Unicorn and the Store Refresh

Norman Manor.

When Herman saw the legendary capitalist tycoon Norman Osborn greeting his boss with a warm smile like a kindly elder, he was completely dumbfounded.

Just who was his young boss...?

He could actually make the man in charge of the Osborn Group treat him with such courtesy?

"Arbiter, you're here."

Knowing that Peter had yet to reveal his true identity to Herman, Norman deliberately avoided saying Peter's real name.

"I've prepared everything you asked me to collect."

Since Norman had known from the start that Peter wanted to make a phone, he had spent the past few days specially gathering the highest-end phone components for him.

Even the exterior molds had been made according to the design blueprints.

Motherboards, capacitive screens, speakers, vibration motors, cameras...

With his super brain and the phone teardown videos he had watched out of boredom in his previous life, Peter quickly began trying to assemble a phone himself.

Before long, a phone resembling the Fruit 5S appeared on the lab bench.

Peter personally thought that Fruit had released so many generations of phones, but when it came to looks, the fifth and sixth generations stood head and shoulders above the rest.

So for his first phone, he planned to base its design on the 5S.

On the other side, Herman and Norman both unconsciously widened their eyes as they looked at the phone, which had already powered on.

When it had just been a pile of components, there had been nothing particularly special about it.

But once assembled, it looked genuinely stunning.

The centered screen, the "massive" screen-to-body ratio by current standards, the simple home button... every detail radiated a minimalist industrial aesthetic.

Norman instinctively pulled out his own latest phone for a direct comparison.

Although his phone was also marketed as a touchscreen phone, it used a resistive screen that required a stylus and firm pressure to operate.

Its screen was dim, and its colors lacked clarity.

Moreover, to ensure the user experience, it still used a sliding design with physical buttons beneath the screen, making the entire device look particularly thick and bulky.

In contrast, the so-called smartphone Peter had assembled by hand was only about a third as thick as its competitors.

It felt exceptionally light and slim in the hand, its display was excellent, and its touchscreen responsiveness utterly crushed the new phone Norman had just bought for over a thousand dollars!

"This is practically... a work of art!" Herman, the country bumpkin, could not help but exclaim.

Although Norman did not think the phone had much to do with art, he could not help giving it high praise as well.

"This phone is already three to five years ahead of its peers in appearance alone. Add the battery and fast-charging technology... Arbiter, your creation will absolutely dominate the entire phone industry!"

Once Norman confirmed that Peter's project had real potential, he did not hesitate in the slightest and immediately began discussing the investment amount and equity arrangements with Peter.

The result of the discussion was simple.

Norman would invest fifty million in Harry's name to establish a company, which, following the naming conventions of the Marvel Universe, was directly named Parker Tech.

The phone's brand and model name would be Unicorn One, with a logo featuring the Horse Talisman's design with an added horn.

Peter had originally only wanted to commemorate everything the Horse Talisman had brought him, so he had wanted to call it White Horse One.

But Norman felt that name was not eye-catching enough. Since he also found Peter's healing magic incredibly miraculous, he changed white horse to unicorn, a magical creature more familiar to Americans.

As for the company's equity distribution, it was equally clear.

Peter, as the chief designer and boss, would hold 55% of the shares.

Harry Osborn, as the investor, would hold 40%.

And Herman Schultz, as the head of the technical department, would receive 5%.

If future financing or an IPO became necessary, all shares would be diluted proportionally, ensuring that control of the company always remained in Peter's hands.

When Herman heard this arrangement, he was so excited that he nearly dropped to his knees before Peter on the spot.

He had thought Peter would already be showing great mercy if he gave him a little profit-sharing after the phones were sold.

He had never expected Peter to give him 5% of the original shares right from the start!

This was a rising star with a future market value of at least a hundred billion!

Even a mere five percent stake would be enough to let someone live in luxury for the rest of their life.

Thinking of all the wasted years in the first half of his life, then comparing them to Peter's exceptional treatment of him now, Herman could not help feeling an impulse to die for the one who truly appreciated him.

Patting his chest, he solemnly swore that he would not disappoint Peter's expectations and would work overtime to complete the mass production of the new phone and its subsequent technological upgrades.

After running through the company registration process with Harry, Peter no longer needed to worry about what came next.

Even without relying on the Osborn Group's channels, Norman could quickly assemble the world's top supply chain through his own reputation and resources.

Meanwhile, Herman became like a fully wound perpetual-motion machine, leading the newly recruited technical team every day as they worked overtime optimizing and refining every detail of Unicorn One and its operating system.

Time passed day by day amid the frantic preparations.

A month quietly went by.

Over the past month, the Arbiter had not appeared in public again.

In contrast, Ghost Spider's reputation had reached unprecedented heights as she repeatedly fought crime and saved civilians.

Although Gwen had yet to experience the Spider-Web Incident of losing the one she loved, Peter felt that she could already be considered a qualified street-level hero.

Thanks to Gwen's efforts, the tone of most print media reports about her had quietly begun to change as well.

Only the Daily Bugle remained tirelessly committed to being Ghost Spider's number-one hater.

Unfortunately, without Peter helping them take pictures, they could not obtain exclusive photos at all, so they had nowhere near the credibility they possessed in other parallel worlds.

As for S.H.I.E.L.D., they had not contacted Peter since the captain's revival...

It was not that Black Braised Egg did not want to contact Peter. He was simply worried that Peter's appetite would grow with every "cooperation."

Today he dared to ask for Captain America's suit. Tomorrow, he might dare to ask for Black Widow's intimate clothing. The day after tomorrow... I don't even dare imagine it!

So Black Braised Egg would rather work Captain America to death than disturb Peter at a noncritical moment.

Peter was quite happy to enjoy the peace and quiet, merely counting the days as he waited for a certain day to arrive.

Finally, when the clock struck twelve, Peter heard the long-awaited system notification in his ear:

[Countdown cleared]

[Monthly products have refreshed. Welcome, host, to browse and purchase!]