[Do nothing else.]
I messed up, didn't I?
Finn muttered to himself with red-rimmed eyes, his voice carrying a hint of paranoia, as his fingers gripped the knife so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
I clearly should have ended everything on this birthday, yet I find myself craving this happiness.
There is clearly no Finn Osborn in this world, yet I use this identity to make everyone play along with me.
Finn lowered his eyes, calmly gazing at the meticulously prepared gifts piled beside him. The packaging was bright and exquisite, the ribbons were tied beautifully, but these things.. including Norman Osborn's love for him, were never meant to belong to him. At this moment, a deathly stillness filled the young man's green eyes, which were shrouded in a layer of inorganic emptiness and coldness, as he once again repeated in a flat, emotionless tone—
“I shouldn't be this happy.”
At the same time, a heavy scent of blood permeated the air, as if some switch had been suddenly flipped. Secret, dark shadows lurking deep within his consciousness swept over Finn like a torrential wave.
The young man's entire body suddenly stiffened, he began to shake uncontrollably, the cold tremors causing him to press even harder against his wound.
More and more blood flowed down his arm, staining the pure white pajamas a deep crimson.
The sound of blood droplets hitting the floor sounded exceptionally clear in the silent room.
I've almost forgotten..
Finn's voice was dry and hoarse as he spoke in a mocking tone:
So this is what it feels like when blood flows.
[Misery Value detected rising, Misery Value +2%]
System PP was nearly worried to death.
He had no idea what he could do, so he could only frantically send emojis. One pop-up after another exploded in Finn's chaotic mind, as if he thought this could forcefully slap the Host, who was completely mired in negative emotions, awake.
【System PP high-fives you. gif】
【System PP high-fived you. gif】
【System PP high-fived you. gif】
【System PP high-fived you. gif】
【System PP high-fived you. gif】
..
Continuous pop-ups of window jumping went crazy in Finn Osborn's chaotic mind.
Finally, the young man seemed to have reached his limit. He slowly lowered his head, gazing calmly at the gruesome, blood-stained scar on his arm. Then, his consciousness shattered like broken glass, as if the system had completely collapsed. The utility knife in his hand fell to the polished floor with a clatter, making a crisp sound.
Finn Osborn slumped forward, completely powerless.
A dull thud.
He fell unconscious, lying on the floor soaked in his own blood.
————————
The last update of 2025, little angels~ See you in 2026!
Chapter 41: Out of Control X Breakdown
When Andrew arrived at Finn's house, Finn had just finished breakfast and had lazily returned to his room.
“Young Master Finn—”
Andrew hadn't slept all night, his complexion was quite poor now that he had stayed up until this hour. Especially since he realized that the public opinion surrounding the video he posted was not at all what he had imagined; it had even completely deviated from his expectations, seemingly racing uncontrollably in a disastrous direction. The immense tension and unease left the young man's hands and feet feeling cold.
Andrew?" Catherine approached, frowning as she saw his dejected state, "Didn't you have classes this morning? Why have you come at this time? After Young Master Finn returned from the birthday party yesterday, he went out again and didn't come back until the middle of the night. He won't be going to the Osborn Group today; he said he wants to have a good rest for the day.
"The video.. has Young Master Finn seen it?" Andrew asked with difficulty.
I saw it," Catherine asked with some hesitation, "Did Young Master Finn ask you to post that video?
"No, I posted it myself." Andrew clenched his fists tightly, feeling utterly ashamed at this moment.
Andrew's fists were clenched tightly, his knuckles turning white, the veins on the back of his hands were bulging with force.
Of course, he saw the controversial comments in the comment section; those malicious speculations and baseless insults directed at Finn Osborn pierced his heart with pain. Many people claimed this was a self-directed performance by Finn Osborn, using the hype of the press conference to make a calculated debut, all for the purpose of stepping on his own brother, Harry Osborn, to rise up, while still trying to force a "perfect" persona.
—That is completely untrue!
Clearly, when Andrew was editing that video, he hoped to truly showcase Finn's brilliance at the press conference.
It was an impromptu performance without any preparation. Even while standing on a stage under global scrutiny, even while bearing immense pressure, Finn remained calm and composed throughout, his speech organized and logical, even explaining professional terminology in a way that was clear and easy to understand. When interacting with the audience, he possessed a natural sense of ease, as socializing was something Finn excelled at.
Andrew wanted everyone to see that Finn Osborn was never the playboy young master who only soaked in parties and indulged in pleasure as others claimed; he possessed undeniable talent and a brilliance that was uniquely his own.
But what about now?
Everything had been twisted into something false and wretched.
Andrew only felt a massive sense of powerlessness overwhelming him.
—He messed up, he really messed up.
Finn Osborn had finally managed to turn many people's impressions around through the opportunity of the press conference, everything was clearly moving in a very positive direction. Yet, it was he, driven by a surge of self-righteous impulse, who had done something foolish that might be irreversible.
All those praises had turned into criticisms.
He didn't even dare to imagine what Finn's reaction would be.
Would it be extreme anger, rebuking him for his unilateral decision-making? Would it be profound disappointment, feeling that he had betrayed her trust? Or would it be regret for having given him the authority to manage the social media accounts, using that unprecedentedly cold tone to make him vanish from her sight forever, never to appear again?
As soon as these thoughts surfaced, Andrew's heart tightened, even his breathing became heavy, laced with guilt.
You should go talk to Young Master Finn directly; we aren't sure what Young Master Finn's thoughts are on this matter either." Butler Joseph looked at Andrew, who appeared to be on the verge of a complete breakdown, sighed, patting his shoulder. "From what I saw, Young Master Finn's expression after watching the video didn't look like he was angry. He is in quite a good mood today, so perhaps things aren't as bad as you think.
Andrew shook his head vigorously, his head drooping even lower.
He didn't dare to be like Noah and Peter, casually going up to the second floor and entering Finn's room.
Moreover, Andrew didn't dare face Finn at this moment either.
I'll just wait here for Young Master Finn.
Before long, the sound of a door opening came from the entrance; Noah and Elias walked in.
The two of them immediately saw Andrew huddled in the corner of the sofa, exuding an aura of gloominess, his pale face looking like that of a criminal awaiting sentencing.
Noah's expression instantly darkened as he pulled out his phone and slammed it onto the coffee table in front of Andrew with a "thud."
The screen was lit, showing exactly that controversial video.
"You posted the video." It wasn't a question; Noah's tone was an angry assertion.
"It was me." Andrew trembled all over, lifting his head, his face even paler than before.
Are you stupid?" Noah was practically laughing from anger at Andrew, his voice carrying an uncontrollable fury. "The video is edited well enough, but what kind of timing is this? The press conference just ended, Finn is at the center of the storm, everyone's eyes are fixed on him! You post a video like this at this exact moment, you actually dared to use Finn's own social media account to post it?
"I thought.." Andrew's expression was extremely tense.
You think you're helping Finn? You're hurting him!" Noah let out a cold laugh, his voice filled with mockery. "Do you have any idea how much hype Finn has after the press conference? Everyone is praising the brilliant Finn, yet at such a critical moment, you chose to post this video that's nothing but self-promotion and exposing the internal conflicts of the press conference?
You're only making people think this is a carefully orchestrated publicity stunt!" Noah truly felt that out of all the reliable friends around Finn, he had somehow picked a fatal, incompetent teammate. "The relationship between Finn and Harry has already been subject to all sorts of rumors from the outside world. By doing this, you've directly reopened the inheritance dispute between the Osborn brothers. Those media outlets and netizens love nothing more than watching these dramas involving wealthy families! You are directly handing them material and traffic.
“You have to realize that the internet is a platform that exposes human nature and amplifies its ugliness.” Noah's gaze fixed sternly on Andrew. “In this world, there are many people who will use malicious thoughts to speculate about everything; they don't think at all, what they see is fundamentally not the same thing as what you see. What you see is Finn's brilliance, but what they see will only be showmanship, conspiracies, schemes.”
Andrew's shoulders trembled violently as he suddenly stood up from the sofa, his reddened eyes filled with panic and anxiety: "Then what should I do? I'll go release a statement right now! I can say that I posted the video privately and that it has nothing to do with Young Master Finn! I can go explain, I can go apologize.."
Who cares about your explanation? Who cares about your apology?" Noah interrupted him mercilessly, his tone even more full of mockery, "Do you think the focus of the traffic is on you?
Andrew's words were instantly stuck in his throat; he opened his mouth, but could not utter a single word.
—Indeed, who in this world cares who he is?
Guilt, self-reproach, remorse, helplessness.. even despair was deeply drowning him.
Andrew lowered his head deeply in shame; he only knew that no matter what Finn asked him to do now, he was willing.
It's fine, things aren't that bad yet." Seeing Andrew on the verge of a breakdown, Elias, who was standing aside, couldn't help but speak up. He pulled Noah's arm and softened his tone, "Noah, he is only eighteen, after all.
Elias was even afraid that Noah's psychiatrist wouldn't be able to treat him.
I want him to know just how foolish he is!" Regarding Finn, it was impossible for Noah not to be angry. His gaze remained fixed on Andrew, his voice remained cold. "He really understands nothing! This time it can be remedied, but what about next time? If he acts on his own like this again in the future, what if he causes even greater trouble for Finn? I had just reminded him to distinguish between what can be posted and what cannot, then he turned around and caused such a massive mess for me at five in the morning!
What about Finn?" Noah turned to look at Butler Joseph and Catherine with concern. "Did he see the video?
He saw it, didn't say anything, then said he was going back to his room to unwrap his birthday presents," Catherine said cautiously, trying to ease the atmosphere. "Young Master Finn ate quite a lot for breakfast and seemed to be in a good mood, so he probably wasn't affected much.
Hearing this, Noah felt a bit more relieved; he also knew that Finn had never paid much attention to these online comments.
You don't need to deal with this; just leave it there, I will handle it," Noah said, staring fixedly at Andrew. "If Finn doesn't pursue this matter, I won't say anything more. But if you truly want to be a secretary by Finn's side in the future, I will arrange for you to find some time to learn more.
Also, no matter what content you want to post in the future, you must show it to me first.
Andrew just nodded blankly, not even knowing if there would be a future.
At this moment, a little white kitten came over and proactively approached Noah's feet, gently rubbing its fluffy, upright tail against his calf.
Is this the cat Peter sent?" Noah's attention was diverted, he picked up the kitten from the ground, examining it carefully. "I'll give him credit, he actually managed to find a cat that looks just like Finn.
It was pure white, with a soft, cloud-like touch, its emerald-green eyes were like clear, bright glass beads.
Even that lazy, soft, slightly haughty demeanor bore a resemblance to Finn.
Yeah, but it loves running around everywhere. Young Master Finn really likes it and named it Emily." Seeing that Noah's expression had softened slightly, Catherine stopped staring at Andrew and continued her barrage, quickly saying with a smile, "At night, we have to lock it in the bedroom; it insists on sleeping with us, it only lets us open the door to let it out in the morning.
Isn't that just like Finn? He loves running around and can't stay still for a single moment." Only then did Noah finally smile. He lowered his head to rub the soft white fur under the kitten's chin until the little guy let out a comfortable purr, then he suddenly thought of something. "Did Spider-Man come by last night?
Even Noah thought that Finn and Spider-Man becoming best friends was "breaking the fourth wall."
He's here." Butler Joseph nodded. "Young Master Finn said that Spider-Man took him out for a ride last night, they ended up on the rooftop of a skyscraper to watch the night view. Furthermore, Spider-Man even went out of his way to set up a camping-style mini-cinema for him inside that building, the two of them watched two episodes of a Korean Drama there together.
He could understand every single word, but when they were put together, he couldn't understand them at all.
.. Is this something Spider-Man would do?" Noah found it hard to believe. "Watching Korean Dramas?
In Noah's impression, Spider-Man was certainly a hero shuttling between the city's skyscrapers, busy defending the peace of New York; how could he go as far as setting up an outdoor cinema in a building and specifically accompanying the Young Master to watch Korean Dramas?
Finn has always liked making friends," Elias said thoughtfully. "Spider-Man should also be a young man.
Butler Joseph even went out of his way to show the photos Finn had sent him last night.
—Finn, whose cheeks were flushed and who was smiling exceptionally brightly, Spider-Man, who seemed caught off guard by being held in a chokehold by him.