The desk, the floor, and every corner of the room were covered in crumpled paper balls. The entire study was submerged in a sea of white.
Ronin had always believed he wasn't the type to casually throw trash around, but these past few days he was truly going insane. Writing the script felt like it was going to make his head explode.
Whenever he wrote something he wasn't satisfied with, he would crumple it into a ball and throw it away. At first he aimed for the trash can, but once it was full and he couldn't be bothered to empty it, he simply tossed the balls wherever he wanted. Surprisingly, it felt pretty satisfying.
Ronin considered himself somewhat of a literary youth. Before crossing over, he had read plenty of books though most of them were web novels with little nutritional value, they were fun.
A tired programmer dragging his exhausted body home after work would have a nearly numb brain. Who had the energy to read profound literary works full of life philosophy? Reading web novels required no brainpower, provided relaxation, and gave spiritual satisfaction. Why not?
After reading so many web novels, he had become familiar with many authors' common tropes. The standard template was always the same: starting as a loser, parents dead, getting bullied, golden finger appears, face-slapping ensues.
It was always the same loop. But writing a movie script was completely different from writing a web novel.
He tried combining many common web novel tropes together, only to find that what he wrote was unbearable to read. Even he couldn't stand looking at it, let alone the general audience.
Hundreds of discarded drafts were enough to prove that he really had no talent for original creation. At best, he was just a literary otaku.
Occasionally he would write a slightly artistic, pretentious sentence like "looking up at the sky at a 45-degree angle" or "if you love, love deeply; if not, please leave," and feel smug about it.
"Fine!"
After recognizing his own level, Ronin made a difficult decision he would plagiarize the original work!
He really didn't want to do something so shameless, but he had no choice. He had zero creative talent. Everything he wrote read like a流水账 (dry chronological report) and was no better than the childish script Tony Stark had given him.
It was pathetic. Earlier he had mocked Stark's script for being worse than Peppa Pig, but now even Peppa Pig seemed like a masterpiece in comparison.
For a world-renowned screenwriter, this was a naked humiliation!
His script read like 30 Elementary School Essays. Anyone who saw it would feel sorrow; anyone who heard about it would shed tears. A director reading it might even suspect he had hired an elementary school-level writer.
Ronin admitted that his creative ability was terrible. Since that was the case, plagiarizing the original was now set in stone. No one could change it.
Soldier: 76 had received explosive acclaim, and the Iron Man that was released in his previous world also performed very well at the box office. Iron Man was the movie that truly saved Marvel from the brink and became their breakout success both critically and commercially.
So copying the original should be safe. Even if it couldn't reach the same heights as Soldier: 76, it wouldn't be too far off. At the very least, no one would suspect he had hired a ghostwriter.
Once he made up his mind, he began recalling the plot of Iron Man in his head.
As a hardcore Marvel fan who once argued with his roommate for two whole hours about the relationship between Hulk and Bruce Banner, there was no need to doubt whether he remembered the plot.
Every movie's storyline was etched clearly in his mind. After running through the plot once, the words flowed like a spring from his pen.
The constipated feeling of squeezing out just a few words after several hours completely vanished. Now everything felt smooth and effortless.
To keep his train of thought uninterrupted, he turned off his phone.
At this moment, any sound was a disturbance to him especially… footsteps!
"Get out!"
With just those two words, Thomas's right foot froze in mid-air.
He turned around and walked out, feeling quite helpless. He had finally worked up the courage to come find the boss, only to be disliked.
He just wanted to ask why the boss had asked Mr. Stark to custom-make a Soldier: 76 combat suit for him. What exactly was it for?
This question had been bothering him for days. Today he finally gathered the courage to ask, but instead he received a cold glare from the boss, who didn't even bother to lift his head.
He deeply regretted it. Had he left a bad impression? Did this mean he wouldn't get to be Soldier: 76 anymore?
All kinds of thoughts turned his mind into a complete mess.
"Thomas, you seem to have grown taller again after not seeing you for a few days!" Lucy walked over with her handbag, smiling.
Thomas jolted, then awkwardly scratched his head. "Sorry, Miss Brent. I was lost in thought just now. Mr. Ronin seems very irritated. He's in the study and the floor is covered with crumpled paper balls. I don't know what he's doing."
Lucy nodded. She guessed that Ronin was probably struggling to write the Iron Man script for Tony Stark.
"Get out! How many times do I have to say it?"
Ronin was writing furiously. While his inspiration was still flowing, he wanted to write as fast as possible. He had unleashed the hand speed he had built up from being single for over twenty years, yet it still couldn't keep up with his thoughts.
His hand speed couldn't match his brain speed this was the first time in his life he realized how important hand speed was. When coding, it was usually the opposite: his brain couldn't keep up with his hands.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
What?!
Ronin felt like his authority was being challenged. His driver dared to ignore his order to leave and was now boldly knocking on the door?
Deduct his salary! No doubt about it!
If he didn't deduct seventy or eighty percent of the salary, he would curse himself to become a cute girl in the second half of his life.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
"What?! Thomas, you've grown wings now, huh?"
Ronin looked up, only to see an elegant and beautiful woman.
She wore a fitted blazer on top, a short skirt below, and a pair of black high heels.
"Lucy, why are you here? Didn't I already tell you about last time? One day you'll understand everything, but now is not the time." Ronin sounded inexplicably irritated.
Lucy tried her best to stay calm. "Mr. Ronin, I'm not here about that. The new International Film Summit will be held next weekend. Because Soldier: 76 achieved massive success in global markets, many international filmmakers hope you can attend as a special guest."
"Not going."
Ronin answered without hesitation. He hated attending these kinds of high-profile events the most they were a complete waste of his time playing games, listening to music, and watching movies.
"Mr. Ronin, it didn't matter if you skipped those previous events, but the International Film Summit is the highest-level gathering of filmmakers in the world. Many famous directors and CEOs will be attending. You must fulfill your duties as CEO of Overwatch Pictures. This concerns the future development of the company. Many film companies don't even qualify to attend."
"Let Director Hopkins go," Ronin said lazily.
"Director Hopkins has directed many famous works besides Soldier: 76. He cannot represent Overwatch Pictures."
Lucy had long anticipated how difficult it would be to persuade him it was almost as hard as doing one-handed push-ups but she didn't expect it to be this difficult.
"How about… you go instead?"
"Mr. Ronin!"
Lucy's voice suddenly rose sharply. Ronin knew this was the warning sign that she was about to lose her mind.
"Fine, fine, I'll go!"
Ronin also knew that the International Film Summit was a very prestigious event. Before Soldier: 76, Overwatch Pictures didn't even have the qualifications to attend. Those who could attend were all major figures in the industry, including the leading giant Ring City Films!
Last year when filming Soldier: 76, Overwatch Pictures was short on funds and had approached many film companies for help. Ring City Films was one of them, but they were all coldly rejected.
In the end, they had no choice but to take out a high-interest loan.
Fortunately, Soldier: 76 was a huge success. Not only did it pay off the loans, it transformed an unknown film company into a top-tier super film company almost overnight.
The main reason he didn't want to go was because he didn't want to see the ugly faces of those people.
But going wouldn't be so bad.
Perhaps it would let those people understand how foolish their decision back then had been. The film company they once disdainfully refused to work with had now surged ahead of them and become the new guiding light of commercial cinema!