Villain Retirement

Chapter 1192: I Deliver You To Your End

"I… am sorry."

"That's the fucked up thing, you know?"

Hannah responded instantly, but he glanced at Hank at first, tilting her head and gesturing for him to scram before she turned her focus back to Riley,

"I know you are. I know you've always been sorry. I know how hesitant you were in killing that very first traveler two years ago."

"You… knew?"

Hank was still confused as to what was happening, but he wasn't going to stay for whatever this was, and quickly took this chance to leave using the hole that Hannah created. Neither Riley nor Hannah cared about Hank at all, and Hannah only closed her eyes and sighed.

"How many times are we going to have this conversation?" Hannah slowly opened her eyes, and a wry smile crept onto her face as she looked Riley in the eyes.

"And how many times am I going to just let it go and forgive you?"

"It is not your fault, Hannah. You were never really given any choice in the matter." Riley looked at his palms, "Because I am the way I am, and what I am is unstoppable."

"Hmm. Nah…" Hannah shook her head, "How old do you think I am now, Riley? I'm more than 600 years old. There was a time in that span when I started becoming desensitized to everything—but just one look at you and everything came back. Because I realized that everything being fucked-up is the norm for us."

"It is," he sighed.

"And I know it's very fucked-up, but even despite everything—despite hating you to the very core of my being. The fucked-up thing is that I love you, Riley… I do," Hannah forced herself to chuckle while shaking her head, "I love you as your sister, and I love you as a person. And this illusion we're living in, it's because I missed you so much. You're right, we are living in a lie… …but we had a good run here, didn't we?"

Riley didn't answer immediately and only stared at her. But after a few breaths, he nodded and smiled back at her.

"I believe we did."

"But it's… time for this illusion to end," Hannah didn't shed a tear, but the somber glimmer in her eyes told Riley everything he needed to know.

"It's time to end this story, Riley."

And with those words, a blast of heat exploded from within her—decimating everything around them. The entire farm, gone in the blink of an eye and replaced by nothing but a shadow.

"If you actually care for me, if you truly love me—for my sake, end this already."

A loud thunder echoed from behind Hannah, and the very air behind her started to crack. And from the shattering space came the threads of Fate—the portal to the way home.

"You were happy, right?" Hannah softly chuckled as she approached Riley. She grabbed Riley by the shoulder, looking him straight in the eyes again before taking him into her embrace, "Because I was very happy, Riley. I was. And the best thing about it was that it was only us, our story. No one was there to read it but us. The things that have happened, the things we… shared together. The… the thing that we lost. I'll… I'll always deeply cherish them."

"I still am happy, Hannah." Riley wrapped his arm around Hannah, "Thank you."

"F-fuck…" Hannah gritted her teeth, shaking her head as she pushed Riley away and pointed at his face, "...I really wish everything turned out differently. That you weren't some sort of god of destruction or whatever it is the primordials are saying you are—why couldn't you have just been Riley Ross, you know?"

"I believe that even if everything started over again, even if I am not what I am… I would still find a way to hurt you."

"And that's fine—but at least I would have had a chance to change you," Hannah gently placed her hand on Riley's cheek, "Because it's unfair."

"I know."

"And now we're going to have to return to the unfair world," Hannah smiled as she took a step back and turned around, "But at least I'll see you on the other side, right?"

Riley didn't really answer. He and Hannah just stared at each other for a few seconds before Hannah's lips started to tremble.

She nodded and then glanced at Riley again, before finally stepping and disappearing into the portal.

"I do not think so, Hannah." Riley whispered to himself as he watched the images beyond the portal shift and change, "I believe I have an appointment with someone else."

Riley sighed and walked toward the portal, but before he could even take three steps. A loud rumble suddenly thundered from behind him.

He looked back, but there was nothing there but a trail of smoke. But as he turned to face the portal, he saw a person standing there—wearing a large pair of goggles and clearly staring at him. But even with the large goggles covering his face, Riley still found the young man's face familiar.

"Van?" He whispered. The young man in front of him looked exactly like the god of the Evaniels, but there was also something eerily unfamiliar about him.

"No, Sir. Close. My name's Evans," Evans removed his goggles. "I am here to neutralize you… Or at least that was my plan. I know now that by looking at you, trying to neutralize you would only unnecessarily put more in danger."

"You do not seem to be a primordial, Evans." Riley tilted his head as he looked at Evans from head to toe.

"No, sir." Evans looked at his gloved hands, "I am more like you, an anomaly. And it's my job to deliver other anomalies to somewhere they could no longer be an anomaly."

Evans then stepped to the side and motioned for Riley to step inside the portal.

"I already checked what's inside, Sir. Just step inside, and my job would be done."

"I have to say this is very random and out of nowhere, Evans." Riley blinked a couple of times as he continued walking toward the portal.

"I'm sure those watching you right now think so too," Evans looked to nowhere in particular, but Riley still looked to where he was looking as he felt a familiar presence—a presence he could feel whenever he was with Enel.

"Well, Sir. I deliver you to your end. Hopefully, this is the last time we'll be seeing each other." Evans saluted Riley before suddenly disappearing out of nowhere… leaving only a trail of smoke from where he stood.

Riley blinked a couple of times again as he stared at the empty space where Evans was looking. And then, with a shrug, he finally stepped into the portal.

And there, in the vast garden he now suddenly found himself in, Paige Pearson was waving at him.

"Hey there, friend. You're late."