âWhen I tried to use my powers, I got that shock. And Iâm sure it wasnât the work of Lucifer. It could only be because of this bracelet then.â
Salazar looked at the bracelet on his first wrist. He was now regretting reaching out his hand towards Lucifer.
"I shouldâve been careful. But what is this thing?"
He looked at the two men who stood in the back with their arms folded. "Any of you know about this bracelet? What is it?"
The two Warlocks glared at Salazar, not answering.
"Come on; Iâm not asking you to hand me your property. I just want to know what this thing is? Or is it that even you donât know?" Salazar asked again, getting on the nerves of these two men.
One of the two men clenched his fist, glaring at Salazar. "Donât speak. This is your last warning. Iâm already very upset because you killed four of my friends. If you werenât needed alive, I would have smashed your head!"
Salazar rubbed the back of his head.
"Why donât you free me? Then we can see how tough you actually are," Salazar smirked. "Itâs only because I canât use my powers that you two are acting so strong. You should be the ones who need to be happy."
"Youâre quite lucky actually. If Lucifer hadnât arrived and pulled that trick, you would be lying dead with the four of your friends. If only he were ten minutes late, I would have been finished."
"You!"
"Heâs just trying to make us angry. Donât lose sight of our goal. Heâs nothing but a prisoner now, and his ultimate fate will be death. Donât fall for him."
"Youâre right. Heâs destined to die. I should learn to ignore this guy."
Salazar burst into laughter, hearing their words. "Can you really ignore me though?"
He lazily laid on the bed.
âMan, I wonder if I really made a mistake. I just wanted to do something good for Zale, who saved my family, and now Iâm in this situation. Could it be that I was really wrong? Is it that Luciferâs heart has actually turned dark?â
He observed the bracelet carefully, thinking of a way to get out of it.
The bracelet seemed to be made of some powerful material that couldnât be broken without having immense strength, which he didnât have now.
And even if he had strength, he believed taking it off couldnât be easy. A bracelet that shocked when a person tried to use powers was undoubtedly going to electrocute a person if an effort to break it was made.
âI wonder where he found something like this? Itâs not something which the Uprising made; Iâm sure of that. Even Kellian seemed ignorant of this bracelet. Where did this thing come from?â
Salazar lost himself in deep thought when he heard the sound of the door opening.
Opening his eyes, he slightly raised his head to look at the door, wondering who it was that came.
"Ah, Lucifer Azarel, you finally decided to visit me. I was waiting for you." Salazar sat up.
"You two wait outside," Lucifer commanded the two Warlocks who left the room, closing the door behind.
He picked a chair and sat facing Salazar.
"Salazar Lucia, one of the four strongest Warlocks of Elisium. Three of the four are already dead. Only you are left. I wonder if that makes you the strongest Warlock or Elisium."
"Strongest Warlock?" Salazar asked, showing his bracelet. "Iâm nothing more than an ordinary human now."
"Iâm surprised you didnât try to use your powers a second time. Youâre not that stupid, I suppose. The last person who was inside those bracelets tried to use their power at least five times before understanding how these bracelets worked."
"May I ask who that person was?" Salazar asked.
"Thatâs none of your concern. Just know, that bracelet canât be taken off. So donât try it. Also, donât try using your powers because youâll get electrocuted again," Lucifer responded.
"I guessed as much," Salazar answered. "So, are you going to free me?"
"Not yet. You did kill four of our men, after all. Youâre not getting free so easily. At least not until you make up for it."
"And how do you want me to make up for it?" Salazar asked.
Lucifer didnât answer.
"Do you know what youâre doing? All I wanted was to help you because your father once helped my parents. I just wanted to help his family too. Iâm not your enemy." Salazar reminded Lucifer, sighing.
"Take a calm breath and think about it carefully. You can still free me and come with me. We can forget about everything that happened."
"You want Uprising to be left alive? Iâll allow that as well. Isnât that enough? Why do you want this life of bloodshed and tyranny?"
"A life of bloodshed and tyranny? Are you saying that this life wonât follow me if I come with you?" Lucifer asked, amused.
"Thatâs right. It wonât come to you! Iâll be there with you. No one can hurt you with me around," Salazar agreed.
"You really think youâre that strong?" Lucifer asked. "Are you stronger than my father?"
"I..."
Salazar didnât know what to say. His mouth kept opening to speak something and closed just as fast. He had never faced Zale, and he never wanted to. No matter how strong he got, he had an immense respect for Zale.
"Iâll take that as a no. So tell me, even my parents can be killed; what makes you so certain that you canât?" Lucifer asked.
"I learned this lesson a bit too late, but Iâll tell you. There are thousands of strong beings in this world. And the moment you grow too trusting or complacent is the moment you place your life at the mercy of other people," he continued, standing up.
"No matter how much you urge for peace, this world is inherently chaotic. No matter where you go, no matter where you hide, chaos will find you. Thatâs the fate of ours. The life of a Warlock can never be without conflict," he added.
"Your father died inside a high-ranking Dungeon. We arenât going in that Dungeon, so thereâs no need to compare your fatherâs death with our future. A thing like that will never happen. You just donât understand yet because you havenât experienced peace," Salazar retorted.
"Ah, right. The dungeon story. I guess you donât know the truth either. Thatâs expected; you werenât big enough at that time," Lucifer muttered, nodding his head.
"What do you mean? What truth?" Salazar asked, frowning.