Zaiko, after two full days on New Namek, had truly come to hate it.
Why would he hate Namek, you might ask...?
IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO SLEEP WITH THREE SUNS SHINING IN YOUR FACE AT ALL TIMES!
In his past life, he was the type who couldn't sleep with a single light on in his room.
He always made sure to roll down his window blind all the way to the bottom, without leaving a single gap through which the damn street light could enter. And if there was something with a small indicator light, like the computer or a plug, he would throw a blanket over it without a second thought.
He simply couldn't concentrate on falling asleep when there was light around him...
Although, being completely honest with himself, his current lack of sleep probably wasn't exclusively due to this, actually.
Lying on his back on the grass, looking at the bright sky with dark circles under his eyes due to exhaustion, Zaiko swallowed audibly.
By his side, Broly had her head resting directly on his right arm, using it as her personal pillow.
Her face was slightly buried against his chest, and she had thrown one of her legs over him, completely immobilizing him while she drooled placidly, plunged in a deep and peaceful sleep.
Not too far from there, Paragus was sleeping leaning against the trunk of a tree, sitting with his arms crossed over his chest, snoring softly.
Until not too long ago, he had remained awake, in a tense silence, locking his gaze on him and watching him like a hawk to make sure he didn't take advantage of his daughter.
«I certainly wouldn't do it with him around!», Zaiko thought.
«Wait, no! I wouldn't do it if he walked away either, that's not what I meant!»
...
After a few hours...
Zaiko was sitting on the soft bluish grass.
By his side, Broly had her head resting on his shoulder.
Even though she had woken up briefly the moment he decided to sit up to stretch his back, almost immediately she had fallen deeply asleep again in that exact same position.
Zaiko let out a long sigh.
«She's definitely a heavy sleeper...», he thought to himself.
In front of them, Paragus wouldn't stop growling, with his arms crossed and a vein throbbing on his forehead as he watched them.
The situation was consuming him inside.
His mind constantly told him that Zaiko was the only being in the entire universe worthy of his daughter.
In fact, he himself had proposed the idea of taking her as a wife indirectly, right when he suggested he become the New Emperor of the Universe to rule with Broly by his side.
Even so...!
His fatherly heart simply refused to accept it.
During the last two days on New Namek, he had had to endure seeing how Broly stuck more and more to Zaiko, following him everywhere like a lost puppy.
Furthermore, he had had to listen to Zaiko's subtle and constant flirting towards his daughter.
He simply couldn't take it anymore!
"Get away from my daughter already, you bastard!!" Paragus suddenly burst out, yelling at the top of his lungs.
The yell made Broly shift a little against Zaiko's shoulder, opening a single eye and looking at her father with annoyance.
"Father... be quiet," she muttered with a sleepy voice and a slight frown. "I'm trying to sleep."
Zaiko simply looked at him, raising an eyebrow in amusement, before looking straight ahead again and ignoring him completely.
Paragus turned red with anger.
The two of them were openly and shamelessly ignoring him right to his face!
He opened his mouth, taking a breath to yell at them again, but at that moment, Zaiko interrupted him, radically changing the subject.
"Although New Namek has been fun, the time has come for us to leave. There is absolutely nothing left that forces us to stay here," Zaiko began with a calm voice.
Upon hearing this, Paragus's expression changed immediately.
The fury disappeared from his face, being replaced by his usual seriousness. He nodded in agreement, straightening his posture.
"In that case, we must find a suitable planet to conquer," he proposed with firmness and urgency. "We can establish our domain and restore the greatness of our race once again."
Zaiko gave an amused smile, tilting his head.
"Are you that eager to be a grandfather, old man?" Zaiko asked with a teasing tone. "I remind you that in this entire immense universe there are very few Saiyans left alive... and only one of them is a woman."
As he said this, Zaiko looked at Broly out of the corner of his eye, making the implication of his words more than obvious.
Paragus clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles cracked.
His face went from red to purple in a matter of seconds, boiling with anger at the blatant insinuation.
However, while Zaiko chuckled at the old man's reaction, he noticed something out of the corner of his eye.
Broly had opened her eyes again and was staring intently at him from his shoulder, with an intense and evident blush covering her cheeks.
«Did she... understand what I meant?», Zaiko thought, feeling the laugh die in his throat.
He didn't even think she would hear him or pay attention to him, since she was supposed to be sound asleep.
It could be that he had also been underestimating her intelligence, when she was smarter than he thought.
He had been comparing her the whole time to the version of Broly he knew...
These two days by her side had shown him how wrong he was.
In reality, she was quite talkative, at least when they were alone.
At that moment, it was Zaiko's turn to get embarrassed.
Completely thrown off by Broly's gaze, Zaiko tensed up and began to scratch the back of his neck uncomfortably, averting his gaze toward the sky as his own cheeks acquired a faint reddish hue.
Seeing this, Paragus gritted his teeth so hard they crunched.
«Now is not the time for you to blush too, you idiot!», Paragus exclaimed in his mind, completely exasperated.
Zaiko coughed a couple of times in an exaggerated manner, trying to regain his composure and continue speaking.
"Ahem... As I was saying," Zaiko said, ignoring eye contact with Broly. "Although your idea isn't bad, and I assure you I'll keep it in mind for the future... right now I have another destination in mind. I want to go to Planet Earth and settle there for a long time, I have several matters to attend to there."
Of course, Zaiko wouldn't start going into details about his affairs on Earth at that exact moment, much less with Paragus.
When they arrived on Earth, Paragus would realize sooner or later the reason why he had chosen to go there.
Noticing Zaiko's determined look regarding his new destination, Paragus simply grunted.
He made not the slightest attempt to ask the reason why he wanted to go to that insignificant planet, knowing full well he wouldn't bother giving him an explanation.
For starters, he didn't even know what Planet Earth was...
Without dwelling on the matter any further, Zaiko decided to change the subject with total and absolute shamelessness.
"Prepare lunch, old man, I'm hungry," he ordered him, as if he were talking to his personal butler.
As he said that, Zaiko naturally wrapped an arm around Broly's figure.
She, instead of pulling away or feeling uncomfortable, simply let out a soft sigh and snuggled even closer to him.
Although her cheeks were still evidently flushed, a small and genuine smile now adorned her lips.
Paragus looked at them with profound and visible annoyance, a nervous tic appearing in one of his eyes.
For the past few days, he, a proud and veteran colonel of the Saiyan Army, had been the only one in charge of going out to find firewood, hunt, skin the catches, and cook to feed the three of them.
A terrible and humiliating realization suddenly crossed his mind.
Was this the real reason why Zaiko had allowed him to come along?
Had he "forgiven" him solely to use him as his personal servant and have him take care of all the annoying chores he didn't feel like doing himself?
«This damn bastard...!», Paragus cursed internally, gritting his teeth and turning around with resignation to go light the damn bonfire once again.
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In the next chapter, Zaiko arrives on Earth.