Aetherios System [Slow Build OP MC, Isekai LitRPG/Cultivation] Chapter 27: Chapter 23: Squirrely

Read chapter 27 of Aetherios System [Slow Build OP MC, Isekai LitRPG/Cultivation] by TTReynolds on NovelPedia.

Chapter 23: Squirrely Chapter 23: Squirrely Tom-Tom crouched behind a bush and narrowed his eyes at the suspect. It was acting so nonchalant. It was brown, fuzzy, with beady eyes and a long tail. Tom-Tom had taken one look at them and he knew, they were definitely shifty. It wouldn’t be able to pull a fast one on him, Tom-Tom knew. Klik leaned over his shoulder, “It’s a squirrel.” Tom-Tom didn’t look away. “I know it’s a squirrel. That doesn’t mean it’s innocent .” He spat out through gritted teeth, his eyes still trained forward the whole time. The squirrel, perched on a branch a few feet above the forest floor, twitched its tail once as the kobolds spoke. It move one, then twice. Tom-Tom's eyes narrowed further. “See that? That’s code.” Klik scratched his scales, “Code for what?” Tom-Tom pressed two claws to his temples like that would help him focus harder. The squirrel stared back at him from the bark of the tree trunk that it clung to. Its tail still lashed at the air occassionally. “Probably... something dangerous. Something like, ‘the humans went that way’ or, ‘I have buried a forbidden snack.’” Tom-Tom finally said. Red-Snout shuffled up behind them, he was chewing on something which sounded suspiciously crunchy to Tom-Tom’s ears. He hoped the kobold wasn’t trying to eat pebbles again. It took weeks to get him to kick that habit last time. “Where snack?” Red-Snout asked. “Maybe it just squirrel things, no human ally?” Klik added. Tom-Tom turned slowly toward both of them. “He. Looked. At. Me. With. Malice.” Klik nodded at him in agreement and shuffled forward to squat beside Tom-Tom at the log. Tom-Tom shifted in place to allow some room. His knees ached by now. Kobolds weren’t meant to crouch this long. He had been there, waiting, for many minutes to watch this furry suspect. But, the burning ache in his leg muscle was the burn of victory. Red-Snout flopped belly-down beside them and whispered, “Maybe we throw a rock at it?” “No!” Tom-Tom hissed. “Then it will forget everything it knows. You have to be clever with interrogation.” Klik scratched his head. “We don’t speak squirrel.” “That’s what the stare is for,” Tom-Tom muttered. Finally, after the long and agonizing stake-out, Tom-Tom rose slowly. He stepped up to the looming tree upon which the squirrel clung itself. The squirrel looked up curiously, twitching its tail. Tom-Tom pointed a claw at its beady eyes. He struck what he thought was an intimidating pose and glared at the mammal intently. “Tell me your secrets.” Silence followed, obviously because of the squirrel refusing to talk. Tom-Tom looked at the squirrel. The squirrel looked at Tom-Tom. The moment stretched, then the squirrel turned, twitched its tail again, a double flick this time , and jumped away up the tree with a casual level of disrespect. “LIES!” Tom-Tom screamed. “RUNNING MEANS GUILTY!” Klik jumped to his feet. “Do we chase it?” “HE KNOWS SOMETHING!” Tom-Tom howled, leaping over the bush and crashing through underbrush like a tiny scaly thunderstorm. “COMMENCE CHASE” The squirrel darted from branch to branch. Tom-Tom sprinted below, leaping over roots, ducking branches, all the while his arms flailed wildly. Klik and Red-Snout thrashed along behind him, shouting things that mostly didn’t help. “He turned left!” ‎“He’s climbing up that tall one!” ‎“I dropped my pebble!” The chase was utter chaos. Birds scattered, leaves flew, a wild deer fled in terror as three kobolds shrieked past it. They vaulted a stream, skidded through a hollow log, slid down a slope of loose moss and dead leaves, and then Tom-Tom tripped on a root and careened forward with a squawk! He landed hard, face-first into a pile of ash. “Ow,” he groaned into the dirt. Klik slid to a stop nearby, panting. “You okay?” Tom-Tom sat up slowly. There was ash stuck to his snout and his left eye twitched. “That squirrel... was trained.” Red-Snout flopped down behind them and groaned. “I lost my pebble…” But Tom-Tom wasn’t listening. He