[Founder of the Golden Spirit: @Lord of the White Holy Throne — I've already reached the Demon Slayer Corps.]
Huh? Already?
Out on the Primordial River, Anthony sat fishing, one hand on the rod, one part of his mind drifting over to the group chat. A flicker of genuine surprise crossed his face.
[Lord of the White Holy Throne: Muzan's been dealt with already?]
[Founder of the Golden Spirit: Everything I could see has been cleaned up. His recovery is going to take a very, very long time.]
[Founder of the Golden Spirit: After wrapping things up, I ran into a young woman. She said her lord wanted to meet me, so I followed her — and it turns out I've walked straight into the Demon Slayer Corps' headquarters.]
[Strictest Father of the Demon King: The Demon Slayer Corps... what a name that brings back memories.]
[Lord of the White Holy Throne: We can get to that later — are you already there now? Can you take a few photos? I want to get a read on where the timeline currently stands.]
[Founder of the Golden Spirit: Sure.]
[Founder of the Golden Spirit has uploaded five photographs.]
Anthony tapped through the photos Jonathan had sent, going through them one by one — and then he noticed something.
This timeline... it looked like the original story hadn't even started yet. All Nine Pillars were alive and well. Ubuyashiki Kagaya was there too. But there was no sign of Tanjiro anywhere.
The timeline is early. But honestly — that's perfect. Taking out Muzan at this point in time is absolutely the best possible outcome.
Anthony reeled in his line, glanced at his Points balance — now sitting at a comfortable 34,000 — and typed back to Jonathan:
[Lord of the White Holy Throne: Don't worry about it. Muzan has definitely gone to ground for now — he won't be causing any trouble in the short term. And finding him again when the time comes is simple: we just have Joseph take a photo, and that's that.]
Old man, your Stand is truly the most useful thing about you.
The strictest father of all villains who feed on intel has arrived.
[Lord of the White Holy Throne: Anyway — you're heading to meet Ubuyashiki Kagaya right now, yes? Can I come along?]
[Founder of the Golden Spirit: Hm? You want to come?]
[Lord of the White Holy Throne: Yes... give me a moment.]
And with that, Anthony poured his consciousness into his avatar.
In Great Yan, inside an ancient temple, Wàng had been sitting quietly over a game of Go, deep in thought — when the rustle of movement beside him caught his attention. He turned, and found Anthony slowly getting to his feet.
"Po — heading out?" Wàng asked.
Anthony gave a single nod. "Two things I need to take care of. If the Sizuitai asks, cover for me."
Wàng waved a hand with complete indifference — and in the very instant Anthony stepped out through the temple doorway, his figure vanished without a trace.
As for whether the Sizuitai would once again let out one of its sharp, piercing alarms — that was entirely outside Anthony's circle of concern. After these past few days, he and Wàng had arrived at a remarkably similar attitude toward the matter.
Stand recalled. Back on the Primordial River, Anthony lowered his eyes and cast his line once more.
And in that same moment, the avatar known as Po was launched — straight into the world of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba.
Using the group chat to lock onto Jonathan's position with effortless precision:
[Lord of the White Holy Throne: @Founder of the Golden Spirit — would you mind letting their lord know that a friend of yours is on his way? I'll be there shortly. Leave the talking to me once I arrive.]
On the other side, Jonathan — who had just stepped inside the estate — saw the message and gave a quiet nod to himself, then turned toward the frail-looking man seated before him.
Frail as he was, the man still extended a hand toward Jonathan — and shook it firmly:
"You must be the formidable swordsman from the mountain earlier. An honor to meet you. I am the current master of the Demon Slayer Corps — you may call me Ubuyashiki Kagaya..."
"Jonathan. Jonathan Joestar."
Jonathan clasped Ubuyashiki Kagaya's hand and shook it, then spoke plainly and without preamble:
"The commotion on the mountain behind your estate — that was my doing. If it caused any disturbance, I apologize in advance. As for everything else... I'm afraid I'm not particularly suited to negotiations."
"Your meaning being?" Ubuyashiki Kagaya's expression shifted slightly, curiosity edging into his voice.
"I have a friend. I've already told him where I am. He'll be along shortly — I'll leave matters to him."
Jonathan finished saying this — and then, just as the words left his mouth, something in his expression paused. He spoke softly:
"He should be here already."
As if on cue, at the entrance of the main hall, a young man slowly pulled aside the door curtain. A smile that seemed to have lived on his face for years was fixed there as he stepped into the room. Once inside, he turned to Ubuyashiki Kagaya and bowed his head in greeting.
"Good day, Master Ubuyashiki Kagaya."
He spoke in an even, unhurried tone: "I am this gentleman Jonathan's friend. You may call me Po."
Since he was no longer on Terra, Anthony had taken the liberty of resetting his avatar's appearance — stripping away the Dragonkin features entirely.
Ubuyashiki Kagaya looked at the young man before him, and inwardly, his heart gave a startled lurch.
How on earth did he get in here? This was the most fortified inner sanctum of the Demon Slayer Corps — and yet he had strolled in openly, without a single Pillar noticing, without a single report reaching Ubuyashiki himself.
Just what is going on?
Meanwhile, Anthony studied Ubuyashiki Kagaya — and the longer he looked, the more delighted he felt.
Oh. Ubuyashiki Kagaya. Now this is promising.
This, right here, is a prime-grade cash cow.
In Demon Slayer, the Demon Slayer Corps was technically a private organization — but its scale was far from small. And that was due in no small part to the Ubuyashiki family, the Corps' founding line.
Anthony had a deep and abiding fondness for people with money. At the very minimum, setting up a small Worship Shrine or two, generating a trickle of Points — that was absolutely on the table.
Granted, the average person from the Demon Slayer world probably couldn't match a Terran in baseline quality, so the Soul Energy yield per capita would be somewhat lower... but even a mosquito has meat on it. If the individual yield was modest, you simply made it up in volume.
Gazing at this fine specimen of a wealthy patron — ahem — at Ubuyashiki Kagaya, Anthony felt the warmth visibly soften his expression.
Honestly, seeing such a magnificent cash cow just sitting right here in front of him, Anthony had a nagging feeling — that if he didn't squeeze at least a little, it would be an absolute, unforgivable waste of the opportunity.
"...Please, have a seat."
Ubuyashiki Kagaya, questions churning behind his serene exterior, maintained his composure and gestured for the two of them to sit. Jonathan and Anthony settled side by side, both looking across at Ubuyashiki Kagaya.
Ubuyashiki Kagaya seemed to be searching for where to begin — but Anthony got there first.
"Master Ubuyashiki Kagaya," Anthony said, "I think I have a fairly good idea of what you'd like to say... and as it happens, we share a remarkably similar goal."
Anthony's eyes narrowed slightly, and he spoke in a quiet, easy tone:
"So — shall we make a deal?"
"A deal?"
"That's right..."
Anthony smiled — unhurried, and entirely sure of himself: "We kill Kibutsuji Muzan. All you need to do is lend a little assistance — a contribution of money and effort. Nothing more."
"What do you say?"
____
👻🔥Walnut-chan🔥👻
🔥 New history: Re:Zero: Wrath Route Yandere Emilia Watches the Projection
🎯 100 Powerstones = +1 Bonus Chapter for everyone