3rd POV

At this point in time, Raptor's favorite settlement had seen him as their hero. Whenever he was in town and did bounties, they felt a certain sense of relief and comfort fill their hearts. He often did jobs that nobody wanted or didn't have a high enough reward but that didn't matter to him. The thing that mattered was that it kept him busy and on the move constantly while earning him a steady source of income to buy more supplies. This was the way he survived. Staying out of the reach of countless people was how he survived all these years. He didn't care about politics, it was an unnecessary headache he didn't wish to deal with. Going to teach the academies was absolutely off the table and the amount of times he had been told that started to reach a couple dozen. The academies were untrustworthy in his opinion, something about them just screamed rotten secrecy to him. While he wouldn't teach at any academy, he did offer assistance when helping train some of the frontier towns.

All he did was give them lessons whenever he stayed longer than a week. Nothing special, just some basic maneuvers and shooting lessons that would help them survive in against a Grimm attack. It proved to be beneficial since some settlements were more prepared than others and they were often the ones that provided Raptor with a place to stay if needed. Out of the countless settlements that he had come across over the years, there were a couple that he enjoyed being in. While he remained distant towards people like usual, he wasn't particularly cold to them. Some picked up on this while others didn't. He wasn't rude to people, it was more along the lines of he didn't know how to interact with them. A loner at heart was what he was and would always be.

He went through the market of people and looked at some of the stands before trading some of the items he had collected around the world. For example, he noticed that certain herbs that grow in Atlas are extremely valuable in Vacuo or a certain type of mineral from Mistral was valuable in Atlas. These things became useful knowledge when there weren't bounties available yet or were taken. Different items held different values in some places. He traded some of the herbs from Atlas with a shopkeeper before accepting the Lien and leaving shortly after. Trading was one of the main reasons he knew how to deal with Lien. It was just as simple as the current currency system of Pantheruos and all the other worlds, but somehow less advanced. Remnant overall was just... so far back as far as technology and how things were ran, it always made him sigh in exasperation when he remembered. It was like they couldn't figure out that there were other resources other than Dust.

Days started to slip by and those eventually turned to weeks of being outside in the frontier, that he ended up in his favorite settlement. He preferred this one over some of the others for several reasons; it had a place he could get supplies, bounties, and the one person he could call a friend. Although they were polar opposites, they somehow had a professional relationship that seemed to work. He enjoyed solitude and silence, preferred to be the one who did things by himself, and always be on the move. She preferred the company of others, working together, and only moving if she had no choice. Somehow he was her favorite person and he didn't know why. Despite never seeing him for months at a time and never seeing his face, she always gave that bright smile whenever he showed up. It unnerved him sometimes.

As he neared the settlement's north gate, he came across two guards. They didn't even need to stop him to know who he was, all they did was just wave at him while he nodded in silence before entering the settlement. This was one of the more peaceful settlements in the area, mainly because he constantly did bounties to keep him busy and to give them breathing room. This allowed them to thrive and start to expand a bit in recent years, nothing much, just enough to accommodate for the growing numbers. Like always, his first stop was the gunsmith to craft some ammo with the old man, the next stop was the store to purchase supplies, the one after that was to check on Myne and her family, and the last one was the guild.

It took a few hours but he eventually restocked his custom Remnant ammunition and crafted a surplus for the future while staying silent as the old man cussed up a storm. The old man took a liking to him despite him barely saying anything, he made it clear that Raptor was practically kin in the settlement at this point. This alone made the the much older man slightly uncomfortable, but what made him more uncomfortable is that the old man started getting emotional. He kept stating that Raptor was like the son he always wanted, and this action made the Pantheruos soldier leave in an uncomfortable manner. Raptor was never one to deal with emotions very well, he had trouble displaying his own, so what made everyone think he was good at comforting others? He didn't enjoy being called anyone's son because he was older than everyone on this planet.

Even when he was being trained in Boot Camp, he never showed much of anything. His tone was straight to the point, almost cold sometimes, and his face never showed an ounce of anything. There were others that had tried to include him in their groups but he would always drift away from them eventually. While some would charge in recklessly at first when they started training, Raptor was already thinking how to take his target down in the most efficient way. Older servicemen took note of this, how he would watch them from the back then use the knowledge he observed to his advantage. It unnerved a lot of them.

As he got older and the missions got more harsh, others started to realize how dangerous he was at times. He never spoke and only gave a grunt of pain when he would take damage from some of the stronger enemies. He wasn't the tallest or strongest but he was one of the smarter ones that was a force to be reckoned with when the time came.

Years became a blur as he did solo missions that would earn him the moniker of personal Grim Reaper. He had done things he isn't proud of but it mattered not. Orders were orders and he wouldn't dare to disobey them. The missions became more brutal as he got older but he always survived in the end; maybe it was his tenacity or his training? Sometimes he didn't know. All he knew is that much of his file was covered in black ink and he earned Hyper Lethal Vector.

He was told that there was only one other soldier had reached that. From his assumption, it was either his father or mother. They were always the ones that were practically invincible half the time. Able to kill enemies by the thousands and come out on top. They were expendable and nothing would change that. No moniker, no rank, nothing would change the fact.

"Seven..." The guild girl called out. His eyes blinked and he looked around to see an empty guild. He must have zoned out, this was a problem.

"I apologize." He said.

"It's fine. I'm the last one here anyways... got a little worried when you walked in and just stood there silently. I thought something happened to you." She said.

"I assure you, I'm fine." He replied curtly.

"You never change, do you?" She smiled a bit. There was only one reason he was here and that was to receive work, but there wasn't any yet. "We don't really have bounties at the moment." She sighed.

"Understood." He nodded then left the building and waited for her to do the same. It took her a few seconds to grab her bag then the keys before locking the building up and walking towards him. This had become the norm between them. Every time he stopped by and she was closing, he would wait for her and walk her home while letting her vent. This served as a good way to figure out what problems she was dealing with and he would offer a solution. It also enhanced his civilian interaction a bit. Countless stars were out tonight and the moon provided illumination for the two.

"I'd like to see what's up there." She said as she looked up to the stars. He followed her gaze and nodded.

"... I will take you up there one day." He said. She had to hold her hand to her mouth to stifle a laugh before she couldn't take it anymore, and let out a soft one. "I fail to see what's funny." He tilted his head. Humor was the one thing he was terrible at. It's been countless years since he's even laughed, much less smiled more than once.

"Nothing, just you. I do wonder though... if there's life out there, you think they're looking at us?" She asked then looked at him.

"...The possibly is high." He answered. A simple hum was what she had replied with before they continued their walk. He couldn't tell her that he came from beyond the stars. There was nothing he could tell her that he wasn't native to Remnant, that there were planets of her wildest dreams out beyond the dark sky.

How a war was possibly still going on and he was part of the faction meant to defend his race and to ensure its survival. Compared to the rest of the galaxy and every colonized planet, Remnant had it easy. Grimm were almost laughable compared to some of the wildlife he's met on other planets. It was easy to not fear anything anymore when half of your emotions were gone from an early age. Emotions were a weakness that he could not afford to have... it's one of the reasons he cut himself off from them. Emotional weakness clouded his focus and that clouded his judgement, which led to mistakes. Raptor was not known to make mistakes twice.

"You know, you're one of the first people to actually hear what I have to say and not judge." She said.

"Is that so?" Raptor asked.

"Yeah... I mean, I work at the guild to get people to realize that there are more threats than just Grimm. That there are bad people out there and that others need help, but half the time I just get blown off. I mean, just last week some younger huntsmen tried talking down on me because I don't go out there and fight Grimm. Just because I don't physically go out there doesn't mean I don't know what's going on. I hear about these things all day long!" She raised her arms. He stayed silent as she ranted. She may not have noticed it but he noticed that whenever she ranted to him, her stress seemed to lessen the next day.

"They are young. Younger individuals are constantly blinded by their pride. All it takes is one situation to throw them into reality. Sooner or later they will realize that you are more knowledgeable of the current status." He said.

"Why is it that you barely show a hint of emotions, yet you always seem to make things better?" She asked.

"I do not know." He answered. It was silent for a minute before she spoke up.

"One of these days, I want to get out of here." She said.

"I assumed you enjoyed it here?" He asked, watching as she smiled sadly.

"I mean, I do... but it feels so cooped up sometimes, you know? Everyday I work my butt off and still get treated with disrespect by some. Some just hit on me like I'm some kind of clueless girl that constantly enjoys attention, while others just treat me like I'm some kind of naive girl." She said.

"I see." He said quietly.

"That day you showed up was one of the reasons I stayed." She said quietly, making him look at her. "That bounty you took was up there for a year and nobody was taking it, despite the reward being a lot and the fact that people were dying due to it. As much as I tried to persuade people to do it, nobody would because they didn't care. Some said that as long as it never left the cave then it was fine. Yet... people always went missing due to it. Then you came along and handled it without a care in the world." She said.

"..." He just looked at her and it made her continue.

"From that point on, when you said you'd drop by again... I knew you were different from the others. You didn't care about ranking, status, or even how much lien you would make off of it. You just did the job without saying anything. That action gave us breathing room for the next few months. I don't know if you know this but you inspired a lot of people that day." She said.

"How?" He asked.

"People saw what you were doing and started to do more. Stopped relying so much on Huntsmen and Huntresses so much. When you saved Myne five years ago is really when people started to truly do good around here." She said as she reached her door to her apartment complex.

"..." He didn't say anything but just watched as she turned to look at him.

"What I'm trying to say is thank you. You may be a monster in some people's eyes but you'll always be a hero is ours." She closed her eyes and smiled brightly at him. He nodded curtly and watched as she made it inside before fishing in his bag and reaching inside. Tucked away was a folded piece of paper, to which he unfolded, and revealed it to be a crude drawing of him. Myne had managed to muster up the strength to deliver this to him at the gate one day. It took all her energy to walk that distance but she managed to deliver it to him. She called him a hero, as did the guild girl.

"..." He didn't say anything because he didn't need to. Nothing would change the fact that he wasn't a hero. Heroes saved everyone and beat the bad guy in the end. Raptor wasn't one and he'd never be one. He wasn't a monster either because monsters just creep in the dark and wait for their victims. No, he wasn't either of these things... he was the one that the monsters were afraid of in the dark. He was the hunter that crept around the world and drove fear into the worst of the worst. Nothing would change that.

Raptor's POV

I stood outside the apartment complex for a moment longer, the crude drawing in my hand, illuminated faintly by the soft glow of the streetlights. The sketch depicted me in the way Myne must have seen me through her young, innocent eyes—a towering figure cloaked in shadow, standing against the backdrop of stars, my form etched in both strength and quiet kindness. The sight of it made my chest tighten slightly, a feeling I couldn't quite place.

The drawing captured something I hadn't acknowledged in a long time—how others perceived me. To the settlements, I wasn't just the silent shadow, the hunter that monsters feared. To them, I was a guardian, a figure who stood between them and the chaos of the frontier. My actions, efficient and emotionless as they were, had ripple effects I hadn't considered. For them, I wasn't a soldier trained to be a weapon. I was hope.

I folded the paper carefully, tucking it back into my bag, and turned away from the apartment complex. The quiet streets stretched out before me, and I slipped back into the routine that defined my existence—moving, watching, preparing. The moonlight cast long shadows across the path, and I allowed myself a moment of reflection as I made my way back to the settlement's edge.

Heroes. That word clung to me, foreign and uncomfortably warm. It wasn't a title I claimed, nor one I felt worthy of. Heroes didn't live in shadows, didn't have the blood of hundreds on their hands, didn't bear the scars of a life spent eliminating threats in the most brutal ways imaginable. Heroes were celebrated. They smiled, laughed, and fought for ideals.

I fought to survive. To exist. To ensure the survival of those who couldn't defend themselves.

But the line between hero and monster blurred when viewed through the lens of those I'd saved. To Myne, to the guild girl, to the settlements I passed through, I wasn't a man born of blood and war. I was their protector, their shield against the encroaching darkness. That realization unsettled me.

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of shuffling footsteps ahead. Instinctively, I slipped into the shadows, my hand brushing the hilt of my knife. A pair of men walked past, voices hushed and hurried. They didn't notice me, and I listened to their conversation with sharp focus.

"...he's back in town. The bounty on him's still up, you know."

"Yeah, but who's crazy enough to try? Didn't you hear what happened to the last group?"

They passed by, their voices fading into the distance. I stayed in the shadows, unmoving, as their words sank in. Another bounty. Another group convinced they could take me down. It wasn't the first time, and it wouldn't be the last. The guild girl had once told me that my legend was both a blessing and a curse. It inspired people to do good, but it also drew those who sought to claim glory by taking me out.

Fools, all of them.

As I reached the settlement's edge, I found a quiet spot beneath a cluster of trees and began setting up my camp. The routine was second nature: laying out the tarp, securing the perimeter, checking my weapons. The night was calm, but I remained vigilant. The stars overhead seemed brighter than usual, and for a moment, I allowed myself to gaze at them, Myne's words echoing in my mind.

"You're a hero to us."

I leaned back against the tree, my hand resting lightly on the hilt of my knife. Perhaps, to them, I was a hero. But to me, I was just a shadow—a shadow that protected the light they lived in. That was enough. It had to be.