Chapter 69: Creating My First Relic, Finally My Stats Are Good Enough
Quietly, I reached out with my mind, locking onto my own shadow.
It twitched under my feet, almost eager.
’Shadow, go and devour their Shadow Essence.’
Aunt Liora’s head turned sharply before my shadow could move.
She stared at the ground beneath Mom and me.
Her brows furrowed.
"Is something wrong?" Mom asked, glancing down at her feet.
"It’s nothing," Aunt Liora said.
She turned away.
A sharp pain hit my temple like a cold blade.
The connection to my shadow was gone.
’She killed my shadow summon.’
I wasn’t surprised.
’She must’ve used a Mind Blade.’
I hadn’t even seen her attack.
It was expected. That’s why I didn’t react. I had prepared myself for it.
Still, it was annoying.
’She’s strong enough to detect my shadow that easily,’ I thought, letting out a quiet breath.
The loss wasn’t permanent.
I could re-summon the shadow later, though it would strain my mind until I rested.
’Let’s not summon the shadow in front of her again.’
I glanced sideways at Aunt Liora.
’She’ll probably start investigating what that shadow was. But unless I reveal myself, she won’t be able to connect it to me easily.’
Even if she tried, she had no proof.
She’d likely assume it was an assassin or spy sent by the elder who tried to kill Dad.
That worked in my favor.
’I need her to find that elder.’
I could search myself, but I didn’t have connections in House Daelthorn yet.
It was better to guide her — by making it look like someone was after us, just like now — and have her find out the elder who was targeting us.
’I can’t collect Shadow Essence while she’s here. I’ll do it later.’
Now that I knew where the dormitories were, collecting would be easy.
I could come at night.
As long as I avoided Rank 3 Exorcists with good senses or higher rank Exorcists, no one would sense my shadow.
After watching a little longer, we left the training ground.
Aunt Liora stayed quiet on the walk back.
Her expression was colder than before.
When we reached the house, she left soon after, saying she had work to do.
Before she left, Mom told her she was always welcome to have lunch with us.
Aunt Liora said she would, another time.
Dad was still home when we arrived.
He stood near the entrance, smiling faintly when he saw us.
He looked at Mom, then at me, and ruffled my hair.
"Had fun?" he asked.
"Yes."
He smiled. "That’s good."
...
Liora Daelthorn’s POV
The light in her office flickered softly as the clock neared one in the afternoon.
She stood near the window, arms folded behind her back.
A knock came at the door.
"Enter," she said without turning.
The door opened, and he stepped in, nearly stumbling.
The faint smell of alcohol followed him.
She turned to face him, eyes narrowing.
"You were drinking?"
"What? No—no, of course not."
He forced a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.
She stared at him in silence for a few seconds. Then she spoke.
"I saw something unusual today at the training ground."
Elias blinked and straightened a little.
"There was an unidentified shadow-based being inside my sister-in-law’s shadow. There’s a high chance it was an assassin or a spy."
Her words cut through the air, and Elias’s face lost its tired look.
His eyes sharpened slightly.
"Was it one of the elders who manipulated Frank, or someone who doesn’t like Adrian returning to the house?"
"I don’t know yet. That’s why I called you."
Elias nodded slowly, understanding her tone.
"Start watching the elders closely. I want all their movements logged. You have permission to use the Third Eye."
Elias straightened up. "Understood."
The Third Eye were elite assassins who served the House Head.
With the Head away in Wageah, they answered to Liora.
"Also, increase security around Adrian and his family. Don’t make it obvious."
"I’ll handle it." Elias nodded again and turned to leave.
When the door closed behind him, Liora spoke to the empty room.
"Take all of his liquor. Even the hidden ones."
A soft voice came from the shadow beneath her feet.
"As you wish, my Lord."
The shadow shifted and detached from her form like ink spilling across the floor.
It slid under the door and disappeared.
...
MC’s POV
It was late at night when I opened my eyes.
My parents had already checked on me, tucked me in, and turned off the lights.
I sat up and stretched.
’Time to farm some stats.’
I didn’t use Shadow to leave the room immediately.
Aunt Liora probably assigned guards nearby, and if they sensed movement, it could cause trouble.
’Yuna, please check our surroundings. Make sure no one’s inside my room.’
She went silent for a moment, then confirmed it was clear.
Only then, I used a Spell to cover the doors and windows with spatial sensory magic.
"—Silent Bind: Veil Layer."
If anyone entered, I would know instantly.
Then I could teleport back before they noticed I was gone.
Next came preparation.
I took a few materials from my Inventory Rune and placed them on the bed.
Using alchemy, I shaped them into a simple bracelet.
When it was done, I used my Runesmith Class perk to carve a rune into it.
...
Class Runesmith
Rank 0
Grade: Apprentice Runesmith
Perk: Basic Inscription
Effect: You can inscribe one simple rune per object.
...
I used a sliver of Fairy Dust to trace glowing lines in the air.
Each line sank into the metal and shimmered faintly before fading.
[Absorption Rune: Null Drift]
The rune’s effect was simple.
It absorbed ambient mana from the surroundings.
’Portals leave mana traces, but this rune will consume them before the portal even closes.’
I fused the rune into the bracelet, turning it into a basic [Rank 0 Relic].
’That’s one thing done.’
Then I inscribed another [Absorption Rune: Null Drift] onto the floor.
This one would keep absorbing the mana leaking from the sensory spell I just cast.
That way, even a skilled mage wouldn’t sense any trace of magic from this room.
With everything ready, I stood up.
It had only taken about ten minutes, a small price for safety.
Now came the real part.
I opened a small portal, barely the size of a finger.
The other end connected to a quiet courtyard near the west edge of the Daelthorn estate.
"Yuna, can you check if anyone’s on the other side?"
"I will check, lord of shadows."
She flew through the portal.
Even though most of her abilities were sealed by the system, her perception was still far better than mine.
She could probably see into higher-dimensional spaces, which made her perfect for scouting.
She returned a few seconds later.
"The perimeter is clear, Lord of Shadows."
"Good."
I thanked her and expanded the portal wide enough to step through.
Once I crossed, I closed it.
The bracelet glowed faintly as it absorbed the remaining mana from the portal.
I smirked.
’Flawless.’
Then I crouched and activated [Shadow Assimilation].
My body sank into the darkness like water disappearing into cracks.
I moved through the shadows, silent and smooth, gliding across the ground under the moonlight.
The dormitories weren’t far.
Each building housed trainees of a certain age group.
During the day, they trained until exhaustion. At night, they slept deeply.
Perfect.
I slipped through the first dormitory’s walls and emerged in a small room.
A boy, maybe eight or nine, slept on the bed, breathing quietly.
’Consume it.’
My shadow stretched, merging with his and pulling in the faint black flame that burned there.
A small notification flickered in my vision.
+0.5 Strength
I raised my eyebrows.
’That’s five times more than what I get from normal people.’
I moved to the next room and devoured the trainee’s Shadow Essence.
+0.6 Strength.
Then I slipped into the shadows again and entered another room.
+0.4 Strength.
One more. +0.5 Endurance.
Each child’s Shadow Essence gave me stats.
Some gave more, some gave less.
It depended on their personal strength, and the stability of their Shadow Essence.
’Thirty-four trainees in this dormitory.’
And this was just one building.
There were two more dormitories in the facility.
Each one would have a different number of trainees.
I’d only know how many after I visited them.
...
One Week Later
A week passed in a blur of routine.
Daytime with my mom and dad. Every day, I would spend a few hours training with dad.
Nights were spent silently slipping between shadows, devouring small bits of Shadow Essence from the trainees.
I never left behind a trace, not even a ripple of mana. I made sure of it.
The results?
Well, they were more than just good.
I opened my status and glanced at the numbers.
...
Shadow Summon
Stats:
Strength: 16 → 168
Dexterity: 7 → 63
Endurance: 7 → 139
Spirit: 0
...
’Finally, I have some good stats.’
Over the week, I had collected a total of 340 stat points.
The growth speed was terrifying compared to before.
Exorcists — even if they were just trainees — were the best source of stat harvesting through shadows.
Some of my skills had also leveled up:
Shadow Eater: Level 2 → Level 3
Shadow Gaze: Level 1 → Level 2
Shadow Assimilation: Level 1 → Level 2
With the boost in Shadow Eater, I could now share 30% of my summon’s stats permanently, instead of just 20%.
Shadow Gaze’s range expanded.
Shadow Assimilation now allowed me to move between shadows that were twenty meters apart — double the previous limit.
’Training every night was worth it!’ I pumped my fist into the air.
Then I checked my own stats.