Wow, it's really the Urahara Shop, just like in the manga.
It wasn't exactly the right sentiment for someone coming here for such a serious discussion, but I felt my heart race as if I were on a pilgrimage to a holy site.
You might ask if Soul Society, Hell, and the Soul King Palace aren't already holy sites.
Well, I see Soul Society every day, and as for Hell and the Royal Guard's realm, those are literal 'holy lands'—no pun intended.
Besides, I either created those places or had a hand in building them, so there's nothing particularly novel about them to me.
In that sense, the Urahara Shop—a place where I hadn't laid even a finger—felt remarkably fresh.
I stood there for a moment, admiring the sign and the surrounding scenery, before stepping inside.
As I entered, Tessai, the former Grand Kido Chief whom I'd met a few times before, greeted me with a deep bow, dressed in surprisingly domestic attire.
I acknowledged him with a slight nod and scanned the interior.
It wasn't just a 'shop' in name only. The place was properly stocked with all sorts of goods.
Most of the items on the shelves were cheap snacks like dagashi, but it suited the atmosphere perfectly.
Then again, since even the original story said it looked like a neighborhood candy store, it wasn't weird for there to be actual snacks.
"Got any customers?"
"Oh, goodness... retail isn't as easy as one might think. Even though these are snacks I've perfected after years of research."
"Well, being tucked away in a remote corner like this, it's only natural business is slow. Mind if I try one?"
"Of course, of course. Please, help yourself."
After contemplating my choices, I picked a round senbei wrapped in a piece of dried seaweed—a common sight in Japanese media.
It didn't have the crisp crunch typical of modern snacks; instead, it had a brittle, dry texture that crumbled away, releasing the aroma of soy sauce and roasted rice.
"I used to wonder why people ate these, but this is actually worth buying."
"I am glad they are to your liking."
While I sampled the snacks, Aizen, who had followed me in, and Tessai, the house-sitter, were forced to stand there awkwardly.
It's not like I ate this just because I had a sudden craving for dagashi.
I was doing this to ease the tension and soften the atmosphere.
Looking at the reactions of Aizen and Urahara behind me, however, it seemed my efforts were for naught. The atmosphere hadn't lightened in the slightest.
I let out a silent sigh and finished the rest of the senbei in one go.
"I didn't come here just for snacks. Shall we get to the important part?"
"I will show you to the back."
Urahara guided me further into the building as if he had been waiting for those exact words.
He must have been incredibly frustrated. Here I was, trying to break the ice, and I ended up being a nuisance.
...Or maybe the misunderstanding between us is so deep that my attempts at consideration don't even register as such.
'Either way, it's not exactly pleasant.'
The interior behind the storefront was exactly as depicted in the manga.
A four-and-a-half tatami mat room with a single low table in the center.
And perhaps because I'd just been eating senbei, there was a bowl overflowing with them on the table, along with three cups of steaming tea.
'Is this hospitality, or is he messing with me?'
I hesitated for a second before taking a seat.
Aizen and Urahara followed suit.
After a brief moment of wondering where to begin, I moistened my throat with some warm tea and spoke up.
"I'm sure I don't need to explain why I'm here. You two already talked it over a few hours ago, right?"
"Yes. We did. It was a bit bewildering, but the conclusion was... positive."
"I do have a tendency to push forward without a backup plan once I've made up my mind."
When I said that with a nod, Aizen's spiritual power wavered slightly.
I could vaguely sense what he was thinking, and I almost let a smirk slip.
"Right. Anyway, you've heard the plan. You know what I'm aiming for and how I intend to pull it off. What do you think?"
"Hmm... would you mind if I was completely honest?"
"Go ahead. Don't hold back."
"I think it's a plan only a madman would come up with."
Contrary to my expectation that he would be defensive, Urahara was remarkably blunt right from the start.
Does it make me feel bad? No, not at all. Actually, I prefer it this way.
"That's a much sharper reaction than I expected. Well, I suppose it's only natural to react that way when someone says they're going to change the very foundation of the world you live in. Why do you feel that way?"
"To kill the god that supports the world and then turn humans into gods to replace that support... it's a contradiction. If humans become gods, they won't sustain the world; they'll just destroy each other and themselves in the process."
"If humans kill God by their own will, who will kill the humans who have become gods? Other humans. In the end, nothing remains but ruin."
I never thought I'd see the day when Aizen and Urahara shared the exact same opinion.
The novelty of it kept me silent for a moment before I nodded.
"I see what you're worried about. So, you're concerned about humans becoming something like me, or the Soul King—actual deities or beings comparable to them?"
Urahara hid the lower half of his face with his fan and nodded, while Aizen simply watched me intently.
Right, I figured they'd have these concerns. I sighed internally and reached for another senbei.
"You've got it all wrong."
At my firm statement, both of their spiritual pressures flickered violently.
I wasn't just making excuses to get out of a tight spot. It really was a misunderstanding.
"When I say 'God,' you two seem to be thinking of some grand, omniscient, and omnipotent entity. That's not what I mean by 'godhood' or 'divinity.'"
"This is more than mere wordplay. I would think you, of all people, Master Meio, would know that a 'God' is not something that can be defined so casually."
"I know that. But I'm telling you, you're misunderstanding me."
I scratched my cheek and rinsed my mouth with green tea.
"A human cannot become an omnipotent god. Even me and that Soul King bastard—we aren't omnipotent; we live as parts of the world's machinery. How could an ordinary human become an all-powerful deity? The Hogyoku? You think that would really do it? If that were the case, Urahara, the creator of the Hogyoku, should have been the first to become a god."
"That is..."
"Mmm..."
Both men let out a low groan as I set my teacup down. They were clearly uncertain.
Right. No matter how absurd an out-of-place artifact the Hogyoku is, it cannot turn all of humanity into omnipotent gods.
Well, fine. Let's say 'omniscience' is somehow achievable.
If you advance far enough past the Information Age, you reach something nearly indistinguishable from omniscience.
But 'omnipotence' itself is logically impossible.
Are you familiar with the Omnipotence Paradox?
Can an omnipotent being discard their own omnipotence?
If they cannot, they aren't omnipotent.
Can an omnipotent being create a rock so heavy that they themselves cannot lift it?
If they can, they are no longer omnipotent. If they cannot, they weren't omnipotent to begin with.
However, there is an interpretation that addresses this.
It states that an omnipotent being can choose not to be omnipotent based on their own will.
"I've borrowed a bit from that concept. Specifically, 'the individual's choice.' The heart that wants to act, the heart that intends to be. One's own will. Not belonging to anyone else, not following anyone's requests or orders—a self chosen by oneself."
That is what I mean by 'God.'
The Self.
"Every human has a version of themselves they want to become within them. But that is merely the 'me I want to be,' not the 'self' that I am. The components that make up the object called 'me' currently come from the outside; that's why they say there is no 'me' inside 'me.'"
A good example is a resume or a self-introduction letter.
Where I was born, which schools I attended, which university I graduated from, and so on...
When you look at a resume written like that, it's mostly filled with where, what, and which. It describes the object that is 'me,' but it never actually addresses the subject that is 'I.'
None of those things originate solely from within the 'self.'
"Why do humans waver and break? Inner conflict. Why does inner conflict occur? External stimuli. What are external stimuli? Everything except for one's own self. So, what if you were to firmly establish your 'self' within yourself? What if 'I' existed within 'me'?"
What if the true 'self' was established within every human?
What if one's existence was defined not by the world, but by oneself?
What if people became the masters of their lives instead of their slaves?
"That is the 'God' I'm talking about. In conclusion, my plan isn't going to suddenly make all-powerful gods pop out of thin air. It's simply going to make everyone's Ego much stronger."
When I revealed the truth of the plan, both of their eyes widened in surprise.
They're smart guys; surely they can grasp what I mean despite the abstract explanation.
"...Um, the light behind you."
"Oh, for crying out loud. Not again."
I sighed and waved a hand behind my head.
The room, which had momentarily brightened, fell back into shadow.
"I told them I'm not going, but these bastards keep trying to drag me along. Persistent assholes."
I can't say a single word without this happening.
What am I, a motion-sensor light?