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[Frog] Chapter 79: Playing with Public Opinion, Ruthless Yet Cunning!
🕑 Added 2024-09-08 08:01:17 +0000 UTCPeter trembled when he heard Norman say they were "purchased."
"Dr. Norman, what do you mean by that?"
Norman had anticipated Peter's reaction. Since they were partners, Norman never intended to hide anything.
"Peter, you should know that the ultimate goal of our experiments is to benefit humanity. And in pursuit of such a great cause, sacrificing a few individuals is perfectly normal."
Peter suppressed the anger rising within him as he continued, "What do you mean by 'purchased'?"
Norman smiled indifferently. "Peter, as you said, we can't find volunteers for this experiment. No one would willingly participate in something like this. So, I pulled some strings and purchased a few people from an organization in New York City to use in our experiment."
Looking at Peter, Norman continued, "Especially what you just mentioned reminded me— we can’t be sure whether the subject’s aggression is due to a second personality or just amplified emotions because we can't communicate with the monkey. That's why I believe we should immediately start human trials; it's the only way to continue improving our serum."
"I think you're insane! Engaging in human trafficking—don’t you know that's illegal?" Peter felt a surge of unbridled anger as he looked at Norman’s nonchalant demeanor.
"Peter, scientific experiments always require some sacrifices. Besides, I’m not harming them; I'm saving them. Even if I hadn't bought them for experiments, they would have been sold elsewhere and eventually tortured to death. I'm just letting their lives serve a final purpose. Isn’t that a good thing?"
"In fact, they should be grateful to me," Norman said calmly, taking a sip of water.
Peter couldn't believe that Norman was such a person, willing to sacrifice innocent lives for his experiments, especially since these people were purchased.
Furious, Peter took off his lab coat. "Norman, as of now, I’m no longer part of your experiments."
Without looking back, Peter walked out of the lab.
Norman didn’t rush after Peter; instead, he called out, "Peter, I believe you’ll come back and continue this experiment with me."
Peter paused for a moment and replied, "Never!"
"Well, with that attitude, he wouldn't have been suitable for the next phase of the experiment anyway."
Norman pulled out his phone and dialed a number—the number of the seller who had promised to deliver the people tonight. He was calling to confirm the location of the transaction.
As a public figure, Norman wouldn’t go to the handover personally; he would send someone in advance. After a while, the call connected.
"Where’s the transaction happening tonight?"
But the reply instantly sank Norman's heart. "Our hideout was busted by detectives. We can't deliver anytime soon."
"What did you say? I already paid the deposit! Are you trying to back out?" Norman was furious, though it wasn’t the deposit that concerned him but the loss of his experimental subjects.
Without them, the experiment couldn’t proceed, leaving him in a difficult position to explain to a certain general.
The voice on the other end turned mocking. "Mr. Osborn, we have no intention of backing out. If you don’t believe me, you can turn on the TV and watch the latest news."
Norman’s face darkened, his voice tinged with anger. "Do you know who I am?"
"Mr. Osborn, please don’t be upset. You know this line of work is risky. To ensure our business runs smoothly, we conduct thorough investigations on every client. Better safe than sorry."
Norman sneered. "And yet you still got busted."
There was silence on the other end before the voice continued, "Your goods will be delivered once the heat dies down."
With that, the call was abruptly ended, leaving Norman with nothing but a busy signal. When he tried calling back, the number was unreachable.
"Fuck!" Norman threw the phone to the ground in a rage, then glanced outside the lab before turning on the TV.
The news was reporting a human trafficking ring busted by the NYPD the previous night. The camera then showed a quarantine area filled with rescued victims. The reporter explained that these were the people George had saved, including Norman’s experimental subjects.
Norman slumped weakly onto the sofa. Without test subjects, how could he proceed with the experiment?
Meanwhile, elsewhere…
Fisk crushed the phone in his hand, gritting his teeth. "Damn Norman Osborn… You really don’t know how to keep your mouth shut!"
Clearly, it had been Fisk on the phone with Norman just now, and Norman’s words had angered him greatly.
"Nick Fury, you better not disappoint me…"
At S.H.I.E.L.D.
In Nick Fury’s office, he glanced at the report Hill had just handed him, one brow furrowing.
"Nothing at all?"
Hill nodded. "Right. All the evidence sent to the newspapers and police stations was relayed through multiple anonymous accounts. Each account was deleted immediately after forwarding, leaving almost no trace."
Nick Fury read through the report several times, realizing that even he couldn’t find any leads.
"Has Fisk offended anyone recently?"
Hill thought for a moment before replying, "I tried to report this to you earlier, but you said you didn’t want to hear it."
"Now I do."
"Not long ago, Fisk targeted a young, new millionaire. He sent four men to the guy’s house, but all four ended up going mad."
"What?"
Nick Fury wondered if he had heard wrong. Four of Fisk’s men went to someone’s house and then lost their minds? What kind of bizarre story was this?
Hill pressed a button on her tablet, and a video began playing on the large screen. The footage showed four men in black leaving Fisk’s office perfectly fine. Then there was a time jump of nearly three hours to the next clip, where the four men were gleefully playing on the street, with one even urinating in public until they were picked up by Fisk’s men.
"What happened in between?" Nick Fury asked.
Hill shook her head. "We don’t know. From the time they left Fisk’s company until the second video, there’s no information on what they did."
"And who is the young millionaire they went after?"
Hill operated the tablet again, and a profile Nick Fury had never seen before appeared on the screen.
"Alan Ford, a student at State University who recently moved to New York due to a transfer. After his adoptive parents passed away, they left him a large inheritance, ensuring he’d be financially secure for life. Recently, when Stark Industries’ stock plummeted, he bought nearly 60% of it. After Tony defeated Obadiah, the stock soared, making him a new tycoon."
Hill concisely summarized Alan’s background, adding, "Fisk tried to buy all of his Stark Industries stock for $1."
As he looked at Alan’s distinctly Asian face on the screen, Nick Fury propped his chin on his hands. "Where does he live?"
"Thirteenth Street."
Nick Fury paused. Thirteenth Street again?
The golden armor was also last tracked to Thirteenth Street. He looked back at Alan’s image on the screen, muttering his name as if deep in thought.
"Alan Ford..."
...
"Nick Fury… so it’s you helping Kingpin…”
Sitting in front of his computer, Alan reviewed the information Red Queen had gathered. After a thorough investigation, it was revealed that Nick Fury was backing Kingpin.
Alan wasn’t surprised that this shady, manipulative character would support Kingpin. After all, Kingpin's rise in New York City over the years wasn't without some help from people like Fury.
To them, as long as the overall situation remained stable, the plight of the lower classes was irrelevant. Kingpin was simply someone who could maintain that stability.
“Red Queen, create a few fake recordings of conversations between Kingpin and high-ranking officials in the United States, and send them to Kingpin’s business partners. Then, set up a new forum website and list all of Kingpin’s dirty deeds on it. Use exaggerated headlines, the more eye-catching, the better. Add a lot of speculative content and crank up the conspiracy theories to the maximum. Also, post the phone recordings from today involving the major newspapers and high officials. Release the related evidence in batches.”
“Yes, Master. What would you like to name the new forum?” Red Queen asked.
Alan smiled faintly, “Let’s call it… ‘Shrimp Pig Heart.’ And spend some money to promote it on other large forums.”
After hearing Alan’s instructions, Red Queen quickly set up the forum.
...
“Master, would you like to receive real-time updates on the website's traffic, replies, and post counts on your computer?”
“Yes.”
Alan stroked Pikachu, who was sleeping in his arms, and Pikachu’s ears twitched.
“Also, tell Gwen to come back for dinner. Kingpin won’t have time to bother anyone now. He’s too busy saving his own skin.”
At a café near the police station, Gwen listened to the message from Red Queen and glanced at the station. The day had been uneventful, except for a few charred bodies delivered around noon, but nothing major.
“Maybe Alan was right. I was just being paranoid.” Gwen stood up and left the café.
“Pika… Chu…”
As soon as Gwen landed on the balcony, Pikachu happily ran over to snuggle with her.
“Pikachu, you missed me so much after just one day?”
Pikachu rubbed against Gwen affectionately, making her smile.
“Pika… Pika…”
“Alright, alright, I missed you too.”
Alan walked out and immediately threw cold water on the sweet moment: “What Pikachu really means is, he wants you to take him flying, not that he missed you.”
With Alan’s explanation, Pikachu quickly nodded and then jumped to the ground, spreading his little arms like Gwen does when gliding.
“Pika… Pika…”
Gwen’s face darkened, and she turned her head away: “Hmph! If you don’t miss me, I won’t take you flying.”
...
Pikachu immediately put on a pitiful expression, shaking Gwen’s arm: “Pika… Pika…”
Seeing the little guy’s cute antics, Gwen’s heart softened instantly. “Alright, alright, I’ll take you. But isn’t it too noticeable if you cling to me like that?”
Both Pikachu and Gwen looked expectantly at Alan, hoping for a solution. Alan, who had been watching the two clowns, chuckled, “Don’t worry, most people will just think you’re carrying a backpack. Just don’t stay out too long; dinner will be ready soon.”
“Okay, Mr. Ford!”
“Pika…”
Gwen put on her mask, and Pikachu jumped onto her back.
“Are you ready, Pikachu?”
Pikachu raised one tiny hand like a commander giving orders: “Pika… Chu…”
With a running start, Gwen leaped off the building, swinging through the city to reach the highest point in New York.
“Pikachu… you ready?”
“Pika… Chu…”
Gwen dived off, the powerful wind distorting Pikachu’s face, but it was clear that Pikachu was having the time of his life. Watching them have so much fun, Alan smiled faintly and then went back inside to prepare dinner.
...
While Alan’s side was full of warmth and joy, things were quite tense on Tony Stark’s end.
In his workshop, Tony was despondently fiddling with the Arc Reactor. He had tried countless configurations, but every one of them failed.
“Sir, you need to install the Arc Reactor immediately, or your life will be in danger,” JARVIS warned.
Tony sighed, “JARVIS, whether I install it or not, my life is still in danger.”
He lifted his shirt to reveal that the black streaks around the Arc Reactor had spread across his chest, a clear sign of palladium poisoning. Tony looked at the symptoms and sighed again, eventually deciding to reinstall the reactor.
Then he checked the palladium levels in his blood: 36%.
The steadily rising number on the display felt like a countdown to his life, but Tony was numb to it, or perhaps he was beginning to give up.
“JARVIS, where’s Yinsen?”
Tony realized he hadn’t seen Yinsen much today.
“Sir, he said he went to consult an old friend in physics for advice.”
“His old friend? What’s his name?”
“Otto Gunther Octavius.”
After hearing the name, Tony couldn’t help but comment, “What a long name, but it sounds familiar.”
Tony thought for a moment but couldn’t recall why. It didn’t matter much to him, though. He figured if he couldn’t solve this problem himself, then no one in the world could… unless…
Tony turned to look at the digital model of the Emperor Armor…
...
