Namek was a world of raw, tranquil beauty.
Rolling green hills stretched endlessly, dotted with strange spherical trees, all blending together in a calm, harmonious landscape.
A perfect place for an afternoon nap.
But today, that peace was nothing but a fragile illusion.
Loren sat atop the highest cliff, legs dangling over the edge as he gazed lazily across the planet.
His perception expanded in an instant—covering everything.
Black smoke pillars rose into the sky.
Namekian villages were being annihilated.
Grotesque aliens cackled wildly as they fired energy guns, blowing the round houses apart one after another.
Namekian warriors fought fiercely, only to be brutally torn down by a pink, spiky, fat alien—
Dodoria.
His cruel laughter echoed across the ruins, reveling in the one-sided massacre.
Elsewhere, a thin beam of light pierced straight through the chest of a Namekian elder.
Zarbon—Frieza's other elite officer—stood calmly behind the corpse.
Floating just behind his subordinates, a small figure reclined in a hovering chair, watching the carnage with twisted fascination.
Frieza.
Loren's brow moved a fraction.
"Frieza."
"Truly the space pirate bloodline. Burning, killing, looting—they've mastered the whole set."
At that moment, another faint but familiar aura brushed the edge of Loren's senses.
The hatch of a small ship opened, and Krillin and Gohan stepped onto Namekian soil.
They immediately sensed the ki around them.
"What incredible power…" Krillin muttered.
Far beyond anything Vegeta had shown back on Earth.
And there were several such presences.
"Krillin, we have to find the dragon balls fast!" Gohan said anxiously.
Krillin nodded. After leaving Bulma safely inside the ship, the two suppressed their ki and headed toward the ruins of a Namekian village.
But their luck was terrible.
A patrol squad of Frieza's soldiers spotted them almost immediately.
"Well look at that—two little rats!"
"Power levels… 1400 and 1200? Pathetic!"
"Let's kill them. Lord Frieza might give us a reward!"
Several soldiers sneered as they surrounded the pair.
Battle erupted instantly.
Within minutes, Krillin and Gohan were panting heavily, their battle suits torn in multiple places.
These soldiers weren't strong—some barely matched Krillin's power level. Their captain had just over 3000.
But for Krillin and Gohan right now… it was still tough.
"So much damn noise."
Loren's figure vanished from the cliff.
On the Battlefield
Krillin barely dodged a blast aimed straight for his heart.
"Gohan!! Look out!"
His eyes went red—he was too far to help.
A figure appeared beside them without warning.
Hands in pockets.
Casual clothes.
Completely unfazed.
Loren.
"You… you're…" Krillin gasped.
Loren glanced lazily at Frieza's soldiers.
"If you're going to fight, can you keep it down?"
"You're ruining my vacation mood."
Before he even finished—
Beams of light flashed.
All of Frieza's soldiers dropped dead.
Instant kill.
Silence swept across the battlefield.
Krillin and Gohan collapsed to the ground in relief, still shaking.
"Mr. Lo—Loren?!"
"Oh, I'm here for tourism," Loren said casually.
"Tourism…?" Krillin stuttered.
"Of course." Loren pointed at the sky.
"The daylight hours here are long. Perfect for tanning and napping."
"Anyway… how's your dragon ball search going?"
Krillin laughed awkwardly.
They had only just arrived.
"We—we haven't started yet," he admitted.
"That's pretty inefficient," Loren said bluntly.
"Well, I was just passing by and cleaned up some trash."
He paused, then added.
"By the way, there's a short guy here named Frieza. Be careful not to run into him."
"Otherwise I'll have to collect your corpses. And that's annoying."
Before Krillin could respond, Loren vanished again.
Krillin and Gohan looked at each other, then sighed in relief.
Loren's sudden appearance had eased their worries more than anything else.
Frieza's Spaceship
"Oh ho ho ho…"
Frieza swirled a glass of red wine elegantly.
Suddenly, on the nearby scouter monitor, seven or eight light dots representing his patrol squad blinked out one after another.
Frieza froze. His tail twitched irritably.
"Hm?"
A hint of surprise flashed in his cold eyes.
"What happened?"
Zarbon stepped forward.
"Lord Frieza, they might have fallen into a Namekian trap."
"A trap?" Frieza's tone dropped several degrees.
"What kind of trap kills all my soldiers simultaneously?"
The wine glass crumbled to dust in his hand.
"Interesting…"
"Zarbon. Dodoria."
"Speed up the dragon ball collection."
"And wipe out every insect in your way."
"Yes, Lord Frieza!"
Dodoria cracked his knuckles, grinning savagely.
Zarbon flicked his long green hair elegantly.
"Rest assured, My Lord. Any insolent bugs will be dealt with."
Both elites shot out of the ship instantly.
Just then—
Beep! Beep! Beep!
"Lord Frieza! An unidentified spaceship has entered Namek's atmosphere at high speed!"
Frieza paused, clearly annoyed.
"Another one?"
"Display it."
A circular ship streaked through the clouds, trailing a blazing tail.
"Scan its energy!"
"Yes, sir! Scanning… complete!"
"P-Power level… eighteen thousand!"
"Eighteen thousand?!" someone yelped.
"That's Vegeta's spaceship!"
The officer recognized the design immediately.
Vegeta.
That arrogant Saiyan monkey.
"Oh ho ho ho ho…" Frieza's laughter echoed through the ship.
"So even the last Saiyan Prince has come to play."
"A Saiyan with a power level of eighteen thousand…"
"This dull planet is becoming quite entertaining."
"Inform Zarbon and Dodoria."