"A female Super Saiyan… Isn't she the one who killed Frieza?"
Cooler licked his lips, eyes narrowing with a dangerous gleam.
Ever since he learned Frieza had fallen at the hands of a Super Saiyan, Cooler had been relentlessly searching for a way to become stronger.
Unlike Frieza, Cooler was cautious. He would never provoke a Super Saiyan without absolute confidence in victory.
That's why, in the six years since Lynx's journey to a parallel timeline, the Cooler Force had remained in a strictly defensive posture.
But clearly, constant retreat wouldn't solve anything.
Cooler clenched his fists and muttered coldly, "Until I've gained the power to crush that Super Saiyan king, I'll start by slaughtering you, woman."
Bloodlust flashed through the air.
"Huh? He's serious now?" Sensing Cooler's killing intent, Hanna grinned.
Ever since unlocking her Super Saiyan form, she hadn't feared any opponent in battle—except Lynx.
Not even one of the Frost Demons.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
Raindrops began to fall from the sky just as the two powerhouses—both with battle power well over ten million—exploded into motion.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Their bodies clashed mid-air in a frenzy of speed and violence.
Fists and kicks struck with thunderous shockwaves. Their blurred forms whipped across the sky like a whirlwind made of pure ki.
Cooler's warriors couldn't follow a thing. To them, it was all just flashes of movement and deafening impacts.
Some of the Saiyans also struggled to track the fight, but instead of relying on their eyes, they closed them—and began feeling with their ki.
Ki sensing.
After Lynx received the universal ki-sensing manual as a mission reward, he had passed it along to Planet Vegeta to promote across the Saiyan population.
It hadn't been long since the knowledge was shared, but already, many battle-hardened Saiyan warriors had picked it up.
Thanks to it, they could barely keep up with the duel unfolding in the sky.
"Damn it! Damn these Saiyans! Why? The Frost Demon race is supposed to be the strongest in the universe! So why can't I beat her?!"
Cooler nearly ground his teeth to dust.
Ever since he saw the mutilated corpse of his brother, he had thrown himself into intense training. But even after all this time, he still couldn't surpass the Saiyans!
And the one he was fighting now wasn't even the most powerful among them. From what he'd heard, the one who killed Frieza was their king—the strongest Super Saiyan.
The woman before him? She was second best.
Six years of hellish training… and I still can't defeat even the second-strongest Super Saiyan?!
Bam! Cooler suddenly took a heavy punch to the gut. The force nearly made him cough up blood.
But more than the pain, it was the humiliation and fury that consumed him.
"I'm Cooler! Ruler of the universe! How could I lose to some woman?!"
As Hanna flew in for another strike, Cooler lashed out with his tail in a sudden swipe—aimed straight at her face.
It was a reaction born of anger, not strategy.
Yet somehow, Hanna's movements slowed for a split second—and she took the hit head-on.
She shot through the air like a cannonball, quickly becoming a speck in the distance.
"…Huh?"
Cooler froze. That shouldn't have worked…
On the Saiyan side, the warriors were stunned. What just happened? How did Queen Hannah get hit like that?
"Hey… did you feel that?" whispered one Saiyan.
"Feel what?"
"Her ki… it dropped."
"What?! No way!"
They weren't alone. Everyone who had learned ki-sensing noticed it—Hanna's ki had suddenly started to decline.
Someone checked with a scouter to confirm.
Sure enough—her battle power was steadily falling…
What's going on?
Even Hanna was confused. She had barely even warmed up. Why was her strength fading so quickly?
It must be in my head!
With a growl, she powered up again and charged back at Cooler. The clash resumed.
But moments later, Cooler sidestepped and landed a clean kick to her chest.
Though Hanna had crossed her arms to guard, she couldn't absorb the force. She was blasted away again.
"Queen Hannah, are you okay?" came a voice over the communicator.
She finally stopped herself midair—but her breathing was ragged.
"…Why? Why is my energy leaking out?"
She gasped in confusion, her hand unconsciously drifting to her abdomen.
One of the female Saiyan warriors suddenly went wide-eyed.
She lowered her voice over the comms: "Your Majesty… we need to pull back. I think your body is… changing."
"…What do you mean?"
"Queen… you might be pregnant."
The comm channel fell silent.
Pregnant?!
The realization hit everyone at once.
Among Saiyan women, it was well-known—pregnancy naturally caused a sharp drop in battle power. That had to be it. That's why Hannah's strength had suddenly dropped.
The saiyan warriors quickly regrouped around her, shielding her as they began a tactical retreat.
Besides, the evacuation mission for the Ifririan civilians had already succeeded. There was no need to throw their lives away now.
Seeing the Saiyans suddenly retreat, Cooler's warriors returned to his side.
"Lord Cooler, congratulations!" said Salza. "You defeated a Super Saiyan!"
"Idiot! Didn't you see? They retreated on their own!"
"M-my apologies!"
Cooler snarled, staring off in the direction the Saiyans had gone, eyes full of doubt.
Strange… that female Super Saiyan—why did her strength suddenly drop? Is this some kind of trap?
Cooler's mind spun. He wanted to chase her down and finish the job, to eliminate a major threat before a full war with the Saiyans began.
But what if this was all a trick?
Staring long and hard in the direction of the retreating Saiyans, he finally clenched his fists.
"Salza. Check if the Ifririans' data archives have been secured. Once the task's done, prep the ship. I want it waiting in orbit."
"Lord Cooler? You're planning to…"
"…I'm going after those Saiyans."