The banquet ended once again in a luxury worthy of scandal.
Mountains of empty plates and bowls silently testified to the "battle" that had just taken place—no less savage than the earlier clash between man and god.
Beerus lounged without a shred of dignity in a wide chair, golden eyes narrowed in satisfaction, long tail lazily tapping pap, pap against the seat.
Whis kept his elegant posture, but even his teacup-holding hand had gone comfortably limp, a serene smile on his face.
"Mmm… Earth's food really never disappoints."
Whis covered his mouth with a delighted burp, then smiled.
"Lord Beerus, Vitelli, we should be heading back now."
Vitelli immediately said, "Beerus, Whis, I might need to stay on Earth a couple more days."
He explained, "My Instant Transmission can't lock onto Earth directly from the destruction realm. I want to improve it—use Earth's Dragon Balls to wish for some kind of upgrade, or maybe set up a coordinate between the two planets for easier travel."
But the real reason—wanting to stay with Bulma a little longer—was written all over his face.
Beerus waved a hand like it was nothing.
"Dragon Balls that grant wishes? That's unnecessary. Once I have time, I'll take you to Supreme Kai's realm and have them teach you a higher-grade Instant Transmission. Much better than your current one."
Vitelli's face instantly filled with pure exasperation. He shot right back, deadpan.
"Nice idea, terrible reality. Because as far as I know, the Supreme Kais…"
He stared hard at Beerus, clearly aiming to poke the bear.
"Probably don't even recognize you, the God of Destruction who's been sleeping for decades."
"N… Nani?!" Beerus jerked upright like someone stepped on his tail, eyes bulging.
"Don't recognize me?! How is that possible?! I'm a God of Destruction! How could the Supreme Kais not know me?!"
Vitelli couldn't be bothered explaining the Kais' near-total generation turnover, or the fact Beerus had personally sealed old Supreme Kai-related messes.
He just shrugged. "No idea. Heard it as a rumor on some other planet. Said the current Supreme Kai's a young guy."
Beerus squinted at him for several seconds.
He knew Vitelli was probably bullshitting.
But still… he'd just finished eating the woman's carefully prepared feast. Flipping the table right after would be unbelievably shameless even for Beerus.
Well… he did do shameless things sometimes.
But today's meal had been too good. He didn't feel like nitpicking.
Even so, the thought lodged in his mind.
The Supreme Kai mattered. Their lives were theoretically linked.
Even if he'd used special methods to dodge the risk, the Kais were fundamental to universal balance.
If the current one really was some green rookie who didn't even know the role of his theoretical partner god, that was a problem.
"Hmph, nonsense."
Beerus dismissed it—for now.
"We'll see later. Either way, your apprentice status is set. You're not getting out of it."
Bulma heard Vitelli was leaving again and panicked instantly. Her blue eyes filled with tears as she clung to his arm.
"That's all the time we get together… and you're leaving again? How long this time?"
Vitelli's heart softened immediately.
He hesitated, then looked to Whis and Beerus, pleading.
"Master Whis, Lord Beerus, can you bring Bulma along? She can carry lots of food, and her cooking is… really good! (And she's rich!)"
To sweeten the deal, Vitelli lied through his teeth without blinking.
Both Whis and Beerus could tell he was lying, but neither cared.
Beerus didn't mind—his realm was empty anyway, and more food was always welcome.
Still, he pointed at Bulma.
"Bring her? Kid, are you trying to kill her? The destruction realm isn't something a normal human can survive. The gravity alone is several hundred times Earth's, maybe more. The instant she arrives, she'll be crushed by her own weight."
Vitelli froze.
He'd been so focused on being with Bulma that he forgot the environment issue.
He was fine, but Bulma was just a human—
He turned to Beerus, eyes screaming please think of something.
Beerus scratched his cheek awkwardly and looked away.
He was good at fighting and destroying. Not this.
Whis watched Beerus' rare helplessness and giggled behind his hand.
He lifted his staff, and a soft, mysterious light shot into Bulma's body.
"All right, Miss Bulma."
Whis smiled gently.
"You don't need to worry about the realm's environment anymore. This power will automatically help you adapt and negate abnormal conditions—gravity, air pressure, radiation. You can live there as safely as you do on Earth."
Bulma instantly felt lighter. A comfortable warmth spread through her body.
Delighted, she hopped in place, threw her arms around Vitelli's neck, and planted a loud kiss on his cheek.
"This is amazing! Vitelli! We can go together!"
Then she remembered something and spun to Beerus and Whis.
"Please wait just a second—just one! I need to pack. Clothes, toiletries, my research gear, computers—"
Beerus got annoyed.
"Hmph! Foolish woman, do you know how disrespectful it is to make a powerful god wait—Whis, let's go—"
He stopped mid-word.
Because Bulma added, "Oh! And I already had that special crate of top-tier tuna prepared just for you, Lord Beerus. Plenty of it!"
Beerus' sentence did a hard turn on the spot.
"Let's go—cough. Go… go get your things. Waiting a bit is fine! Patience and tolerance are virtues a great god must possess!"
He said it like a solemn creed, as if he hadn't been ready to bolt five seconds ago.
Whis finally lost it, shoulders shaking as he laughed.
Vitelli ducked his head, trying to hide it, but his own shoulders were bouncing too.
Beerus shot them both a disdainful look.
He crossed his arms, trying to look majestic.
But the twitch of his nose and the way his eyes kept drifting toward the kitchen betrayed him completely.
Bulma moved like a whirlwind. She rushed back to her room and storage.
Soon, she returned dragging two enormous bulging packs.
Vitelli stared. "Bulma, you—"
"Better safe than sorry!" Bulma grinned, handing him the heavier pack.
"Most of it's capsules. I packed three labs, two houses, tools, supplies, some ingredients, and lots of ready-made food for you, Lord Beerus, and Whis. It'll last ages!"
Vitelli smiled helplessly, affectionate and resigned.
He slung the pack on and took Bulma's hand tight.
Whis had finally calmed down. He twirled his staff.
"Then, everyone, please prepare yourselves."
Vitelli held Bulma with one hand and set the other on Whis' shoulder.
Beerus placed his hand on Whis' other shoulder.
"Let's go, Whis," Beerus said.
Whis nodded. The gem on his staff glowed, wrapping all four in light.
A flash—
They vanished from the living room, leaving only empty plates and silence behind.
A few minutes later, the doorbell rang at Briefs estate.
"Bulma! Vitelli! I'm here to play!"
Goku stood outside the closed gates in a worn gi, scratching his head.
"No one home?"
He waited, listened. Quiet.
Briefs and his wife were out, too. Only patrol robots remained.
"Strange… Vitelli said he was back…"
Goku muttered, then vaulted the wall into the yard.
WEE-OO WEE-OO!
Alarms shrieked. Guard robots slid out, red lights flashing, guns aimed at him.
Goku startled and raised his fists.
The red lights scanned him. Recognizing him as a friendly, the alarms stopped.
"Identity confirmed." The robots holstered and slid away.
"What the heck…"
Goku sighed, confused, and walked into the mansion shouting:
"Bulma! Vitelli! You in there?"
Living room, dining room, kitchen… nothing but robots cleaning.
"No one's home…"
Disappointed, he wandered to the back yard—
And froze, eyes wide.
A huge futuristic silver building stood there now, stamped with Capsule Corp's logo.
"Whoa! Is this Vitelli's new gravity room?"
Curiosity erased his disappointment.
He rubbed his hands, found the switch, and pressed it.
The airtight door slid open, revealing a cavernous training chamber.
"Hehehe, let me try!"
Goku zipped inside. The door closed behind him.
Moments later, a deep humming filled the room as the gravity system spun up—
Another brutal training session was about to begin.
Meanwhile, light-years away in the destruction realm—
A rainbow shimmer faded, leaving Vitelli, Bulma, Beerus, and Whis standing on familiar yet alien ground.
The air was fragrant. The massive destruction palace loomed in strange light.
"Woooow!"
Bulma's first step on an alien world had her entranced.
Glowing plants, gentle odd-looking animals, soil pulsing faint energy, and a sky painted like aurora—
Everything made her scientific heart explode.
"So this is an alien planet! Incredible! How do these plants emit light? The atmosphere's totally different from Earth. And that animal—its biology—"
She was already talking a mile a minute, reaching for instruments in her mind.
Beerus had been complaining to Whis—
"Whis, are you slower lately? You used to cover that distance in a minute forty-five. This time it took almost two minutes. Have you been hunting food instead of training while I slept?"
But Bulma's wonder pulled his attention.
He lifted his chin, housing a condescending glare.
"Hey, woman! This is the realm of Beerus, God of Destruction! Not some 'alien planet' you can compare to others!"
Bulma had crouched to study a glowing sprout. She looked up, pure confusion in her eyes.
"But… this is a planet outside Earth in the universe. Doesn't that make it an alien planet?"
Beerus choked on logic so correct it was unanswerable.
His show-off mood died on the spot.
Tail flicking in irritation, he felt completely unable to communicate with this human.
After stretching lazily, he turned to Vitelli.
Purple light flashed. His divine robes turned into a comfy brown pajama set, complete with nightcap.
Yawning, he wandered toward the palace.
"Ugh… eating makes me sleepy. Since you're an apprentice now, all the useless trash-planet cleanup is yours. I'm stuffed. I'll nap for… ten years or so. Haah…"
His voice grew faint.
"As for how to use destruction… Whis will teach you… zzZZ…"
His figure poofed away—apparently straight to bed.
Vitelli and Whis stared after him in perfect synchrony, both shaking their heads.
"This guy's hopeless," Vitelli muttered.
Whis returned to his gentle calm smile.
"Then, Vitelli-san, would you like to begin your new training right away, or rest first? Personally, I recommend afternoon tea."
He produced a delicate teapot and cups from thin air.
Bulma emerged from a nearby grove with a notebook, scribbling at an insane speed.
Hearing Whis, she raised her hand with excitement.
"Let me make the tea! I brought lots of premium Earth teas. I want to see how they taste with water from here!"
Vitelli shook his head and looked at Whis seriously.
"Tea can wait. I want to start training. When are you going to teach me destruction?"
He was annoyed about the position Beerus forced on him, but if he couldn't reject it, he'd master it fast.
Strength was strength.
Whis handed the teapot to Bulma and smiled faintly.
"Vitelli-san… you've already learned it."
"Huh?!"
Vitelli stared.
"I already learned it? When? How do I not know?"
Whis set a cup down and explained.
"Destruction isn't just energy. It's a divine authority—an office of power. You didn't accept your 'apprentice' identity before, so your subconscious rejected it. The authority was closed, and you couldn't sense it."
"But the moment you asked me how to train destruction, that meant you'd accepted the role. That recognition is the key to opening the authority. Your earlier harsh training already built the necessary godly power in body and spirit. What you lacked was acknowledgment and direction."
He tapped Vitelli lightly in the chest.
"Now you don't need to learn a specific technique. You need to feel and forge your heart—let your will and resolve truly match the authority of destruction. When your mind fully aligns with it, using destruction will feel as natural as breathing."
Vitelli absorbed the words in silence.
I've already learned it… I just have to become worthy of it…
He recalled the sensation he'd felt when facing Beerus' destruction energy—his own godly power stirring, filled with finality and erasure.
A faint direction began to form.
Then Whis cut across his thoughts with a smile that instantly made Vitelli uneasy.
"However, Vitelli-san, I should remind you of something. You have only about three months to get comfortable and proficient in using destruction."
Vitelli snapped out of it, looking miserable.
"Again? More errands? I already ran around the cosmos for you plenty when I trained here!"
He remembered being tossed randomly across the universe and ordered to Instant Transmission back like some interstellar delivery guy.
Whis shook his head gently.
"Don't worry, this isn't about running errands. It's just that before Lord Beerus went to sleep, he left a very long time's worth of duties undone. The list of planets that need 'destruction'…"
He lifted a finger. A massive invisible checklist appeared in the air.
"…is not short."
"Since Beerus entrusted the duty to you, and he's asleep, the work naturally falls to you."
"In three months, if you still can't use destruction properly or begin handling tasks, the Seventh Universe's overall rating will drop again. And that will be hard to explain to Lord Zeno."
Vitelli's eyes went huge.
"Wait, what?! I'm an apprentice! I've been on the job for less than an hour! My probation isn't even over! You're telling me I have to start working already? That's insane!"
Whis smiled like an angel who'd absolutely planned this.
"Relax, Vitelli-san. You don't need to go right this second. You have three months to prepare and practice. With your talent, I'm sure you'll be fine."
Vitelli stared at Whis' "I believe in you" face, then at the mountain of planets waiting to be erased, then thought of the real God of Destruction napping through the millennium while dumping the mess on him.
He took a deep, deep breath of the fragrant yet unbearably heavy air of the destruction realm.
"Ugh—I knew it. This apprentice God of Destruction thing is a trap."
Bulma watched him sulk, then burst out laughing.
She walked over, patting his back in cheery encouragement.
"Good luck, honey! For our universe's ranking and prosperity… go work hard!"
Her tone was half playful, half absolutely confident in him.
Vitelli looked at his wife's bright grin, then at Whis calmly sipping tea while being a total demon in disguise, then imagined Beerus sleeping like a rock in the palace—
He could only stare up at the dazzling alien sky, completely drained.
Life as an apprentice God of Destruction was going to be way more miserable than he'd imagined.