"Wait—how can you be a genius?"
Tanaka Masao felt a deep, aching frustration.
There was nothing more painful than a fool who used to be inferior to him suddenly turning into a legendary genius.
He absolutely refused to believe it.
Because this kind of thing was just too damn jealousy-inducing. Wouldn't it be better if everyone stayed happy little underachievers together?
Wouldn't it be nicer if only I secretly improved on my own?
He pulled out his textbook and casually picked a poem, handing it to her.
"Take a look at this."
"Oh my, oh my—don't tell me you don't believe me?"
Seeing Tanaka Masao's expression, Jahy shrugged, looking extremely smug.
"Then I suppose I'll just let you witness my greatness."
Jahy finally regained her confidence in front of Tanaka Masao and was in a fantastic mood.
She took his textbook. It was a seven-character quatrain. In less than ten seconds, Jahy had finished reading it.
She casually set the book down and recited it with ease.
"So it is real… No, it's definitely because the poem was too short. Try this one."
Tanaka Masao still refused to accept it and chose another poem with a higher difficulty level.
"Ballad of the White-Haired Old Man"
"How unsightly. Is it really that hard to acknowledge someone else's excellence?"
Seeing how her talent had clearly dealt a blow to Tanaka Masao, Jahy was extremely pleased.
"Fine then. I'll make sure you lose completely and without complaint."
Jahy had never feared a challenge.
Since this poem was longer, she spent a bit more time reading it.
But even then, after a single pass, she set the book down.
"Peach and plum blossoms east of Luoyang City,
Fluttering here and there—into whose home will they fall?
The daughters of Luoyang are fair of face,
Sitting as they watch falling blossoms, sighing endlessly.
…
I speak to those in their prime, rosy-faced beauties:
Pity this half-dead white-haired old man.
This old man, white-haired, truly pitiful—
Once he too was a handsome youth.
…
How long can those curving brows last?
In an instant, crane-white hair tangles like silk.
Look upon the places of song and dance through the ages—
Only dusk remains, with grieving birds."
Over a hundred characters in total—yet it posed no challenge at all for Jahy.
"Perfect. And there wasn't even a single pause."
Tanaka Masao felt his heart turn to ash.
[Oh for fuck's sake, Jahy—you really are a genius.]
Not only Tanaka Masao, but even Yukinoshita Yukino was astonished.
If it were a short quatrain, she could memorize it quickly as well. But an ancient yuefu poem like "Ballad of the White-Haired Old Man"—there was no way she could remember it after just one reading.
"So? Convinced now? Wahahaha!"
Jahy's arrogance had reached its absolute peak.
This was the first time since arriving in the human world that she had felt such unrestrained exhilaration.
Suddenly, Tanaka Masao realized something.
"Wait—how do you even recognize so many characters?"
Earlier, Jahy had read without the slightest difficulty, but she shouldn't have learned human writing yet.
Could it be that the Demon Realm used the same script?
"Oh, isn't there something called a dictionary? I borrowed one today and memorized everything inside it."
Yesterday, Jahy had made up her mind to study seriously. Whenever she encountered unfamiliar characters, she asked her classmates for help.
They taught her how to use a dictionary. In less than a single day, Jahy had memorized the entire thing.
At this point, there were no characters left that could stump her.
She said something utterly astonishing with complete nonchalance, finally making Tanaka Masao admit defeat.
Having been completely crushed in terms of intellect, Tanaka Masao deflated like a punctured balloon.
To save face, he could only bury himself deeper in his books, hoping to make some progress.
But the gap between geniuses was impossible to bridge. When he had exhausted himself just to barely memorize what he needed—he found himself endlessly envying Jahy's photographic memory.
·····
On the other side, Yukinoshita Yukino continued teaching Jahy.
She discovered that it wasn't just a matter of photographic memory—Jahy was also strong in the sciences. With just a bit of instruction, she could grasp concepts effortlessly.
Of course, Jahy wasn't omnipotent.
Her shortcomings showed clearly when it came to reading comprehension.
Always acting on impulse, Jahy had no interest in guessing other people's thoughts—let alone analyzing a character's psychological state in a text.
She couldn't even be said to vaguely understand human nature.
This wasn't something that could be forced. No matter how good her memory was, she couldn't memorize every possible reading-comprehension answer.
And even if she could, Yukinoshita Yukino wouldn't be able to explain them all.
This was the kind of thing that had to accumulate over time.
What Yukinoshita Yukino needed to do now was simply fill in the foundational gaps Jahy had missed.
Jahy was currently in her third year and, overall, hadn't learned much.
Combined with her photographic memory, following Yukinoshita Yukino's plan, it would only take a few days.
·····
Studying alone made it hard to stay focused.
But with three people together and a strong study atmosphere, it was easy to immerse oneself—motivation and enthusiasm naturally increased.
When they got tired of sitting, they would rest on the sofa nearby for a while.
This study session lasted for two full hours.
...
Yukinoshita Yukino rubbed her eyes and stretched her slightly stiff body.
Clearly, even she was having trouble enduring such a long session.
Looking through the floor-to-ceiling window beside the living room, she noticed it was already getting late.
She stood up, straightened her clothes, and said,
"It's getting late. I should head home."
Tanaka Masao stood up as well.
"I'll walk you out."
"No need."
While the two were talking, the Tanaka household's front door opened once again.
"I'm home."
Two voices—one male, one female—rang out in succession.
Tanaka Kazumi opened the door, saw a pair of women's leather shoes in the entryway, and asked,
"Masao, do we have a guest?"
Hearing the noise, everyone walked out from the living room.
Seeing his parents, Tanaka Masao introduced them.
"Mom, Dad—this is my classmate, Yukinoshita Yukino.
Yukinoshita, these are my parents."
Yukinoshita Yukino looked at them, nodded slightly, then bowed politely.
"Good evening, Uncle and Auntie. Thank you for having me today—sorry for the intrusion."
Having grown up in a prominent family, Yukinoshita Yukino's manners outside the home were always impeccable.
Clatter—
The sound of two heavy objects hitting the floor echoed.
Mr. and Mrs. Tanaka both froze on the spot.
"It's a young lady…"
"It really is a young lady…"
The moment they saw Yukinoshita Yukino, they almost thought they had entered the wrong house.
They exchanged glances. After confirming this wasn't an illusion, they both bowed deeply.
"Please take care of us."
They even unconsciously switched to honorific speech.
Looking at the elegant, dignified, sweet-faced Yukinoshita Yukino—like someone who had stepped straight out of a fairy tale—their minds went into total chaos, unsure what to say.
[Masao brought this girl home? How is that even possible?!]
The entryway fell into an eerie silence.
Sensing the awkward atmosphere, Tanaka Masao coughed lightly.
He shot his parents a look—there was still a guest present. Standing there doing nothing was far too rude.