I know I'm probably late to the party with this observation, but I just really wanted to take the time to put my own thoughts about it into my own words, because I'm actually quite pleased that an idea I (and plenty of others) had about the Beasts, their relationships with mortalkind as Virtues, and what helped cause their corruption, has more or less been solidifed as canon to the narrative (not that it really needed that help, I don't think, but this update really drove the point home)
Basically, I always stood by the idea that what helped spell doom for the Virtues was their failure to form meaningful connections with people, whether that be mortals or even with each other. Not only did they stumble and ultimately collapse under the weight of responsibilities they did not choose to bear, such a fate was assured because no one was there to help prevent it. None of them had a support system of any kind anywhere.
Silent Salt was the most insulated from threats of corruption right from the start, both because of his virtue being Solidarity and simply because of his own personal character/integrity. From the beginning, Salt preached unity, understanding, and friendship no matter anyone's differences. He allied himself with the poor, with the hungry, with the sick and injured, to such a degree that this devotion to society's outcasts is baked into the Kala Namak Knights' vows: "Embrace the downtrodden. Remember the tormented." Anyone and everyone was welcome to join the Knights of Kala Namak; the only true requirement was believing in and fighting for solidarity always. Salt's willingness to mingle with mortals, to embrace them as his friends and his comrades and his equals, is so exemplary that other characters actually notice and comment on it:
Salt was no one's king, he was no one's teacher, he was no one's master. He presented himself as a trusted equal to ALL people, everywhere, going out of his way to protect and serve even those that the world had long discarded. He was a god that stepped down from the heavens to stand side by side with mortals as though they were him and vice versa. Doing that drew people to him, earned him their trust and loyalty and unwavering friendship. People who loved and appreciated him for who he really was and what he really did, so much so that they were willing to fight and die not just for Salt himself (not that he would've wanted that, he'd rather die for them than the opposite), but for his ideals. He had a vision for the world that he wholeheartedly believed in and other people believed in it too, because they believed in him.
And that's what saved him in the end. That's what kept him from corrupting for as long as it did. When the other Virtues began to falter, he stood firm. While they succumbed to hatred and despair one by one, he continued his endless march across the world, searching for people in need of help. When the other Virtues vanished from the public and Salt was all that remained to continue fighting for the greater good, he did so. Even when he himself learned the touch of rage and misery after losing everything, he retained his lucidity and moral compass and immediately made his way to Elder Faerie so he could confess his sins, and beg Elder Faerie to kill him so he did not risk tainting mortalkind's good future with his presence. And in the end, Silent Salt made the ultimate sacrifice and sealed himself away inside the Silver Tree along with the other Beasts, in service of Elder Faerie, in service of his fallen knights, in service of his dream for a better tomorrow led by heroes better than he and his.
And he never lost that heart because Elder Faerie, and the Knights of Kala Namak, and that little boy, and everyone who Salt came to know personally, never let him lose it. Because Salt allowed himself to experience life beyond his status as a deity sent to lord over the world, he was ultimately able to resist the evils that tempted his fellow Virtues, whom on the other hand did not and/or could not find joy and meaning in existence beyond their duties. Salt let a child ride around on his horse and accepted the flowers he gave him, not caring that they dried and turned brittle, because "petals might wither away, but the intention remains". Salt embraced every man and woman who came to him in need, and trained and fought alongside all the ones who chose to stand with him, because they loved and respected both Silent Salt the Virtue and Silent Salt the man. Salt forged an ironclad and lifelong friendship with Elder Faerie, who stood by him to the bitter end, accepting Silent Salt even when he came to him coated in jam and crumbs, the bright light of Solidarity having dimmed into a cold, dark Silence. Who paid that friendship forward by helping to plant and nurture the Silver Tree, and offering support and counsel to Silent Salt all throughout his ordeals, who mourned his self-imprisonment and honored his noble sacrifice by standing guard (and instructing the other faeries to stand guard as well, thus instilling in them the same duty to justice and the greater good that Silent Salt always championed) over the seal until Elder Faerie's own death. People loved Silent Salt because Silent Salt loved people, and Silent Salt loved people because he made an effort to, divinity and power be damned. And it was through him loving people, and in people loving him back, that he was able to hold on for so long.
...And Silent Salt's love for people and vice versa continues to be paid forward in the future. That kid was most likely Charcoal's ancestor, who went on to instruct his family to tend to the graves of the knights and the ruins of the Kala Namak stronghold, which they've done for generations out of gratitude for what Silent Salt and the Knights of Kala Namak did for their family (even if the true purpose lies forgotten in the current age, the sentiment remains). The tree that grew from Salt and Faerie's camaraderie and dedication created new Virtues, and those Virtues were inherited by worthy heroes who actually use their power for good and have resisted corruption time and time again. His own successor has come for him, and is likely to try to reason with him and urge him back to the light, because she empathizes with his plight and believes he can change. Silent Salt's support system was and is so strong that it even transcended lifetimes. While he may have finally fallen from grace, that does not make that fact any less apparent nor powerful. Grace remained with him far past the time it remained with the other Virtues because it was the warmth of all those people he embraced that kept the fire burning. A fire that, sadly, never had the chance to ignite within the other four.
Silent Salt actually letting himself live and feel and understand others not only helped him, but by eventual proxy, it helped countless others. In the end, it truly was and is Solidarity that saved the world
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