“Finn, have you known about your physical condition for a long time?” Dr. Bruce Banner spoke softly with a frown. Because of the Osborn family hereditary disease, he had previously performed a detailed physical examination on Finn. Dr. Bruce Banner certainly knew that Finn's genes were different from ordinary people, he had naturally conducted research on this, but strangely, there were no related research records within the Osborn Group internal. Dr. Bruce Banner had always noticed the two pale scars on Finn's back, but he had never brought them up, fearing the young man might overthink.
But looking at it now, the young man clearly knew, he had just deliberately hidden it.
Of course I know!
Finn screamed in his heart, but he couldn't say that this was a [Birdman Wing] exchanged for points.
He couldn't tell the truth, he couldn't make up a lie.
Finn froze on the spot, caught in a dilemma, having no idea how to explain this sudden [mutation].
Finn was quite shaken up today as well," Peter immediately stepped in to smooth things over, looking at the awkward Finn with heartache, "Stop questioning him for now.
"I think his mental state is just fine; he didn't hesitate to jump off a building," Iron Man added nonchalantly, that leap of faith truly showed he didn't care about anyone else's life or death. Tony could better understand what Peter meant by Finn exhausting others; he truly scared the little Spider-Man out of his wits.
Peter also suddenly thought of that time when Finn jumped from the Osborn Building while holding Harry.
Spider-Man had previously thought that Finn had timed it perfectly, believing he would arrive in time to provide support, but now he finally realized the truth—
Finn wasn't betting on him coming to the rescue; he simply had nothing to fear, knowing he could spread his wings and fly away at any time!
Right at that moment, Harry and Max, looking pale and anxious, rushed in.
Harry looked at his brother, who was sitting on the table in a winged form he had never seen before, his steps slowed in shock, coming to an abrupt halt.
The young man, dressed in a sharp suit, came to a sudden halt. He stared in disbelief, then slowly approached step by step, each step feeling incredibly heavy.
[It's over, it's over, my brother is here too.]
How on earth am I supposed to explain having an extra pair of wings!
Finn also felt a hint of regret. If only he had stayed calm and taken another look back then; if he could have caught a glimpse of Iron Man from that close, he wouldn't have jumped off the building.
“This is..” Harry clenched his fists tightly, his knuckles turning white, he had to take a deep breath to barely steady his voice.
Finn lowered his head, obediently waiting for his brother's interrogation.
The next second, Harry's trembling voice surged with near-uncontrollable rage: "Father did it?"
"?" Finn froze for a moment, looking up at Harry in confusion.
—Father? What does this have to do with Norman Osborn?
“Has he lost his mind? He's experimenting on you! He's actually experimenting on you?" Harry was nearly driven mad with rage. His brother suddenly had a pair of wings on his back—what else could be the reason? Their father was a genetic researcher to begin with, the Osborn Group had more genetic laboratories than anyone, his brother was the cure for the family's hereditary disease.. But what exactly did this so-called cure entail?
Harry thought of those two long, light-colored scars on Finn's back.
How did he explain it to Noah at that time?
[Finn Osborn is a child cultivated by Norman Osborn using genetic engineering; Norman used intervention technology in advance to remove the so-called cursed genes from his body.]
—Is this true? Is the intervention technology real?
Harry couldn't believe it either right now; otherwise, why would he have never found any relevant information regarding the intervention technology used on Finn Osborn within the Osborn Group internal files? Why did Norman Osborn block all research data concerning Finn Osborn, as if he didn't want anyone to find out?
Why, even though Finn is clearly his brother, was he not raised alongside them since childhood?
Why did Noah care so much about Finn's past, say that Finn was deliberately avoiding it, refusing to mention his own childhood?
Why did Dr. Thomas also say that Finn's claustrophobia, hemophobia, mental issues were very likely stemming from childhood trauma..
All questions seemed to have their answers at this moment.
“It's not like that.” Finn seemed to have guessed what Harry was assuming and quickly refuted it.
Finn felt as if he had narrowly escaped a disaster, yet he didn't know what kind of absurd pit he had inexplicably stumbled into.
"It's not like that? What's going on with these wings? Isn't this the masterpiece of Norman Osborn?" Harry's eyes were red, he was practically driven mad with rage. He could already imagine how his cold and rigorous father had locked his younger brother in a laboratory without freedom since childhood to conduct experiments, which was why his brother had been raised to become such an innocent and pure Osborn family outlier.
Hearing Harry say this, all the Avengers showed expressions of extreme shock and surprise, an indescribable heaviness welled up in their eyes.
“??” Finn felt that it was becoming more and more difficult to explain, especially since the Avengers seemed to be simultaneously starting to imagine something was wrong.
"Did he lock you in a laboratory since you were a child?" Harry asked, his eyes reddening and his voice trembling.
He could hardly imagine that his brother had once lived as an experimental subject.
Harry once again recalled Finn's symptoms—
Why hemophobia? Why claustrophobia?
Why is there mental illness? Why is there schizophrenia? Why is there this constant delusion of another person constantly talking to oneself?
Finn was completely stunned.
The Misery Value was rising rapidly, his brain had stalled, buzzing uncontrollably.
His blank expression fell upon everyone's eyes, except for the equally bewildered Peter, the expressions of all the Avengers grew increasingly grim.
They almost unanimously agreed with Harry's guess.
Of course, they felt that Harry Osborn was right.
Otherwise, no one could understand why the Young Master of the Osborn family, who possessed everything, could be hiding such severe illnesses.
And it has even reached the point of self-harm.
“I'm not wrong, am I?” Harry said, his eyes rimmed with red. “You are his son, how could he—”
Harry could almost imagine it: the young Finn, imprisoned deep within a cold laboratory, day after day, facing expressionless white coats and cold, precise instruments. It was a cage without warmth, without color, without childhood. It was precisely because of this that he grew up to have such an unrealistically clean appearance, as pure as a blank sheet of paper that had never been stained by the world.
That is why he craves familial affection so much, craves contact with all people, craves to dive into the most bustling and noisy places.
Because of this, he possesses such fervent curiosity and a desire for exploration toward everything in the world, just as he does now.
“No!" Finn snapped back to reality and said firmly; his father was truly wonderful. Although he had passed away early, Finn truly felt that even in heaven, his father was constantly feeding him, pushing piles of money onto him one after another, as if afraid he wouldn't have enough to squander.
"My father was good to me, he was truly good to me, none of that things you're thinking of happened." Finn had to speak up for Norman Osborn.
But at the same time, Finn suddenly remembered the rules of this world—they would automatically complete the logic for everything regarding Finn Osborn.
Thinking about it this way, even Finn himself was a bit uncertain.
Perhaps in the setting of this world, these wings of his are truly the result of Norman's research.
Even if there really were experiments, it would only be because Father hoped I could recover," Finn said, avoiding the core of the matter with a frown. "Harry, I don't think this is a painful thing, I don't want you to be sad or angry because of it.
Finn even felt that it was his own fault for being so disappointing. If he could have exchanged for some incredibly badass race and claimed it was the result of Norman Osborn's research, it would have brought some glory to his father. Now, just having a pair of wings seemed to have no significance at all.
“I also don't want you to have any misunderstandings about Norman Osborn because of this; my father loves me very much.” Finn looked at the surrounding Avengers again and said sincerely. He couldn't let his late father take the blame for such a massive mess. "Father has always protected me, I am very happy to have such a father."
But this abrupt turn, in the eyes of others, seemed more like an admission of everything that had happened to him.
Iron Man frowned at this moment as well. He had previously thought that Finn was merely a Young Master Osborn who had been raised in luxury, pampered and surrounded by admirers, that his so-called mental illness was ultimately due to being too emotionally fragile. But it turned out that behind it all lay a cruel past that no one could possibly understand.
Mental illness? How could you have mental illness? I can't think of any reason why you would want to harm yourself.
That question, which had once been blurted out with a hint of nonchalance and dismissive carelessness, was now churning in his mind.
Tony clicked his tongue inwardly, suddenly wanting to give Finn a massive allowance as well.
Harry stared at Finn in silence.
There was still a stubborn purity in the young man's green eyes, so clean that he truly looked like.. an angel descended from heaven.
—It's always like this.
Harry felt as if he and Norman had done something to hurt Finn, no matter what it was.
Finn could immediately forgive them unconditionally and without limits, in the name of "family."
"You've hidden it so deep," Harry said, gazing at his younger brother with a look of helpless bitterness and mockery. He often felt his brother was naive, yet there were many critical moments when he knew, of course, that his brother possessed an absolutely genius mind, an extraordinary calmness and composure, a decisiveness that could face any situation without fear. Including now, even with such a massive secret, he had managed to keep it from everyone.
Finn didn't dare to meet Harry's eyes, after all, the things he was still hiding were far from few.
Harry looked at Finn's guilty expression, feeling a mix of heartache, anger, helplessness. Ultimately, he could only suppress all his emotions and ask in a low voice, "Can the wings be tucked away?"
"Yes." Finn nodded.
Those pure white wings slowly folded and vanished, leaving only two long, faint scars on his back beneath the torn fabric, appearing exceptionally clear under the light.
Harry's fingers brushed against the scars on Finn's back.
Does it hurt?
Even Harry didn't know what kind of cruel genetic experiments one would have to undergo to grant a human such a pair of flawless wings.
However, Finn's response today was equivalent to a tacit admission—he must possess the memories of that experiment, he just had never mentioned them before.
Harry thought of Finn again, lying in a pool of blood that day, having sliced his own arm until it was drenched in blood.
It is as if those who appear perfect and glamorous on the surface are actually hiding.. unknown, bloody wounds behind their backs.
—How could it not hurt?
"It doesn't hurt, I can't feel anything," Finn said with great confidence. After all, it was exchanged for points.
Don't worry." Finn tilted his head up and revealed a clean, bright smile. Even though it was just the low-level Birdman lineage, it was still a cheat, after all. "Having wings that others don't have—isn't that a wonderful thing? Just like an Angel.
Finn had always yearned for and longed for the existence of an Angel, but his points were far from enough, so he could only exchange for the lowest-tier Birdman.
At least, the wings are beautiful.
Harry didn't even know how to tell his brother—
He was truly like an angel, descending into his world.
Brought a brilliant light with unprecedented warmth.
“Finn, you are the angel that has descended into my world.”
The silent Harry only heard the thoughts he found difficult to speak aloud coming directly into his ears at this moment; it turned out Peter was speaking.
Peter smiled as well and reached out to drape his jacket over Finn.
What do you mean, "birdman" or "doesn't care about people"? He's an angel.
Spider-Man looked at Finn candidly as he spoke, his gaze fixed on Finn with such clarity and openness, his voice sincere and solemn.
I once read a sentence—'An Angel is an existence of light, not just wings'.
To me, your light is more dazzling than wings.
Harry Osborn: ".." You think you're so clever, don't you?