Marvel: Master Of Role-Playing

After receiving Emily's medical report, Reid didn't rush to the prison to inform Norman right away.

Instead, he returned to Oscorp and carried on with his daily work.

'Let the news spread a little longer.'

If he went to see Norman now, it would make him seem too eager, and Norman might start doubting the truth of the situation.

Reid needed to wait until he heard the news on his own. Only when Norman had exhausted all options and reached a dead end would Reid step in.

That was when Norman would truly surrender.

...

Time passed slowly.

Reid had already spent two years playing the role of Luthor; a little more patience meant nothing to him.

Just as he expected, Norman eventually received the news.

After multiple failed attempts to treat Emily's illness, the hospital reached out to the prison to inform him.

By this time, Norman had already been transferred to prison, wearing an orange jumpsuit.

Since Luthor had become the chairman of Oscorp Industries, the prison didn't dare lower their guard around Norman, even without direct orders.

Every day, Norman had to complete his assigned labor before he could rest—sewing machine work, road repairs, and other tasks.

But despite his circumstances, he still held 50% of Oscorp's shares. This meant that, at the very least, the other inmates didn't dare to bully him.

If nothing else, Norman still had money.

Most of these prisoners would eventually be released, and once outside, they'd need money to rebuild their lives. They saw treating Norman well as an investment in their future.

At first, Norman thought this was simply how his life would be from now on, spending his days in prison, only seeing his wife and son during scheduled visits.

But then, a creeping unease took root in his heart.

Since his imprisonment, Emily had never come to see him.

Norman didn't suspect her of moving on so quickly. He knew Emily wasn't that kind of person. But he also knew that, from the moment he was imprisoned, she had been left to face that cold, ruthless man alone.

His time in prison had given him the clarity to piece everything together.

From the very start, he had never once gained the upper hand in his struggle for power against Luthor. He had been in the palm of Luthor's hand the entire time.

Even in the end, Luthor had gone as far as to disregard the safety of the reporters, holding a press conference solely to lure him into making a move—a trap that ultimately sealed his fate.

Norman knew that attacking the event made him far from innocent. But if he was a villain, then what did that make Luthor, who was willing to use such a large-scale gathering as bait?

Norman worried that his wife and son were suffering under Luthor's continued persecution, leaving them no time to visit him.

The more he thought about it, the more convinced he became. Eventually, he couldn't sit still anymore.

He requested a phone call to contact his family.

But since he hadn't been in prison long, his request was denied.

Even when he tried offering benefits in exchange, the prison staff remained unmoved.

He couldn't really blame them. After all, he had been imprisoned for orchestrating a public terrorist attack.

To them, a prisoner like him, dangerous and unpredictable, couldn't be allowed outside contact. Even the most corrupt officials wouldn't risk helping him, afraid he might be planning an escape.

No one wanted to end up like those reporters—blown to pieces.

At this point, Norman had no options left.

No serum. No weapons. Just an ordinary man with above-average physical strength. Even that had deteriorated since his imprisonment.

Escape was impossible.

Just then, the prison finally received the news and a medical report was delivered to him.

It was Emily's health examination.

With one look, Norman understood everything.

Emily wasn't being tormented by Luthor. Instead, her hereditary illness had surfaced—because of him.

"How… could this…"

Inside the prison office, Norman collapsed to his knees, powerless. The correctional officer watching him barely reacted, leaning back in his chair as he took another sip of coffee.

"That's the situation, Norman. We're telling you this so you don't overthink things. Your wife wasn't persecuted by Mr. Luthor, she didn't run off with someone else either. She's just dying. That's all."

'I'd rather she had left me for someone else… At least then, she'd be happy instead of suffering.'

Norman wanted to say something, but the weight of sorrow left him speechless.

Before he even realized it, he had wandered back to his cell.

That night, lying on his bed, Norman kept thinking—what could he do?

According to the report, if there was no breakthrough, Emily had at most two months left. After that, their son, Harry, would be sent to an orphanage.

And if things continued like this, in a few years, he might receive the same news—Harry, struck down by the same hereditary disease.

What could he do?

The answer was nothing.

Even if he were given a fully equipped lab right now, he couldn't develop a cure.

This was never part of his plan. He had never considered that Emily's illness would surface so soon.

Gradually, Norman's thoughts turned to a person he utterly despised—yet, at the same time, he couldn't deny that person's intelligence.

'Luthor… If it's him…'

...

The next day, Norman, who had been behaving himself, suddenly lost control.

Like a madman, he went on a rampage, violently attacking and injuring several of his cellmates.

He kept shouting.

"I want to see Lex Luthor!"

"Tell Luthor to come see me!"

Even after the guards subdued him, pinned him down, and threw him into solitary confinement, he repeated the same words.

He refused water. He refused food.

After all, he was still a major shareholder in Oscorp Industries. The public still had an eye on him.

If the prison wanted to avoid accusations of mistreating a high-profile inmate, they'd have to inform Luthor.

Norman wasn't expecting mercy.

He just hoped Luthor would come to mock him, come to see the pathetic failure he had become.

But the prison staff was in a dilemma.

If Norman died here, they would be bombarded with public outrage. Everyone would accuse them of abusing a mentally unstable prisoner.

Yet, when it came to actually reaching out to Luthor over this matter, none of them had the guts to do it.

And so, the prison officials stalled for a few days. But as Norman grew weaker, they had no choice but to send someone to contact Luthor.

However, Reid took the initiative and called the prison himself.

"I hear someone wants to see me?"

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