Instantly, everything around fell silent.
The dancing dust motes, illuminated by the sunlight, sparkled like tiny sprites. Sunlight streamed through the collapsed wall, resembling the outstretched arm of a god.
But soon, this peace was shattered once more.
Police cars, sirens blaring, arrived and blocked the entrance to the courthouse, intercepting any onlookers.
Harry, resting in a chair, let out a cold laugh upon hearing the sirens. "They show up only after the criminals have escaped. I really don't know what these police are doing with taxpayer money!"
"Harry!"
Norman reprimanded him, then apologized to George Stacy, whose expression had soured.
Stacy had no defense and could only nod silently.
He had to admit, with the efficiency of the New York police, it wasn't surprising that the public often trusted superheroes more than them.
But as the police chief, he couldn't just let these self-proclaimed heroes run wild.
He strode out of the courthouse.
Matt said to Norman, "Mr. Osborn, you can leave the rest to me. If nothing unexpected happens, all of Stromm's assets will soon be yours."
Norman nodded.
He didn't ask Matt to transfer Stromm's assets to Ben. The division of spoils was between him and Ben; this was also a form of protection for Ben.
Then, he took Harry to the hospital for a check-up, just in case of any lingering issues.
He had wanted to ask Peter to get a check-up too, but Peter, worried about his spider abilities being exposed, quickly refused.
After parting ways with Norman, Peter walked aimlessly with his backpack.
Before he knew it, he was back downstairs at Primus.
Thinking about it, he decided to find Dr. Connors and do some research, see if they could develop an antidote for the Green Goblin's modification serum.
But to his surprise, Ben, whom Eunice had said was out shopping with Mary Jane, was now Four Arms, tinkering with his car in the lab.
"Benny, aren't you supposed to be on a date with Mary Jane?"
"Someone called to harass me, so the date had to be interrupted." The three-meter-tall Four Arms rolled all four of his eyes simultaneously, then used his two powerful arms to flip the Rust Bucket RV over as if he were stir-frying.
His movements were far from gentle; they were rough, making Peter worry that the car would be crushed by his massive hands.
However, the Rust Bucket RV Ben was building was naturally not that fragile.
It might not withstand a punch from Four Arms, but simple contact wouldn't damage it.
"My date with Felicia is at 8 PM, so I'm modifying the engine." He freed one hand to stroke his chin, thought for a moment, and asked, "Don't you think putting a Tetramand engine on the Rust Bucket RV is a bit overkill?"
"It's like using Wonder Woman's Lasso of Truth to tie a stone to a stick and make a stone tool," Peter said.
"Or installing a nuclear weapon on a wooden boat?"
Peter now understood just how advanced the Tetramand engine was.
Even among cosmic civilizations capable of interstellar travel and faster-than-light jumps, such an engine was unparalleled.
Peter's thought was that it was completely unnecessary.
The Rust Bucket RV wouldn't be able to utilize even a tiny fraction of the engine's power.
"You're right, but who told me I have the technology!" Ben declared that having the technology meant he could be willful. Who said the Lasso of Truth couldn't tie stones?
"Whatever makes you happy."
Peter's spirits were low.
Although Ben knew the reason, he pretended not to, and asked, "What's wrong?"
"The courthouse was attacked, and I let the Green Goblin get away," Peter said dejectedly.
He recounted everything that had happened at the courthouse to Ben, then added, "He's a madman. I'm worried he'll hurt Uncle Ben and Aunt May..."
"Is that so?"
Ben looked at him and smiled slightly. "Do you really think he'll have a chance to escape and continue causing trouble after I've caught the Green Goblin?"
Peter blinked. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, if I wanted him dead, I could do it right now."
Ben flashed a devilish grin, then, to Peter's astonishment, pulled out a controller that looked somewhat like a lighter.
"Actually, when I caught the Green Goblin, I already implanted a chip in his body that can release neurotoxin."
Ben handed the controller to Peter.
"As soon as you press this button, the neurotoxin in the Green Goblin's body will be released immediately, and he'll be as good as dead."
In reality, pressing the button wouldn't kill the Green Goblin instantly.
The controller had multiple settings, and only the highest setting would completely kill him.
But that wasn't important. What was important was that Ben was once again placing the decision of the Green Goblin's life or death in Peter's hands, to see what he would choose.
"Press this, and the Green Goblin will die. That way, you won't have to worry about him causing trouble anymore. Whether it's Kingpin, The Hand, or anyone else, they won't be able to find the remaining Lizard Serum. All that will die is a mad villain. I think it's a fair trade, what do you think?"
"But, we can't..."
Peter's mouth opened, wanting to say something, but his voice felt like a fishbone covered in thorns, stuck in his throat, stinging his vocal cords.
"Why not?"
Ben tapped the watch symbol on his shoulder, transforming back. He then brushed some dust off his clothes and retorted, "Are you Batman?"
"Do you think that by killing one criminal, the world gains one less criminal, so the total number of criminals remains the same?"
"No," Peter shook his head.
Of course, he knew that theory was ridiculous.
Killing one criminal might keep the total the same, but what about ten, or a hundred?
Not to mention, the total number of criminals was meaningless. What mattered was that innocent victims would be saved.
"I just feel that the life and death of a person shouldn't be decided by us, because people always make irrational judgments due to impulse or other reasons," Peter said.
Like today, when the Green Goblin said he would kill everyone Peter knew, he had indeed wanted to simply snap the villain's neck.
"Then who should decide?" Ben asked.
"The law?"
"But you've seen it yourself. The more capable criminals are at causing major impact, the more they exploit loopholes in the law. And more people will want their 'talents' to be recognized."
Hearing this, Peter told Ben about his thoughts from today.
"Taking away their superpowers, that's indeed a good idea," Ben agreed with a nod at first. But then, he asked, "But have you considered that some people are still dangerous even without superpowers?"
"Some people, even when they're in prison, can control everything happening outside, making countless people work for them?"
"And others, they are incredibly intelligent. They don't have superpowers, but they possess wisdom that ordinary people can't match. You can't just turn them into fools, can you?"
Actually, Ben wouldn't mind turning someone into a fool.
But it was more troublesome than just killing them directly.
After hearing this string of questions, Peter fell silent again.
He had felt like he had matured significantly after today's events, but now it seemed he was still too naive and took too much for granted.
"Then what should I do?"
Ben tilted his chin, pointing at the controller in his hand.
"Isn't the right to choose already in your hands?" he said.
"Those criminals are nothing but pests in the city. Do you need to catch pests?"
Peter remained silent. He looked down at the controller in his hand, and the scales in his heart seemed to begin to waver. His hands holding the controller started to close.
"Crack!"
The next moment, a crisp sound.
The controller was crushed in his grip.
Peter looked up and said seriously, "No matter what, I still can't just kill him. It's not because of mercy or any other reason, but I'm worried that once I cross this line, there will be no turning back..."
Not killing him was also a form of self-restraint for him.
Killing someone was too easy for Peter, almost like killing an ant.
He worried that if this continued, he would become increasingly indifferent to life, separating himself from ordinary people, becoming one of those arrogant individuals who thought they could decide the fate of others.
"Well said, but Peter..."
Ben opened his mouth and hesitated before speaking, "After the controller is damaged, the neurotoxin will activate immediately... I'm afraid the Green Goblin is already dead."
Peter: Σ(⊙▽⊙"a!!!
Peter was stunned.
"Alright, I was just kidding."
Ben's words put Peter at ease. Then, Peter turned around and went to find Connors for research.
Watching Peter's retreating back, Ben shook his head.
He wasn't disappointed that Peter couldn't make up his mind to kill the Green Goblin; on the contrary, it was within his expectations.
"So, you are the true Spider-Man," Ben thought.
At the same time, he raised his wrist, and a row of blue arcs lit up on the web-shooter.
Of course, Peter wasn't the only one with a controller. He had long since integrated the controller's functions into the web-shooter. In fact, he had integrated quite a few other functions into it as well.
This device, resembling a bracer, was arguably the part of Spider-Man's suit where the most modifications could be made.
At this moment, Ben extended a finger and swiped across the bracer, and the blue light circle instantly reached its maximum brightness.
Just as Peter wouldn't kill the Green Goblin, Ben wouldn't let the Green Goblin live, especially after he threatened Peter and said he would kill his family and friends.
"If I let him go, then I wouldn't be Ben Parker!"
Thanks to Xianyu Warrior, Passerby Who Likes Novels, and Godslayer Xin Kai for the 100-point tip.
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Translation by: randomtranslator.com
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