As their altitude rose at breathtaking speed, West City below shrank into a sea of glittering lights. Clouds peeled away beneath them like scattered cotton, rushing backward in white torrents.
Bulma clung tightly to Krillin's neck, her eyes squeezed shut as she screamed.
By all logic, at this height and speed, the friction heat and lack of oxygen alone should have been enough to knock an ordinary person unconscious, or worse.
Yet strangely, she felt no discomfort at all.
No suffocation. No cold. Even the violent headwind was perfectly blocked by a faint aura surrounding Krillin's body.
"Open your eyes, Bulma."
Krillin's voice did not travel through the air. Instead, it reached her directly, carried by the vibration of ki, resonating inside her mind.
Bulma cautiously cracked one eye open.
The next second, her eyes went wide.
An endless, profound black stretched before her, a color so deep that no pigment could ever reproduce it. This was the true background of the universe.
Countless stars filled her vision, no longer distant flickers from the ground, but sharp, brilliant, motionless points of light.
And beneath her feet, a massive blue arc cut across the darkness.
Earth.
Humanity's cradle.
"Th-this is…" Bulma opened her mouth, only to realize she could not make a sound.
This was vacuum. Sound could not exist here.
What terrified her even more was the realization that she was not suffocating.
Her lungs had stopped working, yet oxygen remained abundant in her blood. It was as if her body had flipped some hidden switch, drawing trace amounts of energy directly from cosmic radiation to sustain itself.
"This is Shenron's power," Krillin's voice echoed again in her mind.
"Now you're an Earthling who can survive naked in outer space."
"Well, Scientist," he added with a playful tone, "is this wedding gift special enough for you?"
Bulma waved her arms and legs excitedly, like a child who had just learned to swim.
Still in Krillin's arms, she turned slowly, staring at the magnificent scenery. Her scientific curiosity quickly overwhelmed her fear.
She tried to speak. Her lips moved, opening and closing, but all that came out was silent pantomime. It looked ridiculous and adorable.
Krillin watched her and could not help laughing, silently, of course.
High above the planet, suspended in the stillness of space, there were only the two of them.
No reporters. No guests. No noise. No worldly distractions.
"Bulma," Krillin called through telepathy.
She turned to look at him.
At this moment, Krillin carried none of that world-shattering aura. Floating against the backdrop of the stars, the faint glow reflected off his bald head, giving him an oddly sacred presence.
His gaze was intense and focused, making Bulma's heart race.
"Since we don't need to breathe anymore," Krillin transmitted with a wicked grin, "should we test how far lung capacity can go without oxygen?"
Bulma froze for a second, then immediately understood what he meant.
Her cheeks flushed crimson, strikingly vivid against the cold void of space.
She shot him a bashful glare, then wrapped her arms around his neck of her own accord.
Four hundred kilometers above the ground, in an orbit accompanied only by satellites and loneliness, the two of them kissed deeply.
It was a long kiss.
No need to breathe. No need to pause.
Time itself seemed to lose meaning.
Bulma felt as if she were melting into the stars.
Even though her body no longer required oxygen, her mind grew dizzy from overwhelming excitement and embarrassment. It was a sensation far more intoxicating than suffocation.
Krillin's hand rested against her back, warmth flowing steadily through her custom wedding dress. The sense of security was absolute, and she surrendered to it completely.
[Ding! Host has achieved deep emotional interaction with the female lead in a special environment: outer space.]
[Achievement unlocked: Vows Beneath the Stars.]
[Reward: Charisma limit broken. Current Charisma: 160.]
[System evaluation: You really know how to play the game of love.]
No one knew how much time passed until a derelict artificial satellite drifted lazily by, shining like an awkward light bulb. Only then did the two finally separate.
Bulma gasped for air out of pure habit. She was not actually breathing anything, yet her face turned red like a ripe apple.
She glared at Krillin and mouthed a single word.
"Pervert."
Krillin burst out laughing and scooped her up in his arms, spinning once in the emptiness of space.
"Let's go, wife. Our honeymoon has only just begun. Next, we have something even more important to do."
"Something more important?" Bulma looked at him, confused, anticipation flickering in her eyes.
Krillin did not explain. His figure flickered.
Whoosh.
The improved Instant Transmission activated.
Their figures vanished from the silent orbit, leaving behind only the passing satellite, lonely as it reflected the sunlight.
…
West City. Dr. Brief's estate.
It was already deep into the night. The guests were gone, and even the servants had retired.
Soft light filled the massive bedroom, illuminating the wide circular bed.
Space twisted, and Krillin and Bulma appeared out of thin air.
The moment her feet touched the ground, Bulma's legs gave out and she collapsed onto the bed. The lingering weightlessness of space, combined with the dizziness of instant movement, was almost too much.
But more than that, it was the thrill. An unprecedented, electrifying thrill.
"That was insane… If I don't write this into a paper, the scientific community will suffer a tragic loss," Bulma muttered, loosening the tight collar of her wedding dress.
Krillin watched her curves, his gaze growing deeper. He walked to the bedside, looking down at her with sudden seriousness.
"Bulma, I am now announcing an S-rank top-secret mission."
"Huh?"
Startled by his expression, Bulma sat up immediately.
"What is it? Did an enemy show up?"
"No," Krillin said, shaking his head solemnly.
"To deal with potential cosmic crises in the future, relying on my strength alone may not be enough. Earth needs more guardians, stronger genetic inheritance."
Bulma blinked.
"So…?"
Krillin suddenly broke into a wide grin, looking exactly like a big bad wolf tempting a helpless rabbit.
"So, I've decided to initiate the Procreation Project. By combining your genius brain with my limiter-broken body, we will create the strongest descendants in the universe."
"What?!"
Bulma finally reacted. Her face turned red enough to drip blood as she grabbed a pillow and threw it at him.
"You shameless idiot! You dress up having kids with such noble words! That's your S-rank mission?!"
Krillin caught the pillow effortlessly and lunged forward, pinning her beneath him.
His voice dropped, low and magnetic.
"This is for Earth's peace, Dr. Bulma. Please cooperate with my work."
Bulma stared at his face at close range, feeling the overwhelming masculine presence. Her body softened instantly.
She hooked her fingers around his neck, eyes shimmering as she let out a soft, embarrassed hum.
"If it's for Earth… I guess I can reluctantly cooperate. But…"
She leaned close to his ear and blew a teasing breath.
"Can you handle it? You've been flying around for so long. Aren't you tired?"
Krillin raised an eyebrow, as if he had just heard the funniest joke in the world.
"Tired? That word doesn't exist in my dictionary."
"System, activate Infinite Stamina mode."
The lights went out.
Even the moon outside seemed too shy to keep watching and hid behind the clouds.
This night was destined to be long.
And the specially reinforced shockproof foundation of Capsule Corporation was about to face the greatest challenge since its construction.