Can anyone be a struggler now?

Hey there, new member here, and this is my first post.
This is something that I have been wondering about for a while. When Guts met Skull knight on his way to albion, Skull knight explained that because he and Guts exist partially in the astral world, they are capable of defying causality to an extent. But now that the astral and physical worlds have merged, could that mean that this now applies to every human? If this is indeed the case, it seems counterproductive, since the god hand obviously want to maximize their control over mankind, so I find it a bit hard to believe that even the god hand would overlook this, but maybe they just don't expect most humans to take advantage of this, since that right now they're all still eating from Griffith's hand. Or maybe it just doesn't exactly work this way?
Maybe most humans still only exist in the physical world, and the astral world (or at least it's shallower layers) just exists in the same area or something?
What do you think about this idea? If this is true, it may end up being a major factor in bringing the god hand down.

Hello Khalamir and welcome. That is a very good question and a very good first post, so congratulations on that.

To try and answer it, I'll start by saying that we still don't have all the details about the merger between the corporeal and the astral worlds, so keep in mind we do not know for sure yet. That being said, there are several ways to look at it.

First off, while the corporeal and astral worlds coexist to some extent (obviously the deeper layers, like where the spirits Schierke call to reside, aren't concerned), this doesn't necessarily mean corporeal creatures now have astral properties or vice versa. And even if they did, it might be very shallow, even more than in Guts' case and thus not making much of a difference. As you know, Guts is in the Interstice because he's branded. But he's a "struggler" because of his temperament, not because he's in the Interstice. That's what the word refers to, him specifically and his mindset of never giving up in the face of adversity. That's why the Skull Knight called him a struggler in volume 9, before the Eclipse had even occurred. An iron will would not allow someone to achieve anything without being in the Interstice, and being in the Interstice without having an iron will would not matter.

Now, for the sake of the argument, let's assume that in some way, everyone now could indeed resist a bit, that they're all a bit outside of the tale. The God Hand (and the Idea of Evil) would no doubt consider this situation more than worth the dangers associated with it. In their current state, bound within Falconia's walls and utterly dependent on Griffith for survival, it seems highly unlikely that 99.9% of mankind as we know it would be in any state to rebel or even question what they're being told. It's also important to remember what the Skull Knight said exactly. It's not like he and Guts can do all that much. They can, in very specific circumstances, attempt to maybe make a difference, to derail the foreordained course of events. Sometimes it works, but as evidenced by what went down atop of Ganishka in volume 34, clearly sometimes it doesn't. So maybe a large amount of people could, at the right moment and in the right situation, make a difference. But the odds against that happening are staggering (which of course doesn't mean it won't happen).

Beyond that, remember why the merger was made to happen: the other members of the God Hand now have a bigger presence in the world than before. We don't know what it is yet, but I can guarantee that it will turn out to be of the utmost importance down the line. The advent of Fantasia was a carefully planned outcome meant to advance the God Hand's plans to the next phase, and I think they don't believe themselves to be in a position of weakness because of it, even if it opens them up to new lines of attack. Of course, this is clearly a case where their arrogance might ultimately prove to be their undoing, for example when Guts and friends find a way to unravel their plot (because, aside from maybe allowing the everyman some wiggle room with causality, this crucially makes them more attainable for Guts).

One last thing: it is interesting to consider what happened with Rickert in this particular light. Because of his past relationship with Griffith, Rickert is not under his charm. Not unlike Charlotte, he has an abnormally casual relation to the character, and thus went ahead and slapped him in the face when confronted with Griffith's absolute lack of guilt over the sacrifice of their former comrades. What interests me here are the consequences of that act, featuring Rakshas. Rakshas' actions can be explained away by his own motives, by a demand from Locus or even an order from Griffith. I personally favor the first hypothesis, but there is also an alternate explanation to the apostles' fury (as Locus was also outraged) over that incident besides their fervent devotion. Maybe Rickert's actions were a proof of the change the world underwent. Maybe that slap was possible not just because of Rickert's strong will (i.e. enormous balls) and Griffith's leniency, but also because the worlds have merged. In this case, the desire to get rid of him could be explained by the danger his example – if others were to learn of it – poses to the God Hand's narrative.