How could he lose?
The advantage was his!
Frieza's breathing had grown faintly rapid.
"Ohohoho…"
A slight tremor entered his demonic laughter.
He could already imagine himself at 185 centimeters tall, looking down at his elder brother's stunned face.
"The fourth draw."
With a thought, he began the next lottery.
The roulette spun rapidly.
Frieza's eyes locked tightly onto the pointer.
This time, he did not even look at the grand prizes.
Options like 1 centimeter or 0.5 centimeters were tempting, of course.
But he refused to believe he could not draw that single Spirit Tree Fruit fragment first!
Only then could he feel at ease.
Faster.
Faster.
The pointer began to slow.
It passed one slot after another.
Frieza's heartbeat rose and fell with the pointer's movement.
Here it came.
The pointer entered the target zone.
It slowed more and more within the range of Spirit Tree Fruit Fragment x1.
Settled!
The curve of Frieza's mouth could no longer be suppressed.
However.
Just before the pointer stopped on Spirit Tree Fruit Fragment x1, it shifted forward by the tiniest margin.
In the end, it stopped exactly between two rewards.
Frieza's heart tightened.
On the left was the Spirit Tree Fruit Fragment x1 he had been longing for.
But on the right was something even more incredible.
1 centimeter, Instant Redeem.
It was actually a full centimeter of instant height increase!
And now, the pointer sat perfectly between Spirit Tree Fruit Fragment x1 and 1 centimeter, Instant Redeem.
Judging with the naked eye, there was no way to tell which one he had drawn.
Frieza's heart nearly leapt into his throat.
One centimeter!
Give this king one centimeter!
How could a mere fragment compare to a direct one-centimeter increase in height?
Just as he anxiously waited to see whether the result would be the one-centimeter reward…
A line of golden text appeared above the roulette.
Congratulations! You have triggered a hidden reward!
Special Item Obtained: Height Scouter, Nanometer Grade x1.
The anticipation on Frieza's face instantly froze.
What was that?
A height scouter?
Nanometer grade?
A nameless rage shot straight to the top of his head.
"This king wants height! Not some useless trash!"
Frieza roared inwardly.
Even so, he still instinctively looked at the so-called reward.
A device almost identical in appearance to the combat power scouters he had used before floated quietly before him.
The only difference was that it was a noble gold color, one that matched his elegance perfectly.
With the mindset that refusing a free item would be a waste, Frieza somehow picked it up and placed it over the right side of his face.
Beep.
A soft sound rang out.
A string of target information instantly refreshed across the lens.
Target: Cooler
Real-Time Height: 180.21589647 cm
Growth Potential Assessment: Stagnated
Overall Evaluation: A pitiful creature whose height has already stopped developing.
The corner of Frieza's eye twitched.
That evaluation was harsh, but…
He liked it.
He then turned his gaze toward Son Goku not far away.
Target: Son Goku
Real-Time Height: 175.00345812 cm
Growth Potential Assessment: Stagnated
Overall Evaluation: Standard Saiyan height. Nothing special.
Frieza's breathing grew slightly hurried.
He seemed to understand the purpose of this thing.
Then he aimed the scouter at himself.
Target: Frieza
Real-Time Height: 160.91233111 cm
Growth Potential Assessment: 9.099885518 cm
And he discovered that his height value was slowly increasing bit by bit.
Although the increase was several decimal places deep, the growth was displayed so clearly and directly that it proved he was truly growing taller in real time.
Faced with such a direct sensation, Frieza found it almost impossible to pull his eyes away from those numbers.
He felt like he could stare at them all day without getting bored!
Shenron Odebia had not lied to him!
Sure enough, that original ten centimeters of height had been evenly spread across a two-month period.
His body trembled slightly with excitement.
The earlier frustration and fury vanished in an instant.
In their place was an unprecedented joy!
This item was practically a divine artifact made specifically for him!
Not only could it measure height with nanometer-level precision, it could also compare and predict data!
It perfectly satisfied the deepest desire in his heart!
He did not merely want to grow taller.
He wanted everyone to know that he was still in his growth period, and that his height was steadily increasing at a speed precise to countless decimal places!
What Frieza enjoyed was exactly this pleasure of growing taller little by little.
When the day came that he was about to surpass the others, he would stand before them one by one and compare heights in person!
Then, in a tone as if he had just casually noticed, he would tell them:
"Oh my, why do you seem just a little shorter than this king?"
Ohohohoho…
Just imagining that scene made every cell in Frieza's body relax with delight.
Son Goku. Cooler.
All of you, just wait.
"Not bad. Truly not a bad reward! This king is very satisfied."
Frieza happily accepted the scouter, and the gloom in his heart vanished completely.
He still had five lottery chances left.
The height panel still displayed:
Current Progress: 14.999 cm / 15 cm.
And the worst reward on the roulette was Spirit Tree Fruit Fragment x1, which could be exchanged for 0.001 centimeters.
Victory was in his grasp!
"Fifth draw!"
Frieza started the roulette again without hesitation.
This time, his mindset was incomparably calm.
He did not even bother looking at the grand prizes.
In his eyes, there was only that tiny slot representing Spirit Tree Fruit Fragment x1.
Come.
Let this king complete this historic step!
The pointer spun rapidly, then gradually slowed down.
Frieza's gaze was locked onto that area as though pulled by a magnet.
The pointer swept past one option after another, and finally, under Frieza's held breath, stopped precisely on the slot he had dreamed of.
Congratulations! You have obtained Spirit Tree Fruit Fragment x1!
Automatically converted into 0.001 cm!
Current Progress: 15.000 cm / 15 cm!
Accumulated Height Progress Bar Full!
It was done!
The progress bar was actually full!
Frieza even felt as if he were dreaming. But the moment he pinched his own arm, the clear pain reached his mind and told him this was not a dream.
Immense joy completely drowned him.
"Ohohohohohohoho!"
He could no longer suppress the wild delight in his heart and released an incomparably arrogant demonic laugh.
On the height panel, a line of golden congratulations slowly appeared.
Congratulations! You have successfully gathered 15 centimeters of height!
You are only one final step away from redemption!
Frieza's laughter was far too loud, far too unrestrained.
In an instant, everyone on the spectator platform turned to look at him.
The Earth warriors looked at Frieza, who seemed to have suddenly lost his mind, and did not know what to say.
Cooler's face was full of disgust as he moved away from Frieza.
"What madness is my foolish brother falling into now?"
"Frieza looks really happy. What happened?" Goku scratched the back of his head, curious.
"It was only one match. Is it worth getting that happy over?" Bardock folded his arms and scoffed.
Only Piccolo's gaze moved between Levos, who was holding back laughter, and Frieza, who was laughing wildly.
The corner of his eye twitched, as if he had understood something.
"Ohohoho…"
Frieza did not care about the gazes around him at all.
He was immersed in his own world, savoring this hard-won joy.
Unfortunately, the source of this joy was a secret he could not tell others.
That feeling was no different from wearing fine clothes in the dark. It was unbearably frustrating.
But…
His eyes shifted, and his gaze fell on Levos not far away.
His three-toed feet went plap, plap as Frieza walked over with elegant steps.
"Ohohoho… Mr. Levos."
He stood before Levos, wearing a smug smile he could not suppress.
"This king must offer you special thanks."
"If not for you, this king would never have experienced such a delightful feeling."
Levos looked at Frieza, whose tail looked as if it were about to rise into the sky, and could only keep his expression tense.
"Congratulations, my lord. However…"
His tone shifted, and he casually reminded him.
"...You had better take a closer look at the final step shown on that panel."
"There might be… some kind of complication."
The smile on Frieza's face stiffened slightly.
He stared suspiciously at Levos.
Yet Levos's expression was as innocent as could be.
This fellow…
Wasn't this height panel something you and Shenron Odebia cooked up together?
And now you are acting innocent before this king?
Frieza snorted coldly in his heart.
However, Levos's reminder did make his heart skip a beat.
Given the usual nature of this height panel, this so-called final step was probably not that simple.
With a trace of unease, he sank his mind back into the panel.
He wanted to see exactly what this final step was.
Final Redemption Step: Permission Unlock
Explanation: Since your requested 15-centimeter height increase exceeds the standard improvement range of Shenron Odebia's authority, you must collect 20 Odebia Permission Keys to unlock this permission and meet the final redemption condition.
Current Keys Held: 0 / 20
Key Acquisition Method: Lottery.
The smile on Frieza's face disappeared inch by inch.
The air seemed to freeze at that moment.
His fist slowly clenched.
His tail went completely straight behind him from extreme fury.
"Damn it!"
The roar forced out through his gritted teeth made the surrounding temperature drop by several degrees.
Frieza turned and glared at Levos, his eyes looking as if he wanted to devour him alive.
"Please explain this to this king, Mr. Levos!"
"What exactly is going on here?"
Levos looked innocent.
"My lord, calm down!"
"I only applied to Odebia for height on your behalf and provided a general framework. I don't understand its so-called permissions either. Who knew it would add so many strange settings on its own?"
The friend-invite assistance had not even started yet, and Odebia had already come up with permission keys…
Levos could only say that this dragon was truly professional when it came to causing trouble.
Frieza stared into Levos's eyes.
The other party's gaze was clear, and his expression was sincere. He did not look like he was lying at all.
In other words…
All of this was that vicious dragon acting on its own initiative?
Frieza felt his blood pressure soaring madly.
He had finally, painstakingly, filled the progress bar.
And now he was being told that if he wanted to redeem it, he still had to draw twenty keys?
What kind of torture was this?
Frieza trembled with rage.
But…
Looking at his remaining five lottery chances, then at the key progress of 0 / 20…
What else could he do?
He had already come this far. Only the final step remained.
Give up?
This king had shed blood and sweat, protected Earth, defended Planet Sadala…
He had even joined Earth's citizenship.
How could he possibly give up?
More importantly, if he had not seen hope, that would have been one thing. But now, victory was right before his eyes.
Even if Zeno himself came today, he would not stop him. This king said so!
"Hmph!"
Frieza snorted coldly and turned away, ignoring Levos.
Sulking in anger, he poured all his fury into the lottery.
"Draw for this king!"
"Five chances left! Use them all!"
He refused to believe five chances could not draw at least a few lousy keys!
The roulette began spinning again.
Fortunately, the accumulated height options had disappeared, making the roulette much cleaner.
First draw.
Congratulations! Permission Keys x5 obtained!
Current Progress: 5 / 20
Hm?
Five keys at once?
Frieza's anger eased slightly.
It seemed the drop rate for these keys was quite high.
Second draw.
Congratulations! Permission Keys x4 obtained!
Current Progress: 9 / 20
Frieza's eyes lit up.
At this rate, twenty keys did not seem so far away after all.
Third draw.
Congratulations! Permission Keys x4 obtained!
Current Progress: 13 / 20
Frieza's breathing began to quicken.
Seven keys left!
He still had two chances!
Fourth draw.
Congratulations! Permission Keys x5 obtained!
Current Progress: 18 / 20
"Ohoho…"
Frieza could not help laughing again.
Only two keys left!
One final chance!
As long as he drew two more keys, it would be enough!
He pressed the final draw button with intense nervousness.
The roulette spun rapidly.
Frieza's heart also rose to its highest point.
The pointer slowly stopped.
Congratulations! Permission Key x1 obtained!
The smile on Frieza's face froze.
He looked at the glaring number on the panel, and his mind went blank.
Current Keys Held: 19 / 20
One key short.
From one centimeter short, to 0.1 centimeters, then to 0.01 centimeters, 0.001 centimeters…
And now, he was short only the final key.
It was this same trick again!
What made it worse was that he had been swept away by this same repeated routine again and again as if possessed.
Numb.
Frieza was completely numb.
Odebia, you truly are no good at all!
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