Roxie Vale had seen Saekano: How to Raise a Boring Girlfriend, and she had some sense of Kasumigaoka Shiwa's personality. Knowing how sharp-tongued she could be, Roxie made a point of warning her.
Joining the chat group didn't mean everyone was automatically friends—especially since Kasumigaoka Shiwa had only just arrived. Their relationship wasn't yet at the level where snark would be taken in stride.
Oldest Godslayer: "…"
He truly was only interested in the "Aizen" Kasumigaoka Shiwa had mentioned.
But if she were in his world and actually dared address him with that attitude, the consequences would be hard to predict.
Godslayers acted as they pleased. More often than not, their moods decided their deeds.
In a good mood, they'd naturally overlook such things.
As for "law," that was never something meant to bind them.
Xia Shizi: "I get it."
Kasumigaoka Shiwa opened the memory archive. As she read, a hush fell over her heart.
The man she'd always idolized turned out to be a mere plagiarist. Granted, since those works came from other worlds, what he'd done wasn't exactly wrong—but it still stung.
It was like watching her faith in writing itself crumble.
The chat group's memory archives included information about its members. She opened the one for Oldest Godslayer—Marquis Voban—and learned his temperament and power. Her scalp prickled.
This was truly a terror who, as a human, hunted gods, seizing their authorities.
If someone like that set eyes on her with malice, it would bode poorly for her—and for the world behind her.
Modern technology had no way to contend with a godslayer.
All she could do was hope he didn't take it to heart.
Just an Ordinary Group Owner: "Compared to Kasumigaoka Shiwa, the tough one is you, @Captain of the Fifth Division."
Just an Ordinary Group Owner: "Figures. When you're just watching anime, you love that kind of max-IQ villain—but in real life, when you've got to deal with him yourself, it's a headache."
Just an Ordinary Group Owner: "Strictly speaking, in terms of brains, Angel Yan, Tony, Brandon, and Tendō Sōji aren't a bit worse than you—but for some reason I just feel like you'd have me dancing in the palm of your hand."
Just an Ordinary Group Owner: "Is it because they feel righteous and you don't? scratches head.jpg"
She hadn't watched that many shows compared to hardcore otaku, so her frame of reference for villains wasn't deep. Of the ones that had left the strongest impression on her, there were just a few: Death God Karl, Aizen, Asakura Hao, Naraku—oh, and Guigu from Armored Warriors: Xiang Qi.
He never looked like a good person to begin with, and the Snow King really was too kind—but fooling them for so many years didn't happen for nothing.
In fact, Roxie no longer thought of them as "villains."
What they did stemmed from differing creeds—each pursued their own ends. Take Morgana: whether she was "wrong" depended entirely on perspective.
Once things reached a certain scale, "good" and "evil" were no longer accurate tools for measuring a person.
In Bleach, as Roxie saw it, only two truly deserved the title "antagonist": Aizen Sōsuke, the "King of Hueco Mundo," and Yhwach, the "Quincy King." Leave Yhwach aside for the moment. Across the story, whether Aizen stood on the side of the heroes or the villains, he ranked among the figures at the summit.
Even the author had effectively given Aizen the label of "god."
Aizen was different from others. He refused to bow beneath the Spirit King's rule. That refusal wasn't mere thought; he turned it into action—he would become a god and claim the throne of heaven.
Like the line says: No one starts out standing in the sky—neither you nor I, not even gods—but the empty throne of the king of the sky is nearing its end; from this moment, I alone stand at the top.
He lived that line through and through. Had Ichigo Kurosaki not exploded in power to a frightening degree, who can say whether Aizen would have been defeated at all?
In a way, Ichigo's strength owed more than a little to Aizen.
Aizen was like the teacher in the background, constantly escalating Ichigo's growth—crafting for himself a worthy opponent.
As for talent, there was no comparing. Before the cheat-code named Ichigo arrived, Aizen's talent was downright terrifying. In the period before he acquired the Hōgyoku and defected from Soul Society, he relied purely on his own gifts to climb in strength. In just a hundred years, he attained enough power to stand against all of Soul Society alone.
Perhaps his raw destructive force didn't match Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto—but strength isn't measured in raw kilotons alone.
And the age gap between Aizen and Yamamoto could fill a canyon. Even during his sealed years, Aizen's spiritual pressure continued to climb without limit. Beyond the Hōgyoku's nature, much of it owed to portions of Aizen's talent that had never yet been fully developed.
If his potential were truly spent, no artifact—no matter how miraculous—could summon power from nothing.
In Roxie's eyes, Aizen Sōsuke was the rare "villain" who embodied it all—strength, charisma, wisdom, strategy, talent, and breadth of vision. Even Yhwach struggled to compare.
In the early arcs, everything about Ichigo lay beneath Aizen's gaze; he observed, he orchestrated, he moved every piece—like a god.
In the final fight against Yhwach, though it appeared to be Ichigo, Renji, and Aizen versus Yhwach, Aizen's role was pivotal. Alone, he played three parts, opening the path for Ichigo again and again.
Richest Man: "First time I've seen the group owner this wary of anyone."
Richest Man: "Seems this one's setup is anything but ordinary."
Tony Stark narrowed his eyes slightly. It was the first time he'd seen Roxie so wary of someone—someone she lumped alongside the brightest minds in the group while still voicing even greater apprehension.
A "brains-type" antagonist?
Surely more than that.
Holy Guard, Left Wing: "Similar to Karl?"
Nature's Child: "In certain respects, yes. He's the kind of person who combines tremendous power and talent with charisma, intellect, and potential. If he existed in your world, I believe he'd have the potential to become a Main God."
Nature's Child: "I say 'potential,' but what he lacks is really just a Fourth-Generation God-body."
Nature's Child: "In every other respect, he already meets all the conditions to be a Main God."
Nature's Child: "It may sound exaggerated, but it's my sincere view—at the very least, compared to you as a successor on the throne in the memory archive, he's closer to a true king."
In the earliest days, when Brandon felt lost about his own future, many figures flashed through his mind—people who lived by their creed, who never lost their way, who always knew exactly what they wanted to do, whose iron logic seldom bent to emotion.
Holy Kaisa, Death God Karl—they had both crossed his thoughts. Aizen was one of them as well.
(End of this chapter)