Today was the day Reke and Plus had agreed on.
"Country bumpkin, die!"
Reke had just stepped out of his house when a loud shout rang out.
"Damn, she's stuck to me like glue." As he cursed under his breath, Reke tilted his head back just enough to dodge a flying kick.
"Shaniu, I've got things to do today. I don't have time to play with you."
"Fine! Fine!" Bellis laughed in fury, trembling with anger. She had been training desperately for the past three months, and in his eyes, it was all just play. How could she accept that?
Reke knew he was in trouble the moment he saw Bellis's expression. Over the past three months, whenever Bellis felt she had made some progress, she would come looking for him to settle the score.
Reke hadn't expected her to hold such a grudge. All he had done was provoke her once. Why couldn't she let it go?
Reke rubbed his chin with one hand, wondering whether to knock her out or simply make a run for it, while swaying to dodge Bellis's attacks.
Bellis's fist grazed Reke's cheek. His figure flickered, and he was suddenly behind her.
He extended a finger and aimed it at the back of Bellis's neck.
"Huh?"
Bellis's eyes rolled back, and she passed out, collapsing face-down on the ground without moving.
"What was the point?" Reke shook his head. He left Bellis where she was and flew toward Plus's house.
If this had been any other day, he would have had time to play around with her. But right now, he was consumed by curiosity about the Gravity Chamber and had no time to get tangled up with her.
She didn't look like someone he could reason with, so after thinking it over, Reke had decided to strike. It was the first time he had ever laid a hand on Bellis.
Whenever he thought of Bellis's frustrated expression after he teased her, Reke couldn't help laughing. It brought a little fun to his otherwise dull life.
As for missions, Reke had rarely taken any lately. He only picked one up now and then to pass the time; he spent the rest of his days contemplating ki.
When Reke arrived at Plus's house, he saw him waiting from a distance.
Reke raised a hand and greeted Plus. "Professor, long time no see. Is the Gravity Chamber finished?"
"Of course. Come with me," Plus replied.
As they walked, Plus told Reke, "As it turned out, we got lucky. I was still worrying about how to power the Gravity Chamber when the research institute sent over some good news."
"After they dissected the monster you sent them last time, they found an energy cell inside it. It has enough energy to keep your Gravity Chamber running nonstop for ten years."
Reke was delighted at first, but then his brows furrowed. Just as he was about to say something, Plus seemed to see right through him.
He continued, "I've handed all the research on that monster over to the institute. Once they found the energy cell, it became a matter for the country. They're doing everything they can to capture the monster for study."
"If it hadn't been the one I sent them, we wouldn't have gotten the energy cell. And there's something I'd like your opinion on today."
Standing in front of the Gravity Chamber, Plus didn't rush to explain anything. He waited for Reke to respond.
"What is it? Let's hear it." Reke gazed at the cube-shaped Gravity Chamber before him, his eyes shining, and answered casually.
"Would the country be allowed to send people to take part in developing your spaceship?" Plus asked, looking Reke in the eye.
Reke shifted his gaze from the Gravity Chamber to Plus.
After a moment's thought, he asked, "Would it speed up development? And can you guarantee they won't tamper with the ship?"
"I can't guarantee that it'll speed up development, but there's a chance it might," Plus said uncertainly. He paused, then continued with absolute confidence, "As for anyone trying to tamper with it right under my nose, such a person hasn't been born yet."
"Bullshit. I know a professor on another planet. Given the same conditions as you, someone else built a spaceship and a Gravity Chamber in a month. And that was after spending several days specifically studying the sound system inside the spaceship."
Reke was annoyed by Plus's expression and didn't hold back in criticizing him.
"That... can't... be!" Plus's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as he stammered.
Reke rolled his eyes and said firmly, "I can tell you that it's true. Otherwise, why do you think I didn't ask you to research anything else and told you to focus all your efforts on the spaceship?"
"If you don't believe me, come with me. I'll take you to meet him."
Plus felt as if his whole worldview had collapsed. He couldn't imagine how capable the person Reke had mentioned could be.
When he heard that Reke could take him to meet the man, a rush of excitement shot through Plus. He asked eagerly, "Really? You can actually take me to meet this person you're talking about?"
Plus grew feverishly excited, as if he were about to meet a god.
For people like them, who lived by their brains, nothing was more appealing than the arrival of someone even smarter.
"Enough, enough. That's for later. If we can't build the spaceship, we'll just be stuck here gathering dust."
"As for the country sending people, I agree. Now, show me how the Gravity Chamber works." Reke interrupted Plus's daydreaming.
Plus's mind was already elsewhere, and he no longer cared about showing off the Gravity Chamber the way he'd planned.
After hearing what Reke had said, he had no desire to brag. He hurriedly explained how the Gravity Chamber worked, then pointed to a button. "If you don't understand, press this. It'll bring up detailed instructions. Oh, and the multiplier inside is based on half the gravity of our planet."
With that, he rushed into the research lab without looking back, leaving Reke alone in the Gravity Chamber.
Reke stared after him as he hurried away, dumbfounded. Only after a long while did he come back to his senses and shake his head with a wry smile.
Who could he blame? If he hadn't told Plus about Dr. Briefs, Plus wouldn't have ended up like this. Still, it was a good thing for Reke. Maybe they'd be able to build the spaceship sooner.
Reke sat inside the Gravity Chamber and read through the detailed instructions again and again.
He wasn't Kakarot or Vegeta, with two genius scientists backing them up. If their Gravity Chamber broke, another one could be built in no time.
Reke treasured this Gravity Chamber. If he destroyed it through a mistake, they would have to build another one, and it would delay work on the spaceship.
At that point, Reke would probably feel like dying.
Bellis woke up not long after Reke left and lay on the ground, unable to collect herself for a long time.
She hadn't expected that even after training desperately all this time, the gap between her and Reke would still be so vast.
What she didn't know was that after recovering from his serious injuries last time, Reke's battle power had gradually risen to 270,000.
Confusion showed in Bellis's eyes. She didn't even know what she was holding on for.
At first, she just couldn't swallow her pride. Later, she came to enjoy the feeling of getting stronger every day.
In the distance, Pat slowly walked over and stopped beside Bellis.
"What is it? Giving up, little girl?"
His words struck her like a bolt of lightning, dispelling the confusion in Bellis's eyes. Slowly, it gave way to resolve.
Clenching her fists, she said bitterly, "I won't give up. Just you wait, country bumpkin."
Before you continue