Dragon's Awakening: The Duke's Son Is Changing The Plot
Chapter 86 - 85 - The Emperor, the squads, and the Boy.

Chapter 86: Chapter 85 - The Emperor, the squads, and the Boy.

In the lush, sun-dappled heart of the forest, the Great Squirrel Tree stood tall—its branches woven like an ancient crown, its trunk riddled with chambers, balconies, and burrows.

It was not just a tree.

It was the tree.

The seat of the Squirrel Empire. The mighty bastion of the fluffy-tailed, peanut-hoarding elite.

Within its grand central chamber, a council of fuzziness convened.

Golden leaves fluttered as a slight breeze passed through, and atop a polished nutwood throne, the Squirrel Emperor, Emperor Nutrius Acornpaw IV, sat with imperial dignity.

His fur shimmered with an almost divine sheen, his monocle glinting in the light of the crystallized dew chandelier.

Flanking him was his wife, Lady Chatterella, whose fur was two shades brighter than his and whose stare could humble even the bravest hawk.

At the base of the throne stood Nibbles, twitching nervously yet standing proud.

His small cloak fluttered behind him, and strapped to his back was a tiny nut-shaped satchel that read "For Emergency Almonds Only."

To his right, laid out on a leaf-woven stretcher, was his older brother, Chatterfang, wrapped in acorn-shell armor that had clearly seen better days.

His eyes fluttered open now and then, muttering things like "Acorn... too spicy..." or "Tell my nuts I love them..."

"You can’t be serious." The emperor’s tail flared dramatically. "Leaving the Empire? When it hasn’t even been a few days since you returned? Have you gone nuts?!"

"I have to, Father." Nibbles stepped forward with all the confidence a squirrel with anxiety could muster. "It’s my calling. That man... Raven... he needs me. The world needs me."

"You mean we need you," Lady Chatterella sniffled. "I was already looking for a furry squirrel to marry you. What about her?"

Chatterfang weakly raised a paw. "I will... marry her if you want..."

Lady Chatterella shot him a glare, saying nothing, but it was enough for Chatterfang to shut his mouth.

The emperor, on the other hand, narrowed his gaze at Nibbles. "This isn’t just about Raven, is it?"

Nibbles sighed. "It’s more than that. The demon beasts... the corruption... the stolen almonds... they’re all connected. This is bigger than our empire. I sniffed something terrible out there, Father. Raven’s at the center of it, and I want to help him."

The emperor stared down at his son for a long moment, then stood slowly, the leaf crown upon his head glinting in the morning light.

"I forbid it."

"...Eh?"

"Unless," Nutrius added, "you take two full elite squads with you. Tactical infiltration specialists. Reconnaissance. Emergency nut suppliers. The best."

"Wait, really?" Nibbles blinked.

"You’re my son," Nutrius said, resting a paw on Nibbles’s head. "You may have inherited your mother’s adorably uncontrollable tail flick, but you have my fluff. And my fluff is royal."

Lady Chatterella nodded sagely. "And my stubbornness."

"And my tendency to scream dramatically during battle," added Chatterfang with a wheeze.

Nibbles blinked. "...I don’t scream."

"Yes, you do," all three answered at once.

Flustered, Nibbles puffed up. "Okay, okay, once during the rabid beaver incident!"

"That beaver still has nightmares," Chatterfang murmured, eyes misty with respect.

The emperor gave a slow, regal nod. "You may leave with honor, son. But you will take with you the Clawtail Recon Squad and the Nutfang Rapid Strike Unit."

"Can’t we give them cooler names?" Nibbles asked.

"No."

A ripple of motion swept through the court as two dozen elite squirrels dropped down from hidden perches, saluting with synchronized tail swishes.

The Clawtail Recon Squad was clad in moss camouflage, their leader sporting a walnut-shaped helmet and binocular acorn lenses.

The Nutfang Rapid Strike Unit wore spiked bark armor, each with toothpick-sized spears strapped to their backs. They struck combat poses with far too much enthusiasm.

One of them even did a triple spin and exploded a berry just to be extra.

"We are ready, Captain Nibbles!" They chorused.

"...Captain?" Nibbles blinked.

"You’re in charge now," the emperor said, with just a hint of pride.

Lady Chatterella leaned down and kissed his head. "Come back safe, my little Nutkin."

"I’m gonna do more than that, Mother," Nibbles said, drawing his acorn dagger with a flourish. "I’m going to help save the world."

Chatterfang raised a paw, his voice trembling. "Bring me... a souvenir..."

Nibbles grinned. "What do you want? A demon’s tooth, its flesh, heart, or—?"

"No. A shiny rock. The shiny kind. You know the one."

Nibbles stared at his injured brother for a while, his silence speaking louder than any words before he sighed. "...Got it."

The chamber burst into applause (well, paw-claps), and as Nibbles turned with his two squads in tow, the Emperor shouted after him:

"And no interspecies dating!"

"...W-what?!"

"I read your diary!"

"THAT WAS PRIVATE!!"

Thus, with a tail held high and a squad of elite fuzzballs behind him, Captain Nibbles of the Squirrel Vanguard set forth—toward adventure, demon conspiracies, and the ever-mounting chaos that came with traveling beside one Raven Von Vaise.

By the way, Raven still didn’t know he’d just accidentally adopted a whole squirrel army.

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

The forest was calm and peaceful.

Birds chirped without care.

The sun filtered lazily through the trees.

Leaves danced in the wind.

Something like this would’ve been the perfect morning.

Except for one pressing issue.

"I swear to the High Heavens, Siris, stop petting my face while I’m asleep!" Raven’s voice rang out across the clearing like the wail of a man already on the edge.

Siris blinked. "But your cheeks are squishier than average today. I thought it was a sign of demonic possession."

Raven, half-wrapped in his blanket like a burrito of suffering, looked up at the group with red-ringed eyes. "Someone—anyone, stop her."

Clara, sitting on a mossy rock with a freshly brewed cup of forest-leaf tea, merely took a calm sip. "If I stopped her every time she did something weird, I’d be casting spells 24/7."

Yeah, she had come to terms with that fact.

Rather than being jealous or hating Siris for what she was doing, ignoring her was better. It was peaceful.

After all, no matter what Siris did, Clara was the only girlfriend Raven had.

Jessy, seated beside Clara and sharpening a thin, curved blade, gave an evasive shrug. "Honestly, I think the cheek-petting’s the least disturbing thing she’s done this week."

Jake stood nearby, leaning against a tree, silent as usual. He was watching everything, eyes narrowed, a dry twig dangling from his lips like a wise wanderer... or just a guy too lazy to chew gum.

Then there was Alex.

The idiot.

He was currently spinning in circles with a squirrel on his head.

"I name this maneuver... THE ACORN TYPHOON!" Alex yelled, arms out, eyes wild. "Wheeeee—AAAH!"

He tripped over a root and face-planted into the dirt, his squirrel companion barely hopping off in time.

The squirrel—Nibbles—let out a series of complex squeaks and chitters.

Alex sat up, wiping dirt from his mouth. "What’s that, Nibbles? The winds of fate are shifting, and a great evil brews in the east?"

Nibbles blinked. Then it squeaked once.

"Oh. Right. You want a walnut pancake. Got it."

Raven massaged his temples. "Why can he understand them? Fuck, he looks like a bigger idiot now."

"No one knows," Clara replied to his question despite knowing it wasn’t asked expecting a reply.

"I licked a cursed pinecone once," Alex offered helpfully. "Boom. Squirrel whisperer."

"...Why are you proud of that?" Jessy muttered.

Near a tree trunk, Selena lay still and quiet, her breath steady but shallow. She’d been unconscious for over a day now—ever since the mysterious silence of her "Mistress."

Jessy had already run a dozen diagnostics. Her vitals were fine, her mana core stable, and there were no signs of spiritual possession.

But maybe it was the backlash of Mistress’s possession.

Even if it was for a while, Selena had her body taken over by a high demoness.

"Poor thing," Jessy said softly, rechecking her. "It’s like someone ripped out her sound."

Clara stared at Selena, her expression unreadable, but now that she knew everything, she couldn’t bring herself to hate Selena.

After all, she was the only friend Clara had.

"We can’t take her to the Red Tower like this," Raven finally said, glancing down at the map that Lio (still in disguise) had drawn in the dirt with a stick.

Lio nodded, albeit nervously. "The Red Magic Tower’s only a day’s journey from here, but she’s in no condition to travel. And with the Third-Year Trials only three days away..."

"Which you insisted on reminding us about every three hours," Jessy added dryly.

Lio flushed. "I just want to pass the test so that I can stay in this kingdom. The day I fail will be the last in this kingdom."

"What do we do now?" Raven sighed under his breath.

"I’ll take her back to the academy," Clara said, standing and brushing her skirt off.

Raven raised an eyebrow. "You sure?"

The situation surrounding Selena was complicated, so Raven didn’t know if it was okay to leave them both alone.

At first, he was even wondering why no one—including Selena’s guards—had come looking for her, but now, it seemed like Selena had taken care of them.

With her current strength, she could take care of her family problems, but the demons were still a problem.

Clara, however, nodded, already prepping to carry Selena on her back to the nearest city before they took a cart. "You’ll need someone strong to keep Siris from accidentally summoning a demon."

Siris raised a hand. "Can I summon one on purpose?"

"No," Clara and Raven said at the same time.

Jake nodded silently, clearly voting ’no’ as well.

"I can be helpful, though," Siris insisted, twirling a sharp stick dangerously close to her eye. "I even sharpened this! It’s for hunting air monsters!"

Raven squinted. "You mean... birds?"

Siris blinked. "What’s a bird?"

Everyone stared.

Alex, however, was busy spoon-feeding Nibbles something that smelled like mashed bugs and peanut butter.

"Eat up, soldier. You’re gonna need the protein."

Nibbles responded with a long, chittering rant.

"He says he’s brought reinforcements," Alex translated. "And that you’re his ’spiky fluff overlord.’"

Raven sighed. "...Reinforce—?"

Thud. Thud. THUD.

Two dozen elite squirrels dropped from the trees in synchronized formation, their tails high and armor gleaming.

One somersaulted off a tree and landed perfectly on a berry that exploded on impact.

Raven’s mouth was open. "What... What is happening to my life?"

Jessy gave a small smirk. "I think you’re being drafted into the rodent army."

A moss-capped squirrel squeaked dramatically and tossed a leaf-sized scroll at Raven’s feet.

Alex picked it up. "It says, ’By decree of Emperor Nutrius Acornpaw IV, Captain Nibbles has been assigned to lead the Squirrel Vanguard under your command in the war against demonic corruption. Also, no interspecies dating.’"

Raven coughed. "Wha—why is that even there?!"

Alex looked at Nibbles. "He says I hugged him once, and he wrote it in his diary. Then, his parents read that diary."

"...Alex. Keep reminding yourself of the last line."

Clara, watching from a distance, smiled softly. "Have fun with your army, General Raven Von Vaise."

Raven rubbed his temples. "This isn’t war. It’s a group hike with drama."

Jake nodded solemnly.

Jessy tossed a berry at him.

Alex caught it instead and saluted with a "FOR NUTRITION AND GLORY."

Raven looked around.

- One unconscious girl

- One psycho

- One mute

- One snark machine

- One himbo squirrel-whisperer

- One squirrel army

- And a literal princess in disguise who still couldn’t light a fire properly

With all of them on his back, he had three days to get to the tower, uncover a demon conspiracy, and survive the Trials.

He exhaled.

"All right," Raven muttered. "Let’s move out."

"Wait!" Alex shouted, raising Nibbles high. "Captain Nibbles says we need a code name for the mission!"

Raven didn’t even pause. "Fine. Operation: Nutcrack Redemption."

A cheer rose among the squirrels, their tails forming a glorious swirling vortex of fluffy approval.

And with that, the mismatched band of chaos began their march toward the Red Tower.

Raven sighed once more. "I miss Clara already..."

"I’m right here," Siris said, standing beside him and holding his shoe.

"...Why do you have my—never mind. Don’t answer."