After confirming it wasn't some kind of illness, Ronin tried to control his appetite through sheer willpower. With a lot of mental effort, he forced himself back down to his old eating habits.
Well… the plan sounded great in theory.
In reality, he ended up eating even more than before. At first he'd been scared he had some terrible disease and the fear of dying had helped him hold back. Now that he knew he was perfectly healthy, all restraints were gone. He ate however he wanted—lying down, sitting, leaning back, while watching movies, playing games, listening to music…
Twenty-four hours a day, his mouth never stopped. Even in his dreams he was still chewing—mouthing the air with his eyes closed.
The fridge couldn't hold food for more than a few hours. The moment it was empty, he had Thomas run out and buy another massive haul.
Thomas had been shocked at first, staring wide-eyed as Ronin demolished meal after meal. Eventually he got used to it and figured superheroes just burned through a ton of energy and needed to refuel.
Ronin wanted to scream: I haven't even transformed in nearly a month! I barely leave the house. All I do is eat, and my digestion is ridiculously fast. I never feel full for more than twenty minutes.
Strangely enough, no matter how much he ate, his stomach never got bloated or upset. It stayed as flat as ever. Had his stomach upgraded from level one to level three along with his digestion system?
"I don't want to eat anymore…"
Ronin's face was miserable, but his body was honest. He grabbed a whole roast duck and started chomping away—no sauce, no sides, just oil dripping down his chin. If anyone snapped a photo and posted it, it would definitely make the headlines.
"Shocking! Overwatch Films CEO Ronin is actually a starving ghost reincarnated—devouring an entire roast duck with zero dignity at home!"
He'd even come up with the perfect clickbait title for them.
Thomas sat nearby, staring in pure disbelief, eyes unblinking. He was completely stunned.
The boss used to eat so elegantly with lettuce and tomato sauce. Now he was hugging an entire roast duck and going to town on it. If the guy hadn't eaten for three days, sure, but he ate like this every single day. Forget the stomach—didn't his jaw get tired?
Just watching was exhausting. Twelve hours straight of nonstop eating for a whole month, and the guy's teeth were still fine?
Thomas swallowed hard. Looked like he could skip lunch again.
"Ronin?!"
A sharp scream cut through the air. Ronin had just taken a big bite when he froze.
Lucy stood in the doorway, her face filled with horror—like she'd just seen a man-eating demon. Actually, worse than that.
"Oh my God!"
The room was filled with a chaotic mix of food smells. Individually they smelled great, but all together it was overwhelming. Lucy stared at the mountain of food on the table and gasped.
"Who starved you like this?!"
Her sharp gaze immediately stabbed toward Thomas.
Thomas waved his hands frantically. "Assistant Brent, it wasn't me! Maybe the boss is just in a really good mood today and felt like eating more."
How could this be his fault? If the food wasn't so delicious, colorful, and fragrant, the boss probably would've eaten him instead.
Ronin set the half-eaten roast duck back on the plate, peeled off his disposable gloves, grabbed some paper towels to wipe his mouth, and gave Lucy a small smile. "Thomas and I went to the gym this morning and worked out hard. I was starving."
"Starving?"
Lucy frowned deeply. "Even if you're hungry, you can't eat like this. This table could feed more than ten people."
"There's a lot of variety, so I can pick and choose. It's not like I'm going to finish everything," Ronin said.
"Are you full now? If not, I'll wait until you're done before we talk business." Lucy tossed her handbag onto the sofa and sat down.
"Of course I'm full. I'm not a pig," Ronin said with a laugh.
Gurgle… gurgle…
What was that sound? Lucy looked around in confusion.
Gurgle…
After the second rumble, her eyes locked onto Ronin's stomach, widening like copper bells.
Ronin clutched his belly, wishing he could crawl into a hole and disappear. This was way too embarrassing.
God, why are you messing with me like this?!
Thomas covered his face with his hand, trying desperately not to laugh. As the full-time driver, he absolutely could not mock the boss… unless he really couldn't hold it in.
"Hahahaha…"
Thomas burst out laughing uncontrollably. Ronin's face darkened. "Thomas, I'm docking 10% of your salary this month."
Thomas instantly stopped laughing and looked like he wanted to cry.
Ronin forced a smile and fought back the hunger. "Lucy, what's the urgent matter?"
"Blizzard Entertainment has agreed to a 50-50 split. They also want to buy the rights to use Winston's movie image, including any future Overwatch heroes that might appear. From what their vice president said, they're interested in a long-term deal. He wants to set up a meeting with you."
Lucy spoke calmly. She didn't have time to worry about Ronin's eating habits anymore—this was currently the biggest deal for Overwatch Films.
If it went through, they'd form a partnership with Blizzard Entertainment. Whether it became a win-win or mutual backstabbing would depend on how both sides played it.
"I'll call you when I have time."
Ronin couldn't hold back anymore. The table full of delicious meats and sweet pastries was calling to him like a siren. There was no way he could negotiate a deal in this state—it would definitely fall apart.
"Can't you give me a definite answer?"
She had come in person to show how important this was, but the boss was still brushing it off. He had all the time in the world to stay home, but suddenly no time for business talks?
"I haven't been feeling well these past few days."
Ronin was really struggling now. He grabbed a piece of cake and took a bite just to take the edge off.
Seeing his attitude, Lucy lost all desire to stay. She was the one breaking her back for the company, while the boss acted like he couldn't care less. Fine—if the boss didn't care, then neither would she. Let things fall where they may.
Not feeling well, yet still with an appetite like that? Who was he kidding?
Lucy grabbed her handbag and stormed out angrily. The moment she left, Ronin snatched up the half roast duck and went right back to devouring it.
Thomas looked disgusted. The eating manners were truly unbearable, and the smell in the room was too much. He stepped outside for some fresh air.
"The air outside is so much cleaner."
Thomas took deep breaths, feeling like nature itself was washing him clean.
Ronin wolfed down every last bit of food on the table. Finally—after so long—he felt that rare, wonderful sensation of being full.
He lay back on the sofa, completely satisfied for the first time in ages.
Life should just be about eating and drinking!
He'd barely dozed off for ten minutes when his eyes suddenly snapped open.
"Caloric intake has reached the required threshold. Winston transformation form has been activated!"
Ronin sat bolt upright on the sofa, completely stunned.
After a moment, tears welled up in his eyes.
The activation condition for Winston was way too weird… Other transmigrators got their powers effortlessly. Why did he have to go through all this suffering?!
This was truly a tragic tale of blood and tears!
If his story was really being written by some heartless author, he just wanted to ask one question:
Are you the devil?