Birth of the Demonic Sword

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June reached for Noah's naked torso and tried to scratch his skin. Yet, her fingers weren't even able to leave marks on him.

"Sometimes, I wonder what would have happened if you didn't meet Nina," June said, and Noah understood that she was questioning the foundation of their relationship after the recent discovery.

Noah took her hand and pressed it to his heart. The vibration caused by his heartbeat reached her palm, and his words followed that sensation. "Nina might have taught me that I can be with someone, but you are the one that made me question my detachment for the first time."

June revealed a small smile, but she lowered her head. She didn't retract her hand though. She didn't want to lose even a beat of Noah's heart while they were having that discussion.

"Did you learn to be so smooth with words in your past life?" June asked.

Noah wanted to reach for her and lift her head, but he held himself back. He couldn't push June to accept or forgive him. That was something that she had to decide on her own.

"I didn't learn anything," Noah said. "I'm simply telling the truth. In both my lives, the only one that has managed to know me is you."

A tremor ran through June's hand, and Noah held himself back once again. He knew that she wanted to give in to her feelings, but her pride still didn't let her jump on him.

"Does anyone else know about your other life?" June asked.

"The others should have guessed something by now," Noah replied, "But you are the only one that knows it."

June lifted her head at that point and fixed her eyes in Noah's. His heartbeat and his gaze were telling her that he wasn't lying, and she could sense the slight worry hidden inside his mental waves.

The truth was that she understood his decision to keep the matter about his transmigration a secret. It was too dangerous to leak such incredible information in a world full of monsters and experts ready to do anything in their power to gain an advantage over the Tribulations.

That was also something that would be part of the secrets that they had to keep in the eventuality that their relationship was exposed. Noah didn't go back on the promise that he made during the winged beasts' crisis. He was hiding a detail that would have endangered him greatly.

"I guess it pissed me to learn about that from Shandal," June said before continuing with a hesitant tone. "Can we keep this between ourselves? I want to be the only one to know this part of you."

Noah revealed a smile and decided to tease her a little. "Are you sure that my greed didn't influence you too much?"

June didn't laugh but reached Noah's face with her free hand as she kept her gaze fixed on his eyes. Noah was speechless for a second. June wasn't ready to give in until she heard those words coming out of his mouth.

"Of course," Noah said in a firm tone. "Also, there are many parts of me that only you know."

"Really?" June said as she put a sly expression on her face. "List them."

Noah accepted her challenge and took her hands in his as he neared her to whisper in her ear. June let him speak, and a warm smile appeared on her expression as Noah listed a series of things that they had shared.

A faint blush though began to appear on her face as Noah moved to their intimate moments. Her smile kept on widening until she felt the urge to kiss her lover and put that matter behind them.

Noah felt her hand breaking free from his grasp and reaching for his cheek. June put her thumb over his mouth and tilted his head so that they could look at each other again.

Then, she removed her thumb to kiss him.

Noah had only given a glance to the environment after the balcony, but June's kiss made him disregard anything that didn't concern her. His feelings and instincts were already at their limits, and his mind could only focus on her now.

There would be time to analyze the environment inside the central storm and pick suitable items from the castle. Yet, June had the priority now, as well as his complete focus and desire.

.

.

.

June and Noah returned to the throne room almost a day after their sudden departure.

They found the Ghostly Snakes coiled on the floor as they waited for further orders and the two Demons inspecting the chessboard as they shared a cup of wine.

The couple's return didn't go unnoticed, but the hybrids didn't move from their spot. It seemed the Joel had received strict orders from the others and was guarding the area in case something wrong happened.

The Demons, instead, left the chessboard and neared them.

"Anything worth knowing?" Flying Demon asked Noah, but the latter shook his head.

Noah understood that the Demon was curious about his past life. Still, there was a reason why he didn't reveal that information to anyone, and the Demon respected his decision.

However, it felt mandatory to ask if his past life contained something that could be useful to the Hive.

Flying Demon smirked when he saw Noah's gesture and moved his attention on June's messy hair. She had never been known for her tidiness, but both her hair and robe appeared even worse off than usual.

Flying Demon's eyebrow arched as he moved his gaze back to Noah. A knowing smile appeared on his face, but Noah ignored it and walked past them to reach the chessboard.

"Where are the others?" Noah asked as June reached him and began to study the chessboard too.

Flying Demon revealed a proud smile when he looked at him and was about to answer, but Dreaming Demon preceded him. "They are having private discussions about their individualities. We want to go too before deciding about our item."

Then, she cleared her throat before asking a question. "Did you find something interesting on your way?"

Noah and June exchanged a glance before shaking their heads at the same time. They had taken a look at the environment, but their minds were too busy thinking about each other that they had almost forgotten where they were.

Also, they didn't recognize any of those items. The fact that most of them relied on laws made it hard to understand their purpose.

They needed Shandal to make a conscious choice. They couldn't just pick what appeared to be more valuable or powerful.

"We have taken a look at the outside world," June said when she saw the complex expression that had appeared on Dreaming Demon's face. It seemed that she was facing the same issue and wanted to know if they had found a solution.

Nevertheless, June's words were enough to ignite the Demons' interest, and they didn't hesitate to offer the couple a cup of wine as they waited for their story.