In the painting, there is a dwarf.

The dwarf’s face is somewhat deformed, with legs and feet that are disproportionately thick. On the dwarf’s back, there is an iron sword that is completely mismatched with his short stature. Naturally, the sword cannot be carried vertically, because the dwarf isn’t even as tall as the sword is long. So, the sword is slung horizontally across his back, making for a rather comical sight.

“This is Jack Reed.”

Upon seeing this painting, Lucas Carter’s hands began to tremble, because the character in the painting came from his own imagination—he was the protagonist of one of his long-form comics.

Lucas Carter isn’t tall, which has always been a source of insecurity for him. So his protagonist is a dwarf—an evil dwarf. This dwarf has a peculiar hobby: he likes to hunt down people who mock his height, and then “rearrange” them. If he thinks they’re too tall, he saws off a section; if too short, he stretches them out.

This quirk is inspired by Western mythology, but it also reflects a certain universality of human nature.

“Jack Threefoot, huh?”

Mark Bennett walked up behind Lucas Carter and made a teasing remark.

The dwarf’s name is Jack Reed, but he has a nickname: Jack Threefoot. This was a joke among the original comic’s readers, because the dwarf’s feet are very short, but the “other thing” is proportionally normal. Lucas Carter is a stickler for detail, so every time Jack Reed squats in the comic, you can clearly see three feet.

“This must be the boss’s drawing.” David Clark walked over and said.

“It should be. What a pity, though—Lucas’s work had such poor sales back then. After all, it’s hard for readers to relate to a protagonist like this.” Mark Bennett sighed.

Back when the studio was still around, the boss had everyone create a character based on their own ideas, and then everyone would help turn it into a comic.

“Dwarf Jack Reed” was Lucas Carter’s comic, but it had the worst market response. After all, very few people could see themselves in an ugly dwarf character.

“It’s been years already. Is there any point in bringing this up?” Lucas Carter was a bit annoyed by Mark Bennett’s tone.

In truth, a person’s temperament and personality really can change depending on their social status—especially now, as Mark Bennett is undoubtedly a successful person. Even if he doesn’t mean to, when he meets his once “down-and-out” friends, certain things inevitably show through.

“No, no, no, this is what you call market control. Our studio failed back then because we spread our energy too thin and didn’t focus on our flagship work, which led to—”

“That’s enough.” Emily Carter spoke up.

Mark Bennett immediately fell silent.

Lucas Carter ignored Mark Bennett’s words, simply staring quietly at the portrait of the dwarf on the wall in front of him.

Mark Bennett curled his lips, turned around, and looked to the other side. Suddenly, he exclaimed in delight:

“Emily, come quick, here’s your Olivia Green.”

This was another character portrait.

In the painting, a graceful woman leans against a doorframe, her rosy cheeks full of spring. She wears an outfit very similar to a kimono, revealing just enough skin to make most men’s hearts race.

Emily Carter walked up to the painting, gazing at Olivia Green in the picture, a little lost in thought.

Olivia Green is the protagonist of her comic—a character who is neither human nor ghost. Since she never explained Olivia Green’s background in the comic, readers could only speculate that Olivia Green might have suffered betrayal in love or some family misfortune.

In the comic’s story, Olivia Green is a woman who doesn’t play by the rules. She runs a brothel, and in different series, she opens her brothel in different cities or eras.

Olivia Green loves luxury and also enjoys tormenting people. She lives by her own unconventional code.

Back then, this comic sold fairly well, mainly because it featured many sensual scenes—delicate, rounded, imaginative, and visually striking, on par with the masters of the genre abroad. Many readers were drawn in by these scenes.

But it’s worth noting that Emily Carter joined the studio just after starting college. At that time, she had never been in a relationship; Mark Bennett was even sure she was still a virgin. Yet, the scenes she drew were so experienced and worldly.

Mark Bennett once believed that the reason he couldn’t win over Emily Carter wasn’t because he wasn’t good enough, but because no real man could ever compete with the two-dimensional men in Emily Carter’s comics.

“This is my Ryan Grant.”

David Clark stopped in front of a painting, reaching up to scratch his greasy hair in excitement, dislodging quite a bit of dandruff.

In the painting before him was a woodcutter carrying firewood. The woodcutter looked strong and honest.

He is a woodcutter—a woodcutter who kills without batting an eye. He kills as often as he chops wood. It’s not that he enjoys killing for its own sake, but that he does it mechanically, out of habit.

This comic’s sales were just as poor as Lucas Carter’s Jack Reed, making it one of the studio’s worst performers—a total flop.