After giving Yukari an enigmatic smile and shooing her out of the bamboo house, Sū ěr was certain he had given her enough to think about to keep her from getting a good night's sleep.
Much like the time he discovered a way to bring down the arrogant "Exceed" races, Sū ěr was brimming with drive. The sense of achievement in personally participating in history and watching a world grow complex was truly alluring.
With this thought born, he was almost impatient. Unfortunately, time would not accelerate for him. That future of skyscrapers would have to wait at least until these beings called humans evolved further, both physically and mentally—here, in this world of gods and demons?
"What? Regrets?" Seeing Sū ěr, who had been pacing with an excited look, suddenly stop, Think raised an eyebrow.
It wasn't just the vanishing smile, but the sense of confusion and difficulty radiating from his heart. What had he thought of now?
Think couldn't read his thoughts directly, but she could sense the emotions of the man she was linked to. She relied on her long history with him to judge his intent, but even she couldn't guess the sudden ideas that occasionally popped into his head.
"...No, nothing," Sū ěr shook his head, falling back into contemplation.
In this world crowded with gods and youkai, could these humans created by gods truly reach the heights of his first life?
Sū ěr realized he had made a mistake. Upon hearing familiar names like Amaterasu and Susanoo, he had subconsciously projected the image of his first life onto this world. In his mind, he had assumed this world would evolve into the island nation of Japan—but would it really?
At the very least, he could be 100% certain that in his first world, youkai and gods were merely characters in stories; no one had ever confirmed their existence in reality. But here, they were real.
The humans of both Yamato and Izumo had grown accustomed to being ruled by gods or youkai, and those rulers saw it as their birthright. Even with Yamato destroyed, that wouldn't change.
More accurately, in this era where life was as fragile as straw, humans needed the help of those gods or youkai who were benevolent or saw them as useful, otherwise they couldn't survive.
Would those gods and youkai be happy to let humans slip from their control?
Even the few who currently felt goodwill—when they discovered humans no longer needed them to grow strong and live better, perhaps even surpassing the weaker youkai, could they maintain that attitude?
Could they accept that those who once huddled at their feet like pets, living on their whim, had become equals or even beings they had to look up to?
Sū ěr recalled the Qing Dynasty from his first life. Emperor Qianlong wasn't unaware of what was happening in the West; he was pen pals with Louis XVI and had a correct understanding of gunpowder and "clever crafts." Yet, to stabilize Manchu rule, he maintained a policy of isolation, even knowing it would cause the nation to lag far behind the West.
If humans are like that, what about youkai, a race born of desire and ambition? The gods of this world, as far as Sū ěr could see, didn't possess "divinity." They were more like people than gods, much like the Greek gods of his memory.
When humans can walk their own path through their own strength, how will they react? Will they be so unable to accept it that they destroy it, or will they joyfully help humanity take the next step toward a harmonious society of humans, youkai, and gods?
To be honest, Sū ěr couldn't imagine how the second scenario could occur without external force. The mere fantasy made his skin crawl.
In this reality, if he wanted to see that future where humans mastered the world, should he do something... like killing every god and youkai?
The thought startled him the moment it leaped into his mind. He was shocked that he could produce such a blunt idea. There was no logic in "solving the problem by solving the person who caused it."
Sū ěr realized how his mindset had shifted after obtaining absolute power. In the past, he would never have considered a plan of "balancing everything through slaughter." He had to be more cautious with the sword in his hand.
Reflections aside, the problem was real. This world lacked the "cheat-code" of the previous world—the absolute command that forced the world to end war and rewind time... at least, Sū ěr hadn't found such a tool yet.
Gods, youkai, humans—the three formed a puzzle that seemed impossible to solve.
"I don't know what you're thinking, but it definitely has to do with those monkeys, doesn't it?" Think sighed, seeing Sū ěr conflicted look. "The humans of this world... forget it. Weren't we going to Izumo? When do we leave?"
"Huh?" Sū ěr didn't understand. They had just gotten home and she wanted to go out again?
"Ultimately, you don't have a deep understanding of your 'kin' in this world, do you? All you've seen is the twisted system of Yamato and their appearance. No matter what you eventually want to do, you have to actually look at their lives, don't you?" Think said calmly. "Perhaps they don't even need your help."
"...True." Sū ěr scratched his hair and sighed. "It's not right to just move myself into the position of a savior out of self-satisfaction. Even a revolution needs soil... Let's go see."
"What the 'nation of gods and youkai' actually looks like."