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.
