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Noah, back in his dorm, was completely unaware that Natsu's team, along with an unlucky Gajeel who'd happened to be passing by, had boarded a train heading to Sabertooth to cause trouble.
After locking the doors and windows, as five gold coins were swallowed by the light of the Wish, Noah almost instantly received news that the Otherworld Wish request was complete.
[Otherworld Request Completed]
[Reward: Shadow Queen's Blessing]
[Client's Comment: Oh! Thank you so much, unknown stranger! I will punish evil and eliminate... Uncle Long! Let me explain, these gold coins are...]
Turned out to be the 'archaeologist's' niece.
Noah silently mourned for Jade Chan for three seconds, then eagerly claimed the reward for this Wish.
[Shadow Queen's Blessing]: You will randomly gain command over one of the nine Black Shadow Legion troop types.
Black Shadow Legion, huh? Just by the name alone, it sounded way more impressive than the Flying Kick from last time! Noah accepted this power without hesitation.
Ghost Shadow, Claw Shadow, Troll Shadow, Samurai Shadow,
Bat Shadow, Razor Shadow, Mantis Shadow, Ninja Shadow... As the majestic forms of the first eight Black Shadow Legion troop types flashed through his mind one by one, what Noah ultimately gained was command over the last troop type, named Shadow Eater.
With a thought from Noah, the shadow at his feet extended slightly, and a 'tiny one' no bigger than an index finger emerged from it, respectfully looking up at Noah. It had no eyes or hands, only a pointed head and a V-shaped mouth.
The tiny Shadow Eater looked completely outclassed compared to the other eight Black Shadow troop types.
But Noah, who'd gained command of the Shadow Eater group, knew that Shadow Eater was the only troop type in the Black Shadow Legion with growth potential.
It could consume the shadows of living beings to increase its power.
The more shadows it consumed, the larger the Shadow Eater soldiers would become, and their combat power would grow stronger.
Besides devouring the shadows of living beings, "Shadow Eater" also possessed a more potent ability: creatures whose shadows were consumed by it would fall into weakness, leading to a permanent coma!
Unless the leader commanding the Shadow Eater soldiers lost consciousness, even if the Shadow Eater soldiers were blasted into fragments, those consumed shadows couldn't be freed!
In Earth Land, besides the Dark Mage whose strength was unknown, Noah was confident that no one could defeat him, not even the Thought Projection Roubaul.
Although his own combat power hadn't increased, having a group of loyal shadow soldiers was already very satisfying for Noah.
In the future, if he disliked someone, he could secretly order the Shadow Eater soldiers to quietly consume their shadow—wasn't this a strategic tool that integrated interference, combat, sneak attacks, and sealing all in one!
Such powerful Black Shadow troop types, and there were still eight more. He wondered if he'd have the chance to obtain such rewards again in the future.
After playing with the little soldiers for a while, Noah discovered that the [Shadow Queen's Blessing] brought him not only the power of the "Shadow Eater group" but also a special shadow space—the "Shadow Kingdom."
It was a special space that only shadows could connect to, the base of the Black Shadow Legion. The Black Shadow Legion could quickly traverse and move through the "Shadow Kingdom" by linking with countless shadows in the real world.
Living beings could enter the "Shadow Kingdom" but couldn't stay long, otherwise they'd be assimilated into black shadows, but inanimate objects wouldn't be affected.
It's a perfect storage space!
Isn't this basically an alternative form of Spatial Magic?
Noah had always coveted the magical space that came with Erza's Requip Magic, and now his wish had come true.
Shadow Queen! I thank you!
But when he thought of the "Shadow Queen" who was currently still a little girl, now frantically explaining the origin of the gold coins to her "archaeologist" uncle, Noah found it amusing.
"Noah, we're back~"
Arriving with the voice, Snow, holding Cheese, flew into the room through the window—the two little ones had returned home.
As soon as they landed, Cheese and Snow discovered the Shadow Eater soldier at Noah's feet. The cat's curiosity immediately made it rush over to the Shadow Eater soldier, constantly examining it.
Snow, however, with the innate instinct of an S-Rank Magical Beast, clearly sensed something was off about the Shadow Eater soldier. It was a small thing made of energy, yet it had its own consciousness.
"Squeak squeak (What is this thing)?"
Noah simply said it was a new Magic he'd learned. After all, this was a world of Magic, and anything difficult to explain or that he was too lazy to explain could be covered up with the two words "Magic."
As expected, Snow was appeased by Noah. After realizing that Shadow Eater was one of them, the little hamster became interested in these tiny soldiers that emerged from the shadows.
I, the little hamster, also have a dream of becoming a great general!
Unfortunately, facing Snow's commands, the Shadow Eater soldiers remained motionless. In this world without a "Shadow Queen" or a "Shadow Commander," they were loyal only to Noah.
Looking at Snow, who was gazing at him expectantly, Noah chuckled softly. "It's not impossible for Shadow Eater to play with you, but let's exchange some Winter Snow Grass for it."
"Squeak squeak (Deal)!"
Winter Snow Grass, a rare specialty of Mount Hakobe, could quickly restore Magic Power and stamina. Because its yield was too scarce, most Winter Snow Grass was made into powder for consumption or used as tea leaves.
But for Snow, who'd lived in the snowy mountains for hundreds of years, Winter Snow Grass was just a little snack it collected. After all, it was precisely because of its hamster-like hoarding habit that this plump Winter Snow Grass became a rare herb.
Snow opened its mouth and spat out stacks of dried Winter Snow Grass from its magical cheek pouches, quickly filling half the room.
Noah's mouth twitched, looking down at Snow, who was asking with its gaze if it was enough.
You call this a little? How much Winter Snow Grass has this greedy hamster collected anyway...
He summoned twenty Shadow Eater soldiers and let them play general games with Snow and Cheese.
After sending the two little ones away, Noah sorted through the dried Winter Snow Grass alone, preparing for his other Otherworld Wish request.
As long as he continuously provided good tea leaves to the "Great White Shark" of another world, he could gradually awaken the [Superpower: Magnetic Field Rotation] labeled "Extremely Dangerous." It was an absolute steal!
After quickly packing some Winter Snow Grass, Noah submitted his second Otherworld Wish request, and within moments, he received a response.
[Long-term Otherworld Request: Heavenly Martial Tea Ceremony]
[Great White Shark · Tiandao has approved the tea leaves you provided]
[Reward: Gradually awakening Superpower: Magnetic Field Rotation]
[Client's Comment: A medicinal tea with restorative effects, a strange power that transcends space—quite interesting. Who are you?]
The client's comment startled Noah. He'd completed several Otherworld Wish requests, but not a single client had noticed the Wish Magic that could communicate with other worlds.
He hadn't expected it to be pointed out directly this time.
But since the other party didn't say anything further, Noah naturally accepted the reward with a clear conscience.