But in the eyes of another group of people, Stars was like an incomparably hard shit-stirring stick.
It could not be broken or thrown away. Simply leaving it anywhere made people feel sick, yet they had no choice but to use it.
Stars' medical research was terrifying. Even so-called terminal illnesses could be cured by Stars, though the price...
It was cheap enough for ordinary people, yet a life-reaping sickle in the eyes of the wealthy.
Stars Technology was the original name of Stars Company.
It had come into existence at the end of World War II, when no one paid attention to such a tiny company.
But half a year was enough for everyone to notice its existence.
In merely half a year, the company that had once possessed no presence at all directly surpassed the already renowned Stark Industries and became America's strongest arms supplier.
There were many legends surrounding Stars, and just as many unknowns.
For example, even now, no one knew who had created Stars.
People's deepest understanding of Stars was merely that it was currently managed on behalf of its owner by a woman named Red Queen.
Yes, you heard that right. Managed on behalf of its owner.
Moreover, people's knowledge of Red Queen went no further than that. Both reality and the internet contained only scattered scraps of information about her.
But to Sakura, this was the company she had created.
As the Space Gate opened in the office that had gone unused for years, Red Queen, the one who controlled Stars, arrived here with miraculous speed.
No one could imagine that Red Queen, the subject of countless speculations online and in reality, looked like nothing more than an adorable little girl.
Her red hair curled slightly at the ends, and her fair, delicate face looked childish, yet she possessed a figure that even some young women would envy.
If they knew that this wonderful figure could also be adjusted at will, they would surely envy her even more.
And this was Red Queen, an existence similar to Belfast.
Only, Belfast was defined by her race as a Ship Girl, while Red Queen was an Artificial Intelligence Lifeform.
"Lord Matou Sakura, welcome back."
Red Queen placed her right fist over her left breast, tucked her left hand behind her back, and gave a slight bow that made her look remarkably like certain knights.
Sakura narrowed her eyes slightly and smiled at the lifeform that had been animated after Belfast.
Back when she was still in the Nasuverse, she had drawn Red Queen's motherboard. Before entering seclusion, she had founded Stars Company, animated Red Queen, and had her oversee all of Stars in her stead.
Red Queen had not disappointed her. In only half a year, she had surpassed Stark Industries as it had been back then.
But that was only natural. After all, this Red Queen was complete and possessed all of Umbrella's technology.
In the far more distant future, Umbrella's technology truly could not compare to Marvel's cheat-like black technology. But Tony Stark had not yet become the so-called Iron Man, and Marvel's technology had not yet reached its period of explosive advancement.
Besides, Stars had been founded at the end of World War II. At that time, the only threat had been Tony Stark's father, Howard.
He was a genius, a genius even more terrifying than Tony Stark.
But unfortunately, such a genius had been constrained by his era, while Red Queen would not be.
That was why Stars could now be so powerful.
"Don't call me Lord Matou Sakura anymore. Just call me Sakura. I won't be using that name again."
Sakura walked up to Red Queen, bent down slightly, and gathered the adorable little girl into her arms.
Red Queen froze at Sakura's sudden action.
In her data, her creator would never take the initiative to do something like this.
Had she changed because of time?
Red Queen said nothing and merely thought in silence. But when Sakura placed a hand on her head and gently stroked her vivid red hair, the peculiar data produced by a sensory system no different from that of an ordinary person caused abnormalities in Red Queen's system.
Although she, like Belfast, had become a special lifeform through the AllSpark's power, the difference in their base materials meant that Red Queen and Belfast were fundamentally different beings.
But there was no need to care too much about that. To Sakura, Red Queen and Belfast were both children she had created.
"Tell me about Stars' situation over these past years."
Sakura stroked Red Queen's little head and watched her cheeks gradually flush because of her. A faint pleasure rippled through her heart.
"Yes, Lord Sakura."
Still somewhat unaccustomed to it, Red Queen nevertheless began reporting on Stars' situation over the years to her creator in fluent speech, her face gradually reddening.
Only then, cool hands brushed across her skirt and slipped beneath the little triangle of fabric.
The pink petals were gradually parted, revealing a slightly protruding bud, something like a tiny candy bean.
Sakura gently teased it, watching Red Queen's merely rosy face turn crimson and her formerly fluent words become fragmented. The slight curl of Sakura's lips was utterly wicked.
For Red Queen, something that should have taken only ten minutes took thirty-two minutes this time.
If possible, she wanted that time to last even longer.
The unprecedented data made her feel joy and curiosity toward the unknown.
But her creator was like a wicked adult teasing a child. No matter how she pleaded, even begging like a pitiful puppy, her creator, who delighted in teasing children, merely smiled at her without moving.
Her creator was the worst!
After straightening her clothes, the Artificial Intelligence Lifeform Red Queen clenched her little fists and angrily pounded her creator's shoulder.
"Right there, use a little more strength."
Lazy.
The joy of teasing little Red Queen made Sakura happy. Being herself now was wonderful~
But back to the main point, Stars' development did surprise her somewhat.
Although she had trusted Red Queen to manage Stars well for her, Stars' achievements over the years had truly astonished her.
Stars now had a presence in every field across the globe and was the absolute supreme hegemon.
To put it simply, Stars was practically like a god in this country. A casual word from it carried immense authority. Even presidents had to humble themselves and treat Stars with utmost respect.
They had once possessed the ability to contain Stars, but they had missed the best opportunity. Now, Stars had become an existence above them.
Stars could exist without them, but most people in this world could not exist without Stars. That was Stars' position on Earth.
Choosing Red Queen back then had indeed been the right decision.
Sakura narrowed her eyes slightly and began considering her next plan.
Tea
Kamar-Taj.
The Ancient One set down the book in her hand and smiled at the girl who stepped out of the Space Gate.
"It has been a long time."
"Yes, ten years."
Sakura smiled lightly as the Space Gate behind her instantly closed.
"Your attainments in space have already surpassed mine."
The Ancient One spoke with some emotion. There had not been the slightest fluctuation when the space opened and closed. The girl before her could now perform spatial teleportation without anyone noticing.
If Sakura had not used a Space Gate, then she likely would not have noticed the girl's arrival.
"Yes. That is the result of being in seclusion for so long."
Sakura smiled lightly as she stood before the Ancient One.
"You have changed a great deal."
The Ancient One poured Sakura a cup of tea. In the past, the girl's face had not held so many smiles.
"I let go of it."
Sakura smiled faintly and accepted the tea the Ancient One offered.
She was very familiar with this tea. There was even a place in Cave Heaven specifically dedicated to growing its leaves.
These tea leaves had also been drawn from the Root in the Nasuverse. Their name was unimportant; their effects were what mattered.
Their ability to calm the mind and improve comprehension was especially effective for mages studying magic.
After taking a sip, Sakura did not savor it much. She simply treated it as flavored boiled water.
This sort of thing had no effect on her, nor did it have any effect on the Ancient One.
It simply tasted a little better.
"I do not know how I should address you now."
The Ancient One also took a sip of tea. Having lived through endless years, she was naturally highly skilled at reading people.
The girl before her had changed. She appeared to have become better, but she had also become more dangerous.
In the past, the Ancient One had been able to see a layer of shackles around the girl, but now those shackles had vanished.
Even if the girl before her slaughtered an entire country in the next second, she would not find it strange.
After all, the girl no longer possessed the traits of a human being, and she was no longer what could be called human.
Perhaps she had never been human to begin with. Yet back then, she had retained some traits of humanity, while now, those things had all disappeared.
The girl was no longer human. She was more like a god.
A god, rather than a deity.
The girl's existence had become incomparably pure.
She radiated a divinity that ordinary people could neither understand nor perceive.
It was a quality that drew close to those great existences! "I no longer use my old name. Now, my name is Sakura."
When the girl introduced herself directly as Sakura, the Ancient One sensed that faint power.
Sure enough, the girl before her—formerly Matou Sakura, now Sakura—had drawn ever closer to becoming a godlike existence.
Though Sakura still appeared to be at the Sub-Celestial level, the threshold of the Celestial Level no longer posed any difficulty for her.
As long as she wished it, the girl before her could cross the threshold of the Celestial Level at any time and become a Celestial Level powerhouse above Odin!
But what deserved even more attention was that name.
Sakura... What had once seemed like an ordinary name now carried the girl's power. If she continued to grow, even her name would carry immense power, perhaps even becoming like those dark demon gods whose names could not be spoken aloud.
Speaking of which, in the future, that girl who wielded Chaos Magic would likely become Sakura's target.
In that instant, the Ancient One thought of many things and even formed countless ideas. But Sakura's next words caused all those thoughts to vanish like smoke.
"I am preparing to make my move."
"I understand."
The Ancient One smiled helplessly. "I no longer possess the ability to stop you, and Kamar-Taj's mages will not become your enemies."
"I understand."
Sakura smiled faintly. "But I still needed to tell you."
"I see."
The tea in her cup had already run dry. The Ancient One poured herself another cup, then leisurely said, "Then which Stone do you intend to move against first?"
"Reality."
Sakura had long made plans regarding the Infinity Stones.
At this stage, the Mind Stone was in Thanos's hands. As the chosen fate of this universe and a Celestial Level powerhouse, she would absolutely not make a move against Thanos before she truly crossed into the Celestial Level.
The term chosen fate carried an extraordinary meaning in the Marvel Universe, whether in the cinematic universe or the comic universe!
At the end of the cinematic universe, if Iron Man, Tony Stark, had not obtained the six Infinity Stones and borne their power, then the final victor would inevitably still have been Thanos from another timeline.
Before you continue