"I've finally found you, Evil Dragon Karl." Sylvie had long golden hair, and her silver knight armor bore scratches and un-dried bloodstains from countless battles fought to reach this place.
Sylvie's figure was tall and straight; even enveloped in thick armor, her graceful physique was still discernible.
Though her face was covered in dust, her pretty cheeks appeared even more resolute because of it.
This hero, who usually always wore a smile and brought hope and encouragement to people, now had none of her usual sunny smile on her face.
It was replaced by a look of unwavering determination, as if ready to face death.
At the end of the steps before her, a three-meter-tall black humanoid dragon, like an emperor, sat upon a throne cast from gems.
He was Evil Dragon Karl, the nightmare that enveloped this country.
He flew over field after field and village after village, leaving behind ruins and endless wails.
His Dragon Flame mercilessly incinerated houses, crops, and lives, reducing everything to ashes.
The once prosperous towns he had ravaged were now nothing but crumbling walls and scorched earth; fertile lands turned to charcoal, unable to nurture life again.
Countless humans were displaced and forced to leave their homes due to Karl's rampage.
Evil Dragon Karl's evil deeds made people regard him as a synonym for evil and natural disaster; he wantonly trampled and ravaged life.
Karl had now transformed into a three-meter-tall humanoid creature, with a robust and muscular physique, displaying an indomitable power.
His head bore two horns with complex, winding patterns, as if containing some ancient and mysterious power.
His five fingers were tipped with sharp claws, gleaming coldly, sending shivers down one's spine.
His black dragon scales, in the light of the gems, emitted a metallic luster, powerful, evil, majestic, and mysterious.
His face was deep and cold, his eyes flashing with a wild light, as if able to see into the darkness of human hearts.
The corners of his mouth turned up slightly, revealing a cruel smile, mocking the weakness and powerlessness of this world.
The gem-encrusted throne glowed with a kaleidoscopic brilliance, each gem embedded in the backrest and armrests shining with a different color.
Behind these beautiful gems, each one told of Karl's every plunder and destruction, each one a testament to the sins he had committed.
Karl lowered his head, his deep red eyes appraising Sylvie.
"Congratulations, Sylvie, you have risen from a farmer's Child to a hero, and you have come all the way to me. You have shown me the potential of weak humans."
Karl's voice was the deep, resonant voice unique to dragons, making every word he uttered filled with unquestionable authority.
"Now, I permit you to become my subordinate, to surrender to me, and I will bestow upon you endless power and glory."
Sylvie was stunned by these words, clearly not expecting Evil Dragon Karl to make such an absurd demand.
Her eyes instantly flashed with sparks of hatred, and she looked up, glaring at Karl with uncontrollable fury: "You destroyed my hometown with your Dragon Flame! I watched my parents and sister turn to ashes before my eyes! And now, you actually want me to become your subordinate?!"
Sylvie was clearly triggered by Karl's words; her eyes turned blood red, and the longsword in her hand began to tremble, a resonance of anger and hatred.
She roared, "What do you even consider life to be?!"
"Yes, I killed your parents and sister." Karl's words were calm, indifferent, as if stating the most ordinary thing:
"But from now on, you can completely treat me as your father, and I will guide you."
Sylvie's eyes widened, looking at Karl in disbelief.
Anger and grief surged through her heart like a tide, and she felt as if a nerve in her brain had snapped.
Karl, however, seemed oblivious to her emotional change: "I'm giving you a chance: step down two steps and become my Child. Conversely, if you wish to die, then step forward onto the platform."
Sylvie completely broke down, her eyes bloodshot, and she roared hoarsely, "I'm going to kill you! Ah ah ah ah ah!"
However, at that very instant, everything around seemed to press the pause button.
After a long while, in this stopped Time.
Karl, who was sitting on the gem throne, stood up in a panic, holding his head with his two massive dragon claws, his expression terrified, forming a stark contrast to his previous majestic image.
"I'm going to die! I'm going to die!"
He kept muttering, his voice full of helplessness and fear.
Karl's original name was Shirakawa Natsu. Not long ago, he was holding toilet paper, watching a Japanese Time Stop-themed movie. At the moment of climax, he splattered everything onto an adult version of "Cthulhu Mythos."
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in the body of this Evil Dragon Karl.
Karl immediately decided to pack up and run, finding a remote mountain valley to hide in.
He was still packing his belongings when his subordinates rushed to report that the hero Sylvie and her two companions, Saintess Chris and the Imperial Prince Mage Vittel, had already reached the fortress gate.
He thought that as a dignified giant dragon, running away shouldn't be a problem.
But he soon discovered that although he had inherited Karl's physical stats, he had not inherited any of Karl's abilities.
Now, let alone the Dragon Flame breath that instilled fear across the continent, he couldn't even transform into his giant dragon form in his current humanoid state.
He was now like a useless person with a strong body but no combat power.
Karl was an extremely brutal Evil Dragon, so he naturally had no loyal or powerful subordinates.
Facing Sylvie's hero party, some fled, some died, and they were instantly cut down.
Although Karl had no power, his keen dragon-like sense of smell allowed him to detect the scent of a human male outside the great hall.
There was also a special floral scent on the Saintess's female body.
Clearly, Sylvie's teammates, Saintess Chris and Mage Vittel, were hiding outside the gate.
Sylvie, the warrior, would initiate the fight first, while the mage waited for an opportunity to output damage and prevent him from escaping.
All of this proved that this team was not only strong in combat but also steady in their tactics and rich in experience.
The reason Karl hadn't groveled yet was that along with his transmigration came the materialization of the Japanese movie theme he had watched before his transmigration.
"Time Stop!"
An incredibly powerful ability with only a 3-second cooldown, yet capable of stopping Time indefinitely.
But the problem was that he watched an art film, not Jojo.
The ability he gained meant that in the Time Stop space, he could only perform actions allowed in those movies; those who know, know.
And because the camera shots in those Time Stop movies were never too wide,
this caused the Time Stop to automatically deactivate if he moved more than a hundred meters from where he activated it.
A 3-second cooldown was enough for Sylvie to chop off his head.
"I can only gamble!" Karl picked up Sylvie. The silver armor plates were connected by fabric material, and he could feel her soft body. He had to use his ability to scare the three of them to win a dragon's life.
Chapter 2 Fear and Helplessness
In this frozen world, Karl carefully moved Sylvie's body, ensuring her posture remained unchanged, and carried her down two steps from the platform.
After straightening her body, Karl rested his dragon claw on his chin and stood to the side, seriously observing Sylvie.
"Quite well-endowed."
Karl slowly circled Sylvie, admiring her. She was the type that grew on you, and even in armor, her figure was at least a D, and her rear was quite shapely.
Her anger and determination were frozen in this moment, revealing an unexpected charm.
Karl could slowly appreciate the instant expression of her extreme anger.
He gently rubbed his dragon claw on her cheek, wiping away some of the clinging dust, making her resolute face appear even more delicate.
"She's indeed very beautiful."
Karl's thoughts raced. Directly groveling was also one of his viable plans for survival.
Pretending to be defeated, signing a contract, becoming a mount, and then lurking, understanding this world, there would always be a way to turn things around.
Anyway, with his Time Stop ability, if she rode him during the day, he could just ride her back twice as hard at night.
But when Karl saw the solidified rage in Sylvie's eyes, he knew that this plan was just his wishful thinking.
Watching his parents and sister struggle and cry for help in the Dragon Flame, yet being powerless to do anything.
Sylvie's resentment towards him was so deep that she probably wanted to eat his flesh and drink his blood.
Karl sat back on his gem-encrusted throne, chin in hand, and fell into deep thought again.
His Time Stop ability, though powerful, had a three-second cooldown. In those three seconds after Time Stop ended, Sylvie's blade would undoubtedly chop off his dragon head.
Karl turned his head to look at the distant gate, where Sylvie's companions were hiding.
They were waiting for an opportunity, ready to rush in at any moment to assist Sylvie and attack him.
However, the gate was outside the 100-meter range of his Time Stop skill, so escaping was impossible for him.
"Why is a castle hall built so big!"
Karl covered his forehead with his hand.
His ability came from a Japanese movie, and he had already tried it; in this Time Stop world, he could only do things that were allowed in those movies.
Therefore, he couldn't cultivate or grow stronger in the Time Stop world.
He couldn't even break through walls and escape from the other side.
Of course, it wasn't without any enhancements.
Because in the movie, the male protagonist could do it many times, he could, in a sense, achieve infinite stamina in the Time Stop space.
But what good was that?
Could he really exhaust his enemies to death?
"What should I do?"
Karl looked at the extremely angry yet still pretty Sylvie before him, and could only do to her what was allowed in the movie.
If he wanted to attack Sylvie, he could only use his little ka.
Karl's humanoid form was three meters tall, and all his body parts increased proportionally.
Meaning his little ka was also about 1.5 times the size of a human's.
But to that extent, at most, it would cause three lacerations. These injuries, for Sylvie, the hero, would not prevent her from chopping off his dragon head with one strike.
"A dead end." Karl took a deep breath, calming the panic in his heart.
His gaze fell on Sylvie, watching her bloodshot eyes as if she wanted to devour him alive.
Was all he could do to enjoy himself thoroughly before he died, or keep Time Stop active indefinitely, and do it until the end of Time in this 100-meter world?
"How can I survive?" Karl took a deep breath, trying to calm the panic in his heart.
He carefully analyzed the current situation, looking for a glimmer of hope.
He considered all possible scenarios, including escape, surrender, and force, but none of these methods could truly solve the problem.
Finally, Karl came to a helpless conclusion.
To survive, three conditions had to be met simultaneously.
1. Sylvie and her companions must not attack him, because any attack would expose him.
2. Under condition one, Sylvie must actively give up her revenge, at least temporarily.