Elemental Cats

However, the time for the general's plan was rapidly creeping closer, and Lucy still showed no signs of returning to Toz and the other cats. Toz managed to suppress his worries at first, but he couldn't help but be filled with anxiety as he couldn't even contact Lucy. And he hadn't gotten a word from Lucy for quite a while.

The only thing that comforted Toz was that he could tell that Lucy was still alive. But he couldn't tell what state Lucy was in wherever he was. Toz didn't know whether Lucy was thriving and didn't return because he didn't need to or if he was hanging on to his life by a thread and didn't return because he physically couldn't. And he didn't communicate because some kind of magic blocked the bond's connection.

Their imprisonment in the maximum-level security prison that Dyra and Yill put them in proved that it was possible to hinder an inclination's magic. If it could happen once, it could happen again.

However, it would take a transcendent or extremely skilled mage or fighter to capture and imprison Lucy. An elaborate enough trap might also suffice, but only because it would pique Lucy's curiosity. And if it were an opponent skilled enough to capture Lucy, Toz would have to risk his life to save Lucy. Toz didn't mind doing that.

But what if Lucy wasn't even in danger, and Toz just poked a hornet's nest because he couldn't contain his worries and trust Lucy? However, those kinds of thoughts only exacerbated Toz's worries since he flipped them around.

What if something happened to Lucy because Toz didn't come and save him?

The other cats had to hold down Toz and force him to calm down and think things through before he did anything drastic.

"Toz. It's great that you worry so much. But you don't have to. Lucy might seem childish and impulsive, but there is no way he would put himself at unnecessary risk, especially not when he is alone. If anything, he will be so cautious and secretive that not even someone like Yill would notice him."

Scrael's words calmed Toz down, and he managed to think rationally. But then Nil spoke up and made Toz worried about something else.

"That's right, Toz. Since he never shows that side to you, you don't know. But as soon as he's alone, his smile disappears, and he turns into a cold-blooded killer. You have nothing to worry about except maybe not getting any achievements since Lucy has done everything, and the war will end without us needing to do anything."

"Nil, be serious. Lucy definitely wouldn't end the war. We should almost worry about what's going to happen since it feels like Lucy is doing something to stir up even more trouble."

"Maybe he's plotting to weaken the kingdoms' army or strengthen the Tribe of Death so that Toz can get a moment to shine and get more contribution points?"

Asilean's retort to Nil's assumption about Lucy's plans didn't seem very farfetched. But before anyone could consider it, Mindle added her thoughts, which seemed a little ridiculous at first.

But then they remembered that they were dealing with Lucy. If he found an opportunity and got a whim to do it, it was completely possible that he would intentionally create even more chaos in the middle of the war. He might do it even if he wasn't sure that it would lead to Toz getting an opportunity to rack up contribution points.

And considering that Lucy had left to figure out what the third party's secret plans were, it was also likely that he would find some kind of ammunition to fan the flames of war.

If there really were people plotting against the Alliance of Kingdoms in secrecy, using means that didn't align with the Tribe of Death, it was possible that the group of plotters wasn't necessarily working with the Tribe of Death or their proxies.

Lucy hadn't revealed all of his findings, but if the Tribe of Death really had spies on the inside of the Alliance of Kingdoms, winning the war should be done deal for them. However, what if the spies belonged to someone else, someone who wanted the war to drag on?

There might be another reason that the spies within the Redire Kingdom's combatants and members of the army didn't act to end the war at once. But considering the other part of the conspiracy that Toz and Lucy had realized, it was more likely that the spies and the ones behind the conspiracy weren't related to either the alliance or the Tribe of Death.

If Lucy caught the tails of whoever those plotters were and brought them into the light, it was very likely that a three-way war would unfold instead of the current war between the Obsidian Empire and Tribe of Death proxy war.

And a threefold proxy war, if it stays a proxy war, is bound to be more chaotic than a war between two parties, especially if the third party shows its face at the end of the war. Right when the Alliance of Kingdoms and the Tribe of Death are gathering all their forces for a final sprint to the finish line.

The full force of the Alliance of Kingdoms, the entire might of Tribe of Death's proxies, and the hidden power behind the conspiracy. If those three collided, it would certainly be a sight that Lucy would enjoy.

As Toz and the cats realized that, they stopped worrying about Lucy's safety and started worrying about their own instead.

Lucy would be fine as long as he stayed hidden and orchestrated things from behind the scene. But Toz and the other cats had to dive into the thick of it if they wanted to gather enough contribution points to follow Dyra to the Transcendent Realm, where they would hopefully find and rescue Taienra.

Toz and the other cats couldn't confirm anything, but after they agreed that Lucy wasn't the type to get himself in trouble, only others, they relaxed and focused on themselves. If they wanted to survive the upcoming clash, they had to have sufficient strength.