Chapter 4: The Real Dragon Daddy Has Arrived
Crack! Crack!
Watching the sudden appearance of his "daughter," the dragon whelp, munching away on the metallic-looking eggshell.
Matthew could clearly feel the little creature's body growing at an astonishing rate.
"As expected, this behavior is like how most mammals in my previous life would eat their own placenta—it's a successful strategy for super creatures like dragons."
In no time, the little one had finished eating the entire eggshell.
Compared to its initial soft appearance, the creature's skin and scales had become firm and resilient.
It let out a contented burp, its sapphire-like eyes gleaming, and its round baby teeth gave it an incredibly cute and endearing look.
Patting the adorable little creature, Matthew tried to communicate with it through telepathy:
"What's your true name?"
"Yaya? Daddy, what's a true name? Can you eat it?"
The cute little thing affectionately crawled to Matthew's feet, lifted its head, and rubbed its tiny belly against his leg, responding with a clear foodie vibe.
Seeing its not-so-bright demeanor, Matthew felt a twinge of concern but then thought, somewhat strangely:
"This isn't such a big deal; raising this little one should be fine, though she might eat a lot in the future..."
After making up his mind, Matthew gently picked her up. The soft little body weighed about ten pounds, like a large plush toy.
The little one was very fond of Matthew, letting out a few happy sounds before burying her head in his chest and falling asleep within seconds.
A different kind of feeling welled up in Matthew's heart as he gently stroked the little one's head, suddenly realizing how quiet it had become around him.
There were no exclamations from others, no alerts from Ralph or Angela, and even the faint sound of the wind and the chirping of insects had disappeared.
"What's going on?"
Matthew turned to look around and found everyone frozen like statues, not moving an inch, even the mist floating in the air had halted in place.
A feeling of indescribable horror surged in his heart. As a former Great Arcanist who loved manipulating time and space, known as the "Child of Time and Space," Matthew instinctively recognized this legendary spell—Nine-Ring Time Stop!
What impressed Matthew the most was the caster's precision in controlling the spell, isolating only himself from its effects.
The caster's spell level was at least 25+!
High-level legendary!
They have another title, Demigod!
With that realization, Matthew relaxed his mental guard. If the other party truly wanted to kill him, it would be no harder than squashing an ant—there was no need for such a convoluted approach.
I'm weak, I'll lie down, no panic at all!
Scanning his surroundings, there was no movement. He looked behind him, but nothing stirred.
There was only one possibility left!
Matthew gently patted the soundly sleeping little creature, calmly raised his head, and met a pair of enormous vertical pupils!
In the silver-gray eyes, Matthew's calm face was reflected, absorbing all the dragon's terrifying aura. Yet, seeing such a super creature up close still left one awestruck.
Outside the massive, over two-meter-wide eye, deep gray-black scales shimmered like a mask, covering its majestic and formidable face!
Huge dragon horns curved backward, with turbulent, twisted waves of power hidden within, resembling a giant crown.
Twelve black scales arranged in a circular pattern grew unevenly on its body, absorbing even the gaze, as if devouring all the surrounding time.
Triangular wings, like heaven-reaching wings, stretched back, making the entire body look like a giant funnel, recording time.
A fearsome, sharp giant claw slowly clenched in mid-air, an indescribable transparent wave enveloping the area, isolating it from the surroundings.
Time, under complete control!
This was a legendary dragon—a Time Dragon!
In the face of the colossal super-giant body, Matthew looked as small as a mouse.
Matthew found it hard to believe. Even with decades of experience in his previous life's game, he had never seen such a powerful legendary creature as a Time Dragon in person.
Only some players who ventured into space found traces of a Time Dragon's existence in star regions with god corpses.
This super-giant Time Dragon, over 50 meters in size, was at least 400 years old, with a larger body and greater strength than other dragons.
Matthew estimated that even Netheril's most powerful weapon, the Floating City, could be easily dismantled by such a terrifying creature!
Thinking it over, Matthew cursed the inexplicable luck choice in his heart while smiling and gently lifted the little creature sleeping in his arms, asking in a calm voice:
"Mighty Time Dragon, is this little one your offspring?"
"Indeed, though she is not a true dragon, she is indeed my offspring."
A voice filled with majesty and a hint of gravitas echoed in Matthew's mind.
"Well, I was just mistaken for this little one's daddy, and now the real dragon daddy has shown up."
"If it's a good dragon, that's fine. Wait, who am I kidding!"
"Even if it's a good dragon, seeing its offspring sign a life pact with a human would make it furious!"
"So this is Luck 4? Okay, I get it. Meeting a legendary dragon as a 1st-level arcanist truly requires extraordinary luck!"
As if sensing something, the cute little one curiously opened her eyes but seemed to see nothing, tilting her head in confusion.
In the silver-gray eyes of the Time Dragon, a hint of regret flashed as it raised another dragon claw, slowly extending it toward Matthew, with an invisible force enveloping the little one.
The little one, feeling sleepy, let out a long yawn, and snuggled back into Matthew's arms to continue sleeping.
The previously damaged dragon wings restored themselves, returning to their original state.
The little one noticed this, flapped her wings happily a couple of times, folded them back onto her back, and continued to sleep soundly.
Just as Matthew was about to say something, he felt an invisible force pass through his body, and the previously vanished text reappeared in his vision:
"Fate's Choice 2: Hand over the little one (Misfortune 4), Keep the little one (Luck 4)!"
"Wow! No matter what choice I make, there's deadly danger?"
Matthew didn't notice that the luck value had silently returned to zero after the little one's transformation.
He didn't have time to sense the changes in his body, as the second choice of fate forced him to rack his brain once again.
First, if it wasn't for some urgent matter, or even a life-threatening danger.
Matthew didn't believe that a high-level Red Robe Mage with a profession level not exceeding 15 had the kind of unbelievable luck needed to steal a dragon egg from a legendary Time Dragon's nest.
Wait, according to dragon-raising habits, dragon eggs are usually protected by female dragons, and the Time Dragon shouldn't be an exception...
Whatever hidden entanglements and dangers lay behind this, Matthew quickly concluded that the legendary dragon that went to such great lengths to cast Time Stop to cover up the information must be in great danger.
"Moreover, the Time Dragon just mentioned that the little one is not a true dragon. Its attitude toward her definitely won't be as protective as toward a true dragon offspring..."
"So, this might actually work!"
Matthew couldn't imagine the situation behind the whole incident, but without hesitation, he decided to take the risk and said:
"Then, great legendary Time Dragon, my life is now bound to this little one. I will do my best to raise her so that she grows strong and happy."
Slowly raising its dragon claw, the legendary Time Dragon, Chronos, showed a hint of curiosity in its eyes for the first time.
It repeatedly examined Matthew's fearless eyes, sensing the subtle and obscure fluctuations within him, pondering for a moment, then slowly nodded:
"The pact is sealed. I will watch you through time!"
As the words fell, the enormous body of the Time Dragon Chronos silently vanished.
"Gone just like that?"
Feeling quite relieved, Matthew let out a long breath, gently patted the little one sleeping in his arms, and, thinking of the Time Dragon's terrifying ability to appear and disappear, and the "warning" left behind, muttered with mixed emotions:
"Well, I've just started and already caught the attention of a big shot."
"Wait, if the Time Dragon can always watch over me, does that mean the mysterious person or the forces behind my troubles won't have a chance?"
"Could this be the true effect of Luck 4?"
"So, what will the next Luck 4 bring?"
+4000 words added to the draft,
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