Chapter 473 - 473: Caen's Evolution
As the first battle was over, the next set of contestants were invited to the arena.
It was also a pair of nobles that began to fight for victory.
Salazar wanted to go and ask Arthur what Milena told him about Lucifer, but he knew it wasn't the right time. Arthur would have come on his own if it was the time. He decided to wait for the end of the day to talk to him.
In the meantime, he observed the Battle of nobles, learning more about them and how they fought.
"They are fast," Caen let out, noticing the movement of the Nobles as they avoided the attacks of each other.
"That's right. And their healing is also pretty good. It's just as we heard," Salazar agreed.. "The two of them haven't even started using their abilities yet, and their fighting skills are still so good."
"Exactly. No wonder Nobles are considered powerful. They are like Variants on steroids. But then again, they can't use Overdrive either. So that should be a disadvantage for them," Caen responded, learning a few things from the battle.
"That's right. For overdrive, you need to burn your life essence. But they can't even form their own blood, instead surviving on blood from others. I doubt they can use Overdrive either. But then again, Overdrive is only the last option," Salazar replied.
"Do you think you'll be using Overdrive ever?" Caen asked Salazar. "I wonder how it'll affect your powers."
"I'm not sure. But I don't think I'm going to be using Overdrive. Using that means you have no faith in your victory, and you end up sacrificing your life in exchange for more power for one last strike. I would never lose faith in my skills, so I won't be using it," Salazar replied, sighing.
"Sigh, that's true as well. I won't be using it either. Since my power would still be useless even if I use Overdrive," Caen let out, frowning.
His powers were of shapeshifter. What could he even do with a more effective overdrive? Get a better disguise? That was useless as well.
"Don't sell yourself short. I think Overdrive would work great on you. But it would still be a last resort only," Salazar responded.
"How?" Caen asked. "How can it be useful?"
Salazar didn't respond right away and glanced at Heath instead. He didn't want to talk about it before Heath since he was still under the impression that Caen was Andreas.
"Heath, can you get some coffee for us from the stands?" he asked Heath.
"Right now?"
"Yeah. I'm craving it. I heard they offer that for free for the participants. Get three cups for all three of us."
Heath didn't understand why Salazar felt the urge to drink coffee so suddenly, but he still listened. He stood up and left.
"He's gone now. You can speak." Caen told Salazar.
"Well, the answer is simple. What is your power?" Salazar asked.
"It's shapeshifting," Caen responded.
"Wrong. Your power is impersonation. You can impersonate anyone from looks to voice. So Overdrive would boost your Impersonation even more. What do you think you would be able to do if your Impersonation is boosted?" Salazar asked. "What do you think the next step of your power will be?"
"You mean... Impersonating powers?" Caen asked, stunned. He hadn't even thought of this possibility before.
"That's right. I believe the next evolution in your power would be to impersonate looks as well as the powers of the person you're impersonating, at least to some extent," Salazar explained.
"But I also think you don't have to wait for overdrive to do that. Just keep training yourself and your abilities. One day, you shall be able to impersonate powers too," he further added.
"That... I didn't think of this possibility. But if it comes here, then I really won't be useless anymore," Caen muttered. "Thank you."
"You don't need to thank me. I just told you some basic things," Salazar replied, shaking his head. "Oh, and one more thing. I don't think you're useless. Your ability is already pretty powerful. At its next evolution, it would be even more powerful. You would become a powerful Warlock that could be a headache for anyone."
"So don't underestimate yourself. If you were useless, you wouldn't be sitting beside me, selected by Lucifer," He continued.
"You know, you're not half bad. I was wrong about you," Caen said, sighing. "You're actually a nice guy."
"What do you mean you were wrong about me? What did you think about me?" Salazar asked, smiling wryly. "I'm as normal as a person can be. Though I do get a bit scary when I'm angry, but that's the case with everyone."
"It's nothing. I just thought that you would one day betray us since you don't like Uprising. But here you are, trying to help me."
"I don't like Uprising? When did I say that?"
"I mean, you did attack our base with the intention to kill everyone?" Caen reminded Salazar, rolling his eyes.
"Ah, that wasn't because I hated you all. I mean, it's true that I don't appreciate some of the things that Uprising did, but the only reason I attacked Uprising was because I thought you were manipulating him. I know I was wrong," Salazar explained.
"In any case, we're both on the same side now," he added.
" Can I ask you something?" Caen asked.
"Go ahead."
"It's about Lucifer. I mean, from the way you talk, it seems like you care for him. Then why didn't you help him when he was little?" Caen asked.
"Why didn't I help him then? I think the answer is a bit complicated," Salazar replied, sighing.
"I idolized Zale for what he did for me. He protected me from becoming an orphan when I was little. He's the only reason I was able to grow up the way I did."
"The day I heard about his death was the day I received the shock of my life. I knew he had a son, but I didn't know that his son was going to be alone. I thought people were going to take care of him and that he'll have a life that a kid should have with the government who will take care of him."
"I was a Warlock who had just started walking on the path of growth. I had many enemies, and I didn't want Lucifer to be dragged with me."
"But I didn't know that his future was going to be so grim. I didn't know the government was going to use him in experiments and give him an even worse future than it would have been with me," he explained.