Anime Multiverse: Building a Pantheon from Scratch

Chiba Prefecture.

It was a large and well-known region not far from East Tokyo, and if you took the JR Sōbu Line's shinkansen, it was just a 40-minute ride away.

"It's actually that close?" Luo Shu looked surprised after hearing from Kasumigaoka Utaha where the demon was located.

He had expected it to be in some remote, isolated place. But who would have thought—it was in Chiba.

"Do you want me to ask for leave on your behalf?" Utaha asked with curiosity. "Since Chiba isn't far from East Capital, if you move fast, you might even be able to deal with that demon in just a day."

"What kind of nonsense are you spouting?" Luo Shu rolled his eyes at her. "Do we even have a reason to deal with that demon?"

"Ah…" Utaha opened her mouth slightly, staring blankly at him.

Seeing her like that, Luo Shu let out a soft laugh and spoke in the tone of a seasoned veteran, "Maybe I haven't said this clearly before, but from this point on, you'd best remember every word I'm about to say."

"First of all, we are not heroes here to save the world, nor are we gods sent to deliver salvation to all."

Hearing the word god, Utaha gave Luo Shu a strange look, clearly not convinced.

"I know you don't agree," Luo Shu said with a smirk. "From your perspective, I really am a god. But let me ask you a question first."

"Does God really love mankind?"

"Would He offer His help to complete strangers without expecting anything in return—just to deal with a sealed demon?"

Utaha's expression stiffened. She had begun to understand what Luo Shu was trying to say.

Seeing that she was finally catching on, Luo Shu's smile deepened. He said, "If you were the one attacked or harmed by a demon, then of course, as your higher deity, I'd have every reason to step in and punish them."

"But right now, between me and that demon? There's no grudge, no enmity. In fact, I even helped her out passively once. She may not know it, but at the very least, we're strangers with no conflict."

"Considering how a demon sorcerer from Celestial Astronomy went so far as to steal an artifact from their own organization just to come to Japan and fight this demon… Let's assume this demon is on par with Sharon at her peak."

"And that brings me to the real question—would you voluntarily provoke someone like Sharon for no reason?"

As Luo Shu spoke, Utaha calmly turned her thoughts inward.

She had to admit—his reasoning wasn't wrong.

If you removed the idea of demons being fantasy monsters, and ignored the terrifying rumors often associated with them, then labeling someone as evil just because of their race was an extremely irresponsible thing to do.

With her psychic abilities, Utaha was well aware that her own hostility toward demons was heavily shaped by the way they were portrayed in movies, shows, and religious texts—none of which had anything to do with the demon herself.

Once those impressions were stripped away, Luo Shu's argument became the only thing that mattered.

A stranger with no grudge against them, who just so happened to be extremely powerful—was there any reason to treat such a being as an enemy?

The answer was no.

Realizing this, Utaha promptly apologized to Luo Shu. "Sorry, I was too quick to judge."

Luo Shu smiled, completely unconcerned. "It's just a stereotype. I fall victim to those too, from time to time."

Seeing him so casual, Utaha couldn't help but ask, "So when you first asked me to look into that demon… it was purely because of Sharon?"

"In part, yes."

Luo Shu held up his thumb and forefinger in a gesture to indicate a small amount. "That really was just a little part of it."

"On one hand, Yakushiji Katsuhiko was the main reason Sharon got ambushed, so she has every reason to want to sabotage his plans. And since she's now working under me, I naturally wouldn't refuse her request for help—so long as it doesn't cost me much."

On the other hand, Luo Shu had wanted to take this opportunity to pass on some of his unused ability-enhancing materials to Utaha, helping her catch up to Eriri's level.

Of course, that part was something Luo Shu would never say out loud. Even though Utaha had already realized it—and even grown fonder of him because of it—he didn't want to ruin the image he had in her heart.

It had become an unspoken understanding between the two of them.

"Beyond that, I'm definitely interested in the knowledge that demon might possess, and the potential wealth tied to her. But since Sharon is taking care of that, I don't really need to do much myself."

As a fake god with no real foundation, Luo Shu understood that the system's goal was to groom him into the so-called 'Lord of the Divine Pantheon.'

But aside from a few support functions, the system hadn't given him much help. Most of what it offered seemed to be based on mutual exchange.

The previous patterns—like Luo Shu generating influence for the system and receiving points in return—made it clear that the system was nothing more than a very powerful tool to help him grow stronger.

If he wanted to overcome the trials ahead and truly become a god, that path would have to be carved by his own efforts.

The biggest problem now was—Luo Shu didn't even know which direction to start working toward.

He had no clue what the optimal path to enhance his abilities was. He didn't know how to maximize his use of points. He lacked fundamental knowledge about the extraordinary side of this world.

It was like being a pristine white cloud thrown into a filthy, chaotic sky. He couldn't even see where to fly next.

And that was exactly why Luo Shu was so vulnerable right now. Which was also why he didn't resist the SDS department's attempts to draw him in, nor did he stop Sharon from subtly revealing her intention to target the demon.

After all, Luo Shu hoped he could acquire useful knowledge from SDS—or from that demon herself—so that he could better chart out his future.

While Luo Shu didn't carry the same kind of ingrained prejudice that Utaha had toward demons, he was undoubtedly far greedier than her.

Kasumigaoka Utaha might subconsciously want to eliminate demons because of the threat they pose.

But Luo Shu? He wanted to squeeze them dry.

At that moment, having understood Luo Shu's true stance, Utaha's eyes lit up with realization. "So, all we need to do… is hand the intel over to Sharon and then keep close tabs on everything, right?"

"Exactly," Luo Shu replied with a satisfied smile. After all, what could possibly feel better than letting someone else do all the work while you reap the rewards?

Nothing, of course.

With that decided, Luo Shu began transmitting the relevant information to Sharon through internal channels. At the same time, he turned to Utaha and explained, "Later, hypnotize Yakushiji Ken and make sure he gets home safely. Try to make the suggestion as natural and reasonable as possible—don't let the Yakushiji family, especially Katsuhiko, notice anything strange."

"You're really planning to just let that trash walk out of here safe and sound?" Utaha asked, a trace of suspicion in her tone.

But Luo Shu's smile only grew wider, his lips curling upward with gentle kindness. "With your current abilities, turning him into a puppet shouldn't be hard, right?"

"Wouldn't he make the perfect practice dummy for your new skills?"

Utaha fell silent for a moment, thoughtful. Then she too broke into a soft, kind smile.

"I haven't tried it before," she said. "But I'd be more than happy to give it a shot."