The Demon's Hand

As soon as Mirajane was dragged through the guild gates, her face was as white as if she had just been pulled out of a frozen snowdrift outside town.

Even the arrogant, rebellious older sister vibe from before had vanished. She clenched her dark, devilish hand behind her back, her shoulders taut and straight.

Riyao squeezed Mirajane's devilish hand, offering her encouragement.

Riyao chuckled and draped Mirajane's dark hand over his shoulder, deliberately nudging her taut arm with his elbow, his tone full of playful teasing.

"Oh, so you just think your hands are weird? But there are plenty of weirdos in the guild, aren't there?"

He approached the noisy guild members, counting on his fingers and pointing at each person one by one, deliberately drawing out his words.

The first person to point Gray, who had just finished eating half an apple and was wiping fruit stains from the corner of his mouth with his shirt off.

"A pervert who likes shirtless guys!"

Gray, who had been casually wiping the apple crumbs from the corner of his mouth, instantly bristled upon hearing this.

"Who are you calling a bastard, Riyao?!"

Riyao completely ignored Gray, instead turning to look at Natsu was squatting on a wooden table in the corner, gnawing on grilled beef. He then flicked a finger, raised an eyebrow, and teased him deliberately.

"What an idiot who claims to have a dragon father."

Natsu sprayed the roasted beef from his mouth half a meter away, covering Levy's table with it. He didn't even hear the word "idiot" clearly, and jumped up, slamming his fist on the table and yelling.

"It's true! That's my dad!"

Riyao continued counting on his fingers, getting more and more excited as he counted, poking each of the people around him.

"A bookworm who's always engrossed in books, a red-haired guy who wears armor and follows the rules every day, two middle-aged men who always tell dirty jokes when they get together, and that guy who often sneaks a sip of the century-old vintage wine that the chairman keeps hidden in the wine cellar."

Levy her glasses, her face instantly darkening.

Macao and Wakabaro exchanged a glance and quickly looked away.

Cana's hand, holding the wine glass, froze in mid-air.

The faces of the surrounding guild members instantly darkened, and even Laxus, who was eating an apple in the corner, stopped what he was doing.

Makarov, who had been maintaining his chairman's airs, was twitching at the corner of his mouth, which was clenched in a cigar, and his shoulders were shaking so much that his cloak was swaying. He was covering his mouth and almost swallowed the cigar, and his white beard was shaking like a sieve.

Finally, Riyao pointed sharply at Makarov, waved to Lisanna who was curiously peeking out from the side, and deliberately winked.

"Look, Lisanna, this is the Giant of Light I was talking about! Don't let his short stature fool you, when he transforms into a super giant, he can lift the entire guild towering high!"

Makarov, who had been holding back his laughter and blushing, suddenly stopped giggling, threw his chairman's airs to the wind, and charged over on his short legs.

A sharp rap struck Riyao on the forehead, making Riyao howl in pain and crouch on the ground, clutching his head.

Then he grabbed him by the back of his collar and threw him into the noisy guild crowd like a sack of potatoes.

The guild members instantly erupted in chaos. Natsu jumped over with his flaming fist raised, Gray chased after him with ice shards in his hand, Levy grabbed the magic book next to her and started smashing it against Riyao's back, Laxus even came over and stomped on it a few times. They all crowded around Riyao and beat him up.

Amidst the clattering and banging, Makarov cleared his throat and began to patiently persuade Mirajane and the other two, though it was more of a ruse than a persuasion.

Mirajane looked at the newly stamped Fairy Tail guild crest, and at Riyao being beaten up by everyone in the middle, and felt a little eager to try it out. After holding back for a long time, he finally managed to utter a sentence.

"Um, can I go over there and hit him a couple of times too?"

Makarov had just slipped to the guild entrance when he heard the commotion inside and his face turned pale instantly. He was terrified that the guy would pull out that deadly Life Link Modification Magic again and tie him and the entire guild together to get beaten up.

He nodded repeatedly like a chicken pecking at rice, then grabbed the back of the chairman's cape and dashed toward the door. He didn't even dare to bend down to pick up the oak wine glass that had just fallen at his feet. He almost tripped over the threshold as he ran, muttering to himself.

"I'm outta here, out of sight, out of mind."

Mirajane instantly revealed a wicked smile, gripping the demonic hand with black markings, and charged towards Riyao like an arrow, his fist raised halfway in the air, ready to smash it into the back of his head.

After taking only two steps, the guild members who had been tightly surrounding the group suddenly scattered as if they had planned it all.

Natsu, with half an apple in his mouth, darted back to the corner of the training area, while Gray, clutching the shirt he had just put on, clung to the shelf and hid behind the bar.

Even Levy is usually the most composed, hid behind the bookshelf with her books, and everyone acted as if nothing was wrong, not daring to show their heads.

Riyao had just gotten up from the ground, dusted himself off, and glared at Mirajane who was charging at him. "Mirajane! What do you want?!"

Mirajane's fist, raised halfway in the air, froze instantly, the demonic hand with black markings hovering in mid-air.

His face, which had just been filled with the pleasure of revenge, instantly fell apart. He forced a smile, his fingertips curled slightly, and his tone was as soft as freshly melted candy.

"... Um... My Devil Hand... Does it look good?"

Upon seeing this, Riyao immediately straightened his back, put on a deeply affectionate look, reached out and grabbed Mirajane's devil hand, deliberately rubbing his fingertips against the burning black markings, and spoke in a tone so gentle it could drip honey.

"It looks great! Cool and stylish, it suits you perfectly."

The guild members who were about to cheer immediately fell silent. The apple Natsu was holding in his mouth fell to the ground with a "thud," and the ice shards Gray was clutching shattered into pieces. Even Lisanna covered her mouth and stared wide-eyed.

The next second, Riyao retaliated with a powerful over-the-shoulder throw, slamming Mirajane onto the padded floor with a loud thud. Everyone froze in place, forgetting even to breathe.

Mirajane was stunned for a full two and a half seconds before the dull pain in her buttocks brought her back to her senses. She instantly bristled, scrambled to her feet, grabbed the Demon Hand, and charged at Riyao, her voice cracking with rage.

"Ah! You bastard Riyao! How dare you throw me like that!"

She chased Riyao around the guild hall like a madwoman, raining punches on his back.

Natsu was the first to react, leaping forward with his flaming fist to kick someone when they were down, followed closely by Gray who raised his hand and froze Riyao's ankle.

The once tidy guild hall was instantly torn to pieces. Wooden tables were overturned, wine barrels were scattered all over the hall, and even most of the glasses on the bar were broken. It was even more chaotic than the gang fight earlier.

Makarov had sneaked to the alleyway near the guild entrance precisely because he was afraid that Riyao would pull out that deadly Life Link Modification Magic again.

As soon as I stood still, I heard a loud crashing sound inside, so loud that the ground shook.

Makarov was so angry his face turned green. He immediately used Giant Magic to suppress these idiots who were destroying the house.

Lisanna, standing in the corner, understood what a giant was, but she didn't understand where the light that Riyao had mentioned was.

Riyao caught a glimpse of Lisanna's confused look out of the corner of his eye, pointed to the top of his own head, and then to Makarov's enlarged, reflective head.

Makarov noticed Riyao's subtle movements, and his already dark face darkened even more, his beard bristling.

Makarov summoned everyone who had participated in the free-for-all and made them kneel in a row on the open ground in front of him to receive a scolding.

Natsu, clutching his stomach, huddled at the front, a half-eaten apple still dangling from his mouth; Gray had just finished putting on his shirt and obediently knelt down; Mirajane was still glaring fiercely at Riyao, his fists clenched tightly; Riyao, on the other hand, grinned at Mirajane, looking utterly smug.

"Mirajane, give me your hand," Riyao said to Mirajane was cowering in the back.

"What do you want?!" Mirajane instinctively shrank back, asking warily.

Riyao reached out and grasped Mirajane's darkened demonic hand. A turquoise healing magic glowed in his palm, slowly seeping into her arm and gradually adjusting the chaotic magic.

As the emerald green magic flowed, a few faint, crisp sounds came from Mirajane's arm.

Mirajane subconsciously looked up at her hand; the demonic hand had returned to normal, and even the burning sensation had disappeared.

She paused for a moment, then Riyao raised her little head and said with a smug look on her face.

"How about that? Pretty impressive, right?"

"Didn't you say it was difficult to solve?" Mirajane frowned and poked his arm in a sarcastic tone.

"Don't worry about the important points." Riyao scratched his head, reverting to his usual smug look.

Mirajane, enraged, lunged at Riyao again, and they began to wrestle. Natsu and Gray quickly joined in to help, and the whole hall erupted in chaos once more.

Who would have thought that this guy who destroys the guild's base and loves to act like a jerk every day is actually S-Class Mage from Fairy Tail?