Chapter 51 - 52: A Shadow-Devouring Beast?!

Chapter 51: Chapter 52: A Shadow-Devouring Beast?!

Nathaniel Beaumont looked at the people in the conference hall, his thoughts drifting to that man.

Just how powerful was that man?

Level 400?

Level 500?

Or even higher?

He had casually frozen every professional in the area. He had also ordered a Level 400 professional to oversee Westmere.

What kind of position did someone like that hold within the High Command?

Nathaniel’s eyes flickered.

But he soon pushed those thoughts aside.

There was no point thinking about it now.

The most important thing was to settle the matters in Westmere and stabilize the Beaumont Trading Consortium.

Nathaniel raised his head.

Inside the conference hall, everyone kept their heads lowered, waiting for his instructions.

The meeting continued for more than an hour.

Only after all the necessary arrangements had been made did Nathaniel finally stand.

"Let’s end it here."

Everyone stood at once.

"Farewell, Young Master."

...

The Beaumont family estate.

Nathaniel sat on the edge of his bed and raised his hand.

His storage space opened.

The next second, the unformed pet egg appeared in his palm.

A series of prompts appeared before his eyes.

[Unformed Pet Egg]

[Current Status: Hatchable]

[Hatching Requirement: Shadow Energy]

[Feed?]

Nathaniel was stunned for a moment.

Shadow Energy?

He looked down at the egg.

It seemed that this pet had been affected by his Shadow power.

Nathaniel didn’t hesitate.

"Feed it."

A stream of Shadow Energy flowed from his palm and entered the egg.

The egg trembled slightly.

Dark patterns on its shell began to glow.

Then...

It stopped.

Nathaniel waited for several seconds.

There was no further reaction.

He raised an eyebrow.

"That’s all?"

He fed another stream of Shadow Energy into the egg.

The patterns brightened.

Then it fell silent again.

Nathaniel’s expression slowly changed.

He had a bad feeling.

"Continue."

More Shadow Energy flowed into the egg.

Again.

And again.

The egg continued to absorb it without showing any sign of hatching.

Nathaniel frowned.

Shadow Energy was one of his most important resources.

It supported his abilities and strengthened his Shadow Army.

Now, this little egg was consuming it without hesitation.

"You’re quite hungry for something that hasn’t even hatched yet."

Naturally, the egg didn’t answer.

It simply rested in his palm.

As if silently telling him to continue.

Nathaniel took a deep breath.

"Continue."

More Shadow Energy disappeared.

The patterns on the egg grew brighter.

Dark energy slowly spread across its shell.

The room became noticeably colder.

Then...

Thump.

A heartbeat echoed from inside the egg.

Thump.

Thump.

Nathaniel’s eyes narrowed.

Something inside was finally waking up.

More Shadow Energy flowed into the egg.

Then...

Crack.

The first crack appeared.

Nathaniel’s eyes lit up.

Was it finally going to hatch?

The next moment, another prompt appeared.

[Hatching energy insufficient. Continue feeding?]

Nathaniel’s expression froze.

"Still not enough?"

He stared at the crack in silence.

After several seconds, he let out a slow breath.

"Continue."

The egg absorbed more Shadow Energy.

Cracks began spreading across its surface.

The entire egg trembled.

Finally...

Boom!

A burst of dark energy filled the room.

The eggshell shattered.

Nathaniel raised his arm as fragments scattered around him.

When the darkness faded, he looked down.

A palm-sized black kitten was curled up among the broken pieces of the shell.

Its fur was soft and dark.

A faint silver pattern rested on its forehead.

The kitten slowly opened its eyes.

Two violet pupils stared directly at Nathaniel.

Then it let out a childish sound.

"Meow."

Nathaniel: "..."

After consuming so much of his Shadow Energy...

He had hatched a cat?

The tiny kitten climbed out of the broken eggshell and shook itself.

Then it jumped.

Plop.

It landed directly on Nathaniel’s shoulder.

The kitten rubbed its head against his neck, found a comfortable position, and curled up.

Its tail swayed gently.

Nathaniel reached over and lifted it to eye level.

The man and the cat stared at each other.

The kitten blinked.

"Meow?"

Nathaniel was silent for a moment.

Truthfully...

It was rather cute.

At that moment, the pet’s information appeared before him.

[Pet: Shadow Cat]

[Bound Owner: Nathaniel Beaumont]

[Ability 1: Shadow Harvest]

[Can be used once daily to obtain a certain amount of Shadow Energy.]

[The amount obtained is related to the forces and influence controlled by the owner.]

[The stronger the owner’s influence, the more Shadow Energy can be harvested.]

[Ability 2: Treasure Hunting]

[Shadow Cat possesses the ability to sense valuable resources within a certain range.]

Nathaniel’s expression changed.

Shadow Harvest?

It could obtain Shadow Energy every day?

And the amount was related to the forces under his control?

Nathaniel was currently building his own foundation.

The Beaumont Trading Consortium was now under his control.

As his influence continued to grow, the amount of Shadow Energy gathered by the Shadow Cat could also increase.

Nathaniel immediately decided to test it.

"Use Shadow Harvest."

The kitten on his shoulder immediately opened its eyes.

It raised one small paw.

A faint shadow spread through the room.

The next second, a prompt appeared.

[Shadow Harvest Successful]

[You have obtained 1,000,000 units of Shadow Energy]

One million!

Nathaniel’s eyes lit up.

The first use had already given him one million units of Shadow Energy.

The Beaumont Trading Consortium was still mainly based in Westmere.

What would happen when its influence expanded?

What if it controlled businesses across multiple cities?

What if, one day, it became one of the most powerful commercial organizations in the Aurelian Alliance?

How much Shadow Energy could this little creature gather then?

Ten million?

One hundred million?

Nathaniel looked at the kitten on his shoulder.

His opinion of it changed completely.

The Shadow Energy spent to hatch it had been worth it.

And it also possessed a second ability.

Treasure Hunting.

That ability was equally useful.

Inside dungeons and wild resource zones, hidden treasures were often the hardest things to find.

Some rare materials were buried deep underground.

Others were hidden in places that ordinary professionals would overlook.

With Treasure Hunting, Nathaniel could search an area before leaving.

Rare materials.

Hidden treasure chests.

Special resources.

All of them could become valuable gains.

The more Nathaniel thought about it, the more satisfied he became.

He reached out and rubbed the kitten’s head.

The little Shadow Cat narrowed its eyes and let out a comfortable sound.

Nathaniel looked at it for a moment.

"Since you’re part of my Shadow Army..."

He thought for a few seconds.

"Your name will be Noctis."

The kitten blinked.

Then it happily rubbed its head against his hand.

"Meow."