It was unreal... Sophia couldn't believe it. Her younger sibling had developed into a whole different person. She found it difficult to understand that her younger brother was capable of expressing such strong words to their mother without nervousness. Furthermore, he declined the Duel for Succession.
'It's utterly impossible, no matter how hard I think about it. Amon is a pitiful and weak-willed bastard who lacks anything to call his own. His beliefs, his manner of speaking, everything about him was an impersonation designed to impress me and persuade me to acknowledge him.' Sophia thought to herself as she approached her room. 'I will never acknowledge someone as pitiful and weak-willed as him. Regardless of how hard he works, I will never acknowledge him.' She came to a halt at the door of her chamber, her thoughts drifting back to Amon.
'Those who lack a strong will and determination to do anything should not be permitted to live or be recognized. They become a burden to others and a parasite, corrupting society via their very presence. I have a deep dislike for people like that. And yet, I had to be so unfortunate as to have a brother like them.' Sophia entered her room and locked the door while she continued to think. 'I despised him wholeheartedly and hoped I didn't have a sibling like him. But…'
She recalled Amon's unwillingness to participate in the Duel for Succession. Amon's powerful voice and calm yet ferocious defiance in his emerald red eyes. It really shocked her. 'He turned that way... A person who will defy any obstacle to achieve their goals. The look in his eyes, the tone of his voice, the aura he exuded... all of it exuded fierce rebellion and unwavering determination...' She thought as she climbed into her luxury king-sized bed and plunged herself in. She was perplexed and fascinated by Amon's development.
"I need to figure out what caused him to change so much." Sophia sighed, staring at the ceiling. It appears that she is still unable to accept reality.
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I expected the Library of the Crown Family to be large, but that would be an understatement. Their library was huge! There are thousands of books surrounding me, all on various topics. I'm grateful the 'System' didn't have me memorize every single book in this Library.
'Now then... Let's collect some books on Magic.' I thought to myself as I wandered through the Library, acquiring Magic-related books. If I'm going to memorize books, I should start with Magic books to compensate for my lack of physical ability. I had planned to study swordsmanship, but it will have to wait until later. For now, I must concentrate on the work at hand.
After approximately ten minutes of searching only a portion of the Library, I was able to obtain some quite nice Magic-related books, totalling about twenty. It may appear to be a large quantity, but the method I had in mind would aid me much.
I sat at one of the tables, books all around me. Looking at them, I wasn't sure which book I should start with. Thinking reasonably, I took up a book called 'Beginner's Guide to Magic.'
'Honestly, who gave this book its name? Talk about being unimaginative and idiotic.' While contemplating these thoughts, I stared at the book with a deadpan face.
After 5 minutes of reading the book, I decided to make a fast mental review of everything I had read thus far.
'Magic is a supernatural phenomenon that may be applied in a variety of ways. It may be used for everything, from housework to killing people. It requires [Magium], which is another word for Magical Power. By manipulating the concepts and information that shape Reality, [Magium] allows the supernatural phenomena known as Magic to emerge. Magic alters the laws of the world and allows someone's idea to become a reality. For example, consider the idea of burning something. To burn something, you need fire. Now envision a fire starting in your hand. Picture it vividly. The clearer your vision, the more powerful your flame will be. You can make anything happen if you have [Magium]. The only limitation is your creativity. That's the general explanation for how Magic works.'
I recalled all I had read thus far. 'There are several types of magic, including Elemental, Personal, and Null. There are nine varieties of Elemental Magic: Water, Earth, Nature, Wind, Fire, Ice, Lightning, Light, and Dark. Personal Magic is exactly what it sounds like. A sort of magic in which one may develop a spell that can only be performed by oneself; others are unable to do it. Null Magic also has varieties. Such as: Void, Time, Space, and Gravity.'
I rubbed my forehead since my head was aching now. It was difficult to remember everything word for word, but I had to. After all, if I were to defend my freedom, I would need to become powerful and educated. Otherwise, I would be unable to keep my promises to myself.
"Wait... I can just use the Memory Palace technique to make all of the absurd memorizing easy for me, and it was originally the trick I had in mind before I forgot about it!" As that idea occurred to me, I jumped from my seat out of happiness and excitement.
A memory palace is a mnemonic method that enhances memory retention and recall. It entails mentally storing information to be recalled in precise areas inside an imagined physical environment, such as a palace or structure, and then mentally "walking" through that space to retrieve the information as needed.
With such a method, memorizing something and retaining the memorization is going to be a walk in the park. Not to mention, My Final Boss Skill [Sinner's Desire]. [Sinner's Desire] allows the user to create an entirely new skill if desired. But there's a condition. This ability can only be used once without any consequences. If any attempt is made to use it again, then the user is going to lose their sanity completely.
'In the Novel, Amon used this skill 2 times which resulted in him turning evil. He chose to give in to the temptation of using it two times, due to which, the skill consuming him completely.' I sighed as I thought of Amon's tragic fate which was shown in the novel, but I can't allow myself to feel sorry for him. After all, I am the one who is now him, or Amon. The person who got a second chance. And the person who will change this novel's retarded philosophy and conclusion.
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It had been a week since I was reincarnated into Amon's body. I've been working tirelessly to complete the task assigned to me by the 'System', and I've made significant progress. By the first day, I had memorized ten books thanks to the Memory Palace Method and the skill [No Longer Human], which I created with my Final Boss ability.
[No Longer Human] lets my brain function at a level that would otherwise be impossible to achieve. When I used it, I was able to remember a book in 35 seconds while just looking at its pages once. After I stopped doing so, I was able to remember exactly what was written on every page. Not only that but [No Longer Human] enables me to perform intricate calculations such as Fermat's Last Calculation in only seconds. And the calculation was entirely accurate. This skill does one additional thing. Every time I use this skill, I become significantly smarter than I was previously.
However, there is a drawback to this skill. I can only use it once every twenty hours. This means I was only able to use this talent six times throughout the week. Plus, I can only utilize this talent for four minutes. This drawback was allocated by the 'System'.
'Alright! Just two books are remaining to be memorized. And I no longer must use [No Longer Human] to memorize them since I've advanced to the point where I can memorize a 200-page book in 4 minutes. The latter two books have 456 and 529 pages, respectively. So it will take me roughly 20 minutes to memorise both books. And I still have one hour to accomplish that task.' I thought to myself as I rose from my seat and exited the Dining Hall.
I had just completed my breakfast and went directly to the Library. It would have been preferable to wait a little longer and eat breakfast with Sophia and Emilia, but I don't have much time left. I needed to complete the task as quickly as possible.
Sophia opened the Library door right before I was going to do so. She maintained her usual cold look and authoritative aura. But I did notice something else. Her cold look had a faint touch of intrigue. If I had to guess, she seemed interested in my recent visits and time spent at the library.
"Good morning, Elder Sister," I said calmly and politely, smiling at her. "What brings you here at this time of the morning?" I inquired quietly, gazing at her with a calm smile. "I could ask you the same question, Amon," she said sharply, her gaze cold. She made it obvious that she would not allow any questions other than the ones she asked.
"Ah, my mistake. I apologize for being rude." I chuckled gently in response to her comment. "Elder Sister, I'm developing my expertise in a variety of subjects. Magic, History, Literature, Swordsmanship, etc. It's interesting to discover new stuff." I spoke gently while looking at her with a calm expression.
I have to admit that I am significantly more in control of my emotions than I was in my previous life, thanks to the extra effect of [No Longer Human] making me more intelligent every time I use it. If people don't pay close attention to me, they won't be able to know I have a severe hatred for her. Even if they might conclude from their observations that I despise Sophia, the manner I treated her would show them false.
"Amon, I'm not sure what changed you or what you're up to, but I was here to tell you about the Duel. Mother has ordered you to participate in the Duel, even if you do not want to." She said coldly, looking at me with the same face as usual.
I was anticipating this from the start. After all, as the Final Boss, I am the one who has to suffer the most. I let out a small sigh after hearing her words. "It seems like the old hag isn't going to make you the Head without legitimacy," I spoke calmly as I looked at her with a calm smile.
Sophia looked shocked at first, but then she grabbed my collar and threw me into the wall next to me. Her face was full of cold anger, and her eyes were predatory. "Be careful with your words, Amon. Just because you've changed your attitude doesn't mean you can disrespect Mother." She threatened me, her voice full of cold anger.
"Do I seem like I care about it? She is forcing me to participate in this Duel because she does not want your validity as the Crown Family's Head questioned. People will be sceptical when they learn that I willingly stepped aside from the competition to make you the Head of the Crown Family. They would never accept that I stood down voluntarily and would instead assume that I was forced to. Mother does not want that." I spoke mockingly, grinning at her. I then used the Earth-Elemental Magic [Reinforce] to strengthen my body and break away from her hold.
Sophia was even more surprised by what I had just done.
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'Did Amon really just cast an Intermediate Grade Earth-Elemental Spell?' Sophia thought as she looked at Amon in bewilderment. She was attempting to comprehend what was going on before Amon decided to speak.
"Elder Sister, if you would excuse me, I have some reading left to do." He talked calmly as he strolled by Sophia and into the library. "If you have anything else to say, then say it at the Arena." He looked back at Sophia casually, as if nothing had occurred, before closing the Library door.
Sophia stood there, astonished. Not only did her 'pathetic' brother cast an Intermediate Grade Earth-Elemental Spell on her, but he also casually ignored her as if she had no relevance to him. Everything confused her beyond belief. She wasn't sure whether she should be angry or surprised by this behaviour, but she eventually decided to ignore it and go to her room.
'It looks like today's Duel will be very interesting. I'm curious to see how capable Amon truly is. I may have to take him seriously if I am to win the Duel against him.' She thought to herself as she made her way to her room. She appeared to be motivated to defeat Amon, whom she had previously labelled as 'Pathetic' and 'Weak-willed'.
'Things are going to get much more exciting.' As she contemplated, she smiled mischievously.
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"Tch, What a time waste," I murmured as I approached the place I had sat in every day for the previous seven. It looks like I have no option but to face Sophia in the Duel of Succession. I originally wanted to skip this section of the story since doing so would have prevented Sophia from meeting the Female Lead, or Main Character, and the interaction between the two, which attracted Sophia's interest in the Female MC.
'Oh well, It doesn't matter. I'll just do the task and face Sophia with my new Custom Skill that the 'System' would award me for accomplishing it.' I thought to myself as I sat down and opened one of the two books I needed to remember. It was named 'Skills: Classifications and History'.
'I believe the novel included some explanations of what Skills are and how they work. The frustrating aspect is that I have no idea. Some of my recollections of this novel appear to be hidden by the System. I can just recall Sophia developing romantic feelings for the female MC. Some other facts, such as the name of the female MC and the sorts of skills available in this world, are not in my recollection!' I beat my fist on the table, thinking to myself. I was honestly annoyed by it.
Taking a deep breath, I decided not to worry about it too much and instead concentrate on performing the task assigned to me by the System. After approximately ten minutes, I finished reading the book. 'I should do a synopsis of what I've just read. That way, I'll remember it easier and spare myself a lot of trouble.' I thought.
'Skills are abilities that may be acquired by anybody who meets specific requirements. If they do, The 'System' awards them the Skill as a sort of recognition for their own development. There are three categories of skills. Skills can be classified as Normal, Special, or Requiem. There are several other sorts of Skills as well, including Inherent Skills, Additional Skills, and Defence Skills. Normal Skills may be earned by anyone with moderate effort and hard work, and they are simple to get. Normal Skills cannot grow into Special Skills, with a few exceptions. Special skills may be acquired with a strong will and a strong desire. They are quite different and strong when compared to Normal Skills, and they express one's inner nature. When certain conditions are met, it can develop into a Requiem Skill.'
I took a deep breath and resumed my inner monologue about Skills. 'Requiem Skills, on the other hand, are so broken that they can rewrite the laws of the world. Furthermore, Requiem Skill users are immune to Magic unless it is of the highest calibre. In a way, Requiem Skills render their user indestructible. In most circumstances, Requiem Skills cannot be affected by Normal or Special Skills. A Requiem Skill is only countered by another Requiem Skill. Inherent skills should be self-explanatory. They might be present from birth or develop as a result of physiology. Additional Skills are included in Special Skills, making them more difficult to earn than Normal Skills, while Defence Skills exist only to provide resistance to other Skills or Magic.' I ended my inner monologue and gazed up at the ceiling.
'I believe there are less than 100 Requiem Skill users in this world... Oh well. I shouldn't worry about it too much and concentrate on learning the remaining book.' I took up the last book, thinking to myself. The last book was titled 'Summons Guide'. '... I am disappointed with the author for using such an unoriginal title for this book.' I stared at the book with a deadpan expression on my face.
But suddenly something clicked in my head. I realized I had forgotten everything about Summons.
'Wait, Wait! Summons! Those are really crucial! And it's what keeps the Female MC going throughout the novel. She possessed skills, but it was stated that she was unable to use them. However, during the final confrontation against Amon, the Female MC was able to use her skills against him, contradicting the entire statement. That was the most shameless use of Plot Armor I've ever read.' I had a deadpan look after recalling what I had just remembered.
I began reading the 'Summons Guide' and discovered a wealth of material that wasn't mentioned in the novel. "You can summon Ancient Class Summons through a Summoning Circle but the chances of it happening are quite slim." As I silently read those sentences, I understood I had encountered something new. It was not mentioned in the novel. 'I thought there were only six tiers of Magic and five tiers of Summons? Because that's what the novel said. I didn't think there would be another tier of Summons.' I was taken aback as I considered this. But I didn't dwell on it too long and concentrated on memorizing the 'Summons Guide'. After I finished, I decided to conduct another mental summary before hearing a knock at the door.
I approached the door, and as I opened it, I discovered a guard waiting outside. "Lord Amon, your mother has sent you a message. She has asked you to arrive at the Arena immediately." The guard spoke professionally and bowed politely. "… Alright, I'll be there in a moment" I spoke calmly as I looked at him with a calm expression. "You can go now." I moved by him, dismissing him calmly.
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There were many people at the Arena. Of course, there will be. After all, it was the day that the new Head of the Crown Family would be appointed. The majority of them were nobles from various families. It makes sense, given that the Crown Family is the most powerful and prominent family after the Empress of Riversong herself. Of course, the Empress was present to see the Crown Family's Succession Duel.
"Who do you think will win the Duel for Succession?" An aristocratic woman had posed the inquiry. "Isn't this obvious? Sophia Von Crown, the eldest daughter, will win! After all, she has demonstrated some outstanding abilities and has proven to be the most capable person to succeed Emilia Von Crown!" Another aristocratic woman responded warmly. There was a lot of whispering from the audience. It appears that the majority of them felt confident Sophia would win the Duel for Succession.
But, oddly, Sophia believed otherwise. She was standing in the Arena, waiting for Amon, but also reflecting on what happened when Amon easily released himself from her clutches. The same Amon would have struggled and begged her to let him go. But to her amazement, the reverse had happened.
'Even if he has changed his mindset and grown marginally stronger, that doesn't imply he can defeat me in a serious fight. I'll terminate it before he has a chance to attack.' She thought to herself as she glanced at her confidently smiling mother, Emilia, who was sitting in the Arena's VIP Section. Emilia was sitting in the VIP section with the Empress and her family.
Sophia then sensed someone behind her back and performed a roundhouse kick as a reaction. "As expected, your reflex is quite excellent," Amon spoke lightly as he gazed at her with a calm expression. He blocked the kick without much effort. Everyone in the Audience Seats was astonished since they hadn't seen Amon emerge from the Arena's entrance. So, where has he come from?
"You can use [Flashstep] now? That is admirable, especially for someone like you." Sophia said bluntly and looked at Amon with a cold face. Hearing this, Amon laughed quietly. He seemed to have been having a good time rather than paying attention to what his opponent had to say.
Emilia then stood from her seat and summoned something that looked eerily similar to a microphone. "The Duel for Succession will begin shortly. Participants, Go to your separate locations, and when I provide the signal, begin the combat. Remember, the goal is to knock out your opponent or force them to give up. Using any attack that could seriously injure your opponent is strictly prohibited." She proclaimed in a strong, clear voice that could be heard across the arena.
Hearing her words, Amon and Sophia assumed their positions, facing each other. Emilia then snapped her fingers, causing a fireworks display to appear over the arena. "Start your fights!" As soon as she stated it, the Duel began.
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'She is more bothersome than I expected.' I thought to myself as I evaded an Advanced-Grade Fire Spell called 'Flame Barrage'. I planned to overcome Sophia. An approach that will destroy her entirely.