Chapter 325: Minor SetbackLeading to A Major Comeback?

"What do you mean you're revoking our license!? We haven't even had it for an entire day!"

"Ma'am, please lower your voice so we can speak properly."

"No! What kind of injustice is this!? If I knew our licenses would be revoked then we wouldn't have even applied for this bullshit!"

"Ma'am, your license is not being revoked, his is."

Paige and Riley are back at the Hero Association, somewhere in the middle parts of the building where they review their members and how to proceed with them. And right now, Riley's license was on the verge of being surrendered back to the association, not even a full day of having it.

Although Paige did not witness it happen since she was busy apprehending Matchstick, the video of Riley slicing the truck into multiple pieces and then carelessly dragging its driver out in a fiery blaze of fire garnered almost a million views in the first 3 hours it was uploaded.

Some of the people cried foul on this and reported it to the authorities and the Hero Association, saying that the way Paragon handled the situation was too much; and since what the truck driver did could be considered an accident, he shouldn't have been treated like that in the first place.

The family of the truck driver also came forward, saying that the way they treated the man was truly unfair and uncalled for.

And right, now… the family of the truck driver was only meters away from Riley and Paige, staring at them as if they owed them a million bucks.

"You owe my husband an apology!"

"Stop being such a Karen! Your husband ran over a woman!" Paige once again stood up from her seat as she pointed at the wife of the truck driver. The sighs of the guards could only whisper in the air as they once again got in between the two. They wanted to separate them, but the family requested to be here to make sure Paragon was being dealt with accordingly.

"That was an accident! It wasn't his fault!" The truck driver's wife did not back down as she also pointed at Paige violently.

"Didn't you hear what Paragon said!? He had more than 5 seconds to move away from the lane! And why was your husband speeding along a busy street in the first place! I've reviewed the tapes, trucks aren't even allowed on that road during that time!"

"We're not talking about my husband's mistakes here! We're talking about how your partner handled the situation! The truck is not even fully paid yet and…"

The two continued to duke it out, filling the entire floor with only their voices. It was to the point that the other heroes that were being reviewed were asked to come back another time as they could not really focus due to Paige and the wife's argument.

As for the person of interest, Riley… he was just calmly sitting in front of the Association Officer that was managing his case.

"Paragon, aren't you going to say anything!? They're taking your license away!" Paige finally turned around to look at Riley, "We're supposed to be a duo. If you're gone, then that goes away!"

Although Riley had no idea when they became something like a duo, he just went along with it. He had absolutely nothing to do back here on Earth…

…and he didn't really want to meddle with his sister's life anymore.

Him being dead and disappearing from Hannah's life– that was the best ending he could think of, not for him… but for that chapter of Hannah's life.

It was true that he lost his memories, only temporarily, however. And the very first memory he remembered was everything regarding his sister… and how he very much wanted her to be free of him.

He spent almost an entire year with only that thought in his mind. A year of almost looking at himself in the eyes of a stranger. He called himself a monster, and that will never change.

But Riley Ross is dead. And it should remain that way forever.

He was a curse that plagues those that were close to him, sticking to them until the only thing that remains is the shadow of a dark day.

And now, the only one with the curse of knowing who he was is Aerith. And out of all the people he could think of, she was probably the most suited one in carrying that burden.

He will go wherever Aerith takes him.

He will be whatever Aerith needs him to be; a son, a warrior, a hero, a god. Whatever she asks, Riley would follow. For that is what he is, created to be whatever the world deems him to be– and now his world is Megawoman.

He will breathe the same air that Aerith breathes.

…And if this world dares to hurt her again… he will kill everyone he needed to kill so that they would be reminded never to do it again– even if he has to kill the entire planet.

Right now, however, he was supposed to be a hero.

"Paragon, why aren't you saying anything!?" Paige once again repeated her words as Riley seemed to not even be paying attention to what was happening. Finally, however, he turned his head towards Paige before standing up.

"They should be here anytime soon," Riley then said as he looked in the direction of the elevator.

"Where do you think you're going!?" The wife of the truck driver blocked Riley's path; the girl beside her, presumably her daughter, however, was trying to pull her away as she tried to hide her face; seemingly embarrassed.

"They're here."

And as soon as the elevator doors opened, Riley raised his hand– gesturing for the people that stepped out of the elevator.

"S… sorry, we're late. We… just had a lot to process."

It was a man and an older woman; and judging by the state of their clothes, they seemed to have rushed to the Association.

"...Who?" Paige looked back and forth between Riley and the people that just arrived.

"Mr. Dave Hobbs, the deceased woman's husband. And Mrs. Peterson, the deceased woman's mother."

Riley then said as he gestured for the pair to take a seat close to the truck driver's family.

"How… no, wait. You asked them to come here?"

"Yes, the woman's phone was intact, unlike her body which was painted on the road," Riley nodded his head,

"I feel like the complaints' of the truck driver's family would be better heard by the family of the deceased, and not me."

"..." Riley's words were suddenly followed by silence. There were a million thoughts circling in Paige's mind right now that she wanted to let out but was trying her best not to. Even the guards that came there to dissipate the tension could only look at each other.

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It almost felt like they were about to watch some sort of drama unfold. The truck driver's wife, who had everything to say just moments ago, could only sit back down as she watched as the deceased's family also took a seat.

"...I feel like this doesn't involve us anymore," Paige then also returned in front of the officer; not wanting to be in the crossfire of the two families due to the invisible tension building between them.

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Of course, it didn't involve her in the first place since Riley was really the only one being reviewed. But the officer didn't want to argue anymore as he was finally able to focus on Riley.

"The way you handled the situation… was wrong," the officer calmly said, "You could have apprehended the truck driver, true. But destroying property and dragging him like that was out of the question."

"Okay."

"...No, not okay," the officer sighed, "Look, we–"

And before the officer could finish his words, the two families started raising their voices. It wasn't until both were transferred to another floor to settle their business that the officer was once again able to talk to Riley.

"As I was saying, we can't be lenient with you. It was your first day, and you already involved the Association in a lot of heat. I'm afraid we can't work with you."

"Wait," Paige once again interrupted the two, "If you're going to revoke his license…

…then you would have to revoke mine as well."

"..."

"..."

***

"Fuck! They really took away my license! Fuck your shit fuck of a Tower!"

"Hey, you!"

Paige quickly ran away as a guard approached him for kicking the side of the building, dragging Riley along with her as they let themselves disappear into the crowd. Well, not really. Disappearing in the crowd was impossible for them solely because of the fact that Riley was still wearing his superhero outfit.

The only thing they could really do was go to a coffee shop. At least there, even if they stood out, they stood out in silence.

"What… what are we going to do now?" Paige shook and grasped her head as soon as she let herself fall at their table.

"You shouldn't have done that, Paige," Riley also shook his head, "You said it was your dream to become a superhero."

"Pft, well yes. But Paige and Paragon! That should be a thing. It was a thing until the Association removed us!" Paige said as she tapped the table several times, "And my phone's still dead and I can't complain about this on the internet."

"They were only supposed to remove me, Paige."

"No. Paige doesn't exist without Paragon, and vice versa! I've already decided on that and that's that! Ah shit, what would your mother say? Where is she anyway?"

"She is probably talking to Empress right now."

"I see. Wait, what? Your mom knows Empress!?"

"Yes."

"W–"

"E… excuse me."

And before Paige could inquire any further, a child suddenly approached their table.

"Yes? What do you want?" Paige quickly turned her head towards the boy that seemed to be with his parents.

"You… you are Paige and Paragon?"

"...Yes?"

"Can… Can I take a picture with the two of you?"

"No, we are–"

"Yes!" Paige did not let Riley talk as she stood up, pulling Riley with him. A lot of people seemed to have also recognized them in the coffee shop, and they all started asking Paige and Riley for a photo– it wasn't until a manager arrived that everyone stopped asking the two.

"W… we're famous?" Paige sat down; this time, however, she sat beside Riley.

"I have always been famous, Paige."

"Shut up," Paige chuckled. But after a few seconds, her eyes widened as she stared at Riley, "Wait… we're famous."

"Yes."

"We're famous!" Paige then tapped the table again several times, "We… we can just be independent superheroes like the old days!"

"That's considered illegal now, Paige."

"Not if you're famous! The Hero Association would have no choice but to take us back if the people want us!" Paige once again stood up, "We…

…we can even build our own superhero agency."

"No."

"Yes!"

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"..."

"..."

"...You seemed to have skipped a few parts in your plan, Paige."

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