Chapter 14 - 14: Ready Player OneChapter 14: Writing Wonders

    "Oh, you tricked me!" Jennifer scolded, though her voice had a softness to it, almost like a playful tease. She felt both annoyed and strangely empty inside, surprised by her own reaction.

    What''s gotten into me? she wondered.

    Martin, with a slight smirk, was feeling proud of himself. It seemed that as he absorbed more desire energy, his innate skill of charm was gradually restoring itself.

    After amusing himself with Jennifer, Martin sat down across from her, opening a folder filled with pages of neatly written notes.

    "Hey, I haven''t agreed to anything yet!" Jennifer protested.

    Martin glanced up and gave her a knowing smile, gently brushing a finger across his lips.

    Jennifer blushed again. Ugh, this kid has flirted with me—three times!

    "Jennifer, let''s be real. I already know everything you''re teaching me," he said. "How about this: every week, you make up a test with middle or high school questions, and I''ll take it. If I pass, we skip the lessons; if I don''t, we keep them."

    Jennifer hesitated. She''d already noticed that Martin had a firm grasp of middle school material, but she hadn''t realized he''d even self-studied high school subjects.

    If he really knew everything... then he didn''t need tutoring.

    If she agreed, she could still earn her paycheck while Martin would get his free time back.

    After a moment of consideration, Jennifer nodded, and her gaze drifted to the papers in front of him. She remembered he''d mentioned writing earlier. Wait, was he serious?

    "Martin, are you really writing something?"

    "Want to see? I''m almost finished."

    "Can I?"

    "Of course." He handed her a stack of pages. "Just keep them in order. It''s a pain to reorganize."

    "Don''t worry, I''ll be careful," Jennifer replied, taking the pages.

    The first thing that caught her eye was the elegant, flowing script—his penmanship was surprisingly beautiful.

    This kid could write so well?

    Doubtful, she stole a glance at him while he was busy writing. Martin''s hand moved swiftly, each stroke forming graceful letters with effortless speed.

    "Aren''t you going to think before you write?" she couldn''t help but ask.

    "The story''s all here," he said, tapping his head. "I just have to bring it out."

    "Wow, that''s impressive!"

    Jennifer couldn''t help feeling a touch of admiration for the young boy. Regardless of whether the story got published, his natural talent alone was remarkable.

    Not wanting to disturb him, she turned back to the pages and started reading.

    The bold title scrawled across the top read: Ready Player One.

    "Ready Player One? That''s... an unusual title," she thought, her curiosity piqued.

    She began reading, and soon found herself completely absorbed...

    By 2045, the world is in crisis, on the brink of collapse due to an energy shortage... Humanity seeks solace in a virtual reality game called ''OASIS,'' where life seems peaceful.

    But a will left behind by the game''s creator shatters this calm: whoever finds his hidden Easter egg will inherit control of OASIS and become the world''s richest person...

    Drawn by the promise, millions of players around the world join the hunt. Wade Watts throws himself into this quest as well...

    The pages described an epic treasure hunt, thrilling dangers, and dark mysteries—all brought vividly to life.

    "Jennifer! Jennifer!"

    "Not now! I need to see how Wade cracks this level!" she exclaimed without thinking.

    Realizing it was Martin who''d called her, she immediately blushed. "Sorry, I got a bit carried away. This story is so good! Did you really write this?"

    She instantly regretted her words.

    "Sorry, I didn''t mean it that way! It''s just... this story is beyond what I''d expect from an eleven-year-old!"

    Martin chuckled. "People often judge ability by age, and that''s fair when it comes to tasks that are mostly repetitive—it''s true that experience matters in those cases. But for fields driven by talent—like music, art, or writing—age doesn''t define limits."

    "Mozart composed music at four and toured Europe at six. Oscar Wilde began writing at thirteen, earned a scholarship to Trinity College at seventeen, and won the prestigious Berkeley Gold Medal for classics. And in China, a boy named Gan Luo became a diplomat at twelve, successfully securing several cities for his country, and was appointed prime minister the same year."

    "So, don''t underestimate the potential of a young genius, dear Jennifer."

    "Alright, alright, our little prodigy! So, what did you need me for?"

    "Just to remind you that I''m heading to set for the next scene, so you can clock out if you want."

    "Clock out?" Jennifer glanced down at the pages in her hand, torn.

    She was halfway through the story, right at a crucial point, and the idea of stopping now... it was pure torture!

    "I''ll stay overtime!" she said with sudden determination.

    Martin grinned. "Are you sure? The director won''t be paying you for that."

    "This is my overtime pay," she said, waving the manuscript. "But, um, could I... take it home to read?"

    "First, thank you for the compliment. Second, absolutely not."

    "Fine, I''ll stay and finish it here."

    "Help yourself to anything in the fridge. There''s plenty to eat and drink."

    "Thanks!"

    Leaving Jennifer in his trailer, Martin headed out for the final camp scene—the night swim.

    ...

    "Alright, Martin, just strip down here and jump into the lake," Nancy instructed.

    "All the way?" Martin asked.

    In the script, the scene was meant to capture a child''s natural, free spirit, with the character swimming fully unclothed.

    Of course, they couldn''t film it that way—this was a family movie, not European cinema.

    Martin didn''t mind, but given the film''s family-friendly tone, a shot like that was out of the question. After all, this was America, not Europe.

    (Note: European films often have looser restrictions, some even rivaling content produced in the adult film industry.)

    "No, just down to your shorts," Nancy replied.

    Then, her expression grew serious as she asked, "Martin, I just want to double-check—are you sure you''re okay with this? It''s winter, and while California winters aren''t too cold, that lake water will be chilly."

    "Don''t worry, Director. I can handle it. I''m not about to risk my life for a scene."

    [??———?———?———?]

    ???? ???????????????? ???????? ???????????????? ???? ???????????????????????? ???????? ???????????????????????????? ???????? ???????????????????????????????????? ???????? ???????????????????? ???????????? ???????????????????????????? ???????? ???????? ???????????????? ????????????????????????????. ???????????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????????????? ???????????????? ???? ???????????????? ????????????????????????????????????????!

    ???????????????????????????? ???????????????????????? ????????:

    ? ????????????????????????

    ? ????????????????????????????????????

    ? ???????????????????? ????????????????

    ???????? ???? ????????????????????????, ???????????? ????????????????????????:

    ? ???????????????????????????????????? ????????????????????????: ???????????? ????????????+ ???????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????????? ???????????????????? ???????? ???????????????????????????????? ????????????????.

    ? ???????????????????????????????????? ????????????????????-????????????: ???????????????????????????? ???? ???????????????????????????? ???????????????????? ???????????????????? ???????????????????????????? ???????? ???? ???????????????????? ???????????? ???????????? ???????????????? ????????????????????????????!

    ???????????????? ???????????????????????????? ???????????? ???????????????? ???????????????????? ???????? ???????????????????????????????????????? ???????????? ???????????????? ???????????????????? ???????? ???????????????? ???????????????? ????????????????????????????????????. ???????? ????????????''???????? ???????????? ???? ???????????????????????? ????????????, ???????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????? ????????!

    ???? ???????????????? ????????????: ????????????????????????????.????????????/???????????????????????????????????????????? S~ea??h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    ???? ???????????????? ????????????????????????????????????: ???????? ???????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????? ????????????????????????! ???????????????????????? ???????????????? ???????????????????????????????????? ???????????????? ???????????? $30—???????????? ???????????????? ???? 10% ????????????????????????????????! ???????????????? ???????????? ???????????? ????????????????: ????????????????????????????????????????????.

    ???????????????? ???????????? ???????????????????? ???????? ???????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????????? ???????????????? ???????? ???????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????? ????????????????????????, ???????????? ???????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????? ???????????????????????? ???????????????? ???????????????????????????? ???????????????? ????????????????????-???????????????? ????????????????????????????????, ???????????????????????????????????? ???????????????????? ???????????????????????? ???????????? ????????????????????????. ???????????????? ???????????????????????? ???????????????? ???????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????? ???????????????? ???????????????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????????? ???????????????????? ????????????????????????????????????????????, ???????????????????????????????? ???????????? ???????????????????????????????????????? ???????????? ???????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????????? ???????? ???????????????????????????? ???????????????? ???????????????????????????? ????????????????????????????????????????!

    ????????????????????: ????????????????????????????.????????????/????????????????????????????????????????????/????????????????