"Don't rush to laugh, Otto."
Reid waved his hand with a smile. "Maybe I really do know what your dream is. After all, I am a genius."
"Is that so? Luthor?"
Otto smiled as well. He was confident that he had never revealed his true ambitions. Even Norman only thought his goal was to help the disabled people of the world.
"Well then, let's make a bet. If you can accurately guess my dream, I will consider your proposal."
Upon hearing this, Reid stood up, walked around Otto, and then slowly spoke.
"Let take a guess. A congenital neurological disorder. Faced with a future of losing all motor function, I'm sure your mind is very conflicted, Otto."
The mont Reid ntioned the congenital neurological disorder, Otto's expression changed.
He stared at the man before him, soone he had known for less than a year and with whom he had a rather distant relationship.
"Where did you find out about this?!"
Otto had never planned to reveal his condition to anyone. He knew the imnse value his intelligence could bring. If this information were to be exposed, many people would use it to manipulate him under the guise of "support."
He had never told anyone about it, and current dical technology could not detect his congenital defect. So how on earth did this person know?
"Does it really matter how I know?" Reid's voice was calm. "What matters, Otto, is what you think of my proposal."
Otto fell silent. His secret had been exposed, and with it, his greatest weakness was now in soone else’s hands.
He needed resources—massive funding to complete his research. Only then could he complete his self-rescue.
This was also the reason he had collaborated with Norman to found Oscorp Industries.
At the sa ti, Otto understood himself. If he wanted to fight for power against Luthor, teaming up with Norman at the start might have been possible. But now, Norman had been severely weakened. Even if the two of them worked together, they wouldn't be able to oppose the powerful Luthor.
Once Luthor gained full control, Norman, with his 50% shares, might still manage to protect himself. But with only 20% shares, Otto knew he'd be pushed out by all kinds of ans. He would beco a wandering scientist, and under Luthor's influence, no corporation would want to invest in his research.
In fact, had Reid not appeared, when Norman took full control of Oscorp and their relationship soured, this was the very thod that would have slowly turned Otto into the villainous Doctor Octopus.
"Research takes ti," Otto finally said. "Even if you are willing to support , can you guarantee that Norman won't overthrow you? You can take Norman's power, but you can't take his shares. With 50% of the shares, Norman will always be one of the largest shareholders of Oscorp Industries."
With 50% of the shares, Norman could wait. He didn't need to defeat Luthor outright. As long as Luthor made one mistake and caused the company to suffer losses, Norman could use his influence as a major shareholder to stage a coback.
Otto needed assurance. If he sided with Luthor and Luthor lost, he would lose everything.
As for this concern, Reid was well prepared. He simply ntioned a na, completely dispelling Otto's doubts.
"Emily..."
Otto's eyes widened in disbelief when he heard Emily's na.
He stared at Luthor, but upon recalling that this man had known about his neurological disorder, it was not surprising that he also knew about Emily's hereditary family disease.
"You've made a move on Emily? What do you plan to do?"
Reid naturally wouldn't reveal his plan. He simply spread his hands and casually replied.
"You may imagine every despicable scenario to predict my future actions, but what matters now is your decision, isn't it, Otto?"
"Yes... you're right... it's ti for to make a decision."
Luthor's words snapped Otto back to reality.
Indeed, here he was, concerned about what others were doing, while his own secrets were in the hands of the man in front of him.
He wanted to fix his own flaws, and now, he could only place his hopes on Luthor.
"I agree. I'll sell the shares to you at market value, but I need to remain a researcher at Oscorp Industries, and you cannot cut my research funding."
Reid smiled. "Don’t worry, Unlike Norman, I have no reason to be wary of your intelligence. You are brilliant, Otto. But compared to —Lex Luthor—you fall short."
With that, he extended a hand.
Otto hesitated for only a mont before shaking it.
Unbeknownst to the rest of Oscorp, the company's three major shareholders had just beco two.
......
The next day arrived.
Under Reid's arrangents, rumors spread within the company about Norman Osborn injecting a new serum that had failed animal trials into a child for human experint. This resulted in the death of the child and his parents.
There was no proof, but everyone knew this was the truth.
And now, with Otto’s shares in his hands, Reid held 50% of Oscorp—matching Norman’s stake.
Realizing he had lost, Norman did not resist. At the company eting, he preemptively resigned as chairman before Reid could move against him. He relinquished all authority within Oscorp and walked out of the eting room, becoming just an ordinary shareholder.
From then on, the focus of the discussion shifted. It beca the eting where Reid was officially appointed as the chairman of Oscorp Industries.
Everyone believed that the newly appointed chairman Luthor would make sweeping changes to Oscorp.
Especially those employees who had stood by Norman until the end. They braced themselves, certain they would be fired from the company.
However, they soon realized that while Luthor had indeed made bold reforms, he did not resort to layoffs. Instead, he formulated new plans for the company's developnt.
Reid had no interest in cutting ties with Norman’s old supporters.
Because this was no longer the feudal society of the past, where people would remain loyal to a fallen figure forever.
Norman had lost his power and left the company.
In such a situation, if Reid allowed a powerless shareholder to still cultivate their own faction within the company, then he wouldn't be playing the role of Lex Luthor anymore.
His goal is to accelerate Oscorp's growth, with the aim of surpassing Von Doom Industries by the year 2000.
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