Chapter 217 - 199 The Collapse of the Osborne Group

The evidence was conclusive.

With the help of an unnamed enthusiastic citizen and Peter Parker, NYPD had acquired recent criminal evidence against the Osborne Group.

Without review, they stole a transgenic lizard from International Gene Cooperation Ltd. and provided it for reverse engineering to Scholar Ethan, leading to the outbreak of cancer cells of a graduate student already suffering from cancer, who died on the spot.

This included conducting dangerous human experiments without review, which resulted in the death of McDonald Gagen, also known as Scorpion Man.

Without approval, they conducted risky experiments on Aleksey Mikhailovich Sisayevich, causing him to rampage and cause extensive damage in New York City.

They attempted human experimentation without approval.

And they employed coercive measures to steal a personal invention from Adrian Tums and converted it for military use.

Key witness testimony...

Turned out to be that young man who was saved by Adrian.

Lille immediately informed George about what happened at Adrian’s house on the rooftop, and when people arrived there, they indeed found many soldiers fallen in the rubble, including Christopher.

The chain of evidence was complete, with both witness and physical evidence. Lille made an effort to gather all of it, and he himself also served as an important link in the evidence chain.

Half of New York saw him "at the scene."

With such a big case and perfect conditions of evidence, it practically made the prosecutor’s office overjoyed.

Of course, there was something strange about it: Adrian didn’t deliberately attack those soldiers and agents.

Explosions and impacts would severely injure the soldiers and agents present, but for everyone to lose consciousness?

That was too convenient; someone else must have taken action.

From the current situation, the leader of the agents who had not been caught red-handed was very suspicious.

"...Christopher Fernard, can you guarantee that everything you’ve said is true?"

Christopher Fernard, standing in the witness stand, "Yes, it was all done by the Osborne Group."

"It shows here that you are not an American citizen, nor do you have transit information registered. Are you a stowaway?"

"I am not!" Christopher was furiously indignant, but still said with restrained anger, "In Latovia, they claimed that as long as you participated in the experiment, you would get food!

Then I was brought here!"

"Were you informed of the impending Vulture Battle Suit experiment?"

"No! They said it was a flu medicine!"

"Is there evidence?"

Christopher was frantic, but Lille gestured to him to calm down.

The prosecutor submitted evidence: Inside Osborne Group’s internal documents, his information was indeed listed.

It could prove that the Osborne Group really "bought" the materials for human experiments from someone.

But the clue ended there.

The judge was pleased with this — the more complicated the case became, the harder it was to adjudicate. It was best to take one issue at a time.

"So the Osborne Group is also suspected of human trafficking."

The defense lawyer remained silent: they had been instructed to abandon the defense in this matter.

Norman Osborn, the defendant, sat in the dock, eyes widened, unable to utter a word.

A brain injury getting worse with every passing second each night complicates the condition, yet Norman, he was formidable.

Bleeding from cerebral capillaries due to prolonged insufficient blood supply, resulted in the necrosis of part of the brain nerve.

The language center was damaged, the motor center was damaged, and he would have to spend the rest of his life lying in bed.

Even if he wanted to engage in some scientific research or business activities, it would depend on whether the remaining brain could support complex logical thinking.

He could listen, he could see, but he couldn’t speak, he couldn’t move.

The trial continued, and Martin walked in from outside the door, directly to Lille’s side, whispering:

"The judge is very... ambitious. I’ve talked with him, and the procedures in other respects are also problem-free."

Lille nodded.

The history of checks and balances in the United States runs long, and political power is something they’ve fought for themselves.

Since the prosecutors did not make any declarations the day Nick Fury appeared, it indicated they were fully willing to oppose him.

If the executive could trample on the law at will, then the judicial system’s power of legal interpretation would be meaningless. A "smart" judicial system would not be pleased to see such a situation.

By supporting politicians under the condition of satisfying their political demands, things become mutually beneficial. They would handle matters quickly.

The court hearing continued.

Apart from the recent events, the materials obtained by NYPD were entirely sufficient for them to oppose.

So now was the time to settle the overall account.

The evidence in the files also showed that, in its recent development, the Osborne Group massively employed unfair business competition methods —

Previously gray areas, but perfectly illegal with a complete chain of evidence.

At the same time, they unearthed an old case.

That old case was still about human experimentation — an accident involving human experimentation that was suppressed by the Osborne Group.

In the accident, Osborne conducted human experimentation on a child named Lee. The experiment went awry, an explosion occurred at the site, and the entire Lee family died.

There was a video, clearly recording the process of the experiment, yet the Osborne Group had never made it public.

Martin clenched his fists, then relaxed.

The child with the surname Lee was him.

His superpower emerged from the explosion, at the cost of his parents’ lives.

He stood by Lille’s side, expression unchanging, until watching the Osborne sitting in the dock being convicted of one charge after another with only his eyes to show emotion.

"...It was me."

Lille did not speak, just listened.

"Our family was so poor, poor to the point we could only rely on charity for a place to live, the work we did was all manual labor.

At that time, the Osborne Group began to collect people’s biometric information, and I went too—I thought it might help ease the pressure on my family.

Then what I thought was an opportunity came: Osborne invited me to participate in an experiment."

What happened next is as shown in the evidence video.

Martin was not born a bad person, nor was he as extreme as he appeared to be—

He not only formed the Heart Demon Gang but also founded a shelter for the homeless, providing them with refuge.

"...you know, that day, when I saw Osborne about to be killed by his own evil deeds, and you were planning to save him, I couldn’t help wishing I could kill you."

"I know—I could feel it, what about now?"

"Now? It’s better than I imagined. Osborne is immobile in prison, watching his rotten empire crumble,

while I..."

Martin left his sentence unfinished.

Because he felt it was a bit pretentious and odd to say it in front of Lille.

What he wanted to say was that he could still continue his good deeds without being torn apart by the increasingly distant senses of good and evil.

Indeed, the battle between good and evil waged within him, and it was not a comfortable feeling; what had always supported his blend of good and evil was revenge.

Lille did not dwell on Martin’s unspoken words, correcting him, "I need to correct you—as I said, I just went to save Adrian. Norman’s fate isn’t really my concern—I just didn’t save him."

Why call an ambulance for someone he didn’t harm?

The judge spoke up, "So, defense attorney for the accused, do you have anything else to say?"

Norman looked like his eyes were about to burst: Speak up, damn it! What’s the point of having a defense attorney if you just stand there motionless?!

The defense attorney finally spoke up, "...the Osborne Group, in the aforementioned events, had all undertaken military contracts with the intention of helping the nation..."

Norman’s eyes lit up: That’s right! The Osborne Group did it for the country, for the invincible United States!

The prosecutor’s eyebrow twitched, but no matter, confident as he was, there was still more evidence against the Osborne Group.

The Pentagon, if it decided to take the risk of getting involved in this mess to protect Norman Osborn, would be ready to fall into the cesspool.

"...But he executed it poorly."

Norman’s eyes became distorted—what do you mean he executed it poorly?!

"It’s an indisputable fact," the defense attorney said with regret. "But all of this was done out of love for his child. As we understand, Harry Osborne had contracted a rare disease that required significant investments in research.

It’s because of this affair that he lost his sanity. Think about it, which parent can remain rational when their child is in danger?"

It was basically just a token couple of words, but as for the defense strategy... it couldn’t be said that it was flawed.

But this wasn’t a matter of being irrational.

The judge brewed his emotions—this was a great opportunity for him to gain fame.

"Children of the wealthy and those of ordinary people are equal before the law. If a rich person’s child falls ill and it requires sacrificing the lives of ten poor children, that is a sin, a societal sin."

This statement caused mixed emotions among the family members in the courtroom.

These days, Harry lay at home convalescing—he indeed had a hereditary illness.

But even he could not accept Norman’s actions.

Seeing his son’s gaze, Norman became increasingly agitated, yet he could only look on.

Just like those whom he had wronged, they could listen, they could feel, but they could not express.

The gavel fell.

The matter was practically settled.

Martin had secured the support of the judicial system.

He would build a special prison in New York for housing those special offenders, such as Norman Osborn this time.

Of course, whether it was he or Lille, both of them would have actually preferred to bring back the death penalty, but that was another matter that required long-term effort.

Norman would be sent to this prison for custody, and his assets, the Osborne Group, would be largely taken over by Martin—

But Martin’s power was not enough to take over the entire Osborne Group; some other measures would be necessary.

After the trial concluded, Norman was about to be escorted away—Martin and Lille approached Norman, bringing Matt with them.

By then, Norman had calmed down, or rather... had a look of utter resignation.

Of course, since he had paralysis of the face, one could only interpret the despair in his eyes.

Lille began, "The Osborne Group is finished—I suppose I don’t need to say it, right? No one will save you, and naturally, no one can save the Osborne Group."

Norman looked at Lille, incapable of any reaction, his eyes almost stiff.

"But here’s the thing, although Harry is an uneducated brat, he’s not a bad person. Losing the status of the Osborne Group’s rich young master, he could be considered one of the patients we hope to save.

Give us all the assets of the Osborne Group in your possession—it’s also for the sake of saving your son."

An interesting fact was—Norman trusted the party he believed in, the strong supporter he wanted to rely on, just like Ethan abandoning his student, they abandoned him just as he abandoned Ethan.

Now, for him to believe that those people would hold on to past sentiment and take good care of his son... it was unlikely.

Instead, he could only trust those whom he once thought of as a thorn in his side, the good people.

These good people included Harry’s friend, as well as Peter whom he had deceived with sweet words;

Conners, who had been pushed into desperation by his business maneuvers, and Otto, whose research results were taken away by more forceful means;

Lille, who would give up watching him die to save an unknown engineer;

and... the financial upstart, Martin Lee, who seemed vaguely familiar.

All the traits displayed by these individuals, which he had scorned, were now the only ones he dared to trust.

It was because they truly had moral boundaries, and these boundaries, tightly linked, formed a standard that inspired the irresistible trust of others.

It was like a wall erected between enemies and one’s own people. Perhaps both sides felt differently about this wall, but...

They both knew how solid the wall was.

"If you agree, just blink."

Norman blinked with difficulty.