "But—"
"Ruby. Back." His tone left no room for argument.
The Grimm's body twitched unnaturally, joints shifting in ways no human could. Then it lunged again, blindingly fast. Hyunwoo pivoted, his spear slicing across its mask — sparks instead of cracks.
'What the hell... even the mask's tougher than it should be.'
It answered with a heavy, downward swipe that slammed into the shaft, forcing Hyunwoo's knees to buckle. He twisted, redirecting the blow into the ground, splintering dirt and roots. Using the opening, he thrust upward toward its chest — only for the Grimm to twist aside like liquid shadow.
It's reading me.
The creature's claw shot out, grazing his shoulder. Pain seared across his skin despite his Aura, the hit heavier than any he'd taken since arriving in this world.
Hyunwoo gritted his teeth and pushed forward, spear spinning in tight arcs to drive it back. He struck in rapid bursts — low, high, feint, stab — each blow forcing the Grimm a step away from the others.
It stopped retreating.
The Grimm's mask tilted again, and for a moment... it almost looked like it was smiling. Then, with a low, rattling sound, it rushed him with a flurry of claw strikes that blurred together.
Hyunwoo blocked the first, parried the second — the third smashed against his ribs hard enough to knock the air from his lungs.
"Hyunwoo!" Weiss called out, starting forward.
"Don't—!" He cut her off with a sharp glare, barely catching another strike that would've taken his head.
The Grimm stepped in close, its breath cold against his cheek.
Then, in a voice like grinding stone, it spoke —
"Found... you..."
"….What?"
The Grimm's claws flashed again, this time slipping past Hyunwoo's guard and tearing across his side. The force spun him halfway around, blood blooming under the faint shimmer of his Aura.
Ruby's eyes widened in panic. "We should help him!"
Pyrrha grabbed her arm before she could rush forward. "We can't. Look at his move. He's keeping the gap closed so we can't interfere."
Ruby looked back at the fight — Hyunwoo was circling the Grimm, each strike measured, forcing it to focus entirely on him. His breathing was heavy, but his stance never faltered.
"B-but if he keeps going like this—" Ruby stammered.
"He'll get hurt," Weiss finished grimly, her grip on Myrtenaster tightening. "But if we rush in now, we'll just get in his way."
Hyunwoo caught another claw with his spear, locking it in place, then drove the butt of the weapon into the Grimm's mask. The impact sent it stumbling back. He didn't waste the opening — he stepped in, twisting his body into a powerful horizontal slash.
The blade tore into the Grimm's shoulder, black ichor spraying as the thing staggered.
The Grimm's claws slammed into Hyunwoo's spear again, the impact jarring up his arms and making his side flare with pain. Blood seeped through the cut on his ribs, but his grip didn't loosen.
Ruby took a step forward, panic in her voice. "No time to hesitate. We have to help him—!"
Another hand shot out, stopping her. Jaemin stood in her way, eyes locked on the fight. "Don't, Ruby. It'll make Hyunwoo even more worried if you jump in."
She looked at him, confused and conflicted . "But—!"
Jaemin's tone stayed firm. "There are only three people who can help him right now... the ones who've fought beside him as a team."
Behind Jaemin, Jiwon and Jisoo stood ready, their postures tense. They knew Hyunwoo's rhythm, his openings, and exactly when it was safe to step in — and right now was not that moment.
Hyunwoo twisted his body to deflect another swipe, then lunged forward, spear tip slicing across the Grimm's torso. The thing didn't flinch — instead, it roared and came down with a double-handed slash that Hyunwoo barely blocked, the ground beneath him cracking from the force.
Sweat dripped into his eyes. He could hear Ruby calling his name, muffled by the ringing in his ears. He pushed forward anyway, locking the Grimm in a tight clash, each second buying just enough time for his teammates to close in.
From the corner of his vision, Hyunwoo caught sight of them — Jaemin circling to the left, Jiwon angling for a flanking strike, and Jisoo setting her stance for a precision attack.
The Grimm's crimson eyes narrowed on Hyunwoo, its claw twitching before it lunged again. Hyunwoo braced, blocking with his spear as the impact shuddered through his arms.
Behind him, Jaemin, Jiwon, and Jisoo were already moving into formation without a word.
"Now!" Hyunwoo called.
Jaemin's compact bladed tonfa snapped into a short glaive in a single motion. He dashed forward, his Shift Momentum Semblance kicking in — redirecting the Grimm's own weight against it as he hooked the glaive's blade behind its arm and yanked, spinning the hulking creature sideways.
Jisoo's Burst Step kicked in, her form flickering across the battlefield in a blur. She appeared at the Grimm's flank, twin chakrams whistling as she hurled them in quick succession. The blades curved mid-air, striking exposed joints before snapping back into her hands.
The Grimm roared, but Jiwon was already there. His segmented staff extended to full length, each metal joint gleaming before he split it into twin short swords. Using Echo Sense, he tracked the subtle shifts in the Grimm's weight, anticipating its swing before it came. A precise slash to the tendons at its leg made it stumble.
Hyunwoo surged forward, spear tip flashing in a sharp upward arc, carving deep into the already-weakened mask. "Jaemin, push it!"
Jaemin caught the opening, glaive hooking the Grimm's shoulder. With a surge of momentum, he spun the massive creature straight toward Jisoo's line.
She stepped forward, Burst Step flaring again — this time appearing point-blank — and slammed both chakrams into the cracked mask.
The Grimm reeled, but Hyunwoo didn't let up. "Jiwon!"
Jiwon's staff reconnected mid-spin, the shaft extending into a final crushing blow that snapped the Grimm's head back. Hyunwoo finished it with a decisive thrust through the center of its mask.
The creature let out a distorted, human-like scream before it dissolved into smoke.
Hyunwoo exhaled slowly, lowering his spear. A sting of pain in his side told him he hadn't walked away unscathed, but his gaze stayed locked on the others. "No one touched?"
"All good," Jaemin replied, tonfa collapsing back to compact form.
"Same here," Jisoo added, though her eyes flicked to the blood at Hyunwoo's ribs.
Ruby broke from the sidelines, her boots crunching over the leaves as she ran up to him. "Hyunwoo! You're hurt!" She grabbed his arm before he could turn away, her silver eyes searching his face. "Why didn't you let us help? That thing... it was different. You could've—"
"I'm fine," Hyunwoo said, a little too quickly. His tone wasn't cold, but firm — like he was trying to convince her as much as himself. "If you'd stepped in, it would've made things harder."
"But—" Ruby's voice caught. She glanced at the smear of blood on his shirt, her worry outweighing any argument.
Hyunwoo gave a small, almost tired smile. "No worries, it's fine."
Jaemin stepped in, resting a hand on Ruby's shoulder. "He's telling the truth. That was his fight to handle... and only three people here could actually help him without getting in the way." He tilted his head toward Jisoo and Jiwon. "Us."
Ruby's lips pressed into a thin line. She still didn't like it, but she stepped back,
Hyunwoo stood still, chest rising and falling as the last traces of the Grimm dissolved into the night air. His stare stay for a moment, and decided to walked away when the black smoke fully gone.
But something was wrong.
Where the black smoke faded, one thing remained — solid, untouched by the Grimm's death.
'An arm?'
Not a Grimm's claw, but the arm of a human. Pale skin, wiry muscle, the wrist still covered by a tattered sleeve.
His eyes locked on the arm lying where the Grimm had fallen.
The forest was silent now, save for the faint rustle of leaves. Even the others — Ruby, Jaune, Team NOVA — stood still, watching him.
Slowly, he stepped forward. Each crunch of dirt beneath his boots sounded too loud.
He crouched beside it, the air heavy around him.
A human arm. Not ash, not dust — flesh. And on its wrist...
A watch
His fingers trembled as they unclasped the strap. The leather was worn, but he knew every stitch, every uneven edge. The same one he made years ago.
The base of the watch caught the light, revealing a small engraving inside the casing — a picture, faded but clear.
A man, a woman, and a boy, smiling together. It's not a random family photos, it's recognizable.
The exact same photo that sat in his hut.
The breath caught in his throat.
And then — like an echo from the shadows —The word that the Grim said before entered his mind.
"Found you."
______
A memory surged forward—bright, warm, and unshakable.
"Dad!!"
He was ten years old, standing in the living room, holding a small, carefully wrapped package. His father, gave a warm smile as he patted his head.
"Hey kiddo, what's up?"
"Happy birthday, Dad," he said, trying to hide the nervous excitement in his voice. "I... I made something for you."
His father looked at him, eyebrows raised, a small smile tugging at his lips. "Oh? You made something? Let's see it, kiddo."
Hyunwoo handed over the package. The paper rustled as his father unwrapped it, revealing a simple but elegant watch, its gears finely detailed.
"You made this... yourself?" his father asked, eyes wide.
Hyunwoo nodded. "Mom helped a little, but... mostly me."
He smile smugly, "I wanted you to know the time, so you wouldn't come home late for dinner ."
His father laughed softly, a sound filled with warmth. "That's clever. And thoughtful. I love it." He held the watch up, inspecting it. "Why didn't you buy it on the store instead?"
Hyunwoo shook his head. "No... then it will be the same as other person watch . I wanted it to be special."
His father smiled, his eyes glimmering. "Then it's the best gift I could ever ask for. I'll wear it every day. And... I'll try not to be late."
Hyunwoo remembered the small click as the watch's hands moved, the pride swelling in his chest, the safe, happy feeling of giving something meaningful.
___
A low, distorted voice crawled into his mind, not from memory, not from anywhere outside —
"Found you."
It echoed again, closer.
"Found you."
His heartbeat slammed in his ears.
Ba-dump.
Ba-dump.
He staggered a step back, clutching the watch so tightly the metal edges bit into his skin.
His breath came sharp, uneven. The panic was there — not in his head, but in his body.
The original Hyunwoo's panic, that affected him at the same time.
"...No way..." The words were barely a whisper, trembling out of him. "No... it can't be..."
Ruby's voice came from behind, hesitant, worried.
"Hyunwoo...?"
He didn't turn. Couldn't. His eyes stayed fixed on the photograph in his palm, as though letting go would make it all real.
Behind him, the others exchanged uneasy glances. The forest was silent. Too silent.