"Is this... time stop?"

No, not exactly time stop, but time had indeed been significantly slowed down.

Very quickly, Moen pieced together the essence of this power from the changes in his surroundings.

The *Clock of Eternity*, a prototype of artificial authority over the laws of time that Teacher Mela had spent a millennium constructing, possessed such extraordinary capabilities that Moen was not entirely surprised.

He just hadn't expected that with merely the first inscription of the second stage, it could already reach this level.

Everything around him slowed immensely in his perception. From the descending droplets of water, it seemed time had been delayed at least several dozen times.

And if Teacher Mela's construction were ever fully completed, how terrifying would that power be?

At that point, could it even possess the mighty force to rewind time itself?

If such power were within reach…

For some reason, Moen suddenly thought of that face—delicate and fleeting like the bloom of an Epiphyllum oxypetalum.

...

...

"It feel like if I don't do something in this moment, it’d betray my identity as the classic blonde hair troublemaker."

Among the floating droplets and petals, Moen's gaze fell on Master Mela. Because her expression was frozen in place, she looked rather dazed and adorably so—especially her chubby, tender cheeks, which were so fair and plump that they looked irresistibly biteable.

And just like that, a whimsical thought seized Moen's mind, daring him to act on his mischievous impulse.

Just one touch. Just one!

After all, it’s not every day one gets the chance to touch the soft cheeks of a top lolicon!

This was his moment!

The gap between them wasn’t far. Though time’s drag had slowed his actions considerably, even at his top speed, he moved far faster than everything else around him.

Closer. Closer.

Moen’s fingers slowly approached Teacher Mela. As his fingertip came closer to the soft, tender skin of her cheeks, his heartbeat grew faster with excitement…

But just as his fingertip was about to make contact, he was horrified to find that Teacher Mela, who had been motionless just moments ago, suddenly moved.

Her amber-red eyes, like beautiful gemstones, shifted nimbly.

It was as if the girl, frozen in a photograph, had somehow broken free of the dimensional constraints and cast Moen a knowing, meaningful glance.

"Your audacity never ceases to amaze me, kid. Not just what you think but what you dare to do as well."

Moen’s expression stiffened, slowly but surely.

In his languid movements, he saw Teacher Mela’s small body tremble slightly. Then, defying the flow of time’s slow grip, she moved gracefully, with an ease that made him feel as though he were at her mercy.

"Any last words?" Teacher Mela fluttered her eyes, speaking such fearsome words with an innocent expression that sent chills down Moen's spine.

"Me----la----Tea----cher----I----was----wro---"

Moen’s voice stretched so long that he didn’t even finish before Teacher Mela grew visibly impatient.

"Doesn't seem like you’ve got anything else to say, so how about a time-out in the sky?"

Her petite hand clapped gently.

With a loud *whoosh*, Moen's "Rocket Head Mk.II" decoupled from his neck and took off like a missile, shattering the sound barrier as it ascended into the heavens, performing various high-speed aerial acrobatics. Moments later, it executed a flawless face-down landing back onto the ground.

It was unclear when the temporal deceleration had returned to normal. The pure water droplets that spilled from the watering can glimmered faintly, casting a delicate rainbow in the air.

Teacher Mela picked up Moen's head with both hands, her gentle smile hovering on her lips as she peered into his pale face.

"So, how does that feel?"

"I... I’ve exited the ride, and I... feel great."

Great, the hell! Seeing stars swirl in his vision, Moen felt sure that his brain had been scrambled.

"Good. Next, you'll feel even better."

Teacher Mela’s sly smile and her suggestive expression sent shivers down Moen’s spine. Trembling, he let out a cry of terror:

"Wait—wait! Teacher Mela, isn’t this a bit overboard? I was just joking!"

"This isn’t a punishment; it’s simply the price you were meant to pay."

"The price?"

Moen hadn’t yet made sense of her words when he saw Teacher Mela holding his head, placing it back onto his neck.

In an instant, his senses restored.

Unspeakable pain surged through him.

At that precise moment, Moen swore he could hear tendons tearing and bones cracking. Following that was an extensive rattling, like beans popping inside all his joints.

His skin turned faintly red—not a healthy blush, but the result of countless capillaries bursting beneath the flesh, causing blood to ooze faintly to the surface of his skin.

Before Moen could process the situation, he felt as though all the strength in his body had been drained, leaving him to collapse limply onto the ground like a boneless heap.

"Cough, cough... Wh-What the hell is going on?"

Moen coughed up chunks of blood mixed with shredded meat, clearly indicating severe internal injuries.

"I told you, it’s the price you had to pay."

Teacher Mela looked down with a slightly amused glint in her gaze. "Did you really think wielding the *Clock of Eternity’s* power would come so easily?"

"But why must the price take this form? Can’t I just pay with money?" Moen shouted indignantly.

"If we’re talking about price, the real issue is your body’s fragility."

Teacher Mela rolled her eyes.

"For a preliminary connection to the *Clock of Eternity*, it’s capable of extending your time, but it won’t improve your physical constitution."

"So you're saying..." Moen’s mind turned, grasping something profound.

"Exactly. Because of the temporal deceleration, you overextended your body’s limits without even noticed."

Teacher Mela clasped her small hands behind her back, pacing in circles around him as she explained,

"Generally speaking, the human body is designed to limit its own output as a protective mechanism—it prevents us from injuring ourselves while exerting force.

But under the effects of temporal deceleration, that protective mechanism becomes almost entirely ineffective. The reason being…"

"Because in such a state, my brain perceives my movements as extremely slow," Moen recalled the deliberate, snail-like motions when he had reached for Teacher Mela's cheek.

Because it felt too sluggish, he had willed himself to speed up, and then to push even further beyond.

But in real-time—outside the perception of slowed time—

"I had already far exceeded my physical limits."

"Precisely."

Teacher Mela snapped her fingers, clearly pleased that her foolish disciple wasn’t that hopeless after all. She nodded in satisfaction.

"This limitation is exactly why, even though your mind can perceptually grasp the slowing of time, your physical body simply can’t keep up.

The *Clock of Eternity* influences time… nothing else."

"But I feel like the price isn’t limited to just this," Moen muttered bitterly, weak flames flickering across his injured body at an excruciatingly slow pace, insufficient to heal at any meaningful rate.

"I used it for such a short time, yet it feels like I’ve been entirely drained."

"Of course. Do you even realize what you’re manipulating? It’s time—something even gods can’t control."

Teacher Mela stood with her hands behind her back, gazing past the flower sea into the distant horizon.

Despite her small stature, there was an air of majesty subtly disconnected from her outward appearance.

But this impenetrable arrogance only seemed perfectly justified in Moen's eyes.

Compared to the artificial artifact, the *Clock of Eternity*, perhaps the real enigma was its creator—Teacher Mela herself.