Elemental Cats

The robed figures stopped walking about twenty meters away from Toz and the cats, who were staring warily at them.

Toz felt that something was off regarding the figures, but he couldn't put his finger on it since they were entirely hidden by dark robes. Not even their feet or hands were visible.

But since they weren't attacking them directly, Toz decided to wait until they could figure out what was going on. Thankfully, it looked like they would explain their intentions without much delay.

"State your identity!"

"..."

Toz's hopes were shattered. The figures didn't seem to be allies of the Alliance of Kingdoms. And they didn't explain their intentions clearly enough for Toz to make sense of them at once. Toz would have liked to blame the lack of understanding on the voice's ethereal and hollow sound. But he understood the words perfectly. So he couldn't do that.

"Do you think they're looking for someone?"

"Dunno. Maybe they're law enforcers?"

Although Lucy and Mindle joked around, they still roused their mana and were ready to react at a moment's notice in case something happened.

"If your background is powerful enough, we'll bring you in without excessive force, even if you resist."

"Wait, are they really cops?"

Considering their demand and the potential leniency, Toz was beginning to understand what the figures were doing.

He and the cats had been in the Alliance of Kingdom's prison constructed for political hostages. A place where mercenaries or participants of the proxy war fought for honor, wealth, achievements, acknowledgment, boredom, and so on. But that prison was for the individuals captured from the side of the Tribe of Death.

However, what of the people who fought on the Obsidian Empire's behalf? They would naturally suffer a similar fate but at the hands of the Tribe of Death instead. The details might differ, but it would probably be similar in the end, depending on the status of whatever background one had.

Unfortunately, Toz and the cats didn't have a single background among them. They were all from various parts of the mortal realm.

Nil was from the City of Growing Iron, same as Toz. He was born there and lived as a street cat until he found Toz.

And then, after a while, the two of them picked up Lucy from a carriage passing through the town. He wasn't from Growing Iron like them, but there was no way he ended up there if he was from someplace far away, much less a place in the Transcendent Realm.

Toz, Nil, and Lucy had witnessed Mindle's birth, so they could confirm that no one knew her identity as a spirit. And if they chose to reveal it, it would only put them in danger. Mindle might be fine since she was so valuable alive. But the others? Highly unlikely unless the Spirit Realm chooses to intervene. But considering their seclusion, they wouldn't make it in time if they did. And even then, they might prioritize Mindle, and Mindle alone.

Scrael was born in Tumbling Thunder Forest and fought for her survival in it until she joined Toz and the others. She might have a reputation with the wild beasts there, but that would be useless anywhere else.

And Asilean had spent his life drifting around the Void. He knew even fewer people than Mindle.

Since neither Toz nor any of the cats had a background to rely on to save themselves trouble, the only thing they could do was fight. Though they would have resisted in either case, at least now, their opponents wouldn't be holding back. However, it remained to be seen whether that was a good or a bad thing since their opponents seemed to be awfully confident when they demanded Toz tell them his identity.

But, for the sake of it, and because they had one injured member and one tired member, Toz decided to try something.

"We're friends of the princess!"

"We are?"

"You are?"

The Tribe of Death member's and Lucy's questions sounded similar, but the intonation was different. Lucy doubted Toz's claim, and the cloaked figure wanted to know their identity in detail.

"Toz, I am a personal acquaintance of Dyra Obsidiris of the Obsidian Empire."

The hooded figure in charge of talking turned to his companion, and they whispered in their hollow-sounding voices. But Toz, with his excellent hearing, heard them talking about being on a list of some kind, so he spoke up again.

"I just joined the war, so I might not be on there."

The first hooded figure seemed to look up. Toz only sensed the gaze since he couldn't see anything under the hood, not even if they were surprised he overheard them talking or not.

"You said we could do this peacefully even if we did resist?"

"That is if you have the proper status to warrant such a treatment. And only if we can confirm that status."

"Well, since it probably hasn't been long enough for your list to be updated, how are you going to confirm it?"

They didn't say anything for a while, but Toz could tell that they were silently communicating with each other and didn't interrupt them.

As Toz started talking, he realized it would be the perfect way to gain contributions and make achievements. Who else could successfully infiltrate the enemies' base and even the depths of it by getting captured? And who, capable of doing so, would be willing to take such a risk?

Anyone with a powerful enough background would just wait until they were rescued. But Toz and the cats were different. They didn't actually have anyone to rescue them, and when the Tribe of Death realized that, it would already be by the time they broke out of their jail.

There was no guarantee that they used a similar imprisonment system, but Toz was still confident that he would be able to break out. Even if they put him in a cell worthy of the personal acquaintance of one of the descendants of the Obsidian imperial family, he doubted it would be significantly more secure than the highest security level prison that Dyra and Yill put him in.

And with the first time's experience, Toz was confident he could pull it off again. This time, he would also have the opportunity to hide the cats inside the familiar space before getting captured and sealed.

Eventually, the robed figure in charge of speaking with them continued doing that as it started talking.

"Since your conjecture about the registry not being up to date seems to be true, we'll verify your status at the fortress. And in case you possess the status you claim to do, we'll allow you to resist to your greatest ability, and we'll make sure you aren't harmed in the process."

"Excellent! I thank you for the hospitality."

Although they might be captured, Toz was even planning on it. It would still be great if they could experience the abilities of the Tribe of Death directly.

Dyra hadn't explained that part to them, so Toz and the cats didn't know what to expect. But if they were going to infiltrate their base, that much would be the bare minimum they would need to know.

In response to the robed figure's words, Toz and the cats got ready to fight.