'Carlos should have shot you,' said Junpei, keeping his gun trained on Delta's face, 'when he had the chance.'

'Good day, Mr Tenmyouji,' said Delta.

Years of interrogating criminals and sketchy witnesses had made Junpei more sensitive to a twitch of a muscle or the slightest change in a person's voice: Delta's voice and the line of his jaw screamed contempt.

'You blew up my headquarters,' Delta went on.

'And you killed me in your little death game,' said Junpei. 'Multiple times. I'd call us even.'

Delta snorted. 'And yet here you are.'

‘Certainly no thanks to your efforts,’ said Junpei.

‘And to what do I owe the pleasure?’ Delta wheeled his chair to the left so could face Junpei directly. He spread out his hands, palms up, a gesture of peace even if Junpei didn’t trust the old man enough to believe it. ‘I thought you were done playing the hero.’

‘There’s nothing heroic about this.’ Junpei tilted his gun to the side slightly, calling attention to how he was holding an old man in a wheelchair at gunpoint. ‘And don’t expect a repeat performance. I’m not Carlos.’

‘Do you wish you were?’

Junpei considered lying, but shrugged and said, ‘I don’t know.'

Delta moved again and Junpei’s fingers tightened on the trigger.

‘No need for that,’ said Delta, buttoning his chair towards the French windows that took up most of the wall across the room. ‘That was a gamble I made and won. This is--’

The old man stopped, the light from the window obscured his expression from Junpei, so Junpei could see the sharp profile of Delta’s face and the glint of his glasses, but not much else.

‘What is it?’

‘The end, I suppose.’ Delta sighed. ‘Do you have time to listen to a story, Mr Tenmyouji?’

‘You told us enough stories back at the bunker,’ said Junpei. His arm was getting tired, but fuck if he was going to let his gun leave Delta’s head. ‘Don’t you think?’

‘Then why did you seek me out,’ said Delta, ‘if not to hear a story?’

Had they been outside, Junpei would have spat on the floor; a bad habit picked up from some rough men at the horse races. Fortunately for Delta, this was something Junpei was trying to drop because Akane disapproved of horse races and spitting.

Junpei snorted. 'I came here for the truth.'

'And so you shall hear it,' said Delta. 'But in my own pace and my own time.'

Junpei took a step forward. He wanted this over with while he could still feel his arm. 'I don't think you're in a position to call the shots here, buddy.'

'Tenmyouji Junpei,' said Delta. 'You can kill me anytime you want, but you will never receive the answers you seek. Is this your decision?'

Fuck you, Junpei thought. He let his hand drop to his side.

'Fine,' he said. 'But I want you to know this conversation will end only in one way.'

'Of course.' Delta smiled. 'I suppose a reward is in order for having found me. It's been a while, hasn't it?'

When Junpei didn't rise to the bait, Delta went on, 'And how goes the search for the religious fanatic?'

'That asshole doesn't exist,' said Junpei. 'Do they?'

'And yet you still promised not to get married until you found them.'

'How did--' Junpei stopped and bit at the inside of his cheek. He'd spoken out of reflex, but he needed to remember how dangerous the man in front of him was. Delta might be unarmed, but he could still fuck around with Junpei's mind. 'Get on with your story, then.'

Delta laughed, the sound made Junpei think of dry leaves in autumn. 'Very well. Will you take a seat, Mr Tenmyouji?'

'No thanks.'

'I'd feel guilty being so comfortably situated.' Delta patted the arm of his wheelchair. 'While you stand there, listening to an old man speak.'

'I'm good,' said Junpei.

Delta nodded and looked out the windows again. Junpei had the impression of a wildness of green, the woods creeping into the property's garden, but he kept his eyes on Delta and refused to be distracted.

'How familiar are you with the works of Nathaniel Hawthorne?' said Delta.

'Never heard of him,' said Junpei. This was a lie, but he didn't think Delta would appreciate how the knowledge had come from manga Junpei had read as a kid.

'He's a famous novelist.'

'Have you read anything by Sakaguchi Ango?' said Junpei.

Delta said nothing for a moment, and then nodded. 'Point taken. Perhaps I should begin by telling you about one of Hawthorne's short stories.'

This was quite a departure from scientific principles and thought experiments. Junpei shrugged at Delta.

'In 1849, Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote the story, "The Unpardonable Sin,”’ said Delta. 'We now know it as "Ethan Brand--A Chapter from an Abortive Romance."'

'Fascinating,' said Junpei, hiding a yawn behind his free hand.

'It tells the story of a man who went in search of the unpardonable sin.'

Junpei considered this. 'Sin' was a concept tied to religions Junpei had no experience with. Breaking the rules of those religions led to sin, but would any one sin be more unforgivable than others? And why did it matter?

'Did he find it?'

'Oh yes,' said Delta. 'He searched far and wide and observed humans obsessively. But in becoming an observer, he ceased to be part of mankind. After all, one needs to stand away from something in order to view it more objectively.'

Junpei waited for Delta to continue until it became obvious the old man wanted him to react. He sighed. 'And?'

'He likewise manipulated people to commit such unspeakable crimes as needed for his study.'

'Motherfucker,' said Junpei, his hand tightening around the grip of his gun.

'I see we are finally on the same page,' said Delta. He wasn't quite smiling, but there was a vaguely satisfied smugness in his voice and the way a corner of his lips twitched as he talked. 'I suppose I shouldn't be surprised, considering it was you who found my headquarters.'

'The religious fanatic doesn't exist,' said Junpei, 'you just wanted to see how Akane would react.'

'The world was hers for the taking,' said Delta. 'Yet she longed for the simplest things.' He shook his head. 'But no. I didn't mean to observe her exclusively. After all, your actions proved to be quite fascinating as well.

'Faced with a threat to their survival, humans could act in extreme ways: the most heroic and the most cowardly. I have seen this in my death game. And now.' Delta gestured at Junpei as if presenting him to a crowd. 'Postponing your own happiness in order to pursue a nebulous threat to humanity--one that might not even exist--wouldn't you consider that a heroic act?'

'I consider it being duped by an asshole,' said Junpei, through gritted teeth.

'Humans are infinitely interesting creatures, Mr Tenmyouji.'

'That's funny,' said Junpei. 'Because I don't find you interesting at all.'

'That is what constitutes the ultimate, unforgivable sin,' said Delta. 'At least in Hawthorne's reckoning. I decided to take it one step further.'

'Great,' said Junpei. 'There's more?'

'For Sean and--to a greater extent--my brother, I cheated death,' said Delta. His voice sounded firmer and Junpei could see a shadow of what Brother must have been to his followers. 'All in order to observe what they would make of their extended lives. Like Ethan Brand, I have lost my hold of the magnetic chain of humanity. And like him, I have no regrets.'

Junpei had stepped close enough to Delta that the tip of his gun barrel pressed against the Delta's temple. Junpei couldn't see Delta's eyes, but nothing in the old man's body language betrayed a hint of fear. Or regret.

'This is my unpardonable sin,' said Delta. 'How would you judge me, Mr Tenmyouji?'