Bulma and Future Bulma set down their wrenches and shared a smile.
"Finally, it's fixed!"
"Yeah. The Demon Realm... I'm actually getting pretty curious about it," Future Bulma added.
Shin, the Supreme Kai, looked at them with wide-eyed amazement. "You two are incredible. I can't believe you actually repaired a spaceship from the Demon Realm..."
Bulma waved it off nonchalantly. "Hahaha, it was nothing. It actually felt pretty simple."
Just then, a small aircraft descended and landed right in front of them. The group froze in surprise.
A blue-skinned Demon Realmian stepped out of the craft. He looked at the group with a friendly expression.
"Pardon the intrusion," he said.
Goku didn't sense any malice from the newcomer, but he remained curious. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"
"I am Glorio. I come from the Demon Realm."
"The Demon Realm?"
Everyone shifted their gaze to his ears. They were sharply pointed, just as expected.
"That's right." Glorio turned his attention toward Turles and the others. "You must be Turles and Vegeta."
Their confusion deepened. "Yeah, that's us. What do you want?"
"I have a request. I want you to come with me to the Demon Realm and defeat King Gomah!"
The group went silent for a moment.
"What?"
"Gomah?"
Even Shin's eyes widened at the mention of the name.
"Who is this Gomah guy?" Goku asked.
"He is the evil Majin who became the new King of the Demon Realm after King Dabura's death," Glorio explained.
"I see," Shin said, realization dawning on him. "So, the short guy who kidnapped Dende... he must have been talking about Gomah."
Goku's expression turned serious. "Is that so? Then let's head to the Demon Realm, take down this King Gomah, and bring Dende back!"
"Hmph. Right," Vegeta added, his voice cold. "This King Gomah fellow dared to make a fool of me. I'll make sure he regrets it."
"While that's the plan, we shouldn't be reckless," Shin warned. "Gomah is both powerful and incredibly cunning."
Shin clearly had some prior knowledge of the new king. However, Vegeta and the others didn't seem to care. Shin's credibility regarding "threats" had hit rock bottom ever since he'd hyped up Dabura—a fighter who turned out to be little more than a "fry" in their eyes.
"By the way, how did you know about Turles and Vegeta?" Shin asked, looking at Glorio suspiciously.
"The King of the Third Demon Realm told me," Glorio answered honestly. "He apparently saw your battle with Majin Buu on a Magic Screen."
"And the King of the Third Demon Realm ordered you to come here?"
"No," Glorio clarified. "I was simply given a secret commission to bring you there."
"I see. I understand. In that case, I'm coming along too."
Kibito's face paled. "Lord Supreme Kai, you're going too? What about the Elder Kai...?"
Turles' lip twitched. The Supreme Kai's habit of jumping into trouble was as strong as ever. He just couldn't stay away from the action.
Shin immediately put on a mask of mock-suffering. How could he admit he was just trying to escape the Elder Kai's strict training and get some rest?
"Ahem... After all, this involves my brother," Shin said. "Besides, I know a fair bit about the Demon Realm. With Mr. Turles and the others there, I'm sure I won't be in any danger. As for the Ancestor... I'll leave it to you to explain things, Kibito."
Kibito felt like his world was ending. Are you serious? Lord Supreme Kai, you're throwing me under the bus?!
But seeing the threatening glint in Shin's eyes, Kibito stood down. Rank had its privileges, and he didn't want to spend the rest of his life being picked on by his superior.
Watching Kibito walk away, Shin turned back to the group. "Alright! Since that's settled, let's head out!"
Glorio shook his head. "Wait. My ship can only seat four people."
"That's fine. We have our own spaceship ready," Bulma said.
Before long, Glorio led the group away from Earth. After some time in transit, they arrived in front of a colossal, glowing fish.
Goku's jaw dropped. "Whoa! That's a huge goldfish!"
"That is Warp-sama," Shin explained. "He is the only way for us to travel into the Demon Realm."
Turles couldn't help but marvel at the sight. "The universe really is full of wonders. Even a fish can be a gatekeeper."
After the group exchanged the proper passcodes, Warp allowed them to pass. The goldfish didn't seem particularly bright—it just saw the pointed ears, heard the code, and let them through.
Soon, they reached the Third Demon Realm. Why didn't they go to the first or second? Simple: their permits hadn't been approved.
The sky of the Third Demon Realm was a vibrant pink, filled with numerous floating islands. Bizarre creatures, unlike anything on Earth, soared through the air.
"So this is the Demon Realm? It definitely looks different from Earth," Goku noted.
The two ships hovered over what looked like a massive magic circle.
"Hmm? What's that?"
"That is the Demon Realm tunnel—a cave-like passage. If you go further down, you reach the Second Demon Realm, and then the First," Shin explained. "They say people used to move between them freely, but then someone created a Light Shield. Now, free passage is impossible."
"Is that so? So this tunnel is completely useless now?"
"Correct. Moving between the different realms now requires Warp-sama's assistance."
Meanwhile, back on the Sacred World of the Kai...
As Kibito finished explaining the situation, a "kind" smile spread across the Elder Kai's face.
"That little brat... He actually ran off to the Demon Realm just to skip his lessons. Well, as long as he's with Turles, I don't have to worry about his safety. I can't even gauge that man's full power."
The Elder Kai's smile turned wicked.
"But skipping class? Kiddo, you'll have a lot to answer for when you get back! Hehehehe..."
Hearing the Elder Kai's sinister cackle, Kibito shuddered. He tried to shrink back and make himself invisible.
But as the saying goes, what you fear most always finds you. The Elder Kai's "warm" gaze landed directly on Kibito.
"Little Kibito... Tell me, why didn't you stop him? You just stood there and watched him run away?"
Kibito looked at the Elder Kai with a face full of despair. "Great Ancestor, how can you blame me? He's the Supreme Kai! How was I supposed to stop him? I didn't dare!"
He was just a humble attendant. He had no authority to order the Supreme Kai around. He could offer reminders, sure, but the final decision was never his to make.
Looking at the "merciful" expression on the Elder Kai's face, Kibito groaned inwardly. Lord Supreme Kai, you've really screwed me over this time!