Inosuke Hashibira.
He was an extremely important character in the Demon Slayer universe—one that Doma recognized at a single glance.
It wouldn't even be an exaggeration to say that his very existence had greatly helped prevent the deaths of all of Kanae Kocho's little sisters.
'I'm really tempted to kill him, but…' that thought would simply be stupid in the long run.
After all, Inosuke was a sword prodigy and, in many ways, a simple-minded person.
Doma had already altered the fates of several characters; why not Inosuke's as well?
Thus, he decided to try officially adopting him.
'I don't think Kotoha will agree, given her recent history with an abusive man,' he thought to himself as he gazed at the beautiful green eyes of his target.
Still, Doma resolved to start building a relationship with the woman right then and there.
Overconfidence? Not really—he had nothing to lose by trying.
At worst, he'd just get rejected.
"Um… I'm sorry, but I can't—" As expected, Kotoha tried to turn down Doma's offer.
The woman was still deeply wary of men at this point, but, unlike his friend Michikatsu, Doma didn't limit himself to wielding a blade every night.
He had another weapon in his pants that he had never once neglected to train over the course of a century.
Thanks to all those years of interacting with women, Doma had learned one crucial rule about the fairer sex.
A rule that Jay, back in his old hospital days, would've killed to know.
And yet the answer was painfully simple.
Every woman shares one common criterion when choosing a partner: what he makes her "feel."
That's precisely why none of the women in Doma's first life had ever shown any real interest in Jay.
What kind of stimulus could an ordinary hospitalized otaku possibly offer a beautiful nurse?
Women, on the other hand, are drawn to things like money, dark romance, beauty, elegance, and other positive (or even negative, for some) stimuli.
Why do they behave that way?
Simply because they are emotional creatures by nature, not rational ones!
Where a man relies on irrefutable facts, a woman trusts her immediate feelings.
Doma already knew that his chances of adopting Inosuke and making Kotoha his woman were close to zero right now.
A single mother's heart wasn't ready to welcome another man into her life after her recent traumatic experience with a terrible husband.
Normally, she would need time.
Unfortunately, Doma wasn't the type to wait patiently once his interest was piqued.
'I have to play on her current feelings—which are negative toward men,' he thought while watching Kotoha.
The woman was currently lost in darkness, so Doma needed to become a light for her.
Sure, gratitude isn't necessarily love, but who cares?
If Doma wanted to dip his cookie or obtain something, the target's heart wasn't his top priority.
All of this explains the course of action he chose in that moment.
Thanks to his experience with women, he anticipated Kotoha's refusal and gently placed a finger on her lips.
"Shh… I know this is all very sudden, haha. Sorry, but your beauty captivated me the instant I laid eyes on you," he said in a relaxed tone while closing the distance between them.
Kotoha looked away, her face instantly turning bright red with embarrassment.
"I-I don't think I deserve your attention, Doma-sama…" She immediately tried to step back after Doma invaded her personal space.
A bad habit he'd picked up from constantly provoking the Upper Moons back when he worked for Muzan.
"Haha, Kotoha-san is so humble. And you can just call me Doma~" he replied, momentarily covering the lower half of his face with his fan.
Doma locked his rainbow-colored eyes onto the single mother's, then snapped his fan shut and lightly tapped it against his palm.
"I know! If my offer makes Kotoha-san uncomfortable, how about we do a trial period?" he said, snapping his fingers as though he'd just come up with the idea of the century.
"A trial period?" Kotoha unconsciously tilted her head to one side, clearly confused.
An adorably cute gesture despite her being a mother.
"Exactly. I won't just help you temporarily like I usually do with the other cult followers or the homeless," he began explaining under the stunned gazes of the guards around him.
Without realizing it, Doma had drawn a small crowd with his behavior toward Kotoha.
The followers and the poor watched the scene with intense interest—after all, he rarely left the temple by nature.
Beyond that, Kotoha's attitude toward Doma's wealth and striking appearance genuinely surprised both men and women alike.
Deep down, they were starting to understand why the cult leader was so taken with this woman.
She clearly wasn't interested in the material things Doma was offering her.
"I promise to take care of you and Inosuke until he comes of age. Of course, I won't do anything "weird" until you make your final decision about our relationship," he declared casually.
Getting Kotoha was, in the end, just a whim—but Inosuke was a prize worth having.
Doma just needed time to exert his influence.
'No mother living in poverty would refuse an offer like this,' he thought with a smile as he looked at Kotoha.
The woman wavered for a moment before finding strength in her voice again.
"I'm sorry, but I need some time… your proposal is far too sudden," she said, watching the demon cautiously.
Doma could pick up several emotions swirling inside her: doubt, fear, uncertainty, and a faint glimmer of hope.
"Understandable. I literally appeared out of nowhere in your life and asked for your hand. It's only makes sense you'd need time to gather your thoughts," he answered in an understanding tone.
Kotoha let out a quiet sigh of relief when she saw no trace of annoyance on Doma's face.
'Is he… really different?' she wondered as she pulled Inosuke closer to her.
The image of a drunken figure who never listened to her opinions flashed through her mind.
Deep down, Kotoha had feared that Doma would force his selfish desires onto her and her son.
But things were different.
Doma was acting like a perfect gentleman even though she was a homeless woman and he was a powerful man.
Unwittingly, the woman's adequately-sized chest began to pound harder.
'Her heartbeat has quickened. Looks like it won't be long before she agrees to a trial relationship,' he concluded mentally after quickly analyzing the signals he was picking up from Kotoha.
Even if she was being cautious with him right now, Doma knew she wouldn't be able to keep that hard shell up for long.
After all, when it came to male-female romance, he was a century ahead of his time.
"Keep an eye on that woman and every place that might offer her work," he ordered in a slightly hurried voice while watching Kotoha's retreating back.
For the moment, she would be treated like a high-ranking follower of the cult. Still, Doma fully intended to nudge her toward making the right choice—and fast.
…
"Are you obsessed with fatherhood or something? Or are you just some kind of gigolo?" Hlökk's shrill, annoyed voice echoed through the cult's treasure room.
This place had been the very first thing restored after Doma's private treasures.
"Why are you jealous? You know perfectly well I don't feel that kind of thing right now," he replied with a half-truth.
Hlökk shot him a look that screamed: Really? You couldn't come up with a better excuse?
"Doma, I can sense interest even if it isn't love… so don't play games with me…" Hlökk launched into a long lecture about the importance of fidelity.
Unfortunately, the divine demon's mind was elsewhere at that moment.
His rainbow eyes were fixed on Loki's gift—the god of stories.
'Should I open this random portal to another timeline on Earth?' he wondered as he stared at the system's holographic panel.
Doma hadn't really taken any time for himself since returning and had lost track of Rin after their little chat.
Right now he was managing the cult with Lin's help, so he hadn't even thought about peeking through Loki's portal.
'Anyway, Loki said I can just close it again,' he thought as he tore open the rift.
He didn't plan on stepping through—he just wanted to take a curious look at the other side.
After all, the multiverse is dangerous, and Doma had no intention of risking his life exploring it personally when he could simply send Mugen instead.
"Boruto, a ninja's life isn't that simple," a blond man was explaining to a kid when—out of nowhere—a head popped into the Hokage's house.
"…"
"…"
"…hey, you're gonna laugh, haha, I'm just testing a dimensional portal and—""
The moment Doma tried to explain himself, he sensed a sphere hurtling straight toward his face.
It was a Rasengan.
***
Author's note: a bonus chapter at 150 stones, so vote!