The evening sun bathed the streets of West City in warm light.
After finishing a day of classes, Bulma climbed onto her Flying Motorcycle and leisurely rode away from school.
She hadn't gone far when, just as she was about to speed up and take off, a snide voice reached her ears.
"Well, well, if it isn't Bulma!
Why are you alone again today?"
Bulma hit the brakes and turned to look.
Amy came sashaying up to her, arm in arm with her new boyfriend.
A few classmates passing by couldn't help slowing down.
Bulma snapped, "Move. A good dog doesn't block the road!"
Amy smiled. "Tell me, Bulma, did you actually hire that boyfriend of yours back then?
It's been over half a year, and it seems like no one at our school has seen him again!"
Bulma laughed. "Tch, why should I let you see him?
He's a martial artist, so he has to train and is busy most of the time.
He only comes to my house to see me when he has time off. That's why he never comes here..."
"A martial artist?"
Amy's boyfriend looked disdainful.
Bulma shot back, "What's wrong with that?"
Amy smiled. "That martial artist you're talking about isn't one of those flashy fakes you see on TV, is he?"
Another classmate chimed in, "What era are we living in?
No martial artist is any use. A gun is much more practical!"
"Exactly! No matter how good your kung fu is, you're still afraid of a kitchen knife!"
Seeing that none of her classmates believed her, Bulma thought back to what she'd believed before setting out to find the Dragon Balls.
Back then, Bulma had thought that carrying a gun made her invincible.
But after all those adventures, big and small, she'd come to understand how truly powerful martial artists were.
She looked at her classmates with a hint of disdain.
Bulma shook her head. "You people are so ignorant!
Let me tell you, real martial artists are incredibly strong. Don't underestimate any of them!"
With that, Bulma didn't wait for a reply and started to leave.
But Amy wasn't about to let her get away with that. She didn't want Bulma to leave.
She continued mockingly, "This is hilarious. He's really strong?
If you ask me, you haven't even made up a job for your imaginary boyfriend yet. You're scared you'll get caught, so you're running away!"
"Exactly. What kind of boyfriend doesn't show his face for half a year? You definitely made him up..."
"Unless you call him and let us see him!"
Bulma scoffed. "You tell me to call him, so I have to? Give me a break!
Move. This beautiful young lady is going home!!"
The classmates behind Amy laughed too.
"Hahahaha, look at her! She's getting all worked up."
Amy blocked Bulma's motorcycle and giggled behind her hand. "Looks like I guessed right. That boyfriend of yours is completely fake!"
Someone suddenly understood. "So that's what it is!"
Another person couldn't help joining in.
"Looks like the rumors are true. Bulma actually hired a boyfriend so she wouldn't lose face!"
"And she says he's a martial artist. That's just hilarious..."
"Why not say your boyfriend won the World Martial Arts Tournament?"
"What else could she do? There are only a few top fighters, so Bulma couldn't make up a convincing one..."
"Hahahaha..."
With everyone doubting her, Bulma was so flustered that the corner of her mouth twitched.
"Hmph, you ignorant bumpkins! You're driving me crazy!"
Amy's boyfriend threatened her. "Who are you calling a bumpkin?"
Bulma didn't back down. "Hmph, what kind of achievement is it to act tough in front of a girl?"
Just then, two burly men suddenly appeared, blocking the road.
"Nobody move! Hand over everything valuable!"
The group turned to look. Two masked bandits stood there, guns in hand, glaring at them.
They were only students. None of them had ever faced anything like this, and they were instantly terrified.
Amy and several of the other girls quickly handed over their valuable watches and necklaces,
as well as their gold earrings and other jewelry.
But when the robbers saw that all the jewelry they'd collected amounted to so little, they were very dissatisfied.
The lead robber cursed, "Damn it,
aren't you students at a fancy school? Why are you wearing so little valuable jewelry?"
Suddenly, he spotted the thick gold chain around Amy's boyfriend's neck, and his eyes lit up.
"You bastard, you thought you could hide that from us? Take off the chain!"
The robber kicked the young man in the stomach, and he staggered back in pain.
But just as the robber was about to take his gold chain,
the young man grabbed Amy and shoved her toward the robber before running off as fast as he could.
Amy stumbled and nearly fell into the robber's arms.
Fortunately, the robber feared a trap and dodged her, but that also cost him the chance to shoot the young man.
Amy still stumbled and fell face-first onto the ground.
She watched her boyfriend's back disappear into the distance, her chest heaving with rage.
"Damn it! He shoved me and ran off without me! I'm so mad..."
The lead robber looked disdainful too. "Tch, guys these days have no backbone. At least he's a fast runner!"
Another robber chimed in. "Exactly. He's a guy, but he dresses like a girl. And someone still likes him? I don't get it!"
Just then, another robber looked down at Amy on the ground and caught a glimpse of the deep cleavage beneath her collar.
A lecherous look appeared on his face.
"No wonder they're students. They're all so young and pretty...
Well, if you don't have any money, we can always have some fun with you!"
Amy was horrified.
"No, don't! Don't do that!
I-I have money. Please let me go home and get it..."
The robber laughed. "Let you go home and get it? Do you think we're a bunch of gullible college students?"
Amy suddenly remembered that Bulma always kept Hoi-Poi Capsules in her bag. She even had a house in one.
They were worth much more than this pile of jewelry.
As if she'd found a lifeline, Amy immediately urged her, "Bulma,
you must have lots of valuable things on you, right?
Hurry up and give them your Capsules so they'll leave!"
Her words drew the robber's attention to Bulma.
But when he looked at her, a lecherous expression appeared on his face.
"Hey, boss, this girl is really pretty! Much prettier than the others!"
Amy's expression immediately darkened.
"Are you blind? She hasn't even put on fake eyelashes or lipstick. How is she pretty?"
The robber laughed scornfully. "What do you know? Natural beauty is the best!"
Amy was speechless.
Bulma had been angry at Amy for drawing the robbers' attention to her.
But when the robber complimented her looks, an absurd sense of pride flickered in her heart.
She looked at Amy smugly. "Hmph, see? This guy isn't blind!
He could tell at a glance who was the prettiest!"
But even as Bulma basked in the compliment, she kept thinking about how to escape.
There was a gun inside one of the Hoi-Poi Capsules, but it wouldn't be easy to get it out. The Capsule had to expand first, and it made a lot of noise.
Even before the robbers had noticed her, she'd been wondering how she could get the gun and hit both of them.
If she gave them the Capsule now, she'd have no choice but to leave it to fate...
Before you continue