We traveled to Morag and landed the ship near the temple housing the Orb, then let Quill go.
"You got this, right? No funny business—just head into the temple and grab the Orb."
"Aren't you coming?"
"I'll guard the ship. Who knows what you might pull."
"Jeez... no trust even after coming all this way. Anyway, got it."
Quill grumbled as he stepped outside. I had my reasons—no point in giving Ronan's goons details about me, and I was confident Quill could handle it.
After a short wait, the sound of a fight between Quill and Ronan's men reached us.
Bang! Bang!
"Damn it! Fire it up!"
When the call came from Quill, I immediately started the Milano's engine and waited, ready for takeoff. Then Quill hurriedly boarded and shouted.
"Let's go!"
"Got it."
As I piloted, I saw Ronan's men aiming their cannons below, so I quickly evaded to avoid their fire. Then we immediately left the planet Morag.
"Whew~ That was close. You're a good pilot, huh?"
"It's nothing, just basics. More importantly, did you get the Orb?"
"Yeah."
Quill showed me the Orb.
"Success, then."
"This was a piece of cake. We seem to click pretty well—wanna keep working together? Once I break away from the Yondu family, I'll need a crew."
Quill was trying to recruit me. I didn't answer right away.
"I'll think about it. But where do we trade the Orb?"
"Let's head to Xandar. Yondu has a broker there."
"But aren't you wanted by the Nova Empire?"
"Don't worry about that. I have a way to sneak in. But since I'm doing the heavy lifting, it's 60-40 when we sell this."
"Jeez, fine."
I was wary that Quill might turn on me, but he didn't. Whether he genuinely wanted me as a partner was unclear. During the trip to Xandar, he just played hits from the late '80s and hummed along.
"You're from Earth?"
"Huh? You know Earth?"
"Sure do. I visit sometimes. But Earthlings haven't ventured into space yet—how'd you end up out here?"
Quill told his story. In short, after his mother died of illness, he was kidnapped by aliens who happened to be on Earth—specifically, the Yondu family of the Ravagers. He grew up among them and eventually joined them.
"Well... in a way, after Mom died, I would've had to live with my grandpa in the countryside. Maybe this worked out for the best."
"I see."
"But where are you from?"
"I..."
Just then, a call from Yondu came through on the communicator on the table. Seeing this, Quill said to me.
"Ignore it."
But if we didn't answer, Yondu might put a bounty on Quill, so we had to take it. So, I hacked the Milano to trigger a collision alert.
An alarm blared—"Collision alert! Collision alert!"
"Meteor shower!"
As I evaded, I used telekinesis to knock over the communicator, connecting the call.
"Oops!"
"Quill!!"
"Uh... hey, Yondu."
The call connected, and Yondu's furious face appeared on the monitor. I quickly hid in the pilot's seat.
"I'm on Morag, and there's no Orb and no you. Care to explain?"
"Just saving you the trouble."
"Where are you!? You little punk!"
"Really sorry, but I can't say."
"I busted my ass to set this up! And you steal it?"
"A few calls and that's it!"
"We're Ravagers. There are rules to follow!"
"I know, 'Steal from everyone.'"
"That's not the point right now! I'll find you and..."
Quill just hung up. When I looked at him to ask, he said to me.
"Don't worry. It'll be fine."
Then he turned the music back on and started humming again. Quill's words were half right and half wrong. I knew that while I'd be fine, Quill would have plenty of trouble ahead.
Upon reaching near Xandar, Quill said he'd take the wheel, so I handed over control. He manipulated something on the ship, and instead of the usual route, we moved onto a cargo transport lane. Suddenly veering off, he landed the Milano in what looked like a strange warehouse.
"Impressive. I didn't know there was a way like this."
"Hey, for what it's worth, I'm a famous Ravager known as 'Star-Lord'."
Quill boasted, but he wasn't famous at all. The fact that people on Xandar know him as 'Star Prince' says it all.
"You sell the Orb to the broker. I'll go buy supplies and food."
"Great! Let's meet back at the Milano later."
Quill and I went our separate ways. As he said, I quickly purchased food and supplies and loaded them onto the Milano. This should suffice for long-distance flights.
After prepping the Milano, I went back out to check if the Guardians of the Galaxy members were meeting up properly. Hearing a commotion, I went over and saw Quill, Gamora, Rocket, and Groot all being arrested. Fortunately, it seemed to be following the original plot.
He let out a sigh of relief. Finally, the tangled mess was unraveling.
Now, I thought, the Guardians of the Galaxy would form properly in prison.
Good. Maybe I just need to put the Power Stone back in the Orb?
But on second thought, there was no need to go through the trouble of putting the Power Stone back in the Orb. Since the Guardians of the Galaxy had formed, the Orb probably didn't matter.
Still, if it were empty, it might raise suspicions, so I decided to put something in. So, I shaped the coronatite ore I got from Konosuba to match the Power Stone's size and infused it with maximum energy, creating an energy mass. This amount could fuel two uses of Explosion magic.
Using Stealth, I followed the arrested Quill and waited in the storage area for prisoners' belongings at the satellite prison run by the Nova Empire. When Quill's items arrived, I found the Orb and placed the coronatite energy mass inside.
This way, people will think what was in the Orb wasn't the Power Stone. No need to bother stealing it back from Xandar.
It should be fine since no one has actually seen the Power Stone inside the Orb—it's all speculation. Then I returned to Xandar, intending to buy some necessary machinery. But a problem arose: Quill's ship, the Milano, was still there on Xandar.
"Ah... this is maddening."
Probably because we came to Xandar secretly, unlike in the original, the Milano wasn't impounded and just stayed there. The issue is that the Guardians won't have a ship to escape from prison later.
"Well, nothing to be done. I'll just have to bring it to them later."
I first stashed the Milano in my inventory. Then I enjoyed some shopping. Thinking of gifting a spaceship to Asgard, I went to a ship dealer and bought a new large transport ship. Interestingly, the transport was cheaper than the high-end ship I bought before.
Even after spending units, I still had plenty left. The money from selling vibranium and gambling was enormous. After shopping, I boarded the large cargo ship and headed to Asgard. This ship also had hyperspace technology, so the journey didn't take long.
Since I'd contacted Asgard in advance to prevent misunderstandings, I safely piloted the transport to Asgard. Guided by the Asgardians, I landed the ship in a suitable area and met Odin.
"Welcome. But why did you bring that spaceship?"
"It's nothing much, but to prevent Asgard from being stranded if the Bifrost is damaged again, as before, I've purchased a transport ship."
"Oh~ is that so? Thank you. I've been thinking about that for a while. But as you know, with all the chaos lately, I've been too busy to handle it. You've lifted a weight off my shoulders."
Odin seemed genuinely grateful.
"But how is Thor doing on Midgard?"
"He's physically fine. It's just that he's been struggling since breaking up with Jane."
Odin pondered for a moment before speaking.
"Hmm... you, walk with me."
"Of course."
Odin and I walked around the palace. Then Odin began to speak. Listening, I understood why he wanted to walk.
"I've had many lovers over the long years. But the difference in lifespan brought immense pain. I don't dislike Jane. I just don't want my son to suffer the agony of losing his lover first."
My guess was right. Odin wanted to spare Thor the sorrow of outliving his lover due to his long life. Such a topic must have been hard to discuss with others.
"I see. So that's why."
"Yes, I wish Thor would choose a partner from among the Asgardians. Since you're close to him, I'd appreciate your help."
"I understand completely, but when it comes to love, I'm afraid I can't be of much help."
Odin said regretfully.
"I suppose so..."
"May I presume to say one thing?"
"Go ahead."
"Your Majesty, were there any memories with the lovers you've met over the years that weren't precious?"
Odin reminisced briefly before answering.
"Sigh... you're right. They're all precious memories... I was stealing my son's precious memories. But you see, as a father, I also hope my son will become king and rule stably, so I ask for your understanding."
"I understand."
Thus, we returned to the palace.
"I always end up in your debt. Is there anything you desire?"
"Nothing. Asgard is both teacher and friend to me, so I don't act with any expectation of reward."
"Thank you for those words. Very well. Even so, if you ever need help in the future, don't hesitate to ask."
"Understood."
After parting with Odin, I next met Frigga and Wanda. Frigga was overseeing Wanda's magic training.
"Oh~ Jin, long time no see. Wanda isn't due to return yet—what brings you here?"
"Good to see you, Queen Frigga. I had some business, so I stopped by Asgard."
"I see. Wanda, let's take a break."
"Yes, Master."
I discussed magic training and Thor on Earth with them.
"I see. He broke up with Jane. I didn't raise my son to be like that. It's unfortunate."
"But it doesn't seem like a complete rejection. I think they still have feelings for each other. There was this incident before..."
I told Queen Frigga about when Dr. Helen first arrived. The queen listened with great amusement.
"The situation sounds quite entertaining."
"Your Majesty, this is a secret. Thor might get angry if he finds out I told you."
"I understand. Thanks to you, Jin, today was enjoyable."
After finishing the conversation and saying goodbye, I left. Finally, I went to see Loki. He was in his cell, reading a book.
"The berserker is back."
"Yeah, how've you been?"
"Same as always."
"Does Thor visit sometimes?"
"No, he probably forgot I'm here."
"I see. I'll tell him his brother misses him."
At that, Loki scowled and said.
"Instead of that, tell him I'll escape soon and come to wring his neck!"
Still the tsundere-like Loki. Once again, I asked the guards to give Loki some meals and snacks. Then I headed to Earth.
Arriving on Earth, I went to Avengers HQ and found Tony and Banner whispering about something. Curious, I joined their conversation.
"Oh~ Jin, perfect timing. It's just that among the HYDRA tech in S.H.I.E.L.D., there's a way to scan a human brain and create an AI. So, we're thinking of giving it a try."
Don't tell me...
Probably referring to the technology that transferred Dr. Zola's consciousness. As if some force of the world was insisting, Tony was determined to create Ultron.
"We already have J.A.R.V.I.S.—do we need another AI?"
"We want to create an AI that doesn't just follow orders but thinks and judges more like a human."
"And what if it sees us as enemies?"
"Come on, that won't happen. That's just movie stuff. And with aliens invading, we need a solid defense system, in my opinion."
Tony was missing the point—this world itself is a creation, and those things do happen.
"And about this..."
Tony said the AI was still in research, so we'd prepare gradually, and he showed me a blueprint. It was a project called Iron Vision—robot drones to support members and handle crowd control.
"We're planning to mass-produce these. What do you think?"
"Oh~ that's a great idea. Especially since Iron Man is popular, if used well, it could be fantastic, right?"
When I praised the idea, Tony's face lit up.
"Right? So, help me with the mass production."
"But will J.A.R.V.I.S. manage these?"
"Yes."
If handled properly, the drones shouldn't be a problem.
"I see. Got it. How about making around 100 units?"
"Wow~ that's Jin for you. But that's too many, so let's start with 30. I'll cover the production costs."
"Let's do 40. I'll fund 20. 20 for HQ, 20 for Avengers Tower. How's that?"
"Deal!"
Tony and I shook hands. My reason for supporting this was clear: I intended to make them hack-proof from the start. That way, even if Ultron is created, it can't mess with them. I immediately went to the island and tweaked the blueprints.
I significantly boosted the anti-hacking capabilities as the first barrier, set the command authorities to Tony, J.A.R.V.I.S., and Minerva, then began mass production. Minerva was an AI made with advanced future tech, so hacking through her was virtually impossible. With this second barrier in place, I thought even Ultron couldn't hack the drones.
I left the mass production to the androids Lara and Lulu. Then I moved to the satellite prison of Xandar. The time for the Guardians of the Galaxy to escape was approaching.