NOVEL NEXT Chapter 13: ch 13: Green Goblin
There is a saying in Marvel that the poor rely on mutations, while the rich rely on technology. This saying fits the reality of Marvel as a whole.
In this world, there are few, if any, truly orthodox paths to gaining power. Even the magicians of Kamar-Taj or the chi masters of Kunlun rely on borrowed power. The former draw upon the strength of dimensional demons, while the latter tap into the power of dragons.
Given these circumstances, the most direct way to obtain the power to contend with the extraordinary is through technology.
In the entire Marvel universe, two companies are most renowned for their technology that enables mortals to challenge extraordinary beings: the Oscorp Industries and Stark Industries.
The latter needs no introduction. At this point, Tony Stark doesn't even have a finished blueprint for his iconic suit. Thus, from the beginning, Rock's target was the Oscorp, known widely as a "supervillain training ground."
Moreover, Unlike Stark Industries, dominated by Tony Stark's genius and Iron Man's inevitable future, the Oscorp Industries is plagued with exploitable issues—starting with its leadership.
Both generations of Green Goblins have killed board members. The second generation Green Goblin, Harry Osborn, even used a pumpkin bomb to send the entire board to their demise. This highlights a fundamental truth: the Osborn family harbors deep conflicts with its board of directors.
For Harry Osborn, this might seem impulsive and youthful, but Norman Osborn, the first Green Goblin, is a seasoned capitalist with a sharp mind. The fact that he not only considered but personally carried out such acts reveals the depth of his rage.
Of course, part of this is the side effect of the Goblin serum. But the accumulated frustration over time plays a significant role too.
Thinking of this, Rock inadvertently glanced at Norman Osborn beside him.
Norman noticed and turned to him. "My friend, are you not satisfied with what you see?"
Rock shook his head and nodded.
"The technology is impressive, but it doesn't quite meet my expectations for the Oscorp Industries."
Norman Osborn frowned slightly, not because of Rock's words. As a veteran capitalist, as long as there is money to be made, a few words from others don't matter.
Four hundred million, a full four hundred million US dollars!
The entire Oscorp may not care about these four hundred million dollars, but Norman Osborn does.
The Osborn family has a strange and terrible genetic disease,retroviral hyperplasia.Every Osborn member who lives over the age of thirty may be killed by this terrible genetic disease at any time.
In order to fight, to cure, and to completely free his son Harry Osborn from the troubles of this terrible genetic disease, Norman Osborn has paid too much.
More than twenty years of hard work, tens of billions of US dollars!
It seems like a bottomless pit, swallowing up the property of the entire Oscorp Industries and even Norman Osborn's spirit.
However, Norman Osborn does not want to give up,he will never give up!
This is also the biggest contradiction between Norman Osborn and the entire board of directors. No matter how good Norman Osborn is, he has devoted twenty years to a project and invested a lot of money in it, but he has not shown any results. The board members are here to make money, not for charity.
If not for Norman's uncanny ability to generate revenue elsewhere, the project would have been shut down long ago. Even so, tensions between him and the board were nearing a breaking point.
The group of directors on the board of directors want to make money. If they stop this project, they can save a lot of money and use the saved money to make more money. But in order to save his life, Norman Osborn is absolutely unwilling to stop!
In this context, the $400 million presented by the young man before him was like a lifeline.
After a moment of thought, Norman said, "Follow me. The Oscorp industries has some unique assets that might interest you, my friend."
Rock's eyes lit up with anticipation.
Norman led the way, dismissing other staff as they approached a private elevator. Once inside, he entered a complex series of codes. Moments later, the elevator began to descend rapidly.
The entire Oscorp building is actually divided into two parts, above ground and underground. Ordinary people can only see the above-ground part. As for the underground, only a few senior executives are qualified to enter.
After more than ten seconds of weightlessness, the elevator stopped at unknown number of floors underground, and Norman Osborn and Rock walked out of it.
As they stepped out, Rock's attention was immediately drawn to a specific object.
It was a suit of battle armor, sleek and streamlined to fit the human body. Every part of the wearer was tightly protected. Its dark green finish gave it a sinister, almost demonic appearance.
"Haha, it seems my good friend is very interested in this"
"This is the human body armor, we call it the Green Goblin."
"And this is the Green Goblin's glider. It can fly at low altitudes, reach speeds of up to 300 miles per hour, and carry over 400 pounds."
"And these, pumpkin bombs, darts..."
Norman Osborn introduced all the equipment of the future Green Goblin one by one.
However, Rock's eyes were always on the Green Goblin armor, and he didn't move away for a long time.
Even though the Green Goblin took the unfinished human body enhancement potion, the official data states he only had 9 tons of strength. However, when wearing his Green Goblin armor, he once suppressed Spider-Man with 20 tons of strength.
This shows,how extraordinary this set of armor is! While it wasn't comparable to the future versions of Iron Man's Mark suits, it definitely rivaled earlier iterations of the armor.
Just relying on this set of armor, it is enough to challenge some extraordinary beings. The reason why the Green Goblin took the human body enhancement potion was just to cure the disease, not to gain stronger power.
For Rock, the $400 million investment and his position on the board were merely stepping stones. What he truly wanted was this technology.
After a long time, Rock showed a satisfied smile on his face.
"I love it so much!"
"This would be a perfect addition to my collection!"
Norman Osborn exhaled in relief. The $400 million investment would significantly ease the financial strain on his projects.
"But I have a small problem"
"Feel free to speak, my friend," Norman replied.
"I like this design, but it's... too terrifying. It would scare children."
Norman chuckled. "That's no problem. We can modify it to match your preferences."
"Excellent," Rock said with a nod. "Rather than a Green Goblin, I'd prefer a Dark Knight!"