That gaze was extremely cold, deep and somber, exactly the same as when Harry caught him at the entrance of the mental hospital last time.
Now Finn was truly afraid.
Finn hurriedly turned to look at Peter, who was wearing the Spider-Man suit, with a pleading expression in his eyes: ".." Oh crap, my brother is having an episode!
Spider-Man: ".." Who exactly is the one with the mental illness?
Chapter 59: Dispute and Advice
[Save me! Save me! Save me!]
Peter didn't even need to be able to hear Finn's inner thoughts; he could see the SOS emergency alarm just from the young man's eyes.
At this moment, the air between the Osborn brothers was as cold as frozen ice, completely out of place amidst the surrounding chaos.
Even though the crisis had been averted, Harry's grip on Finn's wrist did not loosen in the slightest, causing Finn to frown in pain.
After facing the threat of death, Harry did not look shaken at all; instead, he was filled with an extreme, freezing coldness.
Harry didn't look at the eye-catching superheroes, the agents, or the police who had just arrived; he didn't know who the mastermind behind this farce was, nor did he care. His green eyes were fixed solely on Finn; that green, which was usually so indifferent, was now surging with overflowing rage, while deep within his eyes lay a terrifying, wave-like fear.
Finn felt his scalp tingle under the stare, not daring to meet Harry's gaze.
“Come with me.”
Harry's voice was cold and devoid of any emotion as he grabbed Finn's wrist and pulled him toward the exit of the banquet hall, using so much force that Finn was practically being dragged by him.
Andrew hesitated for a moment, wondering whether to speak up.
Please, sir, please wait!" Spider-Man said in a panic, hurriedly blocking Harry's path, "S. H. I. E. L. D. agents—government officials—will be here in a moment to secure the scene. It's best not to leave on your own right now.
Harry stopped in his tracks, but even Spider-Man could see the implication of "Do you even have a say in this?" in Harry's cold, irritable green eyes.
Without Peter Parker's identity, even with the heroic identity of Spider-Man, Harry would not give him any pleasant looks because of it.
"Max." Harry also caught sight of the agents and police arriving at the scene; he didn't want to waste words with Spider-Man and called Max over directly.
"Yes, Mr. Osborn." As Finn's bodyguard, Max naturally followed the instructions of Harry Osborn, who was the brother of Young Master Finn.
Finn was startled, I need to take him away from here," Harry said in a low voice. "You handle the rest.
Finn had previously explained the entire cause and effect of Max Dillon's mutation to Harry, Harry also knew that Max's power after mutation was highly valued by S. H. I. E. L. D. However, Max did not want to become an agent; he only wanted to be a bodyguard by Finn's side. At that time, Harry had been somewhat concerned about Max's superpower, but now he only felt that they needed someone like him to keep an eye on Finn.
Finn Osborn, looking bewildered: "??" You mean.. me? Being startled!?"
Of course." Max did not question Harry's words in the slightest, instead nodding heavily. His face, shimmering with the blue light of electricity, was filled with intense guilt and self-reproach as he said with great anguish, "In a moment of such crisis, I failed to be by Young Master Finn's side to protect him; it was a dereliction of my duty. If there is ever a next time, let me—
Don't say that. You arrived just in time, didn't you?
Finn hurriedly and flusteredly spoke up to stop him; one shouldn't go making such a Flag so carelessly.
Harry was in no mood to listen to Max's confession and continued to drag Finn away by force.
Finn was startled—
It was the cold aura radiating from his brother that he felt, a presence a hundred times more terrifying than that blue light capable of shattering statues.
The panicked Finn was still using his eyes to signal Spider-Man for help.
"Mr. Osborn.." Spider-Man could only brace himself.
"Since you are a superhero, then do what a hero should do," Harry said coldly and impatiently.
Clearly, even a superhero has no standing to interfere in the affairs of the Osborn brothers.
Spider-Man watched Finn's retreating figure as he was dragged away.
The young man looked just like a helpless kitten, being dragged away by the scruff of his neck.
The anxious Spider-Man helplessly raised his hands to cover his head, spun around twice in place, then hurriedly turned and ran away.
—He had to go and swap Peter's "Ambassador of Peace" identity back.
Andrew looked at Spider-Man's departing back with some confusion: ".." He always felt that he looked somewhat familiar for some unknown reason.
Under Max's escort, Harry could be said to have smoothly pushed Finn into the car all the way.
Finn maintained a well-behaved sitting posture.
Even his hands were placed obediently on his lap.
System PP: [..] Children who do wrong always act exceptionally well-behaved.
Young Master Finn, Mr. Osborn, I'll go communicate with the people from S. H. I. E. L. D. first." Max still had to communicate with the S. H. I. E. L. D. agents; after all, the chaos caused by the Asgardian invasion of Earth had already occurred, the scene was now under the control of S. H. I. E. L. D. Of course, this didn't mean anyone could just leave whenever they wanted. "Please rest assured, I'll be able to leave in just a little bit of time.
Harry gave a faint response.
After Max Dillon closed the car door, all the sounds from the outside were cut off.
The air pressure inside the carriage had dropped to an extreme low.
Harry's gaze fell heavily upon Finn.
Under Pressure Finn: ".." 【Save me, PP!】
System PP: 【..】You really have no one else to turn to.
"Finn, what on earth were you just doing?" Harry asked in a cold voice.
".. Protect you?" Finn said hesitantly.
"I don't need you to stand in front of me like a meat shield." Harry's voice suddenly rose, laced with suppressed anger; he still didn't dare to recall that scene, the way Finn had stepped forward to shield him—
Without a moment's hesitation.
Without even considering what the consequences would be if that blue light fell upon him, he shielded him firmly behind his back.
Harry naturally already knew how kind and naive his younger brother was, not sounding like anyone from the Osborn family at all.
But he had also never imagined that his brother would be willing to give his life for him without hesitation.
"Do you know you'll die?" Harry asked angrily, only he knew the palpitations in his heart at that moment.
And what do you know? You'll die just standing there like that." Finn looked up, meeting Harry's gaze directly. In those green eyes, which were identical to his own, there was not a trace of fear, only pure confusion and stubbornness. "Everyone has knelt down, yet you stand there like a sitting duck.
"I could never kneel to someone like that." Harry's cold and hard tone was incredibly firm; the pride etched into his very bones and the defiance ingrained in the Osborn bloodline meant that even when facing death, he would never bow and scrape.
Finn thought back to how he was among the first to kneel: ".." It felt as if he had been pricked.
[You're so arrogant, so full of self-respect; you're about to lose your life and yet you're still putting on airs as the Young Master of the Osborn family.]
So, you want me to stand with you," Finn Osborn said, pretending not to understand. "Next time I'll know—I knelt down too quickly, without any backbone at all. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have disgraced the dignity of our Osborn family.
"Finn Osborn!" Harry's anger flared even more at being choked up by him.
System PP pointed out the key point: 【Harry Osborn is worried about you, Host.】
He's being a hypocrite! Why can he be a target, but I can't?" Finn thought unconventionally, the matter even stirred up some of his lingering resentment. "I'm telling you, PP, this is a common ailment among Hosts in the 'Slap-in-the-Face Counterattack' channel—their self-esteem is greater than their lives. If they had even a little less self-esteem, many things would have been easily resolved.
But they refuse; they are the kind of people who, even when they know they are about to fall into a pit, refuse to reach out and steady themselves, choosing instead to use both hands to hold their dignity up first!
—If you have self-respect, then I have my little temper.
I don't get it anyway, anyway, we little systems don't have self-respect!
[..] System PP remained silent.
That sounds reasonable, but—
Harry Osborn isn't your host either; you are my host!
Then I can't just stand by and watch you die." Finn's voice was not loud but was very clear, his green eyes reflecting Harry's face as he said stubbornly, "Is it only you who is allowed to stand up? If you feel you are not in the wrong, then I don't feel there is anything wrong with what I've done either.
Finn frowned slightly, thinking to himself that, no matter how he looked at it, his stance this time was quite firm.
—You were the one standing there like a stubborn mule first, only then did I stand up.
Don't you talk about the Young Master Osborn like that, you big Young Master Osborn!
Harry clenched his fists as he watched Finn's stubborn expression, wanting to demand an answer.
—What if no one steps in at such a critical moment? What if it's just one second too late?
Finn would face that destructive beam of energy head-on, then..
At the mere thought of this possibility, Harry felt a chill run through his entire body, even his fingertips trembled.
I'm not angry that you protected me, but that you didn't even care about your own life!
Finn was just about to argue when he heard Harry continue asking—
Tell me, are you afraid of what happened, Finn?
Finn froze for a moment.
You didn't! You were even excited to witness such a scene." Harry could naturally distinguish Finn's emotions, which made him even angrier, "Finn, do you even realize that if no one had stepped in just now, you would be a cold corpse by now! And the result? You actually managed to greet Spider-Man with a smile?
The chill from his fingertips traveled through his nerves to the depths of his heart.
He knew clearly that if that blue light had truly fallen in that moment, his world would have faced a total collapse.
[Misery Value detected rising, Misery Value +1%]
Finn: ".." Not to be blunt, but if you and a hundred other Hosts had experienced all sorts of ups and downs in this world, you would also become indifferent to all this. It was just a narrow escape from an accident; there's no need to make such a big fuss.
Harry, you need to keep a positive attitude." Finn curled his lips into a well-behaved smile, attempting to comfort him, "Since everyone is fine, isn't that a good thing?
However, Finn's carefree attitude failed to have any soothing effect at all; instead, it acted like a spark that directly ignited the last bit of restraint in Harry's heart, causing the young man's rage to burn even more fiercely.
You think that was a joke? You were so close! Just one second away! And you would have been gone!
Harry would be terrified, it would be a crushing, overwhelming terror.
He could still clearly feel, even now, something clutching his heart tightly, choking him until he could hardly breathe.
"If something really happened to you today, what would I do!" Harry demanded angrily.
Everything Harry is doing now is to pave the way for Finn.
His hereditary illness manifested earlier and more intensely than Norman Osborn's. Those uncontrollable emotions, those pains that entangled him day and night, the layers of accumulating pressure, the occasional surges of bipolarity, all exacerbated the deterioration of his condition day after day.
Harry had no idealism about being able to be cured. He had to prepare for the worst, ensuring that everything in the Osborn family was securely placed in Finn's hands before everything spiraled out of control and before he was completely devoured by that damned curse.
But if Finn dies, then everything he has done, all the futures he has planned..