Rayden slowly raised his right hand, effortlessly catching Vegeta's punch. Calmly, he said, "Vegeta, let it go. Trunks handled Frieza the same way when he was resurrected the first time. Even if you beat Frieza half to death now, it won't change his height."
"Damn it!" Vegeta grumbled, clicking his tongue in frustration. He turned around and stomped back toward the dining table.
Up in the air, Shenron floated patiently, watching the group banter and joke as if he weren't there. The lack of attention finally pushed him to speak again.
"Please state your next wish. I will grant it—whatever it may be."
Vegeta looked up at Shenron, a smirk forming on his face. Then, with a loud voice, he shouted, "Shenron, please make me forty centimeters taller!"
Before the words fully left his mouth, Rayden teleported behind him and clamped a hand over Vegeta's mouth.
Vegeta's aura exploded with annoyance. He broke free from Rayden's grasp and spun around furiously. "Rayden! What the hell do you think you're doing?!"
Completely unbothered, Rayden replied with a shrug, "Vegeta, how much taller do you really want to be? Don't you think you should ask Bulma first? Being too tall might not suit you."
Vegeta froze for a second before muttering and heading off to find Bulma for her opinion.
Meanwhile, Krillin glanced around and realized, to his dismay, that everyone present was taller than him. Even the women stood at least half a head above him. Only Chiaotzu was shorter, and he clearly didn't care about his height at all.
Krillin's face twisted in embarrassment. After a moment of hesitation, he muttered, "Rayden, I… I also want to make a wish to Shenron."
Rayden rubbed his temples with both hands. "Why is everyone obsessed with growing taller? If I'd known, I would've taken Frieza somewhere else to make his wish."
He turned toward Yamcha and Tien Shinhan. "What about you two? Want to get taller too?"
"No, we're good," they replied in unison, shaking their heads.
Rayden finally let out a sigh of relief. "Good. If everyone started wishing to be taller, I'd have to destroy the Dragon Balls. Otherwise, we'd have people making a wish every time someone else passed them in height. Before long, we'd all be ten meters tall!"
Eventually, Vegeta and Krillin returned after speaking with their wives. Both made their wishes to Shenron—to grow twenty centimeters taller each.
(After the wish, Krillin grew from just over 1.5 meters to about 1.7 meters, while Vegeta grew from just over 1.6 meters to over 1.8 meters.)
"Your wishes have been granted. Farewell," Shenron announced, sounding almost exasperated. With that, he split into seven Dragon Balls, which scattered across the Earth.
Rayden crossed his arms and said, "Are you all satisfied now? No more childish wishes like this, okay?"
"We understand!" everyone answered in chorus.
With that bizarre episode behind them, everyone returned to their seats and resumed their feast. The Saiyans, especially, had huge appetites after battling the fat cat earlier.
Clang! Clang!
The clattering of bowls and chopsticks echoed throughout the area as dish after dish was devoured in the blink of an eye.
Piccolo, sitting quietly at the corner, sipped a glass of hot water, detached from the chaos. Meanwhile, Frieza ate elegantly, calmly slicing a piece of steak while swirling a glass of red wine.
An hour passed, and everyone was finally full and content. A few began chatting idly, sharing stories and laughter.
"Rayden, the King and I will take our leave," Frieza said as he pulled Tagma—who was half-dozing in his chair—to his feet.
"Lord Frieza, are we heading back to rebuild the Frieza Force and dominate the universe?" Tagma asked excitedly, stars in his eyes. Despite Solbe's death, this had been both their dream.
Rayden waved a hand casually. "Frieza, do whatever you want. Just stay away from Earth—and don't even think about touching Namek."
Frieza chuckled, "Hohoho! Of course. Farewell, then."
He pulled out a shuttle cube, and together with Tagma, vanished into space.
Krillin walked over, clearly troubled. "Rayden, are you sure it's safe to let Frieza go like that? He could come back and cause trouble."
Rayden sighed. "I don't have time to babysit Frieza. If you're that worried, Krillin, why don't I call him back and have you monitor his every move from now on?"
Krillin panicked. "No! Please, no! I can't take that kind of pressure!"
Everyone burst into laughter.
"Krillin, don't be so dramatic!" Yamcha said with a grin.
"Hmph! You're just happy it's not you," Krillin muttered, running off to join Goku.
Rayden turned serious again. "Goku, Broly, Cell, and I are heading to the Dragon God Realm. We'll find out what the Dragon God Salama wants. I'll update everyone when we return."
With a wave of his hand, a glowing dimensional wall shimmered into existence before them.
"Alright!" Goku nodded.
At that moment, Trunks and Goten tossed aside their toys and ran over.
"Uncle Rayden, you promised you'd take us to the Dragon God Realm next time!"
"Yeah! I remember it clearly!" Goten added.
Gohan immediately stepped in, waving his hands. "You two aren't going. The Dragon God Realm isn't a place for kids. What if you cause trouble like last time? Just thinking about what Frieza and Tagma went through gives me chills."
"But, big brother!" Goten protested. "You've been there so many times. Trunks and I have never been!"
He slipped out of Gohan's grasp and ran to Rayden's side, clutching his arm.
Rayden looked at both boys helplessly. They were practically clinging to him like koalas.
"Gohan, don't worry. I'll keep an eye on them."
Gohan gave them one last warning. "Fine. But no trouble this time, understand?"
"We promise!" the boys said eagerly.
Rayden nodded, then led Broly, Cell, Trunks, and Goten through the dimensional wall.
As they disappeared, Krillin turned to Goku.
"Hey, where exactly is the Dragon God Realm?"
Goku smiled and explained, "It's where all the Shenrons live. There are countless Shenrons there—and wishes can be granted with just two Dragon Balls!"
"Seriously? That sounds incredible! I want to go too!" Krillin exclaimed.
The group's curiosity peaked. Just imagining a world filled with Shenrons made them dream of endless wishes.
Piccolo abruptly set down his water cup. "Don't even think about it. The Dragon God Realm is guarded by powerful beings. We can't even get past the gatekeepers with our current strength. If you get into trouble there, no one will be able to save you."
"Ah, then maybe we'll sit this one out…" Yamcha muttered, rubbing the back of his head.
Despite how strong Goku and the others had become—able to rival the Gods of Destruction—it was still hard to believe they couldn't defeat a mere gatekeeper of the Dragon God Realm.
---
Dragon God Realm
Rayden and his group stepped out of the dimensional wall and found themselves standing before a breathtaking palace.
"Wow! This place is amazing!" Trunks gasped. "Look how huge that palace is!"
"Goten, look up there!" Trunks pointed to the sky. "There are so many Shenrons flying around!"
"Uncle Rayden, is this really the Dragon God Realm?" Goten asked, eyes wide in awe.
Rayden nodded with a soft smile. "Yes, it is. Welcome to the Dragon God Realm."
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