Few words were enough to express the feelings between June and Noah.
June knew that she was still weak, but her individuality would eventually lead her toward higher battlefields.
Noah knew that his ambition would bring him toward higher forms of existence, meaning that he would leave behind anyone that couldn't keep up with him.
Yet, their feelings were mutual, the months spent together had given birth to love, even though they both knew that their separation was unavoidable.
So, they could only promise to become strong enough to stand on the same ground one day, no matter how high it was.
\"The great Demon Prince can use the word love, I'm stunned.\"
\"A noble woman loving a criminal, the Ballor family must be a cradle of traitors.\"
June and Noah mocked each other, but their expressions changed when their eyes met.
They felt that they had reached a deeper level of intimacy with those promises, it was as if they had suddenly become closer.
Desire appeared on their faces and filled their minds at that moment, and they quickly decided to fulfill that sensation.
June and Noah remained in those quarters for the following period, without even interacting with the outside world.
Chasing Demon tried his best to stall the requests of the Royals, but there was a limit to how much he could hide June's presence inside the territories of the Hive.
However, he still gained as much time as he could, and the couple managed to spend two and a half peaceful months together thanks to his efforts.
The Elbas family wasn't too worried about the information in June's possession.
The most crucial piece of knowledge in her mind was the Royal Inheritance, and the Hive was already aware of that.
Yet, imprisoning the envoy of one of the three big nations could be considered as an insult to its honor, so the Elbas family had to pressure Chasing Demon.
In the end, Noah received a message from Elder Julia that stated the need for June to return to her nation.
June didn't show any sadness when Noah conveyed that message to her, she simply smiled and kissed Noah before leaving the habitation.
They had prepared themselves for their separation in the last period, they had already said all the words that needed to be said.
A smile and a kiss were more than enough to say goodbye.
June flew outside the invisible dome and the heroic cultivators of the Utra nation that were waiting outside heaved sigh of relief when they saw her usual cold expression.
The escorts immediately gave voice to apologies and excuses to justify how much it had taken them to force the Hive to release her, but June simply snorted at them.
Those heroic cultivators could only guess that she was incredibly angry at their incompetence, but they felt helpless about that situation.
After all, they did their best during the negotiations for her release, but Chasing Demon's stubbornness had been hard to overcome.
Of course, June barely minded them.
She limited herself to snort because her mind could only play the images between her first and last kiss with Noah whenever she tried to think.
Meanwhile, Noah was lying on one of the couches inside his quarters.
He didn't know how his instincts would react at the sight of her going away, so he simply remained in that room during her departure.
June's scent entered his nose, and he immersed himself in the feelings that he had felt when he was with her.
He knew that he had enough nutrients to reach the fifth rank inside his space-ring, and he was also aware that he could modify other diagrams in his possession to improve his battle prowess.
Yet, he wanted to use that moment to fix his memories with her in his mind.
He knew that he would abandon himself to his ambition as soon as he stood up, he had never felt so eager to improve in his life.
So, he decided to imprint those feelings in his mind, he wanted to be sure that June's warmth wouldn't fade when he immersed himself again in his training.
Noah wasn't afraid that he would forget about her, June had already left a permanent mark on his existence.
However, he needed to remember the life and warmth that she represented clearly, he needed that for his individuality.
\"You have a good taste for women, I give you that.\"
Chasing Demon's voice resounded in the room, and Noah turned only to see that the Patriarch of the Hive had appeared on one of the couches in front of him.
\"Does it hurt to see her going away?\"
Chasing Demon asked and threw a sealed jug toward Noah.
Noah removed the seal, and the aroma of strong wine filled the room.
\"Cultivation is a solitary journey. I treasured our time together, but I won't mourn in the period that we'll spend away from each other.\"
Noah answered and took a long sip from the jug.
He really believed in those words, it was pointless to mourn if he could use that time to improve.
The jug then escaped his grasp and returned in Chasing Demon's hands.
Noah didn't feel anything, but it was evident that the Patriarch had used his mental waves to take the wine.
\"Good, good. I was afraid you would do something reckless like waging war against the Elbas family and bringing the Hive down with you. I would understand, I've done the same in the past.\"
Chasing Demon said and drank from the jug whenever he finished a phrase.
Noah knew a bit about Chasing Demon's history, but he had never been too interested in it.
He knew that Chasing Demon was one of the twelve disciples of Divine Demon and that he had resorted to cultivation techniques created by others to reach the fifth rank back then.
His choice had been motivated by his desire for vengeance against Ravaging Demon, the betrayer who had joined the orthodox sects of the Papral nation to exile the demon sects.
Noah also knew that his vengeance had failed.
\"You know, I've had a similar relationship in the past. She was Divine Demon's disciple too, but she wasn't as pure as that June Ballor. You could say that she treated men as materials.\"
Chasing Demon began to speak, and Noah didn't mind learning more about his past.
Also, the Patriarch continued to pass him that amazing wine, listening to him seemed the least he could do in that situation.
\"Yet, I didn't mind it. I had never seen someone as charming as her in my life, so I purposely let her steal my yang just to be with her. I've almost died a few times, but I won her heart in the end. We didn't get to spend much time together though since the Council killed her and Devouring Demon during the betrayal of the Ravaging demon sect.\"