A direct continuation of this thread.

"Y'know Beelzebub, this place is cool and all, but..." Zane's legs dangled off the side of the throne, the elf sitting on it in a sideways fashion. "Wouldn't it be nice if there were like, pretty girls around? Demon ladies just aren't to my taste, no racism intended... I'd die for even just a hug from a cute lady at this point." The culture as far as romance and stuff of the like definitely seemed different in this realm, or perhaps just in this part of The Abyss. He found himself longing for the women he knew back in Earthland rather than find any of the female demons he had come to know so far attractive. This was especially noteworthy considering he had spent almost a year in The Abyss by this point. "You can worry about that when we go back to Earthland some day. Why bother yourself with such a thing in the meantime?" Beelzebub asked, his voice somehow seeming much louder inside Zane's head whenever they were in the confines of Beelzebub's Castle.  "You claim to be a Demon Lord around here. Do you think the average Demon Lord yearns for a hug?"

Zane sighed, dropping the issue before Beelzebub and him argued about it. The words he spoke definitely dug a little deep. If Zane wanted to be a Demon Lord, perhaps it was best to just not care about such things...



Having finished his little speech and suggesting to the others that they mingled, Zane immediately thought about who to speak to first. It wasn't a hard choice. Zane had promised Venus that he'd give her a better hug just 200 seconds ago when she squeezed half the life out of him from behind near the edge of the tower. While that happened far too suddenly for his brain to properly process it, this was something he could be prepared for. Zane made a beeline to Venus, cutting across the roof and ignoring the presence of everyone else. "Venus." He called as he got within a few feet of her, extending his arms as he continued approaching.

Then he fulfilled his promise to her. His arms wrapped around her incredibly tightly as he rested his face near the top of his head, closing his eyes. Zane gave what was perhaps the most genuine and passionate hug Earthland had ever seen. Was part of it because Venus was really attractive? Yes. Was part of it because he had just given his word? Yes. But above all, he really needed this. The Abyss was a rough place, even for someone with seemingly infinite energy and goofiness like Zane. Beelzebub did his friend the favor of being silent for a while. While the demon still disapproved of some of Zane's softer sides he simply saw it as something that would take time to iron out.

"Your hair smells even nicer after these years." Zane commented, letting out a happy little sigh. Smells like that were a sensation he didn't get to experience during his time in The Abyss. "Your body's a lot nicer too." He slipped in, always finding a way to soil the perfect moment juuust a little bit.

Her attention span had been all over the place with every additional guild member joining the rooftop ever since Zane made the little speech. Here she was, attempting to introduce herself to the newer faces and getting comfortable with the older members, until her name was called. She cocked her head over her shoulder, looking for the source of the sound where she noticed the young elf speeding towards her direction with his arms outstretched.

Eyes partly wide, it took her a good minute to process the things that were occurring at that precise moment. A grunt escaped, due to the impact from Zane’s hug which somewhat caused her legs to fumble about, if not from the shock of receiving a hug from him that was uncalled for. It was a side that she had yet to be seen over the entirety of their friendship and for him to display his affectionate side, the vixen wondered if something happened during the time they were away from each other, and she would be lying if she said she wasn’t concerned.

And of course, he had to ruin the moment by leaving a witty comment just like he always did, which left her rolling her eyes exaggeratedly, though it was quickly followed by a chuckle. To have her signature scent of roses and berries recognized; it seemed that bathing herself in expensive soap and shampoo was worth it after all. She would’ve fed into his wittiness by saying that she always looked nice but did not let the words pass her lips. Instead, she chose to talk about what was important, ”I’m glad you’re somewhat…still the same.”

The assassin began walking away to the corner of the rooftop with the belief that the elf would follow her as well; away from the rest of the people so that she could give him her full attention whilst she was talking to him. Venus turned to face him again, and now fully looked at him as she decided to mention about the difference she noticed earlier.

”So, what did I miss in these two years?” She paused, let her ruby eyes gloss over the breathtaking view of the town above the 100-story building before her. ”You don’t look quite yourself—well, aside from your very-obvious elf ears.” Was it because she was a vampire? Her perception and awareness became highly increased that she could even detect the smallest changes within a person, like how she could tell that there was something that the elf was bothered about that he wasn’t telling her yet.