"As for my request..."
Seeing that Sakonji Urokodaki was now fully intrigued, Souta didn't keep him guessing and got straight to the point.
"Your Demon Slayer Corps leader, Kagaya Ubuyashiki, is a highly skilled organizer with remarkable charisma. I want him to use all his resources to help me establish a religion—one that worships a god."
"Establish... a religion?"
Sakonji was visibly taken aback. It was the first time he'd ever heard such a request.
But then, remembering Souta's divine nature, he began to understand a little.
A religion—or rather, faith—was probably something essential to a god.
Pushing aside his surprise, Sakonji began to quietly consider the feasibility of it all.
"Can the Pillars of past generations truly be resurrected?"
Thinking of how the Demon Slayer Corps had existed for over 500 years, Sakonji couldn't help but be doubtful. He reminded Souta, "Some of the Pillars have been dead for hundreds of years."
"As long as their souls still exist, it shouldn't be a problem."
Souta gave it a little thought but kept his words measured. "Of course, I'm not entirely sure what states souls manifest in after death in your world. If they've already attained Buddhahood or reincarnated, then they're likely beyond saving."
If someone had already reincarnated, it's not like he could kill their current form, extract their soul, and shove it back into their old body to restore them to what they were.
Would that even be saving someone, or just killing again?
"Thinking about it now... I may have overlooked something. Maybe only those who've recently died can be revived. For example... Shinobu's sister? In the manga, her soul did appear, which means she hadn't reincarnated yet."
Souta began evaluating the feasibility of resurrecting former Pillars.
He quickly realized that if souls had already transcended or been reborn, bringing back those long gone was likely unviable.
That dream scenario he had of "dozens of Pillars teaming up to beat Upper Moons and Muzan into submission, scaring Muzan out of his wits" might just stay a fantasy.
Even if the past Pillars could be brought back, they might not boost overall strength that much.
Outside of the generation during the Sengoku era, most previous Pillars weren't as strong as the current ones—many would probably struggle even against a Lower Moon.
But today's Nine Pillars? Their individual strength was overwhelming, enough to obliterate Lower Moons with ease.
After some thought, Souta came up with an alternative.
"Sakonji-san, reviving all the Pillars might not be feasible, but... what I can offer the Demon Slayer Corps is far more than resurrection alone."
He paused to recall the plot in his mind, then asked a question.
"The leader of the Demon Slayer Corps is always from the Ubuyashiki family, right? And every generation, the members of that family suffer from poor health. Even though they marry girls descended from priestly bloodlines to extend their lives, none of them ever live past thirty. Is that correct?"
Sakonji's face grew solemn.
Everyone in the Demon Slayer Corps deeply respected their current leader, Kagaya Ubuyashiki. His fragile health left them both helpless and heartbroken.
Souta said with confident calm, "Healing someone born with a chronic condition is nothing to me. More than that, I can even eliminate the curse that has plagued the Ubuyashiki bloodline."
This time, Sakonji wasn't even surprised.
He kept reminding himself—this man in front of him was a god.
If resurrection was on the table, what was healing compared to that?
"And one more thing," Souta continued. "Your Demon Slayer Corps has lost the Sun Breathing technique, hasn't it?"
"Sun Breathing... the original breathing style!" Sakonji's eyes widened. "Do you know where the legacy is?"
Sun Breathing had been used by swordsmen during the Sengoku era. All current breathing techniques had evolved from it.
In terms of raw power, there was no dispute—Sun Breathing stood at the top.
The strongest swordsman in Demon Slayer history, Yoriichi Tsugikuni, had wielded it. He had pushed Muzan Kibutsuji to the brink of destruction and left him paralyzed with fear.
If the demon progenitor hadn't been so adept at hiding, he would've been eradicated long ago.
"I don't know. But..." Souta smiled, "I can use divine power to retrieve the lost legacy from the fabric of history and gift it to the Demon Slayer Corps."
A golden light flickered in his eyes, as if he could peer into the past.
Extracting Sun Breathing from the annals of time wasn't difficult. After all, it wasn't predicting the future—it was observing what had already been. Much less taxing.
"So? Not a bad deal, right?" Souta's tone was light. "If your Corps leader helps me set up this religion, I'll deliver everything I've just promised. Not a single benefit left out."
Sakonji fell into silence.
Calling these terms "not bad" was an understatement.
If he were the leader of the Corps, he might've agreed on the spot.
But he wasn't. So he had to think carefully.
This wasn't just about him—it affected the future direction of the entire Demon Slayer Corps.
From demon slaying... to spreading a religion?
He visualized that shift for a moment and couldn't help feeling the whole tone of their world would change.
Meanwhile, Souta patiently waited for Sakonji's reply, not showing the least bit of urgency.
Truthfully, it had all been a spur-of-the-moment idea—he'd simply realized how convenient resurrection was in this world and proposed a trade.
He wasn't particularly serious about it.
Otherwise, he could've just gone straight to "persuading" this country's government.
But doing that would've been a hassle. He'd have to handle all the aftermath himself, piece by piece.
He already had enough on his plate with the religion back in the "Akame ga Kill" world. No way he was taking on another one personally.
That's why he needed someone else to manage this one.
"If I'm building a religion, the ideal proxy needs to be a skilled politician. The Lord of the Path of Peace in the Akame world fits the bill. And in this world... Kagaya Ubuyashiki is perfect."
Souta thought of the current leader of the Demon Slayer Corps.
Charismatic and composed, he spoke gently and respectfully, his voice and demeanor naturally soothing others. That was a gift—one only true leaders had.
He met every single one of Souta's standards for a proxy.
Maybe someone more suitable than Kagaya existed in this world, but... Souta wasn't going to go looking.
He already knew Kagaya, and he was confident in the man's character. That was enough.
"Still, resurrection can't be used recklessly. It could stir up all kinds of chaos if abused."
Souta began carefully considering the finer details.