Summons

Since that was the case, Frieza thought for a moment, then swirled the wine in his hand and slowly rose to his feet. His red eyes narrowed, and an evil smile spread across his face.

"Little Vegeta has grown quite a bit."

Though Frieza hadn't specified whom he was asking, Zarbon, who stood beside him, answered:

"Yes, Lord Frieza. According to the reports we've received, Prince Vegeta has now grown stronger than the vast majority of the Saiyans. He also conquered a low-level planet all by himself, without anyone's help."

As he spoke, Zarbon's lips curled into a fawning smile, and he continued:

"Prince Vegeta has been working very hard, Lord Frieza!"

"Oh-ho-ho." Hearing his subordinate's report, Frieza couldn't help laughing.

"In that case, Mr. Zarbon, send King Vegeta a notice. Tell him we'll go pick up Prince Vegeta in two days. I'll make sure to train him well."

With that, Frieza drained his wine in one go. A menacing smile appeared on his blood-red lips.

Frieza's plan for the Saiyans was simple: bring Prince Vegeta under his command ahead of time. That way, he could brainwash Vegeta and use him as a hostage to threaten King Vegeta, keeping him wary and unable to act recklessly. It was a win-win. Why wouldn't he do it?

While Frieza was busy plotting, Kast was dealing with some things of his own.

After leaving Earth, Kast had gained the ability to survive in space, and he began training in the cosmos.

At first, Kast piloted his ship to a rocky giant planet in the star's habitable zone. According to the ship's scans, it was a barren world with no plants or water. Its atmosphere was full of carbon dioxide and hydrogen, with very little oxygen. Gale-force winds swept across the surface, the temperature was scorching hot at 180 degrees, and the gravity was twenty times Earth's. The conditions were completely unsuitable for human life.

Kast, however, was very pleased with it. Space itself was even harsher than this planet, and with his ability to survive in space, he didn't need to worry about breathing. He had tested that ability back when his ship first left Earth.

His ability to survive in space wasn't simply a matter of not needing to breathe. It allowed Kast to absorb different gases or liquids depending on the environment, which his body then converted into something it could use. That was fundamentally different from merely holding his breath.

Kast had also gained a rough idea of the temperatures his body could tolerate. Temperatures as high as 1,000 degrees Celsius and as low as around 270 degrees below zero had almost no effect on him, because his body automatically adapted to changes in the surrounding temperature.

He couldn't feel the pressure of the vacuum, either.

After all, space was a hostile environment. Anyone unable to withstand extreme cold, heat, and pressure couldn't survive there. So Kast's ability to survive in space also gave him resistance to temperature and pressure.

That made this planet, with its twentyfold gravity, a perfect place to train.

It wasn't that Kast hadn't wanted to find a planet with life, but habitable planets generally didn't have very high gravity. Otherwise, they wouldn't be suitable for life.

As for why he didn't ask Bulma's father to build a gravity room back on Earth—and take a Hoi-Poi Capsule while he was at it—the reason was simple. Kast didn't want to owe anyone a favor. He was a Saiyan, but he wasn't a bandit. He had his own principles.

Planets with massive gravity were everywhere in the universe. With his ability to survive in space, he could train on any of them. They offered plenty of room, and he wouldn't have to worry about accidentally destroying the place.

Compared to those planets, a gravity room wasn't a necessity. Besides, building one would take more than a day or two, and he had no use for a Hoi-Poi Capsule in the short term.

On top of that, Kast had only just gained the ability to survive in space, and he wanted to understand it in detail first. For all these reasons, he hadn't gone back.

So Kast trained on this planet. With his Senzu Beans, he didn't have to worry about hunger or injuries.

Given all these advantages, he'd planned to train there until he could move around with ease while wearing the Gravity Suit the Guardian of Earth had given him, even with its added gravity. Then he would leave.

But before Kast had trained for long, a message came from Planet Vegeta ordering him to return.

He had anticipated something like this back when he decided to leave Planet Vegeta, but he hadn't expected it to happen so soon.

As the Frieza Army grew stronger, trade between planets had gradually increased. As a result, the Saiyans, who formed the main force behind its conquests, were being sent on missions more and more often.

With the sharp rise in battles, the Saiyans' overall strength had gradually increased, but the death rate among Low-Class Warriors had risen dramatically as well.

Most of those who died had fought multiple battles without getting the chance to recover. The problem was a shortage of manpower.

The death of a few Low-Class Warriors might not have mattered much to other races, but the Saiyans were different.

The Saiyans were a small race, and most of them were Low-Class Warriors. They fought in most of the battles and formed the backbone of their people. They loved fighting, but they didn't believe in pointless sacrifices.

If casualties continued for too long, it would seriously harm the future development of their race.

So, to reduce unnecessary losses, the Saiyan leaders decided to recall some of the Saiyans who were away. This would increase their numbers and strengthen the group as a whole.

Kast had received that order, and it came with the force of a command. Even so, he had no intention of returning.

Kast knew that the Saiyans didn't have the spare manpower to come looking for him.

Even if they did have the resources to search for him, he wasn't worried. After training hard for a long time, Kast's battle power had now reached 70,000—a level the Saiyans on Planet Vegeta couldn't match.

Still, after all that had happened, Kast no longer had the patience to remain on the planet. He also needed to restock his ship.

So Kast followed the route plotted into his ship's navigation system and flew toward a planet with life.