"Jaco, pinch my cheek. I think I'm dreaming." Jaco was stunned, a bewildered look on his face.
"This feels a little unreal to me, too..." Tights pinched Jaco's cheek.
"Ow! That hurts!!"
Jaco felt a sharp pain in his cheek. "All right, it's not a dream! Tights, let go! You're about to pull my cheek off."
Tights released Jaco's cheek and stared in Mu Yang's direction.
"What's wrong?" Jaco grinned mischievously. "Don't tell me you've fallen for him?"
"Yeah, I have."
Jaco: "..."
No way. I was just saying that randomly.
It was only a joke, and she really had fallen for him?
Jaco started to doubt his own life. Had he somehow ended up playing matchmaker?
Tights glanced at Jaco from the corner of her eye. Seeing his bewildered expression, she couldn't help but chuckle before saying, "Don't worry. I just want to make him the protagonist of my novel."
"Oh, I see." Jaco finally relaxed. He glanced at Mu Yang in the distance and nodded. "He does look like a perfect protagonist."
"Right." Tights said no more.
Their conversation didn't reach Mu Yang or Whis.
The two of them had already begun discussing their return to the Destroyer God Realm.
They had been away long enough. They'd only meant to have a meal, but so much had happened along the way.
Whis also had another motive. He needed to hurry and take Mu Yang to Universe 6.
It wasn't just to show off. Whis also wanted his older sister, Vados, to help train Mu Yang, Universe 7's Candidate Destroyer.
Whatever his reasons, Whis couldn't afford to delay any longer.
The same went for Mu Yang.
The fight just now had given him some insight, and he was eager to return to the Destroyer God Realm, rest, and make a breakthrough.
"Little Bulma, go back to Earth with your sister Tights and the others. I'm leaving now." Mu Yang left Whis's side and came over to Bulma. He placed his hands on her shoulders and spoke solemnly.
Mu Yang was only two centimeters taller than Bulma, so he could place his hands on her shoulders while they stood at nearly the same height.
Mu Yang and Bulma faced each other.
When Bulma looked into Mu Yang's gem-bright eyes, she'd felt a little shy. But when she heard he was leaving, her eyes instantly turned red.
"Brother Mu Yang, are you leaving me behind?" Bulma looked utterly aggrieved. "What did I do wrong?"
Mu Yang felt bad, too.
Who could bear to see such an adorable little girl crying sadly right in front of them?
Still, all good things had to come to an end.
"Be good, Bulma."
At last, Mu Yang gently stroked her soft blue hair to comfort her and smiled. "I'll be back soon. Don't worry."
"Then... how long will it be?" Bulma still wasn't reassured.
Mu Yang thought for a moment before answering, "Probably when you're all grown up."
Only then did Bulma stop crying. She wiped the tears from her eyes and said, looking pitiful, "Brother Mu Yang, you have to come get me when I'm grown up!"
"Don't worry."
Bulma's adorable expression melted Mu Yang's heart once again, and he smiled warmly.
"Then..."
Bulma held out the little finger of her right hand and curled it slightly, making a pinky-promise gesture. "Brother Mu Yang, let's make a promise."
Mu Yang sighed. He had no choice; Bulma probably wouldn't let them leave otherwise.
"All right. Let's make a promise."
Mu Yang held out the little finger of his left hand and curled it to match.
Bulma and Mu Yang linked their little fingers, and at the same time, they both spoke.
"Pinky promise, no takebacks for a hundred years!"
"If you break it, you're a little puppy!!"
Hearing Bulma's lively yet childlike words, Mu Yang didn't know what to say.
Whis watched the scene with a faint smile.
Jaco, by contrast, was expressionless as he stared at them.
Tights covered her mouth with one hand, eyes wide as she watched the beautiful scene before her. Her cheeks turned bright red.
As if she'd remembered something, Tights suddenly grew gloomy.
"What's wrong?" Jaco noticed her expression and looked puzzled.
"Nothing..."
Tights didn't want to say more.
Just then, Mu Yang took Bulma's little hand and brought her over to Tights. He entrusted her to Tights solemnly. "I'm leaving Bulma in your care."
"Of course. Thank you, Mr. Mu Yang." Tights took Bulma's little hand from him.
Back in her older sister's warm embrace, Bulma still felt a little sad.
"No need to thank me. It was nothing." Mu Yang then went over to Whis.
"Let's go, Whis," Mu Yang said calmly.
"Oh my, Mr. Mu Yang, aren't you going to say goodbye?" Whis teased.
"Whis!" Mu Yang's mouth twitched.
As expected, angels were a bunch of mischievous troublemakers.
"Then, Mr. Jaco, Miss Tights, and Miss Bulma, we'll take our leave. And by the way, your food was delicious." Whis thanked them sincerely.
Without lingering any longer, he lightly tapped the ground with his Scepter. A rainbow-colored light enveloped Whis and Mu Yang, and they shot straight into the sky.
"What a remarkable man," Jaco exclaimed as he watched the light in the sky.
"Yeah," Tights said, watching it too.
"Then let's go, too."
"Oh, right. We need to wake Merus."
Meanwhile, in the cold expanse of outer space.
The North Galaxy.
Aboard one of the many spaceships, in the main cockpit.
Frieza sat in a baby carriage, clad in sturdy armor, his eyes gleaming with a faint murderous intent as he glared at the soldier reporting to him.
"What did you say? Say that again!"
"L-Lord Frieza, the life-detection device on the power-level detector belonging to the Ginyu Force has stopped responding. I'm afraid something's happened to them." The soldier shuddered uncontrollably.
Frieza's expression didn't change, though his face grew colder. "Go on."
"Y-yes."
The soldier wiped the cold sweat from his brow, took the Scouter off his eye, and pressed a purple button on it.
Captain Ginyu's dying words played in full for Frieza.
It wasn't just Frieza; everyone in the main command room looked increasingly alarmed.
Captain Ginyu had been terrifyingly powerful, yet he'd died on Planet Helka!
"Lord Frieza, can I go now?" The soldier looked at Frieza hopefully.
Frieza smiled. "You can certainly go."
The soldier breathed a sigh of relief and was just about to take his leave when—
Frieza suddenly raised a finger. A brilliant laser burst from his fingertip, piercing the soldier's chest.
Then Frieza watched as the soldier fell to the floor, blood spilling out as his life slowly faded.
"Why, Lord Frieza?"
Frieza didn't answer.
Everyone around them fell silent with fear, not daring to provoke the enraged Frieza.
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