Why Should I Stop Being a Villain
chapter-127

Fallen's Crown

Rank SSS - Increases the Comprehension Rate of its wearer by 50 %

Passive Effect - Intelligence +100

Limitations - Only works on beings below A Rank

Limitations - Only works for 2 minutes the first time you wear it and becomes useless after that

Limitations - Needs Recharge Period of One Month

Asher looked at the artifact's stats, and the system could decipher the runes on it perfectly. The golden-colored crown had seven colored jewels all around it.

"2 minutes," Asher noted the limitations of this artifact.

It was the only artifact in the world that affected someone's mental capabilities, but unfortunately, even the SSS rank artifact couldn't boost the intelligence of a being permanently.

This was the only reason Asher was unwilling to use his attribute points on any other stats. Monsters in this world clearly did not have higher intelligence than human beings, and most importantly, Asher was sure that very few humans had a higher intelligence stat than him.

There was a chance that his intelligence had surpassed the human limit, but he was not sure about it. Intelligence was a very complex stat, as it increased the burden your mind could handle at once.

Increasing intelligence didn't mean he would learn something without knowing it. But, like the artifact worked, people with higher intelligence had a relatively easier time comprehending complex stuff.

It was obvious that if this artifact did not have the time limitation, it would have been the most coveted thing a spatial mage required.

Taking the crown, Asher entered the training room, which was a bit special. The walls were reinforced so they wouldn't get damaged even if an A Rank hunter attacked them. Although the full strength of an A Rank Hunter would still damage them, it was enough for the first years to practice without worrying about damaging their surroundings.

Before wearing the Crown, Asher checked his status screen.

--------- Fate Devourer System ---------

[Name] : Asher Von Raven Greville

[Level] -21 (EXP 2500/21,000)

[Bloodline] : Devil's Absorption Rank SSS

[Cursed] : Curse of Fate (Active)

[Body Constitution] - Mana Core Rank D

[-Attributes-]

Strength: 90

Agility: 72

Endurance: 80

Intelligence: 120

Mana: 114

Stamina: 65

Charm: 65

Fate: 10230

[AP]: 80 [SP]: 16

[-Skills-]: Time Dilation (Rank S) Lvl 1, Absorption (Rank S) Lvl 1, Mana Flow (Rank A), Mana Circulation (Rank A), Rune of Eirdin (Rank D), Node-Art Rank SSS, Aura Force Passive Skill

[-Beast-] : Locked

Looking at skill points and attribute points, Asher tried to perform his movement during the boss fight without using the crown.

"Swift Strike," Asher imagined a Vialmir as he tried to move his swords around.

*Slash* *Slash* *Slash* *Slash* *Slash*

Asher's sword kept changing directions with each slash. As a result, his movement became unpredictable, but he was in full control, and no wasted movements were made.

'Not enough,' Asher knew this much was not enough to break through the fundamental mastery.

Feeling that he needed to step up, he decided to twist his right foot as he focused mana on his feet.

"Node Art: First Step," Asher disappeared from his spot, but as he appeared 2 meters to his left, he lost his balance.

The sudden burst of mana and following a line that he could only imagine being present on the ground he was standing on resulted in an error in his execution.

"First Step," Asher kept using the same step.

The principle behind the first step was complex, but Asher already had the general gist of the movement.

His feet would get covered with mana, and a single burst and focusing that burst to gain momentum and move unpredictably made him a tough target.

Although it might have sounded simple, his body could even perform this movement because his subconscious mind remembered the scriptures from which he learned the sword art. In addition, his eyes had become something special that could see such nodes, making it possible for him to copy the scriptures easily.

'One more time,' He decided to use more mana than usual.

Bam

Asher crashed into the wall due to his lack of control; he had used mana to cover his head so he was not hurt.

Although it was a failure, he stood up again as he knew the threshold of mana that he could not control for now.

"Node Art: First Step," He said, but this time before moving in any direction, he decided to perform a slash with his movement.

He disappeared from his position and appeared a few meters forward as his sword traveled a diagonal path.

'This is not perfect,' Asher sensed that the power behind the strike had decreased significantly.

It was not like when he fought the boss; right now, his mind is completely focused on mastering this skill. It was similar to the time when Asher was experimenting with the mana doping methods that made him stronger.

But this time, the sword art was not something he needed to make up on his own. Instead, it was somewhere in his mind, but he needed to master it slowly.

After numerous failures, Asher stopped as he had done the same thing for over 2 hours. His arms had bruises due to him crashing into the walls, but his breathing was calm. He learned from his numerous fights that breathing was the most important part.

If he maintained his breathing technique while using an extreme amount of mana in his skills, he still would not be too tired to move around. Asher had long lost the sensation of feeling pain; his level of pain tolerance was insane.

But this didn't mean his sense of touch was dull, and it was something that made him different from others. His brain had grown used to ignoring the pain and not impacting his judgment.

He walked to a corner and sat on one of the seats in the training room.

[ Host has gained strength +1 ]

Although Asher was not doing any specific exercise, just swinging his sword around and enduring the pain, his strength naturally increased. Right now, his mana core, which was at D Rank from D- Rank, was trying to nourish his whole body with mana and increase his strength slowly.

After 5 minutes of rest, Asher stood up and sat down in a meditating pose. Then, he took the crown in his hands and put it on.

The moment he put it on, the jewels lit up dimly as Asher tried to remember the scriptures.

[ Host has used Fallen's Crown ]

[ +100 Intelligence Stats : Temporary ]

Asher looked around his subconscious as he appeared in a familiar yet strange-looking place.

Around him was an environment barren of life, with a single bridge made of red stones. Below it was a space full of darkness. Then, above the bridge, a space covered in thick fog began to scatter, revealing giant scriptures as Asher's eyes fell upon them.

He could see the two scriptures that portrayed various variations of his Swift Strike and the First Step, which he had failed to complete multiple times.

Looking at the incomplete scriptures, Asher noticed the fog around them was clearing up. Soon, three more scriptures were revealed, but all the scriptures were too big for Asher to read all at the same time.

But right now, his comprehension rate was increased, so he could better understand the sword art. A strange pattern appeared in his eyes, and he could feel that the nodes he was seeing were not simple guiding points.

Asher's mind was consuming the information from the scriptures at a tremendous rate, but as he was using the crown, the light in the first jewel faded.

For Asher, it felt like he was staring at the scriptures for minutes, but only ten seconds had passed.

"First Step, it's not a movement but a stroke you perform while aligning the nodes.." Asher kept muttering the things he was understanding.

[ Mastery in Node Art is increasing ]

His perception of nodes changed from simple, transparent white dots to something more special.

"Nodes are parameters.." Asher muttered again.

His fundamental knowledge of the nodes was changing as his mind worked at a crazy speed to comprehend the meaning behind his words.

The lines he could see on the floor made up of several nodes, were the parameters that told him the amount of mana and many similar pieces of information that were needed to perform it perfectly.

"Then what is this?" Asher turned as the bridge-like structure he was standing on moved.

The fog was scattering as it revealed the huge fourth scripture.

Strange movements and complex patterns filled Asher's brain as he tried to comprehend them, but he was too busy grasping the meaning behind them.

It was much more complex than the Swift Strike and his movement technique.

"After the first step came the second, but it got suppressed by the third," Asher said as he kept looking towards it.

[ Mastery in Node Art is increasing ]

He kept looking at the scripture, but the next technique was incomplete. However, Asher didn't stop at it. He knew that this was the answer he needed to complete Node Art: First Step.

In a stream of multiple thoughts that his brain was processing, he finally understood the complete fundamentals of this sword art.

[ Novice Mastery Achieved ]

[ Comprehension Rate: 0.01% ]

Notifications kept popping up, but he could not see them right now. It was at this moment that the light of two more jewels faded.

A minute had passed in real-time, and Asher was still figuring out the next step in the Novice Mastery.

In the strange realm, Asher tried to look past the fog for a moment and see the next scriptures. He could feel the extreme pressure from that direction the moment he did.

*Drip*

The effect could also be seen on his physical body as blood came out from his nose as the mental strain increased.

It was a signal for him that whatever lay in the path of his sword art was not something ordinary. The end of this sword path was unknown, and the current him was not ready to comprehend what lay beyond.