West City.
The Ruins of Capsule Corporation.
In a shattered laboratory buried beneath the rubble, Bulma was doing what she did every day, poring over her research notes, flipping through them again and again with growing anxiety.
"The time machine should be functioning properly… but why hasn't Trunks returned after all this time?"
Suddenly, a young man, breathless and drenched in sweat, burst through the door.
Before Bulma could even question him, the young man hastily began to introduce himself.
"Doctor, hello!"
"My name is Levos, just an ordinary Earthling. I live in the underground shelter across from Capsule Corporation."
"This is our first meeting. You don't know me, but I know everything about you."
"I'm sorry. I can't explain why for now."
"But to prove I'm not insane or making some cruel joke, I need to verify some things only you would know."
"Your name is Bulma. Your father is Dr. Brief. Your mother is Panchy. You also have an older sister, Tights, who's a novelist."
"When you were fifteen, you met Son Goku during summer vacation, and together you began the adventure to find the Dragon Balls."
"Since then, Goku has destroyed the Red Ribbon Army's headquarters, defeated King Piccolo, repelled the Saiyan invasion, and vanquished Frieza and his father."
"Oh, and you've been to Piccolo's home planet, Namek."
"After the Namekian adventure, you fell in love with Vegeta, the Saiyan prince. Though you two never officially married, you had a son, Trunks, born in Age 766."
"Before Trunks was born, your dearest friend Son Goku died from a viral heart disease."
"After that, two ultimate biological weapons created by Dr. Gero, Android 17 and Android 18, appeared. One by one, your friends, your family, and the warriors who once protected Earth all fell in battle against the androids."
"The world was nearly destroyed by these two monsters."
"Years later, after twenty grueling years, you finally completed the time machine and a remote control capable of shutting the androids down, giving humanity a chance to survive this apocalypse."
Bulma stared at the young man in shock.
Even her closest friends might not know these details about her family. Besides, all those who had shared those youthful adventures with her were long gone.
Images of her old friends, their laughter, and their voices flashed through her mind, and Bulma's nose tingled as tears welled up.
Could someone have survived? But if they had, why didn't they come to find her sooner, instead of leaving her to bear all this alone?
No. Something's not right.
In these twenty years of endless despair, only Trunks had been by her side. The time machine and the android shutdown controller. There's no way a third person could know about them.
Silently, Bulma's hand crept toward the pistol on the table.
But the young man continued speaking.
"When Trunks returned from the past, bringing victory and your research success, preparing to travel back to the moment before Goku's death to rewrite history, he was ambushed and killed by Cell."
"Cell then seized the time machine, reverted to his larval form, and traveled to a time one year earlier than Trunks had planned."
"But don't worry. In that timeline, with Goku alive, the crisis will be properly handled."
"However, this timeline's Earth now faces a new disaster. True peace is still a distant dream."
Though he spoke rapidly, the young man's voice remained calm, his logic clear, as if he had no intention of stopping.
Bulma's heart clenched violently. She abruptly stood up, the gun in her hand now pressed firmly against the young man's forehead.
"Wait! What did you just say? Trunks. Trunks was ambushed and killed?"
"That's impossible! If he really died, why didn't I find his body?"
"How can you be so sure he was killed?"
"His clothes were perfectly intact. No blood, no signs of a struggle…"
The young man trembled and instinctively raised both hands in surrender. He hurried to explain, "Cell's tail can completely absorb living beings. Hair, nails, bones, everything. There would be nothing left of his victims except their clothing…"
"I don't believe it. I don't believe it! He's only been missing for a year…"
Clatter!
The pistol slipped from her palm and landed on the floor.
Her vision blurred. In that instant, Bulma felt the world spinning around her. Her body went weak, as if all her strength had been drained away.
Levos suddenly realized the woman before him was crying, tears streaming uncontrollably down her face.
This wasn't how he imagined this would go.
Bulma didn't know anything about Cell.
She didn't even know her own son had already died.
Levos quickly apologized.
This was his fault. He hadn't prepared enough. He'd walked right into the emotional minefield.
Even after all his careful deductions based on the original story, he could only grasp the rough outline of this timeline's events. The details were too scarce.
One moment he had been at home, happily eating instant noodles and watching a baseball game.
The next thing he knew, he'd crossed over into the world of Dragon Ball.
And not just any part of it, but the most hopeless timeline.
No Dragon Balls.No Z-Fighters.No time machine.No Senzu Beans.No known coordinates for New Namek.
Worst of all, his current identity? Just a native Earthling. A nobody with a power level that probably didn't even reach 5.
No Saiyan blood. No cheat system. No golden finger.
Wasn't this basically a death sentence?
Levos was bitter too. There was no place to file complaints in this world!
If anyone needed comfort, it was him.
But looking at Bulma sobbing so helplessly, his heart clenched. In this timeline, she had shouldered far too much.
After a moment's hesitation, he gently offered his shoulder.
Bulma buried her face against his arm, and soon, his shirt sleeve was soaked with her hot tears.
When she finally calmed down a little, they quietly separated.
After a brief pause, Levos spoke again in a low, steady voice.
"Doctor Bulma, this is no time for grief. A new crisis is already unfolding."
"Over the past year since the androids were destroyed, several martial arts tournaments have been held around the world."
"But these tournaments are being manipulated. There's a massive conspiracy behind them."
"The one pulling the strings is a man named Babidi."
"He's been scouring the planet for powerful fighters, stealing their energy to break the seal on an ancient creature."
"If that seal is broken, the entire Earth and possibly even the galaxy will be wiped out."
"We have to stop him before he collects enough energy."
On this planet, Bulma was the only person Levos could turn to.
Bulma suddenly raised her head, her gaze sharp. "Who are you really? Why do you know so much?"
"My identity really is just an ordinary Earthling. As for how I know all of this, it's because I happen to come from a timeline where these events are known."
"For my survival, for my own safety, I'm on your side. Please, you must believe me."
In the Dragon Ball world, time travel wasn't an impossible concept.
Especially not for someone like Bulma, who had built a time machine herself.
"What happens next?"
"I only know what's already happened. From the moment you and I met, the future is no longer written."
Bulma frowned. "So you came to me because you've found a way to stop this crisis, and you need my help, right?"
It seemed he'd gained the initial spark of her trust.
Levos nodded, genuinely appreciative. Talking to smart people was always easier.
"That's right. But I can't guarantee this plan will work."
"And your plan is…?"
"To find Fortuneteller Baba and bring Son Goku back for one day."