The southern sky was blue—so blue it seemed like another world.
Gohan followed Android 18 for three hours, flying south from bustling human settlements, through dense forests and over desolate mountain ranges, until even the most primitive villages had vanished from sight.
"Here." Android 18 descended and landed at the entrance to an open valley.
Gohan looked around. Mountains surrounded them on all sides, enclosing a tranquil valley where streams babbled and birds chirped. If he hadn't known an android capable of destroying cities lived here, he would have thought it was a perfect vacation spot.
"I'm better suited than you to persuade him." Without looking back, Android 18 walked ahead. "Wait here."
Gohan didn't argue.
He could feel the change in Android 18's aura. It wasn't the sharpness of a battle stance, but something... softer. Like her true self after she had shed every disguise.
This was probably what she was like as an older sister.
He found a rock to sit on and watched Android 18's back disappear into the woods.
The cabin was even more rudimentary than Gohan had imagined.
Its walls were made of stacked wood, its roof thatched with straw, and several unknown wildflowers grew by the door. Without seeing it firsthand, it was hard to believe this was the home of a top-tier android.
Android 17 sat in a wooden chair in the yard, holding a cup of tea as he stared blankly at the distant mountains.
Sunlight fell across his face, softening his stern features a little.
"What brought you here?" Android 17 didn't turn around, his voice calm. "And you brought that brat too."
Android 18 walked over and sat in the chair beside him. "You sensed it?"
"That monster?" Android 17 took a sip of tea. "Its energy fluctuations are big