"Maybe you're right." Ghaster conceded.
He has been feeling a little down ever since Soverick died. Maybe it is because he didn't know what Soverick meant to him until he lost his rival. Maybe that's why he feels aimless, lost, and without motivation.
"But so what if you are right?" He asked, "Soverick was the greatest battle sage monkey since the time of the sage. It has even been announced that he has become a sage for his talents and his contribution to the battle against the Vipers. He is the greatest rival one can ask for but now he is dead and I have no one else to sharpen myself against. How am I to move on with my life?"
He went on an unexpected tirade. He didn't know he had so much to say about Soverick until he started speaking. It was then that he realized how much Soverick meant to him.
He sighed. Then he asked, "What should I do?"
Mihila gave the suggestion that she has prepared for this attempt to cheer Ghaster up. "What you need is a new rival. You need someone you can aim to beat"
Ghaster nodded. "That sounds like a good idea."
Mihila was encouraged. "Isn't it? I recommend you choose the current greatest battle sage monkey of our generation."
Ghaster's eyes widened in realization. "You don't mean Salvini do you?"
Mihila gave a nod of affirmation. Her answer made him gawk.
"But she is of the lineage of the sage."
Mihila folded her arms against her chest as she asked him. "So what? What if she is? Does it mean that she can't be your rival? Does that mean that you can't beat her?"
Ghaster made another attempt to convince her of the absurdity of her proposal. "But she is the child of the plane."
She moved closer to him."Wasn't Soverick also a child of the plane? Didn't you fight him?"
"That's different. I didn't know what it meant to be the child of the plane back then. I was ignorant so I fought him. I am not ignorant anymore."
She moved her face close to his and looked him in the eye. "Are you afraid of her?"
He looked away from her and avoided her gaze. He is afraid of Salvini. It is not the kind of fear and dread that he had for Soverick. Soverick was an insurmountable mountain to him. Soverick was an obstacle that he wanted to scale but will never punish him for failure in his attempts. He could always expect to be ignored by Soverick or looked down upon. But if Soverick pays attention to him, only then he will experience pain.
Throughout it all, he respected Soverick. Even now, he admires Soverick despite the pain that Soverick caused him the last time. He knows enough now that Soverick could have been much more severe in his treatment. The strong are always respected. He has always respected Soverick since they were kids but he didn't want to admit inferiority. That's what caused him to be in conflict with Soverick. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ ɴovᴇl(ꜰ)ir(e).nᴇt
He fears Salvini but he doesn't have any feeling of respect or admiration for her because he doesn't think she is strong. He considers Soverick to be a mountain while he considers Salvini to be a giant snake. Soverick is stoic, strong, and somewhat predictable while Savini is sneaky and unpredictable.
His opinion of her is not only because of what her brothers told him but also what others said of her. Everyone in the plane saw how she hunted the people of her arena. They saw how she played her brother against Litori and then killed Litori. They also saw how she instigated conflicts in the 2nd challenge in order to eliminate everyone else and become the last man standing. She is devious and sneaky. If not for Soverick being in the same Arena with her, then she would have won.
It is not that she is not strong. He believes she is strong since she has to be to overcome Soverick. The major reason why he dreads her is that Soverick fell to her. If someone as strong as Soverick can fall prey to her then what about him? So he finds it very preposterous that his mother wants him to go after her.
But he won't tell his mother that he is afraid of her. So he said, "Fine. I'll make her my rival. I'll fight her with every opportunity that I get."
Mihila didn't comment about his shifty behavior or the pause he took before answering her or the fact that he didn't answer her question. She nodded and said, "That's good."
The two of them then stood together by the window to watch the city. They continued for a while. A peaceful silence settled amidst them.
"I thought that Salvini girl liked Soverick. That's what I saw on the show during the competition. To think that she would be the one to kill Soverick." Mihila shook her head in wonder. "What a world."
What she said did not make Ghaster marvel. He would have shivered involuntarily if he were not in perfect control of his body. What Mihila said reinforced how cunning Salvini is. She did and said things that made it feel like she liked Soverick. Then she killed him at the end of the day.
'Maybe that's how she got him. She made him let his guard down only to backstab him.' he thought in fear.
He decided then and there that he is only going to pretend to his mother that Salvini is his rival. Earlier when he lied, he also planned to put in some half-hearted effort to make his false conviction look real.
He thought it was a good plan that will fool anyone including his mother. But now, he is not going to take the rivalry seriously or half-heartedly lest he jeopardizes his life. If anything, he will try to avoid Salvini as much as possible so that he won't end up like those that Soverick has traumatized.