Witnessed by the shrine maidens, the Shinto priests, and all the members of the Demon Slayer Corps, the god descended.
Without any command, everyone dropped to their knees in unison.
Even the most rebellious Wind Hashira, Sanemi Shinazugawa; the most sensitive and suspicious Serpent Hashira, Obanai Iguro; and the calmest Water Hashira, Giyu Tomioka, held not a shred of doubt in their hearts.
It wasn't because of their master's earlier threat to kill himself, nor was it out of a cultural reverence for the divine.
Their submission, like everyone else present, was purely because they felt a sanctity and majesty akin to heaven and earth—no, even surpassing heaven and earth—emanating from the noble and untouchable figure before them.
This feeling of insignificance and awe, born from facing a being whose level of existence far exceeded their own, was absolutely not an illusion.
At first, the Hashira had worried that their master had been deceived by some special Blood Demon Art. It was only now, after seeing the god in person, that they finally understood what an irrefutable truth was, what a supremely venerable existence was.
In the face of this level of sanctity, forget Blood Demon Art; even the so-called Demon King, Kibutsuji Muzan, wasn't fit to lick his boots.
There was no possibility of impersonation. This was a god! A god who stood above all things in the world!
Kanae Kocho: "Thank you for your mercy, Lord Su Mo!"
While praising him as a shrine maiden before the shrine, Kanae also expressed her gratitude again in the group chat.
This time, her thanks were not for his help, but for his gentleness.
With Su Mo's current power, mortals were not normally qualified to even feel his divine might. The reason so many people were subdued in an instant was that Su Mo had deliberately suppressed his Divinity to a five-digit level, allowing them to perceive it.
This wasn't to display his majesty, but to show his compassion. In the face of such oppressive power, any ill intentions would be purged.
"There is no need for such formalities."
Su Mo shook his head. After scanning the crowd before him, his gaze settled on two young shrine maidens who bore a strong resemblance to Kanae.
"Your sisters?"
Kanae was currently sixteen, Shinobu was thirteen, and Kanao was even younger, only eleven. The three sisters standing together looked like a set of Russian nesting dolls, which was quite amusing.
"Yes, that's right. This is Shinobu, and this little one here is Kanao," Kanae nodded, introducing them immediately. To her, Kanao was also like her own sister.
"Th-This humble girl pays her respects to Lord Su Mo!" Shinobu, suddenly introduced, was so nervous she began to tremble, her voice shaking as she spoke.
No matter how bold she usually was, she had never imagined a day like this. For the past few days, she had thought she and her sister were getting married off. Who knew they were actually coming for an audience with a god!
Unlike her, Kanao was much more direct and simple. She didn't quite understand the whole "god" and "shrine maiden" thing.
While she felt Su Mo's oppressive aura and knew he was a very important person, the erroneous information Shinobu had drilled into her head had not yet been corrected.
So, the small, slender eleven-year-old girl raised her head with a look of innocent confusion and answered blankly, "Kanao pays her respects to... Lord Husband."
"Eh, eh, eh?!"
Her words left everyone stunned. What was going on?
Shinobu's face turned pale. She had forgotten to correct Kanao.
Actually, it wasn't that she forgot; she herself had only been certain that a real god had descended a few seconds ago, and not that her sister's lover had come to see if she was worthy of being taken as a concubine.
Naturally, she hadn't had time to explain to Kanao.
Fortunately, Kanae was quick-witted enough to have anticipated Kanao's reaction. In her urgency, she immediately scolded her, "Kanao! Although a shrine maiden has the duty of being a god's bride, we are but one among thousands. You must never call a god 'husband.' That is great disrespect!"
Hearing this, the others finally understood. In Shintoism, the word for shrine maiden, miko, is a homophone for "child of god." They were sometimes seen as a god's daughters, sometimes as his wives, and sometimes simply as his servants.
Kanao's understanding wasn't entirely wrong, especially since the deity before them was male.
Of course, as Kanae had said, no matter how favored she might be, a shrine maiden was still just a shrine maiden, with a status equivalent to a concubine.
She did not have the right to call him "husband"; that was a privilege reserved for a wife.
"Oh!" Kanao nodded blankly, then apologized blankly. "I'm sorry, Lord Su Mo."
Judging by her expression, it was hard to say if she truly understood what she had misunderstood.
"It's nothing."
Fortunately, Su Mo wasn't bothered by such trivial matters.
The people before him already viewed the shrine maidens as the property of a god, so they naturally wouldn't overstep and think Kanao was offending his divine authority.
With Kanae's quick thinking, the people of the Demon Slayer world were easily placated. But the Chat Group was a different story.
Although the incident itself was just a little girl's mistake, the implications behind it were seen clearly by the sharp-eyed detectives.
Rin Tohsaka: "Deliberately choosing the shrine maiden outfit, which carries the meaning of 'god's bride'... what are you up to, Kanae?"
Jibril: "Hmph! Knowing your place is not worthy of being the main wife is a sign of self-awareness. But the advantage of sisters is nothing. I have over a thousand sisters! The advantage is mine!"
Any discerning person, especially a discerning woman, could see Kanae's ulterior motives at a glance. Even Madoka had figured it out.
Madoka Kaname: "How despicable! Big Sis Kanae is trying to get a head start!"
When it came to competition, anyone who wasn't an idiot could sense which way the wind was blowing.
However, the group was not lacking in idiots.
March 7th: "Eh? What are you all suddenly talking about? Didn't she already clear up the misunderstanding?" the pink-haired girl asked, scratching her head in confusion.
Rin Tohsaka: "..."
Rin Tohsaka: "March 7th, you should just stick to playing with your camera!"
March 7th: "Why would you say that? Is there something wrong with photography?" the girl who was the personification of Entangled Fates asked, bewildered.
Rin Tohsaka: "There's nothing wrong with it. It's just... I can already see your tragic future."
Rin Tohsaka: "Falling in love with someone but being too dense to realize it, then watching helplessly as the person you love gets snatched away by some vixen, and you even have to force a smile and help them take commemorative photos... Tsk, tsk, how tragic!"
March 7th's dense personality made her a prime candidate for the classic NTR protagonist!
March 7th: "Waaah! What are you talking about? I'm not that stupid!"
Evidently, the pink-haired girl was still oblivious.
Rin Tohsaka: "Hopeless."
Shiroyasha: "Hopeless."
Erica Blandelli: "Hopeless."
While the others were spamming the chat, Su Mo ignored the nonsensical banter. He looked up at the night sky.
"The ceremony ends here for now. Let's solve your problem first," he said to Kanae.
Hearing this, Kagaya Ubuyashiki looked up excitedly.
Even though his eyes couldn't see, he could sense the location of that supremely sacred presence. Su Mo's advent had shaken him to his core, and the words he spoke now made him so excited he was about to faint.
A problem? What problem could a god be here to solve?
"Sister!" Shinobu's eyes widened. She finally realized what was important.
A god wouldn't descend to marry three shrine maidens. The reason her sister had been so excited, the reason their master had worked so hard... could it be for—
"Lord Su Mo, are you planning to deal with Kibutsuji Muzan now?" Kanae stated the god's intention without any hesitation.
Concealing the news of the god's descent was only a precaution to ensure the ceremony went off without a hitch. Now that Su Mo had arrived, there was no need to hide their intentions.
His arrival itself was a death sentence for their enemy; it was just a matter of whether the end came a day sooner or later.
Hearing Kanae's words, all the members of the Demon Slayer Corps, including the Hashira, wore expressions of ecstatic joy, then pressed their foreheads to the ground so hard they didn't care if they bled.
Man-eating demons had plagued Japan for nearly a thousand years. Had a god finally descended to kill them?
"Mm."
As everyone listened with bated breath, their nerves taut with anticipation, Su Mo's nod was like a divine oracle, putting them at ease. No, it wasn't "like" an oracle; it was an oracle, through and through.
---||---
In the Chat Group, everyone was already accustomed to Su Mo's decisive attitude and had long guessed what he would do first. A few of them began to offer helpful suggestions.
Madoka Kaname: "Big Brother Su Mo, how are you going to find Kibutsuji Muzan?"
Even a child understood that finding a mob character was harder than killing one.
March 7th: "There are a lot of people in Japan at this time, and he could have fled to another country. Searching for him like a needle in a haystack would be too much trouble. I've been thinking for a few minutes and came up with a brilliant plan!"
March 7th: "What if we lure Kibutsuji Muzan out with news of the Blue Spider Lily? Wouldn't that catch him in one go?"
March 7th: "I even checked earlier. In Kanae's era, they can't replicate the Blue Spider Lily yet."
March 7th: "Tricking a demon with technology would surely work! What do you guys think of this plan?"
The pink-haired girl, using her world-shaking wisdom, had found a perfect solution. After speaking, she puffed out her chest proudly, expecting the group's approval.
However—
Rin Tohsaka: "..."
Shiroyasha: "..."
Jibril: "..."
The group fell silent.
March 7th: "Hey, why isn't anyone saying anything?"
March 7th: "Are you all stunned by my world-shaking wisdom?"
The pink-haired girl was utterly confused.
Just then, the twin-tailed girl spoke up.
Rin Tohsaka: "March 7th, is it possible, and I'm just saying, is it possible, that Lord Su Mo doesn't need to do things in such a complicated way?"
Rin Tohsaka: "A mere planet-wide area, a population of less than six billion... Is it possible that for Lord Su Mo, a background of this scale doesn't even count as a 'haystack,' maybe not even a 'small bottle'?"
An increase in power wasn't just about strength, speed, and defense; it was a multi-dimensional improvement in things like calculation and perception.
Even if Rin herself wasn't at that level, she could understand through Ishtar's Saint Graph that what was a dilemma for humans might be worthless to a higher being.
March 7th: "?!"
The pink-haired girl was stunned. She was the classic type who was strong but lacked intelligence, tracking, and calculation skills. Confined by her human way of thinking, she naturally couldn't see the bigger picture.
Rin Tohsaka: "Never mind anything else, do you think the Aeon of Erudition in your world needs to use bait to find someone?"
March 7th: "Oh, right!"
The pink-haired girl finally understood. If even the Erudition could browse the world, a mere planet would be even simpler for Su Mo. All he had to do was observe the entire planet, right?
Watching the debate between the two, Shiroyasha felt a little amused. Although Rin's point was correct, her conclusion still had a "the emperor uses a golden hoe to farm" kind of vibe.
Shiroyasha: "I think for something this simple, you don't even need to calculate."
Shiroyasha: "If you don't believe me, look. While you two were arguing, Su Mo has already made his move!"
At her words, March 7th and Rin's gazes returned to the live broadcast.
And by then, Su Mo had indeed made his move.
It was light! The radiance of the sun!
In the dead of night, the sun had descended!