Dragon's Awakening: The Duke's Son Is Changing The Plot-Chapter 91 - 90 - Operation Nutcracker.

The Magic Tower looked like a normal, straight tower with a few rooms, but it was way more than that.

These Towers were ancient constructs no one—except Rave, of course—knew who had made.

After all, the main research in the magic towers was about discovering their origin.

That was why, in the tower that showed signs of fire elements, all expert fire mages gathered, and those that showed other elements had their respective mages gathered.

It was even said that the magic towers were the best environment for those respective mages to grow.

Inside the towers, there were several chambers allotted for training, and many mages trained and meditated in those as fire vines flowed on the walls of the magic tower.

In one of those chambers, as Raven and his group rested after their discussion, a squad of elite operatives crept like silent fuzzballs of justice.

Their tails flicked with military precision.

Their eyes gleamed with determination.

Their leader? The legendary Nibbles.

This was no ordinary squirrel reconnaissance.

This was Operation Nutcracker.

The Clawtail Recon Squad took point—four squirrels in red berry-camo warpaint, their whiskers twitching in unison as they scaled a suspiciously magical-looking bookshelf.

Behind them came the Nutfang Rapid Strike Unit, wearing pinecone armor and tiny belts holding acorn-shaped smoke bombs. They moved in formation, sharp, silent, and slightly adorable.

Nibbles, majestic in his tiny black cape stitched from a silk handkerchief, raised a paw and froze mid-scamper.

Twitch.

His whiskers twitched again.

’Demoniac residue... faint. Too faint.’

He turned to his team and squeaked twice, then gave a complicated series of gestures involving one paw, his tail, and a backflip.

The squirrels nodded.

They understood perfectly.

Then they split up, vanishing into the shadows like a wave of furry ninjas.

...........................

Meanwhile, in the guest quarters of the tower...

Alex sat on the balcony, eating dried fruit, trying to restore his squirrel-talking powers while a squirrel lounged on his head like a hat with too much personality.

"Nibbles," Alex murmured. "Try saying something. Let’s see if my powers have recovered."

He thought that eating dry fruits that squirrels liked might restore the powers that he had never lost.

The squirrel gave a confident squeak.

But Alex groaned. "Fuck. I still can’t understand you."

If only he knew...

That the squirrel above his head, despite looking like Nibbles, wasn’t the same.

It was Scrumbles, the best actor from the squirrels that were under Nibbles’s command.

He was asked to disguise himself as Nibbles and stay with Alex, making the dumb guy believe that Nibbles was with him.

It was an order from Raven, and Nibbles had followed it, as both of them knew that if Alex knew about this secret operation, he would blabber about it unintentionally.

It was best if Alex didn’t know anything about it.

"Man," Alex grabbed Scrumbles, staring at him suspiciously. "Are you even Nibbles?"

Scrumbles’s eyes sharpened. ’Did this dumb guy deduce that?’

But the squirrel, as a good actor, didn’t act suspiciously; instead, he mimicked Nibbles’ expressions and tried to do the signature "tactical twitch" Nibbles did.

"Wait," Alex tilted his head. "That’s something Nibbles does..."

The guy couldn’t understand it, so he shook his head and went back to eating dried fruits, hoping to regain his powers.

Jessy, staring at all of this happening, squinted her eyes, feeling suspicious as even he didn’t know what was going on, but when the squirrel, noticing her gaze, started dabbing, she just blinked and turned away.

...........................

Back in the depths of the tower...

The squirrels had infiltrated the Potion Storage Room.

One from Clawtail dangled upside-down from a string made of braided tail hairs as he sniffed a suspicious vial.

Sniff, sniff.

Nope.

It was nothing suspicious—just a strawberry jam potion.

He chittered in code: "False alarm. But I have questions about why someone’s making jam potions."

...........................

Elsewhere, the Nutfang Rapid Strike Unit broke into the Magical Familiar Registration Room.

One of them dramatically rolled under a table, looked around, and held up a nut.

It was not evidence.

It was just a very shiny nut.

"Focus!" Nibbles squeaked from the ceiling beam above, slapping his tail on the beam in frustration.

They weren’t amateurs.

They were just... also squirrels.

The operation, however, wasn’t as easy as it seemed; they almost got caught three times.

First time: A sleepy tower mage walked into a corridor where Clawtail Recon was examining a weird, demonic-looking lamp.

Instantly, all the squirrels froze.

One stood on two legs and began licking its paw innocently.

Another grabbed a quill and started doodling on a scroll to blend in.

A third leaped into a decorative vase and stuck out one ear like a confused fern.

The mage blinked. "Huh. Weird squirrels."

Then, he left.

Second time: One squirrel tripped a minor illusion trap. The hallway suddenly filled with the sound of demonic growls.

The Nutfang Unit panicked and hit the floor, covering their eyes.

One squirrel started singing squirrel battle hymns in acorn Morse code.

It took five minutes before Nibbles could shut off the illusion with a very aggressive tail slap to the mana node.

Third time: A janitor came by and saw eight squirrels in formation peering at a cracked floor tile.

The janitor just nodded. "Yup. It must be one of those enchanted infestation species. Happens every few years."

Then he offered them a cracker.

All eight squirrels paused.

They stared.

Then, they took it.

Professionalism didn’t mean rejecting snacks.

Finally, after hours of combing through tower floors, spying on suspicious arcane circles, tail-slapping glowing orbs, and interrogating one overly smug toad familiar (who they later deemed "probably just like that"), the conclusion was clear—

—No concrete demonic activity. Not yet.

Nibbles squeaked to gather the squads in a mossy corner of the tower rooftop, lit faintly by moonlight.

His nose twitched in solemnity.

He raised a tiny acorn staff carved with the word JUSTICE.

The squirrels stood at attention, even Scrumbles, who had somehow arrived late and had bits of Alex’s trail mix stuck to his fur.

Nibbles squeaked out the final orders.

"Phase One completed with no confirmed threats. Fall back. Regroup with the Human Command. And remember: trust no one who doesn’t like nuts."

They all saluted.

Then, the elite squirrel operatives vanished into the shadows, racing along ropes, windowsills, and moonbeams.

Back on the balcony, Alex, who had dozed off while sitting on the balcony, blinked as he felt someone jump on his head.

"Huh? Nibbles?"

Alex pulled the squirrel down from his head, staring at it with confusion. "Did you go somewhere?"

Nibbles, however, shook his head with a squeak.

"Oh, you went to bring a nut—" ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom

But then, Alex paused, realization hitting him like a thunderbolt.

"...did I understand your words?" He muttered, fearing that it might be his imagination, but then—

—Squeak!

Nibbles squeaked again, and Alex’s eyes widened.

"I can hear your voice!" He exclaimed, rushing into the room.

"Hey! Raven!" He shook Raven, who was trying to catch some sleep, back to reality, making the guy growl.

"You better have a good reason, Alex."

"I can hear him again!" Alex beamed, pointing at Nibbles on his head. "I think eating dried fruits did work!"

Raven, on the other hand, had his eyes sharpened at those words, his eyes locking with Nibbles, who nodded at him with utmost seriousness.

’So, he’s back,’ Raven concluded, knowing that Nibbles had returned before he raised a brow, wanting to know the results, but Nibbles’s shoulder slumped.

The squirrel shook his head regretfully, making Raven let out a breath.

"Don’t worry. We have some time."

Nibbles nodded back, his expression growing serious.

Squeak!

He squeaked, and Alex, who was grinning from ear to ear, paused, tilting his head as he understood Nibbles’s words.

"He says he won’t let you down."

He translated those words for Raven, making the protagonist nod before he went back to bed.

Alex, however, now stood confused.

"Wait. What’s going on? Why do I feel left out?"

He didn’t know what was going on, but he felt that Raven and Nibbles were talking about something he should know, but he didn’t.

However, before he could ask anything else or Raven could sleep, something else happened.

The door of the room was flung open as Ilzara walked in, her expression panicked.

"Raven!"

Her words turned every head toward her, even Jessy, Jake, Lia, and Rufus, who, by some luck, had fallen asleep.

Her next set of words, however, made them frown.

"You must leave the Magic Tower before dawn!"

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