Daigo Kagemitsu rules as lord of the Ishikawa domain during Japan's Sengoku period. Confronted by devastating floods, droughts, and famine ravaging his lands and people, he pursued power to restore prosperity and expand his influence. This ambition drove him to forge a pact with a group of demons—48 in the original manga, reduced to 12 in the 2019 anime—within the Hall of Hell temple. In exchange for demonic power ensuring his domain's flourishing, Daigo pledged body parts from his unborn firstborn son. The infant Hyakkimaru was consequently born lacking skin, limbs, facial features, or internal organs. Daigo ordered the child abandoned in a river; the infant survived through intervention. Daigo adheres to a utilitarian philosophy, prioritizing his domain's welfare and personal ambition above familial bonds or individual lives. While the 2019 anime initially depicts his pact as desperate for his people's survival, he later explicitly states his actions equally served conquest and power. This instrumentalist approach defines his leadership, viewing emotional considerations as weaknesses incompatible with effective rule. He shows no remorse for sacrificing Hyakkimaru, whom he perceives solely as a contractual obligation, referring to him as a "half-demon child" and later actively seeking his death to preserve the pact's benefits. His familial relationships reflect consistent coldness and manipulation. He exhibits no affection toward his wife, Nui no Kata, dismissing her grief over Hyakkimaru as emotional weakness and a failure to grasp political necessity. He mentally abuses her, especially after she allies with Hyakkimaru and Dororo, ultimately declaring her a traitor worthy of execution. With his second son, Tahomaru, Daigo cultivates loyalty through stern expectations and ideological indoctrination, framing Hyakkimaru's existence as a threat to the domain's stability. He manipulates Tahomaru's sense of duty, convincing him that killing Hyakkimaru constitutes noble sacrifice for the greater good, exploiting his younger son's compassion. Daigo governs with ruthless authoritarianism, enforcing control through violence and exploitation. He orders massacres of civilians, including the murder of Mio and orphaned children under suspicions of espionage, and sanctions the enslavement of villages for labor projects like fortress construction. His tactics include hostage-taking, notably capturing Dororo to lure Hyakkimaru into submission—an act perceived as cowardly even by his retainers. Despite projecting decisive strength, he harbors deep-seated fear of a prophecy foretelling his death at Hyakkimaru's hands, driving increasingly desperate measures. As Hyakkimaru reclaims body parts by slaying demons, Daigo's domain descends into renewed ecological and military crisis. He escalates hostilities, commanding Tahomaru and forces to eliminate Hyakkimaru while fortifying against rivals like the Asakura clan. Following Tahomaru's death in conflict with Hyakkimaru and Nui's defection, Daigo faces irreversible decline. In the manga, his fortress is overrun by a slave rebellion aided by Hyakkimaru and Dororo, forcing him to flee with Nui. The 2019 anime extends his arc; physically deteriorating from the pact's side effects after the final demon's defeat, he acknowledges guilt for sacrificing Hyakkimaru and requests seppuku with his son as kaishakunin—a plea Hyakkimaru refuses before departing.