Tanaka Masao held the necklace in his hand and asked,
"You said it's yours—how can you prove it?"
Jahy, who had always carried herself with pride, had never suffered such humiliation.
In the past, when facing anyone but the Demon King, it didn't matter whether something belonged to her. If she wanted it, it was hers.
"You are just a human, daring to provoke me? Let me show you my true power!"
Jahy had recovered from the collapse of the Demon Realm and accepted that she was now in the human world.
Now, she wanted the weak and ignorant humans to witness the might of the Demon Realm's second-in-command.
Rising from the riverbank, she moved her wrists and shoulders with fluid grace and fixed Tanaka Masao with a cold glare.
"Human, you are unlucky. You've offended someone you shouldn't have.
I am furious, and you will bear the brunt of my anger."
With that, Jahy lunged forward, aiming a punch at Tanaka Masao.
Frustration at being powerless, despair over the Demon Realm's collapse, and anger from losing her magic all surged into the attack.
"Can you take my blow? Ah~!"
Jahy poured every ounce of strength and negative emotion into her punch.
Her fist struck Tanaka Masao's stomach—but it caused no harm.
Instead, thanks to Tanaka Masao's deliberate counterforce, Jahy was bounced away by his broad belly.
Yes—bounced away.
Tanaka Masao barely exerted any strength, yet Jahy flew nearly two meters.
He was momentarily puzzled.
[When did I become this strong? Or is she pretending?]
On the ground, Jahy winced, tears forming at the corners of her eyes.
[It hurts… are humans really this strong now?]
Her small, weakened body made her even more fragile emotionally. Frustration and pain nearly broke her composure.
Fortunately, Jahy restrained herself, holding back the tears.
Clenching her fists, she glared at Tanaka Masao and hissed.
"You are just a human. Don't get too proud. Not everyone can touch a magic stone.
Humans who do are cursed. Misfortune will follow you!"
Tanaka Masao wasn't afraid—though he felt a twinge of guilt.
[It's my fault for being too forceful. She's about to collapse.]
To him, Jahy's behavior now was like that of a child who had lost a fight and could only threaten with words.
As he moved to comfort her, Tanaka Masao felt a sudden activation in the Mark armor core on his chest.
Countless nano-armors unfolded across his body.
Before he could react, a stone flew out of nowhere and struck his helmet.
Without the armor, he would have ended up with a bloody head.
Soon, more stones appeared, all targeting him.
This time, Tanaka Masao acted. Using the armor's aiming system, he destroyed the stones with the palm cannons on both hands.
After the system finished scanning, the threat was neutralized. He exhaled in relief.
"Good thing I activated the armor's automatic defense. Otherwise, that could have been dangerous."
The Mark armor automatically deploys when its owner is in danger.
Tanaka Masao also used the armor's scanning system to analyze the magic stone in his hand.
It emitted a unique magnetic field and contained an unknown energy—clearly no ordinary item.
[This is unusual… so what exactly is this girl…]
He glanced at Jahy and noticed something else: the cat-ear-like structures on her head were not decorations—they were biological tissue.
He was astonished.
Jahy, on the other hand, was stunned.
She stared at him in the armor, mouth agape.
"What is this? Have humans really developed this far?"
Having lost her magic, she feared a single strike could kill her.
She wanted to retreat strategically, but seeing the remaining magic stone, she couldn't bring herself to let it go.
Just as she hesitated, Tanaka Masao tossed the stone toward her.
Jahy quickly caught it.
Feeling the magic within, she felt somewhat reassured.
She held the stone close to her chest and eyed Tanaka Masao warily. With her weakened magic, she still couldn't risk a fight.
"Human… what are you trying to do?" she asked cautiously.
With the danger gone, Tanaka Masao removed the armor—not wanting to attract attention.
Facing Jahy, he said curiously. "Don't worry, I mean no harm. You said this magic stone curses humans… so you're not human."
Seeing him remove the armor, Jahy's vigilance eased.
Even so, with the magic stone in hand, she still felt confident she could hold her own.
Putting on the necklace, Jahy stood tall and declared proudly,
"That's right—I'm not a weak human. I am the Demon Realm's second-in-command, Lord Jahy!"
Second-in-command of the Demon Realm? Tanaka Masao found it slightly grandiose, but he believed her.
"Jahy, I'm Tanaka Masao. Since you're from the Demon Realm, why are you here? Are you planning to invade the human world?"
Typically, the Demon Realm sought to invade and dominate humans—but judging by her appearance, he doubted she could.
Jahy replied with disdain,
"Invade the human world? What a joke.
This world has no magic. Even if it's occupied, it's useless."Indeed, a magic-less human world held no appeal for her.
Her priority now was clear: gather the scattered magic stones and rebuild the Demon Realm.