"What a perfect plan. So your idea is to first use one puppet to get me to investigate, and then try to use another puppet to investigate me? Is that your intention?"
Peter stood up, looking at the Goblin who was also rising, ready to strike at any moment. The enemy before him was very likely an ordinary person controlled by the real Goblin, though there was a small chance it was the real Goblin merely putting on an act.
"Spider-Man, you must be thinking that the one who came is just a lackey, that the Goblin hiding behind others is just an ordinary person who doesn't dare to strike personally. But you're wrong! What's a Goblin? I am the Goblin King!"
"Oh, really? The Goblin King? Sounds like a beginner boss in a video game. Couldn't you have chosen a better name?"
"Hahaha, that's amusing, Spider-Man. You seem to look down on Goblins. Do you know how many kinds of Goblins there are?"
The Goblin before him stood up, apparently planning to ramble on about his evil scheme. Peter, while notifying the Avengers to rescue Ned, listened to the opponent's nonsense.
"In the beginning, there was only the Green Goblin. Norman Osborn's most annoying old rival, Otto Octavius, injected the Erskine serum into Norman's body to spite him, then subjected him to gamma radiation, breeding an unprecedented monster, one that nearly killed Spider-Man. That was the original history, a shame it will never happen again."
"But! Kang the Conqueror delivered a new serum to us! Although it's merely a mass-produced product purified from Osborn's mutated blood, it still granted me unparalleled strength! I became capable of matching you, Spider-Man!" The Goblin let out a cackling laugh. "You'll never guess how many Goblin serums have been lost. Of course, there are some people who didn't get the serum, but they have the same gear. They chose to become—Jack O'Lantern."
"It really is Halloween," Peter commented, watching his surroundings, especially the status of the glider he had shot down. He continued to question the opponent: "Are there others, then? Green Goblin, Hobgoblin, Jack O'Lantern. Speaking of which, does the last one really count as a Goblin?"
"Then there's the Gray Goblin, a Goblin who might never be born, so we'll skip him for now. After that, there's the Red Goblin, a combination of Symbiote and Green Goblin, and the Gnoblin! Hahahaha, when Spider-Man becomes the Green Goblin!"
Alright, alright, everyone's had enough of the bad plots from the Spider-Man V6 comics; let's not bring that up.
"Haha, very funny. I promise I won't become as ugly and disgusting as you."
"So, here's the question, Spider-Man."
The Goblin before him smiled.
"What color is the Goblin King?!"
"I'm waiting for you to tell me!"
Peter swiftly charged forward and delivered a punch. The Goblin caught the punch, but Peter forced the Goblin's fist to smash into his own head.
Just that single blow left the Goblin dazed and reeling backward. He hurriedly summoned his glider to stab at Peter. Peter, in turn, caught the glider and snapped it in two.
"Alright... Spider-Man, perhaps this Goblin really isn't your match."
The Goblin, who had retreated two steps, laughed heartily, then looked at Peter: "But I know your weakness! I know how to torment you!"
"Finally, I'll give you the answer!"
The battered Goblin took off his mask and shouted loudly.
"I am the Goblin King! And the color of the Goblin King is green!"
He removed his mask.
He revealed the face of the missing ordinary citizen, Arnold Donovan.
Peter had seen that face in the photo given to him by Captain Stacy.
That was a man who had done nothing wrong, who had given up the power of a supervillain and only wanted to be a normal person.
He looked at Peter.
"Spider-Man?"
Then Donovan seemed to remember something and reached out his hand towards Peter.
"Save me."
Peter wanted to say something, wanted to grab Donovan and call for backup, but as he was about to get closer, his Spider-Sense screamed violently.
His head was throbbing with pain. Venom directly extended tentacles from behind him, pulling Peter away from Donovan.
The next second, an explosion erupted from within Donovan's body. The shockwave spread, and then flames ignited from the edges, converging toward the center.
Instantly, the man began to wail. Flames relentlessly engulfed him. The body, enhanced by the Goblin Serum, did not survive the high-temperature incineration; instead, it prolonged his burning time from an instant to several seconds.
Finally, in less than five seconds of incineration, Donovan, maintaining the posture of reaching out to Peter, turned into a shriveled piece of charcoal.
The broken remnants of the glider transmitted the Goblin King's voice.
"Hello, Spider-Man? Did you die trying to save him? That would be great! Spider-Man died saving someone, hahahaha! Not bad, not bad. No? Your amazing senses saved your life, forcing you to watch him die right in front of you, didn't it?"
"Did he cry out for your help? Did he fail to die instantly? Was his screaming music to your ears? Don't worry, we have plenty more of this pleasant music in the future."
"GOBLIN!!!"
"Oh oh oh, are you angry? You're angry? But you called me by the wrong name. Donovan was the Hobgoblin, and Ned is the Hobgoblin. As for the one who's been chatting with you, that's me, I'm the Goblin King."
The Goblin King let out a piercing laugh, then paused: "But I'm green. Perhaps, I am the Green Goblin! But who am I? Could I be Norman Osborn? Or perhaps poor Harry Osborn? Hahahaha, maybe it's their psychiatrist, Barton Hamilton. Norman already suspects him, doesn't he?!"
"Or perhaps I am no one. I am the forgotten Green Goblin, or Hobgoblin, or Jack O'Lantern."
"I don't care if you're the Green Goblin or not! I will drag you out!"
Peter looked at the charred corpse before him, kneeling down beside Donovan's remains to swear: "I will absolutely drag you out! No matter who you are—"
"Oh... poor Spider-Man. He's angry. But now is not the time for anger. Did you forget something? One Hobgoblin was burned in front of you, but you can still save the other! Hahahaha!"
The Goblin King delivered one last reminder through the glider: "Oh my god, you didn't call your friends to save Ned Leeds, did you? Those who offer aid to a Hobgoblin won't end well."
"Do your Avengers friends have your special senses to escape the calamity?"
"HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!"