South Galaxy

() Waiting... a long, long wait...

No one knew how long they had been waiting on this strange planet. Betkas was already growing impatient. At first, he'd struggled to adapt to the planet's gravity, but now there was nothing to do. Day and night had cycled several times, yet only the powerful dared to rest or sleep where they stood. Most people didn't even dare close their eyes.

There were too many uncertainties here. They might all be under the command of the three great emperors, but that didn't mean their subordinates were easy to deal with. The weak were wary of the strong, and even the strong needed a reason before starting trouble. Otherwise, it would be a blatant slap in someone else's face. So everyone was on edge.

Even Vegeta pretended to look tough as he watched his surroundings, not daring to blink. Betkas glanced sideways at him, then looked at the Armored Squadron of Cooler, who were staring at them from across the way. There was something mocking in their eyes.

"Damn it... I can't beat you right now, and it's really... frustrating."

Betkas looked at them and muttered in annoyed resignation. Beside him, Vegeta clenched his fists but stayed perfectly still, his gaze fixed on the armored squad with a chill in his eyes.

"They're trying to provoke us... Too bad for them. No way. Saiyans may be proud, but they aren't stupid."

Betkas looked at Vegeta and Nappa and chuckled to himself.

"Well, well... Those three Saiyan brats aren't taking the bait?" Neiz, one of the members of Cooler's Armored Squadron standing opposite them, looked surprised.

Dore beside him said regretfully, "I'd heard Saiyans were all very proud... What a shame..." His expression made it seem like he found the situation deeply disappointing.

Salza, his expression unchanged, warned them, "Don't do that again. Those three Saiyan brats seem sensible enough not to act recklessly. But what puzzles me most is why that Ginyu fellow didn't come with Lord Frieza."

Dore replied indifferently, "He's probably training hard somewhere. After all, you beat him."

Salza didn't seem convinced. Neiz looked around, bored, and said, "Those three Saiyan brats didn't take the bait. How dull. Let's look for someone else."

A hint of amusement crossed Betkas's face as he looked around. An interesting idea suddenly occurred to him, but he decided against it. If things got out of hand, it wouldn't be fun. Better to leave this place as soon as possible. Once he was stronger, everything would be easier to handle.

"Whoosh!"

A fierce gust suddenly swept past, and Frieza appeared. His face was slightly gloomy as he returned to his throne, then he spoke with murderous intent: "We're leaving!"

"Yes, sir!"

Dodoria and Zarbon answered at once, fear written on their faces. They had never seen Frieza this angry. He seemed calm, but that only meant he was truly furious. Something must have crossed his line.

No one dared provoke him now. The outcome would be the same for everyone: a single blow, and they'd be finished. Everyone except Betkas and Vegeta hurried back into the spaceship, then took off. But this time, the ship's destination had changed.

They weren't going back the way they came. They were heading for a much more distant destination... the South Galaxy.

What Betkas didn't know was that he would face a crisis that could spell his absolute destruction...

...Several years later...

When Frieza came to operate in the South Galaxy, Betkas had been very confused. In the original story, Frieza was supposed to be in the North Galaxy. Why had he come to the South Galaxy instead? But after making some detailed inquiries, he understood.

Back then, King Cold, Cooler, and Frieza had gathered to discuss how to divide up the entire galaxy. The arrangement was simple: King Cold would take the North and West Galaxies, while Cooler would take the East Galaxy. Frieza, however, had to leave his home and go to the South Galaxy. To him, it was a humiliation.

No wonder Frieza had been so furious back then, furious enough to want to kill someone. Later, he'd destroyed countless planets along the way.

But Betkas didn't care about that anymore. Frieza had already given him the go-ahead to travel on his own. His excuse was simple: officially, he'd say he was helping Frieza deal with some "insolent" natives, and he'd report back if he found any good planets.

He'd even be gone for a long time. Frieza hadn't thought much of it at the time. There were still people in the South Galaxy who didn't understand how powerful Frieza was, so sending Betkas out was a good idea. Besides, Frieza didn't believe Betkas would run away. The spaceship kept a record of Betkas's route, so they'd be able to find him. The only way around that would be for Betkas to destroy his ship, but that was impossible.

Betkas had been clear that he wanted Vegeta to come along, but Vegeta disagreed. He planned to grow stronger in his own way, so Betkas had no choice but to set out alone on the path to power.

After nearly six years of hardship, Betkas had achieved a little something. His battle power was now only 15,000, and he was just thirteen years old. He was sure that before long, he'd surpass the Vegeta from the original story—even though Vegeta had been wearing weighted gear at the time.

However, because Betkas often failed to return, Frieza and the others had no idea how strong he was. Otherwise, he'd surely have found himself in trouble. A thirteen-year-old Saiyan brat with that much battle power was bound to be alarming.

He didn't have any sort of cheat to make his strength skyrocket, but he believed hard work was enough. He had talent and the potential to grow stronger. Hadn't Son Goku, a Low-Class Warrior, become the strongest? Then surely someone born an Elite Warrior could reach even greater heights by working harder.

Today, Betkas had set out to conquer another planet... a high-tech world.

"Whew... The air here is filthy. I guess places with high technology naturally have pretty poor environments."

Betkas had just arrived on the planet in his spaceship. He stepped outside, looked around, and grumbled.

"Then I'll destroy it quickly and keep training."

A sinister smile appeared on Betkas's face as he looked at the tall buildings ahead.

Little did he know... his tribulation was already upon him...