System PP was somewhat surprised that Finn asked such a strange question, but still answered according to the rules: 【System PP is a newbie system, just out of production—】
Stop pretending." Finn interrupted softly, his tone carrying a hint of realization and a certainty that only an experienced veteran would possess. "I'm practically an old system myself; you don't need to use those rules to fool me—I'm not an ordinary Host. You really do know a lot; you even seem to know about those kinds of things. I didn't know anything back then; I only learned gradually after being with many Hosts, those earliest Hosts were always lying to me.
You know what I'm talking about, don't you?
Finn was suddenly intrigued and asked curiously in a low voice—
It doesn't matter. We're all systems anyway, so it's fine to speak from the heart.
PP, how old were you before you became a system?
Finn's question was like a sudden bolt of lightning, crashing heavily into System PP's core program.
System PP was profoundly shocked at this moment; he had even previously thought that he was the exception within that system. But now, Finn's words made PP doubt, for the first time, that all of his previous perceptions might have been wrong.
"Host, you told me before that the hosts you assist.. they were originally from their own world." System PP's tone carried a clear sense of uncertainty for the first time.
Just as System PP had always thought Finn was simply a [System-turned-Human], making him an exception among the [Transplants] of this world. System PP had never considered another possibility—what if his host, Finn, was originally from this world?
But Finn's thoughts and actions were simply.. too much like a normal person.
It was as if the underlying code was the system's own system, carrying a "programmed" tone.
At the same time, System PP experienced deep doubts about his mission for the first time.
—Was his mission really to help the Host accumulate 100% Misery Value?
—Is that all?
After a long silence, System PP suppressed the surging shock and unease, asked the most critical question:
[Host, were you originally Young Master Finn?]
“I am not,” Finn immediately and vehemently denied, even shaking his head violently, his tone carrying a hint of helplessness at being misunderstood, “What are you thinking? I already told you, this is just a setting given to me by the Main Brain to complete the mission.”
System PP suddenly realized that, even though he was the system closest to the Host, it was only at this moment that he seemed to have touched upon that long-ignored yet most fatal question—
Host, if you are not Finn Osborn, then.. who are you?
Hearing this question, Finn slowly raised his head, his gaze falling upon the mirror in the bathroom. Reflected in the mirror was a handsome face with emerald green eyes and fair skin—it looked exactly like Finn Osborn, yet it also seemed not to be the real him.
The young man's expression gradually became dazed, his eyes went blank for a moment, as if he were recalling something, yet as if he couldn't remember anything at all. After a moment, the corners of Finn's lips curled slightly, he flashed a nonchalant smile at himself in the mirror.
It doesn't matter.
No one cares who I am.
To be honest, it's been a very long time, I don't remember it very clearly either.
Just then, System PP suddenly remembered a scene from a long time ago in the mortuary—
When Finn saw Max in a state of suspended animation, the young man's expression was silent and heavy.
System PP clearly remembered that at that moment, Finn silently felt pity for Max in his heart. To die all alone in an unknown corner, with no one to care even in his final moments. Even death was as silent as if it had never existed.
And it was at that very moment—
[Misery Value fluctuation detected, Misery Value +1%]
At that time, System PP had assumed that Finn only felt pity for Max's plight, which had caused the fluctuation in Misery Value. But thinking about it now, System PP was suddenly somewhat uncertain. At that moment, did Finn truly just feel sorry for Max, or.. did he see some unknown shadow in Max that triggered the rise in Misery Value?
This thought left System PP in an unprecedented state of panic.
For the first time, he felt as if he had never truly understood his Host.
"Before becoming a system, System PP was already twenty-eight years old." System PP finally answered Finn's question.
"Then why are you still using such a young boy's electronic voice!" Finn was shocked and incredulous, feeling as if his emotions had been toyed with.
Host, that's the voice you chose yourself," System PP said helplessly, then added cautiously, with a hidden sense of panic that only the system itself knew, "So, Host, how old were you before becoming a system?
"Me?" Finn smiled, answering nonchalantly—
I'm eight.
Chapter 76: Broken Brain
“Aren't you tired of running around like this every night?”
A sudden question from Aunt May caused Peter, who was busy biting into a sandwich, to freeze on the spot, a mouthful of toast getting stuck in his throat. His face instantly turned beet red as he began coughing violently; he tried to open his mouth to explain, but he couldn't manage a single complete sentence for a long time.
"Eat slowly, don't choke." Aunt May looked at Peter with concern, hurriedly getting up to approach him and patting the young man's back.
“What's the rush? It's not like I'm accusing you." Peter's behavior of climbing out the window in the middle of the night even after returning home could, of course, not be hidden from Aunt May. She had actually seen it all along, she just hadn't called him out on it. "It's not like I haven't been young once; you and Finn are in the middle of a passionate romance right now, I can understand."
Peter finally managed to catch his breath, but his cheeks remained flushed all the way to his ears, he didn't dare meet Aunt May's "I know everything" gaze.
I just wanted to tell you that you don't need to go through all the trouble of running back and forth just to put my mind at ease. If you really want to stay at Finn's tonight, just send me a message; I'll have Oreo with me," Aunt May said thoughtfully. "Besides, isn't the third stage of your show, Rat Rise, about to start soon? And that spin-off variety show about the fun duo competitions you mentioned.. the two of you will have a lot to coordinate with the production crew as well.
Peter nodded hesitantly.
But this matter is a bit complicated.. Did he not want to stay?
—The Bro-Sorrow Alliance won't let him stay either.
"By the way, this is the check for the second theme match's challenge winner prize." Peter handed the check to Aunt May.
Keep it for yourself." Aunt May shook her head hurriedly; she still didn't know about the things between Peter and Finn when she had accepted a check last time. "You're dating the Young Master Osborn now, so it's only right that you use some of it for dating expenses. You can't exactly take the Osborn Group heir out on a date and only take him to eat Subway on the roadside, can you?
Peter: ".."
Do you know what they're saying online?" Ever since the Pinfinity CP went viral, Aunt May has found a new hobby: shipping her own kid's romance online every single day. She isn't just family; she's a hardcore fan who surfs the web daily to ship couples. At the thought of those hilarious and addictive comments, Aunt May couldn't help but laugh out loud. "Netizens are all saying that you two are the 21st-century version of 'The Prince and Cinderella'.
It's just that you're the Cinderella.
The Young Master Osborn of the Osborn Group, who had been born with a silver spoon in his mouth, was still captivated by a high schooler who ate cafeteria buffet meals at school.
"I know.." Peter naturally knew that although their family wasn't poor, the gap between an ordinary working-class family and a massive fortune like the Osborn Group's was far too glaring; it was essentially a case of a Cinderella boy meeting a prince of the Osborn Group.
Aunt May, please accept this." Peter still handed the check to Aunt May. "Besides the bonus, the Flying Pillow emoji that Finn drew for me is also making money. That emoji is quite popular because it's pretty cute, Finn also gave me all the online revenue from the emoji. Furthermore, Finn recently introduced me to his friend Blake's game studio to work as a motion capture actor, which also provides a significant income, I find it quite interesting as well.
In fact, with Peter Parker's current popularity, making money isn't difficult at all.
Ever since becoming famous through "Rat Rise," many collaborations have come knocking, including invitations to events and shows, even brand endorsements, most of which are for sportswear and outdoor brands.
But Peter turned them all down.
On one hand, Spider-Man was truly busy and really couldn't spare any extra time; on the other hand, Peter always felt that the gossip and rumors between himself and Finn already received enough attention, so there was no need to actively do anything else that would draw more eyes. He just wanted to live a peaceful life.
"So you're saying.. you're currently being kept by a CEO?" Aunt May said, looking enlightened.
Peter froze instantly: "?? Aunt May!!"
The innocent little Spider-Man, his face flushed red with shame, never expected that his guardian would stay here and continue to tease him on purpose.
I'm sorry, it really is hilarious," Aunt May said, covering her mouth as she laughed. "It feels like a sweet romance short drama has walked right into my house.
—And it's one of those wealthy, sweet, pampering short dramas.
—A wealthy CEO with assets totaling 1.6 trillion falls in love with me, an ordinary male high school student.
At the dining table, Aunt May even took out her phone to show Peter a series of short dramas she had been following lately. One could tell exactly what the series was about just from their titles. As Aunt May continued to recount those melodramatic and absurd plots to Peter, he felt as though useless and ridiculous knowledge was being forcibly forced into his brain.
"Once the short dramas Finn invests in are filmed, you'll definitely be among the first viewers to binge them," Peter said with great confidence.
Aunt May asked Peter with great anticipation what kind of short drama Finn was investing in.
A multi-angle, wealthy family romance short drama that is heartbreaking on both a physical and mental level," Peter thought for a moment and summarized, "It seems it has already started filming.
Then can I go do a cameo?" Aunt May looked at him and spoke with total seriousness. "If it's a short drama, I actually have a bit of confidence in my acting. With someone like me, once I'm put into a short drama, won't all the CEOs and billionaires in the country be revolving around me? They might even end up fighting over who gets to raise you.
Peter: "??" Aunt May, so you actually have dreams of being an actress?
"Alright, I'll stop teasing you, I was just joking." Aunt May smiled and waved her hand, her gaze landing softly on Peter.
I suddenly thought of the first time you brought Finn home.
At that time, she watched in surprise as Peter excitedly led a handsome and noble-looking young man through the door. The young man possessed a pair of beautiful, clean green eyes and wore only a jacket, looking dazed as if he had been half-dragged home by the boy.
“At that time, you said Finn had been looking for a poor stray puppy, but it turned out that the stray puppy was Oreo, you had actually picked it up a step ahead of him.” Aunt May leaned down to pick up the puppy at her feet, gently stroking its head. “From that day on, I knew that Finn must be just like you, both of you being very kind-hearted children at heart.”
After that, you and Finn became even better friends, I could clearly see the changes in you," Aunt May said, watching Peter with a smile. "You know that before this, your identity as Spider-Man took up a very significant part of your life.
I've always been proud of you, but at the same time, my heart feels heavy. While other kids are playing, fooling around, falling in love without a care in the world, you are shouldering responsibilities that you shouldn't have to bear at your age." Aunt May also spoke some heartfelt words to Peter that she had never mentioned before, "I understand your thoughts—with great power comes great responsibility. But I still feel that you are carrying burdens far too heavy for someone your age, struggling to hold everything together all by yourself.
But Finn's arrival.. has made your life so much richer.
You've participated in all sorts of activities, you've started spending time trying out more interesting and new things, you've met many excellent peers, you've truly experienced the youth and vitality that an eighteen-year-old can feel." As someone who had watched Peter grow up, Aunt May knew better than anyone how precious this change was. "What it means to have a crush, what it feels like to have an unrequited love, how wonderful and happy it is to be in a serious relationship with someone you love.
Aunt May didn't know, nor could she be certain, what kind of future Peter's first love would ultimately lead to.
After all, there was indeed a massive gap between Finn Osborn, the person in power at Osborn Group, Peter Parker. The gossip about Peter Parker having a crush on Finn Osborn was enough to shock the entire internet. Furthermore, Peter Parker also had the secret identities of Spider-Man and an Avenger.
But what she could be certain of was that the feelings between these two young men, who both possessed inherently sincere and kind hearts, were pure and clean—the very essence of beautiful love. Since it was like this, Aunt May would certainly offer her generous blessings and support to Finn and Peter.
Don't let your youth leave behind any regrets.
"I am so glad Finn made you realize that—" Aunt May said solemnly and gently.
“It's not just your identity as Spider-Man that makes you shine; your identity as Peter Parker can do the same.”
Peter stared blankly at Aunt May, his nose stinging with emotion because of what she said.
"I think so too," Peter said with a smile.
He truly thought so.
At eighteen years old, he fell in love with Finn Osborn so passionately, so unrestrainedly, so unreservedly.
Peter knew very well—
If one day, they truly part ways..
He probably will never love someone like this ever again.
And he would never again encounter a second person as wonderful, pure, passionate, unique as Finn Osborn.
To the disappointment of the audience, this spin-off variety show featuring duo competitions was not broadcast live, but was instead post-edited. Although the viewers were all begging for a live stream to ship the couple, Anthony was very insistent and did not grant their requests.
After all, although Finn and Peter were already together, they had no intention of making it official for the time being. This was only natural—Finn was currently the Osborn Group Interim CEO, announcing his relationship with a high school student in public would require him to consider many factors.
Anthony was also afraid that an accident might occur during the livestream, causing him to come out to the entire internet directly. Moreover, Finn had always been impulsive, Anthony even felt a faint worry in his heart that the two of them might break up in a few days, which would once again put them in the center of public scrutiny.
The post-production editing was much more reliable; it could easily be edited into a "friendship that hasn't quite become romance" style.