Elemental Cats



Toz and Red Hook stared at each other in silence for several tense moments.

Toz had used force to suppress Red Hook and become the Pirate King of Pirate Haven. But those kinds of methods only worked as long as the power balance remained intact. And at the moment, Toz was exhausted, fatigued, and tired. He was mostly clear from physical injuries, but he had pushed his mana, body, and mind to the limit, seemingly non-stop, for at least a day.

But he would still be weaker than Red Hook, even if he had been in his best state. After all, Red Hook had somehow managed to break through to the transcendent level.

"Is it thanks to the dagger?"

Toz couldn't restrain his curiosity anymore and asked what was on his mind.

"Partly. The trump card on my island also helped. Now that I don't need to hide it anymore, I can tell you that I accumulated and concentrated all the blood of the people I defeated."

Red Hook answered with a slightly smug face as she reveled in being stronger than Toz.

"So, you want to become Pirate King? Queen, maybe?"

"Well, yeah."

"Here you go, then."

Toz took off an imaginary crown and handed it to Red Hook. Red Hook just snorted.

"Hmph. It's no fun if you're just handing it over. Why not fight for it a little? Even if you look like shit, it's not like you're injured, right?"

Toz sighed.

"Help me settle this, and after I tell you what I've been through, I'll fight you as much as you want."

"Really? I only need one round to beat you, though. But sure. We have a deal."

With that agreement, Toz and Red Hook decided to deal with personal matters later. Red Hook went to finish the Blood Fiend while Toz directed the void metal shuttle over to the fleet of pirate ships so that they could hold all the fugitives instead of him.

Toz saw a few of his old friends like the Bunglehoppers and Tasha, but since they were all busy taking care of sorting the troops and keeping them from causing trouble, reunions would have to wait. But he made sure to wave to them when he got their eyes.

While overseeing it all, he informed General Scoll, the Lightning Rascals, and the others of who were his friends so that they knew who to stick close to on the ships to avoid trouble. While doing that, he also explained to General Scoll that the pirates of Pirate Haven had come to the rescue since Red Hook had sensed that the two delegates of the Redire Kingdom were suspicious. It took a while to gather information and unite all the pirates. But when Red Hook broke through to the transcendent level, things like that weren't a problem.

General Scoll was a little surprised that the pirates understood that they would also be in trouble if the Alliance of Kingdoms lost the war. But he was even more surprised that the pirates willingly came to help, despite the ploy the kingdoms had planned against Pirate Haven.

But Toz didn't find it surprising at all. The pirates knew better than most how fragile life was and how their piracy and continued existence relied on the kingdoms. They were parasites, and parasites without hosts would usually die.

There was naturally bound to be some friction when those parasites, the symbols of lawlessness, and the military met. But thankfully, there were powerhouses on both sides that made sure no fighting broke out.

So, even if the army, which was mostly comprised of high level mages and fighters, was technically stronger, the pirates had both numbers and stamina. The army was almost completely exhausted, after all. And the strongest of the pirates, like Wulf, Tasha, the various members of the Bunglehoppers, Red Hook's crew, and the Cult of Nihiltas, were more than enough to suppress the soldiers and combatants.

The only ones who could match the pirates were the Lightning Rascals' joint efforts and Derada. But none of them were interested in causing strife. If anything, they, at least the Lightning Rascals, were busy suppressing the troops so that they didn't try and fight against the pirates. Derada was busy fiddling with the piece of void metal Toz gave her.

Now that the Blood Fiend was suppressed and defeated by Red Hook.

The Alliance of Kingdoms' troops quickly forgot their fear. Or maybe because they remembered it so clearly, they were easily angered and provoked.

And the pirates weren't exactly saints of tolerance either. When the troops glared at them instead of thanking them for saving their lives, the pirates happily incited the troops into taking action first.

With powerhouses like Tasha, who reduced his opponents to unrecognizable smithereens, the pirates were fearless.

Thankfully not everyone was stupid enough to try and cause fights, and nothing happened, even after Red Hook returned to the ships after defeating the Blood Fiend. Kahglia was a little miffed that the enemy that had given her and the others so much trouble was defeated so easily, but she didn't say anything. The Death Knight also didn't show any signs of displeasure as the two of them stuck next to Toz.

Red Hook came up to Toz and the other two, a little curious about the giantess and the servant of Death. She was rude to Toz, but she wasn't rude or stupid enough to directly ask them who they were.

"It's not over yet, right?"

Red Hook nodded in response to Toz's question.

"I need to go to the source and take it for myself- I mean, get rid of it. So, can you fix up a portal, or should I drag you along?"

Red Hook smiled mischievously after she spoke, as if she wanted Toz to choose the second option.

Toz looked in the direction of the battlefield for a few moments. Since they were so far away, he had trouble establishing a clear connection with the cats. But it seemed like Asilean was prepared for Toz to get further away and had already started preparing.

Toz flashed a fake smile at Red Hook before he started creating a portal large enough to fit Kahglia. Since she didn't want to stay on the pirate ships that could barely hold her, which was understandable, Toz brought her and the Death Knight along.

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