"A modern society won't work, right?" Kurumi asked.
"No," Souta shook his head. "You shouldn't overestimate the intelligence of modern people. Besides..."
He explained, "Black Bullet is a post-apocalyptic world. The young girls there live in utter despair. In such conditions, faith is incredibly easy to manipulate."
"Hmm? Young? Easy to manipulate?"
Kurumi picked up on the keywords and gave him a scrutinizing look.
If Souta had any improper tendencies, she would personally correct him.
And if that correction failed... she would simply use Bullet Eight to materialize a younger version of herself. No way was she letting him "mess around" with others.
"Cough... No, that's not what I meant." Souta quickly rephrased, "I mean that the children in that world are discriminated against and live in constant suffering. They are truly pitiful. I want to use my power to help them, but since my strength is limited, I need to gather their faith to convert it into divine power. By helping each other, we can create a better environment for them to live in."
Sometimes, how you phrase something completely changes how it is perceived.
"If you say, 'The girl I like is lying in another man's arms,' people will sympathize with you. But if you say, 'I like lying in the arms of another man's girl,' you're just asking to get punched."
Sure enough, Kurumi's expression softened.
"Gathering faith while saving lives... That's actually a good plan. But for the initial phase, I'd recommend choosing Akame ga Kill instead."
After making her suggestion, she elaborated:
"In Akame ga Kill, there's already an established Path of Peace religious organization. If we can take over, we won't have to start a new religion from scratch. That would make things a lot easier."
"That would indeed be more convenient. But there are pros and cons. Akame ga Kill is far more dangerous than Black Bullet, so we need to factor that in."
Souta fell into deep thought.
No Game No Life and FGO/Absolute Demonic Front were best left for later when he had more power.
Between Black Bullet and Akame ga Kill... which one should he start with?
Just then, his system phone vibrated.
[Seventh Friend Invitation Sent]
[Eighth Friend Invitation Sent]
The system's voice rang in Souta's mind.
Kurumi also received the notification.
The two exchanged glances before picking up their phones to check the group.
Two new names had appeared on the Friend Group Member List—
Tokisaki Kurumi: "@Chelsea @Tanjiro Kamado Welcome, newcomers. The system is explained in detail in the group announcement. Any questions you have will likely be answered there, so go take a look."
Altair: "Another two invitations at once, huh? Looks will be the pattern going forward."
Altair: "@Souta By the way, weren't you planning to gather faith? How's that going? I'm quite curious about the properties of the 'divine spark' you're trying to convert."
Souta: "I was still deciding on a location, but now I've made up my mind. Coincidentally, it's related to our new members."
Tokisaki Kurumi: "A coincidence? Does this mean it's connected to the newcomers?"
Altair: "Oh? Are you heading to the new members' worlds?"
Souta glanced at Kurumi, a little surprised at her sharp intuition.
Sensing his gaze, Kurumi smiled.
"You recognized the newcomers' identities?"
"Yes," Souta nodded. "These two likely didn't provide nicknames to the system, so it used their real names. And I happen to recognize both of them."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Well... How should I put it? Their worlds have low technological development—or rather, their technological trees are a bit... skewed. They don't have mobile phones or similar communication tools."
"If something unfamiliar suddenly appeared and asked for their names, most people wouldn't respond."
Tanjiro Kamado was undoubtedly the protagonist of Demon Slayer.
The idea that someone from another world just happened to have that name was way too much of a coincidence. Souta didn't believe in such odds.
At this moment, he felt a little emotional—
Finally, there's another male member in the group!
Not that he ever had a problem with it, but...
It wasn't like he saw the chat group as his personal harem or anything.
And Tanjiro was actually someone he respected.
Becoming friends with him sounds pretty great, honestly.
Souta was more focused on Chelsea.
If he wasn't mistaken, she was the "Needle Girl" from Akame ga Kill—the one whose severed head was impaled on a pole by Kurome.
Of course, since she had been chosen by the system, it meant she was still alive.
The only question was—which point in time had she been taken from?
Souta: "@Altair. Yep, the newcomers' worlds match my criteria perfectly. Now I won't have to spend points on a Traversal Card."
Souta: "@Chelsea Have you read the announcement? If you have, please reply."
Neither Chelsea nor Tanjiro Kamado said a word.
Souta sighed inwardly but quickly shrugged it off.
They were probably wary of the system phone.
After all, they came from eras without such technology—being cautious and observing for now was a natural reaction.
Rin Tohsaka: "So we have more new members now, huh?"
Rin Tohsaka: "By the way, Souta, do you know what's going to happen to me in the upcoming Holy Grail War?"
Souta: "Yes. I actually forgot to tell you—the Greater Grail in Fuyuki City has been corrupted by humanity's malice. It's filled with dark magical energy that brings disaster rather than granting wishes. The massive fire that engulfed Fuyuki City? That was caused by the Grail."
Rin Tohsaka: "Wait! That's extremely important information! Why didn't you say anything earlier?! The Holy Grail War is about to start!"
Souta: "I've been busy with missions and completely forgot about it."
Rin Tohsaka: "Can you tell me everything that's going to happen? I'll owe you one."
Souta: "That's fine, but I don't remember every little detail. How about you come over and see for yourself?"
Souta: "If you come here, I can make a phone for you and download all the information. You can take it back and study it at your own pace."
Tokisaki Kurumi: "..."
Illyasviel von Einzbern: "I want one too!"
Illyasviel von Einzbern: "I want to know what happens in the future too!"
Souta: "Oh? Illya, does that mean you finally believe in the system?"
Illyasviel von Einzbern: "Don't underestimate me. After all this time, I've already figured out what's real and what's not."
Souta: "Alright then, why don't you both come together? It'll be more convenient."
Rin Tohsaka: "No way! I refuse to work alongside an Einzbern!"
Souta: "You don't need to be so guarded. Illya summoned her Servant two months early—if she wanted to, she could come over and take you out right now. There's no point in being paranoid."