Some of Carl's assets had long been managed by Stark Industries' legal department.
Of course, Carl paid them privately for the service — technically, it was side work for them.
After all, he wasn't an expert in corporate or financial law. Professional matters were best left to professionals, and Stark Industries' legal team was second to none.
Carl had chosen several reliable people from Stark's legal department.
Normally, Stark's lawyers wouldn't accept private jobs like other corporate attorneys.
After all, Stark Industries paid them far too well for that.
However, Carl's case was… special.
He was a major shareholder of Stark Industries.
Naturally, the lawyers couldn't refuse him outright.
After getting approval from higher-ups, they accepted his request.
Carl's goal now was simple: cut his losses.
Osborn Group had been developing fairly well, and Carl had made a tidy profit.
But lately, things were starting to turn sour.
And with the Green Goblin's appearance just around the corner, Carl certainly had no intention of going down with the company.
He couldn't talk Norman Osborn out of his reckless plans, but he wasn't about to lose money over them either.
So, while the Osborn Group still held decent value, Carl decided to sell his shares and cash out.
After notifying Stark Industries' legal team, Carl didn't dwell on the matter anymore.
Still, he continued to keep an eye on Norman Osborn from time to time.
Meanwhile, Spider-Man was busy crafting his suit
and heading out at night to capture criminals.
That night, deep in Osborn's laboratory,
Norman Osborn stood beside Dr. Stromm, holding a vial of glowing green liquid.
『Dr. Stromm』: "Mr. Osborn, please — I'm begging you. The performance enhancement serum isn't stable yet. The last test didn't even count as a success. This could kill you."
But Norman ignored him. He placed the serum on the machine and began typing commands.
『Norman Osborn』: "Don't be such a coward. Every experiment carries risk."
『Dr. Stromm』: "Then at least let me arrange another test subject. One volunteer, one medic — give me two weeks."
『Norman Osborn』: "Two weeks? In two weeks, the military contract will be gone, and Osborn Group will collapse. Everything we've invested will go to waste!"
He stripped off his coat, eyes burning with resolve.
『Norman Osborn』: "Sometimes, you have to rely on yourself. Give me the Promerezine."
『Dr. Stromm』: "Why…?"
『Norman Osborn』: "It helps the serum circulate faster in the bloodstream."
Seeing that Norman's mind was made up — and unable to suppress his own scientific curiosity — Dr. Stromm reluctantly fetched the compound.
『Norman Osborn』: "Human evolution has spanned forty thousand years… and yet, our true potential remains untapped."
He downed the Promerezine and lay on the injection platform.
Dr. Stromm secured the restraints and activated the system.
The chamber sealed shut, filling with a swirling green mist — the serum was vaporized for maximum absorption.
Soon, the entire chamber was engulfed. Stromm could no longer see anything inside.
He could only watch the monitors.
Norman's physical stats spiked — strength, speed, endurance — all skyrocketed.
But so did his heart rate.
『Dr. Stromm』: "No… this is too fast."
Then came a blood-curdling scream.
『Norman Osborn』: "Aaaahhhh!"
The mist cleared just enough for Stromm to glimpse Norman's twitching, contorted face.
Panic seized him.
『Dr. Stromm』: "Norman?! Stop the process! Stop it now!"
He hit the emergency shutdown. The mist dissipated — and the monitor went flatline.
『Dr. Stromm』: "Oh my God!"
He rushed forward. Norman lay motionless.
『Dr. Stromm』: "Norman! Norman, wake up!"
He began performing CPR. It was pure instinct — he didn't even think it would work.
But after only a few compressions, the monitor flickered — heartbeat restored.
Before Stromm could react, Norman's hand shot up — and clamped around his throat.
『Norman Osborn』: "Start over…? No."
With a monstrous snarl, Norman hurled him across the lab.
Dr. Stromm crashed through a glass partition, landing hard.
『Norman Osborn』: "HAHAHAHAHA!! Power! POWER!! My body is overflowing with power!"
『Norman Osborn』: "The experiment is a success! Damn you, Tony Stark — inventing those humanoid suits and ruining my contract! I'll prove my serum is far superior!"
『Norman Osborn』: "And Carl Smith… you dared to look down on me. You'll pay for that too!"
Rummaging through the lab, Norman found the company's prototype glider.
He donned a green armored suit, loaded up with razor-edged throwing blades, and smashed through the wall on his glider.
With a roar of engines and shattered glass raining down behind him,
he soared into the night — toward Stark Tower.
Elsewhere, Carl had just finished some "pleasant business" with Zhang Manyue.
After a quick shower, he instinctively checked in on Norman Osborn's whereabouts —
and discovered that the man wasn't at home.
Not only that — Norman was flying through the city skies on a glider, clad in a green suit.
It was obvious he had injected the serum and transformed into the Green Goblin.
But what was his destination?
Carl's expression darkened as he realized it — Stark Tower.
Was he going after Tony Stark?
No… Tony wasn't even in the building tonight.
Then… was he planning to destroy Stark Tower?
Carl frowned. That, he would never allow.
He dressed quickly — and in the blink of an eye, appeared atop Stark Tower.
At that moment, Norman was still some distance away.
Carl thought for a second, then dialed Tony's number.
『Tony Stark』: "Hey there, what's up, Mr. Superman?"
『Carl』: "Someone's planning to blow up your tower."
『Tony Stark』: "…Wait, what? You're serious? Who?"
『Carl』: "Norman Osborn."
『Tony Stark』: "Who the hell is that?"
『Carl』: "An entrepreneur."
『Tony Stark』: "An entrepreneur trying to bomb my tower? Seriously…?"